An Unlikely Mercy | 1 Samuel 24
1 Samuel 24 (ESV)
1 When Saul returned from following the Philistines, he was told, “Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.” 2 Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the Wildgoats’ Rocks. 3 And he came to the sheepfolds by the way, where there was a cave, and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. 4 And the men of David said to him, “Here is the day of which the Lord said to you, ‘Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.’” Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. 5 And afterward David’s heart struck him, because he had cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. 6 He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the Lord’s anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the Lord’s anointed.” 7 So David persuaded his men with these words and did not permit them to attack Saul. And Saul rose up and left the cave and went on his way.
1 Samuel So Far (TL;DR edition)
1. Hannah’s Prayer and Samuel’s Origin Story
2. Saul’s Rise to Kingship
3. Saul’s Rejection of Yahweh; Yahweh’s Rejection of Saul
4. David’s Anointing and Ascension
5. David as a Fugitive
Inclusio or Literary Insertion Pattern
(AXB) (broken construct chain)
1 Samuel 21-22
A Nob
–> X Adullah
B Nob
1 Samuel 23
A betrayal at Keilah
–> X loyalty of Jonathan
B betrayal at Ziph
1 Samuel 24-26
A 1Sa24 David spares Saul
–> X 1Sa25 David spares Nabal (“evil idiot”)
B 1Sa26 David spares Saul
Engedi
עֵ֥ין גֶּֽדִי,
ein gediy
“spring” “goat”
Hebrew Word Scramble
- עֵ֥ין גֶּֽדִי, ein gediy (Engedi)
- גַּן־עֵדֶן gan eden (Garden of Eden)
1 Samuel 15:27-28 (ESV)
As Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of his robe, and it tore. And Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you.
“Why was David so upset with himself for merely cutting off a corner of King Saul’s robe? This does not sound as if it is any big deal.
David had a high regard for the fact that Saul was God’s anointed person holding the office of king. Saul’s anointing signified the election of God. Therefore, David vowed that he would do nothing to intervene to vindicate himself or to remove Saul from that office unless God did so.
The best explanation of David’s sudden pang of conscience was that he viewed the violation of Saul’s robe as equivalent to violating Saul’s very person. Since David held that the office that Saul occupied was something sacrosanct and from the Lord, even this small token—taken as evidence that even though they had occupied the same cave together he had not tried to take Saul’s life—was itself blameworthy.”
“24:5 Why Was David Upset That He Had Cut Saul’s Clothing?” Hard Sayings of the Bible, 216–217. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996.
1 Samuel 24:16-22 (ESV)
As soon as David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, “Is this your voice, my son David?” And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. He said to David, “You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me good, whereas I have repaid you evil. And you have declared this day how you have dealt well with me, in that you did not kill me when the Lord put me into your hands. For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go away safe? So may the Lord reward you with good for what you have done to me this day. And now, behold, I know that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand. Swear to me therefore by the Lord that you will not cut off my offspring after me, and that you will not destroy my name out of my father’s house.” And David swore this to Saul. Then Saul went home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.
You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.
You’re on your own, and you know what, you know.
And you are the guy who’ll decide where to go.
~ Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You Will Go!
1 Samuel 20:14-17 (ESV)
If I am still alive, show me the steadfast love of the Lord, that I may not die; and do not cut off your steadfast love from my house forever, when the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.” And Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “May the Lord take vengeance on David’s enemies.” And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
Acts 7:58 (ESV)
Then they cast him (Stephen) out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
Acts 8:1-3 (ESV)
And Saul approved of his execution.
And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.
“God’s mercy is so great that you may sooner drain the sea of its water, or deprive the sun of his light, or make space too narrow, than diminish the great mercy of God.”
~ Charles Spurgeon
COMMUNITY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1) Read 1 Samuel 24 together. What jumps out to you as the reader? Encouraging? Convicting? Confusing?
2) There just might be a parallel between 1 Samuel 24 and way back to Genesis 3. Do you see an echo of the temptation of Adam and Eve? Did David pass where Adam and Eve had failed? How would Jesus eventually do even better than David in this test?
3) When have you presumed (based on circumstances) that God was doing one thing (either good or bad), only to find out that all wasn’t as it seemed? How can you discern rightly, as David did, instead of relying on the voices/opinions/wisdom of those around you?
4) When are you tempted to take justice out of God’s hands and into your own? How can you use David’s example and words to help you let God be Judge?
5) We don’t have God-“anointed” leaders today as it was during David’s time. But we still have leaders put over us. Read 1 Peter 2:13-17 or Romans 13:1-7. How do you feel about these verses in light of David’s attitude toward God’s anointed. Agree? Disagree?
6) Pray for and with one another.