David the Deliverer – 1 Samuel 23

David’s life was filled with stress. Hiding from the king was no easy task. Narrow escapes and dangerous trips were frequent events. Having been a shepherd, he was used to the rough wilderness. It was there that he and his company took refuge.

Transition

This evening, I borrowed the headings in my outline come from Warren Wiersbe. The Bible Exposition Commentary In this section, David is involved in three deliveries. Studying these deliveries, we find several helpful principles for our daily lives.

David Delivers Keilah from the Philistines (23:1-6)

Here we see that David prayed for guidance
1. Keilah was a border town of Judah not far from the Philistine town of Gath. It was grain harvest and the Philistine armies were attacking and robbing threshingfloors.
  1. A threshing floor was a flat rock or packed ground where grain was beaten out of the stalks either by hand or by animals pulling a sled over it.
  2. To lose their grain would cause certain hunger and hardship.
2. David here and asked the Lord if he and his men should go deliver Keilah (23:2). The Lord said, “Yes”.
3. David’s men were afraid (23:3), so he prayed again and got the same answer (23:4).
David delivered Keilah
1. David’s army defeated the Philistine army (23:5).
2. After the battle, they gained much spoil.
  ☆ David had learned the value of praying before acting. We do not know exactly how God made known His will to David, but today God often gives peace, along with direction from the Bible and godly counsel. Whether you are making a big or small decision, it is always wise to seek the Lord’s will through prayer.
  (Proverbs 2:1-6) “My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.”
  (Psalms 25:4-5) “Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.”

David Delivers Himself and His Men from Saul (23:7-29)

Saul planned an attack on David
1. Note Saul’s hypocritical religious talk (23:7).
2. Saul called all the people together for war (23:8).
David suspects trouble and takes action
1. Again, David prayed for wisdom and guidance (23:9-12).
  ² An ephod was a short sleeveless linen garment, something like a long shirt or coat. It was a common piece of Hebrew clothing, but in most cases where the Bible mentions an ephod the reference is to an article of the high priest’s dress. Sometimes a priest was asked to ‘bring the ephod’. This was because within the flat pouch, or breastpiece, on the front of the ephod were two objects, the Urim and the Thummim, which the priest used to find out God’s will. Bridgeway Bible Dictionary
2. David and his (now 600) men escaped from Keilah (23:13)
3. Saul continued to seek David’s life every day (23:14).
4. Jonathan found David in Ziph and strengthened his hand in God (23:16-18). Finding David was no easy task. If Saul had found out, Jonathan would have been in big trouble. Jonathan took the risk to be a blessing to his friend. This is the last recorded visit between these close friends. Jonathan is not mentioned again until his death on the battlefield.
  (Proverbs 27:9) “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel.”
  ☆ Jonathan was a godly friend. He visited David during trying times. He calmed and encouraged David. He knew God’s will and humbly submitted to it. He was a loyal friend to David. Each of us needs to become a friend more like Jonathan. Let’s ask God to develop these qualities in our lives.
  (Romans 12:10) “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;”
  (1Thessalonians 5:11) “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.”
5. The Ziphites told Saul where David was hiding and Saul went to Ziph to get him (23:19). This time, God delivered David by causing the Philistines to invade Israel (23:27-29).

David Delivers Saul from Death (24:1-22)

Saul resumed his hunt for David
1. This began as soon as the battle with the Philistines ended (24:1). David and his company were hiding in the rough wilderness of En-gedi (24:2).
2. Saul stopped for a rest in the very cave in which David and his company were hiding (24:3). Either it was a huge cave or David only had a few of his men with him at the time.
3. David’s men urged him to kill Saul, but instead he only cut off the hem of his robe (24:4). Even that troubled David (24:5). David had great respect for God’s anointed (24:6). God blessed David for this.
  ☆ Saul was the anointed leader of the land. He was far from perfect, yet David respected him because he was God’s man for the job. We too must be respectful to God-appointed leadership over us, whether it is your parent, your husband, your pastor, or a government official. Speak to them with respect and honour their position, even when they are not perfect.
  (Hebrews 13:7) “Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.”
David spoke to Saul
1. After Saul left the cave, David called out to him and asked him to stop hunting him (24:9-15).
  1. Note his words in 24:12. He was waiting for the Lord to avenge Saul’s evil.
  2. In all this, David remained humble before Saul (24:14).
    ☆ When someone is mistreating us, the best thing we can do is to give the situation to the Lord. He will deal with it fairly and accurately.
    (Romans 12:19) “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”
2. Saul was emotionally touched to think that David had not killed him (24:16-19).
3. Saul admitted that he knew God had chosen David to be the next king (24:20).
4. Saul begged David to swear that he would not destroy his entire family what he took the throne (24:21-22).

Conclusion

From this section, we have been reminded of several important principles. 1) We should always pray before making decisions. Carefully seek God’s will. Be sure your choice lines up with the Bible. Seek counsel from Godly people. 2) Ask God to make you a friend like Jonathan. Be an encourager, helper, and edifier to others. 3) Be careful how you treat God’s anointed – those appointed by God as your leaders. Show them due respect. 4) Do not take revenge on those who mistreat you. Let God settle the score His way.

Song: Take My Life and Let – 393
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David the Deliverer
2 August 2015 PM – 1 Samuel 23-24 – Life of David – Scott Childs