I Samuel Chapters 25-27: Samuel’s Death….
David’s New Wife….and Saul’s Second Reprieve
Merciful Lord, Thank You for the mercy and compassion that You constantly extend to us. Through Your Holy Spirit, enable and motivate us to better extend that same compassion and mercy to the people whose lives touch ours on a daily basis…..and not only the people who are easy to like and serve, but to those persons who are more difficult and disappointing. As we’ll see today in our study of Your Word, David extended mercy to his enemies, because He wanted to please You by living righteously, rather than seek vengeance on others. He trusted totally in You to direct his life and to bless his efforts to be merciful…..and so he set a good example for us to follow. Send an added gift of Your Holy Spirit to us now as we search Your Word, that we might do it responsibly and faithfully, and that we might be Spiritually blessed through this time that we are about to spend in the Scriptures, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
“19 You know my disgrace, my shame, and my confusion. All my foes are in front of You. 20 Disgrace has broken my heart, and I am helpless. I waited for sympathy, but there was none. I waited for comforters, but I did not find any. ….Add guilt to their guilt. Do not let them enter into Your righteousness. 28 May they be erased from the Book of Life. May they not be listed among the righteous. 29 But I am afflicted and in pain. O God, may salvation from You set me on high. 30 I will praise God’s name in song. I will proclaim His greatness with thanksgiving. 31 For the Lord this is better than an ox, than a bull that has horns and hoofs. 32 The poor will see and be glad. You who seek God, may your hearts live!’ Psalm 69:19-20, 27-32 (a Psalm of David)
Saul did not fail the LORD because He failed to defeat Israel’s enemies, nor did he fail when it came to establishing the monarchy and an effective central government for God’s people (14:52). Saul failed the LORD because he stubbornly persisted in disobeying God’s commands and expectations. He put his will above God’s will by choosing to do “what was right in his own eyes” instead of what was “right in God’s eyes.”
Each day we also face the reoccurring temptation to choose between what is right and what is wrong in God’s sight. Often, we choose what seems good to us, but what God says is wrong. And so, we have a little (and sometimes a lot) of Saul in us. And that should make the story of Saul especially personal and meaningful for each of us.
Chapter 25: The Death of Samuel and the Story of Nabal and Abigail
The Old Testament Apocryphal book of Sirach (46:13-15, 19-20) says the following about Samuel: “13 Samuel was the beloved of his Lord; prophet of the Lord, he instituted the kingdom, and anointed rulers over his people. 14 By the Law of the Lord he judged the assembly, and the Lord watched over Jacob. 15 By his loyalty he was recognized as a prophet, by his words he was known to be a trustworthy seer… 19 Before the time of his everlasting rest he bore witness to the Lord and his anointed, “Of no property, not even a pair of sandals, have I ever deprived a soul.” Nor did anyone accuse him. 20 And, having fallen asleep, he prophesied again, warning the king of his end; he spoke from the depths of the earth in prophecy, to blot out the wickedness of the people.” (Sirach isn’t part of the inspired Scriptures, but it still offers this useful information for our benefit.)
1 Samuel 25:1-8 Samuel’s death and David’s appeal to Nabal
Samuel’s story began and ends at Ramah, the hometown of his parents (1 Sam 1:19). With Samuel having passed away, David must have felt more isolated than ever. Samuel might have been the only one who actually understood David’s true calling to be Israel’s future king. After Samuel’s death, David and his associates went into the desert of Maon, hoping it would be a safe haven for them from Saul’s relentless pursuit. The region of Maon was named for one of the descendants of Caleb (Joshua 15:55). Maon was one of several descendants of Caleb, all of whose given names are also place-names (1 Chronicles 2:42-50) that were located within a six to twelve mile radius of Hebron, the city and surrounding territory that had been awarded to Caleb and his descendants because of Caleb’s faithfulness and heroism.
Nabal was probably a descendant of Caleb. Unfortunately, Nabal, a wealthy landowner, inherited none of his ancestor’s good qualities. The season of sheep-shearing occurred in the spring. It was a festive time in which some of the sheep were slaughtered and communal feasts were celebrated. David sent his respectful greetings to Nabal and humbly made the request asking that he might share some of the bounty of his flocks with David and his men. No specific amount was mentioned. David left the exact amount of the gift up to the generosity of Nabal…who, presumedly was an older man. A reasonable justification for David’s request was that, when he and his men were camped near Nabal’s flocks alongside the oasis of En-Gedi, David’s men did not take any of the sheep but instead protected the shepherds and their sheep from thieves and predators. Therefore, it would be an appropriate gesture of gratitude for Nabal to compensate David and his men for their protection of his shepherds and flocks, by rewarding their efforts with some food and drink.
1 Samuel 25:9-13 Nabal’s reply to David’s Men
Rather than be grateful for the service and support of David and his men, Nabal rather sarcastically referred to David as a nobody who was only “the son of Jesse” (just like Saul often disparagingly described David). Nabal’s attitude suggests that he was a difficult, selfish man who generally had contempt for anyone beneath him on the established social hierarchy. He even dares to suggest that David is little more than a servant (or slave) who has run away from his master. David, for all of his virtues and in spite of God’s favor, was not a saint in his disposition, by any stretch of the imagination. The warrior in him rose to the surface, since David was deeply offended by Nabal’s ingratitude and rudeness. He felt that Nabal’s clear insults required him to defend his honor and reputation, and so David intended to take his revenge on a man whom he believed had declared himself to be David’s enemy.
1 Samuel 25:14-17 The Shepherds inform Abigail of Nabal’s rudeness to David
The young men who are Nabal’s shepherds realized that their master’s response to David’s request was not only rude but dangerous. They informed Nabal’s wife, Abigail, of the kindness of David’s men. Emphasizing that David and his men served as “a wall of protection” (in literal Hebrew), they asked Abigail to take action herself in order to avert what was about to become a catastrophic situation. At this point David was still enraged and was threatening to kill everyone who “urinates against the wall” (the literal Hebrew translation in verses 22 and 34)….in other words, in his anger, David intended to slaughter Nabal and every other male in his employ.
That phrase, “urinates against the wall,” is, in Hebrew, a crude epithet for “male” that, unfortunately, perfectly fit David’s frame of mind in that moment. This phrase occurs only in curses and only six times in Scripture (1 Samuel 25:22, 34; 1 Kings 14:10; 16:11; 21:21; 2 Kings 9:8). It can also be translated more vividly as “pisses against the wall” (see the King James Version).
1 Samuel 25:18-35 Abigail’s Intervention
You can almost imagine the suspense building as the two parties on the same mountain path come closer and closer to each other: angry David and his men, who were out for Nabal’s blood; and Nabal’s brave and beautiful wife, Abigail, who was heading toward David with her provisions. At first David didn’t see her, since she was coming over the sheltered side of the mountain, but she saw him and his men, armed with swords and ready for a fight. Before he caught sight of Abigail David was very angry and was thinking how he was going to get his revenge on Nabal for insulting him and his men.
As she approached David and his men, Abigail had no way of knowing whether or not they would immediately kill her. And so, the first thing she did was bow down before David, and then immediately take the blame for her husband’s rudeness. David, of course, realized that she was not responsible for Nabal’s words, but he wass impressed by her courage and her honesty. Abigail said that her husband was the epitome of foolishness. (It’s probably not that her husband’s name originally meant “fool” or “foolishness,” but – over time – Nabal’s story naturally accommodated the meanint of that word as “fool” in Hebrew.) Obviously, Abigail had some “issues” with her husband and his behavior, not only toward David, but very likely over against her as well. He might have been materially wealthy, but Nabal was dirt poor when it came to having a good, winsome personality.
Even though she’s made it quite clear that her husband was the guilty party who had caused all the trouble, Abigail in verse 28 again takes responsibility for Nabal’s words. Perhaps Abigail – along with, probably, many other Israelites – had heard about David having been anointed by Samuel and so, that she knew that he was the nation’s future king. Consequently, she appealed to him not to jeopardize his reputation and his future by committing the unjust act of killing Nabal because his words had offended David. If he had done so, David would have been guilty of violating God’s “law of retribution.” It taught that the punishment must fit the crime. Of course, in addition to affecting adversely his reputation, David would have been sinning against God had he taken Nabal’s life, and that might have incurred God’s judgment against David….something David (and no one else) needed. A wise woman indeed, Abigail cooled David’s anger through her gift of provisions for him and his men, as well as by her humility. She also shows her rather impressive character through the sound advice that she has the courage to offer David. She advised David that he should leave this matter of teaching Nabal “a lesson” in God’s hands, where it belonged. (That’s also true for us: rather than seek revenge against others, let’s let the Lord deal with our adversaries!) Finally, whenever God does deal with Nabal, Abigal asked David to please remember her.
The term “wallet or pouch of life” possibly conveys the idea that God holds the righteous close to Him like a person keeps precious treasures safe in a pouch, purse or wallet. It could be a reference to the pouches that shepherds used to keep a “stone tally” of all the sheep under their care. In a similar sense, God graciously kept David (and keeps us) close to Him. This metaphorical image of God’s pouch is similar the image of God’s Book of Life that contains the names of those who are the recipients of everlasting life in heaven (see Ps 69:28; Is 4:3; Dan 12:1 and Rev 3:5).
1 Samuel 25:36-44 Nabal’s Fate and David’s generosity to Abigail
When Abigail returned home, she found that her husband was drunk on wine. The next morning Abigail told Nabal what had happened during her meeting with David. Nabal was urinating as he listened to her. Learning that David had been on his way with four hundred armed men and had been prepared to kill every man in his household so shocked Nabal that he had what was probably a heart attack (“his heart died within him”). He died ten days later.
The inspired writer(s) might have made a pun on Nabal’s clan name (Nabal is a “kalibi” or Calebite. The word Caleb means “dog” in Hebrew). That would be due to David’s threat to punish every man who “urinates against a wall” like a dog. The writer(s) almost certainly employed a pun by using the Hebrew word for wineskin, nebel, over against Nabal’s name. Here’s one more unusual facet to this account: the wine Nabal drank the night before at the banquet was kept in a wineskin. Wineskins at that time were made from the bladders of animals. And it was when Nabal was emptying his bladder that God’s judgment fell upon him. Hmmm.
Obviously David was impressed with Abigail’s courage, her intelligence, and her beauty. Once she became a widow David remembered her, just as she had requested, and so he proposed marriage to Abigail, who accepted his offer. Another aspect of her impressive character is that, in accepting David’s offer to be his wife, Abigal showed that she was willing to leave her wealthy and secure life in order to live an uncertain life as the wife of an outlaw – all because she believed David was God’s anointed. Technically, at this point, David had two wives…..although his first wife, Saul’s daughter, Michal, had been given by Saul in marriage to another man. Saul’s intent was likely to “disconnect” himself and his family from David.
Chapter 26: David Spares Saul’s Life a Second Time
For the choir director. With stringed instruments. A maskil by David. When the Ziphites went and said to Saul, “Isn’t David hiding himself with us?”
1 God, save me by Your name. By Your power judge me justly. 2 God, hear my prayer. Turn Your ear to the words of my mouth. 3 For strangers have risen up against me. Ruthless men seek my life. They pay no attention to God. 4 Indeed, God is my Helper. The Lord is the One Who preserves my life. 5 Let evil return on those who oppress me. In Your faithfulness destroy them. 6 I will sacrifice willingly to You. I will praise Your name, O Lord, because it is good. 7 Surely, from all my distress He has delivered me. My eyes have looked down on my enemies.
1 Samuel 26:1-5 David is betrayed by some men from Ziph
Some men from Ziph went to Saul and offered to betray David. Like Nabal, the Ziphites were also descendants of Caleb, who, along with Joshua, was one of the great heros of the conquest (Joshua 14:6-15; Judges 1:10-15; 1 Chronicles 4:16), as well as a clan leader within the tribe of Judah. The city of Ziph was located in the hill country of southern Judah (Joshua 15:55). It also gave its name to the Judean wilderness between the city and the Dead Sea at En-Gedi (1 Samuel 23:14-15, 24; 26:2). Any remorse that Saul might have had for the hateful way he had treated David (24:17-22) and any gratitude he felt for David having spared his life was short-lived. By this time Saul was back to relentlessly hunting down David and his men with an army of three thousand men, compared to David’s six hundred. The Hill of Hachilah remains an unknown site located somewhere in the wilderness of southern Judah not far from the city of Hebron. David hid from Saul there (I Samuel 23:19; 26:1), and Saul pitched his camp there. Talk about a “close call” for David! Saul might have been searching for Saul, but David had better scouts and spies working for him…and, most important, He had God protecting Him. He ends up locating Saul’s camp before Saul finds him.
Abner, the commander of Saul’s troops, was the son of Ner, and the cousin of Saul. (I Samuel 14:50-51 and 26:5). All in all, Abner was a very honorable man, who loyally served Saul and his family. Years later, after he became king of all Israel, David even offered Abner the position of commanding general of his army.
1 Samuel 26:6-12 David goes down into Saul’s Camp
One of the men serving David was a Hittite by the name of Ahimelech. The term “Hittite” could either refer to someone from the land of Canaan (the “sons of Heth”) or someone from an at-one-time-forgotten empire that originated in Anatolia (Turkey). For many centuries historians could only speculate about the existence of the Hittite Empire. (Most dismissed it as a fabrication.) But during the 19th century archaeologists working in the eastern mountains (Anatolia) of modern day Turkey made a number of important discoveries that not only proved that the Hittite Empire existed, but also that it was quite extensive and prosperous. In fact, the Hittites were the dominant power in the Near East during the 15th through 13th centuries B.C. That David had this non-Israelite serving in his inner circle of trusted warriors (Uriah the Hittite would be another example) indicates that he welcomed foreigners who chose to align themselves with him and his God.
Zeruiah was one of David’s elder sisters. Her sons – Abishai, Joab, and Asahel (1 Chronicles 2:11-16) – were David’s nephews. But probably they were all around the same age. David made them unit commanders in his small army. All three were included in a special group of 37 warriors immortalized as “David’s Mighty Men of Valor” (2 Samuel 23:8–38). Eventually, Joab became David’s commanding general once David became king. All three men were courageous, and incredibly loyal to David. Abishai and Asahel were quite impetuous, while Joab was both ruthless and calculating.
In verses 7-8, we’re told that Abishai volunteered to accompany David on a reconnaissance mission into Saul’s camp. Once there, Abishai suggested that God has put Saul into David’s hands expressly for the purpose of putting Saul to death. His words echo the words of David’s men when they discovered Saul alone in a cave in chapter 24. Abishai boasted that it will only take one blow for him to “pin him [Saul] to the ground” with Saul’s own spear. One can’t easily miss the irony of that statement, as it connects this incident to the two times that Saul had tried to “pin David to the wall” with the same spear (I Samuel 18:11 and 19:10).
However, David ordered his nephew not to raise his hand against Saul, since he remained the LORD’s anointed. That order so shocked Abishai that he felt it was necessary to explain to David that God would judge Saul, and that his death would be in God’s hands. David was unmoved. Instead, he told Abishai to take Saul’s spear and the pitcher of water that was by his head, and that they were then going to leave the camp. But then David ends up taking them himself, probably because he thought that it would have been too much of a temptation for the impetuous Abishai to have Saul’s spear in his hands, and be so close to Saul. The reason David took Saul’s spear and the pitcher of water was that he intended to use it as another proof that, having entered Saul’s camp, he had spared Saul’s life….in spite of the fact that Saul was relentlessly pursuing him with the goal of killing him. No one in the camp (including Saul, of course) woke up while they were in the camp,, because the LORD had once again intervened to directly help David.
1 Samuel 26:13-20 David addresses Saul’s Camp
Once he left Saul’s camp, David moved to the safety of the opposite side of the gorge where Saul and his men were. From a prominent location he called out to Abner, Saul’s commanding general. All their troops were deep in sleep, since it was still dark – either in the middle of the night, or very early in the morning. Abner, waking from his God-induced sleep, heard the sound of David’s voice and demanded to know exactly who dared to disturb the king’s rest. It’s rather interesting that David chose to call out to Abner, instead of Saul. He did that to publicly hold Abner accountable for David’s incursion into their camp, since – as Saul’s commander – Abner had a sown duty to protect the king.
In verse 16, the word “you” is plural and so most translators have added “all” in order to properly convey to the reader the fact that David was accusing Saul’s personal bodyguard and the commander of his army of negligence. This idea of a death sentence against Saul’s entire security detail seems a bit “over the top,” but David’s words also imply that Abner and his men have actually, actively been involved in Saul’s persecution of innocent people….like David, himself…..and so they deserve to be held accountable for their transgressions and abusive behavior toward others. In fact, years later, Abner – whom David nevertheless respects as an honorable man – will end up dying a violent death at the hands of David’s cousin, and staunch ally, Joab.
In verse 17, once he recognizes David’s voice, Saul calls out “Is this your voice, David, my son?” Once again, Saul calls “affectionately” to David. In fact, he uses the identical words that he spoke in his last meeting with David outside the cave near En-Gedi. But his words mean just as much now as they did in 24:17….which is nothing. Nevertheless, in the verses that follow, David makes a second appeal to Saul to stop pursuing him. He asks, “Why does my lord pursue his servant? What have I done? What evil is there in my hand?” In contrast to Saul’s behavior (and Saul often raised his hand against David…including throwing a spear at him), David has never raised his hand in violence against Saul. Then David adds: “19 So please, let my lord the king listen to the words of his servant. If it is the Lord Who has stirred you up against me, let Him accept an offering. But if it is other people, may they be cursed before the Lord, for they have driven me out today so that I cannot remain in my share of the Lord’s inheritance.” Here David offers Saul two ways “out” of pursuing and persecuting him. He suggests that if the LORD is the One Who has authorized Saul to pursue David, then perhaps God will be satisfied if a peace offering is given to Him instead. His second “out” is this: If other men have persuaded Saul to persecute David, then they should be cursed and held accountable for depriving him (David) of the opportunity to enjoy God’s blessings of peacefully living in the Promised Land, and of being able to worship the LORD in His sanctuary. This is quite the diplomatic move on David’s part, because he knows that if the blame for his (David’s) persecution is placed squarely on Saul, Saul will only become angrier and more hateful. So, David proposes the possibility that Saul either was incited by God for some unknown reason, or was incited by malicious servants against him.
1 Samuel 26:21-25 Saul’s response to David’s Plea
For the second time Saul publicly confesses that he has been guilty of wronging David (see 24:18-21), but this time he adds the promise that will never harm David again. Let’s take note of the fact that David doesn’t immediately respond to Saul’s renewed profession of regret. After all, he’s heard this sorrowing Saul before, only to see that same Saul shortly afterward return to hating and hunting him. Saul simply can’t be trusted. David has the good, and experienced, judgment at this point in his life, not to believe Saul’s promises. Instead, David expresses his hope that God will bless his respect for Saul as the Lord’s anointed, by keeping him (David) safe going forward. “22 David responded, ‘Look, here is your spear, O King! Let one of the young men come over and get it. 23 May the Lord deal with every man according to his righteousness and his faithfulness, because the Lord handed you over to me today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed. 24 Just as your life was precious in my eyes today, so let my life be precious in the Lord’s eyes, and let him deliver me from all persecution.’”
The last words Saul ever speaks to David are words of fatherly blessing, and it is a blessing that God would fulfill in time. This blessing concludes the “Saul versus David” narrative that we’ve been following to this point in I Samuel. After this encounter, David will move down the path that God has set for him, while Saul goes back to being Saul. This chapter finishes with that blessing: “25 Then Saul said to David, “May you be blessed, David my son. You will certainly accomplish great things, and you will certainly remain successful.”
Chapter 27: David among the Philistines
For the choirmaster, a Psalm of David: “21 Blessed be the Lord, because He made His mercy wonderful for me when I was in a besieged city. 22 In my alarm I said, “I am cut off from before Your eyes!” But You heard the sound of my cry for mercy when I cried out to You. 23 Love the Lord, all His favored ones! The Lord preserves the faithful, but He pays back in full the one who acts proudly. 24 Be strong, and let your heart be firm, all you who wait confidently for the Lord.” Psalm 31:21-24
1 Samuel 27:1-4 David takes refuge at Gath
In 26:19 David said that Saul’s relentless pursuit of him had effectively banished him from enjoying God’s heritage to him and to Israel….namely his being able to live in peace in the Promised Land. Also, as a man on the run from Saul David didn’t have access to the Lord’s Sanctuary, where he could worship the Lord and bring Him offerings. David now decides to do what he had been afraid to earlier…..he decides to request sanctuary from the Philistines for himself and his followers. Back in chapter 21 David had also, for a very short time, tried to approach Achish of Gath in order to secure sanctuary among the Philistines. Back then he was alone. This time he has a trained military force of 600 soldiers that can protect him on the one hand, and that he can offer into the Philistines’ service on the other hand. Achish accepts David’s offer and allows him and his people to settle in Gath. Of course, this will put David in a precarious position, since he’ll be very closely scrutinized there. It’s also likely he will be ordered by Achish to join the Philistines in fighting against his own Israelite countrymen (and future subjects).
1 Samuel 27:5-12 David becomes a Philistine Vassal
Clearly David doesn’t want to live inside the heathen city of Gath. So, he asks Achish if he and his people can settle, instead, in the border town of Ziklag. It had previously been in Israelite territory (in the tribal lands of Judah and Simeon), but the Philistines now controlled it. Ziklag was located somewhere in the Negev, the wilderness area west and south of the Dead Sea. (Archaeologists have yet to determine its precise location today.) For almost a year and half, David made Ziklag the center of his military operations. In fact, once it became the David’s base, it would no longer be part of Philistine territory, but would revert to Judah (see 1 Chronicles 4:30).
David deceptively developed a plan that kept him from having to attack Israelite towns, even though Achish ordered and expected him to do that. What he did, instead, was to attack Cannanite peoples that were still living inside and nearby the land of Israel, in spite of God’s orders earlier to the Israelites to exterminate all the Canaanites. The Canaanite peoples that David attacked were the Geshurites, the Girzities/Girgashites, and the Amalekites. They were all enemies of the Philistines, and so they had little to no contact with the Philistines. That silence would aid David’s scheme.
The Geshurites lived in southern Israel and had not been eliminated in the initial conquest of Canaan (see Joshua 13:2). God had displaced the Girzites, also known as the Girgashites (see Genesis 15:18-21) during Joshua’s time as Israel’s leader (Joshua 3:10). According to the genealogy found in Genesis chapter 10:16, they were the descendants of Canaan, the cursed son of Ham (Genesis 9:25). The Amalekites, on the other hand, were perpetual enemies of Israel (Exodus 17:8-16; Deuteronomy 25:17-19; I Samuel 15:3). All these peoples were occupants of the land of Canaan which God had ordered to be put under the herem (or ban of extermination, as an offering to Him). So, whether he realized it or not, David actually was completing the conquest of the Canaanites by attacking and killing these peoples.
We want to note, however, that David didn’t impose a total herem upon these three groups. While he killed all the people, he did not destroy their livestock (which total herem would have required as an offering to the Lord), nor did he devote their material possessions to Him. Instead, David carried off as his plunder all their sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, clothing and wealth. In so doing, David greatly enriched himself and secured the resources necessary to pay tribute to Achish. When he returned “victoriously” to Achish, Achish, of course, was curious as to where David had acquired the property and wealth that he was receiving as tribute. David answered with a lie, claiming he has conducted raids against his own tribe of Judah, as well as against two ethnic groups attached to Judah. Instead, he was serving the bests interests of Israel. All the while Achish believed David, and felt confident that David would never be forgiven by the Israelites, and so would forever remain his (and the Philistines’) vassal.
The outlaw period of David’s life, where he was on the run from Saul, and during which he lived among the Philistines, could not have lasted more than three or four years. That’s because he would become the King of Israel when he was thirty years old…..after already having been king over Judah for seven years following Saul’s death (2 Samuel 5:4-5). Consequently, if David was twenty years old when he entered Saul’s service as a warrior, AND he was only twenty-three when he became king of Judah, serving until he was thirty years old, then he could only have been an outlaw for three or four years (the number varies depending on how the ancients counted years). What’s more, during that three to four year span, we know that David spent roughly a year and eight months as an outlaw running from Saul, plus a year and four months as a mercenary for the king of Gath. It’s also possible, of course, that Saul conscripted David for military and court service immediately after his victory over Goliath (17:48-51), and that he refused to let David return to Bethlehem (18:2). That could mean that David might have been a year or so younger than the twenty years of age God required before someone could begin military service. After all, Saul was never someone who was a strict observer of God’s Law.