1 Samuel 31:1 Fled

 ”Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them and fell slain on Mount Gilboa.“ ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭31‬:‭1‬ ‭AMP‬‬

a. Now the Philistines fought against Israel: The Philistines attacked deep into Israelite territory (1 Samuel 28:4), and Saul’s army assembled and prepared for battle at Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 28:4). Because of his deep rebellion against the Lord, Saul was not ready for battle: When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly (1 Samuel 28:5).

i. Instead of taking his fear to the Lord Saul made things worse by seeking God’s voice through a spirit medium. Strangely, God did speak to Saul, but He spoke words of judgment through an unusual appearance of the prophet Samuel. Samuel told Saul that he and his sons would die the next day (1 Samuel 28:19). 1 Samuel 31:1 is the next day.

ii. The Philistines fought against Israel, and David wanted to be part of this group of Philistines (1 Samuel 29:2, 8). It was the Lord’s mercy that did not allow David to join these enemies of the Lord.

b. The men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell slain on Mount Gilboa: Gilboa was the location of the Israelite army camp (1 Samuel 28:4), meaning that the battle turned so badly for Israel that they were in full retreat back to their own camp. (Guzik)

Fled

Joseph fled from Potiphar’s wife, Moses fled from the Pharaoh after he killed the Egyptian and the disciples fled when they came and arrested Jesus!

”Then all of His disciples abandoned Him and fled.“ ‭‭Mark‬ ‭14‬:‭50‬ ‭AMP‬‬

We basically have two choices in life, we can flee from the devil and run to the Lord or we can flee from the Lord and run to the devil. Reminds me of a song!

“Gotta Serve Somebody” by Bob Dylan

“But you’re going to have to serve somebody, yes indeed

You’re going to have to serve somebody

Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord

But you’re going to have to serve somebody”

Whom are you serving?

Blessings 

1 Samuel 30:26-31 Present-Gifts For You!

 ”Now when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord”— to those who were in Bethel, those who were in Ramoth of the South, those who were in Jattir, those who were in Aroer, those who were in Siphmoth, those who were in Eshtemoa, those who were in Rachal, those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, those who were in the cities of the Kenites, those who were in Hormah, those who were in Chorashan, those who were in Athach, those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were accustomed to rove.“ ‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭26‬-‭31‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. When David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends: David knew that his time among the Philistines had strained his relationships with God’s people. Now he knew he must do whatever he could to put things right again so he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah.

i. This is the final step in David’s getting things right after his time of backsliding among the Philistines.

· David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.

· David inquired of the LORD.

· David believed God’s promise.

· David did what God told him to do.

· David showed unexpected care and kindness to others.

· David saw it as the LORD’s victory.

· David shared the reward with others.

· David did what he could to mend relationships.

b. Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the LORD: David sent spoil from the battle to more than 13 cities. Obviously, there was spoil to spare from the battle. In this David is a picture of his greater Son, Jesus Christ. When Jesus triumphed on the cross He won the greatest battle and He had “spoil to share.” He shared the spoil with His people, as it says in Ephesians 4:7-8: But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” Jesus has spoil from His victory to give you!

i. David is a remarkable picture of Jesus in this chapter. Note these five points of association:

· We are like David’s men, David is like Jesus.

· We are like the weary ones left behind, David is like Jesus.

· We are like the Egyptian slave, David is like Jesus.

· We are like the spoil David recovered, David is like Jesus.

· We are like the elders of Judah, and David is like Jesus.

Present-Gifts For You!

”Yet grace [God’s undeserved favor] was given to each one of us [not indiscriminately, but in different ways] in proportion to the measure of Christ’s [rich and abundant] gift. Therefore it says, “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And He bestowed gifts on men.” [Ps 68:18]“ Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Have you accepted Christ’s gift?

Blessings 

https://www.gotquestions.org/led-captivity-captive.html

1 Samuel 30:21-25 You Little-Faiths!

 ”Now David came to the two hundred men who had been so weary that they could not follow David, whom they also had made to stay at the Brook Besor. So they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him. And when David came near the people, he greeted them. Then all the wicked and worthless men of those who went with David answered and said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except for every man’s wife and children, that they may lead them away and depart.” But David said, “My brethren, you shall not do so with what the Lord has given us, who has preserved us and delivered into our hand the troop that came against us. For who will heed you in this matter? But as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies; they shall share alike.” So it was, from that day forward; he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.“ I Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭21‬-‭25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Now David came to the two hundred men who had been so weary they could not follow David: When David was in swift pursuit of the Amalekites, 200 men among his company could not continue on. They made a camp where they were and lightened the supply load from the soldiers who continued. Now David returned to the two hundred men who stayed by the supply camp.

b. Then all the wicked and worthless men of those who went with David answered and said: When David returned, these men of the supply camp saw their own possessions among the spoils of battle and they wanted them back. The wicked and worthless men (apparently, there were some among David’s men) protested and said they could only have back every man’s wife and children, but none of their possessions.

c. My brethren, you shall not do so with what the LORD has given us…. But as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies, they shall share alike: David declared an important principle: the supply lines are just as vital as the soldiers and God will reward both “soldiers” and “supporters” properly.

i. Many people serve the LORD in invisible, behind-the-scenes ways, often supporting a much more visible aspect of the LORD’s work. God will support the hidden servant with the same reward as the prominent servant.

ii. The wicked and worthless men looked at the spoil and said, “We fought for this spoil and it is ours.” David looked at the spoil and said, “Look at what the LORD has given us.” When looked at from this perspective, it made sense to share. When the LORD gave David a great victory he saw it as the LORD’s victory more than his own.

d. A statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day: It became a standing principle in Israel. This principle should be declared and believed among God’s people today.

i. There is encouragement for the weary here. (Guzik)

“You Little-Faiths, you Despondencies, you Much-Afraids, you Feeble-Minds, you that sigh more than you sing, you that would but cannot, you that have a great heart for holiness, but feel beaten back in your struggles, the Lord shall give you his love, his grace, his favour, as surely as he gives it to those who can do great things in his name.” (Spurgeon)

You Little-Faiths!

Spurgeon’s commentary should give everyone hope because He freely gives Love, Grace and Favour even to those with little faith.

”So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.“

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭17‬:‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Mustard seed is very little! 

Is your faith the size of a mustard seed?

Blessings 

1 Samuel 30:16-20 Trust in God!

 ”And when he had brought him down, there they were, spread out over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. Then David attacked them from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives. And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them; David recovered all. Then David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s spoil.”“ I Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭16‬-‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Attacked them from twilight until the evening of the next day: As they caught the Amalekites in the midst of their victory celebration, David surprised them. They supposed that all the Philistine and Israelite armies were far to the north, preparing to fight each other.

i. Twilight is probably a bad translation here, and it should be from dawn until evening of the next day. “The Hebrew word nesep, translated ‘dawn’ in Job 7:4 and Psalm 119:147, has this sense here…. Having noted the situation, David and his men took some rest and attacked at first light, when the Amalekites would be suffering from the soporific effects of the feast, and least able to defend themselves.” (Baldwin)

ii. It was wise to attack the Amalekites when they were hungover from the party the night before. “Whom they found it no hard matter to stab with the sword, who were cup-shot before.” (Trapp)

b. David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away: Everything that the enemy took David took back. God gave him a complete victory because David strengthened himself in the LORD his God (1 Samuel 30:6), David inquired of the LORD (1 Samuel 30:8), David did what God told him to do, and David showed unexpected care and kindness to others.

i. God’s promise was proved true. When David inquired of the LORD, God promised You shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all (1 Samuel 30:8). The promise was fulfilled exactly, but it wasn’t fulfilled as David sat back passively and said, “All right God, now You can do it.” The LORD fulfilled His promise, but He used David’s actions to fulfill the promise. God’s promise didn’t excludeDavid’s cooperation, the promise invited his cooperation. (Guzik)

Trust in God!

There are times in our lives where we hit rock bottom and realize, I can’t do this on my own and have to turn it over to God. Like a child who fell down and runs to his loving father who’s waiting with open arms 🤗!

But remember the old adage, Try and try again?

“Brother, you will have to work and labour to extricate yourself from debt and difficulty, and so the Lord will hear your prayer. The rule is to trust in God to smite the Amalekites, and then to march after them, as if it all depended upon yourself.” (Spurgeon)

God will use our failures to build us up to make us stronger!

But don’t miss this:

“God’s promise didn’t exclude David’s cooperation, the promise invited his cooperation.” (Guzik)

Are you trusting in God and cooperating?

Blessings 

1 Samuel 30:11-15 They Gave Him Bread

 ”Then they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David; and they gave him bread and he ate, and they let him drink water. And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. So when he had eaten, his strength came back to him; for he had eaten no bread nor drunk water for three days and three nights. Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong, and where are you from?” And he said, “I am a young man from Egypt, servant of an Amalekite; and my master left me behind, because three days ago I fell sick. We made an invasion of the southern area of the Cherethites, in the territory which belongs to Judah, and of the southern area of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.” And David said to him, “Can you take me down to this troop?” So he said, “Swear to me by God that you will neither kill me nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this troop.”“ ‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭11‬-‭15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Then they found an Egyptian in the field: As David and the 400 men pursued the Amalekites, they came across a man collapsed in the wilderness. It would be easy and logical, to ignore this man because they had a “much greater” mission in pursuing the Amalekites. But David and his men showed unexpected kindness and they gave him bread and he ate, and they let him drink water.

b. Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong, and where are you from?” David took a caring interest in this man. He showed simple care and kindness to a nobody. They didn’t just give this Egyptian food and water; they gave him care and kindness.

c. I am a young man from Egypt, servant of an Amalekite…. we burned Ziklag with fire: In showing unexpected kindness to this Egyptian, God showed David unexpected blessing. The Egyptian promised to guide David to the camp of the Amalekites.

i. “The emphatic ‘we’ at the beginning of verse 14 suggests that the slave participated personally in the Amalekites’ raids.” (Youngblood)

They Gave Him Bread

Nowadays it’s far to easy for us to pass someone on a street corner begging for money that is destitute but remember what Jesus said;

”for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in;“ Matthew‬ ‭25‬:‭35‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

One thing I enjoyed was to share part of my lunch or I would go through a fast food drive thru and buy them a meal. A loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter goes a long way.

How can you help someone who’s hungry?

Blessings 

1 Samuel 30:9-10 But Mark This!

 ”So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the Brook Besor, where those stayed who were left behind. But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor.“ ‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. So David went: God told David to go and pursue them, and David did exactly that. Obedience to the LORD is often that simple.

b. He and the six hundred men who were with him: David’s men were almost at a place of mutiny against him (the people spoke of stoning him, 1 Samuel 30:6). But now since he strengthened himself in the LORD his God (1 Samuel 30:6) and since he inquired of the LORD (1 Samuel 30:8) and since he did what God told him to do, his men are totally back on his side.

i. David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him implies that David said, “Men, I’m going. I have a promise from God for victory, and I’m going to believe it. It doesn’t matter if you come with me or not, because God is on my side, and if I have to beat the Amalekites all by myself, God’s promise will not fail.” Such faith stirred the hearts of the six hundred men, and they went with David.

ii. It was a magnificent sight – David and the six hundred men on the march again, this time not hoping to fight for the Philistines or for themselves, but off again on a mission from God. There wasn’t an army on earth that could beat David and his six hundred men when they walked in God’s will.

c. For two hundred stayed behind, who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor: This might have discouraged David. As he pursued a significantly larger Amalekite army, he found that one-third of his men couldn’t continue. But David didn’t let this trial stop him. He set the one-third to work guarding the supplies, lightening the load of the 400 who continued, and he set out again, full of faith.

i. “But mark this, he was not delivered without further trial…. Many a leader would have given up the chase with one out of three of his troop in hospital, but David pursued with his reduced force. When God means to bless us, he often takes away a part of the little strength we thought we had. We did not think our strength equal to the task, and the Lord takes away a portion even of the little power we had. Our God does not fill till he has emptied. Two hundred men must be rent away from David’s side before God could give him victory…. Expect then, O troubled one, that you will be delivered, but know that your sorrow may yet deepen, that you may have all the greater joy by-and-by.” (Spurgeon)

(Guzik)

But Mark This!

“Our God does not fill till he has emptied.”! (Spurgeon)

“Yet to be filled with His power and shine His glory requires an emptying–a pouring out of ourselves, to make room for Him. And this pouring, well, it is often in the form of self-denial, surrender, and even brokenness. It is in the weakness of our own despair that our emptiness makes a hollow space, a space in us to be filled with Him. It is in the emptying that we relinquish our control and surrender to God, for Him to have His will and way.” (Jacque Watkins)

Have you surrendered to God?

Blessings