1 Samuel 23:6-8 War

 ”Now it happened, when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, that he went down with an ephod in his hand. And Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah. So Saul said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars.” Then Saul called all the people together for war, to go down to Keilah to besiege David and his men.“

‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭23‬:‭6‬-‭8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. So Saul said, “God has delivered him into my hand”: Saul thought that God had blessed him and given him victory over David. It was true that God lead David to Keilah and it was true that this exposed David to Saul’s attack. But it was not true that the Lord had delivered him into my hand, as Saul said.

b. Then Saul called all the people together for war: This was not a war against the Philistines, against the Edomites, against the Amalekites, or against the Moabites. This was against David. Saul made the common mistake of assuming that someone is an enemy of the Lord just because they are our enemy.

i. Saul wouldn’t go to Keilah to save the people from the Philistines, but he would go there to try and save himself from David. Saul was completely motivated by self-interest. (Guzik)

War

Our world seems to be on the path to another world war. I’ve read that the type of missiles that Ukraine is shooting into Russia are so sophisticated that either the United States or NATO actually has to be deploying and shooting them into Russia. Russia has stated that they may retaliate with nuclear weapons.

”And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.“

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭24‬:‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Will you join me in prayer? 

Dear Heavenly Father we lift this war and escalation up to You and pray for peace. Please bring an end to the death, destruction and allow cooler heads to prevail. 

Use these events to draw people to You and we pray that Your will be done.

In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

Blessings 

1 Samuel 23:5 Obedience

And David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines, struck them with a mighty blow, and took away their livestock. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. 1 Samuel 23:5

a. So David and his men went to Keilah and fought: David did what God told him to do. It isn’t enough to ask or know God’s will. We must have a commitment to obey God’s will, even when it is difficult.

b. Struck them with a mighty blow…. David saved the inhabitants of Keilah: God blessed the obedience of David. God perfectly kept His promise to David (1 Samuel 23:4-5). (Guzik)

Obedience 

Jesus went to the cross through obedience for it is written: 

”saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”“ ‭‭Luke‬ ‭22‬:‭42‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Our obedience 

”And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,“ ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

When we accept the free gift of salvation and are born again it’s up to us to use our gifts of the Spirit for the work of the ministry.

Are you being obedient?

Blessings 

https://dailyverse.knowing-jesus.com/ephesians-4-11

1 Samuel 23:1-4 Inquired of the Lord

 ”Then they told David, saying, “Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they are robbing the threshing floors.” Therefore David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?” And the Lord said to David, “Go and attack the Philistines, and save Keilah.” But David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?” Then David inquired of the Lord once again. And the Lord answered him and said, “Arise, go down to Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.”“ I Samuel‬ ‭23‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. The Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they are robbing the threshing floors: They brought this plea for help to David and not to King Saul because Saul was not fulfilling his role as king over Israel. It was Saul’s job to protect Keilah and it was Saul’s job to fight the Philistines, but Saul wasn’t doing his job and the Lord called David to do it.

i. God loved His people too much to let them suffer under an unfaithful king. If Saul wasn’t up to the task, God would raise up a man who was, and David was the one. God directed David to act like a king even if he was not the king yet.

b. Therefore David inquired of the Lord: This showed David’s wisdom and godliness. Some might have immediately said, “This isn’t my responsibility, let Saul deal with it.” Others might have immediately said, “Let’s go! I can fix this problem!” Either course was foolish, but David was wise because he inquired of the Lord.

c. Go, and attack the Philistines, and save Keilah: By all outward appearance, this was a crazy thing to do. First, David had 400 men with thin resumes and bad credit reports (1 Samuel 22:2) – not exactly a regular army. Second, David had enough trouble with Saul and he didn’t need to add trouble from the Philistines – one enemy is usually enough. Third, this would bring David wide open out before King Saul. This was a dangerous course of action.

i. David did this for two reasons. He had the command of God and the need of the people. David was willing to endanger himself to obey the command of God and to meet the need of the people.

d. But David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah”: David’s men counseled him to not go to Keilah. We can understand their counsel, but we should not agree with it. It was good that David became captain over them (1 Samuel 22:2) and that this wasn’t a democracy.

e. David inquired of the Lord once again: Wisely, David took the words from his men into great account. He wrestled with their advice and saw that in many ways it made a lot of sense. At the same time, he knew this was an issue that had to be decided before the Lord.

f. Arise, go down to Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand: God likes to confirm His word, especially when He directs us to do something hard or unusual. This time the Lord not only confirmed His previous command, but He also gave a promise with the confirmation: I will deliver the Philistines into your hand. (Guzik)

Inquired of the Lord

There are times in life that we need to make difficult decisions and when we are at this crossroad is when we, inquired of the Lord.

We lift it up in prayer, we open the Bible randomly and begin to look for the Lord to speak to us and in His timing, He will give you the answer. We may not like the answer but it is in faith that we accept it just as David did.

If God is for us, who can be against us?

”What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.“

‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭31‬-‭39‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Blessings 

1 Samuel 22:20-23 Turned His Heart

 ”Now one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled after David. And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the Lord’s priests. So David said to Abiathar, “I knew that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have caused the death of all the persons of your father’s house. Stay with me; do not fear. For he who seeks my life seeks your life, but with me you shall be safe.”“ I Samuel‬ ‭22‬:‭20‬-‭23‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. I knew that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul: David showed how he felt about this in Psalm 52, which says in its title A Contemplation of David when Doeg the Edomite went and told Saul, and said to him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.”

i. In Psalm 52, David showed his outrage against Doeg: Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? Your tongue devises destruction, like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. You love evil more than good, lying rather than speaking righteousness. You love all devouring words, you deceitful tongue (Psalm 52:1a, 2-4).

ii. In Psalm 52, David showed his confidence in God’s judgments: God shall likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place, and uproot you from the land of the living (Psalm 52:5).

iii. In Psalm 52, David showed his focus on the LORD: But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. I will praise You forever, because You have done it; and in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good (Psalm 52:8-9).

b. I have caused the death of all the persons of your father’s house: David meant this in two ways. In the greater way, it was David’s mere presence with Ahimelech that made him guilty before Saul and there really wasn’t anything David or anyone could do about that. In the lesser way, David’s lying to Ahimelech made the priest vulnerable before Saul.

i. David’s lies did not directly kill Ahimelech and the other priests. But at the very least, he kept Ahimelech from dying with greater honor. If Ahimelech knew of the conflict between David and Saul, he could have chosen to stand with David and die with greater honor.

ii. We know from both 1 Samuel and the Psalms that David turned his heart back to the LORD and asked forgiveness after his lies to Ahimelech. David was restored, but there was still bad fruit to come of the lies, and now David sees and tastes that bad fruit.

c. With me you shall be safe: David could not do anything about the priests who were already murdered. He confessed his guilt in the matter and sought forgiveness from the LORD. Now, all he can do is minister to the need in front of him – Abiathar, the surviving priest. (Guzik)

Turned His Heart

David turned his heart back to the Lord, confessed his sin of lying and admitted his mere presence caused the death of all the priests.

All of us have this choice because of our free will. We can make ourselves right with God or deny He exists and die in our sins.

Saturday we attended a grave site service for a friend’s father and his grandson gave the eulogy. He said he didn’t know his grandfathers heart, if in the final minutes if he accepted Jesus Christ as his savior for the forgiveness of his sins, but he stated we still have the chance to do that while we are alive. He pleaded with everyone there, not to die in their sins.

He read from John 3:

”There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”“

‭‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭21‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Like David you can turn your heart back to the Lord.

Are you “born again”?

Blessings 

1 Samuel 22:16-19 Violent and Obstinate

 ”And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house!” Then the king said to the guards who stood about him, “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because their hand also is with David, and because they knew when he fled and did not tell it to me.” But the servants of the king would not lift their hands to strike the priests of the Lord. And the king said to Doeg, “You turn and kill the priests!” So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck the priests, and killed on that day eighty-five men who wore a linen ephod. Also Nob, the city of the priests, he struck with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and nursing infants, oxen and donkeys and sheep—with the edge of the sword.“

‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭22‬:‭16‬-‭19‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house: A man in the place of sin and rebellion Saul was in could not stand to see an innocent, guileless man like Ahimelech disagree with him. So, he commanded him to be murdered.

i. Saul was reluctant to kill the enemies of the LORD when he was commanded to (1 Samuel 15:9). But he wasn’t reluctant to murder the priests of the LORD in cold blood. Saul is clearly going off the deep end. 

“His anger was bent against the Lord himself, for taking away his kingdom, and giving it to another: and because he could not come at the Lord, therefore he wreaketh his rage upon his priests.” (Trapp)

ii. “This is one of the worst acts in the life of Saul; his malice was implacable, and his wrath was cruel, and there is no motive of justice or policy by which such a barbarous act can be justified.” (Clarke) 

“A bloody sentence, harshly pronounced and as rashly executed, without any pause or deliberation, without any remorse or regret. This was the worst act that ever Saul did.” (Trapp)

b. The servants of the king would not lift their hands to strike the priests: To their credit, Saul’s servants feared God more than Saul and they refused to murder the priests.

c. So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck the priests: Doeg, who was not a Jew but an Edomite, didn’t hesitate to murder the priests and their families. Doeg was detained before the LORD at the tabernacle (1 Samuel 21:7) but it didn’t change his heart at all. (Guzik)

1 Samuel 21:7 MSG 7 One of Saul’s officials was present that day keeping a religious vow. His name was Doeg the Edomite. He was chief of Saul’s shepherds.

Chief of the herdsmen: The word translated chief means mighty but can also be used to mean violent or obstinate. Doeg will show himself to be a violent and obstinate man. (Guzik)

Violent and Obstinate 

King Saul gave the cruel order but his servants would not lift a hand!

It took a violent and obstinate man, Doeg the Edomite to carry out the murders of the priests and their families! 

I’m reminded what Jesus said to Peter after he cut off the ear of a servant!

”But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.“ ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭26‬:‭52‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

The Bible doesn’t tell us what happened to Doeg the Edomite but I wonder if he perished by the sword?

Blessings 

1 Samuel 22:11-15 Vulnerable Position

 ”So the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father’s house, the priests who were in Nob. And they all came to the king. And Saul said, “Hear now, son of Ahitub!” He answered, “Here I am, my Lord.” Then Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword, and have inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as it is this day?” So Ahimelech answered the king and said, “And who among all your servants is as faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, who goes at your bidding, and is honorable in your house? Did I then begin to inquire of God for him? Far be it from me! Let not the king impute anything to his servant, or to any in the house of my father. For your servant knew nothing of all this, little or much.”“ I Samuel‬ ‭22‬:‭11‬-‭15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Here I am, my lord: Ahimelech answered Saul with the honesty of a man with a clear conscience. He simply and honestly said, “Let not the king impute anything to his servant.”

i. Saul continued in his reckless paranoia. He accused Ahimelech and David of conspiracy against him (you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse). He also thought that David was out to kill him (that he should rise against me, to lie in wait). Saul thought of himself as the victim, believing that David and Ahimelech were out to get him.

b. For your servant knew nothing of all this, little or much: Ahimelech told the exact truth. When David came to Ahimelech, the priest questioned him carefully (Why are you alone, and no one is with you? 1 Samuel 21:1). Instead of telling Ahimelech the truth, David lied to him. This put Ahimelech in a very vulnerable position.

i. Ahimelech was so unaware of the hatred Saul had for David that he praised David before the jealous king: “And who among all your servants is as faithful as David.” This was because David told Ahimelech that he was on Saul’s bidding when he was really running for his life (1 Samuel 21:2).

Vulnerable Position 

David’s lie made Ahimelech vulnerable to a paranoid jealous king! This isn’t going to end well! Even if Ahimelech repeated David’s exact responses to his questions about why he was alone, Saul’s anger wouldn’t have been tempered!

”These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood,“ ………

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭6‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Were you ever put into a vulnerable position due to someone lying?

Blessings