1 Samuel 27:2-4 A Poor Exchange!

 ”Then David arose and went over with the six hundred men who were with him to Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. So David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, each man with his household, and David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal’s widow. And it was told Saul that David had fled to Gath; so he sought him no more.“ 

I Samuel‬ ‭27‬:‭2‬-‭4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. David arose and went over with the six hundred men: David’s discouraged and despairing heart didn’t only affect himself; he led six hundred men out of the land of promise to live with the ungodly. Before David sunk into his pit of discouragement and despair, he would have never dreamed of doing this.

i. 1 Samuel 27:3 makes it even worse: Each man with his household. David’s defection to the Philistines touched even more than the six hundred men, it touched all their families. It directly touched David’s household also, because Ahinoam and Abigail were with him.

b. So David dwelt with Achish at Gath: Previously (recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10-15), David briefly went over to Achish of the Philistines, believing there might be a place of refuge for him. God allowed that experience to quickly turn sour, and David pretended to be a madman, so he could escape. In his discouragement and despair David will go down a road of sin he has been down before.

i. Achish received David this time when he would not in 1 Samuel 21:10-15 for two reasons. First, it is clear now when it wasn’t clear before that David and Achish share the same enemy, Saul. Second, David now brings with him 600 fighting men, whom Achish can use as mercenaries.

c. It was told Saul that David had fled to Gath; so he sought him no more: David accomplished his immediate goal because Saul stopped pursuing him. But now David is in a place of compromise that will leave him worse off than before. He is actually submitting to a Philistine master.

i. We have no record of any Psalms that David wrote during this time. This was not a high point in his spiritual life. In this period, David didn’t write sweet psalms to the Lord.

ii. “The sweet singer was mute. He probably acquired a few new strains of music, or even mastered some fresh instruments, while sojourning at Gath, a memory of which is perpetuated in the term Gittith, a term which frequently occurs in the inscriptions of the psalms composed afterward. But who would barter a song for a melody, a psalm for a guitar? It was a poor exchange.” (Meyer)

(Guzik)

A Poor Exchange!

A compromise in faith will always end up a poor exchange! 

If Adam and Eve could talk from the pages in the Bible they would scream, don’t do it.

If the Israelites who wandered for forty years in the wilderness could scream, they would shout don’t do it!

Peter who denied Jesus three times regretted it for the rest of his life.

Paul teaches the reader that a compromise in faith isn’t worth the price!

Compromise with the devil is always a poor exchange, you’ll regret it later!

Are you bartering your faith and playing with fire 🔥? 

Blessings 

1 Samuel 27:1 Discouragement and Despair!

 ”And David said in his heart, “Now I shall perish someday by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape to the land of the Philistines; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me anymore in any part of Israel. So I shall escape out of his hand.”“ I Samuel‬ ‭27‬:‭1‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. David said in his heart: The sad story of 1 Samuel 27 begins with something David said in his heart. He may have never said it out loud; he may have never said it to anyone else; he may have never said it to God. But David said it in his heart. What we say in our heart has a tremendous power to shape our thinking, our actions, even our whole destiny.

b. Now I shall perish someday by the hand of Saul: This is what David said in his heart. That was a word of discouragement coming from a heart tired of trusting God for His continued deliverance. In his discouragement David forgot God’s past deliverance.

i. “I remember on one occasion, to my shame, being sad and doubtful of heart, and a kind friend took out a paper and read to me a short extract from a discourse upon faith. I very soon detected the author of the extract; my friend was reading to me from one of my own sermons. Without saying a word he just left it to my own conscience, for he had convicted me of committing the very fault against which I had so earnestly declaimed.” (Spurgeon)

c. There is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape to the land of the Philistines: David decided to leave Israel and live among the idol-worshiping Philistines. David was so discouraged that he thought there was nothing better for him in Israel and among God’s people.

d. Saul will despair of me, to seek me anymore in any part of Israel. So I shall escape out of his hand. Before David trusted in the Lord to protect him from the hand of Saul. Now, David gave up trusting in the Lord and instead left the land of promise, left the people of God, and found “protection” among the Philistines.

i. Saul will despair: Saul will not despair if David leaves the land of promise. Saul will not despair if David forsakes the people of God and joins the ungodly. It is David who is in despair, not Saul.

ii. Saul could never drive David to the Philistines. If Saul told David, “You must leave the people of God and go to live among the Philistines,” David would never bow to it. But discouragement and despair are more powerful enemies than Saul. Discouragement and despair will drive David to do something that Saul could never make him do. (Guzik)

Discouragement and Despair!

We’ve all been there, in a relationship, in a job, at home, with children, for whatever the reason, discouragement and despair are human traits in a broken world.

”Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;“

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

It’s what you put your trust in during those times that gets you through it. Spurgeon’s quote is interesting since he suffered from depression!

In times of discouragement and despair it would do us good to pick up the Bible to remind ourselves that the Lord is with us and to trust Him with all our heart. ❤️ 

Do you trust Him?

Blessings 

https://www.spurgeongems.org/sermon/chs3489.pdf

1 Samuel 26:22-25 Measure of Mercy

 ”And David answered and said, “Here is the king’s spear. Let one of the young men come over and get it. May the Lord repay every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness; for the Lord delivered you into my hand today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed. And indeed, as your life was valued much this day in my eyes, so let my life be valued much in the eyes of the Lord, and let Him deliver me out of all tribulation.” Then Saul said to David, “May you be blessed, my son David! You shall both do great things and also still prevail.” So David went on his way, and Saul returned to his place.“

‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭26‬:‭22‬-‭25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. May the LORD repay every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness: David trusted in God who blesses the righteous and the faithful. David knew the truth of Hebrews 6:10 before it was written: For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name.

i. David understood the principle Jesus spoke of in Matthew 7:2: With the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. David wanted the large measure of God’s mercy for himself, so David gave Saul the large measure of mercy. That generous measure of mercy will be a great blessing to David later in his life.

b. So let my life be valued much in the eyes of the LORD: David wanted to fulfill his call to be the next king of Israel. But he wanted both the throne and the blessing of God. He refused to take the throne through murder or rebellion. He would wait until it came to him God’s way. In this, David trusted that God would protect him when he did eventually come to reign over Israel.

i. David held on to this principle, and when he became king, he recognized that his righteousness was rewarded (Psalm 18:20-27).

c. David went on his way: Saul invited David to return (1 Samuel 26:21) but David did not take the invitation. He waited to see if the repentant words Saul spoke showed genuine repentance in his life. But as David went on his way he was faced with the temptation he spoke of in 1 Samuel 26:19 – tempted to flee Israel all together and live among the ungodly.

i. “Knowing Saul’s unstable and deceitful heart, he would not trust to any of his professions or promises, but kept out of his reach.” (Poole)

ii. “Since now there is nothing more to be said, David and Saul part, never to see each other again.” (Youngblood)

(Guzik)

Measure of Mercy

Matthew 7:2: With the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. (Jesus)

The mercy principle Jesus mentioned is simple and is required for forgiveness too.

It’s a basic principle of the Christian faith.

Jesus showed us mercy and forgiveness with His sacrifice on the cross ✝️ and likewise we are to extend the same mercy and forgiveness to others. 

Because if we don’t, but claim the Christian faith we are nothing but a clanging cymbal!

”Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.“ I Corinthians‬ ‭13‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Mercy, forgiveness and love ❤️ are intertwined tenants of our faith.

Is there someone that needs your measure of mercy or forgiveness?

Blessings

1 Samuel 26:21 I Have Sinned!

 ”Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David. For I will harm you no more, because my life was precious in your eyes this day. Indeed I have played the fool and erred exceedingly.”“ ‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭26‬:‭21‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. I have sinned: The last time Saul was in this situation he was overcome with emotion. His feelings seemed right but his life was not changed (1 Samuel 24:16-21). This time there is something cold and mechanical about Saul’s words. The words seem right but the feelings aren’t there.

b. For I will harm you no more…. Indeed I have played the fool and erred exceedingly: It seems– both from the “feel” of the verse and Saul’s subsequent actions – that Saul wasn’t repentant but only regretful, bitterly realizing that once again David got the better of him. His words in 1 Samuel 26:25 express this also: You shall both do great things and also still prevail.

i. “The Apostle makes a great distinction, and rightly, between the sorrow of the world and the sorrow of a godly repentance which needeth not to be repented of. Certainly Saul’s confession of sin belonged to the former; while the cry of the latter comes out in Psalm 51, extorted from David by the crimes of after years.” (Meyer)

ii. Morgan on I have played the fool: “In these words we have a perfect autobiography. In them the complete life-story of this man is told.”

I Have Sinned!

Pastor Robert of Calvary Tucson has said, if you claim you don’t sin you are a liar!

”for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,“ ‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭23‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

(Meyer) “The Apostle makes a great distinction, and rightly, between the sorrow of the world and the sorrow of a godly repentance which needeth not to be repented of.”

Can you say, I have sinned with godly repentance?

Psalm 51 is biblical example of a prayer with godly repentance!

Blessings 

1 Samuel 26:17-20 “bitterness, carnality, and jealousy”

 ”Then Saul knew David’s voice, and said, “Is that your voice, my son David?” David said, “It is my voice, my Lord, O king.” And he said, “Why does my Lord thus pursue his servant? For what have I done, or what evil is in my hand? Now therefore, please, let my Lord the king hear the words of his servant: If the Lord has stirred you up against me, let Him accept an offering. But if it is the children of men, may they be cursed before the Lord, for they have driven me out this day from sharing in the inheritance of the Lord, saying, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ So now, do not let my blood fall to the earth before the face of the Lord. For the king of Israel has come out to seek a flea, as when one hunts a partridge in the mountains.”“ I Samuel‬ ‭26‬:‭17‬-‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. My lord, O king…. my lord…. Please, let my lord…his servant: This phrasing shows that David spoke to Saul with genuine humility. Since David was so right and Saul was so wrong, it would have been easy for David to project a superior attitude towards Saul, but he didn’t.

b. What have I done, or what evil is in my hand? David first asked Saul to consider the facts and to clearly think about what David had done.

c. If the LORD has stirred you up against me…. if it is the children of men: David made it easier for Saul to repent. David knew very well that the LORD or other men had not stirred up Saul but that it came from Saul’s own bitterness, carnality, and jealousy. But he offered these suggestions to Saul to give him an easier way to repent. He could admit that his actions against David were wrong without admitting that they originated with himself.

d. They have driven me out this day from sharing in the inheritance of the LORD, saying, “Go, serve other gods”: David revealed his own heart’s struggle under the pressure from Saul’s relentless persecution. What hurt David the most was that he couldn’t go to the house of God and openly be with the people of God, living his life after the LORD as he longed to. The pressure of all this tempted David to consider leaving Israel altogether and to go among those who worshipped other gods.

e. So now, do not let my blood fall to the earth before the face of the LORD: David concluded his appeal to Saul with a simple request. “Saul, please don’t kill me!”

i. “There is a vast deal of dignity in this speech of David, arising from a consciousness of his own innocence. He neither begs his life from Saul, nor offers one argument to prevail upon him to desist [stop] from his felonious attempts, but refers the whole matter to God, as the judge and vindicator of oppressed innocence.” (Clarke)

f. As when one hunts a partridge in the mountains: “It is worthy of remark that the Arabs, observing that partridges, being put up several times, soon become so weary as not to be able to fly; they in this manner hunt them upon the mountains, till at last they can knock them down with their clubs. It was in this manner that Saul hunted David, coming hastily upon him, and putting him up from time to time, in hopes that he should at length, by frequent repetitions of it, be able to destroy him.” (Clarke)

(Guzik)

“bitterness, carnality, and jealousy”

It will do us good to examine our hearts for it was said:

”Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.“

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭23‬-‭24‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

For we may have sinned and not realized it but if we ask God to examine our heart as written in Psalm 139 He will reveal any wicked way in ourselves.

Do you have any bitterness, carnality and jealousy buried in your heart? ❤️ 

Blessings 

1 Samuel 26:13-16 Pray for Peace

 ”Now David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of a hill afar off, a great distance being between them. And David called out to the people and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Do you not answer, Abner?” Then Abner answered and said, “Who are you, calling out to the king?” So David said to Abner, “Are you not a man? And who is like you in Israel? Why then have you not guarded your Lord the king? For one of the people came in to destroy your Lord the king. This thing that you have done is not good. As the Lord lives, you deserve to die, because you have not guarded your master, the Lord’s anointed. And now see where the king’s spear is, and the jug of water that was by his head.”“

‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭26‬:‭13‬-‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Are you not a man? And who is like you in Israel? Why then have you not guarded your lord the king? In this vivid scene, David implied that he cared more for Saul’s life than Abner did.

b. See where the king’s spear is, and the jug of water that was by his head: This dramatic evidence – like the evidence of the corner of Saul’s robe in 1 Samuel 24:11 – was undeniable proof that David had the opportunity to kill Saul but did not do it.

(Guzik)

Pray For Peace

On this Christmas Eve we are getting ready to celebrate the birth of our savior Jesus Christ, but as we watch the news there are wars and murders all around us!

Wouldn’t it be nice if all of mankind who had the opportunity to kill didn’t do it? 

Some say if only Adam and Eve didn’t eat the forbidden fruit, Cain wouldn’t have taken the opportunity to kill his brother Able!

But in reality if it wasn’t them, it would have been you or I!

Can we agree to pray for the gift of peace?

What would our world be like if everyone prayed for peace?

Blessings