1 Samuel 26:9-12 Test

 ”But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against the Lord’s anointed, and be guiltless?” David said furthermore, “As the Lord lives, the Lord shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish. The Lord forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed. But please, take now the spear and the jug of water that are by his head, and let us go.” So David took the spear and the jug of water by Saul’s head, and they got away; and no man saw or knew it or awoke. For they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen on them.“ ‭‭

I Samuel‬ ‭26‬:‭9‬-‭12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Do not destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against the LORD’s anointed, and be guiltless? It wasn’t that David thought Saul was right. David knew more than anyone that Saul was deeply in sin. But David knew that even a sinning Saul was still the anointed king over Israel (1 Samuel 10:1). That would only change when God changed it; David would not stretch out his hand against the LORD’s anointed.

i. We might think that David had a more righteous reason than ever to kill Saul. Now, Saul went back on a previous promise to leave David alone. In David’s position many would say, “I showed love and let him off once before. I’m full of love, but I’m not stupid. Saul had his chance and he blew it.”

b. The LORD shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish: David knew that it wasn’t “hard” for God to kill Saul. The LORD was more than able to kill Saul at any time. Every breath Saul took was a gift from God. God could allow a wicked man to kill Saul at any time. When it came to striking down an anointed king of Israel, God did not need the services of a godly, righteous man like David.

i. “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord (Romans 12:19). If vengeance belongs to God, it does not belong to us, so we are to love our enemies and never repay evil with evil.

c. David took the spear and the jug of water by Saul’s head: David would not kill Saul, but he did take the spear and the jug of water as evidence that he had the opportunity to kill Saul. Probably, David noticed that a deep sleep from the LORD had fallen on them all and knew there was a reason for it. (Guzik)

Test

Growing up as a child in school I never liked tests because of my ADHD I never did well until my senior year when I opted to take a course called Senior Math. My unusual method or rounding up and subtraction or rounding down and adding allowed me to get “A’s” in the class. As a young adult shopping for food I tapped into this class to stay within my budget as I added items to my shopping cart and did the math in my head.

But notice what David Guzik says: “David noticed that a deep sleep from the LORD had fallen on them all and knew there was a reason for it.”

Scripture also says: ”Let brotherly love continue. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.“

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Why would the Lord have angels walk among us? Maybe as David noticed “and knew there was a reason for it”, to test us?

Today if you feel a tugging on your heart ❤️ for a stranger, a widow or an orphan will you pass the test?

Blessings