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The easy way is to be a "copycat" and go along with your friends and
your acquaintances, but it takes real courage and determination to be
DIFFERENT!
God wants to use a person who is willing to give attention to the most
important things in life. Those things include: (a) definite goals
regarding your own personal future, (b) choosing friends, regardless
of age, who can be genuinely helpful to you in your pursuit of those
goals, (c) setting aside the friends who may persuade you to take the
"easy way" approach to the important decisions in life!
When you and I were born into this world, God gave each one of us a
"decider" so that we could make good and bad decisions. We must take
our own personal responsibility for those decisions and accept the
consequences just as David did while he was growing up. Bad decisions
result in discipline, but good decisions result in blessing!
Every normal person reaches a time in life when he becomes aware of
God. We call that God-consciousness. Sometime during our lifetime, God
will make sure we hear the Gospel. When you hear and understand that
Jesus Christ died for your sins, you may respond by believing that
message of salvation. At that very moment, you have Eternal Life! If
you hear and understand the Gospel message, you may reject it. If you
do, you may live many more years and have other opportunities to
change your mind, but it must be done before you die physically. Only
God's judgment can be expected for the unbeliever!
Jesus Christ is God! He became a man in order to die for our sins. We
are told in John 3:36, "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting
life; and he that believeth not the Son, shall not see life; but the
wrath of God abideth on Him. "
Let's assume that you have personally put your faith in Jesus Christ.
You will soon learn that many of your friends are not Christians, and
that will make you stand out as DIFFERENT in the eyes of your friends.
Now you will have the challenge facing you, which is, DO YOU WANT TO
BE DIFFERENT? You must make that decision for yourself!
God has given us His complete and inspired Word in writing, and it is
found in the sixty-six books which we call the Bible. In the Bible, we
find people who dared to be DIFFERENT, because they were willing to do
God's will. The Lord used those people in many wonderful ways. As we
look at the lives of some of those individuals, we can use them as
role-models for us to follow.
CHAPTER 2
One of the very best. role-models in God's Word, is a teenager by the
name of David. He was chosen by the Lord to be the next king over the
nation of Israel. God sent a prophet by the name of Samuel to anoint
David, and then it was about thirteen years later before David
actually sat on the throne of Israel as their king. David had many
lessons to learn before he could assume such a responsible position.
Israel had a king by the name of Saul, and he ruled for forty years.
Saul was the peoples choice, and the Lord gave him as ruler over the
people because they wanted to be like all the other nations around
them. You see, God was their king, but they didn't like being
DIFFERENT.
Saul started out well. He was humble and obedient to the Lord, but
when he became strong, he became proud and refused to obey the Lord.
Saul never would take responsibility for his own actions, and he
always blamed someone else rather than admit he had done something
wrong.
In the second year of his reign, Saul gathered his army together to
fight against their long-time enemy, the Philistines. The Jews saw the
multitude of Philistines all around their camp, and they were
frightened out of their wits! Saul wanted to offer a sacrifice to the
Lord in order to encourage his troops. He knew that only a priest was
permitted to offer sacrifices, so Saul waited seven days for Samuel to
come. His troops began to scatter, and Saul refused to wait any longer
for Samuel. He offered the sacrifice himself!
No sooner had Saul offered the sacrifice, than Samuel appeared in the
camp and said, "Saul, what have you done?"
Saul answered, "I saw my troops running away, and you didn't come when
we we expected you! We had to appeal to the Lord for help against the
Philistines, so I forced myself to offer a sacrifice!"
Samuel severely scolded Saul and said, "You have done a very foolish
thing by deliberately disobeying the Lord! You know perfectly well
that only a priest is permitted to offer sacrifices! Now, because you
have disobeyed the Word of God, your sons will not be kings after you,
and the Lord has chosen another man to take your place as king over
His people, Israel!"
CHAPTER 3
Saul continued to rule for thirty-eight more years, and during that
time he did many other things that were displeasing to the Lord. One
of those acts of disobedience occurred when Samuel told Saul to
utterly destroy the enemy, the Amalakites. Saul was ordered to kill
every man, woman, child and all of their animals as well.
Saul took his army, and they destroyed all of the people as the Lord
had commanded except their king, Agag. Also, Saul spared the best of
the sheep and oxen in Amaiek.
Then the Lord told Samuel that He was very displeased with Saul, and
it made Samuel feel very sad. However, he went to Saul as directed.
As soon as Saul saw Samuel, he said proudly, "Blessed are you of the
Lord, Samuel! I have done what the Lord commanded regarding the
Amalakites! "
Samuel answered sternly, "If that's true, why do I hear the bleating
of sheep and the lowing of cattle in my ears?"
Saul was quick to answer, "Well, the people spared the best of the
flocks so that we could use them to sacrifice unto the Lord. We DID
destroy all the rest of the sheep and oxen."
Samuel replied, "The Lord told you to completely destroy the people in
Amaiek and all of their flocks. Why did you do evil by disobeying
Him?"
Saul responded, "I HAVE OBEYED THE LORD! I didn't kill their king,
Agag, but I have kept him alive, and the people saved the best of the
flocks to sacrifice unto the Lord I"
Samuel answered, "Obedience is far more important than sacrifices!
Also, rebellion is as bad as witchcraft, and stubbornness is
idolatry!"
Then Saul admitted, "I have sinned against the Lord. I did all those
things because I listened to the people rather than the Lord. Now
pardon my sin, Samuel, and please worship the Lord with me!"
Samuel refused and said, "I will not worship with you, because the
Lord is very displeased with you! "
As Samuel turned to leave, Saul reached out and grabbed the mantle
which Samuel wore and tore it.
Samuel turned back to Saul and said, "Your kingdom is torn from you
today, and it is given to one whom the Lord has chosen to replace
you!"
Then Saul said, "I have sinned, but don't make me look foolish in
front of my troops! Please worship the Lord with me!"
Then Samuel went with Saul, and they worshipped the Lord together.
After that, Samuel said, "Bring Agag to me!" Agag came humbly before
Samuel and said, "Surely, you aren't still determined to kill me."
Samuel answered him, "As your sword has made women childless, so will
your mother be childless today!" Then he ordered men to kill Agag.
After that, Samuel left and did not see Saul face-to-face again until
the day before Saul died.
CHAPTER 4
Samuel felt badly about God's discipline of Saul, but the Lord said to
him, "Samuel, how long will you mourn for Saul? I have rejected him
because of his disobedience to My Word! Now, take your horn of oil,
and go to Jesse in Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be the
next king over Israel."
Samuel answered, "Lord, how can I go? Saul is surely going to hear
about it, and he will kill me!"
The Lord insisted, "Take an animal with you, and tell the people you
are there to make a sacrifice unto Me. Then invite Jesse and his sons
to the sacrifice, and I will tell you which of his sons you should
annoint."
Samuel obeyed, and he went to Bethlehem. The elders in the town saw
Samuel coming, and they trembled at the sight of him. They asked,
"Have you come to us peaceable?"
Samuel replied, "Yes, I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Make
yourselves ready for the sacrifice, and bring Jesse and his sons to me
also."
When Jesse and his sons arrived, Samuel observed how handsome Jesse's
oldest son, Eliab, was. He said to himself, "Surely, this must be the
Lord's choice!"
But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look at his outward appearance,
Samuel! I look at what is on the inside of a person! What a man thinks
is what is important! "
Jesse brought seven of his eight sons to Samuel, and as they passed by
for Samuel's inspection, the Lord rejected each one of them.
Then Samuel questioned Jesse and said, "Do you have any more sons,
Jesse? The Lord hasn ' t chosen any of these who stand before me. "
Jesse said, "Well, yes, there is one more, but he is the youngest of
my sons, and he is out taking care of our sheep in the wilderness."
Samuel ordered, "Send someone out to find him, because we won't sit
down to the sacrifice until he is with us!"
When David was brought before Samuel, the Lord said to Samuel, "This
one is my choice! Annoint him in front of all the people here!"
David was seventeen years of age at this time. He was a very handsome
young man and had a beautiful tan. Being the eighth son in the family,
he was considered to be the least important. However, the Lord knew
David's worth and potential, because He looked on the inside of David.
David was God's chosen man to be king, but he did not occupy the
throne of Israel until he was thirty years old. Many things happened
to him in order to train David to be worthy of the position of king of
the Jews.
David's trials and temptations have been recorded in the Bible so that
we may all profit from them as we study God's Word.
CHAPTER 5
One of the first tests David faced to test his faith in the Lord came
when the Philistines were threatening the army of Israel.
The two armies were camped on opposite mountains, and there was a
valley between them. A warrior named Goliath came out of the
Philistines' camp and he appeared day and night for forty days in
order to terrify Israel with his challenge, "Send one of your men down
here to fight with me! If he can kill me, the Philistines with whom I
stand, will be your servants. But, if I kill him, you will be our
servants! I defy the armies of Israel!"
King Saul and his troops were extremely frightened, and not one of
them was willing to accept Goliath's challenge, so the brainwashing
continued!
Goliath was a Philistine who came from the town of Gath, which was the
closest Philistine town near Jewish territory. Gath had a reputation
for having huge men like Goliath
Three of David's older brothers were in Saul's army where they were
being terrorized by the giant. Meanwhile, Jesse called David in from
the field where he was tending the family sheep.
Jesse told David to go to his older brothers and take ten cheeses for
the captain of the army. He also added, "Don't forget to see if your
brothers are in good health, and be sure to bring news of them back to
me!"
Early the next morning, David left a man to care for the sheep, and he
went to Israel's camp as his father had instructed him to do. He
happened to arrive in camp just as the soldiers were about to go into
battle against the army of the Philistines. David ran into the midst
of the soldiers to greet his brothers.
While David greeted his brothers, Goliath appeared with his
frightening words as before. David listened to those words, but the
rest of the men ran back to the trenches in fear.
David watched all of this activity in amazement! Then the men said to
him, "Have you seen this Philistine giant who has come out to defy us?
The king promised that if any man would kill that loud-mouth, the king
would give a reward of great riches. Also, he would give his daughter
to him and make his entire family free of taxation for the rest of
their lives!"
David considered the men's words very thoughtfully, and then he
focused his attention upon Goliath. He turned back and spoke to the
men and said, "Who is this idolatrous Philistine who dares to defy the
armies of the living God?'
Eliab, David's oldest brother, became angry at the words of David, and
he said sarcastically, "Why have you come down here, kid? With whom
have you left those few poor sheep in the wilderness? I know what your
purpose was! You just came here to see the battle! I also know how
proud you are and how your mind is full of evil desires!"
David replied, "What have I done that you should criticize me so,
Eliab? I came here for a definite purpose! "
Then David turned away from his brother and began to discuss the
problem of Goliath with some of the other men. When he heard all of
the facts, David said, "Don't fall apart! I will go and fight with
this Philistine!"
When the men heard David's words, several of them found Saul and told
him what David said he could do.
Saul immediately had David brought to him, and he questioned him.
David repeated what he had told the others, and Saul said, "How can
you fight with this Philistine? You are just a youth, and the giant
has been a man of war ever since his youth?"
David explained, "l am a shepherd, and I take care of my father's
sheep. One day while I was watching over the flocks, a lion came and
took a lamb out of the flock. I went after the lion, caught him by his
mane and killed him. I took the lamb from the lion's mouth! On another
occasion, a bear came into the flock and took a lamb. I also killed
the bear and saved the lamb. The Lord who delivered me from the paws
of the lion and the bear will deliver me from this Philistine!"
In utter amazement, Saul said, "Go, and the Lord be with you!" Then
Saul took his own armor and put it on David. He also gave David his
helmet and sword.
David said, "I can't fight with this equipment, because I have never
used these things before." Then David removed the armor and picked up
his sling and his shepherd's staff. He chose five smooth stones from
the brook Kedron and put them in his shepherd's bag, and then he ran
down into the valley to meet Goliath.
When Goliath saw David and realized that David was just a young lad,
he clutched his sides and howled with laughter. Then he shouted, "Am I
a dog that you come to me with sticks?
Then Goliath cursed David and continued taunting him saying, "Come
here, boy! I'll feed your flesh to the birds and the beasts of the
field!"
David shouted back, "You come to me with a sword, a spear and a
shield, but I come bo you in the name of the Lord of armies who is the
God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied! Today, the Lord will
deliver you into my hands! Then I will take your head from you, and
our God will deliver us, so all of you Philistines will know that
there is a God in Israeli
When Goliath heard David's words, he ran to challenge him.
As David approached the giant, he took one of the stones from his
shepherd's bag. He slung the stone at the giant, and hit Goliath in
the forehead. The stone sunk into the giant's flesh, and he fell upon
his face to the earth.
David ran to Goliath, took the sword from the giant's sheath and cut
off his head.
When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they scattered
all over the hills. Saul's army went after them and killed many
Philistines. It was a great victory for Israel that day!
It was well-known that David was very skillful in the use of his
sling. Some people have thought he took five stones with which to
fight the giant in case he needed five chances to hit him. However,
during his conversation with Saul's men in the trenches, David
probably learned that there were actually five giants that might
challenge him. The five included Goliath and his four sons. These are
listed by name in the scriptures as follows:
(a) Ishbi-benob (I Samuel 21:16), (b) Saph (2 Samuel 21:18), (c)
Sippai (I Chronicles 20:4), (d) the fourth son is not named, but the
Bible does tell us that Goliath had a son of great height, and that he
had six toes on each foot and six fingers on each hand. He was killed
by Shimea, one of David's brothers. (I Chronicles 20:4)
Goliath also had a brother by the name of Lahmi who was very skillful
in the use of a spear. (I Chronicles 20:6)
Historians have reported that skeletons recovered in Palestine have
confirmed that men as tall as these giants once lived in that general
area.
CHAPTER 6
After the great victory over Goliath, Saul asked David who he was.
David replied, "I am the son of your servant Jesse who lives in
Bethlehem."
Then Saul kept David by his side and would no longer let him go back
to tend his father's sheep.
One of Saul's sons, Jonathan, became a close friend of David, and he
helped David in many ways.
David went wherever Saul sent him, and he behaved himself wisely in
all he did. Saul put David in charge of his entire army, and he was
accepted by all of the people because he was a great hero.
When Saul and his men were returning to their headquarters in
Jerusalem, word of David's victories had reached the people. Women
came out from all of the cities of Israel, and they danced in the
streets. They sang praises about David which were, "Saul has slain his
thousands, but David has slain his tens of thousands!"
Saul became very jealous when he heard the people praising David, and
he said to himself, "David may as well wear the crown of Israel if my
people regard him so highly!" After that, Saul began to watch David
relentlessly to try to find a way to discredit him or destroy him
altogether!
Saul's oldest daughter should have been given to David after he slew
Goliath, but Saul gave her to another man. Then Saul was told that his
younger daughter, Michal, loved David. Thinking that Michal might be a
great distraction and a problem to David, Saul decided to make her
David's wife. Before he would make David his son-in-law, Saul required
that David fight with the Philistines and bring back proof that he had
killed one hundred of them. So David went out with his men to fight
the Philistines as Saul had told him to, and he brought back evidence
that he had killed two hundred of the enemy. After that, Saul gave
Michal to be David's wife.
Saul realized that the Lord was with David in all that he did, and
that just furthered his hatred and jealousy of David. The Lord had
taken the Holy Spirit from Saul and permitted an evil spirit to
trouble him. David was called in before Saul to play his harp and
soothe Saul when the evil spirit moved him to act violently.
Saul sat with his javelin in his hand and thought to himself, "I'll
pin David to the wall with my javelin!" He threw the javelin at David
two different times, but David was able to escape.
When Saul realized that everything he did to get rid of David ended in
failure, he demoted David to being captain over just one thousand men
in Israel's army.
David survived every battle in which he was sent to fight, so Saul
thought of another way to get rid of him. He told his son Jonathan and
his other men close to him to find David and murder him! However,
Jonathan warned his friend and helped David escape.
Then David went to spend some time with Samuel, and he told Samuel all
the things that Saul had done in an attempt to kill him.
Meanwhile, Jonathan tried to reason with his father. He said, "Father,
why do you want to kill David? He has never once tried to harm you in
any way, and he has always faithfully followed all of your orders!
Don't you remember how you rejoiced when he killed Goliath and
delivered Israel from the Philistines?"
Saul thought about what Jonathan said, and then he reluctantly said to
him, "You're right, Jonathan. David's life shall not be taken. Bring
him back to me again!"
CHAPTER 7
After returning to Saul, David went out to battle as usual, and he was
victorious. He was called at times to play before Saul when the evil
spirit was troubling the king.
Saul was so hateful, however, that he forgot his promise to Jonathan,
and his jealousy flared up again! Twice more he tried to pin David to
the wall by throwing his javelin at him. He missed, but David finally
realized that Saul was determined to kill him. He escaped from Saul's
sight, and went home.
That very night, Saul sent messengers to David's house to watch for
him and to lay in wait for David until the morning light when they
could kill him.
Michal said to David, "My father really means to kill you this tine!
If you don't leave here tonight, you will be a dead man by tomorrow
morning!" Then she helped David escape through a window.
Michal was a very clever woman! She devised what looked like a head
and a body in the bed. When the messengers of Saul came the next
morning and saw what they thought was David in bed, Michal said to
them, "He is sick and I can't disturb him!"
The messengers went back to Saul to report what had happened, and he
immediately ordered them to go back to David's house. He gave the
order, "Bring David to me in his bed so I may kill him myself!"
The men went back to David's house and forced their way into his
bedroom. When they realized that there was an image in the bed instead
of David, they were afraid. Saul had followed them, and when he saw
what had happened, he demanded of his daughter, "Why did you let my
enemy escape? Now I'll kill you instead!"
Michal quickly came to her own defense and said to her father, "David
told me he would kill me if I didn't help him escape!" Fortunately for
Michal, Saul believed her lie!
Meanwhile, David had escaped unnoticed by Saul's men, and he went to
see Samuel again. He told Samuel what Saul had done, and he stayed
with Samuel for a short time. After that, David went to see his friend
Jonathan.
When David found Jonathan, he said to him, "Jonathan, what sin have I
committed against your father that makes him determined to take my
life?"
Jonathan replied, "God forbid that my father should kill you! He tells
me everything, so why should he hide his plans for you from me?"
David answered, "Your father knows we are the best of friends, and no
doubt doesn't want you to know how much he hates me. Right now, there
is only one step between me and death, Jonathan!"
Jonathan said, "I'll help you in any way I can, David!"
David replied, "Alright, Jonathan, here's my plan. Tomorrow I will not
be at the dinner table with the king. Instead, I will hide in a field
that you and I know about. I ' II stay there for three days, and if
your father asks for me, tell him you gave me permission to attend a
yearly family sacrifice with my family in Bethlehem. If Saul says kind
words after you tell him that, all will be well with me, and I'll go
back. However, if he becomes angry, I will know how he feels about me
and that he is still determined to kill me!"
Jonathan agreed to that plan and said, "Alright! At the end of three
days go to the rock we know as Zael, and watch what I will do. I will
shoot three arrows on one side of the rock near where you are hiding.
I will bring a lad with me to fetch the arrows. If I tell the lad
where to find the arrows, you will know it is safe for you to return
to my father. However, if my father is angry because you have escaped
his hands, I will tell the lad that the arrows are beyond our sight,
and then I'll send him home."
David agreed with Jonathan's plan, and he went back to his hiding
place in the forest and stayed there until the third day when Jonathan
promised to return.
CHAPTER 8
The next evening as Saul and Jonathan sat at dinner, it was very
obvious that David's place was empty. As he sat against the wall, Saul
looked at his son and thought about David's absence, but he said
nothing.
When David wasn't there the next night, however, Saul questioned
Jonathan, "Why hasn't David been here for the past two days?"
Jonathan replied, "David asked for permission to go to Bethlehem, and
I gave him permission to leave. There is a sacrifice that his family
observes every year, and they sent word to David saying that he should
be there for their sacrifice to the Lord."
At that, Saul became extremely angry with Jonathan and said, "Why is
your friendship with David so important to you? Don't you realize that
as long as he lives, you will never have a chance to follow me as king
of Israel?"
Jonathan answered his father, "Why should you hate David so much that
you want to kill him? What has he done to you, father?"
Instead of answering Jonathan's question, Saul threw his javelin at
him! When Saul did that, Jonathan became furious and stormed out of
the room without eating his dinner!
The next morning, Jonathan went out into the field where David waited
for an answer regarding Saul. Jonathan shot three arrows and told the
lad he had brought with him that the arrows were too far away for him
to pick up, and he sent the boy home.
David understood by Jonathan's actions that he had to leave right
away!"
Jonathan and David renewed their agreement regarding the Kingdom, and
then they went their separate ways.
David suddenly became discouraged and frightened, and he took: his
eyes off the Lord and focused his attention on his problem with Saul.
He took a few of his own men and went to the priest's city of Nob
nearby. The priest who was in charge was a man by the name of
Ahimilech.
When Ahimilech saw David, he was alarmed at David's sudden appearance,
and he questioned, "Why are you here, David, and where is your army?"
David lied to him and said, "These few men are the only ones who are
with me, because we are on a secret mission for the king! Saul sent
his army to another location to handle some important matters there.
Please give us some bread to eat, and we will go on our way!"
Ahimilech gave the men some of the bread which the priests were
preparing for offerings to the Lord. They had no other food to give
David and his men.
(There happened to be a man listening to the conversation between
David and Ahimilech. His name was Doeg, and he was one of Saul's hired
shepherds)
After eating the bread, David asked Ahimilech, "Don't you have a spear
or a sword you could give me? We left in such a hurry in order to obey
Saul that we failed to bring any weapons with us!"
Ahimilech replied, "Well, the sword of Goliath, the giant whom you
killed, is here! Take that if you wish, but we have no other weapons."
Then David answered excitedly, "There is no better weapon that the
sword of Goliath! Give it to me, and we will be on our way!"
David took: his men and the sword of Goliath and fled to the
Philistine city of Gath where he presented himself to their king,
Achish. (is is ironical as well as interesting, that David went to the
very town from which Goliath came, and David was now carrying the
sword which he had used to kill the giant! )
When the servants of Achish saw David, they said, "Isn't this the man
who was anointed to the be next king over Israel? He has certainly
been glorified in song by his people when they sang about his military
victories!"
On hearing the men's words about himself, David became extremely
frightened, and he pretended to be a madman! He scratched on the doors
of the city gate with his fingernails, and he let his spit fall down
on his beard!
Observing David's actions, Achish said in disgust, "Don't you see that
this man is insane? Why have you brought him to me? I have plenty of
idiots here among my own people without you bringing another one into
my house! "
David and his men got out of there in a big hurry, and they escaped
into a cave near Jerusalem to hide from Achish as well as from Saul
and the army which had been sent out to destroy him!
CHAPTER 9
When David's brothers heard where he was hiding, they joined him in
the cave of Adullam where the men were hiding. Soon, others also heard
where David was, and they gathered men who wanted to help David and
went to him. David became captain over them, and they numbered about
four-hundred men.
David realized he had been wrong when he became afraid, and he
confessed his sin of fear and lying, and was back in fellowship with
the Lord again.
One of David's main concerns was for the safety of his parents. He
went to the king of Moab and asked him to look after his mother and
father while he himself waited to see what the Lord would do next.
The Lord sent his prophet. Gad, to David and told David and his men to
leave the cave where they were hiding and go into a forest in Judah.
Soon after that, Jonathan found him and strengthened David's faith in
the Lord by reminding David that he had been anointed king and would
surely reign after Saul's death. Jonathan also said, "David, stop
being afraid! My father will not be able to kill you! You will be king
over Israel, and I will be your prime minister! My father is
well-aware of all of this! "
Then David and Jonathan shook hands on that promise to each other, and
Jonathan went home.
Meanwhile, in Saul's camp, Doeg, the shepherd who worked for Saul and
who was with the priests in Nob when David ran there for protection,
reported to Saul about how Ahimilech had helped David escape.
Saul became very angry when he heard the words of Doeg, and he went to
Nob to question Ahimilech about what had happened.
Ahimilech denied that he had any kind of conspiracy with David against
Saul, and he told the king why he helped David and his men.
By this time, Saul was beyond any kind of reason or compassion, and he
ordered the execution of the eighty-five priests who lived in Nob. One
man escaped the execution. His name was Abiathar, and he was the son
of Ahimilech. Abiathar hurried to David and told him what Saul had
done in Nob.
David was extremely sorry when he heard the news, and he took full
responsibility for the death of those priests. Then David said to
Abiathar, "Stay here with me, because the men who seek my life are
also going to try to kill you as well! "
CHAPTER 10
Saul continued to pursue David, and he located the place where David
was hiding. Saul took his men and surrounded the area, but before they
went in to capture David, word came to Saul that the Philistines were
invading Judah!
When Saul heard that, he turned his attention toward the Philistines
and away from David for the time being.
David and his men got out of there in a hurry, and they found a new
stronghold in which to hide. It was a mountainous wilderness called
Engedi.
Soon after that, Saul returned with three-thousand chosen men this
time to look for David. They searched all day, and then they decided
to sleep in a cave not far from where David was.
David heard that Saul was very close by, and the Lord put a deep sleep
upon Saul and his men, so that they were unaware that David entered
the cave. David cut off a part of Saul's cloak which covered him while
he slept, but David would not allow any of his own men to harm Saul or
those who were with him.
When Saul awoke the next morning and got ready to go on his way, he
heard the voice of David calling to him. David said, "My lord king,
why do you believe the words of men when they tell you I want to harm
you? Look over here! I have a piece of your cloak in my hand which I
took from you while . you were asleep last night! I made no attempt at
all to kill you, Saul, even though the opportunity was there! Now, let
the Lord judge which of us is righteous in His eyes!"
Saul answered David and said, "David, my son! You are more righteous
than I am! I have been very wrong, and now I will pursue you no
longer, but please promise me that when you become king, you will not
destroy my sons!"
David solemnly promised Saul that he would not kill any of his sons,
and Saul went back to Jerusalem.
CHAPTER 11
Soon after Saul went home, Samuel died, and all Israelites came to pay
their respects and to bury Samuel.
David and his men found employment working on a large ranch for a man
by the name of Nabal. Nabal was a very wealthy man, and he had many
flocks of sheep and goats.
For some time, David and his men worked with Nabal's shepherds, and
when David heard that Nabal was shearing sheep in Carmel, David sent a
few of his men there to ask Nabal for food and payment for the work
they had done.
When Nabal learned why David's men had come to him, he said, "Who is
David? I have never heard of him! You know very well that there are
many servants who have run away from their masters around here!
Perhaps this man, David, is one of those runaways! I won't give my
food and water to any of those strangers! "
When David was told how Nabal responded to his request for food and
wages, he became very angry. He called about half his men to him and
said, "You men come with me! We're going after this man who wants to
cheat us!"
About two hundred men went with David, and the rest stayed back in the
fields to care for the animals.
One of Nabal's young men knew that David was angry and was coming to
take vengeance upon Nabal, so he went to Nabal's wife to tell her
about it.
Nabal's wife's name was Abigail. She was a very beautiful woman and
also a very wise woman as well. She took some animals and loaded them
with supplies of food and wine for David and his men, and then she
went to meet them.
When she saw David, Abigail fell at his feet and said, "STOP! Please
hear what I have to say before you go any further! I am Nabal's wife.
I was not aware that your men came for their rightful food and wages,
or I would have spoken to my husband on your behalf! Nabal is such a
cruel and stubborn man that no one can talk to or reason with him!
Please accept the food which I have brought for you and your men! "
David replied, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel who sent you to me
today! In my fierce anger against Nabal, I would have shed much
innocent blood in this place! Thank you for the provisions which you
have brought for us! Go back to your home in peace! We will not harm
you or your household!"
When Abigail returned to her home, Nabal was hosting a feast that was
fit for a king! Nabal was very drunk, so Abigail decided not to say a
word to him until morning when he would be sober and able to
understand what she would tell him about David.
The next morning when Abigail approached her husband to tell him what
she had done for David and his men, Nabal was no longer in a drunken
condition, but he didn't answer her. He had suffered a stroke during
the night and was unable to speak! Ten days later, Nabal died.
When David heard that Nabal was dead, he sent for Abigail, and she
became his wife.
David already had two other wives, so now with Abigail he will have
three. The Lord is never pleased with a man having more than one wife,
however, He does permit it, but that man will suffer discipline later
in his life for doing so.
Michal, Saul's daughter, was David's first wife. She was not with
David during his wilderness wanderings when he was hiding from Saul.
David took another wife when he was in Jezreel, and now Abigail has
become his wife.
David will have several sons as a result of these marriages, and his
discipline will come because of their actions after David is
established as king of Israel.
CHAPTER 12
Back in Saul's headquarters in Jerusalem, word came to Saul about
David's whereabouts. He decided to go after David again, and this time
took three-thousand chosen men with him to look for David in the
wilderness.
Two of David's nephews, Joab and Abishai, were officers in the army,
and David asked which of them would go with him to Saul's camp.
Abishai volunteered to go along.
When David and Abishai reached Saul's camp, they found Saul asleep in
a trench, and his spear was stuck in the ground next to him. Saul's
captain, Abner, also lay near Saul to guard the king. Just as the Lord
had done before. He put a deep sleep upon Saul and all of his men, so
they didn't know when David and Abishai came near where they were
sleeping.
Abishai said to David, "The Lord has delivered your enemy into your
hands! Let me kill him now with my spear!"
David replied, "No! Do not kill him! No one can escape the judgment of
God if they attempt to kill one who has been anointed king! The Lord
will destroy Saul when He is ready to do so, but it would be wrong for
us to go ahead of the Lord and take the king's life!"
Then David instructed Abishai, "Get Saul's spear and his water jug,
and let's return to our own camp!"
When they got back to camp, David stood on top of a hill some distance
away from Saul, and he shouted to Abner, "Abner! You are a trusted,
high-ranking man in Saul's army! Why haven't you protected the king?
See! I was in your camp, and you did nothing to prevent me from
getting close enough to kill him! You certainly aren't doing your job
very well! Look what I hold in my hands, Abner! I have the king's
spear and his cruse of water in my hands! "
By this time, Saul was fully awake, and he recognized David's voice
right away. He shouted back to David, "Is that your voice I hear, my
son David?"
David answered, "Yes, it is my voice you hear, Saul. After the
agreement we made, why are you still trying to kill me? With your
great army, it would have been no trouble at all for you to find us
and kill me and all of my men too!"
After hearing David's words, Saul felt very guilty, and he said, "I
have acted very foolishly, and I have sinned against you, David. You
were kind enough to me by sparing my life, and now I will not attempt
to kill you anymore!"
David said, "Alright! Let one of your young men come over here to get
your spear and cruse of water. Yes, I spared your life today, and now
I'm sure the Lord will deliver me out of your hands."
Saul said, "Blessed be thou, my son David! You will do great things,
and you will succeed in all that you do."
After that, David went on his way, and Saul returned to his own place.
CHAPTER 13
After that great victory, David became afraid as he did before, and he
said in his heart, "One day I will die at the hands of Saul!"
David went to Achish again, and this time he stayed with Achish for
quite some time. He pleased Achish, and was given the town of Zikiag
in which to live. Achish also gave David responsibility to fight with
the Philistines and against some of their enemies.
One time David went out and fought against the Amalakites. He
destroyed all of the people and their animals, and when he returned to
Achish, David lied and said he had been fighting in the southern part
of Judah! Achish believed David's lie, and decided it would be a good
idea to take David into his own army when they went out to fight with
the Israelites.
The Lord prevented David from fighting against his own people, and He
caused the lords of the Philistines to convince their king not to take
David with them. They said to Achish, "This fellow David must not go
with us! If we take him along to fight against the Israelites, he will
surely join them and will fight against us!" Then Achish sent David
away.
(It is interesting to note that after the kingdom of Israel was fully
established into David's hands, he fought against the Philistines and
conquered them. At that time, he captured Gath and some other nearby
towns in Philistia.)
CHAPTER 14
Meanwhile, Saul saw that the Philistines were gathering together all
around his camp, and he was desperate to get advice about what to do.
The Lord had not given Saul any kind of direction for a long, long
time. He had not guided Saul by dreams nor by prophets! (before the
Bible was completed, the Lord spoke to certain men, like kings,
through dreams and prophets rather than the written word)
Saul was in such a panic situation for help, that he asked if anyone
knew of a wizard to whom he could go for counselling, (long before
that, Saul had ordered the execution of all wizards and witches in
Israel, but apparently one witch had escaped execution)
One of Saul's men spoke up and said, "I've heard that there is a witch
in Endor who escaped the sword. "
Saul said, "Take me to her!"
The woman was located in Endor, and she didn't recognize Saul because
he had disguised himself.
She said to the men, "You know that Saul ordered the death of anyone
who would use demon powers to foresee the future! I can not help you!
"
Saul said to her, "Don't be afraid! I'll make it worth your while if
you will help us! I promise you that you won't die!"
Then the woman responded, "Alright! Whom do you want to contact?"
Saul replied, "Bring the prophet Samuel up from the dead to talk: with
me!"
The witch went into a trance, and the Lord brought Samuel up from
Paradise where he was resting peacefully since his death.
Samuel's appearance was such a surprise and shock to the woman, that
she screamed! That had never happened to her before!
Then she said to Saul, "Why have you deceived me? I know now that you
are Saul, the king of Israel!"
Again Saul said, "Don't be afraid! Tell me what you saw that made you
so frightened! "
The woman answered, "I saw gods ascending up out of the earth!"
Saul questioned her further saying, "What was the form you saw?"
The witch replied, "I saw an old man whose head was covered with a
mantle."
Saul knew right away that it was Samuel whom the woman saw, and Saul
stooped to the ground and bowed down.
Samuel spoke to Saul and said, "Why have you disturbed me, Saul?"
Saul answered quickly, "I am extremely afraid! The Philistines are
preparing to invade Israel, and God will not speak to me or help me in
any way! As a last resort, I came to this woman hoping she would be
able to contact you! I must know what to do about the Philistines!"
Samuel replied, "Why do you ask advice from me? The Lord is not going
to give you any help except the message which He has given me, which
is, The Lord has taken the kingdom from you this very day, because you
were disobedient and would not obey My Word! The armies of Israel will
be delivered into the hands of the Philistines! Furthermore, Saul,
tomorrow you and your sons will die at the hands of your enemies! "
When Saul hear the Word of God from Samuel's mouth, he fell to the
earth in front of Samuel, and Saul was greatly troubled by the Lord's
message. He was also very weak, as he had not eaten for more than
twenty-four hours.
The woman said to Saul, "I put my life in your hands when I obeyed
you. Now please let me give you something to eat so you may go on your
way. "
Saul refused to eat, and said, "I am too upset to eat now that I've
heard such disturbing news from the Lord!"
The men who were with him finally persuaded Saul to accept food from
the woman. After that, Saul and his men went back to the battlefield
where the rest of his army fought with the Philistines.
The Israelites were fleeing from the oncoming Philistines, and many of
the men of Israel were killed in the battle. Jonathan and three other
sons of Saul also died that day. When Saul saw that they were losing
the battle, he said to his armor-bearer, "Draw your sword and kill me
so that the Philistines won't capture me and torture me! "
The armor-bearer was afraid, and he refused to kill Saul. Then Saul
took: his own sword and fell on it. When the armor-bearer saw that, he
was sure Saul was dead, and he ran away.
The next day, the Philistines came to strip the dead of valuables.
When they found the bodies of Saul and his sons, the Philistines cut
off their heads and took their armor. They sent the pieces of armor to
various places in Philistia, and they took the bodies of those four
men to their idol temple of Ashtaroth. They hung the bodies on the
wall of the temple.
Some of Saul's men who had escaped being killed by the Philistines
heard what their enemies had done to their king and his sons, so they
rose up and travelled all night to find the bodies. They found their
way to the temple of Ashtaroth, and they removed the bodies of Saul
and his three sons and took them to their hideout. Then they burned
the bodies and buried the bones under a tree.
CHAPTER 15
When David returned from defeating the Amalekites, he stayed in Zikiag
for three days. On the third day, a young man came out of Saul's camp
and bowed down to David. His clothing was torn, and he was very badly
shaken.
David questioned the young man and said, "From where have you come?"
The man answered, "I have escaped out of the Israelite's camp."
David continued to question, "How well did the battle go for the
Israelites?"
The man answered, "Many Israelites have been killed, and the rest of
the men ran away in fear for their lives. Also, Saul and his three
sons are among the dead. "
Then David asked, "How do you know that Saul and Jonathan are dead?"
The man replied, "I just happened to be running by, and I saw Saul
leaning on his spear. The Philistines were close behind us, and they
saw us. The king reached out to stop me as I ran and he said to me,
'Take your sword and put me out of my misery!' Then, because I know he
couldn't live much longer, I took my sword and killed the king. When I
was sure he was really dead, I removed his crown and this bracelet
which he wore, and I have brought them to you."
David and his men were grieved at the words they heard, and they
fasted and wept for Saul and Jonathan and for all of the people of the
Lord who had died in the battle with the Philistines.
After that, David asked the young man who he was, and he answered, "I
am an Amalekite. "
David said, "Why were you not afraid to kill the king whom the Lord
anointed?"
The young man was speechless, and unable to answer David's question.
Then David said, "You have just called for your own execution by
admitting that you killed the king of Israel!"
David ordered one of his soldiers to execute the Amalekite.
CHAPTER 16
David prayed for guidance after that, and the Lord directed him to go
to Hebron. The elders and many people from the cities of Israel came
to see David, and they announced that David was their king!
David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he ruled over
Israel for forty years.
God fulfilled His purpose for David in making him king over His
people, Israel.
In His Word, God said regarding David, "David kept my commandments and
followed me with all his heart to do that which was right in my eyes."
(I Kings 14:8)
Should we conclude from God's statement about David that David was a
perfect man? NO! David committed many sins during his lifetime, but
David stood out as being DIFFERENT because he knew that All. sin is
basically against the Lord. David always confessed his sins to the
Lord, and David accepted the consequences for his own actions!
God has a purpose for the lives of each one of us who has put their
trust in
Him, and He guides us through His Word.
THE END
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