1 Samuel 18

1 Samuel 18

1 Samuel 18

Shawn Bumpers / General

1 Samuel 18 / David; Saul (king); Jonathan (son of Saul)

Saul begins to persecute David

Introduction:

David’s service in Saul’s court and his exile as a fugitive now become the focus in our next handful of chapters.

We will find that David, who was once Saul’s favorite, would now become Saul’s enemy … not by David’s doing, but by Saul’s.

Here, in chapter 18, we will see David deeply trust in the Lord.

How is his faith tested in this chapter?

Well, for one thing,  David was beloved by Jonathan, Saul’s son.

David had been anointed by Samuel showing that he would be the next king after Saul.

However, by normal right of succession, Jonathan should inherit the crown. 

In fact, in our chapter we will see Jonathan give David his own robe, as well as his own armor and weapons.

In our chapter, the fact that the women praise David and not David’s God is significant. 

Proverbs 27:21 NKJV
The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold,
And a man is valued by what others say of him.

In this chapter, David is also tested by demotion.

Verse 5 suggests that David was the head of Saul’s personal body-guard.

We will see this a lot of David … even when persecuted by the king, he will refuse to speak ill of or raise a hand against Saul, but instead serves faithfully as he is able.

Several times in our chapter we see David described as behaving “wisely.”

It’s the Hebrew word “Sakal” which means both “to understand” and “to have success.”

And that duel meaning is why this particular word is used here in regards to David.

And David’s wise behavior and his success in the face of Saul’s increasing persecution of him made Saul all the more afraid!

Finally, David is tested in this chapter by disappointment.

We’ve all experienced disappointment in one way or another.

In the previous chapter, Saul had promised one of his daughters to the man who defeated Goliath (17:25).

And if that wasn’t enough, Saul then uses his daughter Michal as a tool to try to have David killed.

David was a man of great faith, but he does make some mistakes as we will see over the next few weeks in chapters 19, 20 and 21.

Now, let’s specifically turn to our chapter for tonight … chapter 18.

David had in obedience to his father’s instructions brought food to his brothers who were with the army facing the Philistines.

David, however, drew upon his faith in God and he faced Goliath and defeated him with a sling and a stone.

Jewish men had to be at least 20 years old before they could go to war.

We find this regulation recorded in Numbers 1:3.

Numbers 1:3 NKJV
from twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies.

However, it is likely that David had not yet attained this age when he was given the authority of high rank in the Israelite army.

2 Samuel 18:5 NKJV

Now the king had commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains orders concerning Absalom.

He was an honest man of faith, but Saul was a deceitful, scheming man of the world.

And now, Saul sees threats from David in everything.

v1-4

There was a time when Saul loved David.

Chapter 16 says that Saul loved his greatly (1 Samuel 16:21).

1 Samuel 16:21 NKJV

So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer.

At this time, Jonathan was probably at least twenty years old, and commanding one-third of the Israelite army.

He had already won 2 great victories:

• In chapter 13, he defeated the garrison of the Philistines in Geba.

• Then in chapter 14, he had led his armorbearer in a 2 man attack against a whole Philistine garrison which led to a great defeat of the Philistine army.

Jonathan was Saul’s eldest son.

Did Jonathan know about David’s anointing by Samuel as the next king?

I believe the answer to that is “YES.”

If the implication is correct, Jonathan was renouncing his claim to the throne by giving David that robe.

David and Jonathan are one of the great friendships in scripture.

However, Saul wasn’t pleased with his son’s friendship with David.

Saul’s love for David, influenced by his pride, turned to jealousy and fear … what Saul desperately needed was humility and repentance.

v5-7

Proverbs 27:21 NKJV
The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold,
And a man is valued by what others say of him.

In other words, just as the refining pot and furnace test the metal and prepare it for use, so praise tests and prepares people for what God has planned for them.

How we respond to praise reveals what we’re made of.

• If praise humbles us, then God can use us.

• BUT … if praise puffs us up, we’re not yet ready for promotion.

David’s popularity started after his incredible defeat of Goliath.

After Goliath fell, the army of Israel chased the Philistines for ten miles, defeated them, and took their goods.

As they returned, the women met the victors and praised both Saul and David, but a little more toward David.

Their praise of David shows his popularity, and explains why Saul began to hate and fear him.

Psalm 91:7 NKJV
A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.

This riled Saul.

v8-11

What the women sang didn’t seem to affect David, but their song enraged Saul.

According to Samuel’s prophecy in chapter 15, Saul had already forfeited the kingdom (15:28).

It is interesting how, with David pre-figuring Christ in so many ways (as we discussed last week) … it is interesting how Saul responds to David’s success.

So, this distressing spirit which seems to provoke or perhaps be provoked by envy, has again come upon Saul.

And so David did what he used to do and he played music … having a harp in his hand.

That meant David was willing to risk his life to minister to the very one who wanted to take his life.

You know, envy is a dangerous and deceitful enemy.

It’s a cancer that slowly eats out our inner life and leads us to say and do terrible things. 

Proverbs 14:30 NKJV
A sound heart is life to the body,
But envy is rottenness to the bones.

Envious people max out their credit cards to buy things they don’t need just to impress people who really don’t care!

This explains why Saul threw his spear at David while David was trying to soothe him. 

1 Samuel 18:18 NKJV

So David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my life or my father’s family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?”

v12

The Lord protected His servant David from Saul’s murderous hand, a fact that frightened Saul even more (vv. 15, 29).

Instead of picking up that spear and using it against Saul, David relied on the LORD.

So, by all outward appearance, Saul is in control.

v13-16

Saul was better at scheming than at trusting God.

When Saul disobeyed God, he always had a ready excuse to get himself out of trouble.

If people challenged his leadership, he could figure out ways to eliminate them.

But the plan didn’t work because David won all the battles!

So it all backfires against Saul.

Finally Saul devised a plot to have David killed by the Philistines … the perfect plan … and he begins to put his plan to action.

v17-27

Saul had promised to give one of his daughters in marriage to the man who killed Goliath (17:25), but this promise had not yet been fulfilled.

So now Saul speaks to David of his eldest daughter, Merab.

In fact, this could have been a potential steppingstone to the throne, especially if David andJonathan had made the covenant we spoke of before. 

So Saul chose to be persistent.

So we see that Saul wasn’t beneath using his own daughter as a tool to get rid of David.

The details aren’t given, but the text seems to indicate that David had to fight a certain number of battles before the marriage could take place. 

Saul was hoping that David would be slain during one of those battles.

But then Saul happily discovered that his younger daughter Michal was in love with David! 

When David’s reply was reported to Saul, he saw a great opportunity to attack his enemies and get rid of David at the same time.

v28-30

By now Saul was so controlled by emotions that he was obsessed with the desire to kill his son-in-law.

Romans 8:31–39 NKJV
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.

I mentioned David’s wise behavior at the beginning of our study.

Philippians 2:9 NKJV
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,

Philippians 2:5–8 NKJV
Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.