Though Saul was king and his son Jonathan first in line for succession, God had appointed David as the next king of Israel. David waited for God’s timing and did not try to dethrone Saul or eliminate the heir to the throne. Saul’s goal was to protect his family line at any cost.  But most of all, Saul did not want his power and authority to be stripped away as king.  Saul is so jealous of David, his envy of being favored by God is destroying everything good within him.  His fear of losing the crown feeds his anger.  His anger is overtaking all his mind. Saul now wants to murder the one loyal to him, plays his harp for him to soothe his dark moods, and is now a lifelong friend of his son Jonathan.  Saul has broken his relationship with God.  Because of turning from God to self; all other relationships in his life are fractured.  Saul is living on the edge, ready to fall.

At the heart of Saul’s actions is fear of losing what he thinks he earned and deserves to continue—power and position. Life is going to get a lot uglier as Saul continues to demand his own way. But God has other plans. 

1 Samuel 19

Saul Tries to Kill David

Saul told his son Jonathan and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan had taken a great liking to David ² and warned him, “My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. ³ I will go out and stand with my father in the field where you are. I’ll speak to him about you and will tell you what I find out.”

⁴ Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king do wrong to his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly. ⁵ He took his life in his hands when he killed the Philistine. The Lord won a great victory for all Israel, and you saw it and were glad. Why then would you do wrong to an innocent man like David by killing him for no reason?”

⁶ Saul listened to Jonathan and took this oath: “As surely as the Lord lives, David will not be put to death.”

⁷ So Jonathan called David and told him the whole conversation. He brought him to Saul, and David was with Saul as before.

⁸ Once more war broke out, and David went out and fought the Philistines. He struck them with such force that they fled before him.

⁹ But an evil spirit from the Lord came on Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. While David was playing the lyre, ¹⁰ Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear, but David eluded him as Saul drove the spear into the wall. That night David made good his escape.

¹¹ Saul sent men to David’s house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, warned him, “If you don’t run for your life tonight, tomorrow you’ll be killed.” ¹² So Michal let David down through a window, and he fled and escaped. ¹³ Then Michal took an idol and laid it on the bed, covering it with a garment and putting some goats’ hair at the head.

¹⁴ When Saul sent the men to capture David, Michal said, “He is ill.”

¹⁵ Then Saul sent the men back to see David and told them, “Bring him up to me in his bed so that I may kill him.” ¹⁶ But when the men entered, there was the idol in the bed, and at the head was some goats’ hair.

¹⁷ Saul said to Michal, “Why did you deceive me like this and send my enemy away so that he escaped?”

Michal told him, “He said to me, ‘Let me get away. Why should I kill you?’”

¹⁸ When David had fled and made his escape, he went to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. Then he and Samuel went to Naioth and stayed there. ¹⁹ Word came to Saul: “David is in Naioth at Ramah”; ²⁰ so he sent men to capture him. But when they saw a group of prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing there as their leader, the Spirit of God came on Saul’s men, and they also prophesied. ²¹ Saul was told about it, and he sent more men, and they prophesied too. Saul sent men a third time, and they also prophesied. ²² Finally, he himself left for Ramah and went to the great cistern at Seku. And he asked, “Where are Samuel and David?”

“Over in Naioth at Ramah,” they said.

²³ So Saul went to Naioth at Ramah. But the Spirit of God came even on him, and he walked along prophesying until he came to Naioth. ²⁴ He stripped off his garments, and he too prophesied in Samuel’s presence. He lay naked all that day and all that night. This is why people say, “Is Saul also among the prophets?”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

What would you do to protect your status in life?

What would you do if someone close to you became your self-appointed enemy merely because of their success and your jealousy?

Traits of the Enemy, the Prince of Darkness, shows up in the best of families.  “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” when tempted by the dark character traits of anger, jealousy, envy, pride, arrogance, with thoughts of removing those who offend or disagree with us.

How do we respond when tempted?  God’s Word recited out loud if necessary to the enemy who provokes us.

Paul’s letters to the church, along with the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ are full of truth bombs given to us with power from God’s Holy Spirit to allude the enemy!  We must do as the Psalmist and “hide God’s Word in our hearts so that we might not sin” against God and others.  Don’t fall for the foolishness of the Destroyer of all relationships! 

“Several scriptures can guide and strengthen us in resisting temptation. Key verses include Matthew 26:41, which emphasizes the need to watch and pray, and 1 Corinthians 10:13, which reminds us that God provides a way out of temptation. Other helpful passages include James 4:7, encouraging us to submit to God and resist the devil, and the enemy will flee!  Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, even tells us what to wear to combat temptations!  

 “And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.” Romans 13 :11-14

What we do will reflects what we truly believe.  Our thought-life will be displayed in our actions.  So, what are we thinking? Who do we really believe? Who is truly Lord of our hearts, minds, and souls? We must consistently evaluate our relationships, first with God and then with each other.  What is holding us back from having unconditional, loving friendships with each other such as Jonathan and David had which was considered a most unlikely relationship at that time?

Do we only look favorably on those like us and prove worthy of our time and friendship?

Jesus touched the untouchables, extending unconditional love, and then gave his life for all the world—his enemies included. What is our response as His followers?

Relationships used only to gain favor, position, and power are not of God.

God’s way out for David was to redirect his pursuers by His Spirit!

Take another look at verses 19-24. Interesting, right? The men Saul sent to seize David were empowered by God’s Spirit to prophesy in the Spirit! We don’t know what they said; but these men were redirected and David was protected. 

Saul then decided to go himself when his men failed the mission.  God then redirected him in the same way! Saul prophesied to the point that others thought he was a prophet! Saul had had a similar experience after Samuel had anointed him king (1 Samuel 10:9–13). These two events prove that a person can have a remarkable religious experience and yet have no change in character. In Saul’s case, both experiences were sent by the Lord, but Saul didn’t profit from them. Special religious manifestations aren’t evidences that a person is even saved”! 

Jesus teaches the difference between true and false disciples;

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’—Jesus, Matthew 7:21–23

Saul had a religious experience but not a change of heart.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”—Jesus, Matthew 7:24-27

Saul built his house on sand.  His crash will soon follow.

Lord,

Our relationships matter to You!  What we think of each other matters to You.  You gave yourself which is all we need to have an intimate loving relationship with You and with each other.  You gave us a change of heart upon believe in all you have done for us! 

As we realize the depth of unconditional love you have for us; may our love for you and others grow to be more like your love. Help us to love more and judge less—the later being a temptation of darkness.  Clothe us with the beauty of your light of salvation so others will know and see YOU in us and come to you!  All holy relationships begin with our relationship with you.

In Jesus Name, Amen