1 Samuel 29 Commentary
This is Saul’s last battle. While Saul lies prostrate on the floor, in a medium’s house at Endor, the Philistines’ battle preparations are well advanced. Among the Philistine army is one named David.
Saul’s lowest point is matched by David’s ungodly alliance with the Philistines!
Look at this David, and think about his statement about the “uncircumcised Philistines”. They are now his allies!
But David has one critical element that saves his life. Yes, he sinned many times, but he also repented many times! Each genuine repentance goes up before the LORD as a sweet aroma!
We can also marvel at the generosity of the LORD as we count David’s many failings against the obvious blessings from the LORD upon his life.
But the LORD God hasn’t abandoned David. Through the animosity of the Philistine army commanders, David is ejected from a sinful campaign. It’s a near-miss! Wickedness is aborted seconds from delivery!
From what we know about David, we can easily tell he is serious about fighting his own brothers. It is always amazing when you sit down and see what the LORD does to help us out of our wrong decisions!
David is disappointed, and he returns home. It was for his good.
The contrast tells its own story. At Endor, the risen Samuel, albeit a temporal resurrection, tells the world that the LORD had given the kingdom to David. At the opposite end of the conflict, at the Philistines’ camp, David is negotiating a role in the assault against the people that he should be presiding over. Who can understand God’s works!
These are times when we fail to understand the compassions of the LORD.
Where are you on the day of your inauguration? We owe it to the endless mercies of the LORD!
David is ejected from the Philistine camp; this is the doing of the LORD. Loss of employment for some can be the doing of the LORD. Missing out on some opportunity may be the doing of the LORD.
The story of David is a function of grace. We can also think of sovereignty. But we cannot discount justice. The sum total of David’s pieces would say yes, he is qualified for it. On the other hand, Saul is so lacking in the basics that you wonder about his choice for kingship in the first place.
Strangely, it’s the LORD God who elected Saul – a single vote, the only vote. However, it is a reflection of humanity’s heart – how we select or elect life’s critical elements based on external factors, ignoring the heart. We want to look great externally, but our heart is rotting at the core!
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