Jump to:

 01

 

I Samuel

Chapter 24

{Verses 1-4: David spares Saul's life}
1~~And it came to pass,
when Saul was returned victorious {shuwb}
from pursuing the Philistines,
that it was told him, saying,
"Behold, David is in the desert of Engedi
  {'Eyn Gediy - name means 'the spring of the wild goats' - good
  shelter and food}."

{Note: God allowed reversionist King Saul to win. It was not yet time for Israel to go out under the 5th cycle of discipline. God is protecting Israel until God promotes David to King.}

2~~Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel
  {a flying column of soldiers - 3000 strong - from the men who
  distinguished themselves against the Philistines},
and moved out
to 'seek and destroy'
{baqash - technical military use of the word - to search and destroy}
David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats.

{Note: To see what David was thinking, please see Psalms 55: 18-23.}

{Saul Makes Himself Totally Helpless}
3~~In transit, he {Saul} came to the sheepfolds
  {rock areas - natural areas used for sheep pens}
where was a cave.
Then Saul went in to defecate {call of nature}
  {Jewish euphemism (a more pleasant way of saying something
  offensive - our euphemism is 'to do # 2' - literally 'cover his feet'
  see also Judges 3:24}.
Where David and his men remained {undetected}
against the inner recesses {y@rekah} of the cave.

{Strong Temptation to Assassinate King Saul - Men Want David to Kill Him Now}
4~~And the men of David said unto him
  {talking in whispers - giving bad advice},
"Behold, the day of which the Lord told you about {is now here},
'Behold, I {God} am the One giving/delivering
your enemy into your hand,
that you may do to him as it shall seem good unto you.' "
  {David ignores the bad advice - it is wrong to assassinate
  even an evil person}
Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe secretly
  {Saul did not realize what David did at this time}.

{Note: David knew that Saul was the anointed King of God at this time and it was not for him to kill Saul. Saul was in the most vulnerable position possible (relieving himself) - naked and busy with a normal function that usually likes privacy. So, Saul had his men stationed outside the cave, but David and his men were IN the cave already. David easily could have killed Saul, but instead David cut Saul's robe to prove how close Saul came to being killed.}

{David Regrets His Brass Action}
5~~Then it came to pass afterward,
that David's conscience/'right lobe'/heart {leb}
reproached/bit/wounded him
  {David violated his own set of norms and standards and guilt pangs
  came},
because he had cut off the edge of Saul's robe.

{David Expresses His Understanding of Respect for Duly Anointed Authority}
6~~And he {David} said unto his men,
Far be it from me because of Jehovah/God
  {idiom expressing regret}
that I should do/manufacture {'asah - from his old sin nature}
this thing unto my master
  {petty act - lack of respect for authority - quick weakness of
  David why is David fighting Saul at all? He is not! He is defending
  himself and his followers from the unjustified persecution of King
  Saul},
the Jehovah's/God's anointed,
to 'take aggressive destructive action'/
'stretch forth my hand' {shalach}
against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Jehovah/God.

{Note: In the principal, neither David nor his men have the right to touch the King OR the King's property. So, David was wrong and now confesses this.}

7~~So David restrained his men/servants with these words,
and he did not permit them
to rise up {quwm} against Saul.
Then, Saul rose up {quwm - beautifully play on words}
from the cave,
and went on his way.

{Note: If a leader suggests something, followers will often take the action as authority to take this action to the extreme. So without saying anything, his men were probably moving to kill King Saul and David was now commanding them to haul - and explained he was wrong in his action.}

8~~David also arose {quwm - play on words continues}
afterward, and went out of the cave,
and yelled with a loud voice after Saul, saying,
'My lord the king.'
And when Saul turned around and looked behind him,
David 'saluted the king'/'bowed his face to the ground',
and prostrated himself.

{Verses 9-15: David Pleads His Case to King Saul}
 9-15~~And David said to Saul {stood up and spoke to the King},
"Why do you listen to your men's {lying} words {dabar}, saying,
"Behold, David 'searches to destroy' you?"' 10~~
Behold, this day your eyes have seen
  {means to learn by observation}
how that the Lord had given/delivered you today
into my hand in the cave.
And some {of his men}
had counseled/advised me
to assassinate/'kill with great violence' you.
But I 'had pity on you and therefore spared you'.
And I said, "I will not use violence/'put forth my hand'
against my lord for he is the Lord's anointed." 11~~
Moreover, my father {used for father-in-law},
see . . . see the hem of your robe in my hand . . .
for in that I cut off the hem of your robe,
and killed you not,
know you and see again that there is neither evil
nor transgression in my hand.
And I have not sinned against you.
Yet you hunt my soul/life to take it. 12~~
The Jehovah/God judge between me and you
  {David says he is putting the matter in the hands of the Lord},
and the Jehovah/God execute judgment on you
  {because Saul is in the wrong}.
But my hand shall not be upon you. 13^^
As said the proverb of the ancients,
'Wickedness proceeds from the wicked.
But my hand shall not be upon you.'14^^
After whom is the king of Israel come out?
After whom do you pursue?
After a dead dog, after a flea. 15^^
The Jehovah/God therefore be judge,
and judge between me and you,
and see, and plead my cause,
and deliver me out of your hand."

16~~And it came to pass,
when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul,
that Saul said,
  {in his superficial sincerity - 'emotional sincerity'
  is not a Christian virtue because it is unstable - Saul regrets his
  attitude toward David right here}
"Is this your voice, my son {son-in-law} David?
  {David is married to Saul's daughter Michal at this time}
And Saul lifted up {nasa'} his voice, and wept.

{Verses 17-21: Crying Emotional Response of Saul}
17-21~~And he {Saul} said to David,
"You are more righteous than I.
For you have requited/recompensed me 'good',
whereas I have requited/recompensed you evil.
  {Saul's conclusion is correct because of doctrine in his soul -
  but not for the reason Saul thinks - he saw the RESULT of the
  doctrine in David's soul, not the reason for his righteousness}18~~
And you have showed this day
how that you have dealt well with me.
Forasmuch as when the Jehovah/God had surrendered me
into your hand, you have not assassinated me. 19~~
For if a man discover and take his enemy by surprise,
will he let him get away safely? {not under human viewpoint}
Therefore, {may} Jehovah/God reward you good
for that you have done unto me this day. 20~~
And now, behold, I know well that you shall surely be king
  {this is emotional thinking and not truly from doctrine in his soul},
and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.21~~
Now therefore be making me
a solemn promise by Jehovah/God,
that you will not cut off my seed/offspring after me
and that you will not destroy my name out of my father's house
  {many times a new ruler wiped out the entire family of the
  previous ruler}."

22~~And David made the solemn promise to Saul.
And Saul went home.
But David and his men ascended
to the stronghold {protection of the caves of Engedi}.

{Note: David did not go with Saul. He did not trust the word of Saul at all. Saul will shortly try to kill David again (in Chapter 26).}