Devotional comment on 1 Samuel for August 24-30

(covenantedreformation.com)

 

These free devotions from a Reformed Presbyterian understanding of the Word of God may be used for personal or family devotions. I suggest you read verses around the daily verse as well, to get the wider context; and also choose another passage of Scripture to read. Any feedback on the way in which this attempt to serve the church can be improved please let me know by emailing covenanter@covenantedreformation.com. These devotions are of course not copyrighted and can be freely given to others.

 

 

Lord’s Day 24 August
Guidance Sought

1 Sam 23:1—4 ‘Then they told David, saying, Behold, the Philistines fight against Keilah, and they rob the threshingfloors. 2  Therefore David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines? And the LORD said unto David, Go, and smite the Philistines, and save Keilah. 3  And David’s men said unto him, Behold, we be afraid here in Judah: how much more then if we come to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines? 4  Then David enquired of the LORD yet again. And the LORD answered him and said, Arise, go down to Keilah; for I will deliver the Philistines into thine hand.’

David has fled Saul; Saul has heard how David enquired of the Lord through Ahimelech the priest at Nob and Saul has caused Doeg the Edomite to decimate the priesthood and the city of Nob. Now we read of David involved in a skirmish with the Philistines in the city of Keilah. We notice that David has success at Keilah.

No doubt the Philistines were engaged in the age-old practice of raiding cities at harvest time. (See Judges 6:3). When David hears of God’s people under attack, he is immediately concerned and wants to do something to help. David enquires of the Lord seeking guidance as to whether to attack the Philistines or not. David probably felt confident in himself, but notice that he seeks guidance from the Lord. David’s men, however, react with fear. And David enquires again, no doubt to reassure them.

God still guides us today although we cannot expect special revelations as David was permitted. Ask yourself this morning whether you seek God’s help in all your decisions? Which ones do you think you need God’s help for and which ones do you not? What is the fourth petition in the Lord’s Prayer?

Monday 25th August
Stay Alert

1 Sam 23:1—5 ‘Then they told David, saying, Behold, the Philistines fight against Keilah, and they rob the threshingfloors. 2  Therefore David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines? And the LORD said unto David, Go, and smite the Philistines, and save Keilah. 3  And David’s men said unto him, Behold, we be afraid here in Judah: how much more then if we come to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines? 4  Then David enquired of the LORD yet again. And the LORD answered him and said, Arise, go down to Keilah; for I will deliver the Philistines into thine hand. 5  So David and his men went to Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and smote them with a great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah’.

In verse 5, we see that David delivers the city from the Philistines. The word translated ‘deliver’ here or ‘save’, also used in verse 2 is usually used of a notable victory where God is behind the deliverance.

David’s taste of victory is short lived. Does this brief respite resonate in your experience in life? We too find that the Lord does not let us rest for long. Just when things seem to be going along well, events can happen that shatter our equilibrium.

This is why we need to always stay close to the Lord. Are you taking care of your spiritual ‘fitness’ or are you more worried about your physical health?

Tuesday 26th August
Self Interest?

1 Sam 23:10—12 ‘Then said David, O LORD God of Israel, thy servant hath certainly heard that Saul seeketh to come to Keilah, to destroy the city for my sake. 11  Will the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? will Saul come down, as thy servant hath heard? O LORD God of Israel, I beseech thee, tell thy servant. And the LORD said, He will come down. 12  Then said David, Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul? And the LORD said, They will deliver thee up’.

Saul hears of David’s whereabouts and now believes he is delivered into his hands by God. So Saul gathers his army to besiege Keilah. David knows of Saul’s plans and now consults the Priest and Ephod.

This particular ephod was the outer garment of the High Priest which contained the breastplate in which were the devices known as the Urim and the Thummim for discerning God’s will.

David asks two specific questions. ‘will Saul come down, as thy servant hath heard?’ and ‘Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?’

The Lord answers both that they will come down and they will deliver David up. No doubt the people of Keilah had heard of the fate of Nob at the hand of Saul and would have quite willingly handed over an enemy of Saul to save their own skin.

Are you living your life only out of self-interest? Examine your motives for all the various activities you are involved in this week. How many relate to your own happiness and how many to the happiness and well-being of others?

Wednesday 28th August
The Slough Of Despond

1 Sam 23:17—17 ‘And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life: and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in a wood. 16  And Jonathan Saul’s son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. 17  And he said unto him, Fear not: for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee; and that also Saul my father knoweth.’

David’s men have now swelled to about 600 and they flee to the wilderness of Ziph, about 5 miles Southeast of Hebron and south of Keilah. Saul seeks David daily. Notice that God is in control. He does not deliver David into Saul’s hand. Notice too that God provides an encourager in Jonathan.

David is in the Slough of despond as he fears for his life. What does God usually do to lift us out of depression of despondency?

Perhaps the minister who visited one of the members of his congregation in a similar condition could have helped David. This particular minister found one of his congregation in a very depressed condition. She had her infant in her arms and the minister said ‘Drop the little one upon the floor.’ Astounded at this suggestion of course she refused. ‘Well’, he said, ‘for what price would you do it?’ ‘Not for all the money in the world’, she said. You wouldn’t?, he responded. ‘No I would not’.

‘And do your really think,’ he said, ‘that you love your vulnerable child more that the Lord does His?’ At that her face brightened and with the lesson of her own maternal love, she grew strong.

Thursday 28th August
The Suppression Of Truth

Romans 1:18-21 ‘For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 ¶  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened’.

1 Sam 23:16—18 ‘And Jonathan Saul’s son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. 17  And he said unto him, Fear not: for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee; and that also Saul my father knoweth. 18  And they two made a covenant before the LORD: and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.’

God sends Jonathan to encourage him at this their last recorded meeting. What does Jonathan reveal concerning Saul? He reassures David that He will be King over Israel in verse 17 and that ‘also Saul my father knoweth.’

Saul is like other ungodly men. Even though he knows he is rebelling against God and fighting against his will, he continues to destroy his soul.

Even though men seem to act as if there is no moral governor of the universe in which they live, they know in their hearts that indeed there is a Holy God who condemns anything less than total obedience to His will. In Romans 1:20 we read that men reject God: ‘For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse’.

We should be compassionate on all men, but never let us forget that the reason for their rejection of the one true God and Christianity is not because God has not got around to giving them the Holy Spirit so that they would believe, but because of their own suppression of truth. Perhaps you know someone you can remind today - that if he rejects Christ, he is suppressing the truth about God, and is without excuse.

Friday 29th August
Looking For Excuses?

Romans 1:18-21 ‘For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened’.

1 Sam 23:17—18 ‘And he said unto him, Fear not: for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee; and that also Saul my father knoweth. 18  And they two made a covenant before the LORD: and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.

Notice that Paul says that wrath is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. It is not because of their ignorance or because they have not heard the gospel message that He condemns them, but because of their ungodliness and unrighteousness. This is who a person is outside of Christ - who has not believed on the Lord Jesus Christ.

And why are the unrighteous culpable or responsible for their unrighteousness and ungodliness? It is because they consciously do something. They suppress the truth in unrighteousness. What Paul says here is that, like Saul, men know the truth. By suppressing the truth, Paul means that the hinder or oppose it.

The New Testament concept of truth is not something that is to be simply agreed with intellectually. It requires obedience. And so men, who live unrighteous lives, by their rebellion, disobedience or unrighteousness, hinder or suppress the truth that they most certainly know.

Paul specifically says that there are things that are known about God from just looking around His creation. Though God Himself cannot be seen, his invisible attributes can be discerned — even clearly seen, in what He has made.
Paul summarises these attributes as His eternal power and His divine nature. But again this is not just a bare knowledge of God’s potential power and divinity. It is something that has been manifest ‘since the creation of the world.’ Implied in this term is that men are aware of God’s acts in history. They really are aware of the truth that God revealed himself to His Old Testament people — that He delivered them by great miracles. They really are aware and have no grounds at all for rejecting the truth that God’s eternal power and divine nature was especially and pre-eminently displayed in Jesus Christ nearly 2000 years ago. These things, as Paul has said, speaking of the ministry of our blessed Lord Jesus on earth, ‘were not done in a corner.’ The historical evidence and confirmation of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ is available for all to see and believe — in particular His teaching, miracles, and sinlessness, fulfilment of prophecy, death and resurrection.

These are all things where God has displayed his eternal power. But in particular these things have been clearly seen and understood through what has been made — and so all men are without excuse. If you will not obey God, then this refers to you. If you by living an immoral life, you suppress the truth; or if you argue against the truth of God’s Word, then you are without excuse. This is the same doctrine we noticed yesterday. I hope you are not looking for excuses!

Saturday 30th August
Be And Encourager ‘In God’

1 Sam 23:15—18 ‘And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life: and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in a wood. 16  And Jonathan Saul’s son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. 17  And he said unto him, Fear not: for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee; and that also Saul my father knoweth. 18  And they two made a covenant before the LORD: and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.’

Do you think that Saul suppressed the truth he knew? This was Saul’s condition. Saul was the archetypal sinner who suppressed the truth in unrighteousness. Yes he knew David was to be King and that he could not touch him and yet he continued to pursue him and continued to destroy others like the priesthood and the population of Nob who stood in his way. There seems little doubt that Saul’s mind was filled with two contradictory ideas. On the one hand he knew that David was untouchable because the Lord was with Him, and yet he also convinced himself that he should overthrow God’s purposes by deliberately contradicting His will and that somehow he might be successful.

This is of course irrational. It is trying to say that you can make 2 and 2 equal 5 if you try hard enough. You know it can never be, but you continue to keep trying to add it up so that it is. A failure to come to God in Christ is a denial of what you know about God who has certainly revealed Himself in His Works.

We read here of them renewing their covenant and then they part for the final time. Jonathan mentions that ‘his father knows’ as part of his encouragement. How would this knowledge help David? I suggest it will show David that even the irrationality of evil men — the threatened chaos of a world that seems out of control should not disturb our trust in the Lord’s purposes.

Notice that the encouragement was ‘in God.’ in verse 16. This beautiful phrase tells us much about Jonathan’s godliness, but it also shows us what true encouragement is. True encouragement can only really be ‘in God’: that is to say with reference to God’s purposes and blessings for the believer.

Have you ever been in situation at a funeral where an unbeliever is being buried? What comfort can you give the relative or friend if he also is an unbeliever? You cannot say ‘well his suffering is now over’, because you know that it has only really begun. You cannot say ‘what a great man and look at what he achieved on earth’ when none of what he did was done for the glory of God. No, true encouragement can only be ‘in God’ and for the benefit of believers.

Think of ways you can encourage your brothers and sisters in Christ ‘in God’ today.

Garnet Milne