History – 1 Samuel 26-31

We come to the last few chapters of 1 Samuel and on this day of rest, we see that Saul and David are hardly resting….

Bible Passage:  1 Samuel 26-31

Saul is still in hot pursuit of David and has sent 3000 elite soldiers with him.

God put a deep sleep on his army and Saul, and allowed David and Abishai to enter the camp.  David, fearing the Lord, and not wanting to be held responsible for killing ‘the Lord’s anointed’, prevented Abishai from killing Saul.

In the end, David told Saul not to go after him but was of no use. Saul was determined to kill David and there was no turning back in his actions. From verses in these chapters and the previous chapters, Saul seem to repent from his actions but those were of untruth lips. It seems that the devil or his jealous heart has already taken control of his body and whatever he did was against the Lord.

David had to flee from Saul again and he defected to the Philistines. Only then did Saul stop pursuing David.

Also, at the land of the Philistines, David was rejected by the Philistines lords there and he was also attacked by raiding parties. Through the help of God, David and his men managed to free their love ones from the enemies. The Philistines made war with Israel and defeated Saul. Saul and his sons died in this battle. It was tragic that Jonathon also died such a horrible death as Jonathon helped David considerably.

Why did Saul have to die such a horrible death? What is the difference between Saul and David? What is the warning for us today?

When Saul was chosen by God to be the king of Israel, initially he was a very humble person. The people loved him as he had the features of a king. He was tall and powerful.

Through God’s help, he had some successes against Israel enemies. However, when he tasted the power, he became proud.

He was so proud until he lost his fear of God and thought that he could do anything. He was rebuked by Samuel for not destroying the Amalekites completely and for intruding the priest’s office. This pride in him made him extremely jealous of David. Interestingly, the song the women folk sang about Saul and David managed to reach the neighbouring countries. Probably, this song was so well known that Saul became bitter with jealousy and hatred for David.

David on the other hand has the fear of God. He did things consulting God first or regarded God in his decisions. He trusted in God and God delivered him from his enemies. God blessed David because his heart yearns for God and seeks him whole heartedly. This is in contrast with Saul who initially was fervent for God and trusted in Him but later fell from grace due to his lack of fear, pride and reliance of himself.

Col 3:4-10

“When Christ who is our life appears, then you also appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you once walked, when you lived in them. But now put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old nature with its practices and have put on the new nature which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”

Before the fight with the Philistines, Israel encamped at the fountain in Jezreel. Jezreel is a large and flat valley that runs from the East to West side of Israel. Here are some pictures I took from a mountain peak beside Nazareth.

Jezreel Valley (running from East (left) to West (right))

Nazareth (Place where Jesus spent His childhood… now quite a large town due to the fame)

Mount Tabor, the ‘triangle’ hill on the left (some say it is where Jesus was transfigured..)