Behaved Wisely
1 Samuel 18
Saul Resents David
1 Now when he had finished speaking to Saul,
the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan
loved him as his own soul.
2 Saul took him that day, and would not let him go home to his
father’s house anymore.
3 Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as
his own soul.
4 And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to
David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.
5 So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and behaved
wisely. And Saul set him over the men of war, and he was
accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of
Saul’s servants.
6 Now it had happened as they were coming home, when David was
returning from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women had
come out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet
King Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and with musical instruments.
7 So the women sang as they danced, and said:
“Saul has slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands.”
8 Then Saul was very angry, and the saying displeased him; and he
said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they
have ascribed only thousands. Now what more can he have but the
kingdom?”
9 So Saul eyed David from that day forward.
10 And it happened on the next day that the distressing spirit from
God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house. So David
played music with his hand, as at other times; but there was a spear
in Saul’s hand.
11 And Saul cast the spear, for he said, “I will pin David to the
wall!” But David escaped his presence twice.
12 Now Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with
him, but had departed from Saul.
13 Therefore Saul removed him from his presence, and made him his
captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the
people.
14 And David behaved wisely in all his ways, and
the LORD was with him.
15 Therefore, when Saul saw that he behaved very wisely,
he was afraid of him.
16 But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and
came in before them.
David Marries Michal
17 Then Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab; I will
give her to you as a wife. Only be valiant for me, and fight the
LORD’s battles.” For Saul thought, “Let my hand not be against him,
but let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”
18 So David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my life or my
father’s family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?”
19 But it happened at the time when Merab, Saul’s daughter, should
have been given to David, that she was given to Adriel the
Meholathite as a wife.
20 Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. And they told Saul, and
the thing pleased him.
21 So Saul said, “I will give her to him, that she may be a snare to
him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.”
Therefore Saul said to David a second time, “You shall be my
son-in-law today.”
22 And Saul commanded his servants, “Communicate with David
secretly, and say, ‘Look, the king has delight in you, and all his
servants love you. Now therefore, become the king’s son-in-law.’ ”
23 So Saul’s servants spoke those words in the hearing of David. And
David said, “Does it seem to you a light thing to be a king’s
son-in-law, seeing I am a poor and lightly esteemed man?”
24 And the servants of Saul told him, saying, “In this manner David
spoke.”
25 Then Saul said, “Thus you shall say to David: ‘The king does not
desire any dowry but one hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to
take vengeance on the king’s enemies.’ ” But Saul thought to make
David fall by the hand of the Philistines.
26 So when his servants told David these words, it pleased David
well to become the king’s son-in-law. Now the days had not expired;
27 therefore David arose and went, he and his men, and killed two
hundred men of the Philistines. And David brought their foreskins,
and they gave them in full count to the king, that he might become
the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michal his daughter as a
wife.
28 Thus Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David,
and that Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved him;
29 and Saul was still more afraid of David. So Saul became David’s
enemy continually.
30 Then the princes of the Philistines went out to war. And so it
was, whenever they went out, that David behaved more wisely
than all the servants of Saul, so that his name became highly
esteemed.
In 1 Samuel 18, the phrase “the LORD was with him (David)” was
repeated three times, and the phrase “behaved wisely” was repeated
four times.
It occurred during the time when Saul was the king of Israel, and he
resented and feared David greatly because the LORD had left him, and
was with David. It was a few years before David
became the king that sought after the heart of God!
Jonathan, the son of Saul, felt very close to David. He loved David
as much as he loved himself. But Saul kept David with him from that
day David spoke to the king after killing Goliath the Philistine in
1 Samuel 17. He did not let David go home to
his father’s house.
Jonathan made an agreement with David. He did this because he loved
David as much as himself. He took off his coat and gave it to David.
He also gave David his uniform, including his sword, bow and belt.
Saul sent David to fight in different battles. And David was very
successful as he behaved wisely before the LORD. Then Saul put David
over the soldiers. When he did this, Saul’s officers and all the
other people were pleased.
After David had killed the Philistine, he and the men returned home.
Women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul. They
sang songs of joy, danced and played tambourines and stringed
instruments.
As they played, they sang, “Saul has killed thousands of his
enemies. But David has killed tens of thousands!”
The song of the women really upset Saul, and he became very angry. He thought,
“The women say David has killed tens of thousands of enemies. But
they say I killed only thousands of enemies. The only thing left for
him to have is the kingdom!” So Saul watched David closely from then
on. He was jealous of him.
The next day an evil spirit from God entered Saul with power. And he
prophesied in his house. David was playing the harp as he usually
did. But Saul had a spear in his hand. He raised the spear and
thought, “I’ll pin David to the wall.” But David got away from him
two times.
The LORD was with David but had left Saul. So Saul was afraid of
David. He sent David away from him. He made David commander of 1,000
soldiers. So David led them in battle. He behaved wisely in
everything he did because the LORD was with him.
Saul saw that David was very successful. And he became even more
afraid of David. But all the people of Israel and Judah loved David.
This was because he led them well in battle.
Saul said to David, “You’re a brave soldier. And you fight the
LORD’s battles. Here is my older daughter Merab. I will let you
marry her.” Saul had decided, “I won’t have to kill David. The
Philistines will do that!”
But David said, “I am not good enough for this honor. And my family
is not important enough for me to become the king’s son-in-law.” So
when the time came for Saul’s daughter Merab to marry David, Saul
gave her instead to Adriel of Meholah.
Now Saul’s other daughter Michal loved David. When they told Saul
about Michal loving David, he was pleased. He thought, “I will let
Michal marry David. Then she will become a trap for him. And the
Philistines will defeat him.” So Saul said to David a second time,
“You may become my son-in-law.”
And Saul gave an order to his servants. He told them, “Speak to
David in private. Say, ‘Look, the king is pleased with you. His
servants like you. You should become his son-in-law.’”
Saul’s servants said these words to David. But David answered, “Do
you think it is easy to become the king’s son-in-law? I’m only a
poor man. Nobody knows me.”
Then Saul’s servants told him what David had said. Saul said, “Say
to David, ‘The king doesn’t want you to pay a large price for the
bride. All he wants is 100 Philistine foreskins. Vengeance on his
enemies is all he really wants.’” Saul planned to let the Philistines kill
David.
Saul’s servants told David these words. David was pleased that he
could become the king’s son-in-law. So he and his men went out and
killed 200 Philistines. David took all their foreskins and brought
them to Saul. He wanted to become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul
gave him his daughter Michal for his wife.
Saul saw that the LORD was with David. He also saw that his
daughter Michal loved David. So he became even more afraid of David.
And he was David’s enemy all his life.
The Philistine commanders continued to go out to fight the
Israelites. But every time, David defeated them. David had more
success than Saul’s officers because he behaved wisely before the
LORD. And he became famous.
How would we behave if we are living in the times when Saul was
king? Will we behave wisely? Will the LORD be with us?
David did not desire to overthrow the
ungodly king, and become
the king himself.
He just behaved wisely in the LORD! That’s where the kingdom of God
was!
What is the kingdom of God? It is not the same as the kingdom of the
world. The kingdom of the world will always be in enmity with the
kingdom of God!
The kingdom of God essentially has three important characteristics:
- The kingdom of God has a King named Jesus.
- The kingdom of God has rules and regulations that
govern the kingdom righteously.
- The kingdom of God has people who love their
King, and trust and obey what He says.
That’s what the New Covenant is all about.
Hebrews 8:8-12
8 Because finding fault with them, He says: “Behold, the days are
coming, says the LORD, when I will make
a new covenant with the
house of Israel and with the house of Judah—
9 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in
the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of
Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I
disregarded them, says the LORD.
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of
Israel after those days, says the LORD:
I will put My laws in their
mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and
they shall be My people.
11 None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother,
saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of
them to the greatest of them.
12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins
and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”
How often have we come across apostles and prophets declaring and
proclaiming the kingdom of God but they do not have the King in
their hearts, and are lawless doing what is right in their own eyes,
and are not behaving wisely as good Christian testimonies before God
and men?
How often have we thought that the Church is the kingdom of God when
the King is not in place, and many Christians do not know the divine laws of God
but continue to do what is right in their own eyes, and are behaving worse than
non-Christians?
How often have we sought for other earthly kings to do what we
want but not the coming King who desires us to trust and obey Him?
Not doing our own will but desiring His divine will be done!
David sought after the heart of God! He knew and loved the laws of
God. And he behaved wisely before the LORD even in very adverse
circumstances and dangerous times. He behaved wisely simply because
he did what was right in the eyes of God! He behaved wisely even
when others did not see him doing so. And he was successful in the
eyes of God!
Matthew 6:33
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all
these things shall be added to you.
May we seek God’s kingdom and do what God desires. And all these
other things we need will be given to us.
And may we behave wisely before God and other people till our King
returns!
If interested, please view this song:
The Lord’s Prayer
Written on:
31 January 2024