The Philistines Reject David

As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.

Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.

1 Samuel 29:1-5
1 Now the Philistines had gathered all their forces at Aphek. And the Israelites were encamped by the spring that is in Jezreel.
2 As the lords of the Philistines were passing on by hundreds and by thousands, and David and his men were passing on in the rear with Achish,
3 the commanders of the Philistines said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” And Achish said to the commanders of the Philistines, “Is this not David, the servant of Saul, king of Israel, who has been with me now for days and years, and since he deserted to me I have found no fault in him to this day.”
4 But the commanders of the Philistines were angry with him. And the commanders of the Philistines said to him, “Send the man back, that he may return to the place to which you have assigned him. He shall not go down with us to battle, lest in the battle he become an adversary to us. For how could this fellow reconcile himself to his lord? Would it not be with the heads of the men here?
5 Is not this David, of whom they sing to one another in dances, ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?”

In this passage we return to David, though it was critical, as we shall find out later, that we understood the condition and future of Saul in his last days.

Saul had been rejected by God. God had actually become the enemy of King Saul.

We find in this passage David is rejected by the Philistines.

It seems the world was completely out of order, but within 24 hours, all would be straightened out. Saul would be violently taken from the throne, and the rightful king would be on his way to the kingdom.

But before we get there, let’s take a few minutes to consider David’s situation. Thinking back, we find David has visited Achish, king of the Philistines, was able to wrangle a city from the hands of Achish for his family and men to live in, and been performing some “complete” raiding of areas south of the nation of Philistia. Complete, I say, as when he raided an area, he decimated it, killing every living soul.

Now we may ask ourselves how David was able to ingratiate himself into the favor of King Achish. It seems it was only a matter of deception, for when Achish would ask what David had been up to, he merely lied, telling Achish that he had been raiding the nation of Israel. Of course the deception was just the tip of the iceberg, for David had become a bit of a cut throat rebel, killing every soul he entered for the sake of bounty and secrecy. (Life of David – 21.03)

Achish was in the palm of David’s hand, having found in David a man that seemingly turned on his people, and now was a committed Philistine. He had been completely hoodwinked, for he was using David and his men for the Philistines last defense, the ring around the king that would make the last stand if Israel broke though.

It seems this last minute review of the forces by the commanders of the Philistines prior to the battle, even as they are on the battlefield, provided the deliverance David sought to get out of this bind.

Although the turn of events favored David’s eventual return to the nation of Israel, what might have happened if David and his men had entered battle with the Philistines? It seems obvious, that he and his men would turn on Achish, supporting Saul in his battle. After all he was to be, by the promise of God, the future king of Israel. He couldn’t fight against his own people. But if Saul were to win, possibly due to David’s forces, David lost, for he may be captured by Saul and killed, or have no place to escape to, having turned on Achish, his Philistine benefactor.

David was in a very difficult situation!

The commanders of the Philistines provided the solution. They were, in this story, the only ones who were truly for the Philistines, who were critical thinkers, and had not been drawn into David’s story telling! Of course, with David’s storytelling to Achish, he also provided the goods of the latest attack. Might that be the reason Achish was so ready to take David’s side? Or was David simply that good of a liar?

Nevertheless, David and his men were rejected from entering battle against the tribes of Israel. He will be sent back to the city of Ziklag. The conflict for David had been resolved by his own enemies.

And the last logical argument that the commanders of the Philistines provided Achish is the gossip of some Israeli women, that early on in David’s career with King Saul, created the very condition he had been running from for years.

1 Samuel 29:5 Is not this David, of whom they sing to one another in dances,
‘Saul has struck down his thousands,
and David his ten thousands’?”

This comparison, elevating David above his king, had been offered by some women after David had struck down that giant called Goliath, a soldier of the Philistines. It was a ditty that stuck, that hung on, that became international, at least between Israel and Philistia.

David had been running from what was intended to praise him for years. Saul had been chasing him, intent on taking out the competition. The saying became so popular, so associated with the prowess and ability of David, that the Philistines had kept record.

The Philistines had remembered that fateful day when an snotty nosed little upstart teenager killed their champion. For the Philistine commanders to know he resided in their country must have been hard for them to swallow, but to allow that man into the heart of their battle troops was unacceptable.

In the midst of all this back and forth, David was rescued from a situation where he couldn’t win. Even as David had backslidden in deception and violence, he was taken care of by the hand of God, through personalities and situations he had no influence over. He was simply a passive receiver of the power and influence of God in the enemy camp.

Saul had been rejected by God. His disobedience to God though given the highest privilege in the nation by God, drove him to finally seek out an ungodly medium. He was informed of his past and future. He was doomed and God was no where to be found.

David had been rejected by the Philistines. He too had been promised the throne of Israel by God, and had sought to live amongst the ungodly in an effort to stay alive. His lying, thieving and murderous ways were a low point in his life, but there was one difference for David. Though backslidden, and far from the life he may have expected as a follower of God, God was still looking out for Him, still coordinating circumstances and situations that favored the warrior king.

The difference for these two men was access to God. Both men had proven to be willing to lie, thieve and murder for their own purposes, but God was keeping His promise to both men. He promised to take the kingdom from Saul, and to give it to David.

He was actively keeping his Word.

God is continuing to keep His Word, and all His promises to His Warrior King, the One who lived amongst the ungodly, amongst liars, thieves and murderers, yet was unstained of sin. His access to the throne of Israel, like David, was through suffering, yet there was a difference. Whereas David was rescued while in sin, the sinless Jesus was not rescued from the penalty of sin. Death took Him violently and the apparent defeat lasted for days.

Though Jesus was not saved from the cruel death of the cross, His deliverance from the grave, His resurrection gives each of us hope, providing each of us access to God.

Romans 5:2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Trust Him Follow after Him. He is our only Hope.

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