Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 28:1-25

Helpful thoughts:

• There are two play-on-words instances in verse 2.
  • What King Achish was about to see David do could have been against Israel or against the Philistines.
  • The phrase, “I will make you my bodyguard for life” in Hebrew is literally, “I will make you keeper of my head.”  David had already captured the head of one Philistine from Gath.
• Anyone in Israel who consulted a medium was to be “cut off” from Israel (Leviticus 20:6).  Saul clearly knew this as he had previously outlawed and removed all of the mediums.
  • Saul had disrespected and disobeyed God, Samuel, and killed the priests.  Now that he’s in distress, he wants God to speak to him…and when Saul gets what he wants, he’s certainly not happy about it.
  • In his promise to not allow harm on the medium, Saul truly used the Lord’s name in vain.
• It seems as though this deceiving medium realized she had been deceived when her divining appeared to actually work!  Certainly, she was not the one who successfully brought Samuel to Saul, the Lord allowed this.

Questions to consider:

1. What kind of situation is David in?  What kind of trouble have his double-meaning statements gotten him into?
2. How could Saul’s actions show us that being spiritual and religious does not automatically mean a person is following Jesus?  Why did Saul want to hear from the Lord and from Samuel?  What was he willing to do in order to get it?
3. How might people cut off God from their lives today and then expect Him to arrive to save the day when their consequences approach?  Is that cry to God an act of repentance?  What would repentance look like?  What has Christ provided for us in our repentance?

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 27:1-12

Helpful thoughts:

• David doubted Saul’s promise to stop chasing him down.  He was right to doubt.  Saul only stopped hunting David when he went into Philistia.
• Ziklag was within the territory that God had given to the tribes of Simeon and Judah.  This was the beginning of David’s claiming more of the Promised Land during this year and four months.
  • The areas and people groups that David was conquering were all within God’s instruction to Israel prior to entering the Promised Land.
• David’s lying resulted in a somewhat misguided trust from King Achish.  Due to the mixture of the lying and the military successes of David in the Promised Land, this chapter is very complex.  There seem to be things to celebrate and things to avoid/rebuke.

Questions to consider:

1. In what way could we continue to contrast David and Saul from what we learn in this chapter?  In particular, how did both men respond to commands from the Lord in the conquest of the Promised Land?
2. How does a chapter like this help us to trust in the authenticity of God’s Word?  If the Bible was trying to hide anything from us to make people (Namely, David) look better than what they were, would we get to learn about these kinds of times?
3. Is it ever right to lie?  Do passages like this (Or, Exodus 1:15-21, Joshua 2:1-7) tell us it’s OK to lie or do they simply give an accurate report of what occurred?

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 26:1-25

Helpful thoughts:

• The Ziphites were part of the tribe of Judah.  The conflict (Or lack thereof) between Saul and David was felt and wrestled with in and among the nation of Israel.
• David had learned to trust God’s timing and justice after the events surrounding the death of Nabal.
• This is now the second time Saul has promised David not to do any harm.

Questions to consider:

1. Saul had 3,000 troops and the support of a clan in Judah.  David was seeking to honor the Lord and preserve the life of the king.  Who had the advantage in this conflict?
2. David has also sadly learned not to trust Saul.  When Saul asked David to return, what did David do in response?  Does David believe Saul is being genuine in his repentance?
3. What does true repentance result in?  If I am sinning, and I realize my sin, by God’s grace how will I respond? (Ephesians 4:22-32)

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 25:23-44

Helpful thoughts:

• Abigail made an appeal to David to spare Nabal and his men based on these things:
  • Nabal was a fool.
  • She took care of David’s requests for provisions.
  • David wouldn’t want to have regret when he became king.
  • The Lord was in control and was going to fight for David.
• The final element of Abigail’s appeal proved to be true within ten days.
• It would have been unlawful for Michal to divorce her husband to come back to David (Deuteronomy 24:1-4).  She was now one flesh with another man.
  • The Law also forbade kings from accumulating wives… (Deuteronomy 17:14-17)

Questions to consider:

1. How did Abigail show great care and wisdom in her response to David?
2. What elements are important to making a proper appeal?  Who was Abigail trying to help?
3. Does God promise to take vengeance within ten days for everyone every time?  As a Christian who has been saved by grace, what should we pray for and hope for concerning those who appear to be our “enemies”?  How can we respond in like Christ in the face of opposition?

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 25:1-22

Helpful thoughts:

• Nabal’s name means fool.
• One of Nabal’s greatest faults was that no one could speak to him (He would not listen to any criticism).  This rendered him a “worthless man”. (Verse 17)
• David’s appeal was two-fold.  (1) David and Nabal were of the tribe of Judah together, and (2) David and his men had protected Nabal’s flock and servants.  (Nabal would have nothing to give if it weren’t for David’s protection.  Which was confirmed by Nabal’s servant in verse 16.)
  • Nabal mocked David and his father and dishonored their family connection.
  • Nabal rebuked David as a runaway servant of Saul. “There are many servants these days that are breaking away from their masters.”

Questions to consider:

1. What is strange about David’s oath (Verse 22)?  Who would be the ones to suffer if David didn’t execute all of Nabal’s men, whom he now considers to be his enemies?  How did David’s oath differ from Saul’s in 14:44?
2. Even though this oath seemed to possess some kind of wisdom, who does David sound most like in making the threat at all?
3. What is inconsistent with the way David has treated Saul and the way he is planning to treat Nabal?  Romans 12 was appropriate to reference yesterday, is it not worthy of consideration today as well?

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 24:1-22

Helpful ideas:

• In doing anything against Saul, David violated his conscience.
• “Out of the wicked comes wickedness.” (See Question #1 below for more info)
• Saul has now confirmed what Jonathan did in 23:17.  David will be the king.

Questions to consider:

1. Why do we do the things that we do?  Why do we say the things we say? (Proverbs 4:23, Matthew 15:18, James 1:14, Ephesians 4:22-24)
2. Whose glory did David seem to be concerned with, God’s or his own?  How did this help him grow, to have a well-calibrated conscience? (John 15:4-11, 2 Corinthians 3:18)
3. Who was going to make David the king?  Why could David not take vengeance into his own hands? (Romans 12:19)

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 23:15-29

Helpful thoughts:

• Jonathan confirms with no lack of clarity, he intends to support David as the king of Israel.
  • He communicated this to David while “strengthening his hand in God.”  Jonathan knew these things and believed them to be true and best because he was trusting in God.  He found more joy and rest in following God than in dreaming about becoming the king.
• The Ziphites were Isrealites from the tribe of Judah (David’s tribe!).
  • This betrayal was the occasion for the writing of Psalm 54.
• David was not interested in attacking Saul even though he had the high ground.  He chose to evade (We will see why tomorrow).

Questions to consider:

1. How were David and Jonathan able to have peace and joy in the midst of their difficult circumstances? Who did David entrust to help him persevere and to bring about justice?
2. What happens to our understanding and treatment of God when we decide what justice and peace are going to look like (See Saul)?
3. How has God already come to our aid and won our greatest battle on our behalf?

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 23:1-14

Helpful thoughts:

• The ephod was the way the Torah had given Israel a means of determining God’s will concerning things like this battle and whether David and his men should flee.  It was called the Urim and Thummim (Numbers 27:21) and they were kept in a pouch on the ephod.
  • The way that David heard from the Lord before going into battle is not stated.  It was perhaps simply a prophetic revelation.
• God had given the Philistines into David’s hand, but Saul’s perspective was quite different.  He was now crediting God with giving David into his hand (Verse 14 says otherwise).
• David asked the Lord questions that helped him discern how to avoid conflict with Saul and to preserve the city of Keilah.  He wasn’t looking for a fight with Saul.

Questions to consider:

1. What kinds of things do you wish you could use the Urim and Thummim for today?  What has God given us that David did not have? (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
2. Why would Saul believe that God had given David into his hand?  What would he have to base that information on besides his own desires and view of God?  Is it possible to feel very passionately about something and be wrong?  How would we know?  How can we be corrected?
3. How was David’s decision to leave Keilah the wisest and kindest thing to do?  Who benefited from his choice?

Today’s passage: 1 Samuel 22:1-23

Helpful thoughts:

• The stronghold of Edom would not be David’s stronghold.  God was to be David’s stronghold.
• Saul has now made it clear to all of his men, if they withheld information from him, they are aiding his “enemy.”
• Eighty five priests and the rest of the city of Nob died that day to make an example of anyone who would side with David from that day forward, even though they all knew that David had been loyal to Saul.
  • It took an Edomite (Someone who had been detained) to be willing to carry out Saul’s order.
  • What Saul was unwilling to do to the Amalekites and king Agag under the command of the Lord, he was now willing to do to a city within his own country.  A city full of priests who were to point people to the LORD!

Questions to consider:

1. Once David heard this command from the Lord to go back to Judah, where was he the safest?  Why?
2. Why didn’t Saul try to have all the armed men executed who wouldn’t obey his command?  How would that have ended?
3. What is still the number one objective of Saul’s heart?  What kinds of things do we become willing to do when our number one objective is to exalt and preserve ourselves?  How is this mentality contrary to the work of Jesus (Philippians 2:5-8)?