Introduction
Sometimes we receive help from unexpected places. That most certainly is the case with David in 1 Samuel 29. David manages to get himself into a real pickle. After being delivered from the hand of Saul on numerous occasions, David becomes weary of living like a fugitive. In a moment of despair, he reasons that his only hope is to flee from Saul into the land of the Philistines.
David is convinced that once Saul learns where he is, he will give up his pursuit. David and his 600 men, together with their wives and children, found refuge in the land of the Philistines. David persuades Achish, the Philistine king, to allow them to leave Gath and settle instead in the more remote city of Ziklag. From this base of operations, David stages a number of raids against the enemies of Israel.
In each case, David deceives Achish by telling him that he has just raided another one of the Israelite villages or cities nearby. To assure that no one will be able to inform Achish of what has really happened, David is careful to kill off every person, leaving no survivors. David seems to share some of the spoils of war with King Achish, while also taking a share (at least on one occasion) to his Israelite brethren (see 30:26-31), the very people Achish thinks David is killing off. In short, David is playing both ends against the middle.
I. Then, Achish Really Believes David, 28:1-2.
A. King Achish informs David that the Philistine commanders are joining forces to stage a massive attack against Israel.
B. He then tells David he and his 600 men are going to have the honor of fighting with and for him.
1. David surprises the reader by assuring Achish that he will fight valiantly for the Philistines.
2. He promises to show Achish his full capabilities as he goes to battle with him.
C. The author leaves us in shock at this turn of events, as he turns his attention to King Saul and the account of his visit to the medium of En Dor for virtually a whole chapter.
D. Now we come back to David's predicament, where he is stuck in a "catch 22" situation.
1. If David truly fights for Achish, with the rest of the Philistines, he will be fighting against his own people, his king, and his beloved friend Jonathan.
2. If David does not fight with the Philistines, he will almost certainly have to turn against them in battle. This also poses almost insurmountable problems.
3. What is David to do?
II. General Things about the Text
A. First, notice we are not told why David does what he does.
1. Under divine inspiration, our author is fully able to inform us of David's motives and intentions – why is he going along with fighting Israel?
2. We can come up with all kinds of speculations but we don't know for certain.
3. The author seems to want us to wonder what David is thinking, which enhances the element of mystery and suspense.
B. Second, the author departs from a strictly chronological order in these chapters.
1. What we read in 1 Sam 29 happened prior to 1 Sam. 28.
2. It seems that the author's intent is to alternate between Saul and David so as to continually contrast these two men.
C. God is everywhere in these chapters, but in a very understated way.
1. He is there, but not explicitly.
2. The author wants us to do the work of finding him.
D. Fourth, while David is the dominant personality – the "star" – of this story, he is not the most prominent speaker.
1. David speaks little in this text.
2. Most of the speaking is done by Achish and the other Philistine commanders.
III. The Story
A. Disagreement among the generals, 1-5.
1. At the staging area, the five philistine lords come together with their armies.
2. They have what it seems to be the review of the troops.
3. The other four lords are shocked and angered when they see that Achish brought David and his men to the battle.
a. The Hebrew company is positioned as the rear guard.
b. This is a most crucial position because if at all possible, the opposing army will try to flank their enemy and then attack them from behind, as well as from in front.
c. Those stationed at the back are some of the finest, bravest, and most highly skilled warriors.
d. David and his men are given this honor.
4. What Achish regards as an "honor" is perceived as a "horror" to the other Philistine commanders.
a. They cannot imagine how Achish could be so naive as to take David into battle with them, and to do so by placing him in a very strategic position.
b. They are not at all happy with the situation and waste no time calling Achish to account for his folly.
5. The four fellow-commanders are not impressed in the least by the confidence of Achish or by his assurances, and they want David to go packing.
B. Unusual deliverance by the hand of Achish, 6-11.
1. Achish now has the unpleasant task of "disappointing" David, and telling him he must go home.
2. It is almost amusing to read the nice things Achish says about David.
a. They are so flattering to David, and so false.
b. Achish tells David he has been pleasing in his eyes, that from the day he first arrived to stay with him, he has done no wrong against him.
c. Would Achish feel the same way and say the same things if he knew what David had really been doing, whom he had been raiding and killing, and that his reports to Achish were false?
3. If I were in David's sandals, I would be dancing in the streets after hearing what Achish has just said.
a. Here he is, in a seemingly hopeless situation, caught between a rock and a hard place.
b. The four Philistine commanders refuse to allow David to go into battle with them, and Achish sheepishly gives David the "bad news."
1) David does not need to fight with the Israelites, with Saul, or with Jonathan.
2) Neither does David have to fight with Achish or any of the Philistines.
c. Rather than humbly submit to these orders from Achish and the Philistine commanders, David protests, as though he would talk them out of their decision, as though he is bound and determined to go to war.
"There is more than a little humor in this scene (vv. 6-8). Achish stands there, apologetically emphasizing how he thinks David should go with him in this campaign and extolling David's faithfulness, which he has no reason to extol. On the other hand, David with disbelief on his face and exasperation in his voice protests the rejection he has no reason to protest. The deceived defends his deceiver, and the relieved disputes his relief!" Dale Ralph Davis
C. Trouble at home, 30:1-6.
1. While David and his men are with Achish at Aphek, the Amalekites are plundering Ziklag.
2. For David and his men, their trip from Aphek to Ziklag must have been light-hearted.
3. As they draw near Ziklag, they begin to see, and perhaps smell, smoke.
a. A growing sense of dread falls upon this small army.
b. The puzzled looks become looks of alarm, and noisy chatter ceases, replaced by a chilling silence.
c. The city is in shambles, burned to the ground.
d. There is absolutely no sign of life, neither are there any bodies lying about.
4. This may be the darkest day in David's life to this point in time.
5. But as hard as this day may have been, we clearly see God's hand of deliverance here – had they stayed to fight with the Philistines, they would not have come back in time to pursue the Amalekites.
IV. Application & Conclusion
A. The first lesson we learn (or are reminded of) is that sin's consequences are often delayed, but inevitable.
1. What we read in our text is the result of a very bad decision on David's part made over a year before.
2. It was his decision to leave the land of Israel and flee to Achish in the land of the Philistines for safety and protection.
3. God makes the consequences of sin very clear.
Rom. 6:23a - … the wages of sin is death….
a. God is serious about sin and will call it to account.
b. Even forgiven sins leave a trail of destruction.
B. Second, we should see from our text that the adverse consequences of our own sins extend beyond ourselves, and often cause pain and suffering to those we love most.
1. That is the way sin works.
2. When a husband or a wife chooses to forsake their marriage vows and commit adultery, they cause great suffering, not only for their mate, but for their family as well.
3. Sin never pays, it is never worth the price, but those who "pay" greatly for our sin are often those we love.
a. For God's sake, for your own sake, and for the sake of those you love, see sin for what it is, and what it does.
b. The wailing we find in our text is a part of the price of sin, David's sin.
C. Third, while our text underscores the high price of sin, it also gives us hope – it reminds us that there is a way of escape, 30:6 (last part of it).
1 Cor. 10:13 – No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Phil. 1:6 – … being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ….
2 Tim. 1:12 – For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.
D. Fourth, this passage has some very encouraging things to teach us about God.
1. This text reminds us of the faithfulness of God, even when we lack faith.
2 Tim. 2:13 – If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.
a. God anointed David as Israel's next king.
b. God was going to see to it that David was Israel's next king.
c. Neither Saul, nor unfaithful Israelites, nor Philistine kings, nor his own soldiers, not even David himself could keep David from becoming Israel's king.
d. God's purposes and promises are sure.
2. God is not only faithful, as we see from our text, He is also merciful.
a. David has simply gotten himself into a real mess.
b. How easily we could say that David made this mess, let him clean it up.
c. God does allow David to experience the painful consequences of his sins, but he does not take pleasure in doing so; he takes pleasure in showing mercy.
3. God's sovereignty is so apparent in the rescue of David and his men from military service, service to the Philistines and against Israel.
a. God uses David and even his sin to achieve his ultimate purposes.
b. God does not cause David to sin, nor is this sin excused, but in the end, God's sovereignty (absolute control) is so great that he can even employ the disobedience and sins of men to further his own purposes.
"What our text does teach is that even in our folly and fainting fits, we are still no match for our God, who has thousands of unguessable ways by which he rescues his people – even by the mouths of Philistines. He can make the enemy serve us as a friend. He not only prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies but also has the knack of making the enemies prepare the table!" Dale Ralph Davis
4. God is a delivering God.
a. He delivered Noah and his family from the flood, Gen. 6-9.
b. He delivered Abram from Egypt and from the hand of Abimelech in Gerar, Gen. 13, 20.
c. He delivered Lot and his daughters from Sodom and Gomorrah, Gen. 19.
d. He delivered Jacob and his family from extinction as a separate nation, Gen. 37.
e. He delivered the Israelites from Pharaoh, and from the evil hand of many other kings and nations.
f. He constantly delivered the Israelites from their surrounding enemies during the days of the judges.
g. But all of these earlier deliverances do not come even close to the great and final act of deliverance that he brought about for men in the sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
1) Jesus died for our sins, bearing our punishment.
2) He not only takes our sins upon himself, he offers his righteousness to us so that we may have eternal life and dwell with him for all eternity.
3) And God accomplished this through the sinful betrayal of Judas, the jealousy and scheming of the Jewish religious leaders, the cooperation of Gentile Roman rulers (who sought to be politically correct), and the passivity (and even participation) of the people.
4) This he did so that sinful men might be forgiven for their sins and receive the righteousness which God offers to us in the person of Jesus Christ.
Conclusion
Have you been delivered yet? Have you come to see the predicament into which your sin has put you? God provided a "way of escape" in a way no one would ever have expected or asked – through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, on the cross.
http://olympiabp.blogspot.com/2016/08/an-unusual-deliverance-1-sm-29.html
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