April 5 Daily Devotional

1 Samuel 22–26

Not far from the hiding place of David was the city Keilah. David heard that the people of this city were troubled by the Philistines. He wanted to help them, and asked the Lord what course he should take. The Lord advised him to go, and his little army was successful in driving out the enemy. When Saul heard about the affair he decided to capture David inside the walls of Keilah, and planned to send an army to take him there. But God warned David of the danger, so he called his men and hurried away to hide.

Here in the woodland he again met his dear friend Jonathan, probably for the last time. Soon after this he came to Maon. Saul tried to cut off his retreat. Meanwhile the Philistines had invaded the land, and he left to drive off the greater enemy.

The strongholds of Engedi near the Dead Sea furnished the next retreat for David. Hearing of his presence at Engedi, Saul took three thousand men to seek him. When David and his men saw Saul coming, they hid themselves in a cave. It happened that Saul entered the same cave to stay overnight. It was large and dark. David’s men thought that this was a fine chance to kill Saul. They said, Behold the day in which the Lord hath delivered thine enemy into thine hand. David went to the sleeping king. He took a knife and cut off a piece of Saul’s robe, saying to his men, “The Lord forbid … that I should stretch forth mine hand against … the Lord’s anointed.” His conscience troubled him that he had done this. In the morning when Saul had left the cave and was a short distance away, David called him and showed him the piece of the robe, saying what a good chance it had been that he might have killed the king. Saul wept and had to confess, “Thou art more righteous than I.”

Sometime later, Saul with three thousand men came to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. David with one of his men, Abishai, came at night to Saul’s camp. Everybody was sleeping. Saul’s spear stuck in the ground at his head. Abishai said, “Let me smite him … with the spear.” David said, “Who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless? … Take thou now the spear …and the cruse of water and let us go.” In the morning, when Saul and his men left the camp, David called from a distance, “Now see where the king’s spear is, and the cruse of water that was at his bolster.” When Saul recognized him, David said to him, “Wherefore doth my lord pursue after this servant? for what have I done?” Saul replied, “I have sinned: return, my son David; for I will no more do thee harm, because my soul was precious in thine eyes.”