1 Samuel 19-21
Today we get:
- More of David and Saul
- More of David and Jonathan
- More and more and more David
1 Samuel 19
1 And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should kill David.
Saul is just sitting around kingily telling everyone who comes in to see him that they should kill David.
Can't you picture him, on the throne, some jewish peasant comes in to beg for mercy for killing a sheep or something and Saul says, "it's ok, but you know what would make it better? killing David. That'd make it better." One of his captains comes in, telling about a battle, Saul says "so you killed some Philistines, did ya? You know who I'd rather see dead than all the Philistines? David, that's who." "mmm, this is some good mutton stew, you know what i think would make it better? Killing David."
So Jonathan (who loves David, but it IS NOT A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP!) sends him to hide in a field.
So Jonathan takes Saul into that field and talks him out of killing David.
6 And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul sware, As the LORD liveth, he shall not be slain.
He's a joo, so it won't last long.
7 And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan shewed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as in times past.
He apparently remembered him this time.
8 And there was war again: and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled from him.
Great, I'm sure this will appease the king.
9 And the evil spirit from the LORD was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his javelin in his hand: and David played with his hand.
David played THE HARP with his hand. Saul, just sort of angrily sat there, clutching a javelin all day.
10 And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the javelin: but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night.
Apparently, (according to verse 6, the LORD doesn't liveth anymore); except, he said "as the LORD liveth, he shall not be slain" he didn't say, "as the LORD liveth, he shall not be ATTEMPTED to be slain".
So Saul sends some spies to look after, and try to kill David. David's wife Michal sends him out the window, and puts pillows under the bed in his place.
18 So David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth.
So David goes and runs off to Samuel.
So Saul sends some messengers to find David, they wind up prophesying with Samuel... three times.
So Saul goes.
24 And he stripped off his clothes also, and prophesied before Samuel in like manner, and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Wherefore they say, Is Saul also among the prophets?
So the king is laying there naked all day, prophesying. Interesting.
Remember from a few days ago:
1 Samuel 15:35 And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul: and the LORD repented that he had made Saul king over Israel. It says Samuel never came to see Saul again, it didn't say Saul didn't go to see Samuel.
1 Samuel 20
So David goes and runs back to Jonathan wondering what exactly he did to anger the king.
So Jonathan says, he'll again talk to the king to find out if he'll forget about the whole KILLING DAVID thingy.
There's a new moon feast shortly there after. Jonathan is gonna talk to Saul during that. They are gonna leave David in the field by a stone, and when they have an answer, Jonathan is gonna go out and shoot some arrows, based on where the arrows land is David's answer.
21 And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find out the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come thou: for there is peace to thee, and no hurt; as the LORD liveth.
22 But if I say thus unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee; go thy way: for the LORD hath sent thee away.
Close arrows mean he can stay, overshots mean David has to go, immediately.
So they have the feast and the usual people are there, except for David.
26 Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean.
He probably thought that David had sex or touched a dead thing, and was unclean until the next day. It'd be rude to show up to dinner when one is unclean.
27 And it came to pass on the morrow, which was the second day of the month, that David's place was empty: and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to day?
Jonathan tells about how David had to go to Bethlehem for some kind of sacrifice (which was a lie).
30 Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him, Thou son of the perverse rebellious woman, do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own confusion, and unto the confusion of thy mother's nakedness?
What confusion? Is Saul calling his son a fag? Saying that Jonathan preferred the male naked form to that of a woman?
31 For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die.
No, that's not what he was saying. He was saying that Jonathan's friendship with David would cost Jonathan the throne. The people would have David as their king, instead of Jonathan, and Jonathan didn't realize that. That's the confusion that Saul was talking about, not that Jonathan possibly experimented a little bit while he was in college. That he'd lose his throne.
33 And Saul cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to slay David.
Wow, it took a javelin thrown at him to make Jonathan realize that Saul meant business.
Does this remind you a little bit of the movie Braveheart? With David being William Wallace.
35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him.
36 And he said unto his lad, Run, find out now the arrows which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.
37 And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Is not the arrow beyond thee?
So the arrow was overshot, that means David had to leave immediately. The kid comes back with the arrows, and Jonathan sends him away.
41 And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of a place toward the south, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times: and they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded.
Why did they go through the whole shooting the arrow thing, if they were gonna talk to each other anyway? Why take the lad out there?
Then David leaves, and Jonathan goes back to the city.
1 Samuel 21
1 Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee?
Why are people afraid of Samuel and David when they show up somewhere? Oh yeah, Samuel hacked Agag to pieces and David chopped off the dicks of 200 Philistines. I'd be worried about seeing either of them approach too.
David tells the priest, that he's about on the King's business (a lie), and he's hungry, so give him some bread.
4 And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at least from women.
I don't remember there being a rule that only male virgins could eat the shewbread.
5 And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel.
Apparently (according to David) if you haven't had sex in three days, you are a virgin again. PRAISE JESUS!!!
8 And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste.
David asks for a weapon, because he left without one. He didn't technically lie here, the king's business was killing David, and it definitely required him to leave quickly.
9 And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me.
Ah, trusty old Goliath's sword. Makes you wonder, did Goliath have a massive sword? How much more would David have grown from that time, in order for him to be able to wield Goliath's sword effectively. Maybe the opposite was true. Goliath (even though he was a giant) carried around a normal person sword. That would probably look even funnier, as though he was just wielding a toothpick.
So then David runs off to Gath. The people tell the king there that it's David who killed tens of thousands (although when the people were singing that, he had only had one documented kill of Goliath).
13 And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
So if you scratch at doors and don't swallow your spit, people will think you are crazy, gotcha.
14 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?
15 Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?
Wait, why would David go to Gath? That's where Goliath was from. Either the people there would embrace him as their newest champion (probably not) or they would hate him for beating their favorite guy. David thinks it'll be the later, he just wants to hide out there for a while anyway.
So what have we learned today?
1. If someone throws a spear at you, they want to kill David.
2. If you want to act crazy, drool and scratch on doors.
3. If you have an elaborate signal plan for escape, there's no point in using it, if you are just gonna stand around and talk to the guy anyway.
YIC
V