Having
settled his parents in Moab, David went and hid in the stronghold. He was
probably spotted there. This could be the reason that the prophet Gad gave him
a word to go to Judah. So he left and holed up in the forest in Hereth, most
likely with the 400 men with him. Meanwhile, news of David reached Saul at
Gibeah. We are told that he was sitting under a tamarisk tree with the spear,
the one he had used to hurl at David several times. Here he was comfortably
seated with 600 of his men around him. Between him and David, he should feel
more secure but apparently, he was not. That was evident in his tirade. He was
ranting and accusing his fellow Benjamites of conspiring with David and
Jonathan, and allowed David to escape.
The
words Saul used betrayed his insecurity. He asked “Will the son
of Jesse also give to all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make you
all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds?” In verse 8,
he continued to rave saying, “For all of you have conspired against me so
that there is no one who discloses to me when my son makes a
covenant with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you who is sorry
for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me
to lie in ambush, as it is this day.” He was literally taking out
on those who were for him. How do we know? Those who were distressed by him and
discouraged and discontented had gravitated to join David. The irony of this
whole scene was that none who were here with him thought that they would be
better with David. But still, they did not say a word. Their silence must have
embarrassed Saul all the more. The problem with insecurity is that a
person suffering from it can mistake people who are faithful to him as people
who are against him. People who find security have no such fear. In the face of
difficulty, they plod on unperturbed. They are confident that God is at their
back and will see them through. They will not allow their peace to be stolen.
Nothing can take away your joy when your peace with God and yourself is intact.
In
verses 9-10, we return to the shadowy figure that was lurking in the background
at Nob when David was conversing with Ahimelech. Yes, he was Doeg, the
Edomite, the chief shepherd of Saul. He came forward and narrated what he saw
at Nob between David and Ahimelech. What he did not say was that Ahimelech was
under the impression that David was on a mission for Saul. By
keeping that aspect of truth, he had distorted what had actually
transpired. Here was a man who was willing to exploit someone’s hardship for
personal gain. Doeg’s blind allegiance to Saul was a result of his blind
ambition. Such a person would seek to advance at all costs, even at the expense
of the innocent. We must live with integrity and not allow blind ambition to
lead us to the wrong alliances. The consequences can spiral out of hand!
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