DONT LOSE YOUR CROWN
Studies in the Life of King Saul
By
Warrwn W. Wiersbe
General Director
Back to the Bible Broadcast
All Scripture quotations are from The New Scofield
Reference Bible
-------
1 Samuel
Disobedience - disgrace -
defeat - death. These four words summarize how Saul lost his
crown.
Saul did not
come to his throne by popular vote - in fact, he was
basically an unknown when he was appointed King of
But somewhere
along the way, his greatness began to rule his life - and his heart became too small for
God.
In Dont Lose Your Crown, the author
presents a careful study of the life of King Saul and a detailed look at his
major defeats. Readers will learn to pay
attention to the lessons Saul never learned.
Contents
Chapter 1. The Cry for a King [Page 5]
2. The Peoples Choice [Page 15]
3. The Conquering Hero [Page 25]
4. Sauls First Defeat [Page 33]
5. Sauls Second Defeat [Page 41]
6. Sauls Third Defeat [Page 49]
7. Sauls Third Defeat (cont.) [Page 57]
8. Fighting the Wrong Enemy [Page 65]
9. The Ultimate Weapon [Page 73]
10. A King in the Dark [Page 83]
11. The King Is Dead! [Page 93]
12. Lessons Saul Never Learned [Page 101]
* *
*
Chapter 1
The Cry for a King
(1 Samuel 8)
The life
of Saul, the first king of
Sauls story begins with
When you look at this event, you can well understand why the
people wanted a king. I am not saying
that their decision was right, but I can understand their reasoning. When you read 1 Samuel 8, you discover a number of reasons why the people
wanted a king. They were human reasons,
but behind the human reasons were also divine reasons because God was in
control of the situation. God is always
in control of every situation. The Bible
teaches both divine sovereignty and human responsibility. We cant fully understand it, nor can we
explain it; but we believe it because its taught in the Word of God. When God cannot rule because of the
stubbornness of people, He overrules and accomplishes His divine purposes.
Human Reasons
Looking at this event from a human point of view, lets
consider a number of reasons why the people wanted a king. To begin with, there was internal
division. We read in the Book of Judges: In those days there was no king in
It is dangerous to be so loosely organized because, when the
enemy attacks, you need to be united.
There is also the danger of internal power struggles - one tribe wants
to have more authority than another tribe.
When the elders of
A second reason why they asked for a king was because of external danger.
First
Samuel 12:12 says, And when ye saw
that Nahash, the king of the children of Ammon, came against you,
ye said unto me [Samuel], Nay, but a king shall reign over us; when the Lord your
God was your king. The enemy, the Ammonites, was about
to attack, and [Page 8] those loosely confederated tribes could not go out and fight such a
well-organized army. Later on, the
Philistines showed up to create further problems (ch. 13).
With the enemy on the outside and division on the inside, the leaders of
A third reason they wanted a king was because of leadership decay. Samuels sons were not walking in the way of their
father (8: 1-5). They were accepting bribes and
perverting justice, and their only purpose in serving was to make money. Its really unfortunate when the second or
third generation tears down what their fathers built! This tragedy also happened with Elis sons (2: 12
- 3: 18).
Eli, the high priest, should have raised his sons to walk in the ways of
the Lord. Because he didnt, Samuel deposed him, and now Samuel himself was going
to be deposed for the very same reason!
Once again we remember Pauls warning in 1 Corinthians 10: 12:
Wherefore,
let him that
thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
One of our greatest obligations as Christians is to raise our
children to know the Lord. Its a
wonderful thing for pastors and missionaries, Sunday school teachers and
deacons, elders and trustees to be helping others and to be witnessing and
working in the church. But if we lose
our own children, what have we gained?
If we dont lead our own children to the Lord and challenge them to
follow Him, what will happen to Gods Church in the future? The Church is only one generation away from
extinction. [Page 9] For some reason, Samuel was not able to raise his sons to be good judges -
men who were honest, trustworthy, obedient and spiritual. It has well been said that the first
generation wins the battle, the second generation claims the spoils, and the
third generation wastes it all and goes back into the hands of the enemy.
The nation faced external danger, internal division and
leadership decay. I think the elders of
Likewise, you cannot guarantee a spiritual
dynasty in your family. No one
can guarantee that the next generation will be spiritual. You can do your best to raise godly children,
you can set a good example, and you can pray, but none of these things will
guarantee that your sons and daughters will be spiritual. Im sure Samuel did all these things, but his
sons still became prodigals who were not fit to be in places of leadership.
Here then are three human reasons why the Israelites wanted a
king: internal division, external danger and leadership decay.
[Page 10]
Divine Reasons
Besides the human reasons for wanting a king, God had His own
purposes for giving the Israelites a king.
God, who sees the heart, always knows what the true motive is. The basic reason for their request was spiritual declension. The people
were acting in fear and unbelief. They
wanted to imitate the other nations.
When the other nations went to war, their king guided them. When the nations had their council, the king
led them. The Israelites forgot that
they were not to be like other nations.
Even Balaam, as wicked as he was, knew that
Give us a king! the elders cried, and Samuels heart was broken. He prayed about it, because Samuel was a
great man of prayer. God said to him, For they have not rejected thee, but they have
rejected me, that I should not reign over them (1 Sam. 8: 7). The leaders walked by sight and
not by faith. As a result, they rejected
God the Father. [Page 11] Centuries later, the nation rejected God the Son: Crucify him! ... We have no king but Caesar (John 19: 15).
Then they rejected God the Holy Spirit when they stoned Stephen. Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears,
ye do always
resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do ye (Acts
7: 51). What an
indictment! The Israelites rejected God
the Father in the days of Samuel; they rejected God the Son in the days of our
Lord Jesus Christ; and they rejected God the Holy Spirit in the days of the
apostles. No wonder God had to reject
them as a nation!
Give us a king! Often in the
history of
A fifth reason why God allowed them to have a king was for divine discipline.
God gave them what they asked for, and they lived to
regret it. God responded to
their needs out of compassion, but He also responded in discipline. I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me (1 Sam. 9: 16). God was compassionate,
but He was also concerned because they were rejecting His [Page 12] leadership. He was not caught off guard but was well
aware of their true motives.
When God called Abraham, He told him that kings would come
from his loins (see Gen. 17: 6, 16). So from the beginning of Jewish
history, God knew that the nation would produce kings. God told the tribe of
In giving the Israelites a king, God was actually disciplining
them. Samuel warned the nation that
their king would make difficult demands on them (1 Sam. 8), but they insisted that God give
them a king. God used that king
to discipline them. He gave them their
request to teach them not to trust in man but to trust in Him.
What does this mean to us today? Let God be your king. Dont tell Him what to
do. If you have disobeyed Him, confess
it and trust His grace. God will rule
and overrule and accomplish His purposes in your life without your telling Him
what to do. If you are not
careful about what you pray for, God may grant your request and use it to
discipline you. [Page 13] You need to remember that god knows your needs and will provide for you of
you allow Him to be your king: But seek ye
the
[* See the exposition of this text
entitled: Seek Ye First, by Robert Govett.]
* *
*
[Page 14 blank: Page 15]
Chapter 2
The Peoples Choice
(1 Samuel 9, 10)
In their
stubborn rebellion against God, the Israelites asked for a king, and God gave
them their request. I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away
in my wrath (Hos.
13: 11).
God gave them a king not only to meet their needs but also to discipline
them. He wanted to teach them some lessons about His own sovereignty and
their responsibility.
2 Chronicles 20: 6 reads: O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? And rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the nations? And in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is
able to withstand thee? In other words, God is sovereign in all the affairs of this
world, but man is also responsible. Divine sovereignty and human responsibility
are both taught in the Bible, and we must keep them in balance. If you emphasize only divine
sovereignty, then you make God responsible for mans sin. If you emphasize only human responsibility,
then you rob God of His power and glory. The two go together. The choosing [Page 16] of a king for
God Calls Saul
In 1 Samuel 9 we see the human side of Saul (what he was in himself), while in chapter 10 we see Gods working in Sauls life
(what God did for him). Its important for us to see both aspects
in Sauls life.
Lets begin by looking at the man Saul. Notice the natural, positive qualities that
apparently made him a good choice for king.
God does not bypass our humanity.
People have the idea that God invades our humanity and bypasses our
human qualities; instead, He uses those qualities. God is
looking for people whom He can use. He
prepares people for the job He has for them. In Psalm 139: 13-16 we are told that even our genetic structure, the way we are made
physically, is ordained by God. He
creates us with particular characteristics because He has certain tasks for
each one of us to perform. This was true
of Saul. Examine the various qualities
he had that would point to great success in his kingship.
Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was
Second, he was physically strong and attractive. And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man,
and handsome;
and there was
not among the children of
Saul was also obedient to his father. And the asses of Kish, Sauls father, were lost. And Kish said to Saul, his son, Take now one of the servants with thee,
and arise,
go seek the
asses (verse 3).
This seems like an insignificant event.
Some valuable animals are lost, and Saul goes to find them. Yet this insignificant event led to some
great things. Little did Saul realize,
when he went to look for those animals, that he would meet Samuel, that he
would be anointed king and that he would come home the leader of the entire
nation of
We never know what great doors may turn upon small
hinges! This was true of David. He was taking [Page 18] care of his fathers sheep when his father told him to take
some supplies to his brothers in Sauls army.
Thats when he met Goliath and achieved a great victory.
If you have some insignificant task to perform to perform
today, perform it. Do it right. Do the very best you can. It may be the door to some other great
responsibility and privilege.
Saul was obedient to his father. He didnt say, Ive
got more important things to do. Dont
ask me to go out and look for a bunch of animals! Instead, he obeyed
his father and was diligent in pursuing this particular task. He and the servant went through the hill
country of Ephraim and then passed through the
Notice in 1 Samuel 9: 5 that Saul had a concern for his father. When they came to the
These are good character traits, arent they? Saul came from a leading family, he was
physically strong, he was attractive, he was obedient, he was persistent and
diligent in doing the job given to him, and he cared about others. He was also willing to listen to
counsel. His servant suggested they
visit the man of God, Samuel. It doesnt
appear that Saul knew who Samuel was before this time. He did not [Page 19] even know that a man of God was there. You get the feeling, as you read these chapters,
that King Saul did not have the kind of upbringing that would acquaint him with
a man like Samuel. You would think that everybody would have known who Samuel was! He was the prophet of God, the great prayer
warrior; yet Saul did not know him.
I appreciate the fact that the servant knew Samuel and that he
believed Samuel could help. However,
its unfortunate when people turn to Gods servant only when theyre in
trouble. Ive pastored three churches,
and Ive often seen this. Some people
dont want you around when things are going well. When you stop to visit them, they dont want
you to waste their time. They dont want
to come to church or to be bothered by the pastor. But just let trouble enter their home, and
they show up in prayer meeting! Just let
some difficult problem come into their life, and they instantly come to see the
preacher!
Saul and his servant did meet Samuel. First Samuel 9 tells how Samuel took Saul and his servant to dinner.
They shared the best part of a big feast because God had told Samuel, in
effect, Im going to send you the king. Early the next day - at dawn - Samuel walked
with Saul to the edge of the city and there anointed him to be king (see 9: 26
- 10: 1).
Its interesting that Sauls
career as king began at dawn as the sun was coming up. His career ended with the sun going down! At night, Saul disguised himself and went to
consult a witch. Then he went [Page 20] out to the battlefield and was
slain. All of Sauls good qualities were
no guarantee of success.
God Equips Saul
What did God do for Saul?
We are told in 1 Samuel 10. Remember, Saul was Gods
choice. He was the one God appointed to
be the new king. God did it because the
people needed a king and also because He was going to teach them some important
spiritual lessons. Notice the wonderful
assurances that God gave to Saul. One
day as I was reading this chapter, I saw these assurances for the first
time. I was going through some trying
times in my own life and ministry, and I had some important decisions to
make. God said to me from this chapter,
Stop worrying!
If I have called you, I will equip you. Thats what God told Saul in 1 Samuel 10.
In chapter
9 He called Saul, and in chapter 10 He promised to equip him.
In 1 Samuel 10: 2 God assured Saul that He would solve
his problems. After Samuel anointed
Saul, he assured him that the asses had been found and that he could stop
worrying. When the servant of God is in the will of God, God solves the problems. God was saying to Saul, No matter what problems you face now that you are king,
remember that I can solve them.
If you have been called to a place of
leadership and yet you are worried or anxious about some situation, remember
that God can solve your problems. Just
do what He wants you to do.
[Page 21]
After Samuel anointed Saul, God gave Saul the assurance that
He would help him. Then Samuel said, in
effect, Keep going forward, and you will meet three
men going to
You may be in a building program now. You may be going into a new ministry,
wondering where the provisions will come from.
They will come from God. The same
God who called you will equip you. The
One who anointed you will provide what you need.
Samuel gave Saul a third assurance: God will supply the power that you
need. Samuel told Saul that he would come to the
hill of God and would meet some prophets. And the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt
prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man (verse 6). God would make a new
person out of Saul when the Spirit of God would come upon him. This would transform him from an ordinary
farmer into a leader!
In Old Testament times the Spirit of God came upon people
temporarily and would sometimes depart from them. This is not true in the New Testament
age. Jesus told His disciples that the
Spirit of truth would abide with believers forever (see John 14: 16).* The Spirit will not depart from us;
instead, [Page
22] He seals us unto
the day of redemption (see Eph. 1: 13, 14).
[* On the contrary!
See the divine condition
stated in verse 15:
IF ye do whatsoever I
command you. See also verse 21,
- He that hath
my commandments and KEEPETH them
. cf. Acts 5: 32: And we are his
witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Spirit, whom God hath given to them that OBEY him. This fact of disobedience to Gods
commands, is shown throughout the account of Saul loosing his crown.]
When Saul met these prophets, the Spirit of God came upon him,
and he became a different person. Saul couldnt become a new person on his
own; the work of Gods Spirit was needed to change him. Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of
hosts (Zech. 4: 6).
First Samuel 10: 7 records another wonderful assurance
from God. And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee,
that thou do as
occasion serve thee; for God is with thee.
God is with you as you serve Him. Hebrews 13: 5 says, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
The same thought is expressed in Matthew 28: 20: Lo, I am with thee always, even unto the end
of the age.
A final assurance was given to Saul: And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with
him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched (1 Sam. 10: 26). God would provide the
people. A king needs people -assistants,
servants, soldiers. It was as if God
said, Saul, dont worry about this. I am the One who can provide the people whom
you need.
If you are serving the Lord, God will give you all that is needed.
He will solve the problems, give necessary provisions, provide His
Spirits power, assure you of His presence and call the right people to help
you do the jobs He wants you to do.
When Saul went home, he didnt tell anyone about what had
happened. He appears to have been a very
modest person. In fact, when Samuel [Page 23] first met him, Saul said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of
If God calls you, then He will equip
you. Trust Him and dont run away from your calling.
When they looked for Saul, he was hiding (see 10: 22)!
G. Campbell Morgan has said, If God has called
a man to kingship, theres no right to hide away. I agree with that. Saul had much going for him. What a pity he turned away from God and
failed. Behold, I come quickly; hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy
crown (Rev. 3: 11).
* *
*
[Page 24 blank: Page
25]
Chapter 3
The Conquering Hero
(1 Samuel 11, 12)
Saul
went back to his fathers farm in Gibeah and said nothing about the
kingship. Life went on as usual until one
day when the enemy approached and when the nation of
The Attack of the Enemy
First Samuel 11: 1-11 records the first challenge: the attack of the enemy. Then Nahash the Ammonite, came up,
and encamped against Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of
Jabesh said unto Nahash, Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee. And Nahash, the Ammonite, answered them, On this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out
all your right eyes, and lay it for a reproach upon all
How did the people respond to this crisis? It was a terribly humiliating offer! It would have been bad enough to serve the enemy,
but to be disfigured and humiliated as well was just too much. Some of the Israelites said, Lets wait. Maybe
somebody can save us. Others
just wept and said, There's no hope! Were going to
have to give up!
What was Sauls response to this challenge? He assumed his role of leadership and
prepared the men for battle. I
appreciate his response to this situation.
A crisis doesnt make a person;
rather, it shows what a person is made of.
Saul was not yet considered a great hero. He had been anointed king, but he had gone
back to the farm. Having a monarchy was
a brand-new experience for the people of
Sauls first response was that of righteous indignation. And the Spirit of God came upon Saul [Page 27] when he heard those tidings,
and his anger was kindled greatly (verse
6). We should have a righteous indignation
against the enemies of God. Its very
easy for us to say, We should hate sin but love the
sinner. The difficulty comes in separating the sin from the
sinner! We may want to deal with the
enemy in love, but sometimes we have to declare war. The Spirit of God had changed Saul into
another man. He was no longer simply a
tall, handsome farmer. Now he was the
king, the leader of Gods people; and it
was time to act.
Saul also received a holy endowment. And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those
tidings (verse 6).
In chapter
10 we learned that the
Holy Spirit of God came upon Saul in great power. Saul was a new man. We cannot fight the battles of
God in our own strength. The Spirit of
God came upon Saul just as He had upon the judges - people such as Gideon and
Samson - and gave him victory.
Saul faced this challenge with faith and courage. And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed [cut] them
in pieces, and sent them throughout all the borders of
The result of this challenge was the gathering of a [Page 28] large army. The Children of Israel numbered 300,000, and
the men of
Saul was challenged by the attack of the enemy. How did he respond? He responded by letting God use him to accomplish the work that needed to be done. God, in turn, equipped him to do the
task. This should have been a
great encouragement to Saul, for God fulfilled His promises to supply all that
Saul needed. This should also be a great
encouragement for us. God honoured Sauls faith when he was willing to trust Him and fight
the enemy, and He will honour our faith when we trust Him and allow Him to work
through us.
The Advice of Friends
The second challenge Saul faced occurred after the
victory. He had faced the attack of the
enemy without too much difficulty, but now he had to face the advice of his friends. And the people said unto Samuel, Who is he that
said,
Shall Saul reign over us? Bring the men,
that we may put
them to death. And Saul said, There shall not a
man be put to death this day; for today the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel
(1 Sam. 11:
12, 13).
After Saul had been anointed king and the people had accepted him, [Page 29] Certain worthless fellows said, How shall this man
save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace (10: 27).
At the beginning of his reign, Saul had
a good relationship with the people who did not like him. But all leaders have their critics. All those in places of leadership and
authority have people who wont follow them. These worthless
fellows created
problems for Saul, but he kept his mouth shut.
Sometimes its good for a leader to have a deaf
ear and a blind eye. Insurrection and rebellion must be dealt with
sometimes, but in this case, it was wise
to ignore the idle gossip and the criticism of these worthless fellows.
After Saul had won this great victory, his respect increased
in the nation. Its one thing to have
authority and another to have respect.
People give you authority, but you
have to earn respect. When a man
becomes the pastor of a church, the people give him authority when they install
him; but he has to earn their respect.
Saul had earned the respect of some people, and they said, Lets get rid of those in the camp who dont want him to be
king. Sometimes your friends can
do more damage to you than your enemies can!
And often you face greater testing after the victory than you do during
the battle.
What did Saul do? He
ignored their suggestion. He said, There will not be any retaliation. Saul
had a forgiving spirit. I wonder if Saul was thinking of Leviticus 19:18.
Thou shalt not
avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt
love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the [Page 30] Lord. Those of us who
are New Testament Christians have the admonition of Romans 12: 17,
18: Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
If it be possible, as much as lieth in
you, live
peaceably with all men. Living peaceably
if possible is not compromise - its courtesy.
Its recognizing the fact that people are different and that we cant
always please everyone.
How did Saul face the challenge of the
advice of his friends? He gave God the
glory. He said, The Lord has wrought salvation in
At this point, Saul looked like a really great man. When a
man uses his victories for Gods glory and not for personal gain, that is a
sign of greatness. It is too bad Saul
did not keep this attitude.
Unfortunately, he became proud and envious, and he tried to destroy
those who opposed him, including David.
The Admonition of the Word
Saul faced the attack of the enemy by faith. He overcame the advice of his friends. In 1 Samuel 11: 14 - 12: 25 we have a third challenge: the
admonition of the Word. Then said Samuel to the people, Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there. And all the people went to Gilgal; and there they
made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal, and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace
offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of
The emphasis of Samuels sermon in 1 Samuel 12 is faithfulness. In verses 1-5 he reminded them of his own faithfulness. He said, I have
been serving you all these years. Have I
been faithful? The people responded, You have
been faithful!
In verses 6-11 he reminded them of Gods faithfulness. Samuel reviewed the history of
Then Samuel called on the people to be faithful (verses 12-25).
God is faithful, and He expects that same quality from
His people. Now, therefore, behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have
desired! And, behold, the Lord hath set a
king over you. If ye will fear
the Lord, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel
against the commandment of the Lord, then shall both ye, and also the king
who reigneth over you, continue following the Lord your God. But if ye will not obey the
voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then shall
the hand of the Lord be against you, as it was against your fathers
(verses 13-15).*
Samuel reminded the people that they had some responsibilities to fulfil. Just
because Saul had won a victory, it did not mean the end - it was only the
beginning.
[* Note Gods conditional promises to His
redeemed people above: and see His foretold reactions against any disobedience
by the people to His precepts! A holy,
sin-hating God, will surely judge and punish wilful sin and disobedience in His
unrepentant redeemed people! (Heb. 10: 26-30) God is no respecter of persons in
judgment! See also Col. 3: 24-25; Heb. 12: 17; Rev. 3: 2-3.]
[Page 32]
First, they must fear
God (verse
14). He mentioned this again in verse 14.
They must also serve
God. Serve him and obey his voice (verse 14). Serve him in truth with all your heart; for consider how
great things he hath done for you (verse
24). Samuel warned Saul and the
people that they must not rebel against the commandment of God. If they rebelled, Gods hand would be against
them. And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things
[idols], which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain
(verse 21).
At this coronation, Saul apparently accepted the admonition of
the Word of God. He heeded Samuels call
to fear the Lord, serve Him, obey His voice and not rebel against His
commandments. While Sauls intentions
were good in the beginning, he later disobeyed every one of the Lords
admonitions. Instead of fearing God, he started fearing the people and the
enemy; instead of serving the Lord, he began serving His own interests.
The life of Saul is a reminder to us
that good beginnings are no
guarantee of successful endings. May
the Lord help us to realize that we must constantly fear Him, serve Him, obey Him
and surrender to His will if we are to successfully face the challenges of life
[and not lose our crown.]*
[* See Revelation 3: 11. cf. Luke
22: 28-30; 2 Timothy 2: 5, James 1: 12; 1 Peter 5: 4,
R.V.]
* *
*
[Page 33]
Chapter 4
Sauls First Defeat
(1 Samuel 13)
Thus
far, King Sauls record has been one of obedience and victory. He defeated the Ammonites and firmly
established himself as
But one victory does not make a man a conqueror [or overcomer.] In 1 Samuel 13 the Philistines came on the scene, and Saul had to deal with them. You cannot live on yesterdays
victories. Unfortunately, at this point in Sauls
performance, he starts to change.
He begins that
downward spiral that ultimately led to defeat, disgrace and death.
And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight
with
And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had
appointed; but Samuel came not to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. And Saul said, Bring here a burnt offering to me, and peace
offerings. And he offered the
burnt offering. And it came to pass
that,
as soon as he had ceased offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out
to meet him, that he might bless him. And Samuel
said,
What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that
the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days
appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at
Michmash, therefore, said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not
made supplication unto the Lord; I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering. And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done
foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God,
which he
commanded thee; for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon
What Saul did that day may not seem especially serious to
us. He became impatient and offered the
sacrifice before Samuel arrived. But
actually what [Page 35] he did was a serious offence in the eyes of God - so serious
that it cost Saul the kingdom. That day, Saul took three giant steps away from God and started on his
downward path to defeat. We can also take those same three
steps and start down the road to failure.
What are the three dangerous steps?
Unbelief, impatience and
dishonesty. Although, on the
surface, Sauls sin may not seem too great, it was the beginning of failure
because he disobeyed God.
Unbelief
The first step was unbelief. Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw (1 Sam. 13: 11). Saul started to walk
by sight and not by faith. Jonathan,
Sauls son, was the one who trusted God.
Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines in Geba,
and the Philistines launched a counterattack against
When Saul started to walk by sight and not by faith, he began
to get into trouble. The enemy was
gathered together like the sand on the seashore. When Saul saw all of those chariots and
horsemen, [Page
36] he knew he was
facing a large army. Not only that, but
Sauls own soldiers were deserting him.
His army was hedged in and distressed.
The men were hiding themselves and crossing the river to get away. They were trembling and they were scattered. Wherever Saul looked, he saw defeat.
His army was deserting, and besides that, the men did not have
adequate weapons (verses 19-23). To add difficulty to
dismay, Samuel did not appear at the appointed time. Samuel had said, And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down
unto thee, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings: seven days shalt
thou tarry, till I come to thee, and show thee what thou shalt do (10: 8).
Saul waited and waited, but Samuel did not appear. Saul got tired of waiting and sacrificed the
offerings without Samuel.
Saul forgot what had happened at Gilgal. When he had been publicly crowned king,
Samuel had said, Fear the Lord!
Dont fear the enemy
- fear the Lord, serve Him and obey His
voice! (see 12: 24). Saul forgot that Samuel had
reminded the people of all the past victories God had given to the nation. He forgot that Samuel had prayed to God and
that a miracle had taken place: It rained during the harvest season (see verses 17, 18).
In spite of the effectiveness of Samuels prayer and the
encouragement of
Samuel had said to him, Fear the Lord (verses
14, 24). When you fear the Lord, you dont need [Page 36] to fear anyone else. Before long Saul began to fear the people, then Goliath and then David. In the
final battle he was so frightened that he consulted a witch.
Impatience
Sauls first step toward defeat was unbelief. His second step was impatience.
Saul could not wait a week for Samuel to arrive. Faith and patience go together. In Hebrews 6: 12 we read: That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and
patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 10: 36 says, For ye have need of patience after ye have done the will of
God, ye
might receive the promise. Faith and
patience go together. We read in Isaiah 28:16:
He that believeth
shall not make haste. Impatience is a mark
of immaturity. Knowing this, that the testing of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be
perfect and entire, lacking nothing (James
1: 3, 4).
We have no evidence that Saul was very mature when it came to
spiritual things. You will remember that
he did not even know who Samuel was. He
had no idea what Samuel could do for him.
Saul became
impatient and therefore rushed ahead of the Lord and lost his crown as a result.
James
1: 12 says, Blessed is the man
that endureth temptation; for when he is tried, he shall receive
the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
Instead of receiving a heavenly crown [after the First Resurrection (Rev. 20: 6)], Saul lost his earthly crown because he became impatient.
[Page 38]
It is interesting to note in 1 Samuel 13, 14 and 15 how Saul changes. In chapter 13 he ran ahead of the Lord. In chapter 14 he hesitated and vacillated.
In chapter
15 he lagged behind. He knew what he was supposed to
do, but he did not do it.
Saul was unstable. Do you know
why? A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1: 8).
Saul was double minded. At the beginning
of his reign, he was concerned only about doing Gods will. He was humble and yielded to the Lord. But after he won his first victory, he became
a little proud. Unbelief moved in, and
then Saul found himself in trouble because of impatience.
In Psalm 32: 9 we read: Be ye not
like the horse, or like the mule. Saul was like
both. Like the horse, he rushed ahead (1 Sam. 13).
Like he mule, he lagged behind (ch. 15).
Saul forgot what had happened at Gilgal at the time of his
coronation. He had forgotten that Samuel
had given him all the assurance he needed.
Samuel had encouraged him to trust God, but Sauls unbelief led him to
fear the enemy. Samuel had said, Obey His voice. But Saul became
impatient and ran ahead of the Lord.
Dishonesty
The third downward step that Saul took was dishonesty.
Saul rushed ahead and offered the burnt offering - and then Samuel
arrived! Samuel said, What hast thou done? (1
Sam. 13: 11).
Samuel could tell that something was wrong. Immediately Saul began to give excuses. In 1 Samuel 13 he blamed Samuel. You
will notice that in chapter [Page 39] 14 he blamed Jonathan, and in chapter 15 he blamed the People. But Saul never blamed himself!
He was good at making excuses.
Saul said, Because I saw that
the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days
appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at
Michmash, therefore, said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal,
and I have not
made supplication unto the Lord; I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt
offering (13: 11,12).
A person who is good at thinking of excuses is rarely good at
anything else. If you have ever worked with someone who
always had an excuse, you knew he was not going to do his work right. Samuel had told Saul, Only fear
the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart (12: 24). Saul was not serving God in truth.
He was double minded, had a deceitful heart and was dishonest. He blamed Samuel when he really should have
blamed himself.
It is a tragedy when a person starts moving away from the Lord
because of unbelief, impatience and dishonesty.
Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast
done foolishly (13: 13). It is foolish to fear
the enemy instead of God. It is foolish
to run ahead of the Lord and try to tell Him what to do. It certainly is foolish to be dishonest and
to lie about your sins. Thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God,
which he
commanded thee. ... But now thy kingdom shall not continue (verses 13, 14).
Saul lost the kingdom, and later he lost his crown and even his life.
[Page 40]
Samuel announced that the Lord had found a man after His own
heart. That man was David. He had the heart of a shepherd - a heart of
integrity. Psalm 78: 72 says this about David: So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart,
and guided them
by the skilfulness of his hands. It takes both
integrity and skill to be a leader. Saul
had skilful hands, but he did not have integrity. The opposite of integrity is duplicity - a
divided heart. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1: 8).
David had a believing heart, while Saul failed because of unbelief. David was patient; he waited for years before
he received the throne. But Saul was
impatient and impulsive. David was
honest. When he sinned, he honestly
confessed, I have sinned
against the Lord (2 Sam. 12: 13).
Saul did not admit his sin; he was deceitful. As far as Saul was concerned, it was always
someone elses fault!
We dont have to commit a serious sin to start on that steep
road that leads to disgrace, discipline and possibly death. Unbelief, impatience and dishonesty started
Saul on the road to defeat. Lets take to
heart the admonition of Samuel: Fear God, obey His voice, serve Him in truth (see 1 Sam. 12: 14, 24).
[Page 41]
Chapter 5
Sauls Second Defeat
(1 Samuel 14)
King
Sauls first defeat came because he ran ahead of the Lord. His second defeat came because he hesitated
and failed to act promptly when the Lord was ready to give a great
victory. As you read 1 Samuel 14 you find that Jonathan is the real
hero, not Saul; and yet at the end, Saul would have had his own son killed! When a
believer is not following the Lord, he treats his friends like enemies and his
enemies like friends. That is what
Saul did. God gave a great victory that
day, but King Saul was not really a part of the victory. Why? Because he was out of fellowship with
God. Lets consider the four stages in
this battle and see how King Saul responded in each stage. We will see what happens when a persons
fellowship with the Lord is broken.
You and I are in a battle.
The Christian life is not a playground, its a battleground. We are not wrestling against flesh and blood
but against Satan and all of his hosts (see Eph. 6: 12). We have many enemies - the world,
the flesh, the Devil and those who oppose the things of the Lord. We know that Jesus Christ has already won the
victory at [Page 41]
Let me give you a simple outline of 1 Samuel 14, which describes the four stages of
Sauls experience. In the battle with
the Philistines, Jonathan won a great victory for the Lord, but Saul was on the
fringes. In verses 1-15 Saul is ignorant of the battle. In verses 16-23 Saul is watching the battle. In verses 24-45 he is hindering the battle; and in verse 46 we find him retreating
from the battle.
In verses 47-52 we have a summary of the victories that Saul won in
subsequent years. Keep in mind that
these victories were possible because of what Jonathan had done that day. He actually led the nation to victory.
Ignorant of the
In the first stage Saul is ignorant of the battle (1 Sam. 14:
1-15).
Jonathan said to his armour-bearer, Come, and let us go over to the Philistines garrison, that is on the
other side. But he told not his
father (verse 1).
I wonder if Jonathan realized that his father was not in fellowship with
the Lord? If so, why bother to tell him
about what he was going to do? While
Jonathan was fighting the battle, Saul was doing nothing. We read in verse 2: And Saul tarried in the farthest part of Gibeah under a
pomegranate tree which is in Migron: and the people who
were with him were about six hundred men.
Its interesting that with an enemy to fight and a battle to win, [Page 43] Saul and his 600 men were
tarrying. Saul did not seek the Lords
will concerning the battle. Jonathan, on
the other hand, was trusting God for a great victory. It may be that the Lord will work for us; for there is no
restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few (verse 6).
What Jonathan did that day was, first of all, a great act of
courage. He and his armour-bearer faced
a huge army, and the two men showed tremendous courage. It was also an act of great faith. Jonathan trusted the Lord to win the
battle. The Lord is not limited by
numbers. Jonathan must have remembered
what Gideon had learned about testing Gods guidance and trusting Gods
power. So the Lord saved
[* Why?
G. H. Lang appears to give us
an alternative answer, when he speaks of those who will be judged by the Lord,
as unworthy
to inherit His coming Kingdom!
He points out the fact that Jonathan, although he knew that David would
replace his father as
A king must needs have a
body of superior officers to serve him in administering his kingdom. King David had administrators and priests,
men who had served and suffered with him in the long years of his rejection, as
Joab and Ahimelech (2 Sam. 8: 15-18). But Jonathan, though
he loved David as his own soul and willingly resigned to him the throne,
seeking to be second only in the kingdom though himself the heir-apparent (1 Sam. 23: 17), did not even enter Davids kingdom, for he did not
share in his rejection. This is
the moral warning the narrative seems to give.
Through filial loyalty he supported the king and the system which God
had rejected, and lost his life in its collapse. It was the natural course, not the spiritual;
the latter, the path of faith, would have been judged unnatural. Jesus has said: He that loveth father
more than Me, is not worthy of Me. (Matt. 10: 37). Ye are they
who have continued with Me in My trials: and I appoint onto you a kingdom
that you may eat and drink
at My table in My kingdom; and ye shall sit in thrones judging
(Luke 22: 28-30). This special grant
was on account of these men having gone through with Christ to the end of His
rejection. He would forgive their
failings, even the severe failure of that night. He would have regard to the dominant fact
that they had stuck to His person and cause through thick and thin, and would
do so further unto the end of life. -
G. H. LANG.]
Saul was ignorant of the fact that a battle was going on! The Philistines fell before Jonathan and his
armour-bearer, and there was a great slaughter.
And there was
trembling in the host, in the field. ... and the earth quaked (verse 15).
It is amazing what one or two people can do if they just trust
the Lord. Your church may not be winning
many battles, and you may be discouraged.
You dont have to call a big committee meeting or get the whole
congregation together in order to [Page 44] have victory. Just find a Jonathan
and an armour-bearer. Trust God and
start doing His will, and He will give you great victories. One
person can accomplish great deeds when he puts his trust in the Lord.
Watching the
In stage two Saul is watching the battle (1 Sam. 14: 16-23).
Sauls lookouts were watching the Philistine army, and they saw the
enemy soldiers falling! The watchmen
told Saul that the Philistines were dying, and Saul wondered why. Then he discovered that Jonathan and his
armour-bearer were missing, so Saul asked the priest to bring the ark of
God. Perhaps he wanted to carry the ark
into the battle, or maybe he wanted to inquire about the will of the Lord. But then Saul changed his mind and decided to
enter the battle.
One minute Saul was watching the battle, then he was inquiring
of the Lord, and then he was deciding to fight.
Why would Saul inquire of the Lord when a victory was in progress? Why would he pause to see what God wanted him
to do when he could see the enemy retreating (verse 16); his own soldiers, who had defected, revolting
against the Philistines (verse 21) and the soldiers, who had fled, returning (verse 22)? In the midst
of all this, what was Saul doing? He was
hesitating. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1: 8).
Someone has said that
there are three kinds of people in our churches today: those who make things
happen, those who watch things happen and [Page 45] those who dont know that anything is happening!
Jonathan and his armour-bearer
were making things happen because they had faith in God. Saul was watching things happen; he was a
useless spectator. Are you a spectator
in the great battle of life? Are you
allowing others - to fight the battle for you?
Hindering the
Before long, the situation grew worse. Soon Saul was hindering the battle (1 Sam. 14: 24-45). He hindered the battle
in three different ways. First, his
motive was wrong. And the men of Israel were distressed that day; for Saul had
solemnly charged the people, saying, Cursed be the man who eateth any food until evening,
that I may be
avenged on mine enemies (verse 24).
He was motivated by vengeance and
pride, not by the glory of God. When
Jonathan talked about the battle, the Lord was magnified. The Lord will work for us; for there is no restraint to the Lord to save
by many or by few (verse 6).
Jonathan continually gave the Lord the glory, but Saul tried to glorify
himself. He said that he would punish his enemies. His
motive was wrong, and that hindered the battle.
Second, he made a very foolish vow. He said, Anyone who eats before evening will be cursed (see verse 24). The army had
to agree with this, and consequently, they became very hungry and could not
fight very well.
I think that Saul made this vow just to appear very spiritual.
While Jonathan was out fighting the battle, Saul had to look like a
spiritual leader. What [Page 46] did he do? He called for the ark, and he asked the
priest to determine the will of God but then interrupted him (verse 19). He then put the solemn vow on the army (verse 24).
All of this looked very religious, but it actually weakened the
army. We read that they were faint and
distressed, or fatigued (verses 24, 28). Verse 31 says that the people were very faint. You
cant fight a battle without nourishment.
Worse than that, when evening finally came, the soldiers
rushed greedily upon the spoil, killed the sheep and oxen and started to eat
the meat with the blood still in it (verse 32). By his foolish vow
Saul had weakened the army and then led the people into sin. Jews were never supposed to eat meat with
blood in it. Saul found a large stone
and said, Bring all of your
food here and sacrifice it on this rock so the blood can drain out (see verses 33, 34).
He started to build an altar (verse 35), but he never quite finished it. The Hebrew reads: With this stone he began to build.
That was Sauls great problem: He
would start things and never finish them.
He hindered the battle by his selfish motive,
by a foolish vow and then by a very rash oath.
He inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer. Saul said that whoever was to blame would
die, and Jonathan was singled out. What
had Jonathan done? He had eaten some
food (see verses
36-43). Jonathan had not heard the oath;
therefore, he was not obligated to obey it.
He had not assented to the oath and knew nothing about it until the
people told him (see verses 27, 28). Notice what Jonathan
said in verse
29: My father hath troubled the land; see, I [Page 47] pray you, how mine eyes have become bright, because I tasted a
little of this honey. In other words, if they had eaten some of the honey that
Jonathan found, they would have been much stronger and would have been able to
have a greater victory.
Jonathan was taken aside, and Saul announced that his son
would have to die (see verse 44). This is foolish, isnt it? Once again, I think Saul was trying to appear
very spiritual. It was as if he said, I have made an oath, and I will keep my oath. Saul
blamed Samuel in chapter 13, and now
he blamed Jonathan! In Sauls eyes it was always someone elses fault.
First, Saul was ignorant of the battle because he had not
asked the Lord what to do. He didnt
know that Jonathan was trusting the Lord for a victory. Then he was watching the battle because he
was double minded and couldnt decide what to do, even though he could see that
victory was assured. Then he was
hindering the battle by his selfish motive, his foolish vow and his rash oath.
Retreating From the
In 1 Samuel 14: 46 we find him retreating from the battle. Instead of having the
army rush ahead and win the victory, Saul led them in a retreat. Verse 46 says, Then Saul went up from
following the Philistines; and the Philistines went to their own place.
If the army had eaten properly and had followed Jonathans leadership,
they could have swooped down on the Philistine army and won a great
victory. But [Page 48] instead, they were delaying and hesitating. Saul blamed everyone but
himself. This is what happens to
spiritual leaders when they turn away from the Lord.
Often, great things are
happening, but they know nothing about them.
What a contrast is seen between Jonathan and Saul! Jonathan was a man of action, but Saul was a
man of empty words and broken promises.
Jonathan showed great faith, while Saul tried to appear religious with
his vows and his oaths. Jonathan was
bold and courageous, while Saul hesitated and waited. Jonathan was wise, but Saul said and did
foolish things. Jonathan brought out the
best in the army, while Saul brought out the worst in it!
Are you experiencing defeat or victory in your life? And this is the victory that overcometh the world,
even our faith
(1 John 5: 4). Lets not be like Saul but like
Jonathan. Lets trust God to work for us
and enter the battle claiming His victory.
* *
*
[Page 49]
Chapter 6
Sauls Third Defeat
(1 Samuel 15)
If any man
had a reason to become a success, it was Saul, the first king of
[* Keep in mind this Scriptural Truth: Few realize the dynamic tonic for the world in the golden age of a Second Advent,
and for the Church in a Millennial Kingdom, a prize only stormed by force. Quite apart from any question of theology,
says Professor Richard G. Moulton, of
How do you explain a tragedy such as this? Well, Saul was to blame for his own
failure. He abandoned Gods way and began to live on substitutes.
1 Samuel 15 tells us how Saul began to live on substitutes: Samuel also said unto Saul, The Lord sent me to anoint thee as king over
his people, over Israel; now, therefore, hearken thou to the voice of the words of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to
The Lord gave Saul a divine commission; He was actually giving
Saul another chance to prove his faith. In chapter 13 Saul was like a horse because he ran ahead of the Lord, but
in chapter
15 he was like a mule. He
did not fully obey the Lord.
1 Samuel 15: 7 tells us that Saul smote the
Amalekites. But he took Agag, the king of the
Amalekites, alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the
sword. But Saul and the
people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the
fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not
utterly destroy them; but everything that was vile and refuse, that they
destroyed utterly. Then came the word of
the Lord unto Samuel, saying, It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned
back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel, and he cried unto
the Lord all night (verses 8-11).
How many friends do you have who would pray all night for
you? Samuel wrestled with God all night
because of the disobedience of King Saul.
And when Samuel
rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel,
and, behold, he set him up a
place [literally, a monument], and is gone
about, and passed on,
and gone down to
Gilgal (verse 12).
Perhaps Saul was trying to avoid Samuel.
And Samuel came to Saul. And Saul said unto [Page 51] him, Blessed be thou of the Lord; I have performed the commandment of the Lord. And Samuel said, What meaneth, then, this bleating of the sheep in mine ears,
and the lowing
of the oxen which I hear? And Saul said,
They [the people] have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen,
to sacrifice
unto the Lord thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed (verses 13-15).
Saying Rather Than Doing
As you read this account, you can see how Saul was living on
substitutes. To begin with, he substituted saying for doing. Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the Lord; I have performed
the commandment of the Lord (1 Sam.
15: 13).
But he had not performed the commandment of the Lord! What was Gods commandment? Utterly destroy the Amalekites.
The Amalekites were old enemies of the Jews. Then came Amalek, and fought with
Exodus 17: 14 is a key verse: And the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book,
and rehearse it
in the ears of Joshua; for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from
under [Page 52] heaven. That was Gods decree that the Amalekites were not going to
survive.
Deuteronomy 25 contains a similar statement where Moses is addressing
Joshua and the people before they go into the Promised Land: Remember what Amalek did unto thee by the way, when ye were come forth out of Egypt; how he met thee by
the way, and smote those behind thee, even all that were feeble behind thee,
when thou wast
faint and weary; and he feared not God.
Therefore it shall be, when the Lord thy God hath given thee rest from all thine
enemies round about, in the
land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, to possess it, that thou shalt
blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven; thou shalt not
forget it (verses 17-19).
Moses was required to record these words in Deuteronomy and to make sure the people
remembered Gods pronouncement upon Amalek.
So from both Exodus
and Deuteronomy, Saul should have known that Amalek
was to be completely destroyed. The
Prophet Samuel had also told Saul of Gods commandment to completely destroy
Amalek, and yet Saul spared the king and
the best of the spoil.
Then Saul told a lie.
He claimed to be obedient when he was really disobedient. God knew that Saul was lying, as did Samuel;
before long, even the people knew about Sauls lie. The bleating of the sheep and the lowing of
the oxen were clear evidence that he had not obeyed God. Saul
was substituting saying for doing.
[Page 53]
Its so easy for us as Gods people to
substitute words for actions. But God
does not want words in place of actions.
We are not to be only hearers of the Word; we are to be doers of the Word (see James 1: 22).
Three times in 1 John 1 the Apostle John referred to saying
one thing but doing another. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in
darkness, we lie, and do not the truth (verse
6). If we say that we have no sin, we deceive
ourselves, and the truth is not in us (verse 8). If we say that we
have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us (verse 10). In verse 6 we are lying to others; in verse 8 we are lying to ourselves; and in verse 10 we are trying to lie to God. This results in a terrible deterioration of
character through disobedience and deceit.
How easy it is
for us to sing songs, quote verses and say prayers without ever allowing the
words to affect our lives. Our spiritual
life becomes nothing but words. Beware
when you start substituting saying for doing.
Excuses Rather Than Confession
A second substitution took place that day. Saul substituted excuses for confession.
In 1
Samuel 15: 15 Saul tried to excuse his disobedience by claiming that the animals were
only kept to be sacrificed to God: And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites;
for the people
spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice [Page 54] unto the Lord thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.
Saul then tried to excuse his behaviour by putting the blame on the
people in verse 21: But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen,
the chief of the
things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto
the Lord thy God in Gilgal.
King Saul was very good at excuses.
Beware of excuses! Billy Sunday
used to define an excuse as the skin of a reason
stuffed with a lie.
In chapter 13 Sauls excuse was that he blamed Samuel.
Samuel did not arrive when he had said he would, so Saul went ahead and
offered the sacrifice. In chapter 14 Saul blamed Jonathan for the defeat
of
Watch out for people who always have an excuse. An
excuse is a refusal to be honest and to accept responsibility for our actions. Saul should have confessed his sin
honestly. He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy (Prov. 28:
13). One sin often leads to another when we try to hide our sin.
When Saul began his career as king, he was humble, obedient
and responsible. He had the respect of
the people and the blessing of God. But
the more he was elevated, the greater his moral decline became, until finally
the Lord said, It repenteth me
that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned back from following me
(1 Sam. 15:
11).
[Page 55]
What decay took place in
Sauls life because he substituted excuses for confession!
If you and I have disobeyed God, we must be honest about it
and confess our sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:
9).
Sacrifice Rather Than Obedience
Finally, Saul substituted sacrifice for obedience. He said, I have obeyed the word of the Lord. We have taken this spoil that we might be able to sacrifice
it to the Lord (see 1 Sam. 15: 15).
And yet we know that God does not want sacrifice - He wants obedience. As
Samuel said in verse 22, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and
sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than
the fat of rams.
Many verses in Scripture confirm this. Psalm 50: 12-14 says, If I were hungry, I would not tell
thee; for the world is mine, and all the fullness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood
of goats? Offer unto God
thanksgiving, and pay thy vows unto the Most High. God
does not need our sacrifices; He
would rather have our worship. David
said in Psalm
51: 16, 17, For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it; thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a
contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Saul
did not have a broken spirit. 1 Samuel 15: 23 says, For rebellion is as the [Page 56] sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
We read in Isaiah 1: 11: To what purpose is the multitude of your
sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord.
Hosea 6: 6
says, For I
desired mercy, and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt
offerings. In Micah 6: 7, 8 we are told, Will the Lord be
pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? ... He hath shown thee,
O man,
what is good;
and what doth
the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly
with thy God?
Throughout Scripture God makes it very clear that He wants
obedience rather than sacrifice.
Sacrifice can never replace surrender.
Psalm
119: 162 says, I rejoice at thy
word, as one that findeth great spoil. The psalmist wanted the Word of God more than
great spoil, but Saul wanted great spoil more than he wanted to obey the Word
of God.
Saul substituted saying for doing. He substituted excuses for confession. He substituted sacrifice for obedience. No wonder he failed!
We must be careful not to substitute empty words or outward
displays of spirituality for true service and obedience to God. Obedience
leads to victory, while disobedience leads to defeat. When we do disobey the Lord, we need to be
honest about it. We must confess our
sins; when we do, God in His mercy forgives us. Dont try to hide your sin by
making excuses as Saul did. It only
leads to heartache and failure. We cant
know success if we try to live on substitutes.
* * *
[Page 57]
Chapter 7
Sauls Third Defeat (cont.)
(1 Samuel 15)
When you
consider the sin of King Saul, as recorded in 1 Samuel 15, you realize how terrible it is to rebel against
God. King Saul began to live on
substitutes. He substituted saying for
doing. He said, I have performed the commandment of the Lord (verse 13). Then he substituted
excuses for confession. But the people took
of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been
utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal (verse 21). Its tragic when a
person tries to live on excuses. In chapter 13 Saul blamed Samuel for not showing up
earlier. In chapter 14 he blamed Jonathan for eating when
the army was under a vow. In chapter 15 he blamed the people.
Saul also substituted sacrifice for obedience. He said, We have spared all these things to sacrifice them to the Lord (see verse 15). How can we
sacrifice to the Lord what God has condemned?
The people thought it was the best, the chief of all the spoil, but God
looked at all that livestock and said, I dont want it. I want the obedience of your heart. I want your will to be yielded to Me.
[Page 58]
Its so easy for us to want to sacrifice something - time,
money, work at the church. We think that this compensates for our
disobedience, but it cannot. God wants
absolute surrender and obedience from us. Samuel asked, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and
sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than
the fat of rams (verse 22).
Reputation Rather Than Character
Saul made a fourth substitution: He substituted reputation for character. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the
Lord,
and thy words, because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. Now, therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship
the Lord. And Samuel said unto
Saul,
I will not return with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord hath
rejected thee from being king over
Twice in this passage he said, I have sinned (verses
24, 30). I wonder how
sincere this confession really was. A number
of people in the Bible made this same confession, I have sinned, Pharaoh said it to Moses (see Ex. 9: 27;10: 16), but he certainly didnt mean it.
Balaam used these same words, I have sinned (Num.
22: 34); and yet Balaam turned out to be a
reprobate prophet. Achan said it (see Josh. 7:
20). David said it, but
when he said it, he really meant it: I have sinned against the Lord (2 Sam. 12: 13).
Saul twice said, I have sinned, but I dont think he really meant it. He was concerned only about his reputation
and not about his character. Abraham
Lincoln once said that reputation and character may be compared to a tree. Character is the tree, and reputation is the
shadow that is cast by the tree.
Reputation is what men think we are; character is what God knows we
are. D. L. Moody once said that
character is what a person is in the dark, when no one is watching.
Throughout his official career, Sauls great concern was What do people
think of me? He stood head and shoulders
above everyone else; he was good looking, strong and courageous. But he did not possess a godly
character. You never find Saul doing the
things David did - singing praises to God [Page 60] or serving Him with integrity of heart. Saul substituted reputation for character.
If you start living to please people,
you are going to be in trouble. You may
be in Christian service and say, Well, a lot of
people are watching me. Do what
God wants you to do, and dont live to please people. If you start thinking only of your
reputation, you will start doing what Saul did - cutting corners and making
excuses. You will be caught between God and people - Dont fear people. The fear of man bringeth a snare, says Proverbs 29: 25.
Dont worry about receiving the honour or praise of people. The important thing is personal
integrity. God never called us to be
popular or to have a great reputation.
He called us to be honest and faithful.
He wants to build our character.
His Will Rather Than Gods Will
Saul substituted saying for doing, excuses for confession,
sacrifice for obedience and reputation for character. Finally, he substituted his will for Gods will.
You and I may look at Sauls sin and say, He
spared Agag, the king, and some of the spoil. That cant be too bad. But it was sin. First Samuel 15: 23 says, For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is
as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast
rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king (see also verse 26).
God had warned Saul about rebellion. When the kingship was
confirmed at Gilgal, the warning was given: But if ye will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against
the commandment of the Lord, [Page 61] then shall the hand of the Lord be against you, as it was against
your fathers (12: 15). We read in 1 Samuel 12: 24:
Only fear the
Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart. When you fear the Lord, you dont
have to fear the enemy; but in chapter 14 Saul was afraid of the enemy. You
dont have to be afraid of people, but in chapter 15 Saul was afraid of the people. In chapter 17 Saul was afraid of Goliath, but David wasnt because he
trusted the Lord. In chapter 18 you will find Saul was afraid of
David; and in chapter 28 Saul was
afraid of the great enemy army that was about to attack.
When you fear the Lord, you dont have to be afraid of
anything else. The person of integrity
is concerned only with serving God and doing His will.
Saul substituted his will for Gods will, and this was the sin
of rebellion. No wonder God rejected him! When you stop to consider the matter,
you realize that Saul was the loser: He lost his character, and he lost his
crown. God rejected him from being king. Instead of winning a great victory that would
have glorified God, Saul lost the battle and went down in shameful defeat. He lost his good friend, Samuel. And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his
death; nevertheless, Samuel mourned for Saul (15:
35).
Saul lost Gods blessing.
God would have given great blessing to Saul, but he couldnt because
Saul had not proved himself trustworthy.
Saul lost Gods
Spirit.* But the
Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord
troubled him (16: 14). [Page 63] If you are going to
rebel against God, then you will have to suffer the consequences. This helps us understand why David prayed
after he had sinned, - Take not thy holy
Spirit from me (Ps. 51: 11).
He saw what had happened to King Saul, and he did not want it to happen
in his own life. Finally, King Saul lost
his life. Because he disobeyed God, he
ended up committing suicide on the battlefield when he could have won a great
victory for the Lord.
[* See Acts 5: 32. cf. 10:
34, R.V.]
May this be a warning to us not to live on substitutes! Dont submit to your own desires instead of
obeying Gods will. God uses the person who
seeks to glorify Him, while self-glorification only leads to defeat.
Thinking of Saul reminds us of another Saul in the Bible, Saul
of Tarsus. He was also from the tribe of
Benjamin. King Saul stood head and
shoulders above everyone else when he was anointed, and yet he was humble in
the beginning. When he was little in his
own eyes, God could bless him; but then he became proud and disobeyed God. Saul of Tarsus was a great man in terms of
stature. He was a leading religious
leader in his day. But when he became a
Christian, he realized how small he was.
He changed his name to Paul, which means little. Saul of Tarsus was greatly used by God. He called himself the chief of sinners (see 1 Tim. 1: 15). He made no excuses. Instead, he obeyed God and made sacrifices
for Him. He put character before
reputation. He was criticized, abused
and lied about, but still he obeyed God.
[Page 63]
When we contrast Saul of Tarsus and King Saul, we realize how
grievous it is to sin and how blessed it is to live for the Lord. Saul of Tarsus was a man of integrity and
character who obeyed God. His great desire was to fulfil his
course and to accomplish the work God had called him to do. He wasnt concerned about his reputation, even
though people lied about him and accused him.
Whenever he sinned, he confessed it to the Lord. Because he practiced what he preached, no one
could look at his life and accuse him of being a hypocrite. He wanted to do the
will of God above all else; as a result, Saul of
[* NOTE:
What
then must be our response? We are urged:
(1) To flee to the refuge, and to abide there.
(2) To lay fast hold of the HOPE
and never to relax our grip. (3) We must
cast our anchor within the veil, nor ever slip the cable of faith that links us
to it. (4) We must follow after our
Forerunner, not turn from His path, for only so can we arrive at the place
whither He has gone in advance of us.
Let us therefore run with patience the race that lies before us, looking off unto
Jesus, and thus finding Him to be both Anchor and Perfecter of faith, (Heb. 12: 1). Wherefore girding up the
loins of your mind, be sober, and set your hope perfectly(= undividedly) upon the
favour that is being brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Pet. 1: 13).
This strenuous and ceaseless advance each must make
for him [or /her] self. It is no use waiting for others, for (Heb. 12: 4) as touching those who
have been described they cannot and will
not go forward, so it is useless to wait for them, even though they be dear to
our hearts in the Lord, or by ties of nature. He that loveth father or
mother more than Me, he is not worthy of Me, and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me, is not worthy of Me. And he that doth not take up his cross and follow after Me, is not worthy of Me. He that findeth his life shall loose it, and he that looseth his life for My sake shall find it: (Matt. 10: 37-39).
It is the object of the Son To bring us to God (1 Pet. 3: 18), to recover the sinner
from that legal and moral alienation from Him, and to establish us in
His favour (Rom. 5: 1, 2), yea, in His fellowship (1 John 1: 3), and finally to set us before the PRESENCE OF HIS
GLORY in exceeding joy (Jude 24, 25; Eph. 1: 4; Col. 1: 22; Heb. 2: 10, etc. [cf. Habakkuk 2: 14]). It is the object of our Adversary (the Devil)
to prevent this at one or more of its stages. He
will prevent faith in the message, so that the heart may never rest in Christ
as justified by His blood; or he
will hinder the justified continuing steadfast in faith and hope, and so ROB THE BELIEVER OF HIS CROWN. It was
principally to this last end that he
was labouring with the Christians here [in the epistle to the Hebrews] addressed. In part he would by
persecution frighten them from continuing to espouse [i.e., support, embrace] the rejected and absent Jesus: in part he sought to
beguile (cheat, wile away, amuse) them be an interposing of angels, of priests,
of ceremonies, [and of false prophetical teachers] as having mediatorial
value. The same wiles were tried with the believers
at
Its wonderful to win your crown, to have praying friends who believe
in you and to enjoy the blessing of God. When you are trusting the Lord, you
arent worried about being honoured before people. You dont have to find some new excuse to
cover up a sin you have committed.
We need to be little in our own eyes - to realize that we are nothing apart from the Lord. We should be able to say as John the Baptist
did, He must increase,
but I must
decrease (John 3: 30).
Your character is a priceless possession. Dont ruin it. Your opportunities to serve the Lord are [Page 64] invaluable. Dont waste them. The abilities that God has given you are His
gifts to be used for His glory. Dont abuse them.
No one had a greater opportunity to succeed than King Saul
did. Everything was in his favour. He could have gone from victory to victory,
but instead he failed because he did not
have integrity. Therefore, God
rejected him and chose David, who had the right heart: The Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart
(1 Sam. 13:
14).
Only the Lord can help us build Christian character. May the Lord help us to walk in His
will. Yield to His will and bring glory
to His name by doing what He has called
you to do.
* *
*
[Page 65]
Chapter 8
Fighting the Wrong Enemy
(1 Samuel 16-23)
Has
anyone in your life ever really broken your heart because he or she rebelled
against the Lord? You did your best for
them, prayed for them and encouraged them, but they failed you and the Lord. It hurts down inside, doesnt it?
If you have had that experience, then you know how Samuel felt
when King Saul rebelled against the Lord and disobeyed His Word. Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul. 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
When it says that God repented, it does not mean that God made
a mistake. He knows everything,
including future events; but the writer used human language here to express
divine truth. God responds to our failures. He is hurt when we fail. Just as a child hurts his father when he
rebels against him, so Gods heart was broken when Saul rebelled against Him.
But disobedient men cannot hinder Gods plan or [Page 66] stop Him from working. Even if we are not faithful, God is faithful
and will accomplish His purposes. But we
will miss the blessing of seeing God work through us. God knows what He is doing, and He always has
someone ready to step in and do the job and share the blessing. In this case it was David.
1 Samuel 16: 1 says, And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou
mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over
David was taking care of the sheep when Samuel arrived with
his horn of anointing oil, so his family had to call him in from the fields
(see verses
4-12). Samuel anointed David, and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day onward
(verse 13). David was
anointed, while Saul was abandoned. But the
Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord
troubled him (verse 14). Saul did not want to follow God, therefore, God could not
entrust the Holy Spirits [indwelling presence or] power to him.
In verses 15-23 Saul and David are brought together by God. God brought David into Sauls life because
Saul needed Davids help. An evil spirit from the Lord troubled him [Saul] (verse 14).
Saul was being disciplined by God because of his disobedience. The only way he could find relief was to have
[Page 67] someone play music that would bring
peace to his heart. When Saul wanted a
musician, one of his servants told him, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse, the Bethlehemite, who is skilful in
playing, and a mighty, valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and an agreeable
person, and the Lord is with him (verse 18). Those are some credentials, arent
they?
Saul sent for David and brought him into his court; this was the beginning of a stirring drama involving
David and Saul, a drama in which the forces of evil attack the forces of God. But this drama is not ancient history, it continues today in churches and in
communities. Wherever you find someone
who is blessed of God in contact with someone who has
been abandoned by God, you find conflict. This drama
continues from chapter 16 to chapter 31 of 1 Samuel, and it falls into three acts: Act I, Saul loved David (chs. 16,
17); Act II, Saul envied David (chs. 18-20); and Act III, Saul exiled David and tried to kill him
(chs. 21-31).
Saul loved David
The first act in the drama is recorded in chapters 16 and 17: Saul loved David.
First Samuel 16: 21 sounds peculiar when you know the end of the story: And David came to Saul, and stood before him; and he loved him
greatly; and he became his armour-bearer.
Its interesting to note that a loving relationship existed in the
beginning between Saul and David. Saul
gave David two particular tasks. First
of all, David was his armour-bearer.
That was an [Page 68] important title to have and an honourable place to serve, for he helped
Saul in his battles. He was also the
court musician. Whenever Saul
experienced one of his attacks, David would sing and play his harp, and this
would calm him down. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour
in my sight (verse 22).
This was a temporary position for David in the beginning. In 1 Samuel 17: 15 we read: But David went and returned from Saul to feed his fathers
sheep at
In the beginning Saul loved David, but can two walk together, except they be agreed? (Amos 3: 3).
What fellowship does light have with darkness? (see 2 Cor. 6:
14). What fellowship can
the [Holy] Spirit have with the flesh? Saul lived for himself, while David lived for
others. Saul was proud and rebellious,
while David was humble and obedient.
Saul Envied David
This leads us to 1 Samuel 18-20, the second act in this drama: Saul envied David. David behaved himself wisely (18:
5, 14, 15). He walked [Page 69] according to the will of the Lord, he
battled victoriously and he won he admiration of the people; but he was not
ruined by their praise. Women came out
when he returned from battle, dancing and singing. They chanted, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten
thousands. And Saul was very
angry, and the saying displeased him (verses 7, 8).
David responded to this praise with humility, but Saul responded with
fear, anger and envy.
Proverbs 27: 21 says, As the refining pot for
silver, and the furnace for
gold, so is a man to his praise. Just as the heat of
the refining pot or the furnace separates the impurities from the silver or the
gold, so also praise will reveal what is in a person, bringing out either his
best or his worst.
The praise given to David brought out the best in him and
revealed his humility. But the praise
that David received brought out the worst in Saul. Saul became envious of David. The next day, the evil spirit came upon Saul
as David played, and Saul picked up his
javelin and tried to kill David.
Then Saul removed David from his position as court musician and
captain of the bodyguard and made him captain over a thousand men and sent him
out into battle. He was hoping that the
Philistines would kill David.
Saul had promised to give David his eldest daughter, Merab,
for his wife. But he deceived David and
gave her to someone else. Then David
asked for Michal to be his wife. Saul
was plotting against David the entire time. For a dowry Saul required David to
kill 100 Philistines and bring back their [Page 70] foreskins. He was
hoping that David would be killed in the process. But, instead, David killed 200 of the enemy
in order to win his wife! (see 1 Sam. 18: 17-27). And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul became
Davids enemy continually (verse 29).
First, Saul loved David; then he envied David and tried to
kill him. Saul even told his son
Jonathan to kill him (19: 1). Saul
also sent men to Davids house to bring him back so Saul could kill him, but
Michal deceived Saul, and David escaped (verses 11-18).
Then Saul went down to Ramah, intending to kill David, but again he
failed (verses
19-24).
It is remarkable that the man who began by loving David was
now envying David and trying to destroy him. Thats what envy does to you. Envy is like a cancer of the soul that eats
away at you. When you allow yourself to
become jealous of anothers possessions or accomplishments, envy grows until it
takes complete control of your life and begins to destroy you. David was being used by God, and the people
saw that he was a man of true spiritual stature. He had earned the respect and admiration of
the people and therefore had become a threat to Sauls position. Saul became so envious of Davids popularity
with the people that killing David became an obsession with him. Saul allowed envy to control him, and it
began to destroy him.
Saul Exiled David
This leads us to the third act in this drama: Saul exiled David. In 1 Samuel 21-31 David is on the run. He was continually forced to flee from
Saul. He [Page 71] went to Ahimelech, the priest, and then to Achish, king of
All of this brought out the worst in Saul. He became obsessed with chasing David and
destroying him. It was a foolish thing
to attempt because David was Gods anointed, and God was watching over him.
But all of these trials brought out
the best in David. He wrote 20 wonderful psalms during this
period of exile. Looking at a few verses
from these psalms will help us to see Davids attitude while he was in exile. Psalm 34: 1, 6 says, I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall
continually be in my mouth. ... This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out
of all his troubles. David could still
praise God in spite of the circumstances he was facing in exile. In Psalm 142: 1 he said, I cried unto Lord with my voice; with my voice unto
the Lord did I make my supplication. Psalm 31: 1 says, In thee,
O Lord,
do I put my
trust; let me never be ashamed. Deliver me in thy righteousness. And in Psalm 7: 1 he said, O Lord my God, in thee do I put my trust; save me from all
those who persecute me, and deliver me. David confidently trusted the Lord to protect him from
Saul. What David experienced brought out the best in him, but it brought out the
worst in Saul.
Love can turn to hatred
and even to murder [Page 72] when pride poisons our heart and envy
controls our actions. No wonder Proverbs 4: 23 warns us: Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the
issues of life.
* *
*
[Page 73]
Chapter 9
The Ultimate Weapon
(1 Samuel 24,
26)
On two
different occasions David had the opportunity to kill King Saul. From a human point of view, Sauls death
would have solved many problems. But
David looked at life from Gods point of view, not from the human
perspective. On both of these occasions,
three opportunities presented themselves.
David faced an opportunity for revenge or for restraint, while Saul
faced an opportunity for repentance. In 1 Samuel 24 David faced these choices in a cave,
and in chapter
26 he faced them in the
camp of Saul.
Temptation in the Cave
Lets begin with Davids temptation in the cave. David and his
men were in a cave in the wilderness of En-gedi. This is a terrible wilderness, dry and
desolate, with many caves. Saul was
there with 3000 chosen men, looking for David.
He entered the cave in which David and his men were hiding but could not
see them. The bright desert sun may have
temporarily blinded him. Or Davids men
could have [Page 74] been hiding in the darkness so that Saul didnt know they were there.
And the men of David said unto him, Behold, the day of which
the Lord said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do
to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Sauls robe stealthily. And it came to pass afterward, that Davids heart
smote him, because he had cut off Sauls skirt. And he said unto his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this thing
unto my master, the Lords anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him,
seeing he is the
anointed of the Lord. So David restrained
his servants with these words (1 Sam.
24: 4-7).
After Saul left the cave, David went out and called out to
him: My lord,
the king. And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with
his face to the earth, and bowed himself.
And David
said to Saul, Why hearest thou mens words, saying, Behold, David seeketh thy harm? Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the Lord
had delivered thee today into mine hand in the cave; and some bade me
kill thee, but mine eye spared thee, and I said, I will not put forth mine hand against my lord;
for he is the
Lords anointed (verses 8-10).
David had an opportunity for revenge,
which seemed providential. David was
encouraged by his friends to kill King Saul.
In fact, they even argued that the word of the Lord permitted David to
do it. After all, Samuel had said that
God had rejected Saul (15: 26), and Jonathan had said that the Lord [Page 75] would cut off the enemies of David (20: 15).
Either of these statements would have given David the right to kill the
king - at least in his friends estimation.
David did not yield to this temptation because he realized that Saul was
not his enemy. David might have been Sauls enemy, but Saul was not Davids
enemy.
Some Bibles note that Psalm 18 was written when God delivered David from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
Its interesting that Saul is not classified among Davids enemies.
Yes, David had an opportunity for
revenge, but he also had an opportunity for restraint. Instead of taking revenge on Saul, David
chose to restrain himself and his men, proving what a great man he was. Proverbs 16: 32 says, He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty;
and he who
ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city.
David proved that he was truly a king by ruling over his own emotions. If he hadnt controlled his emotions, he might
have reasoned as his friends did and rationalized that the situation was
providential. He would have killed Saul
rather than doing what was right.
Sometimes we think that God is giving us an opportunity to do
things our own way. It looks as if He
has arranged the opportunity, and perhaps even our best friends can give us
biblical reasons for doing the wrong thing.
We must be careful not to convince ourselves that what we want is really
Gods will for us when it isnt. We need to seek the Lords will for our
lives through prayer and Bible [Page 76] study rather than allowing our
emotions to control us.
What kept David from taking revenge against Saul? For one thing he respected Sauls
authority. He called him my master ... the anointed of the Lord (1 Sam. 24: 6). He also called him the king (verse 8) and my father (verse 11).
(David was son-in-law to the king.)
David respected the fact that Saul was Gods anointed. He said, I will not stretch forth my hand
against the anointed of the Lord (see verse
6).
David also had a very sensitive conscience. In fact, David regretted that he had cut off
part of Sauls garment. Saul had laid
aside his robe, and David secretly crept up and cut off a corner. He wanted to prove to Saul that he truly was
there and could have slain him. But
Davids conscience rebuked him. David
had a tender conscience that convicted him whenever he did something wrong.
David was very humble, and this also
restrained him. After whom is the king of
But the main reason David restrained himself was because he
had faith in God. He said, The Lord, therefore, be judge, and judge between me and thee, and see,
and plead my
cause, and deliver me out of thine hand (verse 15). David had committed himself to the
Righteous Judge, the One who would work all things together for good.
David took the opportunity for restraint because he was a
godly man with integrity. For Saul, this
[Page 77] situation presented him with an
opportunity for repentance. This would have
been the perfect opportunity for Saul to apologize to David, to repent of his
sin and to let God work things out according to His will. Saul wept, but I dont think that these tears
were sincere. He said to David, Thou art more righteous than I; for thou hast
rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil (verse 17). He added, For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? Wherefore, the Lord reward thee with good for what thou hast done unto
me this day (verse 19).
Sauls comments to David point out that there are three levels
of life. Theres the human level, where you return evil for evil (verse 19).
If a man finds his enemy, he fights him.
There is also the satanic
level, where you return evil for good.
Thats where Saul was living: I have rewarded thee evil (verse 17). But David was living
on the divine level, where you
return good for evil. For thou hast rewarded me good, said Saul (verse
17). This is the level on which we [regenerate
Christians] should live.
Saul did not repent but
was only concerned about his family and his name.
Swear now,
therefore,
unto me by the
Lord, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt
not destroy my name out of my fathers house (verse 21). Saul was a proud man, concerned only about his reputation.
David was living by a principle that Paul later stated in Romans 12: 17-21: Recompense to no
man evil for evil. Provide things
honest in the sight of all men.
If it be
possible, as much as lieth in you, [Page 78] live peaceably with all men.
Dearly
beloved, avenge not yourselves but, rather, give place unto wrath [the wrath of God]; for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink; for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire
on his head. Be not overcome by
evil, but overcome evil with good.
Temptation in the Camp
In 1 Samuel 26 we have the account of the temptation in the camp. David sent his spies out and discovered that
Saul was encamped nearby, so David and his nephew Abishai secretly entered the
camp. God had caused a heavy sleep to
come upon Saul and his soldiers. Once
again, David was given an opportunity for revenge. As Saul lay sleeping, Abishai said to David, God hath delivered thine enemy into thine hand this day
(verse 8). Sauls spear was
there, the same spear that he had used more than once to try to kill
David. If David had wanted revenge, what
better weapon could he have used than the one that had been aimed at him?
But David said to Abishai, Destroy him not; for who can stretch forth his hand against the
Lords anointed, and be guiltless? (verse
9). Abishai had told him, in effect, God has given you another chance, David! He has even put everyone to sleep! This is His doing - dont waste it. But David understood
that you cant know the will of God simply by circumstances. You must know the Word of God.
David knew it was wrong to kill the
king of
Here was an opportunity for revenge, but David refused to
accept it. He chose instead to restrain
himself. David said, As the Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him; or his day shall
come to die; or he shall descend into battle, and perish
(verse 10). David trusted
God to punish Saul. He refused to take
matters into his own hands.
Once again, God gave Saul an opportunity to repent. David said to Saul, Now, therefore, I pray thee, let my lord, the king, hear the words of his servant. If the Lord have stirred thee up against me, let him accept an
offering; but if they be the children of men, cursed be they
before the Lord; for they have driven me out this day from abiding in the
inheritance of the Lord, saying, Go, serve other gods (verse
19). David made it clear that the people were
creating his problem, not him, and the king was listening to the slander and
the malicious lies of some of the flatterers in his court.
When you read the 20 psalms that David wrote during his exile, you
often read about flattering [Page 80] lips and people who slandered David and
lied about him. Saul believed these
flatterers, but David warned, God will punish those who have unjustly accused
me. If you have sinned against the Lord,
why dont you confess your sin? If you
do this, He will then forgive and restore you.
Saul had lost his crown and his kingship, but he still could
have [had a hope for a
share in the
inheritance of the Lord, (see Psalm 2:
8. cf. Eph.
5: 5, 6.), and to have] ended his days in the will of God and
at peace with David. Saul did not repent
when he said, I have sinned
(verse 21). I dont think
he really meant these words. Neither did
he mean it when he said, I have
played the fool, and have erred exceedingly (verse 21). This was his
opportunity for repentance, but he was not genuinely sorry for his sin. Instead, Saul continued to fight
David and the Lord.
A man does play the fool when he sins [wilfully] and thinks he can get away with it. He plays the fool when he
rebels against God and will not submit to Him. When Saul said, I have sinned ... I have
played the fool (verse 21), he was telling the truth but he was not
repenting.
A person also plays the
fool when he rejects his good friends. David wanted to be
Sauls friend. Samuel was Sauls friend, and yet Saul did nothing but create problems
for Samuel. Yes, a person is a fool when he nurtures envy and hatred and
refuses to repent. Sauls tears were evidence more of remorse
than of repentance, for he did not humble himself before the Lord.
On two occasions David was given an opportunity for revenge or
restraint, and Saul was given an opportunity for repentance. David chose to obey [Page 81] God and restrained his desire for
revenge. Saul chose to reject his
opportunities for repentance and instead followed his own desires.
Saul used his spear and his army to fight David. However, David chose to use the weapons of love
and forgiveness. David chose Gods
weapons and attained victory; Saul used powerful earthly weapons, but still he
failed.
The ultimate weapon is love. Our task is to obey God and leave revenge to Him. Dont fight people - let God take care of your
battles with others. We must fight sin and all that is evil, but
we must not carry personal grudges. The
best way to get rid of an enemy is to make him a friend.
David did everything he could to change Sauls attitude toward
him. He was obeying Romans 12: 18:
If it be
possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with
all men. Sometimes it isnt possible. In Davids case it wasnt possible because Saul would not surrender
to the Lord.
I trust that you and I will learn to use Gods ultimate weapon
- love. Dont have enemies in your
life. Dont fight back when people hurt
you. Instead, forgive them. You are only hurting yourself when you play
the fool and fight against those who are making life difficult for you. Surrender your desire for revenge to the
Lord. Vengeance is mine;
I will repay,
saith the Lord
(verse 19).
* *
*
[Page 83]
Chapter 10
A King in the Dark
(1 Samuel 28)
The late
president of the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, William Culbertson, often
prayed, Lord help us to end well. The saintly British preacher, Dr. F. B.
Meyer, said at the close of his life, I dont want my life to end in a swamp.
Good beginnings are no
guarantee of successful endings. King Saul is proof of
that. If any man had a great opportunity
for doing Gods will, it was Saul. Yet
King Saul ended up consulting a witch and then committing suicide on the
battlefield.
And it came to pass in those days, that the
Philistines gathered their armies together for warfare, to fight with
Now Samuel was dead, and all
The Scriptures tell us that Saul disguised himself. In one sense,
Saul was revealing himself! The darkness in his soul was coming out. In order to get from Gilboa to En-dor, Saul had to travel 10 or 12 miles and had to pass near
the enemy camp. Saul risked his life in
disguising himself and making that trip, but he was a desperate man. God had forsaken him.
Saul told the witch at En-dor that
he wanted to talk to Samuel. Ordinarily,
she would have been used by a demon, and the demon would have impersonated
Samuel. But this time, God permitted
Samuel to come back! The woman was surprised when she saw Samuel because she
had not been responsible for his appearance!
She realized that God was at work.
Saul told Samuel how distressed he was because God had
departed from him and because he didnt know what to do. Samuel replied, in effect, I told you so. I
warned you, but you wouldnt listen. You
[Page 85] did not obey the will of the
Lord. You rebelled against Him, and now
judgment is coming. Samuel
issued a warning: Moreover,
the Lord will
also deliver
[* See R. Govetts book Hades.]
It is dangerous to rebel against the will of God. When you see the contrast between Sauls
beginning and his ending, you can see how important it is to obey the will of
God. Lets look at these contrasts.
Light Versus Darkness
In the beginning, Saul was in the light; but at the end, he was in darkness. When Saul was anointed king, it was
dawn. And they [Samuel
and Saul] arose early; and it came to pass about the dawn of the day, that Samuel called
Saul to the top of the house, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel,
abroad. And as they were going down to the end of the city,
Samuel said to
Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us (and he passed on), but stand thou
still a while, that I may show thee the word of God (1 Sam. 9: 26, 27).
At the beginning of Sauls reign, we see him in the [Page 86] light. Saul was anointed at the dawn of the day. It was also the
dawning of a new day in his life. God
gave Saul everything he needed for success - an endowment of power and a group
of men whose hearts He had touched - when he was anointed. But when you turn to 1 Samuel 28, you dont find sign of dawn. You find darkness! Saul disguised himself and went to the witch
by night. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light neither cometh
to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved (John 3: 20).
In the Bible darkness is a picture of sin. God is light, and in him is no darkness at all (1 John 1: 5).
Satan is the prince of darkness.
When Saul and his two friends left for En-dor,
it was still night. Saul began his
kingship in the light, but he ended it in the darkness. Why?
Because he rebelled against the will of God.
Courage Versus Fear
The second contrast is a contrast between courage and fear. At the beginning of Sauls reign,
he was a great man of courage. When the
Ammonites invaded and word came to Saul that the people were weeping, Saul cut
up an oxen, distributed the parts and said, Everybody
follow me! With great courage,
he went to battle and defeated the enemy.
But at our present point in the story, Saul is trembling and afraid as
he sees the host of the Philistines.
Its interesting to note the growing fear in Saul life. n 1 Samuel 12, when the kingdom was established at Gilgal, Samuel warned
Saul to fear God. [Page 87] Only fear the Lord,
and serve him in
truth with all your heart (verse 24). But Saul did not have a whole-hearted commitment to the Lord .
He was told to fear the Lord, but in chapter 15 he started to fear the people. Then in chapter 18 he feared David and became envious and filled with
hatred. In chapter 28, when Saul saw the host of the
Philistines, he was greatly afraid and his heart trembled.
Courage comes from a pure heart. When your conscience is right with God, you
have courage. Proverbs 28: 1 says, The wicked flee when no man pursueth, but the righteous
are bold as a lion. David knew that he could have victory
because his heart was right with God.
Saul was facing defeat because his heart was not right with God.
Wisdom Versus Folly
A third contrast in
this passage is the one between wisdom and folly.
In the beginning Saul used wisdom, but in the end he practiced
folly. Saul began his rule by listening
to the wisdom of God. He went to Gilgal and
listened to Samuel review Gods mighty works for
Gods people should walk in His wisdom and not in the
foolishness of man. We have the Holy
Spirit to guide us so that we can obey the will of the Lord. Its a tragedy when a person tries to live
his own life his own way according to his own will. The Word of [Page 88] God says in Ephesians 5: 17, Wherefore, be ye not unwise but understanding what the
will of the Lord is. How do you understand what the will of the Lord is? By [obeying God and] being filled with the Holy Spirit.
The tragedy for Saul was that the Spirit of God had departed from him! As a result, Saul acted
like a fool. He disobeyed the Word of God, made excuses and lied. He blamed others - Samuel, Jonathan, the
people - everyone but himself. When Saul
desperately needed to know what to do, he inquired of the Lord, but the Lord
did not answer him. The priest was not
able to use the Urim to determine the will of God. The prophets had no word for him. He had no direction from God, so he stooped
to folly. It was as if Saul said, If I cant find out what God wants me to do in the usual
ways, Ill go to a witch and see if she can help me. I need to talk to Samuel.
Isnt it a tragedy that Saul realized too late how much he
needed Samuel? He had ignored Samuel
when he was there to help. When Samuel had
prayed for Saul, Saul didnt care. When
Samuel had given Saul direction, Saul did not listen. Now when he realized how valuable Samuel was,
he could no longer turn to him [as being alive on earth] for help. Samuel wasnt there to pray for him or to give
him guidance because he had died [and was in Sheol,].* Saul had rejected his best friend.
[* That
is, in the heart of the earth (Matt. 12: 40), - where all the holy dead are presently
awaiting their resurrection, at the time of their Lords return. Gen. 37: 35. cf. John 3:
13; 14: 3; Acts 2: 27, 34; Rev. 6: 9-11; 1 Thess. 4: 16; Rev. 20: 6, R.V.
The Christians Hope
Much we long for His appearing
Jesus: man, yet mighty God;
All the Fathers glory
wearing,
Wielding then His iron rod.
Every knee will bow before
Him,
Nations then will own His sway.
All His [holy] people will adore Him,
Sharing in His victory.
Till that glorious day commences,
Help us Lord to pray and wait, [Isa. 40:
31]
Serving Thee with all our
senses,
Watching still at Wisdoms
gate.
- James Payne.]
Do you have someone - a pastor, a parent, a friend - who wants
to guide you in the right direction, but you arent paying any attention? I want to warn you: One day that person may
be gone, and you will wish you had his or her wisdom. Appreciate the people who try to help you!
[Page 89]
Standing Versus Failing
The fourth contrast is one between standing and falling. Saul began his career standing, but he ended it
falling. I have pointed out in these
studies how Saul changed his posture as he declined in his spiritual life. We saw that when Saul became king, he was not
only tall in stature but was also admired by the people. But then King Saul rebelled against the Lord,
and God rejected him as king. First,
Saul was standing; then he was walking; but
when he turned his back on God, he began falling!
Saul began his reign with such great prospects and such
tremendous potential, but he fell both physically and spiritually because of
his pride. Then Saul fell immediately full length on the earth and was
very much afraid (1 Sam. 28: 20).
The once proud king is prostrate on the earth! He falls again on the battlefield (31: 4).
He fell on his sword and committed suicide. The king who refused to humble himself before
God ends his life in humiliation, stripped of his pride.
When David received word that Saul and Jonathan were dead, he
sang a lamentation (2 Sam. 1). Three times David said, How are the mighty fallen! (verses 19, 25, 27). He was referring to
their death on the battlefield, but I think there is a spiritual lesson in
those words. Saul had fallen spiritually
long before he fell in death.
Victory Versus Defeat
The fifth and final contrast is between victory and defeat. Saul began his kingship with
victory - [Page
90] victory over the
enemy and over his own spirit. He was
able to control his temper and did not retaliate. But when we get to the end of his life, we
see him in tragic defeat.
I suppose no battle listed in the Bible is filled with more
shame and tragedy than the battle of Gilboa where Saul and Jonathan and the
army were defeated by their enemies, the Philistines. Saul knew he was going to die; and in a
sense, he showed great courage. He knew
he was going to lose the battle; he knew he and his sons were going to die, and
yet he went courageously into battle and did his best. But
his best was not enough. God had deserted him, and he could only fail. Saul fell on his sword and committed suicide
rather than dying at the hands of the Philistines.
Saul lost his kingship and his crown, but I think God would
have forgiven and restored him if Saul had truly repented. Saul
could have had a more noble death, but he rejected the will of the Lord and
rebelled against the word of the Lord.
He ended up dying a tragic, shameful death on the battlefield.
A good beginning is no guarantee of a successful ending. We must pray as Dr. Culbertson used to pray, Lord,
help us to end well. Our opportunity for confession, for
repentance, for restitution may be gone tomorrow; we need to take advantage of
it today.
Its possible for us to start in light and end in darkness, to
begin our Christian life with great courage and end it in fear, to start out
with Gods wisdom and end up in human folly, to begin by [Page 91] standing and end by falling. Its possible to start with great victory and
end in defeat. Unlike Saul, David
realized how easy it is to fall and how much he needed the Lords help. No wonder he prayed after he sinned with Bathsheba, Create in me a
clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. (Ps. 51: 10). [Cast me not
away from thy presence; And take not thy Holy Spirit from me (Ps. 51: 11).]
May the Lord help us to
end well!*
[* NOTE:
IT IS APPOINTED UNTO MEN ONCE TO DIE,
AND AFTER THIS JUDGMENT: (HEBREWS 9: 27, R.V.).*
[*NOTE: This judgment occurs after the time of death in HADES (Acts 2: 27, 34, R.V.);
and therefore before the time of the FIRST RESURRECTION!
See also Luke. 16: 23, R.V.]
When
I stand at the Judgment-seat of Christ,
And He shows me His plan
for me;
The plan of my life as it
might have been
And He had His way - and I
see.
How I blocked Him here and
checked Him there,
And would not yield my
will:
Will there be grief in my
Saviours eyes,
Grief, though He loves me
still?
Lord, of the years that are
left to me,
I give them to Thy hand;
Take me and break me, and mould me
To the pattern Thou hast planned.
Again:-
The tissues
of life to be,
Weave with colours all your
own;
And in the fields of destiny,
We reap what we have sown!
Sow a
thought, reap a word;
Sow a word, reap an act;
Sow an act, reap a
character;
Sow a character, reap a
destiny!]
* *
*
[Page 92 Blank: Page
93]
Chapter 11
The King Is Dead!
(1 Samuel 31; 2 Samuel 1)
If we were to flash on the screen the closing scenes of King
Sauls life, we would see four vivid pictures entitled: defeat, death, disgrace
and devotion. These scenes are found in 1 Samuel 31 and 2 Samuel 1. Defeat, death,
disgrace and devotion - these same four words could describe our lives. Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall
(1 Cor. 10: 12).
Defeat
In 1 Samuel 31: 1, 2 we find the first picture entitled defeat: Now the Philistines
fought against
The word that best describes this picture is defeat. The army is fleeing and falling, and the enemy is
winning. Saul started his career with great
victory, but he gradually began to move down the path that leads to defeat. He
is now fleeing. Why is [Page 94] he fleeing? Because he now knows that he has no one to
blame but himself. He began to realize
this the night before when he talked to Samuel, whom God permitted to come back
from [the place of the souls of] the
dead. Samuel reminded Saul of his
disobedience and told him, Tomorrow
you are going to be where I am - in the [under-]world of the dead (see 28: 15-19).
Sauls whole problem was that he fought the wrong enemy. He thought David was his enemy when, in
reality, Saul was his own worst enemy.
David never treated Saul like an enemy, but Saul chased David all over
the wilderness of
As you witness the end of Sauls life, you see a man who is
fleeing and falling. This is tragic
because God had given Saul great promises and great prospects. Saul had a good friend in Samuel, a capable
associate in Jonathan and a faithful helper in David. He had a band of loyal followers. He was endowed with power from the Holy
Spirit, and he had natural gifts that God could use. And yet Saul was defeated on the battlefield
of
Where does defeat come from?
Defeat comes from the inside, not from the outside. It is always [Page 95] problem of the heart. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are
the issues of life (Prov.
4: 23).
Saul was defeated in his spiritual life.
This is Why he was defeated in his military life.
Death
The second picture at the end of Sauls life can be entitled death.
And the battle went heavily against Saul, and the archers hit him; and he was severely wounded by the archers. Then said Saul unto his armour-bearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me
through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me.
But his armour-bearer would not; for he was very
much afraid. Therefore Saul took a
sword, and fell upon it. And when his
armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him. So Saul died, and his three sons, and his
armour-bearer, and all his men that same day together (1 Sam. 31: 3-6).
Verse 6 does not mean that the entire army died that day. All his men refers to all the royal bodyguard. You will recall that, at one point, David had
been Sauls armour-bearer. If David had not separated from Saul, he
might have been in that battle and died.
How marvellous are the ways of the Lord!
David could not understand why all those difficulties happened to him,
but in the end those trials spared his life and enabled him to be the great
king of Israel.
Defeat leads to death.
How sad it is to see
What a tragedy that others had to die with Saul! Jonathan
[because he remained with his father] was slain -
a man of faith and courage, a great warrior and Davids dear friend. David and Jonathan had loved one another
affectionately and had encouraged one another.
All of Sauls sons died with
their father in the battle. The wages of sin is death (Rom. 6: 23). There is a sin unto
death (1 John 5: 16). So Saul died for
his trangression which he committed against the Lord,
even against the
word of the Lord, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of a medium,
to inquire of
her, and
inquired not of the Lord; therefore, he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David, the son of Jesse
(1 Chron. 10:
13,14).
Throughout his career Saul transgressed against Gods Word and
disobeyed His will. God told him to
wait, but he ran ahead. God told him to
fight, but he lingered. God told him to destroy
the Amalekite, but he spared Agag the king and
the best of the spoil. These actions may
not seem like great sins to us, but they were contrary to the will of God; and
anything we do that is contrary to the will of God is serious. That is why Saul died.
Our God is patient. He
does not suddenly send judgment. How
patient He was with King Saul, and [Page 97] yet Saul did not use the opportunities he was given for repentance. He ignored his chances to make things right
with David and with the Lord. Therefore,
he died a shameful death. Its dangerous
to rebel against the will of God.
Disgrace
The third picture is one of disgrace. And when the men of Israel who were on the
other side of the valley, and they who were on the other side of the Jordan,
saw that the men
of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the
cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. And it came to pass on the next day, when the
Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen
in
What a disgraceful end for the king of
Devotion
The story doesnt end on a negative note however. The fourth picture is one of devotion.
The men of Jabesh-gilead heard what had happened to Saul, and they
courageously travelled all night into enemy territory to rescue the bodies of
Saul and his three sons. Saul had once
rescued the people of Jabesh-gilead (1 Sam. 11: 1-11).
Now in appreciation for what Saul had done for them, they came and gave
these bodies proper burial and honour.
We need to remember that Saul had done some good things. Ive had to conduct funeral services for
people who apparently were very wicked, but someone could always remember
something good the person had done.
Though Saul had fallen morally and spiritually, the men of Jabesh-gilead
said, in effect, We owe our lives to him, and were
going to treat him the way he ought to be treated. Some years later David reburied these bodies
in the land that belonged to the tribe of Benjamin so Saul would be with his
own people.
Not only did the men of Jabesh-gilead show devotion to Saul,
but David also showed devotion. In 2 Samuel 1 an Amalekite ran into Davids camp
and told David how the battle had turned out.
He reported that the enemy had won and that Saul and his sons were
dead. Then he told how he had helped to
kill Saul. I think the Amalekite made
this story up, [Page 99] hoping to win a reward from David. He
claimed that Saul had asked him to kill him because he had tried to kill
himself but had failed. The Amalekite
said, So I stood over him,
and slew him,
because I was
sure that he could not live after he was fallen. And I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet
that was on his arm, and have brought them here unto my lord (verse 10). This Amalekite thought
he was going to receive favours from David, but he did not realize that Saul
was not Davids enemy.
David showed his devotion to Saul and Jonathan in several
ways. To begin with, David defended
Sauls honour by executing the Amalekite.
He said, How could you
destroy the anointed of the Lord? (see verse 14). He defended Sauls honour and
then mourned his death. David and his
men spent the rest of the day fasting and weeping as they mourned the death of
Saul and Jonathan.
David wrote a beautiful song called The Song of the Bow (verses
18-27). Note the
refrain that is repeated three times: How are the mighty fallen! (verses 19, 25, 27). Throughout this song,
you dont find David uttering one negative word about Saul. He called him the glory of
David forgave Saul and honoured him. He did not stand up and say, Let me tell you what a scoundrel Saul was! No, David was a man after Gods own
heart. God forgives and forgets, and
David was also forgiving. David did not
mention Sauls rebellion or the fact that Saul had tried to kill him. David honoured Saul as king, even though Saul
had lost his life and his crown.
I think that the saddest statement is in verse 10: And I took the crown.
This reminds me of Revelation 3: 11: Behold, I come quickly; hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take
thy crown. Saul lost his crown. Lets be faithful to God so we
dont lose our crown.
* *
*
[Page 101]
Chapter 12
Lessons Saul Never Learned
The
biographies of the great men and women in the Bible were written for our
encouragement and for our warning. For whatever things were written in earlier times were
written for our learning, that we, through patience and comfort of the scriptures, might have hope
(
[Page 102]
Sin Is Serious
[1] The first lesson we can learn is that
sin is serious.
One of Sauls problems was that he did not take sin seriously but
treated it lightly. What are the
evidences in Sauls life that show this?
Saul always made excuses instead of confessing sin. He was quick to blame other people for what
he himself had done. He blamed Samuel
when he did not arrive at the appointed time.
Saul ran ahead of the will of God, but he blamed Samuel for it. He blamed Jonathan, and he also blamed the
people. When Samuel rebuked Saul for
sparing Agag and the spoil from the Amalekites, Saul
said, The people did this.
Sin is serious, but you never find
Saul truly repenting. You find him
weeping when David spared his life, and he even said, I have sinned!
I have
played the fool! But you never find Saul really
broken-hearted, confessing his sin to the Lord.
From a human point of view, David was guilty of sins that
seemed much more serious than those Saul committed. All sin is serious, but some sins seem worse
than others. Saul was impatient and ran
ahead of Gods will. He was also
stubborn and lagged behind Gods will.
But David committed adultery! He
made a man drunk and then had him murdered!
One day, David gave the order to number all of the people to show how
great he was; and as a result, 70 thousand people died! But whenever David sinned, he confessed his
sins to God. He had a broken heart
before God because he was a man after Gods own heart. God forgave and [Page 103] restored David. Yes, David was [severely] disciplined and chastened [by God] for his sins. but he did not lose his crown.
The first lesson we need to learn from Sauls life is that sin
is serious. We may think that we can
cover up our sins, but eventually they will be revealed.
Spiritual Decline Is Gradual
[2] The second lesson is this: Spiritual decline is gradual. Sauls failure was not immediate. Saul began by standing and walking, but after
he turned away from the Lord, he began to fall.
At first Saul was humble, but soon pride came and with pride came
envy. He envied Davids success and
popularity. Hatred followed envy, and
murder followed hatred. Gradually Saul
declined in his spiritual life. At first
he was obedient, but then he started making excuses, scheming and
plotting. He rebelled against God and
decided to go his own way. He began his
reign by being very cooperative with both Samuel and David. He even loved David. But then, little by little, he became
stubborn and independent, and he lost his two good friends.
Spiritual decline is gradual. Its
possible for our spiritual life to deteriorate without our really knowing it. Its
possible for our spiritual fervour to change so gradually that we cant detect
it. Others may not be able to detect it
either. Spiritual decline can be so
gradual that before we know it, we have fallen.
Integrity Is Essential
[3] A third lesson comes to us from the
life of Saul: Integrity is essential. Saul was a
double-minded [Page 104] man, and the Word of God tells us, A double minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1: 8).
At the beginning of his reign, Saul served God (1 Sam. 11, 12).
He did what God wanted him to do.
Then quietly he began to serve God and himself. He was using his
opportunities to get what he wanted. Finally, Saul started using God to serve him (1 Sam. 15). God commanded him to completely destroy the
Amalekites, but Saul decided he wanted something for himself out of this
battle. He used God to serve himself.
As a result, Saul was abandoned by God, the Holy Spirit was taken from
him,* and he was left alone. He prayed, but he received no answer. He sought Gods guidance, but no direction
came. Saul lacked integrity. He was trying to serve two masters - God and
himself.
[* How contrary is this truth to what we are told by Bible
Teachers (so called!) today! Compare Acts 5: 32 with
Judges 16: 20. See also Acts 9:
31.]
David was known for his integrity of
heart. This is why God called him: He chose David his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds; from following the ewes great with young, he brought him to
feed Jacob, his people, and
Single-hearted devotion to God is so important.
No servant can
serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other;
or else he will hold
to the one, and despise the other (Luke
16: 13). [Page 105] You cannot look in two directions at the same time. The lamp of the body is the eye; therefore,
when thine eye
is sound, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye
is evil, thy body also is full of darkness (11: 34).
This is what happened to Saul. He ended up in the darkness
because he was a double-minded man.
Obedience Is the Key to Victory and Success
[4] The fourth lesson is that obedience is the key to victory and success.
God must be the Lord of our lives. God made Saul the king. He anointed him and empowered him. Yet He was not in control of Sauls life because
Saul did not allow Him to have control.
We must make Gods will our will. We
must not argue with God, rebel against Him, run ahead of Him or lag behind Him. When
God tells us what to do, we must do it.
Be not conformed to
this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,
that ye may
prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God (Rom. 12: 2). This refers to living
by faith. God doesnt have to give us a reason
for everything He asks us to do. When He
tells us what to do, our task is to obey without question.
Sacrifice is no substitute for obedience. We may think, Well, I tithe and give generously to missions; therefore, I
can get away with sin. God does not want our
sacrifices. The only sacrifice He wants
is an obedient heart. A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not
despise (Ps. 51: 17).
[Page 105
We Must Build Our Spiritual Lives
[5] We can learn a fifth lesson from Saul: We must build our spiritual lives or
we will fall. Its interesting that you dont find Saul
building anything. One day he put up a
monument to celebrate his victory over the Amalekites, but it was actually a
monument to his spiritual defeat.
David was always building his spiritual life. When you read about his life and read the
psalms he wrote, you see a man who was constantly growing in his spiritual life
and in his knowledge of God. He was growing in his prayer life and in
his understanding of Gods truth.
Saul was good at fighting battles and making enemies, but you dont find
him building anything. One day he
started to build an altar, but he never finished it. If we dont build our spiritual lives, we are
going to fall.
I think Saul depended on his natural gifts. He may have thought, Im the first king, and God has anointed me. Im a great warrior and a good leader.
I stand head and shoulders above everyone else. Therefore, I
am going to succeed.
But he did not
succeed because he did not build his
spiritual life.
Jude talked about this in his letter: But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy
Spirit (verse 20).
Saul did not live by faith.
Instead, he walked by sight. He
saw the enemy and feared. He saw the danger
and fled. We dont find that Saul ever
prayed. In fact, the Holy
Spirit departed from him (1
Sam. 16: 14). Are
you [Page 107] building up your faith? Are you praying in the Holy Spirit?
Keep yourselves in the love of God (Jude 21). Sau1 did not keep himself in the love of God the way David
did. When you love God, you keep His commandments. When you love God, you also love His people.
Saul [became proud and] hated David. When he heard the
women praising Davids conquests, Saul was filled with envy and anger. Envy turned into hatred, and hatred led to
murder. He tried to kill David. He even told his own son to kill David. Saul did not have love in his heart. He was not constrained by love; instead, he
was driven by pride. His only concern
was to have his own way.
But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy
Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the
mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life (verses 20, 21).
We depend on Gods mercy. But we
are told in 2 Samuel 7: 15 that God took His mercy away from Saul. Saul was not living in the will of God or
experiencing the mercy of God. No wonder
he fell!
Verse 24 of Jude
tells us the secret of victory: Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling.
God will do His part to keep us from falling if we will do our part. What is our part? Building ourselves up in
our faith [and in our
Lords prophetic truths], praying in
the Holy Spirit, keeping ourselves in the love of God and looking for the mercy
of our Lord Jesus Christ. We must
have faith;
hope and love.
We must obey Gods Word and allow the Holy Spirit to teach us
the truths of the Word.
[Page 108]
Saul did not do these things.
He was worldly, selfish and proud.
He had tremendous opportunities, but he wasted them. He had valuable gifts, but he failed to use
them.
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling,
and to present you faultless before the presence of his
glory* with exceeding joy, to the only wise God, our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power,
both now and
ever. Amen (verses 24, 25). When you live for the [coming, manifested and messianic] glory of
God, it makes a big difference in your life. Saul
did not live for the glory of God but for the praise of men. He wanted to please the people. He was more concerned about his reputation
than he was about his character.
[* For
the coming glory to be revealed see: 2 Sam. 2: 8; Psa. 72: 19; 85: 8, 9; Isa. 35: 2; 66: 18; Ezek. 39: 21; Hab. 2: 14. cf.
Lk. 9: 26; Rom. 2: 7; 5: 2; 9: 23; 1 Pet. 1: 11.]
We need to learn the lessons that Saul never learned: Sin is
serious. Spiritual decline is
gradual. Integrity is essential. Obedience is the key to victory and
success. And most important of all, we
must build our spiritual lives or we will fall. I remind you once again of the admonition from our Lord in Revelation 3: 11:
Behold,
I come quickly;
hold that fast
which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
Dont lose your crown!
Submit yourself to the Lord so that one day He can present you before
Gods throne and give you a crown of glory.
THE END
* *
*
SELECTED QUOTATIONS RELATIVE TO
ADDITIONAL
SCRIPTURAL TEACHINGS INCLUDED ABOVE
1. So we confront Calebs counsel recorded for our learning and
initiation three thousand years ago. LET US GO UP AT
ONCE, AND POSSESS IT; FOR WE ARE WELL ABLE TO OVERCOME IT. Caleb and Joshua
can be, ought to be, and (by Gods grace) shall be figures [or types] of us. So the Apostle, after an exhaustive parallel
between
*Enoch is the embodiment of [selective] rapture, as Caleb is the embodiment of [selective
resurrection and] entrance into the [coming millennial] kingdom; and both the rapture of Enoch (Heb. 11: 5) and the
entrance of Caleb are based foursquare, not on their regeneration, but on
their
walk with God after their regeneration.
Joshua, throughout, is rather a type of our Lord Himself, who leads
all other overcomers into the Land: as I also overcame, and sat down
with my Father in his throne (Rev. 3: 21.)
- D. M. PANTON.
2. The greatest of all the revelations about the future
condition of the saints is, that they are to be identified with Jesus Christ in
His reign - that is, those who overcome. Not all saints are to be elevated to this
position; this is for victorious saints.
- A. T. PIERSON, D.D., at Keswick, 1904.
3. A crown, though forfeitable, hovers before every servant of
God. Hold
fast that which thou hast, that no one take thy crown (Rev. 3: 11). During the Napoleonic
wars a French officer who was a prisoner upon his parole at Reading met with a
Bible; he read it, and was so struck with its contents that he was convinced of
the folly of sceptical principles, and of the truth of Christianity. When his gay associates rallied him for
becoming a Protestant, he said:- I have done no more than my old
school-fellow, Bernadotte, who has become a Lutheran. Yes, but he became so, said his associates,
to obtain a crown. My motive, he
replied, is the same; we only differ as
to the place: the object of Bernadotte is to obtain a crown in
4. POLYCARP of
5. Mr. C. H. Mackintosh rightly says (Numbers, p. 227):- We
must continually recur, as we pass along through these wilderness scenes, to
those words which tell us that all things
happened unto
- D. M. PANTON.
6. Dr. James Black, in his drastic criticisms of Millennial
truth (Edingburgh Record, Jan., 1925), lays his finger - as other unfriendly
critics have done before him - on a weak spot in current teaching on the
Kingdom of God. These martyrs (and it
is only the martyrs, remember!), he says, commenting on Rev. 20: 4, rise and join
Him, reigning with Him a thousand years.
The only people mentioned as reigning
with Christ are the martyrs: if you are going
to be literal, there is no ground whatever in this passage for all the
elaborate doctrine of the Pre-millennarians, who picture Christ and all His
Christian people ruling this world for a thousand years.
It is a fact that many in the sub-apostolic Church so understood
the Apostle. Moreover, it is true that
the extraordinary emphasis laid on the Martyrs should have warned the Church that co-royalty with Christ in the Age to
Come - as distinct from the Eternal Kingdom beyond - is by no means so
comprehensive of all the redeemed as has been supposed. But it is also true that such critics
overlook the first division of the fourfold thrones:- (1) overcomers, I
saw thrones, and the sitters on them; (2)
Christian martyrs; (3) Old Testament
martyrs; and (4) martyrs under
Antichrist. The first group, overcomers
not necessarily martyred, are thus defined by our Lord:- He that overcometh, and he that keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations; and he shall rule them with a rod of iron. (Rev. 2: 26.)
- D. M. PANTON.
7. How shining a goal! And I saw thrones. Thrones!
Not one, but many; not the great white throne, standing in solitude,
with on other throne near it; but a great multitude of thrones, co-equal
thrones: not one sceptre, but millions of sceptres; not wielded in independent
authority, but rather in associated dominion: there is union amongst this
confederation of heavenly kings.
- A. A. REES.
8. There is not a text of Scripture which represents the new
birth of itself as qualifying any one to reign with Christ in His coming kingdom,
but in every single place where reigning with Christ is spoken of there are terms which indicate something
more than justification, terms stringly expressive of being dead to sin, of
following Christ to the death, of being purified, made white, and tried.
Now Christ affirms that those who are the overcomers will share His
coming kingdom just as emphatically and as surely as He at the present time as
a glorified man is sharing the Fathers government in heaven. Jesus tells us in the 21st verse [of Revelation chapter three] that He has overcome, and is now sitting
down with the Father in the Fathers throne, and just as much as that is a
literal fact, so He affirms that His
perfectly loyal disciples shall sit in His government when He reigns on earth.
In a vast empire there are a great many departments of
government. When we look into the
structure of the Kingdom of Great Britain or the United States we find a great
many departments of government and each of the heads of these various departments
have under them officers and assistants, divided and subdivided, extending into
ramified details, covering the whole territory of government in its legislative
and judical and executive functions, at home and abroad; in its commercial,
educational, religious, agricultural, scientific, and social relations,
furnishing busy employment and a field for the exercise of innumerable gifts
and capabilities to many thousands of persons.
Thus when the Lord Jesus, as a glorified man and the crowned heir of
David, shall sit on His throne as the King of
this World, He will institute the greatest and most glorious and most
diversified empire ever known to the human mind. All the kings that have ever existed in this
world in their most perfect state of glory will be in comparison with the
theocratic
- G. W. WATSON, D.D.
9. The overcomer, the faithful servant to the
Master now, is going to receive then the crown of life;
he will eat of the tree of life, he will have of the hidden manna and a new
name; he is going to receive power over the nations; he will be given the
Morning Star; he will be clothed in white raiment; he will have a place as a
pillar in the house of God; and share the throne of the Lord Jesus Christ. Can you look at these things and your
spiritual appetite not be whetted, can you look at these possibilities and not
long to have them hereafter as practical
realities in your life, can uou afford to go on without the prospect of
them?
- HURBERT BROOKE.
10. Romans 8: 17 should be rendered and
punctuated this:- But if children, also heirs, heirs on the one hand of
God; but heirs
together with Christ if indeed we are suffering together, that we may also have been
glorified together. If we are children, if we have been quickened
by the Holy Spirit, there is no question about our position as heirs. This is unconditional. The contrast between being an heir of God,
and a joint-heir with Christ, is not brought out in the Authorized
Version. And would imply the blessings
are almost one: but is the word Divinely used. Furthermore, the structure of the
sentences rather involves this punctuation.
Thereby each of the two ifs of the passage has its appropriate accompaniment. But if our position as joint-heirs of CHRIST is conditional on our suffering
together, what shall we say of those who bear the Name of the Lord and who
avoid this suffering?
2 Timothy 2: 12 adds its testimony to this privilege. Let us earnestly seek that it may be ours!
- PERCY W. HOWARD.
11. We cannot escape the suffering if we are to
share His Throne and His reign over the tearth; if we suffer with Him, we shall also
reign with Him (2 Tim. 2: 12). He has chosen us to stand with Him in these
last and terrible days.
-
The Overcomer.
The first raptured are restricted to the watchful and praying
always Christians (Luke 21: 36).
This will be a small number of saints, because there are comparatively
few of all the great mass of believers who watch and pray always that they may be
accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass.
-
The Kings Herald.
There must be a particular value in the time of Crisis in the
understanding of Gods word of prophecy.
And it is not as though such only knew what is coming - that alone would
be of small value - but that thereby they shall be able to escape the things that shall come to
pass and stand before the Son of man. (Luke 21: 36.) For, ye brethren, says
Paul, are not in darkness, that that day should obertake you as a thief. (1 Thess. 5: 4-10.) There is a particular advantage in this, that
we should not be taken unaware. The
latter is the destined fate of the world and of disobedient Christians (Rev. 3: 3).
But blessed are those whom the Lord finds watching.
- Word
and Work.
12. How many things one learns - and how many
are unlearned!
- in 15 years. In 1925 we bid you mark,
with us, that if so be that (we) may lay hold, that
if by any means (we) may attain. Mark it well: something to gain - or lose; an
inheritance to enjoy - or forfeit; a goal to be reached - or missed; a prize to be won or
lost. That IF is spilled over all the pages of
Scripture; and the Saviour has been pressing in, so hard, yet so tenderly, the
implication of this IF in all its bearings.
Almost the tiniest word - IF; involving almost the mightiest issues.
What a precious thing it is that some things are inviolable! Our life is hid with CHRIST IN
GOD, and is inviolable,
depending not upon us, but upon HIM. To be born from above is
to pass from death unto life and to come into possession of the life
of the ages, which shall never perish.
But we are called of The LORD
unto His own Kingdom and Glory, and this reign with CHRIST is clearly forfeitable.
This privileged service of the coming Age is
something for which He seeks to discipline and train us here, and He shows
clearly that some of His own redeemed ones shall inherit and
enter the Kingdom, while others shall not inherit, being not fit for the Kingdom, in a day which seems to be coming on a pace. Of resurrection to meet and live
with the LORD he was certain (1 Thess. 4.), but of the out-resurrection unto
a priestly-reign with the LORD he said not already attained,
nor yet laid hold (Phil. 3.). This goal of the upward
calling of GOD in CHRIST JESUS was the purpose for which
He had been laid hold of by CHRIST,
and so urgent was it that he press
on unto the prize, the out-resurrection and the [coming Messianic]
Kingdom and glory, that he counted but offal what is everything to most, and
held his body in utter subjection and control, lest having preached to others
he should himself be rejected.
It would serve to much spiritual enlightenment and quickening if
the LORDS people underlined in
their Bibles, the IF and IF NOT addressed so often to believers, and sought the Spitits
unveiling of the full import of what they mark.
There is an increase of travail in the Church, to-day, for a company to
be found worthy in the day of His coming, and those whose spirits cry out to GOD for the manifestation, and who wait
for the birth, are keenest in their longing to be found ready, and among the
profitable servants. Child of God, will
you seek to know your relation to these things?
- GEORGE BANKS.
13.
14.
Matthew 4: 19
Come, follow me, says Christ, our Head,
Ye Christians all, come follow;
Forsake the world, your
self-life dead,
My voice, my call, come
follow.
Your daily cross and hardships
take,
And tread my path for my
names sake.
My heart is full of lowliness,
My soul with love is welling;
Een when commands Im giving,
My spitit, strength and mind entire
To God are given, to Him aspire.
Seems this too hard? I go before,
I by your side am standing.
I clear the way, I join the war,
Am all things in the fighting.
A faithless churl that
hangeth back,
Whose captain leads the fierce attack.
When selfish seeks to save
his life,
His life must surely loseth;
Who falls with me in this dread strife,
His life in God preserveth:
Who bears no cross wins no
rewards,
Unworthy he of me his Lord.
So let us then our dearest Lord,
With soul and body follow;
With cheerful courage, well assured,
Bear willingly all sorrow:
For he who shuns the bitter
strife,
Shall never wear the crown of
life.
15.
The pre-tribulationists, who
are sure that all believers - even the grossest backsliders - will be rapt en
masse into sudden glory before the Tribulation starts, overlook the
warning of the Lord. Watch ye at every season, making supplication, that ye may prevail to escape all these things - He has just described the Great Tribulation, days of vengeance (verse 22) - that shall come to pass (Luke 21: 36). The Old
Testament type, which our Lord stresses as a warning to His disciples
concerning His return, is extraordinarily illuminating:- Remember
D. M. PANTON.
16. Much is
written regarding who is to escape the tribulation and who will go through this
period; but how clear the word of God is.
Who will escape? Only those who are accounted worthy. Only
those who watch and pray always. In connection with this Word, we note Rev. 3: 4, they shall walk with me in
white;
for
they are worthy. It is impossible to separate cleanness from
worthiness. He that keepeth his garment - without spot or wrinkle - this is the overcomer who watches and prays always - only they will
escape.
Enoch walked with God; and God took him. He will take those out of
these things
who walk with Him in white. Blessed are
the undefiled in the way. Who shall ascend unto the hill
of the Lord? He that hath clean hands and a
pure heart (constant communion). Watching and praying always, and accounted worthy - worthiness by the
operation of His love, through the Spirit and
our answering reciprocal love and union with Christ! Perfect fellowship - because of perfect
purity. Only as we are found in Him are
we worthy - not having our own righteousness, which is of the law, but that
which is by faith in the operation of God.
And so we walk together, my Lord and I.
By constant walking and praying
He comes nigh, and makes me worthy to escape by His purifying presence.
Enoch, the morning star of the world, is the model for us today of
extraordinary value as the great prototype of all rapture. For Enoch was, like
ourselves, a Gentile; his was the age which saw the birth of scientific
invention in the world;* he lived in an epoch of rapidly deepening wickedness,
and when the earth was filled with violence; his feet stood on the brink of a
judgment that was to sweep the whole earth; he was, as the Holy Ghost
emphasizes, the seventh from Adam (Jude 14) that is, a type of all who, after six thousand years of sin, shall share the
Sabbath Rest; his as ours will be
the last - was by a sudden and supernatural removal, through a gateway into
heaven that has only twice been opened since, and then only to distinguished saints; and his is the only rapture in the Bible enforced
upon us by the Holy Spirit as a model for us. So also the very setting of
his record is luminous with spiritual light. For we know absolutely nothing of
the physical facts of his life: not a single outstanding event in it is
recorded: out of complete obscurity he rose into heaven. How profoundly
suggestive! Hearken, my beloved
brethren, hath not God chosen the poor
of this world, rich in faith - His hidden diamonds - to be [R.V.] heirs of the kingdom which he promised to
them that love him?(James 2:
5). The church knows nothing of
her brightest stars, for she moves beneath the range of their heavenly orbits.
17. Jabel as founder of commerce, Tubal - Cain
of manufacture, and Jubal of art (Gen.
4: 20-22), were the dawn of to-days mighty
meridian: the early world held in it, even to the rapt saint, a mirror of our own
far vaster age. Enochs removal many
decades before the Flood makes sure (by type) the escape of all the latter-day
Enochs from approaching judgments, by secret rapture like his. He was not found
(Heb. 11:
5) - thus his disappearance was known; but that he was sought for on
earth reveals that his removal had been secret.
D. M. PANTON.
Cast not away therefore your boldness, which hath great
recompense of reward.
For ye have need of patience, that having done the will of God,
ye may receive the promise: Hebrews 10: 35, 36, R.V.