Day 1159: The Devil's foothold - 1 Samuel 19 vs 1 - 17

1-3 And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted much in David. And Jonathan told David, “Saul my father seeks to kill you. Therefore be on your guard in the morning. Stay in a secret place and hide yourself. And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak to my father about you. And if I learn anything I will tell you.”

4 And Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king sin against his servant David, because he has not sinned against you, and because his deeds have brought good to you. For he took his life in his hand and he struck down the Philistine, and the Lord worked a great salvation for all Israel. You saw it, and rejoiced. Why then will you sin against innocent blood by killing David without cause?” 6-7 And Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan. Saul swore, “As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death.” And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan reported to him all these things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence as before.

8 And there was war again. And David went out and fought with the Philistines and struck them with a great blow, so that they fled before him. 9-10 Then a harmful spirit from the Lord came upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand. And David was playing the lyre. And Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear, but he eluded Saul, so that he struck the spear into the wall. And David fled and escaped that night. 11-12 Saul sent messengers to David’s house to watch him, that he might kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, told him, “If you do not escape with your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed.” So Michal let David down through the window, and he fled away and escaped. 13-14 Michal took an image and laid it on the bed and put a pillow of goats’ hair at its head and covered it with the clothes. And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.”

15-16 Then Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying, “Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may kill him.” And when the messengers came in, behold, the image was in the bed, with the pillow of goats’ hair at its head. 17 Saul said to Michal, “Why have you deceived me thus and let my enemy go, so that he has escaped?” And Michal answered Saul, “He said to me, ‘Let me go. Why should I kill you?’” 1 Samuel 19:1-17 English Standard Version

It was a longer reading today than usual as it's a part of scripture we call 'narrative'. But it's good for us to read such sections. We see from this one how sin can deeply affect families! Verse 29 of Chapter Eighteen said “So Saul was David’s enemy continually.” That explains many of his Psalms which speak of the personal danger he was in. But it also caused division between Saul and his son Jonathan. After Jonathan pointed out how faithful David had been, Saul relented (for the moment), and welcomed David back into his presence. But not for long.

And it wasn't just his son. Saul's hatred of David caused enmity between himself and his daughter too. Having once again escaped Saul's javelin, David fled for his life and it led to Michal lying to her father. But it was not the first or the last time that a servant of God had to escape through being let down from a window! The apostle Paul wrote: “In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas secured the city in order to arrest me. But I was lowered in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his grasp.” (1 Corinthians 11:32)

I find it interesting that the harmful spirit appears to come upon Saul at times when David had just won victories. Did Saul's jealousy and bitterness make him more susceptible? We certainly see the negative effect it had on his relationships with his family. The apostle Paul wrote “Be angry, yet do not sin. Do not let the sun set upon your anger, and do not give the devil a foothold.” (Ephesians 4:26) As Christians, we are to “get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice. We are to be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave us.” (Ephesians 4:31-32) Temper tantrums are definitely not for the believer. May this be our prayer, and our constant aim.