It’s a dark day for Israel as Saul continues his merciless pursuit of David, killing all who aid him on his journey.
“Then the king sent to summon Ahimelech the priest… and all his father’s house, the priests who were at Nob… And Saul said to him, ‘Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have inquired of God for him, so that he has risen against me…?’ Then Ahimelech answered the king, ‘And who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, and captain over your bodyguard, and honored in your house? …Let not the king impute anything to his servant or to all the house of my father, for your servant has known nothing of all this, much or little.’ And the king said, ‘You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.’ ” (v11-16 abr)
Saul orders the execution of the entire city of Nob – men, women, and children, including 85 priests of God and their families. This is pretty extreme considering only Ahimelech helped David. Interestingly enough, Saul’s servants (Israelites) refuse to harm the priests, so Saul gets Doeg the Edomite (a gentile, an ‘enemy’ of Israel) to lead the slaughter. Nobody was spared except Abiathar, one of Ahimelech’s sons, who managed to escape to join David’s camp (which has now grown to 400 people).
It’s appears to me Saul is completely blinded by hatred and rage at this point – he doesn’t seem to be thinking clearly. The harmful spirit within him has completely taken over, and there isn’t any good left within him. To use a pop culture (Star Wars) reference, he has ‘gone to the dark side’.
The interesting point here for me is the blurred line between ‘good’ and ‘evil’, Israel and their ‘enemies’. It’s a bizarre series of events, with Saul acting like a traitor, leading one of Israel’s enemies to kill his own people, and David fleeing his people Israel for refuge amongst their enemies. This is a prime example of truth being stranger than fiction.
Unfortunately, the lines of ‘good and evil’ are even blurrier today. Many of our cultures have become melting pots of beliefs. Good and evil are no longer defined by God, like they were in David’s day – they are now defined by media, politics, and opinion. I’m sure Saul thought he was doing the right thing by purging Israel of David supporters (those who ‘oppose Israel’), but he was clearly misled, just as we too can be easily misled.
My encouragement for today is to rely on God (through scripture, prayer, and the Holy Spirit) for discerning good from evil, and right from wrong. It’s not wise to let the world influence our moral choices, seeing how the world has been corrupted by sin and evil. Only our incorruptible Lord, and by extension His Holy Spirit, has the ability to properly discern such matters. We need to be careful who we allow to influence us – harmful spirits, or a Holy Spirit.
Father God, our Holy and Incorruptible King, great and mighty is Your name. Father You are wise and discerning beyond compare, and we request Your guiding hand upon us. Please grant us discernment in matters of moral choice, and please teach us strength to overcome temptation. With Your help we can overcome the evil that has stained this world, and the sin which has corrupted it. Jesus, thank you for making all of this possible through Your selfless sacrifice on the cross. In You alone we put our hope and trust, forever and ever, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training