This chapter details Saul’s further pursuit of David, and more of the encounters along the way.
“…David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I go and attack these Philistines?’ And the Lord said to David… ‘Arise, go down to Keilah, for I will give the Philistines into your hand.’ And David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines and brought away their livestock and struck them with a great blow. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. Then David said, ‘Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?’ And the Lord said, ‘They will surrender you.’ Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and departed from Keilah, and they went wherever they could go.” (v2,4-5,12-13a)
David and his men make a special journey to save a city which is besieged by the Philistines. Immediately after liberating the city, David and company must leave, because God tells them the people of the city will surrender them to Saul. Are the people being ungrateful, or are they simply loyal to the crown?
David consistently seeks the Lord’s leading every step of the way in this chapter. Saul and the people of Israel however, do not seem to follow that same pattern. If the people did seek God’s will, maybe they would not have been so quick to betray David after he helped rescue them.
Have you ever done someone a favor, just to have them ‘betray you’, or at least do something which seems ungrateful? How did that make you feel? I temporarily lost one of my best friends: I helped them financially, and then they stopped taking my calls. When I finally caught up to them, it turns our they were simply embarrassed that they couldn’t pay me back. Such a small thing nearly ended in the loss of a great relationship.
There are too many accounts of betrayal to cover them all in detail, so I’ll merely mention one famous example: “Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.” (Lk 22:3-5) Jesus did not do anything to harm Judas – in fact He loved Judas greatly. Yet, Judas was seemingly resistant to to teachings of Jesus, allowing an evil influence to lead him down the road of betrayal.
Let’s give the people of Keilah, and my friend, the benefit of the doubt – they did not wish harm upon their benefactors. They simply thought they were doing the right thing (remaining loyal to the king or waiting until they could repay their debt). Judas may have even thought he was doing the right thing in helping the local authorities, and assumed they would simply arrest Jesus, not vie for His execution. Regardless of their motivations, God still loves these people, and so should we.
My encouragement for today is for us to consistently seek God’s leading, every step, every day. David modeled moment-by-moment reliance upon God, and so should all who call Him King. If we’re not following God, then we’re open to other, less desirable influences (like Judas and Saul were).
Father God, our Holy and Magnificent King, great and mighty are You in all of the earth. Father we praise You for the gift of guidance and support that You offer. Please teach us to rely on Your guidance more consistently, seeking you alone as our source of wisdom and discernment. May we make decisions honoring to You, and love You and Your people all of the days of our lives. All honor, glory, praise and thanksgiving be unto You, forever and ever, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training