1 Samuel 26
Bob Utley · You Can Understand the Bible
1 Samuel 26
NJB (MT versing) David Again Spares Saul David Spares Saul A Second Time David Spares Saul's Life David Spares Saul's Life Again David Spares Saul 26:1-5 26:1-4 26:1-5 26:1-5 26:1-5 26:5-12 26:6-12 26:6-12 26:6 26:6-7 26:7-8 26:8-11 26:9-12 26:12 26:13-16 26:13-16 26:13-16 26:13-14a 26:13-16 26:14b 26:15-16 26:17-20 26:17-20 26:17-20 26:17a 26:17-20 26:17b-20 26:21-25 26:21-25 26:21-25 26:21 26:21-24 26:22-24 26:25a 26:25 26:25b Etc. CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS This is passage is very similar to 1 Sam. 23:19-24:22. This seems to be a separate incident. David spared Saul's life several times in the same general area.
1 Samuel 26:1-5
26:1 "David" His name means "Beloved" (BDB 187). ▣ "Jeshimon" This (BDB 445, lit. "wilderness") refers to the wilderness of Judah. It was later the site of the Essenes community which produced the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS). 26:2 "three thousand chosen men" The OT contains many numerical problems. Many of them could be solved if translators knew exactly the meaning of the word "thousand." This word can refer to either family groups, military units, or a literal number. SPECIAL TOPIC: THOUSAND (eleph) 26:4 David could not believe that Saul was after him again. 26:5 "in the circle of the camp" Saul's military camp was in the form of a circle with the leaders sleeping in the middle. The deep sleep of all the sentries and leaders was due to an influence from YHWH (v. 12). YHWH was actively involved in the life of David, His new anointed.
1 Samuel 26:6-12
26:6 "Ahimelech the Hittite" David's men were made up of disgruntled Israelites and foreign mercenaries. The Hittites here may be a tribal group in southern Canaan, loosely related to the larger Hittite Empire to the north. The "Hittite" Empire was unknown except in biblical literature before the 1940's. The archaeological discovery of the cuneiform tablets in central Turkey has again confirmed the historicity of the Bible. SPECIAL TOPIC: PRE-ISRAELITE INHABITANTS OF PALESTINE SPECIAL TOPIC: OT HISTORIOGRAPHY COMPARED TO NEAR EASTERN CULTURES ▣ "Abishai" He was a relative of David and a great warrior (cf. 2 Sam. 23:18). Later Joab and Abishai killed Abner because Abner killed their younger brother (cf. 2 Sam. 3:30). 26:7 "with his spear stuck in the ground at his head" This was a sign of Saul's kingly position. This symbol is still practiced today by modern Bedouins. 26:8 This comment (and worldview) is similar to 1 Sam. 24:4. The Israelites saw all occurrences as being influenced and directed by YHWH. For them, there was no secondary cause. This was a way to assert YHWH's sovereignty over His creation. Notice the same imagery in Adam's sleep ‒ Gen. 2:21 Abraham's sleep ‒ Gen. 15:12 night visions of the prophets (i.e., Isa. 29:10) blind sight of prophets (Micah 3:6) blindness of idolatrous Israel (Isa. 6:9-10) blindness of Israel to the gospel (Rom. 11:8) 26:9 "who can stretch out his hands against the Lord's anointed and be without guilt" David was very conscious of God's unique calling and equipping of Israel's king (cf. 1 Sam. 24:6-7). 26:10 "as the Lord lives" This is an ancient Israelite oath formula related to the name of YHWH. SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY, D. ▣ David believed the God who instructed Samuel to anoint him king would deal with Saul in His own way, at His own time. surely the Lord will strike him on a certain day (cf. Num. 27:12-13; Deut. 31:14; 32:50) in a battle (cf. 1 Sam. 31:6, Saul's death) 26:11 "please take the spear that is at his head and the jug of water and let us go" These were to be a sign of David's penetration into the camp and yet another opportunity to kill Saul. 26:12 "because a sound sleep from the Lord had fallen on them" This is the normal tension between God using natural means but with supernatural timing, locality, and intensity. YHWH is actively involved in the affairs of His people on a daily basis. See NIDOTTE, vol. 3, p. 1057. SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH'S ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN
1 Samuel 26:13-16
26:14 It must have still been dark when David addressed Abner. Saul recognized David's voice. ▣ "Abner the son of Ner" This is Saul's uncle (cf. 1 Sam. 14:50-51). 26:15 Abner was Saul's military commander, a man of valor but yet he could not protect the king because the Lord was on David's side (v. 12). 26:16 "must surely die" NKJV, Peshitta "worthy to die" NRSV, TEV, NJB, REB, JPSOA "deserve to die" "sons of execution" The MT has the Hebrew idiom, "are surely sons of death" (cf. 1 Sam. 20:31; 2 Sam. 12:5). Abner deserved to die along with all the bodyguards because they did not protect YHWH's anointed king!
1 Samuel 26:17-20
26:17 "Then Saul recognized David's voice" We must remember how close a relationship Saul and David truly had (i.e., 1 Sam. 16:21; 24:16). If it were not for Saul's mental problem David could have been a great friend and supporter of Saul. 26:18 In many ways this is similar to 1 Sam. 24:9-15. This is either a second account of the one event (see John H. Walton and D. Brent Sandy, The Lost World of Scripture) one of several times Saul pursued David and David found a way to confront him over his unfair attitudes and actions These two recorded encounters reinforce Saul's mental illness David's righteous character 26:20 "a single flea" This emphasizes David's insignificance (cf. 1 Sam. 24:14) shows the difficulty in catching one flea or a partridge LXX has "my life" ▣ "a partridge" These birds were hard to find and hard to hunt. The root for "partridge" (BDB 896, קרא) can also be seen as a VERB (BDB 894, Qal ACTIVE PARTICIPLE), "the one calling" (i.e., possibly the hunter trying to chase the bird from its hiding place), See NIDOTTE, vol. 3, p. 975.
1 Samuel 26:21-25
26:21 "I have sinned" David did not trust Saul any more because of his obvious spiritual and mental condition (cf. 1 Sam. 24:16-22). David did not return to Saul's court. ▣ "played the fool" See SPECIAL TOPIC: FOOLISH PEOPLE (terms) 26:22 "Behold, the spear of the king! Now let one of your young men come over and take it" This spear was the symbol of Saul's kingship (cf. 1 Sam. 19:9; 22:6; 2 Sam. 1:6). David returned the sign/symbol of kingship to Saul. 26:23 "his righteousness and his faithfulness" The term "righteousness" is from the Hebrew root for "a standard" or "measuring reed." It is primarily a relationship term, not ethical. David's attitude towards Saul is regulated by David's loyalty to YHWH. SPECIAL TOPIC: RIGHTEOUSNESS 26:24 David again attributes the reason for his sparing Saul to David's faith in YHWH's promise through Samuel that he would be king one day. YHWH will deliver him from all distress (cf. Ps. 54:7). The "distress" here refers to issues related to the covenant people. David's sins caused him distress but YHWH still used him and supported him to provide His covenant promise and will for Israel to be successful. ▣ "in the sight of the Lord" The only vocabulary humans have is an earthly, physical one. Therefore, Deity is depicted in these categories. SPECIAL TOPIC: THE PROBLEMS AND LIMITATIONS OF HUMAN LANGUAGE SPECIAL TOPIC: ANTHROPOMORPHIC LANGUAGE TO DESCRIBE GOD 26:25 "accomplish much and surely prevail" These two blessings are both structured in an intensified formula (i.e., an INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE and an IMPERFECT VERB). David's kingdom would be a success because YHWH was with him. ▣ "David went on his way" David continues his life with the Philistines as a bandit and mercenary (cf. 1 Sam. 24:20).