1 Samuel 27:1-28:2 (CLICK HERE FOR BIBLE VERSES)
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is 1 Samuel 27:1-28:2. As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first. See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below. Let’s go!
1 Samuel 27:1-12 (NIV)
1 But David thought to himself, “One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul. The best thing I can do is to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will give up searching for me anywhere in Israel, and I will slip out of his hand.”
2 So David and the six hundred men with him left and went over to Achish son of Maoch king of Gath.
3 David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.
4 When Saul was told that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.
5 Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let a place be assigned to me in one of the country towns, that I may live there. Why should your servant live in the royal city with you?”
6 So on that day Achish gave him Ziklag, and it has belonged to the kings of Judah ever since.
7 David lived in Philistine territory a year and four months.
8 Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites and the Amalekites. (From ancient times these peoples had lived in the land extending to Shur and Egypt.)
9 Whenever David attacked an area, he did not leave a man or woman alive, but took sheep and cattle, donkeys and camels, and clothes. Then he returned to Achish.
10 When Achish asked, “Where did you go raiding today?” David would say, “Against the Negev of Judah” or “Against the Negev of Jerahmeel” or “Against the Negev of the Kenites.”
11 He did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he thought, “They might inform on us and say, ‘This is what David did.'” And such was his practice as long as he lived in Philistine territory.
12 Achish trusted David and said to himself, “He has become so odious to his people, the Israelites, that he will be my servant forever.”
1 Samuel 28:1-2 (NIV)
1 In those days the Philistines gathered their forces to fight against Israel. Achish said to David, “You must understand that you and your men will accompany me in the army.”
2 David said, “Then you will see for yourself what your servant can do.” Achish replied, “Very well, I will make you my bodyguard for life.”
On 27:1 to 28:2: In this passage we see David giving into his fear. Verse 1 says, “David thought to himself, ‘One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul.'” (v1) Notice those first few words: “David thought to himself.” The King James translation puts it this way: “David said in his heart“. Whenever you read the Old Testament and it says a person “said in his heart“, it often means that the person has allowed a lie or a fear to poison their thinking. That’s what happened with David. David gave into his fear and lived as if his biggest worry was certain to come true.
As a result, because of fear David makes some compromising decisions to protect himself. He spends 16 months away from God’s people, living in enemy territory. He allies himself with Israel’s enemy the Philistines. Then he tries to survive by building a web of lies, pretending that he is helping the Philistines take over Israelite towns when really he was raiding other Canaanite towns.
While David may have been physically safe from Saul during this season, there was undoubtedly turmoil, guilt and worry in David’s heart because of all the ways he was lying and compromising his faith.
What can we learn from this? Worry, when unchecked, always leads to compromise. When we allow fear and worry to control us, we end up making decisions that compromise our integrity and our faith. We devise plans that don’t involve God and speak lies that don’t please God. At first, we think we’re being so clever, but in the end our integrity, faith, conscience and reputation take the hit. Don’t be a slave to fear. Rather, live with faith in God’s promises, trusting that when you seek Him first He will give you everything you need.
Father, I pray I would not be a slave to fear and worry, lest I make decisions that will end up hurting me and those closest to me. In Jesus’ name I rebuke worry and tell it to be gone from my heart. Instead of worry, I chose faith in Your promises, in Your goodness and in Your faithfulness to work all things out for good. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
Copyright © 2022 Justin Lim. All rights reserved.
