Unwanted: An Original Husband

Unwanted: An Original Husband

Introduction: The story of David and his first wife, Michal (daughter of King Saul) could be one of the most tragic love stories of all time. We may never know what happened but we do have a record of the sad results. Full disclosure, Sermon Central has already accepted and posted a message about David and Michal called “David: His First True Love”. This is a different work.

1 Michal loved David

Text: 1 Samuel 18:20, KJV: 20 And Michal Saul's daughter loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.

David was clearly a handsome young man in these days. He had only recently defeated Goliath, a giant of the Philistines and was a leader in Saul’s army.

Oddly enough, Saul wanted to take this love of two young people and get rid of David. He didn’t know, or maybe never recognized at the time that David was God’s choice to be Israel’s king.

So they were married, but their love and good fortune didn’t last very long/

2 Michal lost David

Text, 1 Samuel 19:11-17, KJV: 11 Saul also sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David's wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slain. 12 So Michal let David down through a window: and he went, and fled, and escaped. 13 And Michal took an image, and laid it in the bed, and put a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster, and covered it with a cloth. 14 And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, He is sick. 15 And Saul sent the messengers again to see David, saying, Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him. 16 And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster. 17 And Saul said unto Michal, Why hast thou deceived me so, and sent away mine enemy, that he is escaped? And Michal answered Saul, He said unto me, Let me go; why should I kill thee?

Saul wanted David dead by any means possible, and even sent “messengers” to basically spy on David. The plan was to kill David in the morning, but Michal got word of the plot and told David, “If you don’t leave tonight, they’ll kill you tomorrow”. She let David down through a window, even as Rahab had let the two spies escape from her house in Jericho (Joshua 2), and David fled. We could say he ran for his life!

But what has troubled me for a long time is why she didn’t go with him? We’ll never know for sure this side of Heaven.

Yet, something changed in Michal’s heart. David found that out years later.

3 Michal loathed David

We don’t know exactly how many years David was separated from Michal nor why he made no recorded efforts to reach her. Saul had decided she was divorced, apparently, and had Michal married to another man, Palti of Gallim (1 Samuel 25:44). Not much more is said of Michal until the time David had the Ark of the Covenant brought to Jerusalem.

In that story, David wore only a “linen ephod” and dancing with all his might (2 Samuel 6:14-15). This should have been a time of great rejoicing, and for some it was.

Yet for Michal, it wasn’t. Something had changed from the days when she and David were newlyweds, enjoying each other’s company. Now she despised David in her heart (2 Samuel 6:16) and even insulted him for what he wore and what he did! David replied he was honoring the LORD and Michal was dishonoring him. Worst of all, Michal remained barren, never having a child of her own which was a true sign the LORD was displeased with a woman.

In a word, David had gone from being a loved bridegroom and husband to being an unwanted companion. She hated, loathed, David, but there doesn’t seem to be any good reason except for his zeal and joy in praising the LORD!

We may never know when Michal started that downward slide from loving David, being someone she wanted to spend her life with, to hating, insulting someone and making David realize he was now unwanted .

Ladies, take note of Michal’s errors and please don’t let anything like this happen to you!

Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)