David In Saul’s Camp

DAVID IN SAUL’S CAMP

1 Sam. 26:2-25

INTRODUCTION

A. HUMOR

1. I was thrown out of the break room of my Walmart yesterday. They asked me what I was doing there. I told them, “I’m on a break.”

2. They said, “But you don’t work here!” I said, “I just finished using the self-checkout, so clearly I do work here.”

[Consumers now have to pump their own gas, check their own groceries, and pick up their own mail!]

B. TEXT

1. 2 So Saul went...with his 3,000 select Israelite troops, to search there for David. 5 Then David set out and went to the place where Saul had camped...6 David then asked...“Who will go down into the camp with me to Saul?” “I’ll go with you,” said Abishai. 7 So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. 8 Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice.” 9 But David said to Abishai.... “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come...11 But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. Now get the spear and water jug that are near his head, and let’s go.” 13 Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the hill some distance away; there was a wide space between them. 17 Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is that your voice, David my son?” David replied, “Yes it is, my lord the king.” [David questioned Saul’s chasing him.] 21 Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Come back, David my son. Because you considered my life precious today, I will not try to harm you again. Surely I have acted like a fool and have been terribly wrong....25 you will do great things and surely triumph.” So David went on his way, and Saul returned home.

C. THESIS

1. We see another magical moment when David does the astounding as he walks with God. Who walks into their enemy’s camp to take the prized possessions of their adversary? Yet for David and God, it was a normal day’s work.

2. We see this incident was planned by God, the admiring armor-bearer of David, and the unusual symbols that David was impressed to take with him.

3. The title of this message is “David in Saul’s Camp.”

I. A MISSION PLANNED BY GOD

A. TWO TIMES DAVID SPARED SAUL’S LIFE

1. In 1 Sam. 24:17-20, God chose to show King Saul that David was not out to harm Saul or to take the kingdom from his family.

2. David spared Saul’s life, and Saul replied, “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly. 18...the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me....20 I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands.” David swore not to harm Saul or his family, and Saul stopped pursuing David.

3. But we see in this chapter (at the instigation of the Ziphites) that Saul begins pursuing him again, contrary to his former pledge.

4. The chapter 24 instance of David sparing Saul’s life seemed accidental -- Saul wandered into a cave where David & his men were hiding. But this time (chap. 26), when David entered Saul’s camp, it was fore-ordained by God to happen. God’s special providence gave David this opportunity and he followed God’s leading into an impossible situation.

B. THE AMAZING MIRACLE OF GOD’S SLEEP

1. All the soldiers, even those who were on guard as sentinels, were fast asleep. For all practical purposes, Saul’s whole army was helpless to their enemies – their eyes blindfolded and their hands bound.

2. It was miraculous that every man in the army should all be asleep at the same time, and so fast-asleep that David and Abishai could walk and talk among them, and yet none of them stirred. David could have shouted and none would have stirred!

3. This shows how God can use even sleep as way to disarm His foes. God commands the powers of nature and makes them to serve his purposes. How easily God can make the strongest weak, the wisest foolish, and baffle those who are most watchful! This should encourage God’s people to trust Him and not fear His enemies.

II. DAVID’S ARMOR-BEARER – ABISHAI

A. THE CAREER OF ABISHAI HELPING DAVID

1. Abishai was the son of David’s sister Zeruiah. All three of her sons – Joab, Abishai, and Asahel – were mighty warriors. Undoubtedly Abishai had sat at his mother's feet and heard of his uncle David's exploits. He had heard how his uncle had killed lions, bears, and the Philistine champion Goliath, and turned other impossible situations into opportunities for God's miracles.