David's Men

David’s Men

(1Sa 22:2)

And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.

Introduction:

1. A certain type of man joined David in the Cave of Adullam.

2. When David needed help, friends rallied around him.

I. Who Were They I Sam. 22:2

a. Distressed

i. Bereft of peace of mind.

ii. The Hebrew word means ‘straitness’

"When we are flat on our backs there is no way to look but up." - Roger W. Babson

b. Debtors

i. Bitten by creditors.

ii. The Hebrew word means ‘bitten’

"Rather go to bed supperless than rise in debt." - Benjamin Franklin

c. Discontented

i. The Hebrew word means ‘bitter in Spirit’

"Discontent is something that follows ambition like a shadow." - Henry H. Haskins

II. What Did They Do

a. Separated Themselves to David I Chron. 12:8

(1Ch 12:8)

And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David into the hold to the wilderness men of might, and men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains;

i. Men of War

ii. Men of Courage

Leonidas, King of Sparta, was preparing to make a stand with his Greek troops against the Persian army in 480 B.C. when a Persian envoy arrived. The man urged on Leonidas the futility of trying to resist the advance of the huge Persian army. “Our archers are so numerous,” said the envoy, “that the flight of their arrows darkens the sun.”

“So much the better,” replied Leonidas, “for we shall fight them in the shade.”

Leonidas made his stand, and died with his 300 troops. Today in the Word, November 4, 1993

iii. Men of Speed

b. Soldiered for David I Sam. 23:5

The soldier’s first article of faith is summed up nowhere more eloquently than in an 1865 letter from William Tecumseh Sherman to U. S. Grant: “I knew wherever I was that you thought of me, and if I got in a tight place you would come—if alive.” This is the unwritten, unspoken but unbreakable contract of the battlefield: You will leave no one, dead or alive, in the hands of the enemy. U.S. News and World Report, July 29, 1991, p. 5

(1Sa 23:5)

So David and his men went to Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and smote them with a great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.

i. Men Who Followed

ii. Men Who Fought

iii. Men Who Freed

c. Submitted Their Will to David I Sam. 26:4

(1Sa 26:4)

David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come in very deed.

Driving down a country road, I came to a very narrow bridge. In front of the bridge, a sign was posted: "YIELD." Seeing no oncoming cars, I continued across the bridge and to my destination. On my way back, I came to the same one-lane bridge, now from the other direction. To my surprise, I saw another YIELD sign posted. Curious, I thought, "I’m sure there was one posted on the other side." When I reached the other side of the bridge I looked back. Sure enough, yield signs had been placed at both ends of the bridge. Drivers from both directions were requested to give right of way. It was a reasonable and gracious way of preventing a head-on collision. When the Bible commands Christians to "be subject to one another" (Ephesians 5:21) it is simply a reasonable and gracious command to let the other have the right of way and avoid interpersonal head-on collisions. Stephen P. Beck.

i. They Researched

ii. They Recognized

iii. They Revealed

d. Served David Faithfully II Sam. 23:16

(1Sa 23:16)

And Jonathan Saul’s son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God.

i. They Determined

ii. They Departed

iii. They Drove

... the life of Mary Reed, an early missionary from Ohio to India. While she was home in America, she felt certain she had the beginnings of leprosy, and she felt an urgency to hasten back to the land to which she had been called. She then devoted fifty-three years of her life to service among the lepers. At the age of eighty-eight, she broke her hip and soon passed away. But her gravestone still speaks. "I will make all my mountains a way." (Isaiah 49:11) And another missionary to India said, "She surely did."

e. Sided Steadfastly with David I Chron. 11:10

(1Ch 11:10)

These also are the chief of the mighty men whom David had, who strengthened themselves with him in his kingdom, and with all Israel, to make him king, according to the word of the LORD concerning Israel.