Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction*

In the previous chapter, we saw the fruit of David’s scheming when he was relying on himself.

Doeg the Edomite told blood-thirsty King Saul that he had seen David with Ahimelech the priest at Nob.

He claimed that Ahimelech was helping David against Saul.

But Ahimelech knew nothing about Saul’s feud against David and David had lied to Ahimelech, telling him that he was on a mission from Saul.

Ahimelech provided David with some of the showbread that was being replaced and Goliath’s sword which was being kept in the sanctuary.

However, chapter 21 does not indicate, as Doeg claimed, that he inquired of the Lord for David with the Urim and Thummim.

This was something that the Midrash says was to be done only for the king.

(The midrash is early Rabbinical commentary and interpretation of both the written and oral Torah.)

In Saul’s mind, Doeg’s report was true and Ahimelech, by inquiring of the Lord for David, had as much as asserted that David should be king.

And so, Saul, infuriated by this report from Doeg, immediately called for Ahimelech and all the priests in Nob.

And holding an illegal trial, he declared them guilty and called for them - all of them - to be put to death, however, nobody among Saul’s men would do the deed.

That is, except for Doeg the Edomite.

He killed 85 priests as well as all the people and animals of Nob, the city of the priests.

He killed all the priests except for one … Abiather escaped and fled after David.

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What is interesting about this, and something we could miss if we were not going verse by verse through the Bible:

In the second chapter of his book Up from Slavery, Booker T. Washington wrote, “I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”

Measured by this standard—and it’s a valid one—David was a very successful man.

For ten years he was considered an outlaw, yet he fought the Lord’s battles and delivered Israel from her enemies.

He lived with his faithful men in the forsaken places of the land and often had to flee for his life, yet he knew that the Lord would finally deliver him and give him the promised throne.

David’s coronation was not only important to the people of Israel; it was important to all the people of God of every age.

For out of David’s family the Redeemer would ultimately come, Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of David, the Son of God.

Is that even though the human component of all this was flawed with sin .... ultimately, God brings His plan out of it.

… ultimately, God brings His plan out of it.

While this unjust trial and illegal sentence disturbs us, we must keep in mind that it was part of God’s plan.

For one thing, this slaughter of the priests goes all the way back to Eli and chapter 2.

It was a partial fulfillment of the prophecy that had been given to the unfaithful priest Eli.

In , God had promised to replace the house of Eli with the house of Zadok.

Eli’s sons were killed, and Eli himself died, but this massacre of the priests went a long ways to completely fulfilling God’s prophecy.

Except for the fact that Abiather escaped.

But the prophecy is finally fulfilled in .

Abiathar escaped this massacre, but was later removed by Solomon, leaving the house of Zadok as the priestly family.

For another thing, David has learned a valuable lesson about trusting in God rather than in himself.

David had tried to depend on other people and on himself with lies and schemes, rather than depend on the Lord.

Perhaps an indication of just where David was is that when he was with the priest Ahimelech at Nob, he did not ask the priest to inquire of the Lord.

He was depending on his own understanding, and that caused David to rely on lies and schemes.

But by the time Abiather has joined with David, he has repented and is again trusting in the LORD.

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Also, in the previous chapter, David

Booker T. Washington wrote, “I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”

Given this observation .... David was a very successful man.

For 10 years he was considered an outlaw.

He was hunted by Saul and had to live as if he were a criminal in hiding.

But in the midst of it, he fought the Lord’s battles and delivered Israel from her enemies.

He lived with his faithful men in the wilderness and in caves and he often had to flee for his life.

Yet he knew that the Lord would ultimately deliver him and give him the promised throne.

Saul’s rule of Israel had been disastrous … even his own son, Jonathan, had said so.

And chapter 22 explains that those who joined with David were in distress, in debt, and discontented.

So, Saul’s reign was not working out the way the people of Israel had thought when they had demanded a king like the other nations had.

One might say that Israel was groaning for God’s chosen king, David to come to the throne.

But even greater than that … David’s coronation was important to all the people of God of every age.

For out of David’s family the Redeemer would ultimately come, Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of David, the Son of God.

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We continue into chapter 23 tonight.

Early in his reign, King Saul had aggressively attacked the Philistines, but in his madness, he turned to persecuting the people of God.

We see Saul occupied in seeking David’s life.

While Saul was occupied in seeking David’s life, the Philistines were able to continue their aggression unmolested.

David was conscious of their incursions, the latest of which was directed at Keilah, which belonged to Judah but was well behind the enemy lines at the time of this attack.

The site is Tell Qila, south of the ancient Adullam.

And while he did this, the Philistines were able to continue their own aggression against Israel.

Baldwin, J. G. (1988). 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol.

8, p. 152).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

David was aware of their successful incursions resulting from Saul’s distraction.

The latest of the Philistine attacks was directed at the town of Keilah (kee-ah-ee-LAH).

Keilah was one of the lowland towns located in the lot of the tribe of Judah as described in Joshua 15.

It was less than 4 miles from the Cave of Adullam, and about 12 miles as the crow flies from the Philistine capital of Gath.

While Saul was occupied in seeking David’s life, the Philistines were able to continue their aggression unmolested.

David was conscious of their incursions, the latest of which was directed at Keilah, which belonged to Judah but was well behind the enemy lines at the time of this attack.

The site is Tell Qila, south of the ancient Adullam.

(Today, the site is Tell Qila and is primarily Arab occupied.)

The town is also mentioned outside of the Bible on the El Amarna Tablets, which were found in ancient Egypt in 1877.

They date to the time of Moses and contain letters written in Babylonian cuneiform on baked clay tablets.

The letters were written to Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) by various kings dwelling in the land of Canaan and Syria.

The tablets are important Biblically because they refer to the Hebrews, confirm history given in Joshua and Judges, and they mention a lot about the land and people of Canaan.

Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) by various kings dwelling in the land of Canaan and Syria.

because they refer to events in the middle east in the 15th and 14th centuries BC.

They refer to the Hebrews, they give evidence of the trustworthiness of the book of Judges.

They mention a lot about Canaan, the half of Israel to the west of the Jordan.

For instance, one letter reads:

To Naphkhororia [1] King of Egypt, my brother, to say: Thus speaks Burnaburiash King of Babylon, your brother.

I am well.

To your country, your house, your women, your sons, your ministers, your horses, your chariots, many greetings.

I and my brother have signed a treaty, and I spoke thus: Like our fathers, who were friends, we will be friends.

And now, my merchants who travelled with Ahutabu [2] delayed in Canaan for business.

After Ahutabu set out on his way to my brother and in the town of Hanatun which is in Canaan Shumda [3] Son of Baluma and Shutatna Son of Shartum from Akko sent their men there.

They beat my merchants and stole their money.

Ahutabu , whom I sent to you, is before you.

Ask him and he will tell you.

Canaan is your country and its kings are your slaves, in your country I was robbed.

Bind them and return the money they robbed.

And the men who murdered my slaves, kill them and avenge their blood.

Because if you do not kill these men, they will again murder my caravans and even my ambassadors, and the ambassadors between us will cease.

If this should happen the people of the land will leave you.

As far as his care of Israel is concerned, Saul was too wrapped up in his envy of David to do anything.

David, however, even as a fugitive acts more like the king of Israel than Saul does.

In our chapter, David comes to the defense of Keilah (kee-ah-ee-LAH).

Prayer: Lord, we ask that You open up Your word to us this evening and bless our study.

In Jesus’ name.

Amen.

Tel el Amarna was in ancient Egypt near the Nile River about halfway between Memphis and Thebes.

In 1988 there were about 400 cuneiform tablets discovered at this site which were part of the royal archives of Amenhotep III and Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) who reigned about 1400 BC.