Enemy

After a few weeks, we’re still embroiled in the ongoing saga between Saul and David. It’s a little bit funny, a bit pathetic, and it’s really sad. It reveals the enemy to us and teaches us a good deal about God and His people.

1 Samuel 22:6–8 NIV

6 Now Saul heard that David and his men had been discovered. And Saul was seated, spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with all his officials standing at his side. 7 He said to them, “Listen, men of Benjamin! Will the son of Jesse give all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? 8 Is that why you have all conspired against me? No one tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is concerned about me or tells me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me, as he does today.”

It’s nice we have all the details that we do. Just another day for Saul and his ever-present spear; thing’s like a security blanket for the guy.

The details paint us a picture. Saul’s seated under a specific tree in a specific place. And he’s throwing himself a royal pity party.

It’s all “me, me, me” and “all of you” and “why didn’t you” and “no one like me, everybody hates me, I’m gonna go eat worms.”

Hey, it’s his party, he can cry if he wants to. But, you’re right; it’s pretty pathetic.

It’s all pride and jealousy expressing itself. Notice, he can’t even name David. He refers to him as “the son of Jesse.” It reveals the hatred he has for David.

An expert in the law, knowing that “love your neighbor as yourself” was the second greatest commandment, asked Jesus, “Well, who is my neighbor?”

Jesus replied with the story of The Good Samaritan. The only one to help and stop the man was a Samaritan—a person despised by the Jews.

When Jesus asked the expert in the law, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man?”, the expert in the law didn’t say, “The Samaritan.”

He couldn’t bring himself to name the person he hated. He replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

It’s a telling moment when we refer to someone as “them” or “that person”.

This is exactly what Saul and his ilk feel for David and how they refer to him. They can’t name him. Easier to call him the son of Jesse.

Saul can’t name David. He groups all the men around him together—all of you—making it seem like everyone is against him. “Nobody likes me anymore!”

He keeps comparing himself to David, I mean, “the son of Jesse.”

Will the son of Jesse give you what I can give you?

Will he make you all commanders in his army?

Choose me, be my friend, do what I say—I’m better than him!

Saul continues grouping people together—none of you is concerned about me, no one tells me anything.

Poor little fella is feeling all left out. He doesn’t like what’s going on. He’s angry, boiling over with hate. Saul sets himself up as David’s enemy and wants everyone to feel about David what he does.

There was at least one guy who went along with Saul, hook, line, and sinker. A fella we’ve met before, just last chapter when David was asking the priest for some bread:

1 Samuel 21:7 NIV

7 Now one of Saul’s servants was there that day, detained before the Lord; he was Doeg the Edomite, Saul’s chief shepherd.

Where the Benjamites are speechless, Doeg the Edomite (a non-Israelite lackey of Saul) is more than happy to speak. He knows it’s time to speak after Saul’s pity party. Now’s the time to earn some brownie points. Doeg even sounds like Saul:

1 Samuel 22:9–10 NIV

9 But Doeg the Edomite, who was standing with Saul’s officials, said, “I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelek son of Ahitub at Nob. 10 Ahimelek inquired of the Lord for him; he also gave him provisions and the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”

That’s all Saul needed. Thanks to his buddy, Doeg, Saul will get to make things right for himself.

1 Samuel 22:11–13 NIV

11 Then the king sent for the priest Ahimelek son of Ahitub and all the men of his family, who were the priests at Nob, and they all came to the king. 12 Saul said, “Listen now, son of Ahitub.” “Yes, my lord,” he answered. 13 Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, giving him bread and a sword and inquiring of God for him, so that he has rebelled against me and lies in wait for me, as he does today?”

Saul blames Ahimelek for David’s rebellion. It’s all “me, me, me” for Saul. How dare this priest do his job?!?! I mean, the audacity!

1 Samuel 22:14–15 NIV

14 Ahimelek answered the king, “Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king’s son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard and highly respected in your household? 15 Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Of course not! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of his father’s family, for your servant knows nothing at all about this whole affair.”

Ahimelek was merely doing his job, and honestly wasn’t keeping anything from Saul. Ahimelek speaks the truth: “I know nothing at all about this whole affair.”

That’s what David’s flimsy story actually accomplished. It kept Ahimelek from knowing any of the actual details of the story, of the whole Saul/David saga.

Ahimelek didn’t know anything about Saul’s issues with David or David running from Saul.

And, of course Ahimelek—the priest!—inquired of God for [David]. Ahimelek says it wasn’t the first time; he’s done so regularly. It’s his job!

This infuriates Saul. He’s a small man, even if he is a head-taller than anyone around him. Small. Petty. Jealous. Murderous.

1 Samuel 22:16–19 NIV

16 But the king said, “You will surely die, Ahimelek, you and your whole family.” 17 Then the king ordered the guards at his side: “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because they too have sided with David. They knew he was fleeing, yet they did not tell me.” But the king’s officials were unwilling to raise a hand to strike the priests of the Lord. 18 The king then ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests.” So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck them down. That day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. 19 He also put to the sword Nob, the town of the priests, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep.

As disturbing as this whole scene is—and it is disturbing (make no mistake)—this does teach a lesson. No matter what the enemies of God’s people do, they unwittingly prove that

God’s Word is True

This horrible wickedness on Doeg and Saul’s part, killing not only Ahimelek and the priests but their families (the definition of overkill), is a fulfillment of a prophecy from 1 Samuel 2.

1 Samuel 2:30–36 NIV

30 “Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.’ But now the Lord declares: ‘Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. 31 The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age, 32 and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age. 33 Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and sap your strength, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life. 34 “ ‘And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you—they will both die on the same day. 35 I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his priestly house, and they will minister before my anointed one always. 36 Then everyone left in your family line will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread and plead, “Appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat.” ’ ”

So the judgment the Lord had placed on Eli’s household is now coming to pass. It’s not pretty, it’s not something we like to hear or read or think about, but there it is.

Doeg’s butchery fulfills the word of God against the house of Eli.

That word (1 Samuel 2) had been spoken 40-50 years earlier. Ahimelek is the great-grandson of Eli.

God’s Word always come to pass. Always.

“Even in opposing God’s kingdom God’s enemies only bring to pass God’s Word.” - Dale Ralph Davis

There are plenty of examples of this in the Bible. Joseph’s brothers, jealous of him, decided to kill him by leaving him in cistern. Instead of leaving him for dead, they sold him into slavery. He ended up in Egypt as a slave in Pharaoh’s house, ended up in prison, was released and became second in command to Pharaoh. Joseph oversaw the preparation of storing up food for a coming famine. When Joseph’s brothers—the same ones who tried to kill him—showed up in Egypt asking for food, Joseph was there to help them. Of this Joseph said:

Genesis 50:20 NIV

20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

Even in their wicked slaughter of the Lord’s priests, Saul and Doeg fulfill God’s Word. God’s enemies prove the truthfulness of God’s Word.

In their hostility against God, they carry out His will.

This is what the early Christians both preached and prayed.

Peter preaching on the day of Pentecost packs this truth into one verse:

Acts 2:23 NIV

23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.

The early church prayed this truth:

Acts 4:27–28 NIV

27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28 They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.

We don’t have Saul as an enemy; we have a more powerful foe. Satan and his forces are always against us. We will encounter people and governments and systems who are actively opposing us.

But we can endure, because we know this is true: as men and women oppose God and His people, they will only be fulfilling God’s Word.

This knowledge doesn’t take away grief or sorrow or suffering, but it gives secret certainty of victory.

The Lord’s enemies can never gain the edge. He’s a thousand steps ahead of them. If they knew they were only fulfilling God’s Word, they’d kick themselves.

God’s Word is true, and His enemies prove it o’er and o’er.

If anything clear from 1 Samuel 22, it’s that:

God’s People are Hated

Saul’s fury is, it seems, going to be poured out on whomever is closest. He’ll chuck a spear at David and even his own son if the mood strikes him. Here, sadly, the Lord’s priests are in his cross-hairs.

Granted, Saul has his dog, Doeg do the dirty work, but this is all Saul.

The priests are the Lord’s designated servants and representatives of His people.

While Doeg is striking down the priests—85 of them—and then the entire village of Nob, Saul says nothing. Saul is fine, just fine, with an entire village of Israel being annihilated.

This is where Saul’s hatred has taken him. This is what sin does.

To quote my good friend, Nancy: “Never underestimate anyone when it comes to sin, especially ourselves.”

Saul, the for-the-moment-king of Israel is the destroyer of Israel—not all Israel, but one town.

Saul hates the priests and has them killed. An attack on the people of God is an attack on the Lord Himself.

But Saul is weak. So is every enemy of God.

Saul has driven away his own son. The Benjamites refused an order from Saul. He’s alienating what little support he had. He’s losing everything.

His only friend, it seems, is Doeg.

Saul can say, “Doeg is for me.”

David, by contrast, can say:

Psalm 56:9 NIV

9 Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me.

The enemies of God’s people are numerable, but they are weak. They’re here for a time, and then they’re not.

We need to know, to remember, to be reminded (part of my job, I believe, is to remind you) that in this world, you will have trouble.

You will come up against it. You will be hated, increasingly so just because you’re one of God’s people.

Peter wrote to the scattered Christians in the 1st Century A.D.:

1 Peter 4:12 NIV

12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.

Now, don’t make being hated the goal. Don’t try to get people to hate you; that’s not the point. Just realize some folk will.

When I was a CPR instructor, I had people ask me if while doing chest compressions they needed to press until they heard bones crack. Our answer was always, “Well, that’s not the goal; don’t set out to break any ribs, but it will probably happen.”

You will, odds are, find yourself hated for being a follower of Christ.

You’re not gonna have to help it along. Don’t add to it; your faithfulness to Christ will be all the reason they need.

God’s people have a lot of enemies. But each one is, ultimately, weak.

There *is* a glimmer of hope in this chapter, believe it or not.

1 Samuel 22:20–23 NIV

20 But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David. 21 He told David that Saul had killed the priests of the Lord. 22 Then David said to Abiathar, “That day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family. 23 Stay with me; don’t be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You will be safe with me.”

Christ’s Church is Invincible

How does this—1 Samuel 22—relate to Christ’s Church? Let me try to explain.

Saul is powerful, but not completely powerful. Like every other enemy of God’s people, Saul’s power is limited. Doeg killed most of the priests in Nob. Most, but not all.

One of Ahimelek’s sons escapes, runs to David, tells David what happened to his family, and finds safety with David.

So Abiathar escapes. What’s the big deal? It’s more important than we might realize.

Abiathar’s escape and his newfound safety with David are a sign—a sign of how the Lord always preserves His people in the midst of destruction.

Pharoah orders all the male babies be thrown into the river Nile. All of them are drowned, save one who will make quite a difference (Moses).

When most of Israel is worshiping Baal, the Lord makes sure there are 7,000 who never bend the knee to him.

Herod pulls a page from Pharoah’s book and gives orders for all male toddlers to be killed. One of those toddlers will escape, One who would make a world of difference (Jesus).

So, even when it seems like the priests of the Lord are destroyed, they are not completely destroyed.

The people of God may be knocked down from time to time, but they’re never counted out.

God’s people will suffer and many will die, but God’s Kingdom will never die. The gates of hell will never overcome Christ’s Church. Never.

The Westminster Confession of Faith speaks of the Church like this:

“Particular churches in this Church are more or less pure, and public worship is performed more or less purely in them. Some of the purest churches under heaven are subject…to error. Some have gone so far into error that they have become non-churches, that is synagogues of Satan. Nevertheless, there shall be always a church on earth to worship God according to His will.”

The enemy/enemies of God’s people, be it Saul or anyone else, will not be successful, not in any ultimate sense.

All of this proves God’s Word is true, every bit of it—not only the fact that we’ll be hated, but also our redemption, our salvation, our assurance, our hope.

We will be hated, absolutely, but we are—God’s Word says—redeemed, saved, and secure in God’s hand because of what Jesus has done for us.

Church, do not fear what the Enemy can do. God’s Word is true and nothing can stop Christ’s Church!