What David Did Out Of Fear

When we are in trouble, we often do crazy things, in order to be safe from our enemy and from further turmoil in our lives. Instead of clinging to God for answers and staying in prayer, reading the Bible, and fellowshipping one with another in the faith, we do things that do not help us but only lead us further from God. Surely, we only need Jesus to be safe from this darkened world that we live in, but instead, we wander throughout this life, while traveling on our own paths that will never help us. As was mentioned, it was David, who the king and his men were looking to kill, began to do anything he could to stay alive. One of those things was to lie about why he went away from the king to the city of Nob. In this encounter with Ahimelech, the priest, he said things that were not true. And in saying this, this is what happened, 1“then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee? And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place.” (1 Samuel 21:1,2) So David began by saying that he was commanded by the king to go there when really he wasn’t. These little lies may have helped him in the short run but didn’t in the long run. The same goes for us when we lie about our situation with people.

Now, David’s second lie was having the need to get a weapon, because he said the king required it to be done in a swift manner. However, one of Saul’s servants was there, so he had to do this quickly, in order to not be caught. And so it was that he went and talked with Ahimelech once again, to not only get bread but a sword. This is that encounter, 1“now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the Lord; and his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul. And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste. And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me. And David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.” (1 Samuel 21:7-10) So as you can see, there was fear in his heart, because Saul’s servant was there and would eventually tell the king what happened. Therefore, he left that place in a hurry, thinking that in Achish, things would be better. Now, it would have been very interesting to see the difference here, if David has prayed to the Lord God and done what he said, instead of his own desires. We must also think about this, for we often act like this ourselves.

It was in the town of Achish that David continued to play a different person than himself. Again, he didn’t feel comfortable with that king also and feared him as well. So instead of telling him the situation he was in, he pretended to be mad. This is that encounter, 1“and the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me? Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?” (1 Samuel 21:11-15) How often do we also get scared and do and say things that are untrue, in order to be safe? And is this right? Absolutely not. Would the Lord ever want us to forfeit our morals and be somebody entirely different in front of other people? Absolutely not. There is no excuse for doing this, even if we desire to be safe? Therefore, it is important to be seeking the Lord often, every day of our lives. Then, will we be led out of harm’s way, if that his will, and not have to deny doing anything we know is right. The Lord is our shepherd and will guide those that seek his face.

Let us pray:
Lord, help us to always be the person You desire us to be. I want to live up to Your standards, but need Your assistance at all times, in order for this to come true. Your ways are what leads to life eternal and I wish that I may always abide in Your presence. This way, would I never fall victim to living in any addiction or willful sin, but follow Your will for my life. And if I do fall because of sin and temptation, sorrow for sin does enter my soul, but I know that You are there to heal me. Only You have the power to cleanse us from all sin, so I run from the wickedness in my life and into Your open arms. I love You more than anything this world can offer. Nobody could lead me to heaven, apart from Your guidance. Therefore, I wish for You to always be near me. Help me to always realize what I have in the faith, that I may never let go of it. Lord, Your morals and standards are important to my life, so I pray that we may never forfeit them, in order to feel safe around others and in this life. Surely our belief in You should always be on solid ground and not let anything or anyone deplete it. You are our rock and our fortress, and when we rest on You all things make sense, and we know the right path to follow. We don’t have to lie in front of people about our lives, for we are living examples of what You would make us out to be. Lying is never right, for it would deceive others of the person I am and wish to be in You, Lord. I love You, Lord. Keep my eyes fixed from You. I believe in You. You are my Lord and I trust in You, God. Amen.

Let us read the Bible:
Note: Any Numbered References, found above, are listed below.

11 Samuel 21 (KJV)
1 Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee?
2 And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place.
3 Now therefore what is under thine hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand, or what there is present.
4 And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at least from women.
5 And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel.
6 So the priest gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the Lord, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away.
7 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the Lord; and his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul.
8 And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.
9 And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me.
10 And David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.
11 And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?
12 And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath.
13 And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
14 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?
15 Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?

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