1 Samuel 29:1-30:15

1 Samuel 29:1-30:15

The battle that Saul had been warned about was about to begin in 1 Samuel 29. God had removed His blessing from Saul, and this battle would ultimately take his life, thus giving the land into the hands of David. However, due to all of David’s running around in fear of his life, he had aligned with the Philistines. Saul had pushed David away and now found himself fighting a group that was aligned with David. His two greatest enemies now stood before him.


David, however, did not have the opportunity to fight in this battle, and that was probably for the best. The Philistines knew who David was and knew that he had had great success in his previous battles. Many of those battles had actually been against the Philistines. They knew that David and Saul did not get along, and Achish had taken David in and benefited from David’s presence. But as the battle drew near, the leaders of the Philistines did not want David around, fearing that he might turn on them. They knew that he had proven himself to be loyal, but they could not take the chance that David would join forces with Israel and destroy the Philistines. Now this probably helped David in the end, for how would it look if he worked with the Philistines to defeat Israel and then turn around and seek to be Israel’s king?

David did not know what was about to happen in this battle. He did not know that this was the battle that would shift the power into his hands. He wanted to fight to further prove his loyalty to Achish and the Philistines, but he respected them enough to walk away and do as he was asked. In the end, it would all work out for David, as Saul would die, and David would eventually replace Saul as king of Israel. God had a plan all along, and David did as he was asked. Even when it did not make sense to David or he felt like he was being left out, he remained obedient to those in authority over him. Whereas Saul lost his patience and sought to do things his own way, David was faithful and loyal. As a result, David was rewarded and accomplished great things for God whereas Saul had to pay the consequences (which was his life).

While Saul and the Philistines prepared for battle, David’s story continued in 1 Samuel 30. Remaining obedient to Achish’s request, David began his return trip to Ziklag. Upon arriving, he discovered that someone had come in and destroyed the city while taking all of the women and children. Because of David’s quick arrival, he still had the chance to pursue these men in hopes to find the women and children of Ziklag, which included David’s wives as well. Just think if David had not been turned away from the battle. The captors would have gotten away with all of the women and children, and David and the Philistines may have never had the chance to rescue them. But God was in control. In one sense, He spared David’s life and reputation in not allowing David to go into battle against Saul and the Israelites. Then, in another way, He selected David to be the one to rescue the women and children of Ziklag.

Because David was faithful to God and to Achish, God was able to use David in another mission. We may not always understand it when things do not go our way, and we may question if God really cares about us. There are hard times in life, and when life throws us challenges, it is not always easy to trust that God is still in control. Like David, we have to come to a point where we give up control of our lives. Even if it does not make sense and we are not sure where God is taking us, we have to allow Him to have control. When we do so, He will be able to use us in mighty ways, but we must remain obedient and faithful. As for David, God promised him that he would have victory over the Amalekites. Even though David had originally wanted to be involved in the battle against Saul, he gave up control and found himself in the middle of God’s will for his life.

Matt