David took the spear and the water jar from right beside Saul’s head, and he and Abishai left.
That lance was Saul’s security blanket. May you be forever mine, Lord (Psalm 91:1-2).
“…they have driven me out from the Lord’s land to a country where I can only worship foreign gods. Don’t let me be killed on foreign soil, away from the Lord.”
The limited notion that God was somehow limited to the soil of Palestine (Psalm 137:1-4; Ezekiel 11:15). That all changed with the deportation (Ezekiel 1:1-3; Daniel 2:28).
Saul answered, “I have done wrong. Come back, David, my son! I will never harm you again, because you have spared my life tonight.”
If Saul was indeed sincere this time (!), he never got the chance to show it (1 Samuel 31:1-6). May I always seize the opportunity to rectify any wrongs I’ve done, Father.
David replied, “…Just as I have spared your life today, may the Lord do the same to me and free me from all troubles!”
KEY PRINCIPLE! Here the relationship is clearly seen between the two planes of existence as well as how to respond to each (1 John 4:20). David showed mercy to Saul – not to find favor with him but rather with God. May I ever have this perspective present in me, Lord – and act accordingly.
Saul said to David, “God bless you, my son! You will succeed in everything you do!”
Unlike Balaam (Numbers 22:6), Saul’s blessing didn’t count for much – nor anything else that came out of his mouth.
So David went on his way, and Saul returned home.
David left with a reinforced understanding of God’s deliverance; Saul simply left empty-handed. The latter sort of reminds me of the Pharisees and Sadducees when they left the presence of Jesus in the same state (Matthew 16:1-4). What could be sadder?