April 4

April 4

1 Samuel 28–31

Scripture Text: 1 Samuel 28:1–31:13

Series: Read the Bible in a Year

The story of King Saul is rapidly coming to an end. He has always been hesitant to obey the voice of the Lord through Samuel but now, without Samuel, Saul resorts to inquiring of a medium, an intermediary between the living and the dead. In this way, Saul seeks to gain Samuel’s advice again, though he has outlawed all conjurers of the dead. She summons Samuel (though many think this nothing but a demon in disguise) who then speaks the blunt truth to Saul: that tomorrow he and his sons will join Samuel in Sheol (place of the dead). 

Meanwhile there is trouble in the ranks of Achish, King of Philistia. His commanders do not like David going to war with them. Perhaps they know he will outshine them on the field of battle; perhaps because they fear his recrimination for advancing against Israel from Jezreel, a town in northern Israel. Though Achish finds no fault with David, because of his commanders’ grumbling, he sends David and his men away. When David returned to Ziklag, he discovered Amalekite raiders had burned it and captured the families of the city. Of course, the citizenry blame David who effectively left the area undefended while away with Achish. Yet, David’s own wives, sons, and daughters had been carried off too. “David strengthened himself in the LORD his God” (1 Samuel 30:6) and asks for God’s guidance through the ephod of Abiathar. David receives a clear answer: pursue the raiders and rescue the people. He does so and in pursuit, finds an Egyptian enslaved to one of the Amalekite raiders. For the price of his life, he leads David to the Amalekites. They are unaware of their pursuers and spread out over the land, feasting and drinking on the spoil of their raiding. For the next day or so, David struck down every one of them and recovered everything and everyone the Amalekites had taken. 

With David away, dealing with the problems of his city, Achish and his commanders had been mustering against the King of Israel himself. It seems David did not realize the battle plan, or he might not have left the Lord’s anointed vulnerable. A battle ensues and Saul is wounded by an archer. Fearing his capture and humiliating mistreatment, he falls on his own sword, taking his life. Jonathan and his brothers are also killed. Their bodies are captured and impaled on the wall of Beth-shan just to the south of Jezreel where David had been banished earlier. But valiant men of Jabesh-gilead retrieve them and give them the dignity of burial.   

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