The Bible Recap - Day 103 (1 Samuel 18-20, Psalm 11, Psalm 59) - Year 4

Starting point is 00:00:00 Hey Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble, and I'm your host for the Bible recap. After David killed Goliath, he was a local hero. Saul becomes very interested in knowing more about him, and Saul's son Jonathan was also really impressed with how David handled himself through the whole process. When we talk about Jonathan, it's important to be aware of a thing called primogeniture. That's where the first born in a family is the one who takes over the father's position. In this society, it may be a tradition, but it's not a rule. So Jonathan probably has the mindset that he will succeed his father as king at some point.

Starting point is 00:00:42 But today, he gives David some gifts, and it's not clear if these gifts indicate that he thinks David should be king instead of him, or if he's just being generous. The local women of the town praised David too. They credit him with winning the war. Normally, this credit would go to the king, so when it goes to David, Saul feels threatened. The next day, Saul gets a visit from his demon, and he tries to kill David twice while David's playing music for him. Saul was afraid of David because God was with David, not him. And these are his first two attempts of at least 16 times when he tries to kill David.

Starting point is 00:01:16 Today will basically be a rundown of a lot of Saul's plans and how God darts them all. Saul has no concern for God's glory or what's best for the nation he's only seeking to serve himself. Self-focus is like fertilizer on fear, and it smells about the same. Saul's plan B is to get David away from him and hopefully have him killed by sending him off to war. But that backfires when David succeeds because now everyone loves him more. Saul switches tactics to plan C. He wants to lure David into marrying his daughter, McCall. You might remember from yesterday that this was supposed to be one of the prizes for killing a life, but apparently Saul backpedaled on that,

Starting point is 00:01:54 and now he's requiring more Philistines be killed in order to marry McCall. One hundred more, to be precise, in hopes that David would be killed in the process. David doubles down and comes back having killed 200 Philistines. All Saul's efforts to destroy David only build him up. Saul also may have hopes that McCall will lead David away from Yahweh because according to 1913, she practices idolatry. Saul's plan D is to get Jonathan and his servants to kill David,

Starting point is 00:02:22 but Jonathan is not having it. He tries to reason with, but Jonathan is not having it. He tries to reason with Saul, and Saul is like, you know what, you're right. I won't try to kill him anymore. Sure, okay. So Jonathan tells David all as well, and they should come back and play music for Saul again. I'm not sure if David believes Saul or if he just needs a paycheck, but I can't imagine how awkward this is. After David wins yet another war, Saul breaks his word and throws another spear at David. Saul's demon always seems to show up after David has some great victory on God's terms, being anointed as King, killing Goliath,

Starting point is 00:02:57 defeating the Philistines. David runs, and Saul sends assassins to David's house. But his wife, McCall, who was supposed to be a snare, actually hatches a plot to save him. She puts one of her idols in the bed and pretends it's David. Then she lies to the assassins. McCall lies, but to protect a life. In some instances, like with Rahab the prostitute and Pharaoh's Egyptian midwives, scripture praises the people who live by faith and aim to be honorable even when the stakes are huge. Meanwhile, David runs to Samuel's house. Saul finds out and sends three rounds of assassins there and also ends up going there himself. But the jokes on him, because God sidetracks them all with praise and prophecy. This reminds me of when Balum was hired to curse the Israelites, but all he could do was bless them.

Starting point is 00:03:48 God is sovereign even over the efforts of an evil king. In that moment, Saul is humbled. David leaves Samuel's house and goes to see Jonathan, who still somehow believes his dad's promise not to kill David. I guess he's been out of the loop. David wants Jonathan to see the truth and they hatch a plan for him to escape if Saul is, in fact, still after David's life. David also makes a promise to Jonathan that he will show favor to Jonathan and his family,

Starting point is 00:04:13 no matter what happens. The next day there's a feast that David is expected to attend, but when he doesn't show up, Saul gets suspicious. He asks about David. And this is interesting. Saul won't even speak David's name anymore. He refers to him as the son of Jesse from here on out. Jonathan lies to Saul about David's whereabouts, and again, it's a lie to protect a human life. But Saul doesn't believe Jonathan. He's furious, and he threatens to take the kingdom away from Jonathan. But God has already told Saul that the kingdom has been appointed to someone else, so it's not Saul's to give. Then Saul attempts to murder his own son,

Starting point is 00:04:51 the heir apparent. Now Jonathan knows his dad has been lying to him and David wasn't just paranoid. The next day, Jonathan commences with their plan for David's escape. They partway with tears and blessings and the holy kiss that serves as an ancient Near Eastern greeting. Then we read two Psalms written by David during or about this time in his life.

Starting point is 00:05:11 In Psalm 11 we see that David trusts God in the midst of the attacks on his life and doesn't doubt God's love for him despite the testing he's enduring. He also declares his innocence in regard to his enemies attacks. In Psalm 59, David recounts God's past faithfulness. This serves to remind him who God is in the present and will be in the future. He preaches the truth to himself in the midst of repeated attacks on his life. There were lots of opportunities for God shots today. What was yours? Mine was in Psalm 59.8, where David is talking about his enemies, who are God's enemies, and he says, you O Lord laugh at them. The only place Scripture mentions God laughing

Starting point is 00:05:53 is at his enemies. And his laughter at them is meant to be a comfort to his children, like it is to David in this Psalm. His laughter serves as a reminder that he's not worried. He has defeated his enemies who are also our enemies. He's protecting us and defending his name at the same time. The fact that scripture only records God laughing at his enemies doesn't mean that God doesn't have a sense of humor. He certainly does, and we see that demonstrated in other ways. Like when Balam's donkey talks to him, God's God jokes. He laughs at his enemies because their plans

Starting point is 00:06:25 will never succeed against him. He's victorious, he's protective, and he's where the joy is. Are you tired of drinking your coffee straight out of the pot every morning? Do you drop all your things when you're walking from the car and wish there were some kind of convenient piece of material to hold them all together safely.

Starting point is 00:06:51 Is your torso cold and in need of covering? We are here to help. We've got coffee mugs and tote bags and shirts, and even a few other fun things. Check out our merchandise today at the Recap Store. Look for a link in the show notes or visit thebibelrecap.com. The Bible Recap is brought to you by D-group, discipleship and Bible study groups that made in homes and churches around the world each week.

The Bible Recap - Day 103 (1 Samuel 18-20, Psalm 11, Psalm 59) - Year 4

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