1 Samuel 29:1 - Meaning and Application

Here is David’s great distress, and we may suppose he felt it, even though we do not read that he asked God for advice or found a plan of his own to escape. The armies of the Philistines and Israel were camped and ready for battle (1 Samuel 29:1). Achish, who had shown kindness to David, had required him to come with the men under his command. David came, and when the army was reviewed, he was found with Achish in the place assigned to him in the rear (1 Samuel 29:2).

If he had pulled back when the battle began and left his post, he would have been blamed forever, not only for cowardice and betrayal, but also for shameful ingratitude toward Achish. Achish had protected him, trusted him, and given him an honorable position. David could not bring himself to do such a dishonest thing. But if he fought with the Philistines against Israel, as was expected, he would be seen as an enemy of God’s people and a traitor to his own country. His own people would hate him, and they would all be against his claim to the throne, since he had fought under the banner of the uncircumcised, that is, the Philistines.

If Saul was killed in that battle, as happened, people would likely lay the blame at David’s feet, as if he had killed him. So on either side there was both sin and disgrace. This was David’s trap, and it was a serious one for a good man. It is harder for a godly person to see sin ahead than to see trouble ahead. He had brought this on himself by acting without wisdom, leaving Judah and going among the uncircumcised. It is no surprise if those who make close friends with wicked people do not come away without guilt, grief, or both.

We are not told exactly what David planned to do. Perhaps he meant only to stand near the king’s head as a bodyguard, in the post assigned to him (1 Samuel 28:2), and not take any action against Israel. But it would have been very hard to stand so near the edge of sin and not fall in. So although God could have justly left him in this trouble to correct his foolishness, because David’s heart was upright, God would not let him be tempted beyond what he could bear. Instead, with the temptation, God made a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13).

God also opened a door for David’s rescue from this trouble. He turned the hearts of the Philistine princes, the commanders of the Philistine army, against using him in the battle, and they demanded that he be sent home. Their hostility became his help, when no friend was able to do him such a kindness.

Their question was a fair one when they saw the troops gathered: “What are these Hebrews doing here?” (1 Samuel 29:3). What trust can be placed in them, or what help can be expected from them? A Hebrew is out of place, and if he truly has a Hebrew spirit, he is also out of his element in the camp of the Philistines. David once hated the company of evildoers, even though he was now among them (Psalm 26:5).

Achish gave David an honorable witness on this occasion. He saw him as a refugee who had fled unfair treatment in his own land and had put himself under Achish’s protection. For that reason, Achish thought he was both bound in justice to care for him and wise to use him. He said that David had been with him “these days, or these years,” meaning for a long time, and that he had never found any fault in him or any reason to distrust his loyalty. He believed David had truly turned to him. This shows that David had acted with great caution and had wisely hidden the loyalty he still had for his own people. We need to walk carefully toward outsiders, keep our words guarded when the wicked are before us, and stay reserved.

Still, the princes were firm that David must be sent away, and they gave good reasons. First, he had once been an old enemy of the Philistines. The song about his victories had made that plain: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands” (1 Samuel 29:5). They said it would bring them shame to shelter and trust someone so well known as their destroyer. And how could he now be expected to fight honestly against Saul, when he had once fought so strongly with Saul and for him? Popular praise can be turned around and used against a person later, to his shame.

Second, he could become a very dangerous enemy and do them more harm than Saul’s whole army. They feared that in battle he might turn against them and attack from behind while the Israelites pressed from the front (1 Samuel 29:4). And they had reason to think he might do that if he could win back Saul’s favor by betraying them. No one should trust a man who, besides loving his own country, might also think it is in his interest to be false to those who hired him. It is dangerous to put confidence in an enemy who has only been partly reconciled.