|
|
1 Samuel 27 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
The life of David is not all sunshine and rainbows. Though he was a man after God’s own heart, he was still human. Here in 1 Samuel 27, he makes a controversial decision. The relentless pursuit by Saul has worn him down. The promise of his kingship which had been reiterated again and again has delayed.
He actually decides in his heart to go live with the Philistines. Yes, the dreaded Philistines. The stranger part of this story to me is that he goes on a violent military conquest. It seemed, in his heart, that the decision to take human lives was the only way in which he could avoid being captured by Saul. But, was it right?
Some scholars have speculated that David may have justified his actions because the complete destruction of Israel’s enemies had been left undone during the time of Joshua. There may have been a practical side to this decision as well. Verse 3 tells us that each man had his family with him. It was simply not possible for David to stay on the run with his men and their families. Furthermore, it is possible this was a time of learning for David because the Philistine military was so much more advanced than Israel. But again, does this make it right?
The difficult part of this story is figuring out if David is making a mistake or simply doing what is necessary for survival. By raiding Israel’s enemies and taking every life, the Philistine leader, Achish, never knows exactly what David is doing or who he is conquering. In fact, in his conversations with David, Achish believes that he has burned every bridge in Israel and is committed to serving the Philistines forever. This sets up quite a predicament.
David is trapped serving the Philistines who think he is on their side. The truth is, David has positioned himself as a mercenary working to eliminate Israel’s enemies while using the Philistines territory as protection from Saul. What will happen when the Philistines actually go to battle against Israel? Who will David side with?
We will have to wait a few more chapters for those answers.