Bible in One Year Day 114 (1 Samuel 23, Psalm 54)

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Day 114:  David Saves Keilah

Agape Bible Study 

Chapter 23  

Chapter 23: David Continues to Evade Saul

1 Samuel 23:1-6 ~ David saves the town of Keilah from the Philistines

In verse 6 we learn when Abiathar escaped the massacre at Nob that he managed to bring with him the high priest's ephod that contained the ocular devises of the urim and thummim (see Ex 28:6-30; 39:8-21). The word "ephod" has been used previously to refer in various ways to any article of clothing, textile, or image used in association with worship of Yahweh or in profane practice (Judg 8:27), but in this case the reference is to the specially designed sacred garment that the high priest wore with his other vestments (Ex chapter 28-39). The priestly ephod was made of finely woven linen embroidered with gold, blue, red and purple threads. It had two shoulder straps that fit over the shoulder and a waistband that tied around the waist of the high priest fitting as in an apron-like garment. A doubled over and embroidered linen piece in the same colors as used in the ephod and covered in twelve precious and semi-precious stones in four rows adorned the "breastplate of judgment" that was attached to the front of the ephod on the high priest's chest. The "breastplate of judgment" held the urim and thummim (Ex 28:23-30). The ephod was worn over the priest's blue robe that was worn over his white linen tunic: see the chart of the High Priest's Vestments (Ex 28:1-5).

Question: What is the significance of David having Abiathar with him who has in his possession the high priest's ephod?
Answer: Now David not only has the support of the people and the soldiers but also the priesthood. He also has possession of the holy ocular device that gives him the means by which to contact God through a descendant of Aaron. It has come to him from a Chief Priest who is under his protection. The priesthood and priestly counsel of the divine oracle have been officially transferred from Saul to David.

David hears that Keilah, a walled town located about eight and a half miles northwest of Hebron in Judahite territory (Josh 15:44; 1 Chr 4:19), is under siege by the Philistines. He consults Yahweh through the urim and thummim to ask if he should go and rescue the Israelite town.
Question: What is God's answer to David's inquiry but what complication arises and why? See verses 2-3.
Answer: God tells David to go and liberate the town; however, his men are fearful that they cannot succeed.

The four hundred fighting men with David are probably not properly armed and most are probably not trained soldiers. They are also afraid that David's own tribe may betray them and turn them over to Saul. To reassure his men, David consults Yahweh a second time (verse 4) and when the answer is the same there is no hesitation: they march on Keilah and, with God on their side, they defeat the Philistines and carry off the Philistines' animals and supplies (used during the siege of Keilah), which David's people probably desperately needed.

David and Jonathan (Gustave Dore)

1 Samuel 23:7-14 ~ Saul prepares to attack David at Keilah

Notice that unlike Saul who prefers to make his own decisions (see 14:18-19), that David continually seeks God's will before taking action. Also note that David has good intelligence coming from inside Saul's court as to Saul's actions and intentions.

Question: Why does Saul feel that he now has David trapped?
Answer: Keilah is a walled town and after the victory David and his men are now staying within the town. If Saul's army can surprise David and surround the town, he is confident that the townspeople will not risk having their town destroyed like Nob and will give David up.

Question: When David consulted Yahweh about a possible siege by Saul and about the attitude of the town elders, what did God reveal to David?
Answer: When David inquired of Yahweh concerning what he can expect from Saul and from the town elders, Yahweh tells him that Saul will come and that the town elders will indeed betray him.

David and his men escape just in time and find a refuge in the mountainous wilderness region of Ziph in the southern territory of the tribe of Judah (Josh 15:24). It is a region that is west of the southern end of the Dead Sea in the eastern Negeb.
Question: How many men did David have in 22:2 and how many men does he have with him now?
Answer: David had four hundred at the Cave of Adullam, but now two hundred more men have joined him and he has a fighting force of six hundred men.

1 Samuel 23:15-18 ~ Jonathan visits David at Horesh

David may be in communication with Jonathan who risks his life in coming to see David in his stronghold at Horesh. It is the last time they will ever meet. Horesh means "forest" and is believed to be just southeast of Hebron.

Question: If Jonathan is on David's side, why doesn't he join David's band of outcasts?
Answer: Perhaps it is because Jonathan is more valuable to David living within the court of Saul.

It is obvious that David has an ally in Saul's camp and information is being passed to David that includes warnings of Saul's military plans.
Question: How many times is David warned concerning Saul's plans to capture him? 
Answer:

1. David is warned that Saul knew he was at Keilah and planned to trap him there.
2. David is told that Saul is planning to trap him at Horesh.
3. Later David will be warned that Saul is coming after him when he is in the desert of Maon.

Question: Jonathan realizes that his friend is feeling overwhelmed with his many struggles and worries not only about his own safety but the safety of the men who have linked their destinies to his. How does Jonathan encourage David?
Answer:

1. He tells David not to be afraid; Saul will not capture him.
2. He tells David he is destined to be Israel's king and he will support David in his kingship.
3. He renews his covenant with David as a sign of his loyalty.

1 Samuel 23:19-28 ~ Saul Attempts to Trap David at Horesh

Some men from the city of Ziph, south of Hebron, went to betray David to Saul and to offer to assist in capturing him. In the meantime, David and his men are coming down from the mountainous wilderness of Ziph and on the way to Maon, probably a site about twelve and a half miles south of Hebron. David has a very close call when Saul and his army are on one side of a gorge and David and his men are on the other. Divine providence intervenes when Saul receives news of another Philistine attack and breaks off his pursuit of David. David wrote about the experience:

For the choirmaster. On stringed instruments. 

Poem of David when the Ziphites went to Saul and said, "Is not David hiding with us?"
Arrogant men are attacking me, bullies hounding me to death, no room in their thoughts for God. But now God is coming to my help, the Lord , among those who sustain me. May their wickedness recoil on those who lie in wait for me. Yahweh, in your constancy, destroy them. How gladly will I offer you sacrifice, and praise your name, for it is good, for it has rescued me from all my troubles, and my eye has feasted on my enemies.
Psalm 54:3-7

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A Daily Defense 
Dy 114 Too Inclusive? 

CHALLENGE: “The Catholic Church is too inclusive when it says non-Christians can be saved. Jesus said, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me’ (John 14:6), and Peter declared, ‘There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved’ (Acts 4:12).” 

DEFENSE: Salvation is through Christ alone, but that does not mean that only Christians can be saved. When Peter says that salvation is not found in anyone besides Jesus, he asserts that there is no Savior besides Jesus; when Jesus says no one comes to the Father but by him, he refers to his unique role in God’s plan and, implicitly, to his atoning death on the cross. 

However, neither Jesus nor Peter says one must consciously embrace the Christian faith or be damned.

Indeed, we have good reason to think that some individuals will be saved who do not consciously embrace Christianity in this life. For example, there is a stage in everyone’s life when we are incapable of understanding the Christian message because we are too young. 

Unless we are willing to consign all infants and small children to hell (or at least all unbaptized ones), then we must be prepared to say that it is possible for them to be saved despite their lack of conscious faith in Jesus. 

Similarly, righteous Jews before the time of Christ did not know that Jesus of Nazareth would be the Messiah and thus did not have conscious faith in him. It certainly was not commonly expected that the Messiah would be the Son of God or die for the sins of the world. Yet we have the explicit testimony of Scripture that many were saved despite their lack of conscious faith in Jesus (Matt. 8:11; Heb. 11).

This means that people can be saved through Jesus (who is “the way, the truth, and the life”) without consciously understanding in this life that he is the means by which they are saved. The same principle applies to others who do not know the truth of the Christian faith through no fault of their own (see Day 113). We even have hints of this when Paul says that God “overlooked” times of Gentile ignorance (Acts 17:30) and that non-Christian Gentiles may find that their consciences excuse them on the day of judgment (Rom. 2:15–16).

Jimmy Akin, A Daily Defense: 365 Days (Plus One) to Becoming a Better Apologist

Bible in One Year Day 112 (1 Samuel 20, Psalm 142)

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Day 112:  True Friendship 

Agape Bible Study 

1 Samuel 20 

Chapter 20: Jonathan Helps David Escape

1 Samuel 20:1-4 ~ David Consults Jonathan

Don't miss the emotional intensity of the exchange between David and Jonathan as David asks three rhetorical questions in verse 1:

1. "What have I done?"
2. "What is my guilt?"
3. "How have I wronged your father ...?"

Look for the equally emotional echo of these questions repeated by Jonathan to Saul in 20:32.

In verse 2 Jonathan expresses the belief that the matter of his father's hostility toward David has been settled.

Question: What argument does Jonathan offer to David to support his belief that David is no longer in danger? What is David's counter argument?
Answer: Jonathan says that he is his father's closest confidant and he would know if Saul still planned to kill David. David replies that Saul is now hiding his plans from Jonathan because he knows Jonathan favors David.

David and Jonathan (Rembrandt) 

1 Samuel 20:5-17 ~ The Plan Part I

According to the Law of the Sinai Covenant, there was a twice daily liturgical sacrifice at the Sanctuary, and also weekly (Sabbath), monthly, yearly and periodic communal holy days with prescribed sacrifices. The Israelites were to keep to a lunar calendar with the feast of the New Moon marking the first day of the new month and with prescribed sacrifices to be offered at the Sanctuary during the morning liturgy of the Tamid sacrifice (Num 10:10; 28:11-15; Amos 8:5). 

The feast of the New Moon was a joyous occasion celebrated in villages across Israel with the blowing of horns and communal feasts. As the king's son-in-law, David is expected to celebrate with the royal family, but attending the feast would only provide an opportunity for Saul to kill David. Jonathan says it will be the New Moon feast "tomorrow" because the next day began at sunset of what we would consider to be the same day.

Question: What is the plan David suggests?
Answer: Jonathan will tell his father that David has his permission to attend a clan feast in Bethlehem. If Saul flies into a rage they will know that he intended to kill David.

 

When David asks how Jonathan will warn him if his life is in danger, Jonathan suggests they leave his home and go into the countryside where they will have privacy. Jonathan is probably worried that a servant may hear their conversation. When they are alone in the field, Jonathan then swears by God's divine name (similar to the first part of the formula oath in 20:3b) to David that he will test his father's intentions concerning David.

Question: By what self-curse does Jonathan bind himself in Yahweh's name?
Answer: Jonathan will be under divine judgment if he fails to tell David if he is safe or if he is in danger and must escape.

1 Samuel 20:18-23 ~ The Plan Part II

The "day of the deed" (verse 19) probably refers to the day of the feast when Jonathan will put his plan into motion and it is hoped that Saul will reveal his true intentions. David's hiding place was probably and prominent memorial stone set up to remember some historical event (see Josh 4:20-21). The Hebrew word ezel means "departure" and is therefore a fitting place for David to await his fate.

 

Question: What is Jonathan's plan to inform David of what he has discovered about his father's intentions?

Answer: If it is safe for David to reveal himself, Jonathan will shoot the arrows close in. If however David is in danger and should leave, Jonathan will shoot the arrows farther down the field and will send this servant out into the field to find them.

The number three (three arrows and three days) may be significant; perhaps symbolizing that David's change in status from honored hero and son-in-law in the royal family to outcast is part of God's Divine Plan.

1 Samuel 20:24-31 ~ Jonathan discovers Saul's Intentions

The royal family gathers to celebrate the New Moon feast. Abner is included because he is not only Saul's general but Saul's nephew and therefore a member of the royal family. At first Saul is not disturbed by David's absence. He assumes that David has become ritually unclean and therefore cannot attend the meal on the first night. Notice that Saul takes the strategic position at the table with his back against the wall where he cannot be ambushed from behind. Does he fear that David will attempt to assassinate him? Notice that Saul does not use David's name but only calls him "son of Jesse" three times.

Those who participated in the feast of the New Moon had to be ritually clean, as in all the sacred feasts of the liturgical calendar, including the Passover meal. Ritual uncleanliness could arise from a number of activities in daily life that are listed in the Holiness Code in Leviticus chapters 11-15. Such uncleanness (with the exception of contamination by a corpse) was lifted by sundown after ritually bathing. This is why Saul will be greatly disturbed that David is not present on the next day for the meal. Most feast day meals occurred at noon. The Passover meal which took place at sundown was the exception. We know that the New Moon feast took place during the day because if it had occurred after sundown Saul would have expected David to have become ritually cleansed and fit to attend the meal.

As was the plan, when Saul inquires about David's absence, Jonathan gives the excuse that he gave David permission to attend an annual clan feast in Bethlehem because his presence was demanded by his elder brothers. As the youngest brother, David's elder brothers had authority over him.

Question: What is Saul's reaction and what proof is offered of Saul's attitude toward David that Jonathan found hard to accept earlier?
Answer: Saul flew into a rage and clearly reveals his intentions to kill David.

Jonathan's behavior is incomprehensible to Saul. David stands in the way of Jonathan's kingship and yet Jonathan in siding with "the son of Jesse." Saul's insults in verse 30 are not directed at Jonathan's mother but at Jonathan who Saul accuses of not being a "true son" because of his friendship with David. Saul swears an oath to kill "the son of Jesse," saying Now have him fetched and brought to me; for he is a son of death (literal translation). Personifying "Death," Saul is saying that he has sworn a covenant with death for David's life. It is "Death" who is Saul's witness to his oath.

Question: With what can Saul's covenant oath with death be compared and contrasted? See 18:3; 20:14-17, 42.
Answer: His oath can be seen in contrast to the oath David and Jonathan swore in which they pledged their covenant love and loyalty to each other and David's covenant promise to protect Jonathan's descendants. Their oaths, however, were sworn in Yahweh's Divine Name and with Yahweh as their witness.

It appears that Saul fully believes that David is the man Samuel spoke of who is chosen by God to be the next king (15:28).
Question: What point does Saul make about David concerning Jonathan and his heirs succeeding Saul as king of Israel?
Answer: He tries to appeal to Jonathan's self-interest in telling him as long as David lives Jonathan's succession rights are not secure.

1 Samuel 20:35-21:1 ~ Jonathan warns David

Acting in accord with the plan Jonathan and David made (20:11-13), Jonathan takes a servant into the field and pretends to be engaged in archery practice. David is hiding behind the memorial stone waiting for the signal that it is either safe for him to show himself and return home or that he must leave to escape from Saul's wrath by going into exile.
Question: What signal does Jonathan give?
Answer: He gives the signal that David must go into exile.

Question: Why is it significant that David prostrates himself before Jonathan three times?
Answer: David is demonstrating his faithful allegiance to Jonathan as his lord who is still the crown prince of Israel.

The two young men part as friends with Jonathan reminding David of the oath of loyalty they swore to one another that includes David's promise to show the same covenant love to Jonathan's descendants. It is an oath that David will dutifully keep.

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A Daily Defense 

Day 112 The Magisterium and the Word of God 

CHALLENGE: “The Catholic Church is wrong to teach that its Magisterium is superior to the word of God.” 

DEFENSE: The Church teaches that the Magisterium serves the word of God.

During his earthly ministry, Jesus commissioned his apostles and others to teach in his name, telling them: “He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me” (Luke 10:16). 

He further commissioned this teaching authority to continue to the end of the world, saying: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age” (Matt. 28:19–20). 

Today this teaching authority, known as the Magisterium (from the Latin, magister, “teacher”), is exercised by the bishops, the successors of the apostles. Although it was established by Christ, the Church does not regard the Magisterium as superior to the word of God but as its servant. 

Vatican II taught: “This teaching office is not above the word of God, but serves it, teaching only what has been handed on, listening to it devoutly, guarding it scrupulously and explaining it faithfully in accord with a divine commission and with the help of the Holy Spirit, it draws from this one deposit of faith everything which it presents for belief as divinely revealed” (Dei Verbum 10). The idea that the Magisterium is superior to the word of God is false. It plays a subordinate role in helping the faithful identify and understand the word of God. Thus the Magisterium helped the Church discern the canon of Scripture—which books were divinely inspired and which were not. It similarly helps the Church discern which Traditions are of apostolic origin and which are not. 

And it helps the Church understand the contents of both Scripture and Tradition. However, in all these things, the Magisterium is a guide and not a source. The source is the word of God, as expressed in Scripture and Tradition. The Magisterium is subordinate to these, as illustrated by the fact that it is the word of God that gives the Magisterium its authority (see the verses above), not the other way around.

Jimmy Akin, A Daily Defense: 365 Days (Plus One) to Becoming a Better Apologist