The young shepherd boy who slayed a giant and fought the Philistines now has a target on his head. The king who once loved the boy from Bethlehem became jealous of the rising star and ordered his execution. Throughout Saul’s pursuits, David not only evaded Saul but also had the opportunity to kill the king and take the target off his back. Yet David takes a route that is quite unexpected. In 1 Samuel 24, David and his mighty men come upon Saul and saw this as God’s way of handing over David’s enemy. David cuts the corner of Saul’s robe while he is distracted but feels bad about this and withholds his men from slaying Saul. Rather than confronting Saul in battle, David engages with Saul in conversation where he demonstrates his mercy and allows the vengeance of the Lord to reign. In 1 Samuel 26, Saul hunts down David with three thousand men in the wilderness of Ziph. David and Abishai scout the camp where Saul and his troops resided. Abishai eagerly volunteers to thrust a spear through Saul but David holds him back and responds, “As the Lord lives, the Lord will certainly strike him down: either his day will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish” (1 Sam. 26:10).
Even though David had the opportunity to kill Saul, David surprisingly spares the king. Why? David’s reasoning on both occasions for why he refused to kill Saul was because he is “the Lord’s anointed” (1 Sam. 24:6, 10; 26:9, 11, 16, 23). With the Lord as his witness, he says, “I will never lift my hand against the Lord’s anointed” (1 Sam. 26:11). The royal status appointed by God prohibits David from taking Saul’s life. In David’s view, the Lord chose Saul to be His anointed one (1 Sam. 10) and He would decide when Saul is no longer worthy of this honor (1 Sam. 31). David respected God’s anointed since God had designated Saul as the king and would later respect God’s decision to anoint him as the second king of Israel (1 Sam. 16:12-13; 2 Sam. 2:4; 5:3). David was preserving the dignity of the throne, regardless of Saul’s actions that reflected the contrary (1 Sam. 13-15). If David were to take Saul’s life it would set a bad precedent for Israel’s kingship that may promote violence for those who seek the crown. This shows that David did not pursue the throne through political assassination but awaited his kingship by patiently submitting to the Lord and waiting on God’s timing. If David were going to become the king of Israel one day, he would do it the right way.
Even though it was in David’s best interests to kill Saul he resisted the easiest path to kingship through patience. In these moments, David sets the tone for his leadership by displaying an example of mercy. Rather than slaying his enemy when he had the opportunity, he spared his life. Finally, David spared Saul’s life because he recognized that vengeance belongs to the Lord (Deut. 32:35). David could have easily killed Saul for revenge, but he showed mercy because he valued Saul’s life and understood it is God’s place to give and take life since the Lord chooses to deliver us from or to our enemies (1 Sam. 24:12-15; 26:23-24). In sum, killing Saul would foil David’s claim to kingship, promote assassination, and ruin the will of God and His power. But David’s example illustrates that vengeance belongs to the Lord, and we dare not act against God’s anointed.
-Daniel McMillin