All Articles For Day of Shadows

So had David slain the giant Goliath of the Philistines. Seeing their champion dead, the Philistines flee. They should have come to the Hebrews and said, “We are thy servants.” So they had promised by the mouth of the giant in the event he should be killed. “If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me,” these had been his words, “then will we be your servants”. Such had been their proposal. And it had been accepted by David’s fighting with their champion. But the impossible had happened. Their champion was killed. And the Philistines now flee.

As we have seen, Saul refuses to sumbit to his sentence of deposition and the loss of his kingdom pronounced over him by Samuel in the name of God. Contrary to the revealed will of the Lord that he abdicate his throne to make room for his God-appointed successor, Saul is determined to maintain himself in power and to secure his throne for his kin. Accordingly, he will be on the alert for that “neighbor” better than he to kill him as soon as he can be certain that he has identified him.

It is becoming more and more plain that the Lord is taking the kingdom from Saul and giving it to that “neighbor” better than he. Saul sees and knows but he persists in fighting God. His heart is hard and always harder. It is a hardening process by which Saul is being visited characterized by clearly discernible stages. The first stage in the process was reached when Saul began to eye David. Next he stabbed at David with his javelin. David had to leap in order to avoid being pierced through.

Fleeing before the face of Saul, David, as accompanied by Samuel, took up his residence in the quiet retreat of the prophets of Naioth. But as we have seen, his rest in that place was of short duration. Saul learned his hiding place, and sent messengers to take him. Their arrival in Naioth was sudden. Time for flight there was not. David was trapped. But the Lord came to the rescue. The messengers, including the master who sent them—king Saul—arrived each time during the meetings of the prophets.

As was explained, out of loyalty to David, Jonathan tells Saul the lie that David put into his friend’s mouth. As we stated, he even added to it in order that Saul might be the more impressed by its validity as an excuse.

David in co-operation with Jonathan has put Saul to a final test; and it has once more become evident that the king is truly determined to kill David, and that therefore His past attempts on the life of the son of Jesse, cannot be attributed to the attacks of madness by which the king is periodically being visited. Having been fully informed by Jonathan of Saul’s reactions, David takes his journey and comes to Nob to Amelech the priest. Here at this time was the tabernacle. The position of Nob was near Jerusalem.

We now turn to the 12th chapter of the book of Exodus and thereof the 13th verse and read, “And the blood shall be unto you for a token upon the houses where ye are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you, to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.” The ninth plague of the three days darkness has come and gone.

As we saw, as provided with arms and bread, David flees to Gath. He hopes to find safety and rest with the heathen in the way of their concluding that he has abandoned his subjection to Saul and deserted into a foreign country. His wish does not materialize. The Philistines recognize him as the slayer of their Goliath. They recollect the song of triumph in which David had been honored above Saul. They conclude that he came to them with evil intent and thus as loyal to his own master and people.

As we have seen, Saul hears David has men with him. The king’s heart is moved. To him it is the certain indication that at any time now the son of Jesse will deal him the blow that will hurl him and his house from the throne. The king is terrified. He is persuaded in his heart that the whole people, including his fellow tribesmen, have forsaken him to a man and gone over to the side of David. Calling together his officers of state, he lodges against them the most outrageous charges. The servants of Saul stand speechless all...

So had Saul smitten Nob, the city of priests. All had died with the exception of Abiathar, one of Ahimelech’s sons.