1 Samuel Chapter 23

DAVID SAVES KELIAH; DAVID ESCAPES FROM SAUL

A. David saves Keliah from the Philistines
1. (1 Sam 23:1-4) God directs David to fight against the Philistines and deliver the city of Keliah
Then they told David, saying, "Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keliah and are plundering the threshing floors." So David inquired of the LORD, saying, "Shall I go and attack these Philistines?" And the LORD said to David, "Go and attack the Philistines and deliver Keliah." But David's men said to him, "Behold, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Keliah against the ranks of the Philistines?" Then David inquired of the LORD once more. And the LORD answered him and said, "Arise, go down to Keliah, for I will give the Philistines into your hands."

Then they told David: The return of David into his own land was quickly followed by exploits which not only increased his power but turned the eyes of all the people towards him as a protector. His first success was the deliverance of the city of Keliah from a band of Philistines who were plundering it of the produce of its harvest.

Keliah: A fortified city described in Joshua 15:44 was one of a group of cities in the Shephelah or Lowland, which included the low limestone hills bordering on the Philistine plain. It was perched on a steep hill above the Valley of Elah, about three miles south of Adullam, where the name Kila still survives to mark the spot. Being at no great distance from the Philistine border, Keliah was a target for robbery by the Philistines during the harvest season.

Threshing floors: No rain falls during the harvest season. ("Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call to the LORD, that He may send thunder and rain. Then you will know and see that your wickedness is great which you have done in the sight of the LORD by asking for yourselves a king" 1 Samuel 12:17.) The grain is threshed out in the open air by a heavy wooden sledge made of two boards, and curved up in the front, with pieces of basalt inserted for teeth. It is drawn over by horse, or it is trampled out by cattle. The threshing floor was usually a flat space on open ground. Sometimes the floor was on a flat rocky hill top, and occasionally is was in an open valley. The grain after winnowing is piled into heaps until it can be carried home and stored. During this time, the threshing floors must be watched and guarded from robbery. It was at this time, the Philistines plundered the threshing floors.

David inquired of the LORD: This shows David's wisdom and godliness. Some might have immediately said, "This is not my responsibility. Let King Saul deal with it." Others might have quickly said, "Let's go! I can fix this problem!" Either course was foolish, but David was wise because he sought out the LORD.

The inquiry was not made of the priest wearing the ephod, by means of the Urim and Thummim, for according to 1 Samuel 23:6, Abiathar, the high priest who succeeded the murdered Ahimelech, only joined David at Keliah. But, Gad the prophet was with David. It was no doubt through him that this inquiry was made. We know that such inquiries were made through the prophets for we have a detailed account of such an inquiry made by Jehoshaphat of the prophet Micaiah (1 Kings 22:5; 1 Kings 22:7-8) in which the same formula is used as in this case.

Go and attack the Philistines and save Keliah: By all outward appearance, this was a crazy thing to do. First, David had only 600 men--not exactly a large, highly trained army. Second, David had enough trouble with Saul. He did not need to add trouble from the Philistines. One enemy is usually enough. Third, this would bring attend to David and would inform King Saul of David's whereabouts.

David attacked the Philistines for two reasons. First, he had the command of God. Second, the people needed David's help. David was willing to endanger himself to obey God and to meet the needs of the people.

David inquired of the LORD once more: Wisely, David took the words from his men into great account. He wrestled with their advise and saw that in many ways it made a lot of sense not to attack the Philistines. At the same time, he knew this was an issue that had to be decided before the LORD.

Arise, go down to Keliah, for I will give the Philistines into your hands: God likes to confirm his word, especially when He directs us to do something hard of unusual. This time, the LORD not only confirmed His previous command, but He also gave a promise with the confirmation: "I will give the Philistines into your hands."


2. (1 Sam 23:5) David rescues the people of Keliah
So David and his men went to Keliah and fought with the Philistines; and he led away their livestock and struck them with a great slaughter. Thus David delivered the inhabitants of Keliah.

So David and his men went to Keliah and fought: David did what God told him to do. It is not enough to ask or know God's will. We must have a commitment to obey God' will, even when it is difficult.

David's success on this expedition was extraordinary. He saved the city and the inhabitants, he delivered the surrounding countryside from the ravages of the enemy, and he defeated the Philistines with a great slaughter. One would have imagined that this extraordinary success and deliverance might have secured David a safe retreat among the men of Keliah. But this was not so. And such is the nature of man, present dangers quickly obliterate past obligations.


3. (1 Sam 23:6-8) Saul comes against David at Keliah
Now it came about, when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keliah, that he came down with an ephod in his hand. When it was told Saul that David had come to Keliah, Saul said, "God has delivered him into my hand, for he shut himself in by entering a city with double gates and bars." So Saul summoned all the people for war, to go down to Keliah to besiege David and his men. 

Saul said, "God has delivered him into my hand.": It was a hopeless matter to hunt David as long as he remained roaming the borders of the desert of Judah and which stretched far southward beyond the reach of any armed force that Saul could collect. But there was a hope of being able to compass David's destruction either through treachery or hand-to-hand combat in a confined space like a city with bars and gates, a city such as Keliah.

The Hebrew phrase here is a very strong one. Literally, "God has ignored him." God has treated David as a stranger and so has allowed him to fall into my hand. Saul was so bind as to imagine that it was not himself but David whom God had rejected.

A city with double gates and bars: The people of Keliah had two options. One, they could give up David rather than expose themselves to the horrors of a siege. Or two, if they stood by David, the city's capture was a mere matter of time. In preservation of their own lives, the citizens of Keliah choose option one.

Saul summoned all the people for war: Such a summons to war on the part of the king has always been a royal right. The plea alleged for this summons was the necessity of an immediate national effort against David and his army. Saul made the common mistake that someone is an enemy of the LORD just because they are our enemy. Saul would not go to Keliah to save the people against the Philistines. But he would go to Keliah to try and defeat David.


4. (1 Sam 23:9-13) David escapes from Keliah
Now David knew that Saul was plotting evil against him; so he said to Abiathar the priest, "Bring the ephod here." Then David said, "O LORD God of Israel, Your servant has heard for certain that Saul is seeking to come to Keliah to destroy the city on my account. Will the men of Keliah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down just as Your servant has heard? O LORD God of Israel, I pray, tell Your servant." And the LORD said, "He will come down." Then David said, "Will the men of Keliah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?" And the LORD said, "They will surrender you." Then David and his men, about six hundred, arose and departed Keliah, and they went wherever they could go. When it was told Saul that David had escaped from Keliah, he gave up the pursuit.

Saul was plotting evil: As much as Saul was spying on David, now it seems David also had spies scouting out Saul's actions. It seems probable that Jonathan probably informed David of his father's plans.

Bring the ephod here: It is quite clear that a different method of inquiry was used by David on this occasion. In 1 Samuel 23:3-4, it is simply stated that David inquired of the LORD. In verse nine, the text is clear that David inquired via the priest Abiathar.

Men of Keliah: The literal Hebrew is "the lords" or "the masters" of Keliah. These people would be the governing body of Keliah and not just the citizens of the city.

Then David and his men...arose and departed Keliah: David could have stood and fought, and there was probably something inside him that probably wanted to fight. But David knew that it was not of the LORD. A lot of innocent people would get hurt in the battle. So David, who was a great warrior, humbled himself and escaped. David was not the kind of man to sneak away from a battle, but he did not let his pride get the best of him in this matter.


B. David narrowly escapes Saul in the Judean wilderness

1. (1 Sam 23:14-15) David takes refuge in the Wilderness of Ziph
David stayed in the wilderness in the strongholds, and remained in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God did not deliver him into his hand. Now David became aware that Saul had come out to seek his life while David was in the wilderness of Ziph and Horesh.

Strongholds: These are usually caves in the woods and mountains. They are often difficult to access and are perfect place to retreat from one's enemies.

The wilderness of Ziph: A mountainous and sequestered region was generally called a wilderness. It usually took its name from a large town in the district. Two miles southeast of Hebron, and in the midst of a level plain, is Tell-ziph. It is an isolated hill outcropping about a hundred feet high and probably was home to the ancient city of Ziph, from which the surrounding wilderness was called. Anciently, it seems to have been covered by extensive woods.

Saul sought him every day: Saul's pursuit of David was maintained constantly with men always spying on David. Any movement or knowledge of David and his men were reported to Saul.


2. (1 Sam 23:16-18) Jonathan and David meet each other for the last time
And Jonathan, Saul's son, arose and went to David at Horesh, and encouraged him in God. Thus he said to him, "Do not be afraid, because the hand of Saul my father will not find you, and you will be king over Israel and I will be next to you; and Saul my father knows that also." So the two of them made a covenant before the LORD; and David stayed at Horesh while Jonathan went to his house.

Jonathan...went to David at Horesh: This visit suggests that there was a growing conviction, not only in Jonathan's mind, but in general that God had transferred the kingdom from Saul to David. Consequently, David's success was inevitable.

I will be next to you: Had Jonathan not been killed at Mount Gilboa, it seems Jonathan would have resigned all claim to the crown. But the feeling must have often distressed David knowing that the kingdom could become his only by dispossessing his unselfish friend. To be second where by right of inheritance Jonathan should have been first would have been a very trying lot. In the end, it was better that Jonathan die a soldier's death, even granting that he would have felt a lively joy in David's success and the glory of his empire.

Saul my father knows that also: It is very likely by this time that the circumstance of Samuel's mysterious anointing of the son of Jesse years before at Bethlehem had become known to Saul. Now that David had been openly proclaimed a public enemy, and King Saul had repeatedly and openly sought David's life there was not reason for any concealment.

The two of them made a covenant before the LORD: David and Jonathan already made a covenant (1 Samuel 18:3 and 20:16), but now they confirm it again. Renewing or reconfirming a covenant does not make the previous covenant less precious; it makes it more precious and valid. This will be the last time David and Jonathan will see each other, and their relationship was still confirmed in a covenant.


3. (1 Sam 23:19-23) The Ziphites betray David
Then Ziphites came up to Saul at Gibeah, saying, "Is David not hiding with us in the strongholds of Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon? Now then, O king, come down according to all the desire of your soul to do so; and our part shall be to surrender him into the king's hand." Saul said, "May you be blessed of the LORD, for you have had compassion on me. Go now, make more sure, and investigate and see his place where his haunt is, and who has seen him there; for I am told that he is very cunning. So look, and learn about all the hiding places where he hides himself and return to me with certainty, and I will go with you; and if he is in the land, I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah."

South of Jeshimon: Jeshimon is not the name of a place, but it signifies a desert or place of solitude. It is used here for the desert which extends between the Dead Sea and the Hebron mountains. It is a plateau of white chalk and terminates on the east by cliffs which rise vertically from the Dead Sea to a height of 2000 feet. Not a spring nor a tree is visible in the land. Only the desert partridge and ibex are found in this wilderness.

I am told that he is very cunning: It was not David's craftiness that kept him from Saul's clutches; it was the goodness and faithfulness of the LORD. Saul did not believe that. So, he thought and said David's protection was due to being cunning.

At this time, David expresses his feelings to the LORD in song, and that song is Psalm 54. The title to that Psalm reads, "A contemplation of David when the Ziphites went and said to Saul, 'Is David not hiding with us?'"

In Psalm 54, David called out the the LORD for help: "Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your strength" (Psalm 54:1).

In Psalm 54, David understood his enemies: "For strangers have risen up against me, and oppressors have sought after my life; they have not set God before them" (Psalm 54:3).

In Psalm 54, David expresses his confidence in the LORD: "Behold, God is my helper; the LORD is with those who uphold my life" (Psalm 54:4).

In Psalm 54, David let go of the bitterness and fear and praised the LORD instead: "I will freely sacrifice to You; I will praise Your name, O LORD, for it is good" (Psalm 54:6).


4. (1 Sam 23:24-29) David's dramatic and narrow escape
Then they arose and went to Ziph before Saul. Now David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon, in the Arabah to the south of Jeshimon. When Saul and his men went to seek him, they told David, and he came down to the rock and stayed in the wilderness Maon. And when Saul heard it, he pursued David in the wilderness of Maon. Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain; and David was hurrying to get away from Saul, for Saul and his men were surrounding David and his men to seize them. But a messenger came to Saul, saying, "Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid on the land." So Saul returned from pursuing David and went to meet the Philistines; therefore they called that place the Rock of Escape. David went up from there and stayed in the strongholds of Engedi.

Wilderness of Maon: This area around a conical hill about seven miles to the south of Hebron is still known as Main. The Arabah is the name of the low-lying desert tract which extends along the valley of the Jordan from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea. Maon lay upon the edge of this depression, in the southern portion of the Jeshimon. (Maon was the hometown of Nabal.)

He came down to the rock: The Hebrew word is sela which literally translates as cliff or precipice. In the next verse, it is described as a mountain. On one side was David and his men, while Saul and his forces were on the other side. Saul's army was much more numerous than David's, and they were preparing to separate. This would enclose David and his men.

David was hurrying to get away from Saul: The Hebrew expresses fear and anxiety and may be better translated: "And David sought anxiously to go before the face of Saul."

The Philistines have made a raid on the land: This was God's plan to save David. The Philistines had probably availed themselves of the opportunity, which Saul's withdrawal of his forces southward to surround David and his men, had given them. The Philistines had free reign to invade the more northern provinces.

The Rock of Escape: The Hebrew here is sela-hammahlekoth which literally translates as "the rock of divisions". The rock was given this name because God, by his interposition of the Philistines invading land at this time, separated Saul from David. God pulled Saul away from David when David was within his reach.

Engedi: Engedi, which means fountain of the kid, is situated about halfway along the western shore of the Dead Sea. The precipitous cliffs recede from the water's edge and enclose a sloping plain watered by the stream which gushes copiously from the limestone rock. The country is full of caverns, which are perfect places for David and his men to hide.