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The last time we were together, 
two weeks ago, we finished Chapter 17, where David went to battle 
against Goliath and killed the Philistine champion. Well, here 
in Chapter 18, we continue in the story of Saul and David. As David Samura says in his excellent 
commentary, in the rest of 1 Samuel, God, the Lord of history, providentially 
guides the lives of two persons, Saul and David. The former's 
decline and the latter's rise. However, the emphasis is not 
so much on their political actions as on their internal conditions, 
that is, their spiritual relationships with God. In this particular 
chapter, we see David's rise, assuming the position of a military 
leader, and he also receives the benefit of becoming Saul's 
son-in-law. And then we see that continual 
decline of Saul and the continual rise of David. So we're going 
to look at this chapter under the title, The Rise of David 
and Resentment by Saul. So I'll begin reading in verse 
1. Now when he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan 
was knit to the soul of David. And Jonathan loved him as his 
own soul. Saul took him that day and would 
not let him go home to his father's house anymore. Then Jonathan 
and David made a covenant because he loved him as his own soul. 
And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to 
David with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his 
belt. So David went out wherever went out wherever Saul sent him 
and behaved wisely. And Saul set him over the men 
of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people and 
also in the sight of Saul's servants. Now it had happened as they were 
coming home, when David was returning from the slaughter of the Philistine, 
that the women had come out of all the cities of Israel, singing 
and dancing to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and 
with musical instruments. So the women sang as they danced 
and said, Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten 
thousands. And Saul was very angry, and 
the saying displeased him. And he said, they have ascribed 
to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed only thousands. Now what more can he have but 
the kingdom? So Saul eyed David from that 
day forward. And it happened on the next day 
that the distressing spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied 
inside the house. So David played music with his 
hand, as at other times. But there was a spear in Saul's 
hand, and Saul cast the spear, for he said, I will pin David 
to the wall. But David escaped his presence 
twice. Now Saul was afraid of David, 
because the Lord was with him, but had departed from Saul. Therefore, 
Saul removed him from his presence and made him his captain over 
a thousand, and he went out and came in before the people. And 
David behaved wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him. Therefore, when Saul saw that 
he behaved very wisely, he was afraid of him. But all Israel 
and Judah loved David because he went out and came in before 
them. And Saul said to David, here is my older daughter Merah. 
I will give her to you as a wife. Only be valiant for me and fight 
the Lord's battles. For Saul thought, let my hand 
not be against him, but let the hand of the Philistines be against 
him. So David said to Saul, who am 
I and what is my life for my father's family in Israel that 
I should be son-in-law to the king? But it happened at the 
time when Merib, Saul's daughter, should have been given to David 
that she was given to Adriel, the Maholothite, as a wife. Now 
Michael, Saul's daughter, loved David. And they told Saul, and 
the thing pleased him. So Saul said, I will give her 
to him, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of 
the Philistines may be against him. Therefore Saul said to David 
a second time, you shall be my son-in-law today. And Saul commanded 
his servants, communicate with David secretly and say, look, 
the king has delight in you and all his servants love you. Now 
therefore become the king's son-in-law. So Saul's servants spoke those 
words in the hearing of David. And David said, does it seem 
to you a light thing to be a king's son-in-law, saying I'm a poor 
and lightly esteemed man? And the servants of Saul told 
him, saying, in this manner David spoke. Then Saul said, thus you 
shall say to David, the king does not desire any dowry but 
100 foreskins of the Philistines to take vengeance on the king's 
enemies. But Saul thought to make David 
fall by the hand of the Philistines. So when his servants told David 
these words, it pleased David well to become the king's son-in-law. Now the days had not expired. 
Therefore David arose and went, he and his men, and killed 200 
men of the Philistines. And David brought their foreskins, 
and they gave them in full count to the king, that he might become 
the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michael, his 
daughter, as a wife. Thus Saul saw and knew that the 
Lord was with David and that Michael, Saul's daughter, loved 
him. And Saul was still more afraid of David. So Saul became 
David's enemy continually. Then the princes of the Philistines 
went out to war. And so it was, whenever they 
went out, that David behaved more wisely than all the servants 
of Saul, so that his name became highly esteemed. Amen." Now, 
certainly it is obvious here the decline of Saul and the rise 
of David. So we're going to trace this 
out under two or three broad considerations. First, the covenant 
with Jonathan in verses 1 to 5. Jonathan esteems David. Saul envies David. In the second 
place, we'll see the rise of David. We're going to just take 
a sampling of texts from this passage or from this chapter. 
And then thirdly, the resentment by Saul. That's the bulk of the 
chapter in verses 6 to 30. So the resentment by Saul, we 
ought to see it with the backdrop of how David is being perceived 
in all of Israel and how he does indeed have the favor of God. 
Let's look first at this covenant with Jonathan. Notice Jonathan's 
response to this victory in the Valley of Elah. When David renders, 
when David puts Goliath to death, He takes Goliath's hat off. We read in verse 1, the soul 
of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved 
him as his own soul. Jonathan no doubt saw in David 
a man who was consumed, for A. the glory of God and B. the glory 
of God's kingdom. Jonathan saw that for David what 
was important was killing Philistines. Jonathan saw in David a mighty 
warrior who valued and prized the God of Israel. And so immediately 
Jonathan saw this and it endeared him to him. Notice that Jonathan 
loved him as his own soul. Then Saul took him that day and 
would not let him go home to his father's house anymore. Remember back in chapter 17 we 
saw that David would go from Bethlehem to the king's court. Well, now after David has killed 
Goliath, Saul wants to confine him specifically to his court. 
Notice that they make a covenant, David and Jonathan. Verse 3, 
then Jonathan and David made a covenant because he loved him 
as his own soul. The nature of the covenant is 
not specified. We don't know exactly what it 
was, but it was probably a mutual pledge of loyalty and friendship. These men forged a bond together 
under God. They certainly had as their objective 
the glory of God and the death of the enemies of God's kingdom. 
And notice what Jonathan then does in verse four. Jonathan 
took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David with 
his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt. Now, 
Jonathan did not know at this particular point that he was 
no longer the heir to the crown. Remember back in chapter 13 when 
God announces this, or when Samuel specifically announces this, 
obviously under God's sovereignty, he says to Saul, chapter 13 verse 
14, But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought 
for himself a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded 
him to be a commander over his people, because you have not 
kept what the Lord commanded you. And then in 1528, again, 
Samuel indicting Saul for his sin. In 1 Samuel 1528, so Samuel 
said to him, the Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you 
today and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you. We don't have any reason to believe 
at this particular time that Jonathan understood this. As 
far as Jonathan knew, he was the heir. He was the crown prince 
that would eventually ascend the throne in Israel. Now note 
the significance of what he is doing here. He, as the crown 
prince, takes off his royal robe He takes off his armor, even 
to his sword and his bow and his belt, and he gives those 
items, those tokens of his royalty, he gives them over into David's 
care and into David's trust. One man says this was a virtual 
abdication, an abdication of the throne by Jonathan the crown 
prince. Now, no one else in the chapter 
recognizes this, but as we move on in 1 Samuel, we see that that 
is precisely what Jonathan had in mind, whether it was in an 
official capacity or he saw in David a mighty warrior that was 
good at killing Philistines and good at advancing the glory of 
God. Jonathan recognized something in David that Saul did not. Well, Saul saw certain things, 
but it caused fear in the heart of Saul. Rather, in Jonathan, 
it provoked a devotion. Later in 1 Samuel 15, I'm sorry, 
1 Samuel 23 and verse 17, he says specifically to David, this 
is Jonathan, Then Jonathan, Saul's son, verse 
16, arose and went to David in the woods and strengthened his 
hand in God. And he said to him, Do not fear, 
for the hand of Saul, my father, shall not find you. You shall 
be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you. Even my father 
Saul knows that." Again, that's a bit later on in the story. But in this particular instance, 
this is highly significant that Jonathan would take off his royal 
robe and he would hand it over to David. He saw in David a mighty 
warrior who was consumed with the glory of God. It's because 
of this that he willingly abdicates. And this tells us something about 
Jonathan. The advancement of God's kingdom 
was the priority for Jonathan. As we move through this chapter, 
it was not so for Saul. In fact, Saul is clogging up 
the advancement of God's kingdom. We'll make this lesson, or we'll 
observe this lesson when we complete our study tonight. But suffice 
it to say that all of this interplay between Saul and David took a 
period of time. What were they not doing when 
Saul was chasing David and trying to kill him? They were not killing 
Philistines. They were not advancing the kingdom. 
What Jonathan does in this particular instance essentially says that 
the kingdom matters the most, the glory of God is paramount, 
the good of the people of Israel is paramount, and so David is 
the man to do this. So he willingly takes off his 
robes and he willingly abdicates over into the hand David one 
man says this one man by the name of the graph interestingly 
enough this deed on his part Jonathan's was an act of faith 
he says only faith makes us willing to be the lesser You see the 
contrast between Saul and Jonathan. Jonathan willingly becomes the 
lesser of David. When Saul sees David's rise, 
Saul gets angry, and he gets envious, and he gets suspicious, 
and all he wants to do is destroy David. Who do you think we ought 
to imbibe when it comes to this particular narrative? We ought 
to pursue Jonathan's ethic. We ought to be a humble people. 
We ought to be more consumed with the glory of God and the 
advancement of his kingdom than of our own status or of our own 
position or of our own privilege or of our own perceived rights. 
If God is blessing a particular individual, instead of getting 
upset at that particular individual, we ought to willingly stand behind 
them and seek to see them prosper and to advance the Kingdom of 
God. This brother says that only faith 
makes us willing to be the lesser. He says faith causes us to surrender 
the rights we pretend to have over against the Christ who is 
truly Israel's king? Who's a New Testament person 
that modeled something of this sort of a behavior? John the 
Baptist. What does he say concerning Christ? 
He must increase, but I must decrease. We suppose that if 
Jonathan would have been in that particular context, he would 
have said the exact same thing. One supposes that Saul wouldn't 
have said that. Saul would have looked at him 
with suspicion. If Saul looks at David that way, certainly 
he's going to look at David's greater son that way. Saul is 
not a good role model, boys and girls. Do not follow this particular 
man. His decline, his spiritual declension, 
his apostasy is so evident in this chapter, it's as if the 
author is appointing us to this reality, that this is what happens 
when you take matters into your own hand. You neglect the meeting 
or waiting upon God's prophet the way he commands. You neglect 
engaging in those things that God has called you to. You neglect 
killing the Amalekites, or Agag, the way you were supposed to. 
This is the result of an apostasy from God. And we need to take 
heed to this. Jonathan, in contrast, is a man 
of God that wants to promote the kingdom of God. And then 
notice, verse 5 is a bit of a transition statement. Some commentators 
take verses 1 to 4 with chapter 17. We chose not to do it that 
way, probably because of the amount of text, the amount of 
narrative. But notice, verse 5 is a transition 
that summarizes what's going on. So David went out wherever 
Saul sent him and behaved wisely. He prospered. This phrase is 
used often in the chapter. He behaved wisely or he prospered. He was being used by God. He 
was doing those things which were pleasing to God. Notice 
as well, verse 6, and Saul set him over the men of war. So he's 
a military leader, he is a commander, he has authority, and he was 
accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight 
of Saul's servants. So we see that covenant with 
Jonathan. Now let's look at the rise of 
David. Again, we're going to marshal 
together various passages from this text. to set as the backdrop 
for the resentment by Saul. In the first place, David's success. 
I mean, he is wildly successful in this chapter. Verses 5, 14, 
15, and 30. We just read 5. Notice in 14. Verse 14, we read, David behaved 
wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him. Verse 15, 
therefore, when Saul saw that he behaved very wisely, he was 
afraid of him. And then again in verse 30, than 
the princes of the Philistines went out to war. And so it was, 
whenever they went out, that David behaved more wisely than 
all the servants of Saul." So you see, David is God's man. David is the one who is securing 
for Israel that stability and peace against the threat of Philistines. Notice as well, he is being highly 
esteemed by all the people according to verse 30. As well, the passage 
of the chapter continually tells us that everybody loved David. 
I mean everybody. They were crazy about David, 
verse 1. Of course, Jonathan loved David. Israel and Judah, in verse 16, 
loved David. Michael, the daughter of Saul, 
verses 20 and 28, loved David. As Robert Alter points out, this 
is the only time in the Bible, or at least the first time, that 
it's ever said that a woman loved a man. And it's Michael's love 
for David. And then as well, he is loved 
by the servants of the king. You see the sharp contrast here. 
And again, I think Samora's right. What we are not to conclude is 
the political element or see the political element involved 
in Saul's decline and David's rise. Now certainly, there is 
a political application. by nature of the fact that Saul 
is a king and David's on his way to kingship. But it's spiritual. The marked difference is that 
the spirit has departed from Saul and the spirit dwells in 
David. This is ultimately the secret 
of his success. And that is underscored in verses 
12, 14, and 28. 12, 14, and 28 tell us that Yahweh is 
with David. Yahweh is with David. Notice 
in verse 12, the Lord was with him. Verse 14, the Lord was with 
him. Verse 28, the Lord was with David. Again, what does the author want 
you to see? Saul does not have the Lord, 
hence this declension. David has the Lord, hence this 
prosperity, hence this rise, this success, this love, this 
esteem by the people of Israel. So you see, just in these few 
passages, that David is on his way up. And again, it's not because 
of, you know, intrinsically David is a wonderful human being. He's 
not a sinless man, he's a submissive man. He is a man after God's 
own heart, and God blesses him, and God is present with him, 
and God gives him that wisdom, and God prospers him on the battlefield. Whatever it is his hand finds 
to do, he does it with his might under God, and that is blessed 
by God. In the third place, the largest 
section of the narrative, the resentment by Saul, verses 6 
to 30. I want to look at this under 
four A's. First, his anger toward David. Second, his attack upon David. Thirdly, his appointment of David. And fourthly, his antagonism. of David. You know, when you 
were younger, your parents said, quit antagonizing your brother, 
quit antagonizing your sister, quit antagonizing your siblings. This provocation, this irritation. Well, in this particular instance, 
the antagonism is a desire to see David dead at the hands of 
the Philistines. But note first his anger toward 
David. Verses 6 to 9, they're returning 
from the Valley of Elah. What happened in the Valley of 
Elah? We see glory to God in the highest thud, to quote Dale 
Ralph Davis, right? Goliath loses his head at the 
hands of a shepherd boy. They're now returning, verses 
1 to 5, sort of a summary, we're back to the narrative in terms 
of the return from the Valley of Elah, the victory accomplished 
by David over Goliath, they are received by these women. The women celebrating, the women 
dancing, the women rejoicing, the women banging, tambourines 
and praising God and thankful for this military victory. You 
see a similar instance in Exodus 15, 20, Judges 11, 34. Note their 
victory song in verse 7. So the women sang as they danced 
and said, Saul has slain his thousands and David his ten thousands. Now, we know what happens because 
we just read it. We know what happens because 
we probably read it several times before. Think about this. One 
man says, a man by the name of Freedman, the very fact that 
David was accorded equal treatment with the king in the song would 
be sufficient to arouse the suspicions of any monarch. and especially 
of one insecure in his position and jealous of his prerogatives. I mean, this is the backdrop 
that serves as the provocation to send Saul into a tailspin. He's already got problems. He's 
already had the Spirit of the Lord depart from him. He's already 
had this distressing Spirit from the Lord sent to him to trouble 
him. He is under the judgment hand 
of God Almighty. And in this particular instance, 
we just see radical decline, radical declension. Again, I 
cannot stress this lesson enough. When we begin to decline, when 
we begin to apostatize from God, I'm not saying a full-on, full-blown 
apostasy. Apostasy simply means a falling 
away. We fall away a little bit at 
the beginning. We fall away in our scripture 
reading. We fall away in our praying. We fall away in our 
attendance at the public means. We fall away from the Lord's 
Supper. We fall away from those things that God has ordained 
for the good of His people. It never ends well. I'm here 
to tell you that. It never ends well when you start 
to fall away from God. You may not end up like Saul. 
You may not have a distressing spirit from the Lord that only 
the sweet psalmist of Israel can soothe with his harp. You 
may not get to the place where you're chucking spears at the 
man who's playing the harp for you. But know this, that when 
you leave off the means that God has ordained for your good, 
the end is never good. Okay? God has made us a simple 
folk, like a car. You cannot not put gasoline in 
the car and expect it to run. You have to service the vehicle. The same is true for the Saint 
of Christ. There are no Christians who can 
make it to the Celestial City without the means that God has 
provided, without that filling of the tank, without the means 
of public prayer, private prayer, Scriptures and worship, we need 
those things. Saul left off and it cost him 
everything. Saul started off by just a simple 
thing. Well, I didn't want to wait for 
Samuel, I wanted to do the sacrifice. I didn't want to wait for Samuel, 
I wanted to... No, no, you need to do what God 
says. Every single time God says something. When we get to the 
Amalekite instance or the Agag instance, what does Saul do? 
He would rather have Agag alive, and he'd rather have those bleeding 
sheep. He'd rather have those things. And he would rather disobey 
the living and true God. You see the gradual decline of 
a man. This is a great spiritual study 
in what declension looks like for persons who leave off the 
things that God has specified. We need to guard our hearts. We need to use the means. We 
need to be about the scriptures and prayer. So notice, Saul's 
response to this song. He doesn't pick up a tambourine 
and join in the dance. He doesn't say, you're right! 
He doesn't say, praise Yahweh! He doesn't say, blessed be the 
God of Israel, who has given us this victory. No, verse 8. Then Saul was very angry. And the saying displeased him. That's a great way to rain on 
a parade. I mean, this is a time of celebration. David has killed Goliath, and 
hence the Philistines have been decimated. This is a blessing 
from the Lord. But that's not the way Saul interpreted 
it, because Saul is not like Jonathan. You see, foremost and 
uppermost in Jonathan's mind is the glory of God and the advancement 
of the kingdom. If David will realize that, then 
Jonathan will gladly give him his royal robes to that end. 
Saul sees things just the opposite. It's his glory, it's his honor, 
it's his praise that needs to be uppermost. Saul was angry 
and the saying displeased him and he said, they have ascribed 
to David ten thousands. It's probably an adversative 
here. But, to me, they've ascribed only thousands. He's upset about 
this. Now, what more can he have but 
the kingdom? You see, Saul is reflecting upon 
this scenario. If I don't watch it, if I don't 
neutralize this threat, if I don't stop this shepherd boy from Bethlehem, 
then he's going to end up assuming control of the kingdom. That's 
what verse 9 indicates to Saul, I, David, from that day forward. He eyed him with suspicion as 
the new King James has it in the margin. He viewed him with 
suspicion. He didn't see him as a great military leader. He 
didn't see him as one consumed with the glory of Yahweh. He 
didn't see him as one who could advance the kingdom of God. He 
saw him as a potential threat to the throne and as a result 
it affected him to the point where now secondly he attacks 
David. Verses 10 and 11. and it happened 
on the next day that the distressing spirit from God came upon Saul. This happened already as we saw 
in 1st Samuel 16 verses 14 to 23. This is how Saul and David 
first came into connection. Remember Saul had the distressing 
spirit. One of his servants said, you 
know, music will probably calm you. And I just happen to know 
this musician and his name happens to be David. And he can soothe 
you and he can minister to you. I mean, that's the provenance 
of God. The servant just happened to know this. The servant just 
happens to bring this together. That's how God gets these two 
men together and intertwines their lives. Well, the same thing 
happens here. this distressing spirit from 
God comes upon him, and he prophesied in the house. Now, we are not 
to understand that he was actually speaking the revelatory word 
of God. Gil says, or he feigned himself a prophet, mimicking 
their motions and gestures, or as the Targum, acted like a madman 
or a fool, uttering foolish words and using ridiculous gestures, 
which seems most agreeable to the evil spirit in him. The ESV 
has it, he raved within his house. I think that captures what the 
Targum suggests. He raved in his house, this distressing 
spirit comes upon him and he goes into one of these temporary 
bouts of madness. And so what then does David do? 
David played music with his hand as at other times. Do you see 
the contrast? Do you see the difference? The 
man apart from the Spirit of God, who has the distressing 
Spirit from God, is out of his mind, and David, the psalmist 
or the harpist, is playing his music, seeking to alleviate, 
seeking to soothe, seeking to comfort. this poor pathetic soul. And then notice at the end of 
verse 10, but there was a spear in Saul's hand and Saul cast 
the spear for he said, I will pin David to the wall. But David 
escaped his presence twice. Now, we may wonder how is it 
that David would ever have favorable contact with Saul again. I've 
got to say, if Roger launched a spear at me right now and I 
was able to duck it twice, I don't know that I'd go to Chili's with 
him tomorrow. Oh, maybe I still would. I love Chili's and I love 
Roger. But you get down in the narrative and David's dialoguing 
with Saul about marrying his daughters. David, do you not 
remember he just threw the spear at you? Think about it this way, 
we have the narrator telling us what is going on and David 
doesn't. Far as David knows, this is one 
of those bouts of temporary madness. If you happen to go into a mental 
hospital and somebody had a particular episode and they turned on you 
with violence, you probably wouldn't ascribe it to a maliciousness. 
You probably wouldn't think, they just don't like me. They 
probably don't know you. You happen to be there perhaps 
visiting someone else. Someone's having an episode. 
They see you. They seize you. And they try 
to render some harm done to you. David most likely assumed it 
was that. It was temporary madness. And while it was, in fact, dangerous, 
it wasn't malicious. David doesn't know the degree 
to which Saul is struggling at this particular point. First 
Samuel 18 and David did it David's not checking the Bible say oh 
wait a minute He's trying to kill me because he's envious 
and he's angry he's upset and he wants to do me in that's not 
what David's thinking David says you know back in 16 this fellow 
had this distressing spirit and I played for him, and it soothed 
him, and it calmed him. In this particular instance, 
he's having another one, and the manifestation was a bit odd. 
He chucked a spear at me twice. I was able to, you know, dodge 
it, thankfully. But he didn't conclude that Saul 
was out to murder him. That's most likely what's going 
on in this particular passage. Now notice, as well, verses 12 
to 16, moving on to that third A, his appointment of David. 
12 to 16. It says that Saul was afraid 
of David because the Lord was with him, but had departed from 
Saul. You know, I mentioned that there's 
three times in 1 Samuel 18 that says that the Spirit of the Lord, 
or that the Lord rather, Yahweh, was with David. There's three 
times that chapter 18 tells us that Saul was afraid of David. 
It's the same instances. Every time we read that Yahweh 
was with David, Saul is afraid of David. Every time God is obviously 
with David, those are the instances where Saul is afraid of him. He's fearful of David. Notice 
12a. Now Saul was afraid of David 
because the Lord was with him, but had departed from Saul. Therefore 
Saul removed him from his presence and made him his captain over 
a thousand, and he went out and came in before the people. Now, 
probably he was not making him a captain over a thousand out 
of respect for him. He just tried to pin him against 
the wall with a spear. John Gill says, not out of respect 
to him and in honor of him, but partly to cover his malice and 
please the people, and partly in hope that he might be slain 
by the enemy at the head of his troop. This isn't Saul having 
a change of mind. Thank you for soothing me. Thank 
you for getting this spear chucking out of me. Now I want you to 
manage my military. No, that's not it at all. Saul 
is still raging. Saul is still envious. Saul is 
still jealous. Saul is still suspicious of him. And Saul is, in his mind, seeking 
the best way that he can dispose of David and his potential threat 
to Saul's throne. The contrast is continued according 
to verses 14 and 15. David behaved wisely in all his 
ways, and the Lord was with him. Therefore, when Saul saw that 
he behaved very wisely, he was afraid of him. But all Israel 
and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before 
them. How do you think Saul appreciated 
that? You know, not only does Saul 
have this angst towards David privately, but everywhere he 
goes, people are in love with David. It had to be a miserable 
season for Saul. That amount of bitterness, that 
amount of anger, that amount of envy, that amount of suspicion. 
He must have been a miserable person. And everywhere he goes, 
don't you just love David? Isn't David fantastic? Isn't 
David wonderful? Isn't David great? Saul is seething 
inside. I don't want to hear anymore 
about David. I've got to deal with David. I want to end David. I've got to get rid of this threat." 
Now, notice the antagonism with the view to killing David. Verses 
17 to 19, the marriage to Merib. Notice in verse 17, Saul said 
to David, here is my older daughter Merib. I will give her to you 
as a wife. Only be valiant for me and fight 
the Lord's battles. Now, this is intriguing, isn't 
it? He's not a man of his word. What was the deal? If you kill 
Goliath, you get my daughter. There's no additive. There's 
no, oh yeah, I also need you to continue. No. From what the 
promise was that was given in 1 Samuel 17, David should have 
been given the wife, he should have been given tax exempt status, 
and he could have lived happily ever after. But that's not Saul. Saul says, here is my older daughter 
Merib. I will give her to you as a wife. Only be valiant for 
me and fight the Lord's battles. Now notice Saul's end game. For Saul thought, let my hand 
not be against him, but let the hand of the Philistines be against 
him. You see, what happens if Saul 
does kill David? Everybody loves David. What's 
that going to transfer into? Everybody's going to hate Saul. 
Saul has to get rid of David, but Saul can't do it himself 
because Saul still has enough wisdom to realize that if I kill 
David, it's not going to go well for me in this kingdom. So I'm 
going to have him marry, I'm going to have him go to battle, 
and I'm going to have him get killed. Wonder where David learned 
what he learned concerning Uriah. Saul used this very tactic on 
David that David later employs in 2 Samuel, unfortunately. But 
notice, verse 18, David said to Saul, who am I and what is 
my life for my father's family in Israel that I should be son-in-law 
to the king? Do you see the contrast? The 
author is saying, proud Saul, humble David. The author is saying 
spirit departed, spirit present. The author is saying Saul in 
declension, David godly, David rising because of humility. This 
is a blessed in the poor is in spirit for theirs is the kingdom 
of God incident. David sees himself as a lowly 
individual. He says to him, who am I and 
what is my life for my father's family in Israel? that I should 
be son-in-law to the king." One can only imagine Saul rolling 
his eyes going, come on, I don't want to hear this anymore. We 
just need to dispose of you. I'm tired of your ability, I'm 
tired of your fear of God, I'm tired of the fact that God is 
with you, and I don't want to hear about your humility anymore. 
Verse 19, But it happened at the time when Merob, Saul's daughter, 
should have been given to David, that she was given to Adriel, 
the Maholothite, as a wife. Now, that probably was very frustrating 
to David. Again, the narrative doesn't 
tell us, but this is not a good deal. When you say to a man, 
you can have my wife or my daughter, then make sure the man gets your 
daughter. This is just not legit. Now that brings us to the marriage 
to Michael, verse 20. Michael, Saul's daughter, loved 
David. And they told Saul, and the thing 
pleased him. Not because he was going to have 
a godly son-in-law, not because his daughter was going to marry 
a good man, not because the advancement of God's kingdom was occurring 
around him, but because this will serve as an incident where 
I can kill David. The guy is in bad shape. He is 
in a wretched condition. The author wants us to get this, 
see and appreciate. This is the effect of sin. This 
is the effect of not dealing with sin. This is the effect 
of cutting corners. This is the effect of adding. 
This is the effect of subtracting. This is what happens when you 
do not follow God's Word the way that God says to follow it. This is a case study in spiritual 
declension. Notice, so Saul said, I will 
give her to him that she may be a snare to him and that the 
hand of the Philistines may be against him. Therefore, Saul 
said to David a second time, you shall be my son-in-law today. He sends his servants to seal 
the deal. Go there. Tell him I'm delighted 
in him. In other words, go lie to him. 
Tell him I love him and I want him to be my son-in-law. Seal 
the deal. Why? So that I can get him into 
the battle so that he can die on the field. The servants of 
Saul told him, verse 24, in this manner David spoke. Now notice, 
Saul said, thus you shall say to David, the king does not desire 
any dowry but one hundred foreskins of the Philistines. I told Mike 
today, this is how I know that, you know, if battle or stuff 
ever comes upon the Christian church today, I just don't think 
we're here. I don't think we're about battling 
and doing the sorts of things that these mighty warriors of 
Israel did. What do the foreskins signify? It signifies dead Philistines. 
The idea isn't that they go to a clinic and they remove the 
foreskin surgically and they bring it. That means they're 
dead Philistines. Prove to me that you butchered 
a hundred Philistines, bring me their foreskins, and then 
you can have Michael. David says, that's a good, good 
arrangement. Saul thought to make David buy 
the hand of the Philistines, so when his servants told David 
these words, it pleased David well. It was good in his eyes. David says 104 skins is nothing. I'll be married by day's end. 
I'll be with my bride tonight. Give me something difficult, 
Saul. In fact, it was such the case 
that David goes out and collects 204 skins. 100, that's nothing, that's child's 
play. David goes out to battle, he destroys 200 Philistines. 
Verse 27, Therefore David arose and went, he and his men, and 
killed 200 men of the Philistines. And David brought their four 
skins, and they gave them in full count to the king, that 
he might become the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michael his 
daughter as a wife. I mean, the imagery that is suggested 
by the narrative. They're counting these things 
out, and each one represents a dead Philistine. Davis says 
this, in a footnote, because this is obviously not a passage 
that we probably think long about. Davis says, some people are repulsed 
by such ancient barbarism. But barbarism is as much modern 
more so than ancient. Something a little history of 
warfare and persecution will make clear. At least these Philistines 
were dead before they were mutilated. Much warfare is not so merciful. Such practices were not uncommon 
in the Near East. Egyptians might count severed 
hands of their enemies. Assyrians might tally heads. 
Egyptians sometimes cut off and counted the male organs of the 
sea peoples they killed in battle. Philistine males did not practice 
circumcision as did Israelites and others, for example, the 
Moabites and the Ammonites. Hence, Saul could ask for 104 
skins of Philistine dead. So the four skins here are representative 
of the fact that there are 200 dead Philistines who no longer 
pose a threat to the kingdom of God and no longer pose a threat 
to the people of God. And this is what he presents 
to Saul. And Saul then gave him Michael, 
his daughter, as a wife. Now notice the continual enemy 
of David in verses 28 to 30. Then Saul saw and knew that the 
Lord was with David, and that Michael, Saul's daughter, loved 
him. And Saul was still more afraid of David. So Saul became 
David's enemy continually. Then the princes of the Philistines 
went out to war, and so it was, whenever they went out, that 
David behaved more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so 
that his name became highly esteemed. we have the rise of David, we 
have resentment by Saul, and in that resentment we see this 
gradual, rapid decline that is in place in Saul's soul. Again, 
on one hand, it's actually sad to witness. It's actually sad 
to see, because remember, when Saul first was identified as 
that man head and shoulders above all the other Israelites, and 
when Saul goes into battle, and he's killing Ammonites until 
the heat of the day, Saul looks like Israel's champion. Saul 
looks like that king that will lead the people of God into further 
victory. But it doesn't take long for 
Saul to begin that decline. It doesn't take long, and then 
the Spirit of the Lord is withdrawn from him. And then we see all 
manner of wickedness issue forth in this man's life. In conclusion, 
just a couple of lessons in the first place. We've already mentioned 
this, the spiritual declension in Saul. Notice his fear of David. pointed that out in the three 
instances where it says Yahweh is with David in those three 
instances Saul is afraid of David. Saul should have feared God. Saul fears the man who fears 
God. You see, people, when we fear 
God, when we honor the Lord, it will make persons uncomfortable. I mean, they may not respond 
like Saul and throw spears at us, but if we are walking with 
the Lord in a godless, perverse culture, then it's probably the 
case along the way that we're going to ruffle a few feathers. 
Not because we're obnoxious, Not because we're arrogant, but 
because we fear God. So I worked through this and 
I considered the fear of Saul concerning David. I thought of 
that quote from Mary, Queen of Scots. She said, I fear John 
Knox's prayers more than an army of 10,000 men. She didn't fear 
the God to whom John Knox prayed. She feared the man who feared 
that God. And that's precisely what we 
find in Saul. Saul, repent. Forsake your sin. I'm speaking as a man. We know 
the Spirit has departed. We know that God has handed him 
over. to judgment. But if it is ever the case that 
we are in a predicament like this, stop, repent, forsake. Proverbs 28.13 promises mercy 
for those who confess and forsake their sin. They will find mercy. 1 John 1.9 promises to us, if 
we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our 
sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we see that 
we're on the pathway to spiritual declension, stop! Do not continue 
in it. I remember many, many years ago 
there was a particular pastor, became a missionary and he went 
to another country and ended up in gross sexual sin, gross 
sexual misconduct. It was terrible, it was wretched, 
it was a blow to our our movement of churches. And another pastor 
by the name of Mark Chansky preached a sermon on that situation not 
long after. And I'll never forget what he 
said. And I think he was just channeling the Puritans here, 
John Owen. Apostasy doesn't just happen. You're not going to wake 
up tomorrow and go to your closet and pull a pitchfork out and 
put on a red cape and put horns on your head and go out and do 
devilish things. Apostasy doesn't just happen. It happens in steps. You stop 
reading, you stop praying, you stop going to church, you stop 
fellowshipping, you stop seeking the Lord. You do enough of those 
gradual steps and eventually you fall off. You see it played 
out for you in the life of Saul. If you are on this path, or anybody 
out there in the world of the internet is on this path of declension, 
stop it. Repent. Forsake. Go back to the 
Lord our God. Seek Him while He may be found. 
Call upon Him while He is near. That God accepts returning sinners. And we need to understand that. 
In the second place, we need to see in this passage again 
the providence of God. The God who used donkeys to identify 
Saul. The God who used a servant to 
identify David. That same God uses Saul's strategy 
to destroy David to actually advance David. It's actually 
intriguing. The more that Saul opposes David, 
the more that God exalts David. And David, by and large, is happily 
unaware of what's going on, isn't he? David doesn't know the machinations 
going on behind the scenes. He doesn't know what Saul is 
doing. He sees Saul's giving me his daughter. Great. He doesn't 
know that Saul hopes that that daughter brings him into death 
by Philistine. Saul is conniving to bring death 
and destruction upon David, and God is using that to exalt David. Samora said it this way. He said, 
once again, Saul's strategy in the marriage of David and Michael 
has backfired. Instead of killing David, his 
attempt has given David honor in the eyes of all the people 
as the king's son-in-law. Right? Not only is he not dead, 
now he's part of the royal family. As well, Saul has given him someone 
who will protect him against Saul. Do you know what happens 
in chapter 19, verses 11 to 17? Saul says, go get David. What 
does Michael do? Michael fakes out Saul's henchmen 
and says he's not feeling well. Well, David's already escaped. 
The very woman that Saul designed to bring death and destruction 
upon David is the very woman God uses to bring freedom and 
safety to David. And this has strengthened his 
claim as Saul's successor later on in 2 Samuel chapter 13. Brethren, 
if you ever struggle with the providence of God in terms of 
what does it look like, just read 1 Samuel. God takes day-to-day 
events. He takes lost donkeys. He takes 
servants who happen to see somebody playing the harp once. And he 
takes a wicked, wretched, apostate man to advance his kingdom. He can use the likes of us, certainly, 
if that is his MO. A third thing we ought to appreciate 
from this passage is the danger to the kingdom. The danger to 
the kingdom. Chapter 17 presents the danger 
to God's kingdom from the external realm. Right? It's Goliath. It's the Philistines. They're 
the threat. In the church, we have heretics, 
and we have governments, and we have oppression, and we have 
external forces that seek to silence the witness and the testimony 
of the church. There is an external foe, to 
be sure, but chapter 18 shows us that there are threats from 
within. There are internal forces that 
are seeking from within to destroy that very kingdom. A man by the 
name of Vanoi says the progress of the kingdom of God was hindered 
for many years simply because the most highly placed individual 
in Israel sought his own interests rather than submitting them to 
God's revealed will. I mentioned that earlier. While 
Saul is trying to kill David, guess what Saul's not doing? 
He's not administering the kingdom. He's not fighting Philistines. He's not destroying threats. 
He's so caught up in his own soul. He is so caught up with 
his own agenda. He is such a narcissist that 
everything centers on him. And as a result, the advancement 
of God's kingdom has effectively come to a halt. He goes on to 
say, viewed from the perspective of the forward movement, of redemptive 
history, we find in this instance that opposition to God's redemptive 
program does not come from outside of God's people, i.e., from uncircumcised 
Philistines, as it does in chapter 17, but from within, from a person 
identified with the people of God. In fact, it comes from the 
highest place of leadership in the land. So you see, we ought 
to appreciate, in 1 Samuel 17, we need to deal with the external 
threat. We need to kill Goliath, and 
we need to neutralize Philistines. But when we come to 1 Samuel 
18, we can never conclude that all is well. The absence of Philistines 
doesn't mean the absence of a threat. The absence of a Goliath does 
not mean the absence of a man that's seeking to destroy from 
within. The church needs to take this to heart. We not only have 
to contend with, for instance, oppressive government, but we 
have to contend with false teachers. We have to contend with heretics 
within. We have to contend with false 
leaders. We have to contend with persons who are more consumed 
with themselves and their advancement rather than the advancement of 
Christ's kingdom. We need to understand that there 
are Jonathans in the church and there are Sauls. There are Jonathans 
who stand behind the advancement of the kingdom, that gladly give 
their robes, that gladly give their stuff, that gladly stand 
behind God's men so that the kingdom can advance. But there's 
Saul's inner ranks too. There are men who are so narcissistic 
and men who are so consumed with their own pride and men who are 
so consumed with their own advancement that they want to effectively 
neutralize the cause of God and truth. They aren't candid enough 
or honest enough to admit this, but nevertheless it is the case. 
We need to see in 1 Samuel 17 and 18 there is an external threat, 
there is an internal threat. We need to be mindful of both. 
We cannot be preying down the oppressive governments and forget 
the heretics that sit by our sides or preach in our pulpits 
on a weekly basis. The church has to take seriously 
the presence of a threat that is seeking to neutralize the 
advancement of Christ's kingdom. But in the final instance, we 
need to realize the advancement of Christ's kingdom is sure. 
The Lord Jesus Christ has promised he will build his church, and 
the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. I just read 
a little quip recently. Some men said to a group of Christian 
pastors, this is way back in the early church, something to 
the effect that we are going to destroy the church. We are 
going to take military might and military force, and we are 
we are just going to eradicate it." And the pastor's response 
to them was, you know, we haven't been able to destroy it with 
our pettiness and our sin, so we doubt you'll be able to destroy 
it. That was a great comment. We haven't been able to do it 
with our pettiness and sin, we doubt you'll be able to do it 
with your battering ram. You see, Jesus has promised, 
we have in this passage itself, Saul is fighting tremendously 
to neutralize David and hence to neutralize the kingdom. But 
God is advancing his David. God will put him on his throne. 
And David will, in fact, orchestrate and administrate this kingdom 
according to the plan and purpose of God. We have that assurance 
in the son of David, the greater than David, even our Lord Jesus 
Christ. Well, let us close in a word 
of prayer. Our Father, we thank you for the lessons that First 
Samuel has shown us so many times about the Church. Give us wisdom 
to receive these things. Help us as individuals to guard 
against the sort of decline we see in Saul. to guard against 
the kinds of wickedness that are so vividly displayed in this 
chapter, grant us grace to be men and women who fear God, men 
and women who serve God and obey God, and men and women who use 
the means that you have given to us for your glory and for 
our well-being. As well, we thank you that the 
Kingdom of Christ will advance, the Church of Christ will go 
forward The gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And we 
praise you that you have included us in this. Help us not to be 
Saul's with our own wicked agenda and our own narcissistic ideas, 
but give us grace to be Jonathan's who stand behind this advance 
and seek to promote it. And we pray these things through 
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.