David Lies to Abimelech
March 10, 2019
Commentary
Fearing for his life, David flees to Nob (v.1) which was halfway between Jerusalem and Gibeath. Wondering where to go, he decides to ask Abimelech, the priest, for help. Abimelech was the great-grandson of Eli. When Abimelech heard that David had entered the gates of the city, he came trembling to David asking why he had come alone. David lied by saying the king had sent him there on business. Some try to excuse this by saying a war was going on and it was the duty of a good soldier to deceive the enemy. However, nowhere in Scripture is David’s lie condoned and Leviticus (19:11) makes it very plain that lying is wrong. Because of this lie, 85 priests are lead to their death (22:9-19).
While in Nob, David is spotted by a spy of Saul, Doeg the Edomite, who informed Saul of David’s whereabouts. Again he flees to Gath, which is 23 miles southwest of Nob and the hometown of Goliath. Achish, the Philistine king of Gath, recognized who David was. According to Psalms 56 and 34, he was not given a warm welcome and may even have been imprisoned. Eventually he was brought before the king and, to obtain his freedom, David pretended to be insane. He scribbled on the doors of the gate and allowed his saliva to run down on his beard because he knew it was the custom not to harm mentally unstable people.
Application
Lying, like every other sin, is serious in God’s sight and may lead to all sorts of harmful consequences. I must never allow myself to think that what I may classify as little white lies are ok. Usually the telling of one lie leads to the telling of more lies.
1 Samuel 21:1– 15 (NET)
1 (21:2) David went to Ahimelech the priest in Nob. Ahimelech was shaking with fear when he met David, and said to him, “Why are you by yourself with no one accompanying you?” 2 David replied to Ahimelech the priest, “The king instructed me to do something, but he said to me, ‘Don’t let anyone know the reason I am sending you or the instructions I have given you.’ I have told my soldiers to wait at a certain place. 3 Now what do you have at your disposal? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever can be found.”
4 The priest replied to David, “I don’t have any ordinary bread at my disposal. Only holy bread is available, and then only if your soldiers have abstained from relations with women.” 5 David said to the priest, “Certainly women have been kept away from us, just as on previous occasions when I have set out. The soldiers’ equipment is holy, even on an ordinary journey. How much more so will they be holy today, along with their equipment!”
6 So the priest gave him holy bread, for there was no bread there other than the Bread of the Presence. It had been removed from before the Lord in order to replace it with hot bread on the day it had been taken away. 7 (One of Saul’s servants was there that day, detained before the Lord. His name was Doeg the Edomite, who was in charge of Saul’s shepherds.) 8 David said to Ahimelech, “Is there no sword or spear here at your disposal? I don’t have my own sword or equipment in hand due to the urgency of the king’s instructions.”
9 The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the valley of Elah, is wrapped in a garment behind the ephod. If you wish, take it for yourself. Other than that one, there’s no sword here.” David said, “There’s nothing like it. Give it to me.” 10 So on that day David arose and fled from Saul. He went to King Achish of Gath. 11 The servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Isn’t he the one that they sing about when they dance, saying, ‘Saul struck down his thousands, but David his tens of thousands’?”
12 David thought about what they said and was very afraid of King Achish of Gath. 13 He altered his behavior in their presence. Since he was in their power, he pretended to be insane, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting his saliva run down his beard.
14 Achish said to his servants, “Look at this madman! Why did you bring him to me? 15 Do I have a shortage of fools so that you have brought me this man to display his insanity in front of me? Should this man enter my house?”