Summary: Saul gathered 3,000 men to get David in Engedi (vv.1-2). Imagine how paranoid you’d need to be in order to gather 3,000 men for one man! Saul “just so happened” to go into a cave to relieve himself, where David and his men were hiding (v.3). David’s men took this as an act of God’s providence, giving Saul into David’s hand (v.4). David merely cut a piece of Saul’s robe off, but even this bothered his conscience (v.5). David didn’t believe that he should take Saul’s position as king, because God had chosen Saul (v.6), so he didn’t kill him (v.7). David used this as leverage to reason with Saul, showing that he didn’t want to hurt him (v.11). This caused Saul to break down crying at David’s mercy (v.16), and he left David without harming him.
(24:1-2) After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” 2 So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats.
En Gedi was a beautiful region. So, it’s no wonder why David chose to flee to there.
David only had 600 men (1 Sam. 23:13), but Saul had a 3,000 man army. So, he was outnumbered 5-to-1.
(24:3) He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave.
“Relieve himself.” This Hebrew idiom can be literally rendered “to cover his feet,” because it refers to “the Israelite practice of disposing of human excrement in a sanitary manner through covering it over with dirt (cf. Deut 23:13).”[] This euphemism for defecation only occurs one other time in the OT, when Eglon was “relieving himself” after being killed by Ehud (Judg. 3:24).
Imagine how these men felt when they saw Saul’s army approaching, kicking up the dust from miles away. After they hide in this cave, they’re stuck. So, when they hear Saul enter, they think they’re dead.
Not so! Saul is the one who is in mortal danger. He just dropped his pants in a cave filled with 300 skilled soldiers.
Why did Saul enter alone? Of course, Saul was defecating. So, he most likely didn’t want any bodyguards. Moreover, he didn’t expect that this random cave would be filled with 300 men. Furthermore, it’s likely that Saul couldn’t hear David and the men because he has 3,000 men outside making noise.
(24:4-5) The men said, “This is the day the LORD spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. 5 Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe.
“David crept up unnoticed.” What excuses did David have to kill Saul? He probably thought, “This is self-defense. I don’t deserve to be living out in the woods for a decade on a permanent camping trip! I’m sick of this!” But even though Saul sinned against David 99%, David focused on his 1% and his view before God.
“This is the day the LORD spoke of…” David’s men interpreted this fortuitous occurrence to be God’s sovereignty, giving David an opportunity to kill Saul. After all, of all of the caves in Israel, why did Saul just so happen to choose to defecate in this one?
“Cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.” The “tearing was interpreted as a portent that the kingdom would be torn from Saul,[] and it was symbolic for the “transfer of power from the house of Saul to the house of David.”[] Firth agrees, “David cuts off the corner of Saul’s robe as a symbolic claim to the kingdom—note that in Mesopotamia a robe’s fringe could be used a symbol of authority, though the sense of this is varied.”[] When Ahijah tore up his cloak, it symbolized the tearing up of the kingdom (1 Kin. 11:29-31).
This also religiously ruined Saul’s robe. The Law stated that the men needed tassels on the “corner” of their robes (Num. 15:38-39; Deut. 22:12). Consequently, “Saul’s most obvious symbol of kingship was made unwearable.”[]
“Conscience-stricken.” Even though he didn’t kill Saul, David was subtly taking away his power. By cutting off a piece of Saul’s robe, he was symbolically disrespecting Saul’s authority as king.[] This is why his conscience is troubled by this (v.5), and he later calls this a “sin” (v.11).
(24:6) He said to his men, “The LORD forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the LORD’s anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the LORD.”
David respected Saul because God had put him into power. What do you think David’s men were thinking when he returned with a small piece of cloth, rather than Saul’s head? He needed to “rebuke his men” when he returned (v.7).
(24:7) With these words David rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.
Saul stood up, wiped, and left the cave. He had no idea how close he came to death.
(24:8) Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.
“Called out to Saul.” The law stated that people needed to travel away from their camp in order to defecate, and then bury the human waste in the ground (Deut. 23:12-13). So, Saul may have been some distance from the rest of his men.
“My lord the king!” David is still referring to Saul as his “lord” and his “king.” He is still bowing down before him, showing his respect for God’s appointment of this man. Bergen writes, “David treated the king properly, not because of anything the king had done or might do, but because of what the Lord had done. David’s respect for human authority was based on his respect for divine authority.”[]
(24:9) He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’?
David doesn’t indict Saul with wrongdoing. Rather, he states that Saul was listening to poor counselors (“Why do you listen when men say…?”).
(24:10) “This day you have seen with your own eyes how the LORD delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lift my hand against my master, because he is the LORD’s anointed.’”
How does David reason with Saul? First, he pointed to the evidence right in front of him. Second, he showed that he had the means and the motive, but he refused to take advantage. Third, David revealed himself to Saul, taking the lower position of humility. A guilty man would’ve stayed in the cave.
(24:11) “See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. Now understand and recognize that I am not guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life.”
David gives Saul material evidence—the corner of his robe.
David calls Saul his “father” because Saul was his father-in-law. Later, Saul calls David his “son” (v.16).
(24:12) “May the LORD judge between you and me. And may the LORD avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you.”
David trusts God to vindicate him and adjudicate the situation. But he refuses to take justice into his own hands.
(24:13) “As the old saying goes, ‘From evildoers come evil deeds,’ so my hand will not touch you.”
This must’ve been some sort of proverb in Israel at the time. Youngblood writes, “The proverb may in fact be double-edged, vindicating the righteous David’s refusal to harm Saul while at the same time condemning the wicked Saul for his malicious pursuit of David.”[]
(24:14) “Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea?”
Next, David speaks of himself in self-deprecating ways: “I’m only a dead dog and a flea!” He’s asking Saul why he would be so paranoid over a man like himself. Bergen writes, “David tacitly accused the king of acting like a fool and squandering precious national resources. Yet the employment of rhetorical questions and unflattering comparisons of himself to a dead dog and a flea—all expressed in a poetic framework—helped to make David’s criticisms more palatable and poignant.”[]
(24:15) “May the LORD be our judge and decide between us. May he consider my cause and uphold it; may he vindicate me by delivering me from your hand.”
How will Saul respond to David’s plea of innocence? Will he tell his men to attack David?
(24:16) When David finished saying this, Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he wept aloud.
Saul’s mind had been so twisted that he opens up his response by asking if this was actually David. Saul hadn’t heard David’s voice for quite some time, and these words were the last thing he would’ve expected to hear from David. Consequently, he wept bitterly.
(24:17) “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly.”
Saul admits his own unrighteousness and David’s righteousness.
(24:18) “You have just now told me of the good you did to me; the LORD delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me.”
Even in his twisted state of mind, Saul could see that God had led him into that cave.
(24:19) “When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the LORD reward you well for the way you treated me today.”
Saul prays for David’s blessing.
(24:20) “I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands.”
Saul knew it all along! (see 1 Sam. 23:17) No wonder he was so threatened by David.
(24:21) “Now swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.”
In this time period, a person’s descendants and “name” were bound up with their identity.[] If their descendants were killed, it would be like they never existed.
Saul places himself in a position of weakness by asking David for mercy. Like Jonathan (1 Sam. 20:14-17), Saul asks David to spare his family line.
(24:22) So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.
David makes this oath, but he doesn’t trust Saul enough to follow him back to Gibeah. David was a man of his word. He later honored this promise by protecting Mephibosheth (2 Sam. 9:1-13; 19:29; 21:7).
“But David and his men went up to the stronghold.” Why didn’t David go home with Saul? Isn’t it obvious? David forgave Saul, but he still didn’t trust him.
Why didn’t David kill Saul? We need to wrestle with the question of why David didn’t kill Saul (see also chapter 26). Read through his reasons for not killing Saul again (v.6). What does this look like today?
David didn’t trust coincidence. This is an interesting passage for how to discover God’s will. Just because a providential event happened, this doesn’t mean that we should act on it based on our agenda.
David trusted God’s timing. If God wanted him to be king, then this would happen. He didn’t need to expedite the process. In our setting, the driven person needs to learn to be content with where they are right now. There is no need to push or manipulate to force ourselves into a new position of ministry. On the other hand, the timid person needs to learn to step forward when God is calling them to a new place.
David trusted God’s justice. He believed that God would take care of Saul, and eventually, God did.
David trusted that God was his protection. David wrote Psalm 57 and 142 during this time. In both psalms, David states that God—not the cave—is his refuge (Ps. 57:1; 142:5).
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 239.
Ralph W. Klein, 1 Samuel, vol. 10, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1983), 239.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 239.
David G. Firth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. David W. Baker and Gordon J. Wenham, vol. 8, Apollos Old Testament Commentary (Nottingham, England; Downers Grove, IL: Apollos; InterVarsity Press, 2009), 257.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 239.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 746.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 240.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 748.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 241.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 749.
James is an elder at Dwell Community Church, where he teaches classes in theology, apologetics, and weekly Bible studies.
