1 Samuel 27

1 Samuel 27:1

F. Living in Philistia (Chaps. 27-30)

1. Ziklag Acquired (Chap. 27)27:1-4 The pressure of constantly running from place to place one step ahead of death finally took its toll on David. In spite of the Lord’s miraculous care for him, David’s faith wavered. He lost sight of the fact that he was the anointed king of Israel. Would God appoint him king and then allow him to be killed before he could reign? Would God deliver him from the hand of Goliath only to deliver him into the hand of Saul?

No, but circumstances have a way of distorting one’s outlook. Present danger often obscures the promises of God. David fled to the land of the Philistines again and contacted Achish, . . . king of Gath. It had been a long time since he was here last, and Achish was probably aware that he was a fugitive. This heathen king welcomed him warmly, seeing in him a valiant warrior and an ally against Israel. This is not necessarily the same Achish that David met in 1Sa_21:10, since “Achish” was a royal name among the Philistines.

When Saul heard that David had fled the country, he stopped hunting for him. 27:5-7 The last time David had been in Gath (chap. 21), the servants of Achish had been suspicious of him and had tried to have him killed. David had not forgotten this. With a show of modesty, he now refused to dwell in the capital city and asked for a city of his own. He was given Ziklag, a city close to Israel’s border that originally belonged to . . . Judah (Jos_15:31). 27:8-12 During his sixteen-month stay with the Philistines, David made raids against the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. These people were heathen inhabitants of Canaan whose destruction had been ordered by God (Exo_17:14; Jos_13:13; 1Sa_15:2-3). Even in exile, David was fighting the Lord’s battles. This presents quite a paradox: He could trust the Lord to preserve him for victory over Israel’s enemies, but he could not trust Him for protection from Saul!