Life of David Part 6: 1 Samuel 31 and 2 Samuel 1
This Life of David series outlines my study for my current Sunday morning series for the middle school youth group I lead. This writing series will show how I broke down each chapter and what general points I used in teaching this to middle schoolers. Hopefully, it will help you in teaching something on the life of David.
Deep down, we love to celebrate the failures of those who are against us. When someone else succeeds in a field we care for, we normally wish is was us and not them succeeding. In these two chapters, David will watch Saul's greatest failure, but rather than celebrating over Saul's demise, he teaches us how to truly love our enemies.
1. The Death of Saul (1 Samuel 31)
At this point in 1 Samuel, the Israelites are engaged in battle with the Philistines and it is not going well. The chapter opens quite coldly on the death toll for the Israelites in the battle, specifically that Jonathan and two of his brothers were killed. Beyond that, the chapter focuses in on Saul's wound and his nearness to death.
Throughout Saul's life, his big issue was worrying about his reputation. It led him to disobey God and keep the spoils of victory, it led him to jealousy over David's successes, and here it drives him to suicide. Out of fear that the Philistines would degrade him, Saul takes matters into his own hands.
The biggest thing to see here is that David was right. As David spared Saul on multiple occasions, he said that God would deal with Saul in His timing. Here, we find that timing. David sets the example for us that we only need to wait on God; if He wants to move an obstacle out of our way, He will do it when He sees fit.
2. David Learning About Saul (2 Samuel 1:1-16)
Absent from 1 Samuel 31 is David, whose falling out with Israel kept him away from the battle. An interesting encounter happens between an Amalekite and David. He seems to tell a different story of Saul's death, claiming that he killed Saul to put him out of his misery. Many theories have arisen from this, but it seems most likely that the man is lying. It appears his goal is to get some reward from David for having been the one that killed Saul for David.
If that was his intention, he certainly did not receive the reward he wanted. David had shown kindness to Saul again and again because he was the Lord's anointed one. Rather than celebrating the path it created for him, David wanted justice for Saul. This is real enemy love, doing right by your enemies without thinking of what you stand to gain. The proper penalty for this Amalekite was death, and David carries out justice.
3. David Mourning For Saul (2 Samuel 1:17-27)
With justice carried out, David is now able to deal with the deaths of Saul and Jonathan. For us reading the passage, Saul's death can feel like a victory, God moving a selfish man out of the way so a selfless one can rule instead. This is not how David interprets this moment. Rather than celebrating, David deeply mourns the passing of both Jonathan and Saul.
This kind of love is beyond what we can muster on our own. To love someone freely, you must be freely loved. For David, however, the love that enabled him to care deeply for Saul was not Saul's love for him, but God's love for him. When we are acutely aware of God's unlimited love for us, we are able to love those who hurt and use us. In God, we find the strength and security to care for those who do not care for us. This is one of David's finest moments of embodying the Gospel, caring for one who only hurt him. If David could love his enemy because of God's strength working in his inner man, there's hope for us to learn that same kind of love.