1 Samuel 22

But “we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.” ((2 Corinthians 13:8).) David pleading necessity, “the priest gave him hallowe bread;” and our Lord refers to this circumstance, to show that in cases of extremity, not the moral, but the ritual law might be violated, without criminality. (Mark 2:25, 26.) David, however, with all his contrivances to deceive the high priest, was discovered, and betrayed to Saul; whereas had David entrusted Ahimelech with the truth, he might possibly have been concealed from Doeg, who was Saul’s chief herdsman, and probably envious against David, as merely arisen from a like humble situation. This man went and told Saul, which not only occasioned a fresh persecution of David, but a cruel massacre of the priests.

(See (1 Samuel 21:9).) So that we may say of truth as of Rotten it is “the best policy,” after all. But a pleasing incident occurred here, as respects Goliath’s sword, which it seems had been laid up in the ark, as a votive offering to the Lord: but which is returned to David for his own defence. Thus by consecrating it to the Lord, he obtained it again, whereas otherwise Saul would probably have seized it for himself. Even this sword, however, seems to have betrayed him in his next retreat. David said, “There is none like that;” which might be true in more senses than one, and ensue: some peculiarity in its size or form was one means of its discovery at Gath, whither he now fled. The servants of Achish the king said, “Is not this David, the king of the land?”

That is, he who was looked up to, to become Saul’s successor. And when David heard this, he was “sore afraid;” and to extricate himself, feigned epilepsy, or insanity, which he might be the better qualified to do from what he had seen in Saul. Whether David is to be justified in this act of dissimulation, which some consider in the same light as a stratagem in war, it is not necessary to inquire, for we are not called to judge him. But some critics think that he did not feign, but that terror had brought on disease; and as Solomon says that “oppression maketh a wise man mad,” that Saul’s conduct had made him so: and his flying to Gath, might itself be urged to prove this, as it was certainly the last place where, in his collected moments, he could have expected safety.

Chap. XXII. Ver. 1—23. David flees to the cave of Adullam, and collects a force around him. Doeg’s treachery, and Saul’s cruelty.—When David’s family heard of his having formed a retreat in this cave, they came to him; and not they only, but all that were distressed, or in debt, or discontented; which last phrase is in the margin explained, “bitter of soul,” grieved, or vexed: we need not wonder, therefore, that they soon amounted to “about four hundred men;” all these were “in the hold,” as it is called, for some of the caverns in Judea are very large; his aged parents, who are supposed to have now been more than one hundred years old, he placed under protection of the king of Moab. The prophet Gad, however, directed David to leave the cave, and fly to the forest of Hareth.

Saul continued to pursue him, and while standing under a grove in a high place, upbraids his servants for taking part with Jonathan, and with the son of Jesse. Upon this, Doeg rises, and informs against Ahimelech the priest, who had fed him with the shewbread. He is accordingly sent for, with the other priests, and nobly justifies himself before the king, at the same time bearing an honourable testimony to the character of David. This enrages Saul to that degree, that he orders his footmen, or rather footguards, to slay them all. These men, however, would not touch the priests of the Lord; the bloody commission is therefore given to Doeg, the master of the mules, who feels no compunction in destroying fourscore and five innocent sacred characters.

In this, however, he unwittingly fulfilled the divine decree against the house of Eli. On this we may observe, that an event being decreed, by no means excuses the guilt of a willing perpetrator. The crucifixion of our Lord Jesus was no less criminal for its being certainly decreed. ((Acts 4:27-28).) So the decree against Eli’s house in no degree excused Saul’s cruelty in their murder, much less the gross massacre of the inhabitants of Nob. Abiathar, one of the sons of Ahimelech, makes his escape to David, who laments that he had been the innocent cause of so much bloodshed, but invites him to stay under his protection, and assures him of safety. “Abide thou with me, fear not: he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life: but with me thou shalt be in safeguard.”

While we lament the bloodthirsty temper of Saul, we may truly admire the guardian providence of God. Abiathar, in flying, took with him the sacred ephod, which appears to have been now the usual medium of inquiring the divine will, and of which he made good use, as we shall see in the next chapter. In the book of Psalms are several whose titles refer to the events in this and the preceding chapter, and which are supposed to have been written, if not at the time, with reference thereto; and it may be profitable, when we come to that sacred book, to remark, how a good man may derive instruction and encouragement from his various trials. “It is good for me (says David) that I have been afflicted, for now I keep thy law.”

Notes on the verses

_ Chap. XXII. Ver. 1. Adullam.—[Adullam was a city of Judah; and according to Eusebius ten miles (Jerome says eleven) eastward from Eleutheropolis.]—Bagster. Ver. 10. Inquired of the Lord.—{Though this circumstance is not mentioned in the history, yet as David would most naturally wish to know where to direct his steps at this important crisis, and as Ahimelech did not deny this part of the charge, it may be concluded to be perfectly true.}—Bagster. Ver. 15. Begin to inquire.—{He seems to intimate, that his inquiring for David was no new thing, having often done so before, without ever being informed it was wrong in itself or displeasing to the king.}—Bagster.—Less or more.—Hebrew, “Little or great.”

Here the priest pleads, and justly, his entire ignorance of the differences between Saul and David. Ver. 17. The footmen.—Hebrew, “Runners;” perhaps, in modern language, “the light infantry.” Ver. 18. Fourscore and five.—The LXX. read three hundred and five men, and Josephus, three hundred and eighty-five; but these numbers doubtless include the whole of the inhabitants.—That did wear a linen ephod.—i.e. that officiated in the office of priests, whose usual garb was a linen ephod. Ver. 19. Edge of the sword.—{This is one of the worst acts in Saul’s life; his malice was implacable, and his wrath cruel; is there justice or policy by which such a barbarous massacre can be justified.}—B.