When God Plays Defense: 1 Samuel 19:18-24
Introduction: The Unraveling of a Tyrant
We are watching the slow-motion implosion of a king. Saul, once the anointed of God, has become a man possessed, not by a foreign demon, but by the far more common and insidious demon of envy. His heart is a cauldron of murderous rage, and the object of that rage is David, the man who has done nothing but serve him faithfully. Saul is a man at war with God's good providence, and such a war can only have one outcome. When a man sets his jaw against the decreed will of the Almighty, the universe does not bend; the man breaks.
In our passage today, we see this breaking in a most peculiar and humiliating fashion. Saul, in his relentless pursuit of David, runs headlong into the raw power of the Holy Spirit. And the result is not conversion, but comedy. It is a divine satire, a holy absurdity, where God protects His chosen man not with legions of angels or earthquakes, but by turning a murderous king and his hit squads into a bumbling, involuntary choir. This is not a story about the efficacy of David's escape plan; it is a story about the absolute sovereignty of God, who can defend His people with the most unexpected of weapons, including the very breath of a tyrant's own lungs.
This event serves as a bookend in Saul's life. We have been here before. Early in his reign, when he was a humble man, the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied. The question was asked then, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" and it was a statement of marvel (1 Sam. 10:11-12). It meant that God was with him, equipping him for his kingly office. But now, after years of rebellion, envy, and disobedience, the question is asked again. And this time, it is not a marvel but a mockery. It is a comic, ironic statement that reveals just how far he has fallen. God is using the same phenomenon to demonstrate two opposite spiritual realities: the first was a sign of his anointing, and this second is a sign of his final rejection. God is divesting him of his kingly authority, and He does it by stripping him bare, both literally and spiritually, before the very prophet who anointed him.
We must learn to read the story God is writing. Saul cannot read it. He is so blinded by his sin that he cannot see the pattern. He sends one group of messengers, and God neutralizes them. He sends a second, and God does the same. He sends a third, and the result is identical. A wise man would see the hand of God and repent. But Saul is not a wise man. He is a fool, and as the proverb says, though you bray a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, yet his foolishness will not depart from him. So Saul decides to go himself, and in doing so, walks directly into his own humiliation.
The Text
Now David fled and escaped and came to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and stayed in Naioth. And it was told to Saul, saying, “Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.” Then Saul sent messengers to take David, but they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing and presiding over them. And the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul; and they also prophesied. This was told to Saul, and he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. So Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied. Then he himself went to Ramah and came as far as the large well that is in Secu; and he asked and said, “Where are Samuel and David?” And someone said, “Behold, they are at Naioth in Ramah.” So he went there, to Naioth in Ramah; and the Spirit of God came upon him also, so that he went along prophesying continually until he came to Naioth in Ramah. He also stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Therefore they say, “Is Saul also among the prophets?”
(1 Samuel 19:18-24 LSB)
A Wise Refuge (v. 18)
We begin with David's flight:
"Now David fled and escaped and came to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and stayed in Naioth." (1 Samuel 19:18)
David, having escaped with his life thanks to Michal's quick thinking, does not run to his father's house in Bethlehem or to a military stronghold. He runs to the prophet of God. This is profound wisdom. When the political order, represented by the king, has become utterly corrupt and seeks your life, the first place of refuge is the ecclesiastical order, represented by the prophet. David goes to Samuel because Samuel is the one who anointed him. He is returning to the source of the promise in a time of great distress. His faith is being tested, and he seeks out the man who can remind him of God's sure word.
He tells Samuel "all that Saul had done to him." This is not gossip; it is a formal report. David is lodging a complaint with God's representative against the Lord's anointed. He is not taking matters into his own hands. He is not forming a rebel faction. He is submitting himself to God's established authority and seeking counsel. He and Samuel then move to Naioth, which was likely a community or school of prophets near Ramah. David surrounds himself with men devoted to the word and worship of God. When the world is trying to kill you, the safest place to be is in the assembly of the saints, under the preaching of the Word.
Three Strikes and You're Out (v. 19-21)
Saul's madness, however, knows no boundaries. His spy network is efficient, and he quickly learns David's location.
"And it was told to Saul, saying, 'Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.' Then Saul sent messengers to take David, but they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing and presiding over them. And the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul; and they also prophesied. This was told to Saul, and he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. So Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied." (1 Samuel 19:19-21 LSB)
Here we see the sovereign foolishness of God making foolish the wisdom of men. Saul sends a detachment of soldiers, his messengers, to arrest David. Their mission is straightforward: seize the fugitive. But as they approach this prophetic community, they encounter an atmosphere super-charged with the presence of God. Samuel is there, presiding, and the prophets are prophesying. This is not just a quiet Bible study; this is the manifest power of God on display.
And the Spirit of God falls upon the would-be arresting officers. Their murderous intent evaporates, and they are conscripted into the prophetic choir. They begin to prophesy. We must understand what this means. The Spirit of God can "rush upon" a man for a particular purpose without regenerating his heart. Think of Balaam. He was a wicked man who prophesied beautiful truths about the Messiah because God commandeered his mouth. The same thing is happening here. God is not saving these messengers; He is disarming them. He is turning their swords into plowshares and their spears into praise.
Saul gets the report and, in his spiritual stupor, does not recognize the hand of God. He thinks it must have been a fluke. So he sends a second group. The same thing happens. Then he sends a third. The same thing happens again. The narrative structure here is a classic Hebrew pattern of three, signifying completeness. God is giving Saul every opportunity to see the writing on the wall. He is shouting, "You are fighting against me!" But Saul's ears are stopped with the wax of his own rebellion. He cannot hear it. This is a picture of judicial hardening. When a man repeatedly refuses to see, God will eventually help him to be blind.
The King's Humiliation (v. 22-24)
Having seen his subordinates fail three times, Saul concludes that if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. This is the pinnacle of his arrogance.
"Then he himself went to Ramah... and the Spirit of God came upon him also, so that he went along prophesying continually until he came to Naioth in Ramah. He also stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Therefore they say, 'Is Saul also among the prophets?'" (1 Samuel 19:22-24 LSB)
Saul, the king of Israel, sets out as an assassin. But God has other plans. The Spirit of God comes upon him, not when he arrives at Naioth, but on the way there. He begins prophesying as he walks, a man hijacked by the Holy Spirit. His own will is overridden. The murderous intent is still in his heart, but his body is no longer under his control. He is a puppet, and God is pulling the strings.
When he finally arrives, the scene descends into a kind of divine farce. He strips off his royal robes. This is a deeply symbolic act. He is being stripped of his kingship, his dignity, and his authority. He then lies down, naked, prophesying before Samuel, the man who represents the authority of God that Saul has rejected. He lies there for a full day and a full night, utterly incapacitated, a royal spectacle of impotence. The king who sought to kill God's chosen is rendered powerless and pathetic, babbling uncontrollably in the dirt.
And this gives rise to the proverb again: "Is Saul also among the prophets?" The first time, it was a sign of God's favor. This time, it is a sign of God's judgment. It means something like, "Look how the mighty have fallen." It is a statement of incredulous, ironic humor. The tyrant has been turned into a clown. God did not strike him with lightning; He simply overwhelmed him with His presence, and Saul's evil intentions were short-circuited. God protected David not by erecting a wall, but by invading the attacker and making him sing psalms instead of drawing his sword.
God's Ridiculous Sovereignty
What are we to make of this bizarre and wonderful scene? There are several crucial takeaways for us. First, we must see the absolute and meticulous sovereignty of God in protecting His own. David was in mortal danger, but he was never truly at risk. God's purpose for David was immutable, and God was perfectly capable of defending him. And notice the means He used. It was not what we would expect. It was strange. It was, from a human perspective, ridiculous. We serve a God who has a sense of humor, and His humor is often deployed in the service of His justice. He loves to make the pompous look absurd.
Second, this passage is a stark warning about the difference between spiritual gifts and spiritual fruit. The Spirit of God came upon Saul and his men, and they prophesied. They participated in a genuine spiritual phenomenon. But it did not change their hearts. Saul gets up from his day-long stupor and goes right back to trying to kill David. This is why the apostle Paul tells us that you can have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and have all knowledge, and have faith to move mountains, but if you have not love, you are nothing (1 Cor. 13:2). The true mark of a man of God is not ecstatic experiences, but the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Saul had none of these. He had a temporary gift, but no lasting grace.
Finally, this is a picture of God's final victory. Saul is a type of all the tyrants of this world who set themselves against the Lord and against His Anointed, who is Christ. They take counsel together, they rage, they send their messengers, they come themselves with all their fury. And what is God's response? "He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision" (Psalm 2:4). God's laughter is a terrifying thing for His enemies. He does not just defeat them; He makes them a laughingstock. He unravels their plans with an easy and sovereign grace that exposes their utter impotence.
The day is coming when every enemy of Christ will be stripped of their robes of authority, laid bare, and silenced before the true King. Their rebellion will be shown for the cosmic absurdity that it is. But for us, who have fled for refuge to our Prophet and King, the Lord Jesus, we are safe. We are hidden in the Naioth of His grace. And though the Sauls of this world may rage, they cannot touch us, for our God knows how to play defense, and He has never lost a game.