Commentary - 1 Samuel 23:19-29

Bird's-eye view

This passage is a master class in the providence of God. We see the treachery of men, the desperation of the righteous, the hot pursuit of the wicked, and the timely intervention of God. David is hemmed in on every side, not just by Saul, but by his own countrymen, the Ziphites. They are eager to curry favor with the king by turning over the Lord’s anointed. Saul, in his spiritual blindness, blesses them for it. This is the upside-down world that sin creates. And yet, in the middle of this high-stakes game of cat and mouse, God is not a passive observer. He is the grand chess master, moving all the pieces. Just when Saul is about to checkmate David, the Lord moves a Philistine rook across the board, and the king is forced to abandon his pursuit. This is not luck; it is meticulous, sovereign care. God delivers His people, and He often does it at the last possible second, in order to teach us that our deliverance is from Him and not from our own cleverness.

Outline

Context In 1 Samuel

This episode comes in the midst of David's years as a fugitive. He has been anointed as the next king, but the current king, Saul, is a man possessed, by jealousy, by fear, and by a tormenting spirit from the Lord. David has already had several close calls, but this one is particularly tight. He has just saved the city of Keilah from the Philistines, only to learn from the Lord that the men of Keilah would hand him over to Saul. This constant threat of betrayal from his own people, the people of Judah, is a heavy burden. This section highlights the stark contrast between Saul, who is rejected by God but still holds the apparatus of power, and David, who is chosen by God but lives like a hunted animal. The tension is building toward the moment when David will have the opportunity to kill Saul, but will refuse to lift his hand against the Lord's anointed. This passage demonstrates why David’s later restraint is so remarkable; he is not dealing with an honorable opponent.

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 19 Then Ziphites came up to Saul at Gibeah, saying, “Is David not hiding with us in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon?

The treachery begins close to home. The Ziphites are men of Judah, David's own tribe. Their willingness to betray him to Saul is a bitter pill. They come to Saul with specific intelligence, not just rumors. They know the area, the strongholds, the very hill. This is not a casual betrayal; it is calculated. They see which way the political wind is blowing, and they want to be on the winning side. They are choosing the established power of Saul over the promised, but not yet realized, power of David. This is how worldly wisdom operates. It looks at the visible, the tangible, the immediate, and makes its calculations accordingly. They failed to see that God's anointed, even in a cave, is more secure than a king on a throne who has been rejected by God.

v. 20 So now, O king, according to all the desire of your soul to come down, come down here; and our part shall be to surrender him into the king’s hand.”

The Ziphites are not just informants; they are active participants. They make it easy for Saul. "Come on down," they say, "and we will hand him to you." They know the "desire of [Saul's] soul." Saul’s obsession with destroying David is public knowledge. The Ziphites are playing to his sinful desires, feeding his paranoia and hatred. Notice the language: "our part shall be to surrender him." They are taking ownership of the betrayal. This is a reminder that sin is not just a passive failure; it is an active rebellion, a willing enlistment in the cause of the enemy.

v. 21 And Saul said, “May you be blessed of Yahweh, for you have had compassion on me.

Here the spiritual darkness of Saul is on full display. He invokes the name of Yahweh to bless an act of treachery against Yahweh's chosen king. He calls their betrayal "compassion." Saul is so deep in his self-pity and paranoia that he sees himself as the victim. Anyone who helps him in his wicked pursuit is, in his twisted view, showing him mercy. This is what happens when a man makes himself the center of his universe. All of morality gets bent around his own selfish desires. Blessing is called cursing, and cursing is called blessing.

v. 22 Go now, make more sure, and know and see his place, where his very foot is, and who has seen him there; for I am told that he is very crafty.

Saul, despite his madness, is not a fool in military matters. He wants solid intelligence. He respects David's ability, calling him "very crafty." This is a backhanded compliment, born of frustration. Saul wants to know David's exact location, "where his very foot is." He wants to eliminate any possibility of escape. He is methodical in his malice. This is a picture of how the world, in its opposition to Christ and His people, often operates with a shrewdness and diligence that can put the children of light to shame.

v. 23 So see and know about all the hiding places where he hides himself and return to me with certainty, and I will go with you; and if he is in the land, I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah.”

Saul’s determination is absolute. He will leave no stone unturned. He will search for one man "among all the thousands of Judah." This is the kind of obsessive hatred that sin produces. It is irrational. The king of Israel is mobilizing significant resources to hunt down one man who has done him no wrong. This is a foreshadowing of the way the powers of this world would later hunt the Son of David, seeing Him as a threat to their own illegitimate rule.

v. 24 Then they arose and went to Ziph before Saul. Now David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon, in the Arabah to the south of Jeshimon.

The trap is being set. The Ziphites go back to prepare the ground. Meanwhile, David has moved, but he is still in the same general vicinity. The narrator is building the tension. The hunters are closing in, and the prey seems to be unaware of the net being drawn around him.

v. 25 So Saul and his men went to seek him, and they told David, and he came down to the rock and stayed in the wilderness of Maon. And Saul heard it and pursued David in the wilderness of Maon.

Someone warns David. Even in the midst of traitors, God has His sources. David moves again, but Saul is relentless. He hears of David's new location and pursues him there. The chase is on, in the desolate wilderness of Maon. David is running out of places to hide. The landscape itself is part of the story, a barren, unforgiving place that mirrors David's own circumstances.

v. 26 And Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain; and David was hurrying to get away from Saul, but Saul and his men were surrounding David and his men to seize them.

This is the climax of the chase. The two parties are separated only by a mountain. They are so close they might as well be able to hear one another. David is "hurrying," a word that conveys desperation. And the situation is dire: Saul's forces are "surrounding" them. From a human perspective, it is over. There is no escape. David is trapped. This is the point to which God often brings His people, the point where self-reliance is utterly stripped away, so that He alone gets the glory for the deliverance.

v. 27 But a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid on the land.”

"But a messenger..." With these words, the entire situation pivots. Out of nowhere, a crisis erupts on another front. The Philistines, the perennial enemies of Israel, have chosen this exact moment to raid the land. The timing is impeccable. This is not a coincidence. This is the hand of God, using the wickedness of the Philistines to save His servant from the wickedness of Saul. God's providence is not flustered. He has a thousand ways to deliver His people, and He can use anyone or anything to do it, even pagan armies.

v. 28 So Saul returned from pursuing David and went to meet the Philistines; therefore they called that place the Rock of Escape.

Saul has to make a choice. As king, his duty is to protect Israel from foreign invaders. His personal vendetta must be put on hold. He breaks off the pursuit. The place is given a name to commemorate the event: "Sela-hammahlekoth," the Rock of Escape, or the Rock of Divisions. It stands as a permanent memorial to God's faithfulness. God divided Saul from his prey. He created a division in the path that led to David's deliverance.

v. 29 Then David went up from there and stayed in the strongholds of Engedi.

David does not linger. He moves to a more secure location, the strongholds of Engedi. He has been given a reprieve, a breathing space. He knows this deliverance was from the Lord, and he uses the opportunity to find a better place of refuge. The trial has ended, for now, and the lesson has been learned: when you are at the end of your rope, look up. God holds the other end.

Application

This story is a vivid illustration of God's sovereign providence. We are often like David, feeling hunted and trapped. Our enemies, whether they be circumstances, temptations, or people, seem to be closing in. We hurry, we scheme, we look for a way out, and we find ourselves with our backs against the mountain. It is in those moments that we must learn to trust in the God of the "But a messenger..."

Our God is never surprised. He knows the exact location of our pursuers. He knows the desperation of our hearts. And He knows the precise moment to intervene. His deliverance may not come on our timetable, but it will come. He may use a national crisis, a sudden phone call, an unexpected change of plans, anything He chooses, to provide a Rock of Escape for us. The lesson here is not to despair when surrounded. The battle is not ours, but the Lord's. Our job is to trust and obey, even when hurrying away from the enemy on the other side of the mountain. And when the deliverance comes, we must remember to name the place, to build a memorial in our hearts to the faithfulness of God, so that the next time we are surrounded, we will remember the Rock of our Escape.