1 Samuel 26:9

1Sa 26:9 And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not: for who can stretch forth his hand against the LORD’S anointed, and be guiltless?

Ver. 9. Destroy him not.] Hoc enim indecens et indignum mihi videtur. "Keep thee far from an ill matter." {Exo 23:7} "Meddle not with them that are given to change." {Pro 24:21} The Ruteni are said to have every day one new king or more, according as they are able to make themselves so. {a}

{a} Val. Max. Christian, p. 350.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1Sa_26:9

Destroy him not.

Vengeance left with him to whom it belongs

Our attention has been called to the fact that the first great victory achieved by David was over his own spirit. As we pursue his history, we are glad to find that his first triumph of this noblest kind was not his last. His cruel and implacable foe, who had come out with three thousand armed men determined either to take him prisoner or to hunt him to death, was now entirely in his hands. It was a golden opportunity, and David made a golden use of it, for he refused to avenge himself, and suffered his deadly enemy to depart in peace. For three years he had lived the life of a fugitive, and in many ways and places had sought to shelter himself against the unrighteous and pitiless wrath of Saul. There were many things to enkindle his resentment and make forbearance towards Saul a most difficult virtue. Think of what be had lost, and what he had suffered! How strangely things combined together to make the worse appear the better course! The promise and the providence of God both seemed on the side of instant and complete vengeance! But David was versed in the Law of God: and in one of the earlier books of his incomplete, but precious, priceless Bible, he had read these commandments: Thou shalt not avenge nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord. (Lev_12:1-8; Lev_13:1-59; Lev_14:1-57; Lev_15:1-33; Lev_16:1-34; Lev_17:1-16; Lev_18:1-30). Davids generous forbearance touched the heart of Saul, disarmed him of his rage, melted him into tears, and constrained him to become a suppliant at the feet of the man for whose blood he had been thirsting. This second display of magnanimity on Davids part was a greater triumph of saintly principle than the first. All the former reasons in favour of avenging himself still existed, and in greater force, because of the additional sufferings he had endured; and now there was to be added another reason of almost irresistible power, he had cast his pearl before swine which had turned again to rend him. His kindness had been shamefully abused, and evil had been returned for his good. The Kings life, which he had nobly spared, was consecrated afresh to the work of securing his destruction. To spare it a second time was for David to sharpen the sword by which he himself would be slain; and that surely would be charity degenerating into fanaticism. It is evident that Davids faith in God was one of the great roots out of which all these fruits of forbearance and patience and compassion grew. He was confident that God would in His own way and in His own time fulfil the promises which had been made; and, therefore, instead of taking the matter into his own hands, he could rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him. They say that Revenge is sweet. There can be no doubt of the truth of this, for perverted natures have perverted tastes, and loathe what they ought to love, and banquet with delight on what they ought to abhor. David had feelings in his heart which would have been intensely gratified if he had taken vengeance on his enemy; but would not his revenge have been like the book the seer did eat in the Apocalypse, sweet in the mouth, but bitterness in the belly? Patience and meekness and forgiveness are often very hard to exercise, but when they become matters of memory, are they not things of beauty, and a joy forever? The poet tells of one who sat by the grave of the friend from whom he had parted in anger, and wept at the remembrance of his former harshness:--Cruel, cruel the words I said! Cruelly come they back today. Probably there are men now sleeping in the dust who in their lifetime wronged and injured you. If you forgave them, and prayed for them, and sought to bless them, does the memory of that Christ-likeness on your part ever give you a moments sorrow? Yes, revenge may be sweet, but, like all the pleasures of sin, it is but for a season. Mercy is Gods delight. He who receives it through Jesus secures his passport to the skies. He who learns to imitate it, lays up treasure for himself in heaven. Happy he who by the grace of God so carries himself toward them that curse him and despitefully use him, that he does not invoke his own condemnation, when, in his daily prayer, he cries, Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us. (C. Vince.)

Who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord and be guiltless?--

Davids magnanimity

I. The persons here concerned are Saul and David and the state in which the text shews us these two was that of enmity. Consider, therefore, that the prince that was his captive now, and at his mercy had somewhile since descended so below himself, as to become the envier and detractor from his praise, was poorly jealous of the honours he had purchased, and tried to blast the laurels he had gathered, at the expense oil so much painful boil and hazard; and tis no little share of grace and goodness that can restrain a young aspiring hero from taking vengeance on the maligners of his praise, and from removing all impediments in his pursuit of fame and glory. When mens lives are so apparently sought after, they usually lay all respects aside, and listen to the dictates of unruly Nature. He was a false, perfidious prince. Nothing affects a generous mind so sensibly as being cheated under shew of friendship; and treachery is never viler than when tis covered with the mask of godliness. But further, be was perjured. He had but lately taken a solemn oath before the Lord and Jonathan, David should not be slain. And when a prince has thus abandoned common honesty, broken the sacred cords that knit societies, and keep up governments and mutual correspondences, he is justly delivered into the hands of those whose innocence and good credulity he had imposed on, and abused almost to their destruction. Oh, what a mighty measure of Gods grace must fill the heart of him that then could say, The Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lords anointed. There are some things besides our lives and persons, in which, if we are touched, we think ourselves extremely injured; and they are specially our friends, our fortunes and religion; and David was in every one of these affected more or less by Sauls implacable pursuit, and hunting after him. But notwithstanding all this, great as he was in court, great as he was in camp, and greater yet in favour of the people, he would not venture on the impious fact, still it was, The Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lords anointed. Tis surely with ambition, as with other passions, the imaginary joys are greater than the experienced and substantial ones: The hopes and expectations far exceed the pleasures of possession. Whatever cares belong to crowns, they lie concealed within their circles, and are more seldom seen than felt. But this temptation found no place with David, young, and gay, and vigorous as he was and even so near the crown, Ahab by conniving at Abishais blow, he might have been in full and sure possession of it; yet he suffered not himself to be transported beyond the bounds of rigid honesty and loyalty, and still cries out, The Lord forbid. Now, to conclude, and to complete this character, and lastly, to these great advantages of being son-in-law, a mighty man of valour, and accepted in the sight of all the people, of knowing Saul rejected, and himself designed for successor, the greatest yet of all advantages, and that is opportunity; that without which all others signify but little; and that with which alone men serve their turns, and make up the defects of all the rest; that pander to all sin, and fatal snare of virtue! That has ruined many thousand souls and betrayed them into most detestable commissions. Opportunity, that few have virtue, few have strength sufficient; to withstand, and of all opportunities, none are so strong, and work so powerfully upon the minds of men as those that look providential ones, and seem to come from God. Yet this was Davids opportunity, and yet withstood.

II. Consider the reason David gave for his refusal of Abishais and the soldiers proffer, It is the Lords anointed. The laws of God did certainly secure the lives of kings as well as other mens, if it did no more. The Lord shall smite him, or his day shall come, or he shall perish in the battle, that is, I leave him to Gods disposal; let God, the Judge of all the earth, do with him as he pleases. And though we think the leaving wicked kings to God is the lightest and the kindest expression of nothing in the world that can be; yet we would quickly alter our opinions and be of Davids mind, if we would give ourselves leave to consider:

1. That he hates injustice more.

2. That he is much more ready.

3. Much more able to punish it than we can be. (W. Fleetwood.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26:9 the Lord’s anointed: See study note on 24:6.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

To wit, in his own private cause: for Jehu slew two Kings at God’s appointment, 2 Kings 9:24.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(9) Against the Lord’s anointed.—David—taught, no doubt, by the prophet Samuel—looked upon the person of Saul as made sacred and inviolable by the royal anointing. Through the anointing Saul had become the possession of Jehovah; only Jehovah, then, could lawfully take away that sacred life. This he elaborates in the next verse. It is possible that these exalted sentiments respecting the Divine rights of kings were not uttered by David while standing in the dark night among Saul’s soldiers by the sleeping king, but subsequently, when he and Abishai were talking the incident over together.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And David said to Abishai, destroy him not,.... He laid his commands upon him not to hurt him:

for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's anointed, and be guiltless? since Saul was king, and appointed to that office by the Lord, and was anointed by his order for it, and invested with it by him, his person was sacred, and not to be touched; nor could his life be taken away by any without being guilty of a very great crime indeed, which it might be justly expected the Lord would resent and punish.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Guiltless. Saul was still his king, how wicked soever, and this title rendered his person inviolable. The eastern nations are very seldom guilty of rebellion, or of murdering their kings; a thing of which we find so many examples in the Roman, English, and French histories. (Calmet) --- A private man could not lay violent hands upon the king without a crime; and therefore David represses Abisai, and commits his cause to God, chap. xxiv. 13. (Menochius) --- He will not permit any one to destroy the life of the king, though he was already anointed to succeed him. (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Though Saul be a cruel tyrant, and rejected by God, yet he is our sovereign lord and king; and I, though designed king, as yet am but a private person, and his subject; and therefore cannot kill him without sin, nor will I consent that thou shouldst do it.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Vers. 9-11. David forbids the deed as before, (1Sa_24:6) because of Saul"s office. As we there saw, this was an ingrained principle in David"s mind on which he constantly acted. Present with equal strength in Saul"s mind, it was the cause of moral ruin to the one, and of a noble forbearance and self-control to the other. David therefore leaves him in Jehovah"s hand, saying, As Jehovah liveth, Jehovah shall smite him; or his day, etc. Literally, "As Jehovah liveth (I will not smite him), but Jehovah shall smite him; either his day shall come and he shall die; or he shall go down into battle and perish." Whenever he falls, it shall be Jehovah"s doing, whether he die a natural death, or a violent one in battle. "The smiting of Jehovah" does not imply a sudden death. God smites men with disease (2Ki_15:5) and other troubles. What David means is that he will leave the matter entirely to God, but that if Saul"s death is to be a violent one, he must fall honourably, not by the hand of a subject, but in battle with Israel"s enemies. Jehovah forbid. The same phrase as in 1Sa_24:6. Cruse of water. i.e. water bottle, as in 1Ki_19:6.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Destroy him not, &c. - Though Saul be a tyrant, yet he is our Lord and king; and I, though designed king, as yet am his subject; and therefore cannot kill him without sin, nor will I consent that thou shouldst do it.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

who can extend his hand against Yahweh's anointed one and be guiltless?

This rhetorical question can be translated as a statement. This can also be stated in positive form. AT: "No one can strike Yahweh's anointed one and be without guilt." or "Anyone who strikes Yahweh's anointed one will be guilty of murder." (See: Rhetorical Question and Litotes)

As Yahweh lives

"as certainly as Yahweh lives" or "as surely as Yahweh lives"

his day will come to die

"he will die a natural death"

translationWords

David

Yahweh

anoint

life

die

perish

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.