1 Samuel 26 explained: David Spares Saul a Second Time

Saul hunts David again (vv. 1-4)

The people of Ziph tell Saul where David is hiding, and Saul sets out with 3,000 soldiers, even though at their last meeting he had admitted David was in the right. David sends scouts to make sure Saul has really come before he acts.

Into the sleeping camp (vv. 5-7)

Saul sleeps at the center of his army with his spear stuck upright in the ground by his head, which likely marked where the leader lay. David takes his nephew Abishai and walks into the middle of the camp at night.

David refuses to strike (vv. 8-12)

Abishai sees the chance as God's doing, but David will not harm Saul because he is "the LORD's anointed," the king God chose and marked with oil, and he leaves Saul's end to God. He takes Saul's spear and water jug as proof he was there, and the text says the LORD put the soldiers into a deep sleep.

Taunting the bodyguard (vv. 13-16)

From a hilltop a safe distance away, out of reach but within earshot, David mocks Abner, Saul's army commander, for failing to guard the king. The missing spear and jug show how close Saul came to dying.

David's plea (vv. 17-20)

David says that if God is behind Saul's anger, an offering could settle it, but if people stirred Saul up, they deserve a curse for driving him away from the LORD's land, which in effect pushes him toward places where other gods are worshiped. He calls himself a mere flea and a hunted partridge, hounded by the king of Israel.

Saul backs down (vv. 21-25)

Saul admits he has been a fool, promises not to harm David again, and blesses him, while David hands back the spear and says he trusts God, not Saul, to protect him. They part ways, and David does not go home with Saul.

Key verse: 1 Samuel 26:9

Where Christians differ

Christians have long differed over whether David's refusal to harm a bad king teaches a general duty never to resist rulers, or reflects David's unique situation with a king God had specially chosen.

Something to think about

When someone who has wronged you is suddenly at your mercy, what do you think should hold a person back, and is holding back always the right call?