David’s Temptations (1 Samuel 24-26)

The Bible declares on its first pages that human beings, made in the image of God, are given the authority and ability to choose. Implicit in this privilege is the responsibility to be righteous and true, as the decisions made by the image-bearer reflect on their Creator – God.

David’s Temptations

Sadly, the first humans succumbed to the desires awakened by the serpent in Genesis 3. They were tempted by the promise that the knowledge of good and evil would bring them from “mere” image-bearing status to being “like God” (Genesis 3:5). I’m not sure how different that would have been, but the forbidden tree was “good for food, . . . a delight to the eyes, and . . . to be desired to make one wise” (Genesis 3:6 ESV). The temptation proved overwhelming and gave birth to sin, and ultimately death (cp. James 1:14-15).

It has often been pointed out that these categories of temptation: good for food, a delight to the eyes and the desire for wisdom, answer to the threefold allure of the world in 1 John 2:16 – “ . . . the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life”. The failure of Adam and Eve to resist this temptation disqualified them from the leadership they had been given, and subjected both creation and humanity to the futility that has marked them ever since. 

It is for this reason that the Son of Man par excellence, Jesus, finds Himself facing temptation. Each of the Synoptic Gospels gives space to His temptation in the wilderness at the hands of the devil. The devil uses the same strategy as in Genesis 3. Following the order in Matthew’s Gospel, we see an appeal made to the stomach of the hungry, fasting Jesus. Then an appeal to the spectacular is observed in the devil’s second effort, when he would have Jesus jump from the temple heights so that God could miraculously save Him. Finally, the devil turns to an offer of kingdom glory in exchange for worship and again he is rebuffed.

The temptation of Jesus reveals the impeccable character of the One whom God has sent to act as the new Adam. Here is the answer to the prophecy of Genesis 3:15 – “He shall bruise your head”. The serpent crusher has arrived on planet earth! It will be in this Man that sin will be dealt with and its consequence, Death, reversed. Indeed, Paul, writing in 1 Corinthians 15:45, calls Him “The last Adam” since there will never need to be a replacement for this unfailing, temptation-resistant Man!

I write these paragraphs as an introduction to a discussion of David and his temptations. David is the prototypical king set forth in the Old Testament. His kingship hearkens back to the beginning with Adamic overtones. Adam’s rule over creation in the garden of Eden looks ahead to David’s rule over the “land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8). In similar ways, even if less obvious, David is tempted in relation to his kingship. The purpose of this article is to highlight three temptations that are given to us in the literary unit of 1 Samuel 24-26. Interestingly, references to good and evil, and deep sleep, are found in these chapters (e.g., 1 Samuel 24:17; 26:12), words that further call to mind the early chapters of Genesis.

 These temptations occur while, as far as the nation is concerned, David is still a rejected and unacknowledged king. His relative success in resisting temptation shows him to be of noble character and duly qualified to be a typological king with whom God might covenant, but his imperfections cause us to look for the Successor in whom no failing or faltering can be found. David proves to be a worthy instalment in God’s unfolding redemptive plan, but still leaves us looking forward to the ultimate King – Jesus, the Christ!

 The literary unit of 1 Samuel 24-26 is marked out by the interactions that David has with Saul in chapters 24 and 26. In each situation, Saul is seeking David’s demise, yet he finds himself unwittingly in David’s hands. David refuses to kill him, despite the golden opportunities to do so, “seeing [Saul] is the LORD’s anointed” (1 Samuel 24:6 ESV). In chapter 24:3 David is hiding with all his men in a cave when Saul enters it alone “to relieve himself”. While he was in this vulnerable position David could have easily killed him. In fact, David’s men consider the opportunity to be providential, that is, orchestrated by God. All David is willing to do is cut off a piece of his robe as a means of proving to Saul that, although he could have killed him, he had refused to do so. Contrastingly, in chapter 26:7 a sleeping Saul, surrounded by his army, is visited by David and a friend. When the friend offers to kill Saul on David’s behalf, the offer is refused. Only Saul’s spear and water jug are taken, to once again prove the reality that Saul’s life has been spared.

The first case seems to parallel the example of Jesus refusing to be made king prematurely. David, although anointed by God as the true king, will not take the kingship by force, but will await the LORD’s timing to exalt him to the throne in spite of the difficulties inherent in life “on the run”. In his own words, he describes himself as a “dead dog” or a “flea” (1 Samuel 24:14). Satan wanted Jesus to take the easy way out as well – to have the kingdom without the suffering. David refused this, and the narrator of the books of Samuel is careful to show that David’s eventual ascension to the throne was not a result of him seeking any ill advantage (2 Samuel 5:1-5).

The second case perhaps parallels the devil’s request that Jesus throw himself off the temple. The request would require God to step in spectacularly to save from certain death. When Abishai wishes to kill Saul with one blow of a spear, David considers the death of Saul in this way to be tantamount to murder, a homicide. Again David refuses to kill “the LORD’s anointed” (2 Samuel 26:9), and instructs Abishai concerning the ways it is possible for someone to die. Killing Saul would be like attempting to take one’s own life by jumping off the temple in the sense that such an action would be presuming on God, and as Jesus avers, “Do not put the LORD your God to the test” (Matthew 4:7 NIV).

David is willing to wait for Saul’s demise to happen according to one of the three legitimate ways to die (1 Samuel 26:10): either God will strike him supernaturally in his sin, or he will reach his allotted time to die, or he will die in battle. As an aside, I find this instructive with regards to death. I see four categories here: murder (the various “-cides”, e.g., suicide), supernatural death (the LORD acting in judgement on sin), natural death (dying of natural processes) and accidental death (in battle or unintentionally). This highlights why a death may be untimely, and, when such is the case, why it is often more grievous. 

In the middle of these two bookends is a story about David’s interaction with a man named Nabal (1 Samuel 25). Nabal is a fool who treats David badly by refusing to give him some food and respect for the care he provided. It is in this situation that David comes the closest to yielding to temptation. David is hungry and wants food and his bodily response is to seek vengeance. Mercifully, Nabal’s wife Abigail intercedes, and David heeds her warning and receives her provision. In contrast to Eve in the garden, who coaxes the man into temptation, Abigail proves to be the means of delivering David out of temptation. You would think that David, having resisted the temptation to kill Saul, would have been able to suppress the desire for some food, and cope with a slight to his reputation. But temptation of every kind is real, and every situation is different and difficult. God graciously provided David with the way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13) and, to David’s credit, he humbly received it.

We all long for deliverance from temptation. Our Lord taught in the model prayer to pray that we would not be led into temptation (Matthew 6:13). David’s victory over temptation with the LORD’s help meant that he could ascend the throne rightfully without shedding innocent blood. Jesus was able to die as our representative since He never yielded to temptation. His temptations exposed the purity of His heart, the unimpeachability of His character, and the holiness of His person. “He [truly] is the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15)!

When tempted, let us take the example of our Saviour to heart and meet temptation with the Word of God. Like David, humbly seek and accept the way of escape. Yield by faith to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in view of the crown of life (James 1:12) reserved for those who remain steadfast. May the temptations, that do come our way, reveal something of His image through the sanctifying work of God within our hearts, rather than expose again the deceit and darkness that so naturally abounds.