1Sa 24:1

Now when Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, saying,
“Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.”

Then Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the Rocks of the Wild Goats.

He came to the sheepfolds on the way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the inner recesses of the cave.

The men of David said to him, “Behold, this is the day of which the LORD said to you,
‘Behold; I am about to give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it seems good to you.’” Then David arose and cut off the edge of Saul’s robe secretly.

It came about afterward that David’s conscience bothered him because he had cut off the edge of Saul’s robe.

So he said to his men, “Far be it from me because of the LORD that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD’S anointed, to stretch out my hand against him,
since he is the LORD’S anointed.”

David persuaded his men with these words and did not allow them to rise up against Saul.
And Saul arose, left the cave, and went on his way.

David and his men, outnumbered 5-1, were hiding in the inner recesses of the cave.

Saul went in to relieve himself…the KJV says “to cover his feet”…#2.

David’s men thought this was the fulfillment of the Word of the Lord.
Now David’s enemy would be delivered into his hands!

David was caught up in this…to a degree.

Why a degree?

He did not immediately kill the King.
He stealthily arose and cut off the edge of Saul’s robe.
To what purpose we will see later.

But, then David’s conscience bothered him.
The Lord moving.

He had humiliated the king…though the king did not know.

David’s words are profound.
“Far be it from me because of the Lord that I should do this thing to my lord…”

David still acknowledged Saul as “lord/king”, though David was anointed king.
David would not use the reasoning of fulfilling the Word of the Lord to humiliate the king.
Wow.

David called Saul “the Lord’s anointed”.
Saul was.
The Lord had anointed him, though the Spirit of the Lord had now left him.

David determined to not stretch out his hands.
He would not “hurry the plan along”.
He would rest in God’s timing.

He would not be the hand against God’s anointed.

David persuaded his men to not arise against Saul and to await the Lord.

May we do likewise.

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