1 Samuel 22 Spear in hand

seekeroftruth

Well-Known Member
1 Samuel 22:6 Now Saul heard that David and his men had been discovered. And Saul was seated, spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with all his officials standing at his side. 7 He said to them, “Listen, men of Benjamin! Will the son of Jesse give all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? 8 Is that why you have all conspired against me? No one tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is concerned about me or tells me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me, as he does today.”​

Sorry... only three verses this morning... but it's a good break in the story.

I'm using GodVine this morning.

Saul abode in Gibeah - Saul and his men were in pursuit of David, and had here, as is the general custom in the East, encamped on a height, for so Ramah should be translated, as in the margin. His spear, the ensign of power (see on 1 Samuel 18:11), was at hand, that is stuck in the ground where he rested, which was the mark to the soldiers that there was their general's tent.

And all his servants were standing about him - That is, they were encamped around him, or perhaps here there is a reference to a sort of council of war called by Saul for the purpose of delivering the speech recorded in the following verses.

Ye Benjamites - Showing how isolated the tribes still were, and how for the most part Saul was surrounded by his own tribesmen only.

He conjectured that Jonathan had made a league with David to dethrone him, and he accuses them of disloyalty for not making the discovery of this unnatural treason. Now it was impossible for any of them to show what did not exist, no such league having ever been made between David and Jonathan.​

Oh brother... this says that he thinks Jonathan and David are working together to take his throne. Now Jonathan is is serious danger.

This is from Bible.org.

I confess that sometimes I allow my imagination to become carried away. As I read here that Saul sits under that tree with a spear in his hand, I can’t help but wonder what kind of weapons he might have if he lived today. Can’t you just imagine him with a pair of 357 automatics strapped to his side, a couple of sawed-off shotguns within reach, and an oozie in his hands? This man is paranoid. He never seems to be without that spear or without what appears to be a host of bodyguards.​

What is amazing in these verses are the accusations Saul makes against his own son, Jonathan. Because of the covenant David made with Jonathan, we would not be surprised to read that Saul accuses his son of being taken in by David, of being recruited by David to join him in his conspiracy against Saul. But Saul accuses Jonathan of leading David astray, of stirring up David against him (22:8). This is a most amazing charge. The “conspiracy” against Saul, if traced to its roots, originated with Jonathan and not with David. Saul has lost it.

But the conspiracy theory goes even further. Not only does Saul accuse Jonathan and David of conspiring against him, he also accuses his servants – all of them! Saul is surrounded by his servants as he sits under the tamarisk tree near his home in Gibeah. He begins by reminding his servants about the nature of politics and the spoils of political victory and power. As a reward for their loyalty to Saul, these Benjamites have been given property and positions of authority as political spoils. Do they think that if David becomes king they will enjoy the same spoils? They most certainly will not. And so Saul reminds his servants that they owe him -- big time. And now he wants a payback -- by having them inform him of David’s whereabouts. Saul tells his servants that by keeping silent about David and withholding any information about him and his whereabouts, they are joining David in his conspiracy against Saul

I googled "King Saul's mental illness". Seems he might have been diagnosed with either depression or bi-polar disorder. One commentary says it might have been PTSD.

So now we have a man in power.... with an un-diagnosed mental illness.... a weapon and an army.

:coffee:
 
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