A HUMBLE SERVANT
Opening Prayer
Loving Lord, open my heart, my mind, and my hands to feel, understand, and share your marvelous love.
Read 1 SAMUEL 18:17-30
17 Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage; only serve me bravely and fight the battles of the Lord.” For Saul said to himself, “I will not raise a hand against him. Let the Philistines do that!”
18 But David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my family or my clan in Israel, that I should become the king’s son-in-law?” 19 So[a] when the time came for Merab, Saul’s daughter, to be given to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah.
20 Now Saul’s daughter Michal was in love with David, and when they told Saul about it, he was pleased. 21 “I will give her to him,” he thought, “so that she may be a snare to him and so that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “Now you have a second opportunity to become my son-in-law.”
22 Then Saul ordered his attendants: “Speak to David privately and say, ‘Look, the king likes you, and his attendants all love you; now become his son-in-law.’”
23 They repeated these words to David. But David said, “Do you think it is a small matter to become the king’s son-in-law? I’m only a poor man and little known.”
24 When Saul’s servants told him what David had said, 25 Saul replied, “Say to David, ‘The king wants no other price for the bride than a hundred Philistine foreskins, to take revenge on his enemies.’” Saul’s plan was to have David fall by the hands of the Philistines.
26 When the attendants told David these things, he was pleased to become the king’s son-in-law. So before the allotted time elapsed, 27 David took his men with him and went out and killed two hundred Philistines and brought back their foreskins. They counted out the full number to the king so that David might become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.
28 When Saul realized that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David, 29 Saul became still more afraid of him, and he remained his enemy the rest of his days.
30 The Philistine commanders continued to go out to battle, and as often as they did, David met with more success than the rest of Saul’s officers, and his name became well known.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 18:19 Or However,
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
In the big picture of your life, what are you grateful for? Take a little time to recall God’s goodness to you and reflect on how worthy God is of your praise!Here are the present and future kings, and the contrast between them is stark. Saul is deceitful in his thinking (v 17b). He fails to keep his word (v 19). He wants the worst for David (vs 21, 25). He is manipulative (v 22) and as we’ve seen before, insecure – although by now that’s probably for good reason (vs 28,29).
David, on the other hand, is true to his word – and more (vs 25- 27)! Despite his success in battle, twice in this passage he shows humility (vs 18, 23). And this seemed to be embedded in him (2 Samuel 7:18; 1 Chronicles 29:14). Although he was to fail greatly in the future, David had more than ‘A faint streak of humility’ as one writer called their autobiography.*
Some people speak of us living in a culture of entitlement, which leads to people believing that they deserve certain privileges that they may or may not have. Inevitably, some people are privileged, whether by birth, gifts or circumstances. But as Brené Brown wrote, ‘What separates privilege from entitlement is gratitude.’ David was very clear that he was undeserving and knew how to express his gratitude.
Apply
Think back to the beginning of this note when you recalled God’s goodness to you. Who could you share that with today?
Closing prayer
Mighty God, I need a fresh vision of who you are and what you can do. Encourage me as I seek to faithfully follow you through all the minefields of life.
*Michael Saward, A Faint Streak of Humility, Paternoster, 1999
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