1 ซามูเอล 23:25 วิจารณ์

Saul, having made himself drunk with the blood of the priests of the Lord, is here, in this chapter, seeking David's life, who appears here doing good, and suffering ill, at the same time. Here is, I. The good service he did to his king and country, in rescuing the city of Keilah out of the hands of the Philistines (Sa1 23:1-6). II. The danger he was thereby brought into from the malice of the prince he served and the treachery of the city he saved, and his deliverance, by divine direction, from that danger (Sa1 23:7-13). III. David in a wood and his friend Jonathan visiting him there and encouraging him (Sa1 23:14-18). IV. The information which the Ziphites brought to Saul of David's haunts, and the expedition Saul made, in pursuit of him (Sa1 23:19-25). The narrow escape David had of falling into his hands (Sa1 23:26-29). "Many are the troubles of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth them out of them all."

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 23 This chapter gives an account of David's relieving Keilah, when it had like to have fallen into the hands of the Philistines, Sa1 23:1; and of Saul's design to surprise him there, which David having notice of, and inquiring of the Lord, departed from thence; which when Saul heard of, he forbore to come forth, Sa1 23:7; and of David's being in the wilderness of Ziph, where, in a wood there, he had an interview with Jonathan, Sa1 23:14; and of the Ziphites offering to deliver him up to Saul, for which he commends them, and gives them instructions how they should behave to him in that affair, Sa1 23:19; and of his seeking him in the wilderness of Maon, where David and his men were in great danger of being taken; which was prevented by the news of the Philistines invading the land coming to Saul just at the nick of time, Sa1 23:24.

And Saul also and his men went to seek him,.... Whether the Ziphites returned to him with better intelligence, or sent him word where David was, is not said, however Saul with his army came out in search of him: and they told David; or it was told him, that Saul was come in quest of him: wherefore he came down into a rock; either into a cave in it, or he came down from the hill Hachilah to a plain or valley, in order to go up to a rock, the same with the mountain in Sa1 23:26, and abode in the wilderness of Maon; in which was the rock or mountain he came to: and when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in the wilderness of Maon; for upon the intelligence of the Ziphites, he came out to seek for him in the wilderness of Ziph, but hearing that he was removed to the wilderness of Maon, he pursued him there.

This is what happened to Paul. For the potency of the light suddenly surprised his feeble eyes and injured them. But the greatness of the voice brought low his strength and entered his ears and opened them.… For the voice did not plough up the ears, as the light injured the eyeballs. Why? But because it was necessary that he should hear but not see. Therefore the doors of hearing were opened by the voice as by a key: but the doors of sight were shut by the light that should open them. Why then was it necessary that he should hear? Clearly because by that voice our Lord was able to reveal himself as being persecuted by Saul. For he was not able to show himself by sight as being persecuted; for there was no way whereby this should be, that the son of David should be seen fleeing and Saul pursuing after him. For this happened in very deed with that first Saul and with the first David. The one was pursuing; the other was being persecuted; they both of them saw and were seen, each by the other. But here the ear alone could hear of the persecution of the Son of David; the eye could not see that he was being persecuted.

When Saul heard this, he pursued David, etc. These things specifically regard the Jewish persecutor, who, upon hearing of the faith and devotion of believers, persecutes them on earth, while they with the whole intention of their minds look towards the heavens, himself believing that Christ will come in the flesh, which they have already learned has come. For this is Saul proceeding on one side of the mountain, and David and his men staying on the other side; these ones empty of Christ, hastening with perverted hope towards Christ yet to be incarnate; those ones having already received, by the grace of Christ the author, the sacraments of the Christian faith in which they would be saved. For he is the mountain of the house of the Lord prepared on the summit of the mountains, upon which a city set cannot be hidden (Isa. II). Nor is it surprising if they despair of being able to escape carnally from their enemies, to whom it was not said, “Do not fear, for you will not be killed by your enemies” (Matt. X); but, he says, “Do not fear those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul” (Matt. X). Yet sometimes those in despair are delivered from enemies even at present, like the three boys from the furnace, Daniel from the lions' den, like Paul and Silas, and the very prince of the apostles himself (Acts V): but also elsewhere, all the apostles from prison together; as indeed many later martyrs of great praise and glory in Christ and the Church. Hence it is rightly added:

David succours Keilah, besieged by the Philistines; defeats them, and delivers the city, Sa1 23:1-6. Saul, hearing that David was at Keilah, determines to come and seize him, Sa1 23:7, Sa1 23:8. David inquires of the Lord concerning the fidelity of the men of Keilah towards him; is informed that if he stays in the city, the men of Keilah will betray him to Saul, Sa1 23:9-12. David and his men escape from the city, and come to the wilderness of Ziph, Sa1 23:13-15. Jonathan meets David in the wood of Ziph, strengthens his hand in God, and they renew their covenant, Sa1 23:16-18. The Ziphites endeavor to betray David to Saul, but he and his men escape to Maon, Sa1 23:19-22. Saul comes to Maon; and having surrounded the mountain on which David and his men were, they must inevitably have fallen into his hands, had not a messenger come to call Saul to the succor of Judah, then invaded by the Philistines, Sa1 23:25-27. Saul leaves the pursuit of David, and goes to succor the land; and David escapes to En-gedi, Sa1 23:28, Sa1 23:29.

The wilderness of Maon - Maon was a mountainous district in the most southern parts of Judah. Calmet supposes it to be the city of Menois, which Eusebius places in the vicinity of Gaza; and the Maenaemi Castrum, which the Theodosian code places near to Beersheba.

DAVID RESCUES KEILAH. (Sa1 23:1-6) Then they told David--rather, "now they had told"; for this information had reached him previous to his hearing (Sa1 23:6) of the Nob tragedy. Keilah--a city in the west of Judah (Jos 15:44), not far from the forest of Hareth. and they rob the threshing-floors--These were commonly situated on the fields and were open to the wind (Jdg 6:11; Rut 3:2).

David . . . came down into a rock, and abode in the wilderness of Maon--Tell Main, the hillock on which was situated the ancient Maon (Jos 15:55), and from which the adjoining wilderness took its name, is one mile north, ten east from Carmel. The mountain plateau seems here to end. It is true the summit ridge of the southern hills runs out a long way further towards the southwest; but towards the southeast the ground sinks more and more down to a tableland of a lower level, which is called "the plain to the right hand [that is, to the south] of the wilderness" [VAN DE VELDE].

David Delivers Keilah. He Is Betrayed by the Ziphites, and Marvellously Saved from Saul in the Desert of Maon - 1 Samuel 23 The following events show how, on the one hand, the Lord gave pledges to His servant David that he would eventually become king, but yet on the other hand plunged him into deeper and deeper trouble, that He might refine him and train him to be a king after His own heart. Saul's rage against the priests at Nob not only drove the high priest into David's camp, but procured for David the help of the "light and right" of the high priest in all his undertakings. Moreover, after the prophet Gad had called David back to Judah, an attack of the Philistines upon Keilah furnished him with the opportunity to show himself to the people as their deliverer. And although this enterprise of his exposed him to fresh persecutions on the part of Saul, who was thirsting for revenge, he experienced in connection therewith not only the renewal of Jonathan's friendship on this occasion, but a marvellous interposition on the part of the faithful covenant God.

Having been informed of the arrival of Saul and his men (warriors), David went down the rock, and remained in the desert of Maon. "The rock" is probably the conical mountain of Main (Maon), the top of which is now surrounded with ruins, probably remains of a tower (Robinson, Pal. ii. p. 194), as the rock from which David came down can only have been the mountain (Sa1 23:26), along one side of which David went with his men whilst Saul and his warriors went on the other, namely when Saul pursued him into the desert of Maon.