1 Samuel 18:5-11

Some dangers of persistent sin.

The facts are—

1 . David, behaving wisely in his public position, wins favour with the people, and in the welcome to him on his return from the battle the women ascribe to him, in their song, higher praise than to Saul.

2 . The fact excites Saul's envy henceforth.

3 . In a fit of envious rage Saul seeks to smite David. The victory over Goliath brought Saul and David into a proximity highly favourable to the development of their respective characters. Their mutual influence acted powerfully on the main springs of life; and as these were so utterly different in moral quality, so the sequel reveals very diverse conduct, We have in this section an instance of—

I. MISINTERPRETED PROSPERITY . The decisive words of Samuel ( 1 Samuel 15:26 ) and his entire separation from Saul ( 1 Samuel 15:34 , 1 Samuel 15:35 ), as also the threatening attitude of the Philistines, were certainly enough to depress the spirit of the king; and his melancholy was but the outward sign to men of his painful secret. But the appearance of David, and the consequent defeat of the enemy, was an unlooked for gleam of light, and at once raised hopes which of late had been lost. He even set David over his men of war. The old prosperity was returning; the kingdom was saved; Saul was not dishonoured in battle. After all, with such helpers as David, might not the dreaded doom be avoided? Thus do we see a man, conscious of moral degeneracy, and sensible of being rejected, putting an interpretation on events according to his wishes, and not from a perception of their real bearing. The heart, when destitute of the spirit of true repentance, obstinately clings to unwarranted hope, and, by its own perverse ingenuity, obliterates or weakens the force of hard facts and moral laws ( 1 Samuel 15:26-29 ). In the eye of God the recent victory was the public presentation of the "neighbour," as a preliminary to his supplanting Saul; in the eye of Saul it was the postponement, if not the rendering void, of the dreaded doom. The tendency thus to misinterpret facts is common to sinful men. An impenitent heart is unwilling to believe in the vindication of justice. Not being in moral sympathy with the purposes of God, it will not, if possible, see those purposes.in process of realisation. The very riches of goodness are perverted into an occasion for persistence in sin ( Romans 2:4 ), and the temporal prosperity of life, despite the voice of conscience and the clear word of God, is supposed to be a sign that the issue will not be so fearful as was anticipated ( Psalms 10:6 , Psalms 10:11 ; Hebrews 2:3 ).

II. THE SOUNDNESS AND the DEFECTS OF POPULAR INSTINCTS . The mass of the people were quick in recognising the fact that David was the hero of the day, and only expressed the real truth in ascribing to him his "ten thousands," and to Saul his "thousands." Their instincts led them to honour above the king the man who was proved to be better than the king. But while correct in their appreciation of fact, they had no adequate, if any, perception of the moral bearings of it. Samuel, probably Jesse, and a few other devout men, would trace in David's exaltation of the "name of the Lord" ( 1 Samuel 17:45-47 ) a spiritual power and a spiritual man destined to work wonders for Israel. It is a good philosophy that trusts the popular mind in reference to the recognition of the broad facts of life. It is this faith which lies at the foundation of constitutional governments and the judicial administration of our own country. The common sense of mankind is a safe guide in ordinary matters of fact. But by reason of the low condition of man's spiritual life, and his inveterate proneness to look at the "things that are seen," the mass of men do not recognise quickly the moral and spiritual bearings of facts. There is a moral and spiritual "intention," to use a logical term, in human facts; they carry with them qualities that determine the future; they exhibit to the spiritually enlightened powers that will germinate, and that, too, not always in the form desired by the populace ( Matthew 16:3 ).

III. THE LIABILITY OF MEN , WHEN WARRING AGAINST PROVIDENCE , TO FALL INTO NEW SINS . We have seen ( 1 Samuel 15:24-31 ) that Saul cherished impenitent feelings when told of his sin. As a consequence, he tried not to believe that the threatened disaster would come. One of the consequences of this mental condition was, that as soon as he heard the honest, popular approval of David's prowess, he, dreading lest after all the decree might be fulfilled, eyed David as a rival, and fell into the grievous sin of ceaseless and cruel envy. The grievous character of this sin is seen if we notice its manifestation, and the main features are true of all envy.

1 . It blinded him to actual facts. It was true that David had slain "his ten thousands," as compared with Saul's "thousands;" but to the envious eye this was as though it were not. Its reality must not be tolerated. The Pharisees in like manner were wilfully blind to the fact that Christ had opened the eyes of the blind.

2 . It led to the imputation of base motives. He at once charged David with readiness for treasonous designs on the kingdom. The pure man was deemed impure. This is the common practice of narrow and base men, as appeared in the instance of Joseph ( Genesis 37:8 , Genesis 37:11 ), and of Christ ( John 7:20 ).

3 . It made himself perfectly wretched. His life lost all joy and hope, and suspicion and fear entered in. And whoever falls into this sin finds that it slayeth him ( Job 5:2 ), and is as rottenness to the bones ( Proverbs 14:30 ).

4 . It impelled to deeds of blood. The thrust of the javelin was virtual murder. The same process wrought in the heart of Cain, of the scribes and Pharisees, and is active in many who are guilty of no overt act ( 1 John 3:15 ). The dark thoughts, the unspoken intents of envious minds; who shall declare them? How true it is that he who hardeneth his heart, not bowing in true penitence, submissive to all God's judgments, falleth into mischief ( Proverbs 28:14 ) again and again, till at last he is destroyed suddenly and without remedy ( Proverbs 29:1 ; cf. 1 Samuel 31:3 , 1 Samuel 31:4 ).

General lessons : —

1 . All human judgments on the course of Providence are to be discounted in so far as sin is cherished in the life.

2 . The key to the future of the individual and national life is to be sought in moral conditions

3 . It is important that the popular mind should be trained to estimate things in their moral relations.

4 . Christians should strive to be entirely free from the spirit of envy, both in relation to worldly prosperity and to position in the Church of God ( Psalms 37:1 ; 1 Corinthians 13:4 ; 1 Peter 2:1 ).

5 . In so far as we indulge in any envy we lay ourselves open to temptations to further sins.