23:1 They told David, “The Philistines are fighting in Keilah and are looting the threshing floors.”
Keilah was a Jewish city which was near the Philistine border, about 15 miles southwest of Bethlehem. This city has been mentioned in the Amarna letters. The Philistines waited until the harvest crop was picked and stored on the threshing floor. Then, they came in and plundered the wheat.
23:2 So David asked the Lord, “Should I go and strike down these Philistines?” The Lord said to David, “Go, strike down the Philistines and deliver Keilah.”
Where was Saul’s army? David was a fugitive in hiding. He consulted the Lord through the Urim and Thummim. These sacred lots were stored in the priestly ephod which Abiathar had brought to David. Jehovah told David to attack the Philistines.
23:3 But David’s men said to him, “We are afraid while we are still here in Judah! What will it be like if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?”
David’s men were afraid. They had two different enemies on two different fronts. The Philistine army was invading Keilah in front of them, but King Saul’s army was looking for David behind them.
23:4 So David asked the Lord once again. But again the Lord replied, “Arise, go down to Keilah, for I will give the Philistines into your hand.”
Jehovah confirmed to David that he was to attack the Philistines.
23:5 So David and his men went to Keilah and fought the Philistines. He took away their cattle and thoroughly defeated them. David delivered the inhabitants of Keilah.
David was not even a king. He was a fugitive being hunted down by all of the resources of the Israelite government. Yet he raised up an army and saved Keilah from being captured. The success of David's army against the Philistines had to send rumors all across Israel about David’s effectiveness and Saul’s ineffectiveness. David could accomplish with a small army what Saul could not accomplish with a large army.
David Eludes Saul Again
23:6 Now when Abiathar son of Ahimelech had fled to David at Keilah, he had brought with him an ephod.
Abiathar was the last surviving priest of Eli. He joined David and brought him the ephod. This was a very valuable divination device, because the ephod revealed the will of God. Saul was operating completely on human viewpoint. David was operating on divine viewpoint in which he was receiving directly from God.
23:7 When Saul was told that David had come to Keilah, Saul said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has boxed himself into a corner by entering a city with two barred gates.”
Saul had an opportunity to capture David. There was only one gate in the city, meaning only one way out. Saul thinks that he has David trapped.
23:8 So Saul mustered all his army to go down to Keilah and besiege David and his men.
As king of Israel, Saul ordered the entire army of Israel to go capture and kill God’s next anointed king.
23:9 When David realized that Saul was planning to harm him, he told Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod!”
The ephod contained the Urim and Thummim. David wanted to receive divine information from God.
23:10 Then David said, “O Lord God of Israel, your servant has clearly heard that Saul is planning to come to Keilah to destroy the city because of me.
The Hebrew for “Lord God” is יְהוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵ֣י (Jehovah Elihi). David addressed his prayer to the covenant-keeping-promise-keeping-triune-Creator-God-of-Israel. Samuel was marching to Keilah to kill David, who was God’s next anointed king.
23:11 Will the leaders of Keilah deliver me into his hand? Will Saul come down as your servant has heard? O Lord God of Israel, please inform your servant!”Then the Lord said, “He will come down.”
David asked two questions. First, will the city of Keilah deliver David into Saul’s hands? Second, will Samuel bring his army to the city and attack? Jehovah answered the second question first. Saul would come down to the city with his army in an attempt to capture David.
23:12 David asked, “Will the leaders of Keilah deliver me and my men into Saul’s hand?” The Lord said, “They will deliver you over.”
Jehovah answered the first question. Even though David delivered the city of Keilah from the Philistines, the city leaders would deliver David to Saul. The people of Keilah were glad that David delivered them, but they would betray their deliverer into Saul’s hands.
23:13 So David and his men, who numbered about six hundred, set out and left Keilah; they moved around from one place to another. When told that David had escaped from Keilah, Saul called a halt to his expedition.
David’s army had increased by about 200 men in a short time. David and his men left the city. Saul called off the chase. David was doing the king’s job, but he was still considered a dangerous traitor by the Israelite government. Satan was using God’s anointed king and God’s chosen nation to hunt down and kill David.
23:14 David stayed in the strongholds that were in the desert and in the hill country of the desert of Ziph. Saul looked for him all the time, but God did not deliver David into his hand.
David was a former shepherd in the wilderness. The strongholds were caves. Saul hunted through the wilderness for David, but he was not able to find him.
23:15 David realized that Saul had come out to seek his life; at that time David was in Horesh in the desert of Ziph.
Ziph was a wilderness border town in the southern part of Judah. David was hiding in the wilderness of his early shepherd days. The geographical and survival skills that David learned as a young shepherd were being put to good use at this time. David knew how to survive in the wilderness. Saul’s army did not.
23:16 Then Jonathan son of Saul left and went to David at Horesh. He encouraged him through God.
Although Saul could not find David, Jonathan located him easily.
23:17 He said to him, “Don’t be afraid! For the hand of my father Saul cannot find you. You will rule over Israel, and I will be your second in command. Even my father Saul realizes this.”
Jonathan encouraged David by telling him that David was chosen by God to rule Israel. There was no way that Saul would be able to find David. Jonathan planned on being David’s second in command.
23:18 When the two of them had made a covenant before the Lord, David stayed on at Horesh, but Jonathan went to his house.
Jonathan and David made another covenant between them and then separated, never to see each other again.
23:19 Then the Ziphites went up to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Isn’t David hiding among us in the strongholds at Horesh on the hill of Hakilah, south of Jeshimon?
The Ziphites knew where David was hiding. They betrayed David and gave Saul his exact location. All of Israel was attempting to kill the king whose line would eventually give birth to the Messiah.
23:20 Now at your own discretion, O king, come down. Delivering him into the king’s hand will be our responsibility.”
The city of Ziph was willing to join Saul and help him capture David.
23:21 Saul replied, “May you be blessed by the Lord, for you have had compassion on me.
Saul was a professing believer. His comments were all for show.
23:22 Go and make further arrangements. Determine precisely where he is and who has seen him there, for I am told that he is extremely cunning.
Saul wanted to know the exact location of David. He knew that David was very cunning at avoiding escape. David was cunning, because he used the ephod to contact God. David knew every move that Saul was making.
23:23 Locate precisely all the places where he hides and return to me with dependable information. Then I will go with you. If he is in the land, I will find him among all the thousands of Judah.”
Saul wanted an intelligence report of the entire area.
23:24 So they left and went to Ziph ahead of Saul. Now David and his men were in the desert of Maon, in the Arabah to the south of Jeshimon.
David changed his location to the desert of Maon, which was ten miles southeast of Hebron.
23:25 Saul and his men went to look for him. But David was informed and went down to the rock and stayed in the desert of Maon. When Saul heard about it, he pursued David in the desert of Maon.
Saul closed in on David, chasing him inside the desert of Maon.
23:26 Saul went on one side of the mountain, while David and his men went on the other side of the mountain. David was hurrying to get away from Saul, but Saul and his men were surrounding David and his men so they could capture them.
Saul surrounded David and his men.
23:27 But a messenger came to Saul saying, “Come quickly, for the Philistines have raided the land!”
While Israel’s army was away, the Philistines attacked Israel. This placed Saul’s monarchy in a vulnerable position. God moved the entire Philistine army at just the right time to save David.
23:28 So Saul stopped pursuing David and went to confront the Philistines. Therefore that place is called Sela Hammahlekoth.
Saul was forced back to defend his land and his monarchy. The capture of the fugitive David would have to wait.
23:29 Then David went up from there and stayed in the strongholds of En Gedi.
En Gedi was a town on the Dead Sea southeast of Jerusalem It possessed a continuous running spring and a large cave. David most likely wrote Psalm 142 from this cave.