Jacob Chanikuzhy

Philip Yancey, one of the bestselling contemporary Christian authors, wrote, “I have come to know a God who has a soft spot for rebels, who recruits people like the adulterer David, the whiner Jeremiah, the traitor Peter, and the human-rights abuser Saul of Tarsus.” King David’s adultery with Bethsheba is well known. But many are not familiar with the story of David almost becoming a traitor (1 Samuel 29).
After parting ways with King Saul, David sought asylum in the Philistine Kingdom. Philistine King Achish was so pleased with David and trusted him that he invited David to join him to fight against Israel. To our great surprise, David joined the army of Philistine King Achish against Israel. One can imagine David’s predicament. What would he do when the war began? Remember, he was the anointed king of Israel! Would the King of Israel join the enemy army and fight against his own nation? What greater act of treason can he commit? Or would he betray King Achish and fight against the Philistines once the war started? What meaner act of ingratitude could he perform against King Achish, who trusted him as a guardian angel? Whatever course of action David takes would make him a traitor and sinner. God, however, did not abandon his chosen one to a scandalous act. The princes of Philistia hated David; they were jealous of him and forced King Achish to send David away. Thus, David was saved from sinning against God and his people.
The subsequent events prove that the hatred, jealousy, and distrust of the mighty Philistine lords turned out to be a great blessing for David. God can make use even of the hostilities of our enemies to rescue us from falling into peril and even for our growth and wellbeing. Rejected by the warlords of Philistines, David returned to Ziklag, the town where David and his people occupied. Upon their arrival, they saw to their great shock that their town had been attacked by the Amalekites, and their wives and children were taken as captives. Had David and his people been engaged in war in the army of Achish, it would have been too late to pursue the Amalekites and recover their wives and children.
At the loss of their wives and children, David and the people with him cried their hearts out. The sorrow of the people suddenly gave way to hatred for David. Some of them wanted to stone him. See the plight of David! He was rejected by the lords of Philistines, rejected by his own people, lost his wives, and now he was even on the brink of losing his own life. But he did not lose heart. Nor did he lose control of his anger and kill those who wanted to kill him. At this moment of grief, he forgave them. His forgiving attitude united his people once again and made them more loyal to him. David put his trust in the Lord, and with God’s approval, he pursued the Amalekites. On the way, however, some of his men stopped marching because they were so tired. David did not force them to march ahead but allowed them to rest, and he marched further with the rest. He attacked the Amalekite camp, rescued all their people captured by the Amalekites, and returned with a great booty. When he met those who took rest, those who were with him opposed to giving them any share in the booty as they did not join the attack. But David insisted on giving them a share of the booty.
In the above story, we find David growing as an ideal shepherd-king by “not waging war” against God’s people, losing heart at the moments of great adversity, extending forgiveness to those who wanted to kill him, showing great understanding to those who failed to follow him due to their weakness, giving a share of the booty to everyone and without greedily keeping the entire booty for himself, and above all by putting his trust in the Lord.
It is the work of God’s grace that saves the shepherds of God’s people from harming the sheep entrusted to their care, no matter how perplexing the situation is. Fallen from grace, a shepherd becomes a hireling who steals, kills, and destroys under the pretext of shepherding.