In other words, he had brains, brawn, looks, talent, and character!
| Qualification | Source |
|---|---|
| Skillful Musician | God-given talent and practice |
| Valorous Warrior | God-given situations (cf. 17:34,35) |
| Prudent Speaker | choosing to let the Spirit rule our tongue |
| Handsome | God-given |
| LORD is with him | Because he is with the LORD! |
1 Samuel 16:21-22 21 Then David came to Saul and attended him, and Saul loved him greatly; and he became his armor bearer. 22 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, "Let David now stand before me; for he has found favor in my sight."
1 Samuel 18:1-51 Now it came about when he had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as himself. 2 And Saul took him that day and did not let him return to his father's house. 3 Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. 4 And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt. 5 So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and prospered; and Saul set him over the men of war. And it was pleasing in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul's servants.
1 Samuel 18:8-9 8 Then Saul became very angry, for this saying displeased him; and he said, "They have ascribed to David ten thousands, but to me they have ascribed thousands. Now what more can he have but the kingdom?" 9 And Saul looked at David with suspicion from that day on.
| Employer's Thoughts | Employer's Actions/Results |
|---|---|
| Jealous, angry, and suspicious thoughts (v8) | Evil spirit? (v10) |
| Murderous thoughts: "I will pin David to the wall" (v11) | Two murder attempts with his spear (v11) |
| Fear (v12) | Removed David from his presence (v13) and promoted as commander of a 1000, with the results that David's PR position was improved (vv13,16). |
| Conspiracy: "let the hand of the Philistines be against him." (v17) | Lied (false promise of promotion v19) and created an environment for failure |
| Conspiracy: "a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him." (vv21,25) | Flattery ("the king delights in you" v22), Saul involves David's coworkers in the deceit. |
| Fear (v.29) | Saul continually David's "enemy" ('öyëb 341 {o-yabe'} is a verbal [that is, it represents an action] noun) |
1 Samuel 18:30 Then the commanders of the Philistines went out to battle, and it happened as often as they went out, that David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul. So his name was highly esteemed.
1 Samuel 22:14 Then Ahimelech answered the king and said, "And who among all your servants is as faithful as David, even the king's son-in-law, who is captain over your guard, and is honored in your house?
Hopefully it will be obvious that all three ingredients are necessary. I may be highly skilled as a ballet dancer, but I have not a drop of desire to do this. On the other hand, I may have a tremendous desire to be a famous bass singer, but all the wishing in the world isn't going to get me there without vocal skills. The same goes for knowledge, because if I'm doing the wrong thing extremely well it's still wrong. Knowledge is that aspect that not only shows me what to do, by why it should be done. Adding sincerity only makes it sincerely wrong. Therefore, Success = Ability + Knowledge + Desire.
1 Samuel 13:14 "But now your kingdom shall not endure. The LORD has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you."
Notice that Saul's disobedience is contrasted with David's heart attitude. The desire of David is to obey God. This is reinforced in the NT reference to this:
Acts 13:22 "And after He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, 'I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.'
Also note that Saul's desire seems honorable— to be a great king. Unfortunately, he ignored the knowledge factor that could have made that possible. He forsook the knowledge of God's definition of a great king and instead substituted his own definition.
1 Samuel 17:37 And David said, "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." And Saul said to David, "Go, and may the LORD be with you."
1 Samuel 17:45-47 45 Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted. 46 "This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, 47 and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD's and He will give you into our hands."
1 Samuel 18:14 And David was prospering in all his ways for the LORD was with him.
1 Samuel 24:6-7 6 So he said to his men, "Far be it from me because of the LORD that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD's anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, since he is the LORD's anointed." 7 And David persuaded his men with these words and did not allow them to rise up against Saul. And Saul arose, left the cave, and went on his way.
1 Samuel 25:39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Blessed be the LORD, who has pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and has kept back His servant from evil. The LORD has also returned the evildoing of Nabal on his own head." Then David sent a proposal to Abigail, to take her as his wife.
1 Samuel 26:10 David also said, "As the LORD lives, surely the LORD will strike him, or his day will come that he dies, or he will go down into battle and perish.
1 Samuel 26:24 "Now behold, as your life was highly valued in my sight this day, so may my life be highly valued in the sight of the LORD, and may He deliver me [Saul's value of David is not the determining factor in David's survival] from all distress."
2 Samuel 1:14-15 14 Then David said to him, "How is it you were not afraid to stretch out your hand to destroy the LORD's anointed?" 15 And David called one of the young men and said, "Go, cut him down." So he struck him and he died.
2 Samuel 2:4-5 4 Then the men of Judah came and there anointed David king over the house of Judah. And they told David, saying, "It was the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul." 5 And David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said to them, "May you be blessed of the LORD because you have shown this kindness to Saul your lord, and have buried him.
2 Samuel 4:8-12 8 Then they brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David at Hebron, and said to the king, "Behold, the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul, your enemy, who sought your life; thus the LORD has given my lord the king vengeance this day on Saul and his descendants."
9 And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, "As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from all distress, 10 when one told me, saying, 'Behold, Saul is dead,' and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and killed him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. 11 "How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous man in his own house on his bed, shall I not now require his blood from your hand, and destroy you from the earth?" 12 Then David commanded the young men, and they killed them and cut off their hands and feet, and hung them up beside the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth and buried it in the grave of Abner in Hebron.
Romans 12:19-21 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord.
See also Lev. 19:18; Deut. 32.33; 1 Sam. 25:26,33; and Prov. 24:17
2 Samuel 2:11 And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.
2 Samuel 16:5-14 5 When King David came to Bahurim, behold, there came out from there a man of the family of the house of Saul whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came out cursing continually as he came. 6 And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David; and all the people and all the mighty men were at his right hand and at his left. 7 And thus Shimei said when he cursed, "Get out, get out, you man of bloodshed, and worthless fellow! 8 "The LORD has returned upon you all the bloodshed of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the LORD has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. And behold, you are taken in your own evil, for you are a man of bloodshed!"
9 Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over now, and cut off his head." 10 But the king said, "What have I to do with you, O sons of Zeruiah? If he curses, and if the LORD has told him, 'Curse David,' then who shall say, 'Why have you done so?'" 11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, "Behold, my son who came out from me seeks my life; how much more now this Benjamite? Let him alone and let him curse, for the LORD has told him. 12 "Perhaps the LORD will look on my affliction and return good to me instead of his cursing this day." 13 So David and his men went on the way; and Shimei went along on the hillside parallel with him and as he went he cursed, and cast stones and threw dust at him. 14 And the king and all the people who were with him arrived weary and he refreshed himself there.
1 Samuel 23:14 And David stayed in the wilderness in the strongholds, and remained in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God did not deliver him into his hand.
2 Samuel 8:6 Then David put garrisons among the Arameans of Damascus, and the Arameans became servants to David, bringing tribute. And the LORD helped David wherever he went.
2 Samuel 8:14 And he put garrisons in Edom. In all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. And the LORD helped David wherever he went.
2 Samuel 22:1 And David spoke the words of this song to the LORD in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
2 Samuel 22:2-3 2 And he said, "The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; 3 My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My savior, Thou dost save me from violence.
Here are some foundations that people commonly make the center of their life. Some of these "centers" seem quite good. The problem is, they're all susceptible to change:
David chose God as his center, his focus. He could not be knocked off course, because he stood on an immutable foundation. Whenever we choose to stand on firm ground (i.e., depend on God), His stability is our refuge!