The Onlooker
Samuel has anointed David as the next king of Israel. The Spirit of the Lord has come upon David – and He is there to stay.
So what now?
Samuel goes back to Ramah. He has done what God told him to do. But what about David?
First, he goes back to tending his father’s sheep.
But…
When the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David, it left someone else.
14 Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the LORD tormented him.
The Spirit left Saul, and in it’s place the devil had some fun.
Saul was tormented. Saul no longer had the Spirit of God upon him. Saul was no longer God’s chosen king over Israel. Saul just… was.
His servants were concerned for him – enough that they sought ways to fix the problem. And their solution enabled David to come to the palace and begin preparations for becoming the king God wanted him to be.
15And Saul’s servants said to him, “Behold now, a harmful spirit from God is tormenting you. 16Let our lord now command your servants who are before you to seek out a man who is skillful in playing the lyre, and when the harmful spirit from God is upon you, he will play it, and you will be well.” 17So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me a man who can play well and bring him to me.” 18One of the young men answered, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the LORD is with him.” 19Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me David your son, who is with the sheep.” 20 And Jesse took a donkey laden with bread and a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them by David his son to Saul. 21And David came to Saul and entered his service. And Saul loved him greatly, and he became his armor-bearer. 22And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Let David remain in my service, for he has found favor in my sight.” 23And whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him.
Saul needed someone to play music. He needed something to take his mind off all of the things around him that were causing him anxiety. He needed to find peace, and God used David to provide that peace for him.
There are so many details that are overlooked by this passage. What must David have thought when he was summoned to the palace? What must Jesse have thought, given the fact that his youngest son had been anointed king?
It is obvious that David was smart enough to keep his mouth shut. He came to the palace, he played for the king, and he became beloved by the king. If David had been spouting off about being the next in line, Saul would have not kept him around.
We don’t know how much time had passed between Samuel’s visit and David being called to the palace. All we know is that the servants knew of him. They knew that he was a skilled musician with good stage presence who knew how to hold his tongue – and he had courage in the face of danger.
We don’t know how dark Saul’s moods were at this point, but apparently his servants knew that someone who scared easily wouldn’t cut it. They needed someone with bravery and courage. I also wonder if they wanted him to have boldness to say what needed to be said in the best way possible.
He became Saul’s armor-bearer. Saul requested that David stay with him, and David got a front row seat to running a kingdom.
He could not have gained a better opportunity to see what his future could look like as king over Israel. He could not have gained that kind of education in any school, and he would never have seen it if all he did was tend the sheep. And he became a familiar face around the palace.
God may have rejected Saul, but He still used him to bring about His purpose in David.
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