When Justice Must Be Swift: David's Reign Begins

Good morning everyone. I want us to delve into a very instructive incident right at the start of David's reign, in 2 Samuel 1. On the surface, it's quite a strange occurrence, but it reveals so much about David's character and what it means to uphold God's standards.

Setting the Scene: David's Loyalty to God's Anointed

To really grasp this story, we need to remember David's history with King Saul. For many years, Saul relentlessly persecuted David, trying to kill him on numerous occasions. David, with God's help, always narrowly escaped. Yet, David never took revenge into his own hands, even when presented with clear opportunities to kill Saul. Why? Because Saul was "the Lord's anointed."

Think about this: when Saul was vulnerable in a cave, David could easily have ended his life. But David said to his men, as recorded in 1 Samuel 24:6, "The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the Lord's anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord."

Imagine the precedent it would have set if David, the future king, had indeed raised his hand against God's anointed. His men would have seen it as acceptable, perhaps even necessary, for personal gain or securing power. This background is absolutely critical to understanding the incident in 2 Samuel 1.

A Messenger with Troubling News

So, Saul and his sons have just been defeated in battle by the Philistines. Then, on the third day after the battle, an Amalekite comes to David's camp, his clothes torn and dust on his head – a sign of distress and mourning 2 Samuel 1:2. He prostrates himself before David.

David asks him where he's from, and the man replies that he has escaped from the Israelite camp. He then tells David that Saul, Jonathan, and his other sons are dead.

Now, here's his version of events, starting in 2 Samuel 1:6: "As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa, there was Saul leaning on his spear, and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. When he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me, and I answered, 'Here I am.' And he said to me, 'Who are you?' So I answered him, 'I am an Amalekite.' He said to me again, 'Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.'"

And then, the Amalekite claims he took matters into his own hands 2 Samuel 1:10: "So I stood over him and killed him because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm and have brought them here to my Lord."

David's Unexpected Reaction

On the face of it, you might expect David to congratulate this man, mourn Saul, and that would be the end of it. But that's absolutely not how David reacts.

David asks him again, "Where are you from?" 2 Samuel 1:13. The man replies, "I'm the son of an alien, an Amalekite." To which David powerfully responds, "How was it you were not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?" 2 Samuel 1:14.

This is the key phrase! It links directly back to David's own refusal to lay a hand on Saul, despite countless opportunities. David himself had upheld the sacredness of God's anointed, even when that anointed person was his enemy.

Then, David calls one of his young men and commands, "Go near and execute him" 2 Samuel 1:15. The young man strikes him down, and he dies. David says to the Amalekite man, "Your blood is on your own head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying, 'I have killed the Lord’s anointed'" 2 Samuel 1:16.

If we didn't know David's history, this might seem like a very strange, even harsh, act. But David is now the anointed king himself, having been anointed by Samuel 1 Samuel 16:13. He's not acting as a vigilante; he's administering justice in his capacity as the lawgiver of the land, demonstrating to everyone what is acceptable and what is not. He is using due process by accepting the man's own testimony against himself.

The Truth of Saul's Death

Here's a twist: David is executing judgment based on the Amalekite's word, but the Amalekite was actually lying! In 1 Samuel 31:3-5, we read that "the battle became fierce against Saul. The archers hit him; he was severely wounded by the archers." And Saul, desperate to avoid torture at the hands of the Philistines, asks his own armor-bearer to kill him. His armor-bearer refuses, so at the very end of 1 Samuel 31:5, we learn that "Saul took a sword and fell on it." Saul killed himself; it was a suicide.

So, what was the Amalekite doing there? He was likely doing what many Amalekites were known for in scripture: stripping the slain, taking advantage of a terrible situation. He saw an opportunity, collected Saul's crown and bracelet, and fabricated a story, thinking he would be rewarded by David for bringing news of his enemy's death. He misjudged David entirely.

Establishing a Precedent

This incident sets a crucial precedent at the very beginning of David's reign. We see the dramatic conclusion to this principle in 2 Samuel 4.

There, we find two men, Rechab and Baanah, captains of troops for Saul's son Ish-bosheth 2 Samuel 4:2. They come to Ish-bosheth's house at noon while he's resting, and coldly murder him 2 Samuel 4:5-7. They then bring Ish-bosheth's head to David, expecting a reward.

But David answers them powerfully 2 Samuel 4:9-10: "As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from all adversity, when someone told me, saying, 'Look, Saul is dead,' thinking to have brought good news, I arrested him and had him executed in Ziklag, the one who thought I would give him a reward for his news."

David then continues 2 Samuel 4:11-12: "How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous person in his own house on his bed? Therefore, shall I not now require this blood at your hand and remove you from the earth?" David commanded his young men, and they executed them.

While this swift justice might seem distasteful to us living in peaceful societies, we must remember that it is precisely because justice is administered by our rulers that we enjoy such peace. If justice is not swift and decisive, men will be emboldened to do evil. As Ecclesiastes 8:11 wisely states: "Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil."

David's actions at the start of his reign were not about personal revenge or arbitrary power; they were about establishing divine justice and order in the kingdom of Israel, lessons that still resonate with us today. This is essential for good governance and maintaining a society free from rampant evil.