Through the Darkest Night

Through the Darkest Night

1 Samuel 19; Psalm 59 

 

Illus. Legend.

 

           Throughout Scripture, we consistently see the distinction between day and night. In the beginning of Scripture, there was darkness, and right there in the first two verses we understand that there is a contrast, a difference between darkness and light…God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was formless and void, darkness was over the surface of the deep…. And God said, “let there be light!”

            We recognize all sorts and types of darkness, there is physical darkness, without physical light. There is intellectual darkness, and there is spiritual darkness. The symbol of the night can be literal, the darkness between sunset and sunrise. It can also carry metaphorical meanings in Scripture and life, times of danger, the unknown, sin, or ignorance…. People often define these as “dark times,” and it is with these understanding in mind that I want to continue through 1 Samuel 19 to gain insights from David’s dark night and apply principles into our lives.

            I want to give some backstory in what has taken place in David’s life leading up to this chapter because what ends up happening in chapter 19 is really a culmination of what we have been seeing in the previous chapters.

            There was a king put in place over Israel, Saul, but Saul continually rejected and disregarded the instructions the Lord gave him. Saul continually did according to what he thought was best, and ultimately the Lord made it clear to Saul that his kingdom would not endure, meaning the next king would not be one of his sons. Saul again disregarded the instructions the Lord had given him, and finally, he was told that the kingdom would be taken away from him and that the Lord had chosen another king, this king was a man after his own heart.

            What we learned was that the next king was a young man name David who was out tending his father’s sheep and he was ultimately anointed by Samuel the prophet. Though he would be the next king, Saul was still serving Israel in that capacity, and David would not take the seat of king for many years. In the scenes that follow, we see the Spirit of the Lord depart from Saul and he began to be tormented by and evil spirit. Saul’s servant knew that that needed to find some way to sooth and help Saul, so they began a search for a skillful harp player, and lo and behold, David was quite skilled on the harp. When David played for Saul, he would feel relieved and become well. For a season, David would split time between tending his father’s sheep and serving Saul. At this point, Saul was pleased with David.

            The story shifts in 1 Samuel 17, when a Philistine giant named Goliath comes on the scene and attacks the Israelites. Nobody in the land was willing to face him, that is, until David shows up to the battle scene. He realized that everyone was in fear, and running from the giant, but David had great faith that the Lord would give him the victory, and he ended up volunteering to go up against Goliath. David defeated Goliath with a rock and a sling. In chapter 18, we see David enter into the king’s service full time, fighting battles successfully, we see the son of Saul, Jonathan commit himself to David, acknowledging David’s place by giving him the attire of crown price, and David now serving Saul in whatever way he needed.

            Saul’s disposition toward David shifted in chapter 18, however, when people began to recognize David for his victory in battle.

Read: 1 Samuel 18:6-9

 

            His suspicion was filled with envy, and jealousy. In the verses that followed, Saul attempted to kill David by throwing his spear at David when he was playing the harp to try to calm Saul when the evil spirit was tormenting him. This happened twice. Saul then put David into more prominent military positions, exposing him to great danger. He then gives his daughter to David in marriage and says that his daughter would be a “snare” to David. This would put David into the royal family and again, a great target on David for the attack of Israel’s enemies. David will have troubles with Saul’s daughter as we will see, but what we read in chapter 18 at that time, is that she loved David.

 

1 Samuel 18:28-29, When Saul saw and realized that the Lord was with David, and that Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved him, 29 then Saul was even more afraid of David. So Saul was David’s enemy continually.

 

            Saul’s son Jonathan made a covenant with David, Saul’s daughter loved David, the people sang songs about David and were pleased with his military leadership, but not Saul. Saul set himself as David’s enemy. Up to this point, Saul held these feelings in his heart, but he tried to mask them and find ways to take David out in private or find a way to put him in military or family positions that would make the target on David so big that he would be taken out by another nation. Things change in chapter 19 and that is where we pick up our story…

            Saul goes from the disguise’s attacks on David’s life to the definite. In 1 Samuel 19:1, Saul gives an overt order to his son and his servants… “put David to death.” Jonathan informed David to watch out and hide out because there was a hit out on his life. Jonathan then goes to his father, Saul, and reminds him of how helpful David has been to him, how David has served him faithfully, how he brought about victory for the Israelites, and how he was willing to lay down his own life for in going against Goliath, the giant Philistine. He reminds his dad that he rejoiced in what David had done, David is innocent, then he asked a question, “Why would you put him to death for no reason?”

           

Read: 1 Samuel 19:6-10

 

            The escape David made from Saul’s presence would put him out and away from the king’s palace for nearly the next 15 years. He will live on the run for much of that time. And we will look into more of those details in the weeks to come, but for the rest of our time this morning and I want to look specifically at the night that is described here when David fled and escaped Saul’s presence and how he handled his house being surrounded by assassins who were sent specifically to end his life in the morning.

             From this night in David’s life we are able to draw a great deal of insight because it was on that night, when he was on the run facing danger in the dark of night that he wrote Psalm 59. Charles Spurgeon once said that it is the trials of the saints that produce the songs of the sanctuary. David is going into a period of almost a decade, where he’s going to be hunted like an animal by King Saul. He’s going to have to go from cave to cave, from dwelling place to dwelling place, from city to city. But it is during this dark time, that he wrote Psalm 18, Psalm 34, Psalm 52, Psalm 54, Psalm 57, Psalm 59, Psalm 63, Psalm 124, Psalm 138, and Psalm 142 were written. There is much we can take to, pursue, or adhere to when we aren’t sure what to do on the “dark nights” in our lives…But I pray David’s psalm, Psalm 59, will give direction and insights if you find yourself in one of those types of seasons or situations in your life.

 

Psalm 59:1-4, Rescue me from my enemies, my God; set me securely on high away from those who rise up against me. Rescue me from those who practice injustice, and save me from men of bloodshed. For behold, they have set an ambush for my life; Fierce men attack me, not for my wrongdoing nor for my sin, Lord, for no guilt of mine, they run and take their stand against me. Stir Yourself to help me and see!

 

1. Call on Your Very Ready Refuge

 

• As the end of chapter 19 we will get the details as to where David ends up going physically, but from Psalm 59 we understand where David went firstly, and it is shown in the Psalm powerfully that he went directly to the Lord.

 

• He went to the Lord through prayer and petitioning, asking Him personally to rescue him from his enemies.

 

• “Rescue me from my enemies, my God…”

 

• When David asks God to “rescue” him, he is asking the Lord to save him. It is a word there that means to defend, deliver, or make a way of escape.

• He asks the Lord personally and specifically to rescue him from his situation… “Rescue me from those who practice injustice, the men of bloodshed, for behold, they have set an ambush for my life, fierce men attack me…”

 

• When David calls out in prayer to the Lord, he asks the Lord to “behold” his situation, and in so doing, he is asking the Lord to look, see, and give His attention specifically to what is happening and making specific requests to God in light of what is happening.

 

• In verse 4 we read David pray to the Lord, “stir Yourself up to help me and see!”

 

• What I love about David’s prayer here is that he goes directly, and specifically, to the Lord.

 

• David knew that he needed a way of escape, a refuge, and it was the Lord who was his refuge.

 

Psalm 59:9(b), For God is my refuge.

 

Psalm 59:16(b), For you have been my refuge and a place of refuge…

 

Psalm 59:17(b), For God is my refuge…

 

• The Lord was not just David’s refuge by title, but in truth. He pursued the Lord and knew that the Lord was, had been, and would be his refuge through one of the darkest nights in his life.

 

Psalm 46:1, God is our refuge and strength, a very ready help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth shakes and the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains quake at its swelling pride.

 

• From this Psalm we see that we have a very ready help in God, He is our refuge and strength!

 

• To take refuge in, is to flee for protection in, to put one’s trust in, the place to put their hope.

 

• A refuge then, is a place one flees to in trouble. The psalmist declared, “That is who our God is!”

 

• He is very ready, very is also defined: exceedingly, abundantly.

 

• Ready is defined: as found, present, delivered, or readily available.

 

• Help means help, assistance, or support.

 

• God does not withdraw during times of affliction, rather, He is abundantly available throughout them.

 

Illus. Attendance.

 

• Though the earth shakes, though the mountains quake at it swelling pride, we will not fear, because our God is a very ready help and refuge!

 

Illus. God as refuge.

 

Psalm 34:8, Taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

 

• David, wrote how blessed, which here is the word for “happy,” is the one who takes refuge in the Lord!

 

• The Lord is a very ready help, a refuge and the One we can call upon in the day of trouble.

 

Illus. Need Help?

 

Psalm 50:15, Call upon Me on the day of trouble; I will rescue you, and you will honor Me.

 

Illus. Who you gonna call?

Philippians 4:6-7, Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and pleading with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

• David displays this, and he not only calls on the Lord specifically, he shares his feelings and thoughts honestly right in the middle of that dark night.

 

1. Count on Him to Meet You Right Where You Are

 

• As David’s prayer continues, after telling the Lord to behold his situation, he tells the Lord his honest thoughts about it all. He lets the Lord know right where he is at personally on that dark night.

 

• And he goes in depth…

 

Line by line through Psalm 59:2-15:

 

• In the middle of the darkest night, David goes in depth with the Lord, asking Him for rescue from the men who are attempting to take his life.

 

• He starts in, behold my situation…(vs. 3)

 

• Verse 4…There is a hit out on my life, I am being attacked by fierce men for no reason, no wrongdoing on my part, no sin toward them (vs. 4)

 

• Help me and see, Lord. Punish them, do not be gracious to those who deal treacherously and do wrong…(vs. 5)

 

• Verses 6 and 7, “they howl like a dog in the evening, they prowl around the city, they gush for with their mouths, swords are in their lips…

 

• NKJV reads, they belch with their mouths.

 

• Then in verse 11 he gets even more specific… Don’t take them out or they will forget, scatter them, bring them down, may they be caught in their pride, then destroy them…

 

• Then he goes back in, take them out so that the world will know you are God…They howl like dogs, they prowl around the city, they wander for food and murmur, howl, and growl if they are not satisfied.

 

• David is telling the Lord right where he is at, and just what he thinks of those who are surrounding his house and searching the city to take his life personally.

 

• In the middle of that prayer, he is reminded that though these men are searching, it is the Lord who will meet him.

 

Psalm 59:10, My God in His faithfulness will meet me; God will let me look triumphantly upon my enemies.

 

• David gives quite the prayer. It is one of those prayers that in moments of clarity one might look at the theology and ask, whether we are allowed to agree or disagree with what he is asking.

 

• As I look at the prayer, I would hope that I would go about it differently, but in reality, I have never been in the situation David was in personally.

 

Psalm 62:8, Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts before Him; God is a refuge for us.

• What David told “you people” to do, he did personally. He was trusting in the Lord, looking to Him as his refuge, and pouring his heart out personally.

 

• When he says “pour out” your hearts, he is telling us to spill forth, gush out, get it all out before the Lord.

 

1 John 5:14-15, This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.

 

• The Lord will hear us when we call and when we pray according to His will He will hear us and give the requests we have asked of Him.

 

• There are many Psalms we can find that David wrote during his time on the run from Saul and his wrongdoing.

 

• There are other Psalms where David cries out to the Lord for mercy due to need for mercy in light of his own wrongdoings.

 

Psalm 51:1-4, Be gracious to me, God, according to Your faithfulness; according to the greatness of Your compassion, wipe out my wrongdoings. Wash me thoroughly from my guilt and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my wrongdoings, and my sin is constantly before me. Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge.

 

• In one Psalm he asks the Lord to wipe out those seeking to wipe him out, in another, to wipe out his wrongdoings, a plea for mercy.

 

Psalm 59:10(a), My God of mercy shall come to meet me. (NKJV)

 

• David declarer that the Lord will draw near in mercy, extending that to us, and even those who may have been defined as our enemies.

 

• God will meet you right where you are, and He will hear you, respond to you and be able to handle your prayers as you share with Him honestly.

 

Illus. Can you handle it?

 

Psalm 145:18, The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.

 

III.       Cling to the Lord as You Look Forward  

 

• As David closes out the Psalm, written on a dark night in his life, he moves his attention from those who are attacking him are doing, and what he himself will do.

 

Psalm 59:16-17, But as for me, I will sing of Your strength; yes, I will joyfully sing of Your faithfulness in the morning, for You have been my refuge and a place of refuge on the day of my distress. My strength, I will sing praises to You; for God is my refuge, the God who shows me favor.

 

• Placing his prayers and trust in the Lord, David looks toward the Lord and clings to Him as he looks forward.

 

• In the middle of what seems to be one of the darkest nights in David’s life at that point, he declares that he will sing of the strength of the Lord in light of the assassins coming after him.

 

• When David wrote, “the God who shows me favor,” it is a Hebrew word, “hesed” (hessid), which is God’s goodness, kindness, compassion, or mercy.

 

• He looked toward the morning and knew that the Lord would meet him with His mercy.

 

Lamentations 3:22-23, Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.

 

Psalm 30:5, Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.

 

• David reminded himself and with faith in God declared that though there was sorrow in the night, he would sing joyfully in the morning!

 

• And as we look back on 1 Samuel 19, we learn that he would not end up being the only one singing in the morning. Here is what ends up happening.

 

• After David escapes out the window and into the night, his wife Michal, takes what is called a household idol, called a teraphim, and laid it on David’s bed. She put a quilt of goat’s hair at the head, and covered it with clothing.

 

• These idols were sometimes used in ancient Israel as aids in worshipping the One true God, but other times they were used in conjunction with idolatry or pagan worship.

 

• Many would use them as a representation of God, which was never looked at as a good thing in Scripture. This may give some indication into what we see happening in David family, and Michal specifically in the future.

 

• Nonetheless, she uses it to trick the men sent to take David out. When they knocked on the door, she said he was sick (14), and when they gave word back to Saul, he told them to carry him to Saul on his bed.

 

• What they realize when they enter is that Michal has put an idol in his place.

 

• When questioned by Saul, Michal says that David threatened her life and told her to let him go (which wasn’t true), the whole escape was actually her idea.

 

• This leads to the end of chapter, which shows where David goes next, and Saul’s continued pursuit.

 

1 Samuel 19:18-24, David fled and escaped, and came to Samuel at Ramah; and he informed him of everything that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and stayed in Naioth. But it was reported to Saul, saying, “Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.” Then Saul sent messengers to take David, but when they saw the company of prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing and presiding over them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul; and they also prophesied. When Saul was informed of this, he sent other messengers, but they also prophesied. So Saul sent messengers again the third time, yet they prophesied. Then he went to Ramah himself and came as far as the large well that is in Secu; and he asked, “Where are Samuel and David?” And someone said, “Behold, they are at Naioth in Ramah.” So he proceeded there to Naioth in Ramah; but the Spirit of God came upon him also, so that he went along prophesying continually until he came to Naioth in Ramah. He also stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel and lay down naked all that day and all night. Therefore they say, “Is Saul also among the prophets?”

 

• It seems David escaped, wrote a Psalm, and then went to Samuel the priest and prophet from there. He told Samuel all Saul had done, and then stayed there with Samuel.

 

• It seems that Samuel had a school of ministry, a school of prophets, where he would train them for ministry. That is where David went, and that is where the assassins were then sent.

 

• Three rounds were sent there unsuccessfully.

 

• What we learn is that the Spirit of God comes upon them, and they begin prophesying.

 

• Many commentators describe their prophesying not as predicting the future, but rather, the word gives the idea of a person who comes under the influence of the Holy Spirit, giving praise to God.

 

• After three rounds of men, Saul himself headed that direction, and he too was overcome by the Holy Spirit and began offering praise to the Lord.

 

• Saul also removed his clothing while lying on the floor. And the picture is not that he was fully unclothed, but rather, most scholars see this as Saul momentarily removing his royal robes and his armor. For a king, this is a way of humiliation, he was speaking praises to the one true king.

 

• But for Saul, this posture would not last. It was a profound experience, but he was not truly surrendered to the Lord.

 

• It was how the Lord chose to disarm Saul and his men, and it provided a way of escape for David.

 

• That is how the Lord would make a way through one of the darkest nights in David’s life.

 

• He called out to the Lord his refuge, he counted on the Lord to meet him in his situation, and he clung to the Lord as he looked forward.

 

Isaiah 43:2-3;18-19

 

 

1 Samuel 19