“30 Saul’s anger flared up at Jonathan and he said to him, “You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you have sided with the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of the mother who bore you? 31 As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Now send someone to bring him to me, for he must die!” 32 “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?” Jonathan asked his father. 33 But Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him. Then Jonathan knew that his father intended to kill David. 34 Jonathan got up from the table in fierce anger; on that second day of the feast he did not eat, because he was grieved at his father’s shameful treatment of David.” 1 Samuel 20.30-34
Saul must be miserable. Since he could never fully love, serve and obey the Lord, God rejected him as king and selected David as the future king. It never tells us that Saul knows this information but he must. He says to Jonathan, “As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established.” Surely Saul knows that David is going to replace him.
Yet Jonathan isn’t convinced that his dad wants to kill David until he has this exchange with this father where Saul tries to kill him. As is Saul’s habit, he hurled his spear at his opponent and tried to kill him. He did this to David as he did to Jonathan. (Apparently, these young men are faster than the old king or the king has lost a step!) But this confirmed that Saul intended to kill David and it hurt Jonathan, he “got up from the table in fierce anger….and did not eat because he was grieved at his father’s shameful treatment of David.”
Now we all have father’s who have made mistakes, as have I. But to have one who tries to kill his son and the Lord’s anointed (David) is beyond belief. This only goes to show us the depths to which Saul has fallen and the shame he is bringing upon his own head and his family.
Just as Saul was broken, we all have areas in our lives where we need healing and redemption. We need the Lord to get hold of our hearts and turn them to him. And we can help with this process by seeking to walk in obedience by turning our thoughts, actions and will to his cause. Submitting to the Lord is never easy nor is it a one step process. But freedom comes with repentance and with repentance comes forgiveness and grace.
What do you need to ask the Lord to heal in your life? What brokenness needs mending? What sin needs repair?
“O Lord God, you are good. I am your servant, seeking to walk in obedience to you. I am self-motivated by your Spirit to do that which you have called me to do. You have recused me from the depths of Hell and saved me from death itself. Hope me walk in step with your Spirit that I might find strength, hope and comfort along the way. I love you Lord and praise your name. For you are good and your love endures forever.” Amen