Sheltered in Song, Surrounded by Spears
“Deliver me from my enemies, O God; be my fortress against those who
are attacking me.”
(Psalm 59 :title, New International Version)
Psalm 59 was born on the night described in today’s chapter. To read it next to 1 Samuel 19 is to watch David write in real time: danger outside the window, trust inside the heart, praise rising above it all.
Yesterday we lingered over the cost of covenant friendship (ch. 18). Today the tension snaps. Saul’s jealousy becomes an open order: “Kill David.” The Spirit that once empowered the king now restrains him; the Spirit that now rests on David protects him. The contrast could not be sharper: a man who clutches a spear versus a man who carries a harp.
• Jonathan stands between father and friend, risking everything to
speak truth.
• He recalls David’s service, appeals to Saul’s better memory, and wins
a fragile oath.
Cross-reference: Proverbs 31 :8-9; 1 Timothy 2 :5—true mediation defends the innocent.
Key Hebrew note: ḥē·ṭāʾ (“sin against” v. 4) stresses willful rebellion. Jonathan does not shrink from calling murder by its right name, even to a king.
David’s music once soothed Saul; now it only exposes the unrest within him. The spear, royal symbol of authority, becomes a weapon of insecurity. David escapes, as he had twice before (see 18 :11).
Literary device: the triple repetition of Saul’s spear-throwing (18 :11; 19 :10; 20 :33) forms a drumbeat of decline—each thrust a heartbeat closer to the king’s downfall.
• Michal lowers David through a window—echoes of Rahab and Paul (Josh
2 :15; Acts 9 :25).
• She props a teraphim (household idol) in the bed. The
presence of such an object in Saul’s family hints at the spiritual
compromise behind his unraveling.
• Teraphim (Hebrew plural) were small clay or wooden figures found in
domestic shrines across the Levant; archaeologists have recovered many
from the Late Bronze and early Iron Ages.
Western readers often miss the irony: the very idol forbidden by God is used to shield God’s anointed. Grace works even through imperfect means, but the text leaves a quiet rebuke in place.
David runs to Samuel, the prophet who once poured oil on his head. They stay at Naioth (“dwelling-huts”), likely a cluster of simple houses used by the prophetic guild. Excavations around modern Ramah (er-Ram) reveal pillared four-room dwellings typical of early Iron Age settlement—perhaps similar to those shelters.
Saul’s three waves of soldiers melt into praise as the Spirit descends. Finally the king himself strips off his royal robes and falls bare before God, prophesying. Earlier we saw him hide among baggage; now he is exposed before heaven. Augustine saw here a sign that power bows to prophecy, crown to charisma. Calvin added: “When men rage against God’s decree, they are held fast even by the gift they despise.”
• Chrysostom: “See how the weapons of malice are turned to
hymns.”
• John Wesley’s journal (24 Jan 1739) links 1 Sam 19 to the experience
of enforced praise in a society meeting when critics came to arrest the
preachers but ended singing.
• Modern scholarship notes the “school of prophets” as an early
institutional root for later synagogue worship—music, instruction, and
communal discernment.
• Psalm 59 – composed during this event
• Hebrews 13 :6 – “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.”
• Acts 5 :33-39 – Gamaliel’s counsel: fighting God is futile
• Isaiah 54 :17 – “No weapon forged against you will prevail.”
“Be Still, My Soul” (Katharina von Schlegel, 1752)
Its themes of quiet confidence amid turmoil echo David’s composed heart
while spears flew and soldiers watched.
Lord of secret windows and public victories,
Thank You for friends who warn, for mentors who shelter,
for nights when You alone are our fortress.
Disarm the spears of envy within us,
expose every hidden idol,
and clothe us not in fear but in Your Spirit.
May our enemies hear songs instead of screams,
and may we, like David, learn to sing before the dawn.
Through Jesus, the greater Anointed One, we pray.
Amen.