A Penitent Saul

Saul is reduced to tears as he hears David tell of sparing his life in the cave and promise not to seek his harm. At least on some level, he is moved and convicted by David’s words. Driven by that conviction, he makes a confession: “You are more righteous than I; for you have rewarded me with good, whereas I have rewarded you with evil.” Deeds have revealed to Saul the state of his heart in comparison to David’s. He sees that David has responded to (“rewarded”) his efforts to kill him with mercy, whereas he has responded to David’s good deeds with “evil.” The events of this day, Saul says, just encapsulate their conflict—God delivered him into David’s hand, but David showed mercy. In Saul’s eyes, this is unheard of—when a man finds his enemy, he acts against him. But David did not do this. The implication, inescapable even for Saul, is that David is not an enemy.

Saul then prays that God will reward David for his willingness to show mercy. In fact, Saul acknowledges that he knows David will see good—he will surely come to the throne of Israel. Jonathan was right—Saul does indeed know that David is going to be the next king, and that he cannot do anything to prevent it.

Finally, Saul asks David to swear that, when he becomes king, he will not take vengeance on his descendants, and David does so. Jonathan’s line is already protected in this way (20:15); now all of Saul’s descendants are safe. “Though he might be tempted, not only in revenge, but in prudence, to extirpate Saul’s family, yet he binds himself not to do it, knowing that God could and would establish the kingdom to him and his, without the use of such bloody methods,” Matthew Henry writes in his commentary on 1 Samuel.

This episode ends in a most telling fashion. Saul and David do not reunite; rather, they go their separate ways, Saul to his home and David to “the stronghold,” a secure spot in the wilderness. David is not willing to trust Saul completely; he wants to see fruit of this repentance. And so he goes away, seemingly having gained nothing. However, he has the grim satisfaction of knowing that he has obeyed God in a difficult situation. And he also has received one more dramatic assurance that he will come to the throne in time—from the lips of the man whom he will succeed.