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David: The Shepherd Boy
by
“Saul hath slain his thousands and David his ten thousands.”
This made Saul very angry and very jealous, for it was a revelation of the strength of the national feeling against him, and as he heard the shrill chant he exclaimed with fierce jealousy:
“They have ascribed unto David his ten thousands and to me they have ascribed but thousands, and what can he have more but the kingdom?”
From that moment, Saul was never fond of David, but always bitterly envious of him, and watched to see how and when he could do the lad an injury.
The violence of his rage and jealousy threw him into one of his old paroxysms, and as of old, David was called to soothe him by the music of his harp. But the sight of David threw Saul into a still worse fever of madness, and in anger he hurled his spear, the symbol of his royalty, at David, crying:
“I will smite David even to the wall with it,” but David was quick enough to avoid it, and when at another time Saul attempted the same thing, David again slipped aside, and the spear simply struck the wall. This agility of David’s made Saul even more angry than before, and increased his fear of the wonderful youth, whom Saul felt had the blessing of God, which had been taken from him. So strong was Saul’s dislike of David now, that finally he sent him away from the house, giving him a position where he would have less influence than formerly, for he would be only captain over a thousand men, but the new position only increased David’s popularity. He ruled those under him with such wisdom that all the people loved him, and Saul was, of course, more jealous and angry than before, and yet afraid of him too, and he began to think of another way to rid himself of the troublesome rival.
When David had fought Goliath, he was promised the hand of Saul’s eldest daughter in marriage, if he should be victorious, which promise had not been kept as yet, and now Saul remembered this, and offered to redeem the promise by giving David his daughter, Merab, as wife, hoping that in this way, he would not only rouse David’s gratitude, but make him feel in honour bound to fight the Philistines again, for his wife’s sake, and Saul hoped that they might kill him.
Although in our day, David would have been far too young to think of being married, in those days such things were different, and David accepted the hand of Merab, but at the last moment, through some new caprice of Saul’s, the promise was broken and Merab became another man’s wife. But Saul’s younger daughter, Michal, who had admired David’s behaviour ever since he had been her father’s armour-bearer, was as fond of him as her brother, Jonathan was, and when she told her father this, he was greatly pleased and said to himself that she should marry David, who would then fight the Philistines for her sake and be killed by them. And when David objected to marrying her, saying that it was no easy matter for a poor man to marry the daughter of a king, Saul’s messengers answered:
“The King requireth no dowry from him, only that he kill a hundred Philistines.”
This pleased David, for he was a born warrior, and he did not know that the King’s purpose in this agreement was to have him fall by the sword of the enemy. So even before the marriage took place, he was so eager to fulfil the king’s request that he and his men went out and killed twice as many Philistines as Saul demanded, and came home unhurt, and although Saul was angry at this, he was obliged to give him Michal in marriage, but from that moment, Saul hated David more fiercely than ever, and was determined to kill him, especially when he saw that the people loved David more and more deeply for his wisdom and bravery. Intent on this purpose, Saul even called his ministers and servants together and told them that they must kill David, and he told Jonathan this too, and Jonathan, loving David as he did, was filled with fear that his father’s wishes would be carried out, and so he hurried to David with the news of his father’s command, and begged David to hide until the next day, saying that meanwhile he would go to his father and try to alter his feelings.