Saul is a despicable person, isn't he? David is only a young man, in late teens or early twenties. He is handsome and brave. He's well spoken, musical, and the type of guy people like to be around. He is the national darling. Everyone loves him, except Saul. Saul is angry and afraid, consumed with murderous jealousy. When he is

How do you react to the success of God's Messiah, Jesus - like Saul or Jonathan? Saul hated the messiah. He was angry because he wanted glory for himself, and he was afraid because the messiah's rule threatened his own rule of his life. This is the way of destruction.Jonathan, on the other hand, though he is next in line

Maybe you're tired reading the same passage every day. Persevere; the chapter doesn't really make sense in chunks, just as a whole. Saul's anger and fear bubble into murderous rage, directly in verses 10-11 and indirectly in verses 17-30.Saul tries to murder David directly by throwing a spear at him while he plays (verses 10-11). In one sense it is

I think Saul is immediately suspicious of David. At the end of chapter 17, three times he asks whose son David is. Saul knew that God has given the kingdom to "one better than him", and probably knew Samuel went to Bethlehem with his anointing flask. David's family, at least, knew what had happened, if not more people from Bethlehem.

When we see David as a scale model of Christ - a miniature with some incredible detail, but not the reality - we open up new windows for viewing Christ and his work.Like David, and even more than David, Jesus is wonderfully successful. His heart was true to God's covenant, walking in faith and obedience. God was with him, his

We're told of three incidents after the giant-killing: Jonathan and David's developing friendship (verses 1-5); David's praise by the people and Saul's jealousy (verses 6-16); David marrying Saul's daughter (verses 17-30). Each incident closes by noting David's success - verse 5, verses 14-15, and verse 30. It's like everything David touches turns to gold. Goliath clearly was no fluke, David

There's a danger that our familiarity with the story of David blinds us to its shocking twists and turns. We know that David quickly becomes a hero after killing Goliath, but almost as quickly becomes Public Enemy Number 1 in Saul's eyes, spending up to 10 years on the run. Ten years hunted, harried, hounded, and hiding as an outlaw.

David's victory as champion of his people leads to a rout - the Philistines are crushed (verse 51-53). We see now the beauty of realising that we are not David in the valley, but the ranks on the hillside watching Jesus as 'David' fighting in the valley. When he defeats the champion the enemy forces scatter, and our job is

Here is David, the giant-conqueror, God's chosen messiah-king, his heart is bursting with zeal for God's glory. And like we noted at the start of the week - we're not David in this story. The whole point of this event in David's life is not to show us how to defeat our giants, but to show us that God defeats

Cometh the hour, cometh the man. Who will step forward to deliver God's people and vindicate his glory? Who will be the giant-conqueror - tall regal Saul, handsome Eliab, Jesse's eldest, or some well armed, skilful, experienced combatant? Read verse 32 again.David - the cheese-bearing shepherd boy, inexperienced and armour-less; ruddy and handsome, yet bearer of sticks and stones. Goliath