Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
2 Samuel 1:1-16
The Tidings Concerning The Death Of Saul Are Brought To David (2 Samuel 1:1).
The theme of the death of Saul continues with a description of how the news was brought to David. It came by means of an Amalekite sojourner who was fighting on the Israelite side and may well have been a member of Saul's bodyguard and have seen the way in which Saul died. Certainly he appears to have come across the dead corpse of Saul on the battlefield before the Philistines got to him. Thus he was able to seize his crown and jewellery. This gave him the idea that he could concoct a story based on how Saul had died with himself taking the place of the armourbearer, and go to David and benefit by his gratitude. In his eyes David could only be delighted to hear that Saul was dead, and would undoubtedly be grateful to the one who had killed him. That was how Amalekites thought, and he may well have been in the band that had constantly hunted David.
But his tale had too many flaws in it to convince David. David knew that Saul would never have called on a mere sojourner to kill him, and would certainly never have done so because he was in anguish over the battle. That would have been a mark of cowardice, and he knew that Saul was a brave man. Note the contrast with the facts in that Saul had called on his own loyal armourbearer, who would have been a true Yahwist and personal friend, to kill him in honour, and did so because there was no hope and in order to prevent himself, as YHWH's anointed, from being shamed by the enemy. Such an attitude to Yahwism was typical of Saul. He was a man very taken up with the externals.
The result was that David saw through the man and had him slain for treachery and deceit, and because he had demonstrated his ungodliness in claiming to have committed sacrilege by slaying YHWH's anointed. He saw him as having sullied the name of YHWH as the Amelekites had always done from the first, and therefore as deserving the same fate.
Analysis.
a And it came about after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag (2 Samuel 1:1).
b It came about on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul, with his clothes torn, and earth on his head, and so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeisance (2 Samuel 1:2).
c And David said to him, “From where are you come?” And he said to him, “Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped” (2 Samuel 1:3).
d And David said to him, “How went the matter? I pray you, tell me.” And he answered, “The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also (2 Samuel 1:4).
e And David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?” (2 Samuel 1:5).
f And the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance on mount Gilboa, behold, Saul was leaning on his spear; and, lo, the chariots and the horsemen followed hard after him, and when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called to me. And I answered, “Here I am” (2 Samuel 1:6).
g And he said to me, Who are you?” And I answered him, “I am an Amalekite” (2 Samuel 1:8)
f And he said to me, “Stand, I beg you, beside me, and slay me, for anguish has taken hold of me, because my life is yet whole in me” (2 Samuel 1:9).
e “So I stood beside him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen, and I took the crown that was on his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord” (2 Samuel 1:10).
d Then David took hold on his clothes, and tore them, and in a similar manner did all the men who were with him, and they mourned, and wept, and fasted until evening, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of YHWH, and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the sword (2 Samuel 1:11).
c And David said to the young man who told him, “From where are you?” And he answered, “I am the son of a sojourner, an Amalekite” (2 Samuel 1:13).
b And David said to him, “How were you not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy YHWH's anointed?” (2 Samuel 1:14).
a And David called one of the young men, and said, “Go near, and fall on him.” And he smote him, so that he died. And David said to him, “Your blood be on your head, for your mouth has testified against you, saying, “I have slain YHWH's anointed” (2 Samuel 1:15).
Note that in ‘a' David had returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and in the parallel David slays the Amalekite. In ‘b' the Amalekite arrives dressed in mourning as an escapee from the battle, and in the parallel David chides him with having slain YHWH's anointed (instead of staying by his side to defend him). In ‘c' David questions who he is, and in the parallel he questions where he is from. In ‘d' David learns of the sad news of the battle, and in the parallel he and his men mourn over it. In ‘e' David asks him how he knows that Saul and Jonathan are dead, and in the parallel he explains (falsely) that Saul died at his hand. In ‘f' he explains that Saul spoke to him, hard pressed and leaning on his spear, and in the parallel he explains how Saul spoke to him again and asked him to kill him because he could take no more. Centrally in ‘g' it is brought out that he is an Amalekite.
‘ And it came about after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag,'
In preparing for the bad news about the death of Saul and the defeat of Israel the writer first draws attention to the triumph of David over the hosts of the Amalekites, and the fact that he had entered into rest as a result. He was relaxing in Ziklag. Like the success of the men of Jabesh-gilead it was an indication that YHWH was still active and working on behalf of His people even while the heart of Israel was being torn out. While Saul had been seeking to the dead and had consequently perished because of his sin with regard to the Amalekites, David was active through the living God, and had gloriously triumphed over the Amalekites. He was walking in the will of God, and preparing for the time when he would establish Israel securely in YHWH's inheritance.
This reference to the Amalekites can also be seen as preparation for the arrival of the Amalekite in what follows. In spite of having become a sojourner in Israel the Amalekite reveals himself as little different from his fellows, and as a result suffers the same fate. It was not enough to live among God's people. He needed to be like God's people. Without genuine repentance there can only be judgment.
‘ It came about on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul, with his clothes torn, and earth on his head, and so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeisance.'
For two days David and his men had been able to relax and enjoy the fruits of victory, but now on the third day something disturbing happened. A man arrived from the camp of Saul over sixty miles away, with his clothes ritually torn and with earth on his head. Both these were symbols of mourning and catastrophe. He clearly brought bad news. And when he was brought before David he fell to the earth and did obeisance. He gave the appearance of a man genuinely distressed. But inwardly he was not so, for he had come hoping for reward and was simply desirous of benefiting by Saul's death.
‘ And David said to him, “From where are you come?” And he said to him, “Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped.”
David then questioned him as to where he had come from, and the man indicated that he had escaped from the camp of Israel. That very description was sufficient to indicate that he was the bearer of bad news.
‘ And David said to him, “How went the matter? I pray you, tell me.” And he answered, “The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.'
David then asked how the battle had gone, and learned that the men of Israel had fled from the battle and that the king and his heir, Saul and Jonathan, were dead.
‘ And David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?” '
David was a wise man and had often heard rumours that had finally turned out to be untrue, and so he pressed the man further. How did he know that Saul and Jonathan were dead?
‘ And the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance on mount Gilboa, behold, Saul was leaning on his spear; and, lo, the chariots and the horsemen followed hard after him.'
So the young man, who had clearly, from his seeming knowledge of what Saul had asked of his armourbearer, been nearby when Saul died, decided to embroider the story a little. We know from 31:3 that Saul had been beset by the Philistine archers who had wounded him severely, but the young man wanted the credit for his death and said nothing about that. Instead he invented a tale about his being alone and beset by chariots and horsemen, and thus in desperate straits, leaning on his spear in exhaustion because of his wounds. It never seems to have struck him that David would be sure that in such a situation Saul's bodyguard would be gathered around him, not leaving him deserted on the battlefield, even if they would not kill him.
‘ And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called to me. And I answered, “Here I am.” And he said to me, Who are you?” And I answered him, “I am an Amalekite.” '
He then explained how Saul had spotted him in the midst of battle and had asked who he was, to which he had replied that he was an Amalekite. He was innocently unaware by this that he was betraying his whole deceit to David who knew Saul as well as he knew himself, for David would know that the last thing that Saul would do was request death at the hands of an Amalekite. An Amalekite would, of course, never dream that it was anything but a privilege, but no Israelite would have seen it in that way. They would have considered it as being as bad if not worse than being slain by a Philistine, for to them the Amalekites were an accursed race (Exodus 17:14; Exodus 17:16; Deuteronomy 25:17).
‘ And he said to me, “Stand, I beg you, beside me, and slay me, for anguish has taken hold of me, because my life is yet whole in me.” '
The young man then got himself into deeper trouble, for he claimed that Saul had asked for death because of his anguish, and because, while he was wounded, he was not yet dead. But David knew from experience Saul's courage and grit, and that he would never have given up in this way while his men needed him. He knew that he would have fought bravely to the end. He would have seen it very differently had he been told the true story, for he would have known that the one thing that might have made Saul seek death was the desire to preserve the honour of YHWH by at the last moment avoiding death at the hand of the Philistines, but he would also know that he would have done it at the hands of a trusted Israelite, so that no ‘foreigner' could slay the anointed of YHWH. Thus David would have seen the holes in the young man's story.
“ So I stood beside him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen, and I took the crown that was on his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.”
The young man then explained that he had done what Saul had bidden him, and had slain him because he knew that he was mortally wounded, thus compounding his error and deceit. To David his whole story would not have rung true. There was no mention in it of YHWH, and David would have known how, externally at least, one of Saul's deepest concerns would have been the honour of YHWH. Compare his concern about the eating of blood during an earlier pursuit of the Philistines, which he had treated as so serious that it had halted the chase (1 Samuel 14:33). And the honour of YHWH would not have been furthered by his being slain by a member of the accursed race.
The young man then produced Saul's crown and bracelet, and informed David that he had brought them to him. His intention was clearly that David himself would take the crown and wear it. He was basically offering David the kingship of Israel. We do not know the significance of the bracelet but it was seemingly also a recognised symbol of royalty.
His intention in all this was to receive honour and reward for himself, but what he overlooked was that he was giving himself away, for while he himself thought like an Amalekite, David thought like an Israelite. The question would also immediately have arisen in David's mind as to why the Amalekite had not at least done something to preserve the honour of the anointed of YHWH. Instead he had clearly been so keen to seize the symbols of royalty that he had given no thought either to helping Saul to escape, or to taking his body from the battlefield so that it would not be defiled by the ‘uncircumcised Philistines'. He was revealing that instead of being loyal and playing his full part in the battle, and honouring his dead king, he had thought only in terms of his own benefit and had failed in his solemn duty. That would not be something that David could easily forgive. The man was a renegade and a deserter.
‘ Then David took hold on his clothes, and tore them, and in a similar manner did all the men who were with him, and they mourned, and wept, and fasted until evening, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of YHWH, and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the sword.'
However the crown and bracelet were sufficient evidence that Saul was dead, for David knew that he would never have relinquished them while he was still alive. The result was that he and his men went into instant mourning. At the dreadful news that they had heard they ritually tore their clothes as an indication of deep distress, and they began to weep loudly, which was the custom in Israel on receiving news of the death of one who was ‘near and dear', so much so that professional mourners would often be called in to swell the cries. They also fasted until the evening, a further indication of respect and mourning for the dead (see 31:13). And it was not only for Saul. It was also mourning for the whole of Israel, and especially for their dead in battle, for it was for ‘Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of YHWH, and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the sword.' Jonathan is presumably mentioned as the heir apparent, as well as because he was David's particular friend.
The Judicial Enquiry.
What follows appears to be in the form of a judicial enquiry, for in it David formally requests information that he already knows, and the Amalekite gives an equally formal looking reply. What further was asked we are not told, but the Amalekite clearly stuck to his story that it was he who had slain Saul. And although he probably did not realise it he was signing his own death warrant.
‘ And David said to the young man who told him, “From where are you?” And he answered, “I am the son of a sojourner, an Amalekite.” '
We are not told whether this was an immediate continuation of the previous conversation, or whether it occurred after some time interval once the mourning had ceased, but it is quite probably a subsequent conversation and enquiry which took place once David had had time to think over all the facts.
The young man had already made clear that he was an Amalekite (2 Samuel 1:8) so that the only reason for asking the question again would be because it was commencing an official judicial enquiry. Having been brought again before David, he was now being called on officially to identify himself before that enquiry. He was probably quite unaware of the seriousness of his position, and no doubt was even hoping for reward. We can compare this incident to that of Agag before Samuel. He too was brought before his ‘judge' in a similar way as an Amalekite in 1 Samuel 15:32. And there too it was followed by summary execution. We should not therefore see this as a description of the whole of the conversation that took place. We may assume that the young man was given a fair hearing.
“The son of a sojourner.” This indicated that he had been brought up in Israel because his father had come to sojourn (live semi-permanently as a foreigner) among them. It did, however, demonstrate that he should have been aware of the awe and reverence in which the king was held as ‘YHWH's anointed'. He was thus further condemning himself. The fact that he did not realise it confirms that he had never become a true convert to YHWH.
‘ And David said to him, “How were you not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy YHWH's anointed?” '
The enquiry being concluded David now prepared to pronounce sentence. He asked him how it was that he had not been afraid to lift up his hand against YHWH's anointed. The man was being judged on his own words. He could have no complaint.
We know already how unwilling a true worshipper of YHWH would have been to slay someone who was ‘YHWH's anointed' and thus wholly sanctified to YHWH. David had constantly been unwilling to do it even when he was being hounded by Saul with a view to his death (1Sa 24:6; 1 Samuel 24:10; 1 Samuel 26:9; 1 Samuel 26:11). The guards of Saul had equally been unwilling to do it to the anointed priests of Nob, even at the king's command, and the king had equally acknowledged their right to do so by his response (1 Samuel 22:17). Even Saul's own armourbearer had been unwilling to do it in the most extreme of circumstances when begged to do it by Saul himself (1 Samuel 31:4). To claim to have done such a thing was therefore seen as gross sacrilege, and while it may have been forgivable in the case of a complete foreigner, it was not so for a self-confessed long time sojourner.
David no doubt had in mind that the man was a deserter who had failed in his sacred duty and had only had his own interests in mind in the very midst of the battle, and that he had come with a lying story which he had concocted for his own ends (both of which would have been seen as deserving the death penalty in those days). He recognised therefore that he was an out and out rogue. But neither of these charges were fully provable. That did not matter, however, for legally the man was convicting himself out of his own mouth by claiming to have slain the anointed of YHWH. To the enquiry it provided sufficient evidence for the pronouncing of a just verdict. The sentence could only be death.
‘ And David called one of the young men, and said, “Go near, and fall on him.” And he smote him, so that he died.'
David then called on one of his young men to carry out the sentence, with the result that the young man smote the Amalekite so that he died. It was an official execution, similar to that of Agag by Samuel (1 Samuel 15:32).
‘ And David said to him, “Your blood be on your head, for your mouth has testified against you, saying, “I have slain YHWH's anointed.” '
David then pronounced over the dead man the official verdict which cleared the enquiry of all guilt in the matter. The man's blood was on his own head because he had admitted to slaying YHWH's anointed. There was a certain irony in that Saul had been found guilty by YHWH because he had refused to slay an Amalekite king who had been ‘devoted' to YHWH under The Ban, and now an Amalekite was being found guilty because he claimed to have slain an anointed king of Israel. God took both matters very seriously indeed.