“When David finished saying this, Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he wept aloud. 17 “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly. 18 You have just now told me about the good you did to me; the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me.19 When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the Lord reward you well for the way you treated me today. 20 I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. 21 Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not kill off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.” 22 So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.” 1 Samuel 24.16-22
King Saul was an emotional wreck. He was a mess. An evil spirit had been tormenting him, and his mind was not what it should be. But it was also his own fault; his disobedience, insecurity, and not putting God first led to his downfall. He had been told by the prophet Samuel that another would replace him as king, and he knew that person was David. So Saul was seeking to kill David and take matters into his own hands.
Yet when Saul realized that the Lord had given him into the hands of David, and that David did not kill him, he began to feel remorse. He was grateful that David had spared his life and admitted to David that he would be king. Saul asked David not to kill off all his descendants or remove his name from his father’s family, and then Saul returned home, but David “and his men went up to the stronghold.”
What a story! David and Saul. What a contrast! Like night and day, good and evil, the hero and the villain. David was God’s man, pure of heart, strong, and successful. Saul was chosen out of a rejection of God being king to the people. In truth, Saul didn’t have a chance. And now he is misbehaving again by chasing David in vanity, trying to take out his anger with God on David.
When was a time you felt remorse in your life? You felt sorry for something you did or said. Sorry for a behavior, action, or intention against God or someone else? What happened to bring you to this point? What was the tipping point to return you to faithfulness, humility, and repentance?
We have all been there! More times than I can count. I try to be self-controlled, mastered by the Holy Spirit, guided by purity, but sometimes I just fail. But God understands, and He forgives us not just once but an endless number of times. Our job is to return to the Lord, swallow our pride, say we are sorry, and grow from the experience.
Are you feeling remorse today? Are you, like Saul, sorry for things you did or said? If so, bring this to the Lord. Confess your sins. Find yourself once again before the throne of grace, and you will experience nothing short of a miraculous healing of love and mercy.
“O Lord God, you are good. Thank you for showing your kindness to me. Come now, Holy Spirit, fill me with your power and might. Help me walk in obedience and righteousness all the days of my life. Draw me toward your grace, fill me with your presence. Enable me to be the child of God you called and created me to be. For you are good, and your love endures forever.” Amen