The Epic of First Samuel
Teachers
Class Materials
Lesson Summary
The class opened with prayer before the teachers examined David’s prolonged exile, estimating roughly nine years of hardship before the events of 1 Samuel 27. They highlighted how David, responsible for 600 men and two wives, faced relentless pursuit by Saul while establishing a base in Ziklag. By referencing Psalm 32:8‑9, the teachers suggested that God was instructing David during this period, urging him not to be reckless like a horse or stubborn like a mule. They connected this divine instruction to the modern challenge of aligning our timelines with God’s plan. The discussion moved to David’s decision to seek refuge with the Philistine king Achish, analyzing verses 1, 5‑6 of 1 Samuel 27. The teachers explained David’s strategic “deception”—presenting himself as a loyal ally while secretly raiding Israel’s enemies, thereby both protecting his people and satisfying Achish. Analogies to Moses’ exhaustion in Numbers 11:15 and Elijah’s despair in 1 Kings 19 illustrated how biblical figures responded to overwhelming stress. The lesson concluded with a practical analogy: believers must act as thermostats, setting spiritual direction, rather than thermometers that merely reflect surrounding pressures.
Key Scriptures
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding. 9 Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check. Otherwise, they will not come near to you.
Then David said to himself, 'Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape into the land of the Philistines.' So David arose and crossed over he and the 600 men who were with him to Achish, the son of Maok, king of Gath.