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Running from Saul · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: And David answered the priest and said unto him, Of
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  Speaker 1: a truth, women have been kept from us about these
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  Speaker 1: three days, since I came out. And the vessels of
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  Speaker 1: the young men are holy, and the bread is in
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  Speaker 1: a manner common, yea, though it were sacrificed this day
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  Speaker 1: in the vessel. 1 Samuel 21.5 Dear Heavenly Father, When
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  Speaker 1: the weight and burden of pursuing my calling becomes too much,
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  Speaker 1: fortify my mind, so that the thought of going crazy
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  Speaker 1: isn't even an option. Instead, when my vision begins to
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  Speaker 1: wear on me, I will position myself and begin to
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  Speaker 1: worship you for who you are and for your faithfulness.
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  Speaker 1: For I know that that worship is my worship and
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  Speaker 1: will allow me to regain mental growth when I feel
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  Speaker 1: that my foundation is becoming unstable. Thank you for always
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  Speaker 1: placing me on the heart of my family and loved ones.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you that, like David in today's reading, at just
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  Speaker 1: the right time, they will come and comfort me in
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  Speaker 1: my time of need. Lord, as you begin to build
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  Speaker 1: the community for my dreams, I will not be taken
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  Speaker 1: back by what appears to be misfits, for I know
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  Speaker 1: that it is in the unlikeliest of relationships that greatness
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  Speaker 1: and loyalty are formed. So, I celebrate the difference. I
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  Speaker 1: celebrate the uniqueness. I celebrate the fact that through uncommon relationships,
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  Speaker 1: uncommon blessings and breakthroughs are born. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with me today. Continue listening for
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  Speaker 1: an incredible Bible story brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Running from Saul In our last story, we learned how
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  Speaker 2: David and Jonathan made promises to one another. Jonathan would
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  Speaker 2: protect David from Saul, and David would show favor and
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  Speaker 2: love to Jonathan and his family for all his days.
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  Speaker 2: Jonathan learned that Saul's hatred for David still burned hot,
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  Speaker 2: so he warned David. David fled to the wilderness. In
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  Speaker 2: this story, we will learn how David continues to flee
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  Speaker 2: and visits Ahimelech, is given Goliath's sword, and then in
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  Speaker 2: Gath pretends to be crazy in front of Achish, as
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  Speaker 2: inspired by the book of 1 Samuel.
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  Speaker 3: I'm so glad you joined us on the Bible in
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  Speaker 3: a Year podcast today. But before we get to today's episode,
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  Speaker 3: I want you to know that I would absolutely love
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  Speaker 3: to send you my daily devotional, that will give you
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  Speaker 3: fresh encouragement every single morning and day. From the moment
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  Speaker 3: we wake up to the moment our head finally hits
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  Speaker 3: the pillow, there are thousands of things demanding our attention.
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  Speaker 3: But it's in the midst of all this crush and
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  Speaker 3: hustle and bustle that you and I need peace and
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  Speaker 3: truth in God's Word. That's why I want to help
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  Speaker 3: you spend time each day growing in God's life-giving, life-changing Word,
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  Speaker 3: by sending you my free daily email devotional, PowerPoint Today.
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  Speaker 3: So visit JackGraham.org to sign up for your PowerPoint Today devotional.
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  Speaker 3: That's JackGraham.org. JackGraham.org. In yesterday's story, we heard how Jonathan
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  Speaker 3: helped David evade Saul and how the two made an oath,
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  Speaker 3: a covenant together, that they would always seek each other's good.
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  Speaker 3: This is a touching picture of a friendship that is
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  Speaker 3: stronger even than family bonds. We saw how David fled
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  Speaker 3: from an increasingly angry and insane king, King Saul. Today,
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  Speaker 3: we'll continue this story with David on the run. He
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  Speaker 3: will use clever deception to protect himself. His intentions are
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  Speaker 3: always noble, and soon other outcasts will gather around him,
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  Speaker 3: furthering the anger of Saul. Let's listen now to today's
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  Speaker 3: reading from God's Word.
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  Speaker 2: David's chest was about to burst. Heavy rain fell and
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  Speaker 2: lightning filled the skies with light. David's heart was racing
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  Speaker 2: and his lungs couldn't gasp fast enough. He was completely exhausted.
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  Speaker 2: Running from Saul had cost him a great deal of energy.
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  Speaker 2: David needed food. David stumbled to Nob near the temple
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  Speaker 2: and Ahimelech the priest came out to greet him. Ahimelech
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  Speaker 2: was afraid to see David, for he knew he was
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  Speaker 2: one of Saul's commanders. Why are you here alone? Ahimelech asked.
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  Speaker 2: David was overcome with hunger, thirst, and exhaustion. Out of angst,
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  Speaker 2: David lied to Ahimelech, saying, The king sent me on
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  Speaker 2: an important mission. I have an appointment with a young
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  Speaker 2: man here in Nob. Please, give me five loaves of
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  Speaker 2: bread or whatever you have here. The priest shook his
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  Speaker 2: head and said, Sadly, I only have the holy bread
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  Speaker 2: meant for ceremony. Only the priests and men who have
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  Speaker 2: kept themselves from women are allowed to eat it. David
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  Speaker 2: regained his composure and spoke with less desperation in his voice, saying,
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  Speaker 2: Whenever I or my men are on expedition, we are
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  Speaker 2: kept from women. We are truly worthy of the bread.
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  Speaker 2: David acted as though he was with a whole team
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  Speaker 2: of people to get more bread. The priest, not wanting
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  Speaker 2: to question David's authority, took the bread off of the
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  Speaker 2: altar and gave it to David. Do you have any weapons?
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  Speaker 3: David asked.
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  Speaker 2: The king's business required I leave immediately, so I did
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  Speaker 2: not bring any sword or spear. The priest's eyes lit up.
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  Speaker 2: He said nothing and beckoned David inside. The temple was
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  Speaker 2: warm and dry. David held the bread close to his chest,
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  Speaker 2: still feeling a slight sting of guilt as he carried it.
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  Speaker 2: The priest led David into a room. There was a
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  Speaker 2: figure on a table wrapped in cloth. The priest took
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  Speaker 2: it in his hands and began to unwrap it. A
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  Speaker 2: beautiful sword glistened in the candlelight. The priest lifted it
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  Speaker 2: up and gave it to David. He held it in
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  Speaker 2: his hands. It was a large sword but felt familiar
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  Speaker 2: to David. The priest smiled and said, This is the
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  Speaker 2: sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you defeated in battle.
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  Speaker 2: It is the only weapon we have here. David's heart
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  Speaker 2: began to flutter as he held the sword he once
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  Speaker 2: used to cut the giant's head off. It seemed like
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  Speaker 2: a lifetime ago. Not long had passed before Saul caught
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  Speaker 2: wind of where David was. So, in a hurry, David
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  Speaker 2: fled to Gath to escape. Gath was the homeland of
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  Speaker 2: Goliath and Philistine country. David, afraid and alone, ventured into
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  Speaker 2: enemy territory with Goliath's sword sheathed on his side. Achish,
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  Speaker 2: the king of Gath, was perplexed by David's arrival. The
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  Speaker 2: people of Gath had thought all along that David was
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  Speaker 2: the king of Israel. This meant David was in more
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  Speaker 2: danger than he realized. Achish's servants brought David in. So David,
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  Speaker 2: in an attempt to save himself, began to act insane.
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  Speaker 2: He marked his chambers with odd symbols and drooled all
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  Speaker 2: over himself. Achish was perturbed by his servants bringing David in.
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  Speaker 2: Do you think I need more madmen in my home?
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  Speaker 2: So he had David depart from his presence. David departed
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  Speaker 2: immediately from Gath and escaped to a cave in Adullam.
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  Speaker 2: David wallowed in the loneliness of the cave, crying out
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  Speaker 2: to God in his distress. There he wrote songs to God.
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  Speaker 2: In the darkness he questioned God, praised God, and loved God.
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  Speaker 2: It was not long before David's family discovered where he was.
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  Speaker 2: They came to him and ministered to him. Shortly after,
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  Speaker 2: many men from Israel began to flock to David. Men
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  Speaker 2: who were outcasts, debaters, and bitter found hope in the
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  Speaker 2: presence of David. Four hundred men stood in front of David,
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  Speaker 2: following his every command and hanging on every word. This
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  Speaker 2: was David's new flock, a flock of misfits and social outcasts.
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  Speaker 2: Broken were given purpose under David's command. This would be
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  Speaker 2: a foreshadowing of the Christ to come hundreds of years later.
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  Speaker 2: David and his men dwelled in the land of Moab
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  Speaker 2: for a short while, and then departed to the forests
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  Speaker 2: of Judah. There David and his men became close, and
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  Speaker 2: their strength in numbers grew day by day. Saul was
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  Speaker 2: told of David's new community, and how four hundred unruly
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  Speaker 2: men followed him everywhere he went. All of the sudden,
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  Speaker 2: David was an even bigger threat to Saul. He became
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  Speaker 2: furious with his servants that they had allowed his whereabouts
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  Speaker 2: to go unreported for so long. More so, he was
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  Speaker 2: outraged with Jonathan, who had made a covenant with David.
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  Speaker 2: Saul raged in his throne room. One of his servants
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  Speaker 2: then told him that David was given the sword of
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  Speaker 2: Goliath by Ahimelech. This caused Saul to pause. Saul said nothing.
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  Speaker 2: His eyes were glazed over in rage. He gathered his
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  Speaker 2: things and his men and and they departed to Nob
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  Speaker 2: to find Ahimelech. Saul burst open the temple doors where
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  Speaker 2: Ahimelech and the priests of Nob served. The priests cowered
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  Speaker 2: in fear as Saul approached them with his armed men.
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  Speaker 2: Saul's face was red, and his eyes were piercing. Saul
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  Speaker 2: walked among the priests, pointing his sword at Ahimelech. The
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  Speaker 2: priest was trembling as Saul's sword lightly touched his robes.
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  Speaker 2: Hear me, priests. Saul spoke with silent rage. Why have
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  Speaker 2: you conspired against me and armed David? You clothed him,
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  Speaker 2: fed him, and gave him a weapon of great importance.
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  Speaker 2: Ahimelech could barely speak, he was so afraid. He managed
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  Speaker 2: to stutter out a few words, saying, My lord, I
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  Speaker 2: thought David was one of your most faithful servants. He
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  Speaker 2: is your son-in-law and a captain over your army. I
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  Speaker 2: know very little of any dispute you have with him.
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  Speaker 2: Saul did not listen to the words of the priest.
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  Speaker 2: His rage had blinded his eyes and cut off his hearing.
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  Speaker 2: He turned to his men and said, Kill them all.
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  Speaker 2: But his men did not move. To kill a priest
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  Speaker 2: over this would be an absolute sin, and these men
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  Speaker 2: would not budge. Saul yelled again, Kill them all. But
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  Speaker 2: the men did not move. So Saul turned to his
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  Speaker 2: trusted servant Doeg, who then killed 85 priests and their families.
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  Speaker 2: The priestly town of Nob was painted red with Saul's jealousy.
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  Speaker 2: At this moment, Saul was completely given over to sin's
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  Speaker 2: hold over his mind. One of the sons of Ahimelech
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  Speaker 2: escaped the bloodshed and fled to the forest where David
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  Speaker 2: and his men lived. David's heart was tied in knots
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  Speaker 2: over the news. He felt responsible for their deaths, since
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  Speaker 2: he had sought refuge there and lied to Ahimelech. David's
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  Speaker 2: self-preservation had caused the needless slaughter of priests. David anguished
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  Speaker 2: over this and protected Ahimelech's son.
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  Speaker 3: Today's story in God's Word begins with David fearfully on
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  Speaker 3: the run, desperate for a place to hide. He flees
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  Speaker 3: to Nob, where he encounters a priest named Elimelech. His
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  Speaker 3: presence is concerning to the priest. Why would one of
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  Speaker 3: Saul's generals be there? David was desperate. But he also
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  Speaker 3: may have wanted to provide this man some plausible deniability
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  Speaker 3: when Saul came asking questions. Whatever the reason, David actually
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  Speaker 3: lies and tells Elimelech he's on a mission from the king.
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  Speaker 3: He asks the priest for bread or whatever food he
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  Speaker 3: might have. Elimelech tells him all he has is the
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  Speaker 3: ceremonial holy bread meant only for the priests. and men
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  Speaker 3: who have refrained from intimacy with women. David says he
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  Speaker 3: and his men are always kept from women while on
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  Speaker 3: an expedition. His words led Elimelech to believe he was
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  Speaker 3: not alone, and so the priest gave David the bread
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  Speaker 3: from the altar. Here's something very important. Christ would later
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  Speaker 3: use this story to teach the Pharisees about the true
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  Speaker 3: purposes of the Sabbath and God's ceremonial laws. David's heart
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  Speaker 3: was being obedient to God, and eating the bread meant
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  Speaker 3: for priests was justified in such a time of need
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  Speaker 3: to strengthen David for what he was facing. David then
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  Speaker 3: reveals that he is traveling without a weapon, so Halimelech
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  Speaker 3: shows him something surprising. For some reason, the sword that
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  Speaker 3: Goliath had carried, the very one David had used to
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  Speaker 3: chop off the giant's head, is in the temple. Why
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  Speaker 3: it is there is unclear. But David is given this
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  Speaker 3: sword to take as protection for his journey. This is
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  Speaker 3: ironic since David was the one who of course defeated
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  Speaker 3: the giant and now has his sword. But what David
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  Speaker 3: does next is unusual. When Saul discovers where he is,
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  Speaker 3: David ventures into Gath which is not only Philistine territory
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  Speaker 3: but Goliath's homeland. Alone, David is easily captured by the
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  Speaker 3: people of Gath who believed him to be Israel's king.
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  Speaker 3: But when he is taken into the palace, David pretends
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  Speaker 3: to be insane. He puts on quite an act so
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  Speaker 3: the king sends them away unharmed. Finally, David is able
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  Speaker 3: to escape to a cave where he is joined by
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  Speaker 3: his family. His family gives him comfort and aid. He
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  Speaker 3: is also joined by other outcasts, men of Israel who
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  Speaker 3: stood by David and found hope in this man who
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  Speaker 3: would one day soon be king. 1 Samuel 22 and
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  Speaker 3: verse 2 records this. Listen to how they foreshadow another
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  Speaker 3: who would come to Bethlehem and gathered the broken and
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  Speaker 3: the hurting unto himself. And everyone who was in distress,
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  Speaker 3: and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was
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  Speaker 3: bitter in soul gathered to him, and he became commander
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  Speaker 3: over them. In David, we see here a glimpse of Christ,
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  Speaker 3: who would one day bring hope not only to Israel,
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  Speaker 3: but the whole world. Meanwhile, Saul, consumed by hatred and
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  Speaker 3: completely given over to evil, confronts Halimelech. He accuses him
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  Speaker 3: of betrayal. he will hear none of the priest's reasons.
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  Speaker 3: Elimelech was a man of God, but Saul was so
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  Speaker 3: far gone he had his servants slaughter this man and
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  Speaker 3: more than 80 priests and their families that day. Only
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  Speaker 3: one would escape, Elimelech's son, who told David what had happened.
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  Speaker 3: David knew his deception was to blame for the bloodshed,
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  Speaker 3: and he was terribly grieved. He promised to protect Elimelech's son,
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  Speaker 3: and remain there with the ragtag group of outcasts that
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  Speaker 3: have become his army. We'll hear what happens the next
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  Speaker 3: time in God's Word. Dear God, thank you for your Word.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for the story of David's life that ultimately
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  Speaker 3: points us to the greater David, the good shepherd who
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  Speaker 3: is the Lord Jesus Christ, who was born, who lived,
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  Speaker 3: who died, and rose again to bring hope to the world.
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  Speaker 3: And it is in the name of Jesus that we pray. Amen.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 3: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. And before we go,
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  Speaker 3: I want you to know that I would love to
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  Speaker 3: send you my daily devotional to give you fresh encouragement
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  Speaker 3: every single day. So visit jackgram.org to sign up for
• 15:53
  Speaker 3: your PowerPoint Today devotional. That's jackgram.org.