Paul Kretzmann Commentary - 1 Samuel 19:18 - 19:24

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Paul Kretzmann Commentary - 1 Samuel 19:18 - 19:24


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Saul In Ramah

v. 18. So David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah,
he turned to the prophet, his fatherly friend, first of all, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth, the place where the children of the prophets lived, with Samuel at their head.

v. 19. And it was told Saul, saying, Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah,
where there was a complex of buildings enclosed with a fence or wall.

v. 20. And Saul sent messengers to take David; and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying,
praising God in a state of ecstasy, and Samuel standing as appointed over them, for he was the head of this prophets' seminary, the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied, singing divine praises under the direction of an influence which they could not resist.

v. 21. And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they prophesied likewise. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they prophesied also.
All this was to be a hint, on the part of Divine Providence, that God was hindering the messengers from carrying out Saul's command; it was He who was protecting David against willful murder.

v. 22. Then went he,
Saul, also to Ramah, in a stubborn determination to carry out his will, and came to a great well that is in Sechu, a large cistern not far from Ramah; and he asked and said, Where are Samuel and David? And one said, Behold, they be at Naioth in Ramah.

v. 23. And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah; and the Spirit of God was upon him also,
He took hold of him and held him in His power; and he went on and prophesied until he came to Naioth in Ramah. "The difference between Saul and his messengers was that the inspiration came on him as he was approaching the residence of the prophet, and that it attained a higher grade and lasted longer, completely suppressing his self-consciousness. "

v. 24. And he stripped off his clothes also,
either by removing all his clothes or at least his outer garment, leaving only the inner shirt of linen or cotton, and prophesied before Samuel in like manner, and lay down, literally, "fell," naked all that day and all that night. The length and the vehemence of the attack of ecstasy which Saul experienced was to indicate to him and others that his persecution of David was a battling against Jehovah and His Spirit, which should therefore not be persisted in, lest more serious effects follow. Wherefore they say, Is Saul also among the prophets? The proverbial saying, which had first gone the rounds when Saul returned from Ramah after meeting Samuel, was now given new nourishment. Unfortunately the heart of Saul remained unchanged, just as the hearts and minds of unbelievers in our days are sometimes drawn into a wave of religious excitement, without a subsequent change of life. Nevertheless, God has even the hearts of His enemies in His power, and they sometimes confess the truth against their will, thus serving the interests of the Lord's kingdom.