New Year: 1 Sam 21-23 for Mar 26

If 1 Sam 21-23 were part of a movie, this would be part of a sequence in which the hero is in a chase and it seems like it will never turn out possibly right and it will turn out for the hero's demise at this stage.

There was no hint of Saul's antagonism to Jonathan at the point of 20:2, and even when David is missed at the new moon in 20:26, Saul is wont to make an excuse for him. David's made-up story told by Jonathan doesn't go over well at all, and elicits some pointed insults father to son (20:30).

Saul like nearly all kings is out for his son's kingly interests (20:31), while Jonathan tells David in private before the Lord, "you will be king over Israel" (23:17). In this chapter (23) there is ample illustration of what was prefigured in 18:10-15, namely, Saul's animosity toward David, from fear, and from fear for Jonathan and his family (cf. 24:21). David gets guidance from God in matters of battle (23:11-12). This is a contrast with Saul, who evidently had not (18:12).

While Saul's political and military choices are on display as misguided and unsuccessful from his point of view, they are not without an attempt to employ a piety (23:21). And yet they seem to be directed by Saul's peers. David will pick up on this in the next chapter (24:9).