1 Samuel 18:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Saul was afraid of David because the Lord was with him but had departed from Saul.

NIV: Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David but had departed from Saul.

NASB: Now Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him but had left Saul.

CSB: Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David but had left Saul.

NLT: Saul was then afraid of David, for the Lord was with David and had turned away from Saul.

KJV: And Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him, and was departed from Saul.

NKJV: Now Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him, but had departed from Saul.

Saul never seems jealous of David for being younger, more skilled, better loved, better in battle than he is. His resentment isn't petty: he is not worried that David will steal the spotlight of attention and admiration, itself. Instead, Saul is driven by fear that David will take the throne and kingdom away from him (1 Samuel 18:8). When Saul reacts poorly to David's growing reputation, it's angst over the impending end of his own rule.

This is, in fact, a reasonable concern. The Lord stopped being with Saul and started to be with David. The Lord had removed his Holy Spirit from Saul (1 Samuel 16:14) and had caused it to rush on David (1 Samuel 16:12–13). God had spoken through Samuel, telling Saul that had been rejected as Israel's king. God would give the kingdom to someone else (1 Samuel 15:23–28). Saul fears David because he seems to know that David is his replacement and will eventually be the king instead of him or his son.

First Samuel 18:6–16 reveals the hastening story of King Saul's demise and David's rise. When the army returns from battle, David's victory over Goliath (1 Samuel 17) is celebrated more than the king's win over the Philistine army. The harmful spirit returns to Saul (1 Samuel 16:14–23). His jealousy of David turns to violence. Before long, Saul will use his own daughters as bait in traps to destroy his greatest warrior (1 Samuel 18:17–30).

Saul's son Jonathan becomes David's best friend. David succeeds in every military mission Saul sends him on. The people praise David as being even mightier than Saul. The king is furious and terrified that David will take his throne. After Saul's direct attempts to kill David fail, the king sends David to battle the Philistines using marriage to his daughter as bait. David not only survives, but he continues to prove himself to be a mightier warrior and leader than Saul. Saul knows the Lord is with David and not with him and cements himself as David's permanent enemy.

First Samuel 18 begins the story of how the changed work of the Holy Spirit on both Saul and David (1 Samuel 16:13–14) leads to the king's destruction and David's rise. David faithfully serves both Saul (1 Samuel 16:14–23) and Saul's kingdom (1 Samuel 17—18). But David wins the hearts of Saul's people and his children. Saul can't handle the competition (1 Samuel 19—20). Finally, David flees the royal court and raises his own army. He spends years fighting Israel's enemies from afar, patiently waiting until Saul dies in battle and the shepherd boy can take his rightful crown (1 Samuel 21—31).

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.

Accessed 9/14/2025 6:03:36 AM