1 Samuel 26

1 Samuel 26

Morgan - Behold, I have played the fool.—1 Sam. 26.21 Saul said this in a moment of mental and spiritual illumination. Once again his life had been in the hands of David, and David had refused to slay him. Moreover, he had expostulated with Saul as to the unreasonableness and wickedness of his persistent persecution. Then suddenly the whole truth flamed out upon this man. He saw himself and his actions in the light of actual truth, and under the impulse of the revelation; he told the truth about himself as he said : "I have played the fool." In these words we have a perfect autobiography. In them, the complete life-story of this man is told. Their interpretation is found in the whole narrative, and the explanation of that narrative is contained in them. From the very beginning Saul had failed. To him there had been given the greatest of opportunities; and his way had been made easy for him by all the resources placed at his disposal. There had been given to him the Spirit of God, the friendship of Samuel, and the devotion of men whose hearts God had touched. He had so acted that the Spirit had departed from him: Samuel had been unable to help him; and the hearts of his people had been turned away from him. The whole secret was that he had leaned to his own understanding, had failed to obey, and so had become the evil-tempered man he was, mastered by hatred, and fighting against God. He verily had played the fool. And so every man plays the fool when he forgets that the fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom. The very gifts of God are of no value, when they are not received and held in that holy cleansing fear. (Borrow Life applications from every chapter of the Bible) F B