“Now they told David, ‘Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are robbing the threshing floors.’” (1 Sam. 23:1, ESV) David’s spontaneity was to inquire of the Lord, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?” (23:2a, ESV) The Lord said, “Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah.” (23:2b, ESV) The divine yes was not supported by David’s men. They said, “Behold, we are afraid here in Judah; how much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?” (23:3, ESV) David inquired the Lord the second time. The divine answer was also yes. (23:4)
David listened to God as well as to his men. He prayed to God and communicated to his men. The fact that David inquired the Lord twice indicates that David related to God vertically and to his men horizontally. David knew that he couldn’t attack Philistines without his men. He also knew that he couldn’t rescue Keilah from the armies of the Philistines only with his men.
A leader goes to God first, then his group. A leader brings the group discernment back to the Lord and discerns the Lord’s guidance. This process is not as smooth as it seems. But it is a necessary process in pastoral ministry.
After the second inquiry, “And David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines and brought away their livestock and struck them with a great blow. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.” (23:5, ESV) David must have been convicted by God’s assurance, and he must have convinced his men to go forth with the same assurance. In 23:5, the narrator doesn’t let David’s men to express their opinion. They just joined David and went out to fight against the Philistines. From 23:3 to 23:5, David’s men were changed by David’s prayer. (23:4) Perhaps, the Lord changed the perspective of David’s men through David’s prayer. From readers’ perspective, we know that God intervened and changed things in the narrative. However, in the narrative, all the characters lived, acted, performed, and prayed without any certainty. No one deals with reality with absolute certainty. We can only embrace His sovereignty with faith and hope. There is a tension between life uncertainty and divine sovereignty. We pray in the midst of this tension.
Robin Routledge notes:
Commenting on Abraham’s prayer for Sodom, Goldingay says, ‘the object of prayer is not to discover God’s will in order to align oneself with it but to take part in determining God’s will’. There is something in this. Through prayer, the worshipper becomes a participant, with God. But the idea that God is persuaded by our prayers to do what he might otherwise not do raises questions about his sovereignty. Prayer is not a means of imposing our will on God…On the other hand, if it makes no difference, then why do it? This is a tension we cannot easily resolve. God is sovereign; his purposes stand for ever. But in his grace and mercy, he also responds to the prayers of his people.[1]
[1] Robin Routledge, Old Testament Theology: A Thematic Approach (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2008), p. 206.
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