In the Cave at En-gedi

Deep in a cave, in the darkness, a group of men hold their breath. A figure has just stepped in out of the blazing sun. It's the king who has been hunting them. And he has no idea they are there.

David had done nothing wrong. He had served King Saul faithfully, fought his battles, played music to calm him. But Saul was eaten up with jealousy, and now David was a fugitive. He and about six hundred men moved from hideout to hideout in the wild country of Judah. Saul came after them. This time, word reached him that David was in the wilderness of En-gedi, near the Dead Sea. So Saul took three thousand of his best soldiers and went to search the steep rocks, the crags where the wild goats live.

Along the way there were sheepfolds, and a cave. Saul went into the cave alone, for a private moment, and the darkness swallowed him. He didn't know it, but far back in the same cave, David and his men were sitting in the shadows. Their hearts must have been pounding. David's men leaned in close and whispered. “This is the day the Lord told you about. He has handed your enemy over to you. Do whatever you want with him.”

David crept forward through the dark. Closer. Closer. Then, silently, he cut off the corner of Saul's robe. That was all. And afterwards, even that troubled him. His conscience struck him for having done it. He turned to his men. “The Lord forbid that I should do this to my master, the Lord's anointed, and lift my hand against him. He is the Lord's anointed.” With those words he held his men back and would not let them attack Saul. And Saul got up, walked out of the cave into the sunlight, and went on his way.

Then David came out of the cave too, and called after him. “My lord the king!” Saul spun round. And there was David, bowing with his face to the ground. “Why do you listen to people who say I want to harm you? Today you have seen with your own eyes. The Lord put you in my hands in the cave. Some told me to kill you, but I spared you. Look, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand. I cut it off, and I did not kill you. Now you can see I am not guilty of any wrong against you. Yet you are hunting me down. May the Lord judge between us. But my hand will not be against you. Who are you chasing, king of Israel? A dead dog? A flea?”

There was a long silence. Then Saul said, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And the king began to weep aloud. “You are more righteous than I am. You have repaid me good, while I have repaid you evil. When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away safely? May the Lord reward you for what you did today. Now I know that you will surely be king.” Then Saul asked one thing. “Swear to me that you will not wipe out my family after I'm gone.” And David swore it. Saul went home. But David and his men went back up to their stronghold. David had shown mercy. He was wise enough not to rely on Saul's.

En-gedi is a real place, and you can still visit it. It's an oasis on the western shore of the Dead Sea, where a freshwater spring tumbles down through dry limestone cliffs riddled with caves. The name means spring of the young goat. The Bible calls the area the rocks of the wild goats, and to this day herds of ibex, a kind of wild mountain goat, clamber over those same rocks. It was a perfect place for a fugitive to hide.

In the Cave at En-gedi. You'll find it in First Samuel, chapter 24. David had every reason, and every opportunity, to take revenge. He left it in God's hands instead. So here's the question to carry with you. When someone has hurt you, and your chance comes, what will you do with it?