Lesson 5
 Elohay Yishi – God is my Salvation (Psalm 18:46)
“Vengeance is God’s.” (Deuteronomy 32:35, Romans 12:19)
 Read 1 Samuel 26 https://www.bible.com/bible/59/1sa.26.esv

Not long after David spared King Saul’s life in the cave, Saul was told David was hiding in a wild desert area. Saul didn’t waste a moment – he took 3,000 of his best men to track David down in the backcountry.

David sent scouts to find out exactly where Saul was. David and Abishai crept into Saul’s camp at night and saw Saul asleep at the center, his spear stuck in the ground right next to his head, with his general, Abner, and the rest of the army sleeping soundly all around him.

Abishai whispered, “This is it! Look – God has given your enemy into your hands. Let me go down there and use Saul’s own spear to kill him – with one blow!”

David whispered back, “No! No one harms the Lord’s anointed and gets away with it. God knows when Saul’s time to die will come. God forbid any of us should touch His anointed king. But we’ll go down and grab his spear and water jug, and then leave.”

God caused a blanket of deep sleep to fall upon all Saul’s soldiers, so not one of them woke to see David taking Saul’s spear and jug away. David and Abishai climbed to the top of the mountain across from Saul’s encampment. From this safe distance, David shouted to Abner, “Abner! Wake up! Aren’t you Saul’s general? Why weren’t you guarding your king when a soldier came to kill him? Look what I have here – Saul’s spear and water jug that were right beside his head!”

King Saul recognized David’s voice. “Is that you, David my son?”

“Yes, it’s me, my master and king. Why are you still pursuing me? What crime have I committed? This situation is crazy – it’s like the King of Israel is hunting down a flea!”

Saul confessed he had sinned, and urged David to come back home, promising he wouldn’t try to hurt him anymore. David had honored Israel’s king that day, treating his life as precious. David told Saul to send one of his servants to get what he had taken. He reminded the king God had once more put Saul’s life into his hands, but again David refused to lift a finger against the Lord’s anointed king. David asked Elohay Yishi, God is my Salvation, to honor his life and rescue him from all his trouble, just as he had continued to honor Saul’s life.

Apply God’s Word to your life:
*Is Elohay Yishi the God of YOUR Salvation? How do you know? From what trouble has He rescued you?
*Are you holding bitterness and unforgiveness in your heart against someone?
*Will you confess this bitterness to God now, asking the Lord to forgive you and to take care of the situation in His time and way?