The Enemy of My Enemy

And David and his men went up, and invaded the Geshurites, and the Gezrites, and the Amalekites: for those nations were of old the inhabitants of the land, as thou goest to Shur, even unto the land of Egypt. —1 Samuel 27:8

David, his men, and their families settled in the border town of Ziklag.

This outpost placed David beyond the reach of Saul, who would not dare bring about a war by invading the land of the Philistines to capture him.

“Ziklag bordered on the territory of desert marauders who had troubled Israel ever since their entrance into Canaan. The Lord had ordered the complete annihilation of such predatory tribes as the Amalekites . . . , and as the anointed heir to the throne David felt responsible to carry out what Saul had failed to accomplish. David no doubt intended thus to merit the loyalty of his own nation.” “Earlier, when Saul ‘utterly destroyed’ all the Amalekites . . . , it is likely that many of them disappeared into the desert, and in a short time reappeared to continue their raids. The wandering Bedouin peoples have a mysterious way of disappearing suddenly, only to reappear in time.” David and his men systematically waged war against the Geshurites, Gezrites (Girzites), and Amalekites, almost annihilating those tribes.

It appeared there were no survivors left to tell the tale, so David lied to King Achish, telling him that he and his men had been at war with Judah.

Achish was eager to believe David had allied himself with Philistia and was fighting battles for them. He told his kinsmen, “He [David] hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor him; therefore he shall be my servant for ever” (1 Samuel 27:12).

“David knew that it was the will of God that those heathen tribes should be destroyed, and he knew that he was appointed to do this work; but he was not walking in the counsel of God when he practiced deception.” “Great and good men, men with whom God has worked, will make grievous mistakes when they cease to watch and pray, and to fully trust in God.”