David's wise leadership of the Israelites ch. 30

This chapter reveals many qualities that marked David as an outstanding leader. As Saul continued to decline, God perfected the characteristics of leadership in David that prepared him for the throne. The Amalekites' capture of Ziklag at first looked as if tragedy had struck, but later it proved to be a great blessing. In this respect this event resembled David's whole career. As a result of this victory, the people of Judah came to regard David as the obvious successor to Saul's throne.

The chiastic structure of the chapter focuses attention on the defeat of the Amalekites, the people that God had commissioned Israel's leaders to annihilate.

"A.David reaches destroyed Ziklag and finds it plundered (30:1-3).

B.David and his men are promised the Lord's help (30:4-8).

C.David defeats the Amalekites (30:9-20)

B'.David shares the Lord's plunder with his men (30:21-25).

A'.David returns to Ziklag and distributes the remaining plunder (30:26-31)."²⁸⁷

 David's crisis and his response 30:1-6

David took three days to return from Aphek (29:11) to Ziklag. The Amalekites, whom David had previously raided (27:8), took advantage of the Philistines' and David's absence to retaliate in the Negev and on Ziklag. They plundered both Philistine and Judahite territory (v. 16). When David and his men arrived back home, they discovered Ziklag empty of inhabitants and burned down. David joined his men in weeping over the tragedy that the enemies of God's kingdom had caused (cf. Matt. 23:37). David's supporters then turned on him and almost stoned him giving him trouble on two fronts simultaneously. In his distress David, as usual, strengthened himself in the Lord by relying on Yahweh and inquiring of Him (vv. 6-8). From the Psalms we know that David often did this by looking back on God's past faithfulness, looking up in prayer, and looking forward with God's promises in view.

"David's genius was his spiritual resilience."²⁸⁸

"Both David and Saul are portrayed as persons in deep crises of leadership, and both are deeply at risk. What interests us is the difference of response. . . . Saul seeks refuge in a medium, [but David inquired of the Lord]."²⁸⁹

 God's provision of guidance 30:7-10

David obtained an answer through the Urim and Thummim, which the high priest carried in the breastpiece of his ephod (cf. 23:2, 4, 9). God no longer responded to Saul's prayers (28:15), but He did answer David's (v. 8). David divided his troops into two groups as he had when he organized his attack against Nabal (25:13).²⁹⁰The Besor brook is probably the Wadi el Arish, which flows west into the Mediterranean Sea a few miles south of Ziklag. This stream marked the southwestern border of the land that God had promised to Abraham's descendants.

 David's kindness to the Egyptian servant 30:11-15

David and his men were undoubtedly very angry and ready to kill anyone who proved to have had a hand in kidnapping their family members. To his credit David did not kill this Egyptian, as he planned to kill Nabal earlier. Instead he treated him kindly, in contrast to the Amalekite master's treatment of him, and won his favor and cooperation. Contrast Nabal's disdain for David, whom Nabal regarded as a runaway servant (25:10-11). The Egyptian wanted a guarantee of safety from David, as had Saul (cf. 24:2). Receiving this he agreed to lead David and his men to the Amalekites' camp.

 David's successful victory over the Amalekites 30:16-20

The Amalekites were feasting on the plunder that they had taken even though the Egyptian servant had received nothing to eat or drink when he fell ill (cf. v. 12). David launched his attack early in the morning the next day and did not give up until night fell. Since 400 of the Amalekites escaped, the total number of David's soldiers (v. 10), they obviously had a much larger army than David did. The camel was the vehicle of choice at this time; it was the fastest means of transportation (cf. Judg. 7:12). David recovered everything substantial (cf. v. 16) that the Amalekites had taken plus booty from this enemy (cf. v. 26).

 Sharing spoil with David's followers 30:21-25

The rest of the chapter describes the distribution of plunder from this battle. The amount of space the writer devoted to this revelation shows that he intended to stress it.

David returned to his 200 exhausted followers at the Besor brook and greeted them (cf. 17:22; 25:5-6).²⁹¹Some of the soldiers who had participated in combat with the Amalekites did not want to share the booty with those who had guarded the baggage (cf. v. 24).²⁹²David, however, took a different view of things. He saw that God had given them the victory; this spoil was not essentially what the combat soldiers had won but what the Lord had given His people, along with protection (cf. 1 Cor. 3:8; Matt. 20:12-15). Yahweh was the real deliverer of Israel (cf. 17:46-47). Again, this illustrates David's perception of God's relation to Israel and to himself, which was so different from Saul's view. His generous policy of dividing the spoils of war so the non-combatants would receive a portion (vv. 24-31) was in harmony with the Mosaic Law (Num. 31:27). This policy further prepared the way for the Judahites' acceptance of David as Saul's successor.

 Sharing spoil with the Judahites 30:26-31

David also distributed some of the war plunder to the elders of Judah.²⁹³He evidently did so because he viewed the booty as coming from the enemies of all Judah, even the enemies of the Lord (v. 26). He may have also done this to curry favor with the elders. They later anointed David king over the house of Judah (2 Sam. 2:4; 5:1-3). David's propensity to give made his new kingdom possible.²⁹⁴

"Many victorious kings have used surplus plunder to enrich themselves and to build grandiose palaces; David used these first spoils to show his gratitude to the citizens of those areas and towns in Judah where he and his men had wandered when being pursued by Saul."²⁹⁵

This chapter presents many qualities that mark strong, effective leadership. These include empathy (v. 4), faith (vv. 6, 8, 23, 26), decisiveness (v. 10), kindness (v. 12), persistence (v. 17), integrity (v. 23), fairness (v. 24), and generosity (vv. 21-31), to name a few. We can also see development in David's restraint compared to his dealings with Nabal (cf. ch. 25). David's effectiveness also contrasts with Saul's ineffectiveness as a leader.

"Saul, disobeying God's prophet, defeated the Amalekites but lost his kingdom (ch. 15); David, seeking God's will, defeats the Amalekites and embarks on his reign (ch. 30)."²⁹⁶

One of the strongest emphases in this chapter is David's generosity. When God gives blessings, His people should view them as His gifts to us. We should share them with our fellow spiritual warriors and with our fellow spiritual citizens (cf. Heb. 13:16; Rom. 12:13; 1 Cor. 12:14-26; Gal. 6:10).