Now I have a disturbing question please bare with me. Saul was chasing for David to kill him. After the death of Saul the king, one of the soldiers brought a report to David. Then David ordered that he should be killed. Now am asking, Why did David do such a thing to the man?
1Ch 16:22 Saying, Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.
Psa 105:15 Saying, Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.
Samuel anointed Saul as King of Israel. David was also anointed, but he waited for the Lord to put him into office in the Lord’s time.
When Saul found that he was defeated, he asked his armour bearer to kill him, and he would not, so he fell on his own sword. This man came upon him as he was almost dead and apparently finished him off by putting him out of his misery.
But he came to David thinking he would be rewarded for what he did. He got his reward.
A “Disturbing Question” deserves a comprehensive answer:
There are many Scriptural reasons why David was fully justified to put the man to death for claiming to have killed King Saul.
First, it is important to understand that, in many cases, the Office is more important than the Person occupying the Office – especially when that Office is King of Israel or that of the High Priest. When the Apostle Paul insulted the High Priest in Acts 23 he was rebuked. Both the High Priest (Ananias) and those with him were evil, but Paul realized that the Office – not Ananias personally – was to be respected, so he apologized for rebuking Ananias, who occupied the Office of High Priest of God at that time.
In 1 Samuel Chapter 9, we see how wonderful a person Saul was (verse 2) at the time YAHWEH specifically chose (verse 17) and anointed him (1Sam 10:1) to be the first King over all Israel.
Seeing how important the Office of King of Israel is, and seeing that Saul was YAHWEH’s anointed, we come to two companion Scriptures – 1 Chronicles 16:22 and Psalms 105:15 – which state “Touch not mine anointed…”
Then we come to David – if anyone had just cause to kill Saul, it was David. Yet, when we read 1 Samuel 24:6, we see that David sinned in secretly cutting off a piece of Saul’s clothing! David is greatly distressed “David’s heart smote him” because he did this thing and says to his men “The LORD forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the LORD’S anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.”
David was in a position to kill Saul multiple times, but never did. In fact, David swore an oath to Saul that he would not kill him (verse 21-22).
Another point is one that is recognized to this day – Kings do not kill Kings. While most do this because they realize that they may one day be the King on his way out and hope to have the same courtesy shown to them, there is also the very important matter of the “rule of law.” Israel’s King was chosen and anointed by YAHWEH. David realized that only an illegitimate King would take the life of his predecessor and usurp his throne. If David killed Saul – or had Saul killed – many would view his authority is illegitimate and it would undermine his authority.
David hoped that Saul would repent and return to being the good King of Israel that YAHWEH had originally anointed. It was important that David not defile the Office by forcing the matter and taking King Saul’s life through violence.
So, if David utterly refused to lift his hand against the LORD’s Anointed, then anyone else of the House of Israel who did so would certainly be punished!
We see how King Saul (and all his son’s, providentially ensuring that none of Saul’s offspring could lay claim to the Throne of Israel, when “all his house died together” — 1Chron 10:6) was killed – he took his own life in suicide by falling on his sword.
The interesting reason given for the death sentence of Saul (1Chron 10:13) was not because of his sins against David or as King of Israel, but because he sinned against YAHWEH when he sought counsel from “a familiar spirit” recorded in 1 Samuel 28! (This should be a warning to us to not seek counsel outside of God’s people or His Word!)
There is also a Divine Irony in that King Saul is killed by the very people he spared when he disobeyed GOD by not destroying the Amalekites many years before! You can be sure that irony did not escape King Saul just before he took his own life.
Lastly, onto the man who claimed to have “mercifully” killed King Saul and his Big Lie about how the event happened: a) The man was an Amalekite (2Sam 1:13), b) his Big Lie was an attempt to gain favor from David and perhaps get something from him, c) he openly confessed to killing “the LORD’s anointed”, so David (2Sam 1:16) gave the man his just reward — DEATH!