Kingship is full of important requirements. All of this time, God had been preparing David to become King of Israel. Every previous life experience taught him lessons on how to be King. Saul is now dead, but there is one last thing that David must accomplish before God will allow him to rule over Israel. David’s last requirement for kingship is about to be fulfilled.
KEEPING TIME WITH GOD
Rather than seizing the throne, David waits appropriately on God’s timing. This is similar to the pattern fulfilled by Jesus, in Matthew 4:8-10: Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’
Both Jesus and David felt the need to embrace only The Father’s timing. The dates and times suggested by men were not important to them. They waited on God’s plan to unfold properly and in order with God’s will.
LETTING GO OF THE PAST
One thing was lacking in David. He had to let go of any hurt or bad feelings he held in his heart toward Saul. Saul was God’s anointed. That was all David must allow his heart to remember of Israel’s first King.
If David was going to rule God’s people God’s way, he had to have a heart which thought like God. Today, Jesus is our best example of this. In his lament for Saul, David is a shadow of Jesus. It is surprising to many to note how David’s attitude at Saul’s death shadowed the ways of Jesus. David had to completely forgive all of the wrongs Saul had committed against him. He had to clean his heart of any animosity or pain from Saul’s cruel treatment.
A GODLY KING IS A FORGIVING KING
Why? Because a godly King is a forgiving King. A true King will reflect the chesed love of His Heavenly Father. Again, the life of Jesus showed this perfectly. He died for our sins. David had to let Saul’s sins against him die. He must wipe them from his heart and mind. Now and from now on, he must show only love and respect for God’s anointed King. This would prove to be one of the greatest traits of a worthy King.
The lament called The Song of The Bow shows nothing but love and respect for Saul and his sons. This is how David chose to help the nation mourn the loss of their King.
If you read the lament which David requested the whole nation of Israel use for mourning Saul’s death, you will instantly feel the love, respect, and honor given to the man which God had allowed to be Israel’s first King.
David cleaned his own heart first. He prayed to God and repented of any hatred or remorse against Saul. Then, he led the people in their grief. He must have asked for God’s help to send out dignified and respectful thoughts of Saul to a mourning nation. The people were hurting. A good King would encourage them to mourn. He would remind them that God was on their side, even if He had allowed them to lose in this particular battle. Yes, even if they had lost their anointed King.
HONOR AND DIGNITY IN NATIONAL LEADERSHIP
David knew that now Israel must recover with honor and dignity. The nation as a whole must go out to regain the glory they once held fast under God’s leadership. This was David’s assignment. To do this, he had to put his own human feelings aside. He must lead with honor and respect for all people.
A King of Israel must not be remembered by the shameful way that Saul died. So, David rallied the people with this perfectly worded lament. The lament was full of honor and dignity for Saul. As a nation, Israel was created and designed by God to be a light unto the world. They must keep the history of their leadership honorable. To achieve this, Israel must follow David’s lead. The nation must allow grace, mercy and forgiveness toward King Saul.
“A gazelle lies slain on your heights, Israel.
How the mighty have fallen!”
David describes Saul as a gazelle. Such a description was the culture’s way of honoring great men who fought for Israel. You can picture the hunter’s arrow piercing a beautiful, graceful creature of God while in motion. How sad to see such a creature fall. David uses the words, “How the mighty have fallen.”
NO REASON ALLOWED FOR DISHONOR
The next passage says:
“Tell it not in Gath, proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the daughters of the Philistines be glad, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised rejoice.”
David does not want this news of Saul’s death to be spread among their enemies. You have a sense that they have no right to rejoice over the death of the Lord’s anointed. The other nations are given no reason to dishonor the death of Saul.
Notice in the ancient scripture readings the women are always used as the ones who speak of battles of the nations. They typically go out and proclaim such news on the streets. Previously we heard of them dancing and singing in the streets announcing, “Saul has slain his thousands, David his ten-thousands.” Now they will be proclaiming in a different way.
The songs will be sad. Each verse will be full of grief over losing their King. It is a song that will not be shared among the other nations or sung carelessly in the streets. No chance will be given for Saul to be slandered and disrespected by those other nations who would not understand the significance of his death to Israel. The Philistines had greatly disgraced Saul and his men. Here David is repairing their honor and restoring their dignity.
DAVID CURSES THE PLACE OF SAUL’S DEATH
The next verse contains these words: “Mountains of Gilboa, may you have neither dew nor rain, may no showers fall on your terraced fields. For there the shield of the mighty was despised, the shield of Saul—no longer rubbed with oil.”
This is David cursing the place where Saul died, Mount Gilboa. It has been noted by scholars that no rain or dew will stay on the fields of this mountain because the wind comes and quickly blows it all away. Year after year, this has been the case. It began after the death of Saul.
SWIFTER THAN EAGLES
David then speaks of how both Saul and his son Jonathan were loved and admired.
“From the blood of the slain,
from the flesh of the mighty,
the bow of Jonathan did not turn back,
the sword of Saul did not return unsatisfied.
Saul and Jonathan—
in life they were loved and admired, and in death they were not parted.
They were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.
Here David notes how Jonathan honored his Father. Despite their differences in life, David speaks of how Jonathan stood with Saul in battles for the nation. They both fought side-by-side like mighty warriors. Both men, even with their differences, fought to defend Israel whom they both loved. This national loyalty does not escape David’s memory. He honors it with the lament he requests the nation to use.
REMEMBERING THE GOOD
The lament goes on showing honor and respect and nothing but the good of what Saul meant to Israel:
“Daughters of Israel,
weep for Saul,
who clothed you in scarlet and finery,
who adorned your garments with ornaments of gold.
“How the mighty have fallen in battle!
Jonathan lies slain on your heights.
I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother;
you were very dear to me.
Your love for me was wonderful,
more wonderful than that of women.
“How the mighty have fallen!
The weapons of war have perished!”
REMEMBERING THE GOOD OF THEIR SERVICE
David reminds the people that Saul brought them to a state of great prosperity. He tells them to weep for Saul. Reminders are stated for them to remember how he served them. Then David turns his words toward his great love for Jonathan. This was the man that had always been loyal to David. He had kept and honored the three covenants they made before God. Jonathan offered to step aside for David to be the rightful King. He knew that was God’s will. Here David mourns losing Jonathan. It is clear that his heart is broken.
HOW GOD TESTED DAVID
In giving this great lament to the nation, David proves worthy in the last part of God’s testing for kingship. Though the world knows nothing yet of the Messiah to come, David proves to God that he has a heart like Jesus. David was willing to forgive. He put the past behind him never to be remembered again. David did not hold the consequence of Saul’s sins against him. With this lament of the nation, he removed the thoughts of any of Saul’s wrongs as if they had never existed.
In this, we see a shadow of the forgiveness of Jesus. He has done the same for us. Jesus has removed our sins so that they may never be remembered again. To accomplish this, He had to die. He had to be a selfless savior for His people. So too must David. He must die to himself and serve only God as a selfless, humble, servant King.
Forgiveness is one of the greatest traits of any King. It would now be David’s job to desire good for his people forever. Sometimes the pathway to good begins with forgiveness. David had learned this very important lesson. As we see him mourn and grieve the death of Saul and Jonathan, we know that his heart is now ready for kingship.
The whole nation of Israel waits to see what God is going to do next.