Deeper Reflection
SAUL WAS RELIEVING himself in the “cave” where David and his men were (v.3). Both David and his men recognised the hand of Divine Providence in this seeming coincidence. God speaks through His providence. But what was the divine providence saying to David? David’s men claimed to have heard God speaking: “Behold, this is the day of which the LORD said to you” (v.4). And furthermore, they claimed to have heard God speaking very specifically: “Behold, I am about to give your enemy into your hand and you shall do to him as it seems good to you” (v.4) – that is, God had given David a golden opportunity to rid Saul once and for all.¹² If one claims to have heard God speaking with such specificity, it would be assumed that that person has heard God’s voice very clearly. David took it from his men that God had indeed spoken. He sneaked forward stealthily, but somehow, he “cut off the edge of Saul’s robe secretly”, instead of killing him (v.4). Certainly, there was the unseen divine restraint on David, for David’s “conscience bothered him because he cut off the edge of Saul’s robe” (v.5). No audible divine voice, but David heard clearly God speaking: “You shall not kill Saul” (v.6). What David heard rightly from God was directly opposite to what his men claimed to have heard. The certainty and confidence that we have in hearing God’s voice may in reality be just self-confident presumptuousness. Let us be humbly careful in this matter.

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¹² Ronald F. Youngblood, 746