| Christian Life and Doctrine | May 1962 |
“The Cave of Adullam”
“David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father’s house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves together unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.” —I Samuel 22:1,2
AFTER his signal victory over the Philistine giant Goliath, David became a member of Saul’s household, where envious looks and heartless attempts upon his life were the only returns for the soothing notes of his harp and the valiant exploits of his sling and his sword. Saul owed his continuance on the throne, under God, to David, yet the javelin was David’s reward. But the Lord in his mercy kept his dear servant amid all the intricacies of his extremely difficult position. “David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him. Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and in before them.”—I Sam. 18:14-16
Thus was David, while anointed king of Israel, called upon to endure the hatred and reproach of the ruling power, though loved by all who were enabled to trace his moral worth. It was impossible that Saul and David could continue to dwell together; they were men of totally opposite principles, and therefore, a separation must take place.
David knew that he was anointed king, but, inasmuch as Saul occupied the throne, he was quite content to wait for God’s time, when all that was true of him in principle should be fully realized. Till then, the Spirit of the Lord led him to take his place outside. The path of an exile—of a pilgrim and stranger—of a homeless wanderer, lay before the anointed king of Israel; and he forthwith entered upon it. His way to the throne lay through multiplied sorrows and difficulties. He, like his blessed Master and antitype, was called to suffer first, and to attain glory afterwards.
Twice Saul was in his power, yet David waited upon God. In God was his strength, his elevation, his entire dependence. He could say, “My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.” (Ps. 62:5) Hence we see that David was carried happily through all the snares and dangers of his path as a servant in the household and army of Saul. The Lord delivered him “from every evil work,” and preserved him unto that kingdom which he had prepared for him, and to which it was his purpose to raise him, “after that he had suffered a while.”—II Tim. 4:18; I Pet. 5:10
In his encounter with Goliath, David had, as it were, just issued from the place of secret discipline and training, to appear in the battlefield, and, having accomplished his work there, he was called to take his place again on the farm, to learn yet other lessons. The Lord’s lessons are often painful and difficult because of the waywardness or indolence of our hearts; but every fresh lesson learned, every fresh principle imbibed, only fits us the more for all that is yet before us. It is truly blessed to be the disciples of Christ, and to yield ourselves to his gracious discipline and training. The end will unfold to us the blessedness of such a place.
Nor need we wait for the end. Even now the soul finds it most happy to be subject, in all things, to the Master. “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”—Matt. 11:28-30
David could say: “My times are in thy hand”; and without doubt he wished them there. (Ps. 31:15) This subjection is truly desirable; it saves one from much anxiety of heart and restlessness. When one walks in the habitual conviction that “all things are working together for good” the spirit is most wonderfully tranquilized. (Rom. 8:28) The supremacy of the will of God over that of the creature will characterize the millennial age; but the saint is called now to let the will of God rule him in all things.
It was this subjection of spirit that led David to give way in the matter of the kingdom, and to take his place in the lonely cave of Adullam. He left Saul, and the kingdom, and his own destinies, in the hands of God, assured that all would yet be well. And how happy he was to find himself outside the unhealthy atmosphere of Saul’s house, and from under the jealous glances of his eye. He could breathe more freely in the cave than in the household of Saul, however it might seem to others.
So it will ever be. The place of separation from evil is the freest and the happiest. The Spirit of the Lord was departed from Saul, and this was faith’s warrant for separation from his person. At the same time, there was, on David’s part, the fullest subjection to Saul’s power as the king of Israel. The spirit of a sound mind enables us readily to distinguish between these two things. Separation from evil and the evil one and subjection to the will of God should both be complete. The New Testament teaches the Christian to be subject to the powers that be.
David was forced into the place of separation, and thus, as one rejected of man, and anointed of God, we see him a type of Christ. David was, in principle, God’s king, and as such, experienced man’s hostility, being driven into exile to avoid death. The cave of Adullam became the great gathering point for those who loved David and were wearied of the unrighteous rule of Saul.
So long as David remained in the King’s house, there was no call upon anyone to separate; but the moment the rejected David took his place outside, no one could remain neutral: wherefore we read: “Every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became captain over them.”
The line of distinction was clearly marked. It was now David or Saul. All who loved form, loved an empty name, a powerless office, continued to adhere to Saul. But all who were dissatisfied with these things and loved the person of God’s anointed king, flocked around him in the cave.
The thoughts and sympathies of God were there, and though the company assembled must have presented a strange appearance to the carnal and the worldly, yet it was a company gathered round the person of David, and linked with his destinies. It was composed of men, who, in their original condition, had sunk to the very lowest ebb, but who were now deriving character and distinction from their nearness and devotedness to the person of the Beloved.
In David and his despised and disreputable company may be seen a sample of the true David, and those who prefer companionship with him to all the joys, the honors, and emoluments of earth. It mattered not what they had been; they were now the servants of David, and he was their captain. Their discontent, their distress, their debt, were all forgotten in their new circumstances. The grace of David was their present portion, the glory of David their future prospect.
And so it is with Christians now. Through grace and the gentle leadings of the Father, we have all found our way to Jesus—the anointed and rejected Jesus. No doubt we all had our respective features of character in the days of our guilt and folly, some discontented, some in distress, all in heavy debt to God, wretched and miserable, ruined and guilty. God had led us to the feet of his dear Son, where we have found pardon and peace through his precious blood, “our hearts having been sprinkled from a consciousness of evil.”—Heb. 10:22, Diaglott
We are living as those who are waiting for the moment when our David shall mount the throne. “If ye be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.”—Col. 3:1-4
Referring to his disciples, Jesus said: “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” (John 17:16) The measure of the saint’s separation from the world is nothing less than Christ’s. It is not an object after which we must strive, but a point from which we must start. We do not work up to a heavenly position by shaking off the things of the earth. This is to begin at the wrong end. It is the same error as to assert that one must work up to a condition of justification by mortifying the sins of the flesh. We do not mortify self in order to be justified, but because we are justified.
The heavenly calling enables a man to see his entire separation from, and elevation above, the world, in virtue of what Christ is, and where he is. It was not known until brought to light by Jesus. In Hebrews 2:3 we read: “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him.” It was not developed in all its power and fullness until our Lord took his seat on high, and the Holy Spirit came down to anoint believers, into one body.
The Cave of Adullam illustrates the present place of rejection into which Christ entered, and which all must know who enjoy fellowship with him. As David’s men, by virtue of their association with him, were withdrawn from all connection with Saul’s system, so all those who are led by the Spirit to know their oneness with Jesus, must feel themselves disassociated from present things, by reason of that blessed oneness. Hence, if you ask a spiritually minded man why he does not mix in with the plans and pursuits of this age, his reply will be, because Christ did not do this, and I am identified with him.
One way in which to test the various occupations presented to the saint is to ask, Could the Lord Jesus engage in them? If not, should we? All who understand the true nature of the heavenly calling will walk in separation from the world, but those who are satisfied with a mere knowledge of the forgiveness of sins may have no desire to go further. They have passed through the Red Sea, as it were, but manifest no desire to cross the Jordan, and eat the old corn of the land of promise.
Just as it was in the day of David’s rejection, there were multitudes of Israelites who did not cast in their lot with him; but this did not hinder their being Israelites. It was one thing to be an Israelite; it was another thing to be with David in the cave.
We are in the last days of the old social order, or kosmos, and the last days of opportunity for the feet members of the body. May all who love the Lord Jesus Christ seek a more decided identification with him in this time of rejection. His citizens hated him and sent a message after him, saying, “We will not have this man to reign over us.” (Luke 19:14) Shall we go and associate ourselves with the counterpart of these today? God forbid! May our hearts be with him where he is. May we know the hallowed fellowship of the “Cave of Adullam,” where the Prophet, Priest, and King are found embodied in the beloved person of him who loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.
We cannot walk with “Saul” and “David” at the same time. We cannot hold Christ and the world; we must make our choice. “Choose you this day whom ye will serve.” (Joshua 24:15) “It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: if we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us.” (II Tim. 2:11,12) This is the time of suffering, the time for enduring afflictions and hardness. David’s men were called, by reason of their association with him, to undergo much toil and fatigue; but love made all light. and easy to them, and their names and exploits were all faithfully remembered and minutely recorded when David was at rest in his kingdom. None were forgotten.
The 23rd chapter of II Samuel contains the precious record and points forward to the time when the Lord Christ shall reward his faithful servants, those who, from love for his person, and by the energy of his Spirit, have performed acts of service for him in the time of his rejection. These acts may not be seen, known, or thought of by men; but Jesus knows them, and will eventually reward them openly. Who would ever have known the acts of David’s worthies if they had not been recorded in holy writ? Who would have known of the three who drew water from the well of Bethlehem? Who would have known of the slaying of a lion in a pit, in the time of snow?
Just so now, many a heart throbs with love for the person of the Savior, unknown to all; and many a hand may be stretched forth in service to him, unobserved by any human eye. Love never pauses to calculate. It was quite sufficient for those worthies to know that David longed for a drink from the well of Bethlehem. The drink must be procured at all cost—“Anal these three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless, he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord.”—II Sam. 23:14-16
There is something peculiarly touching and beautiful in this scene, whether we contemplate the act of the three mighty men in procuring the water for David, or David’s act in pouring it out to the Lord. It is evident that David discerned in an act of such uncommon devotedness a sacrifice which none but the Lord himself could fully appreciate. The odor of such a sacrifice was far too fragrant for him to interrupt it in its ascent to the throne of the God of Israel. Wherefore he very properly and gracefully allows it to pass him by in order that it might go up to the One who alone was worthy to receive it and to appreciate it.
This serves to remind us of the beautiful compendium of Christian devotedness set forth in Philippians 2:17,18, margin: “Yea, and if I be poured forth upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all. For the cause do ye also joy, and rejoice with me.”
Paul seemingly alludes here to the wine and oil poured on the meat offerings to make them acceptable to the Lord. Paul was most willing to pour out the costly libation of his own blood on the offering of the faith of the Gentiles (Rom. 15:16) to render it more firm and of consequence more pleasing to God. (Rom. 15:16) The apostle represents the Philippian saints, in their character as priests, as presenting a sacrifice and performing a priestly ministration to God. And such was the intensity of his devotion that he could rejoice in his being poured out as a drink offering upon their sacrifices, so that all might ascend as a fragrant odor to God.
It mattered not who put the sacrifice on the altar, or who was poured out thereon, provided that God received what was acceptable to him. This truly is a divine model for Christian devotedness, and may we conform our ways to it. It would then be our joy whenever we saw one or another laying a sacrifice on the altar of God, to allow ourselves to be poured out as a drink offering thereon, to the glory of God and common joy of his saints.
During this short period of trial and testing, the new creature abides in the “Cave of Adullam.” May the Holy Spirit kindle within us a flame of ardent love for the person of him who died for our sins, and unfold to our hearts and minds more of the divine excellencies of his person, that we may know him to be the fairest among the ten thousand and altogether lovely. May we be able to say: “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, that I may win Christ.”—Phil. 3:8