Saul was intent on killing David and David was on the run. He ran to Ahimelech the priest at Nob. And it’s there he did some questionable things. He told Ahimelech he was on an urgent mission from the king but he actually wasn’t. He and the young men with him ate the bread of the Presence that was only lawful for priests to eat. And then a little bit later in front of the servants of the Philistine King Achish of Gath, he pretends to be crazy.
Immediately the question comes to mind, was it right for David to do what he did? He exaggerated the truth, he ate bread he wasn’t supposed to, and he pretended to be crazy. Is this how a Godly man acts?
It’s important to note as we have noted elsewhere that the Bible isn’t a story of perfect people who are role models in all areas of life. Rather they are real people, who make real mistakes, who have some Godly qualities and some qualities that are abhorrent. Just because a man or woman in the Bible did something doesn’t mean it was righteous. History is about telling the story. And that’s what was happening here.
But the question still lingers. What is allowed when one’s life is being pursued? Is it ok to do wrong in order to save life? Because that is what David was doing here. He was working to save his life and the life of the young men that had followed him up to this point.
Let’s look at what we do know. We do know that David and his men ate the consecrated bread. Now the bread had already been used for the sacrifice so this was leftover bread. Typically it would go to the priests to eat. And there was no other bread around. Jesus actually commented on this event.
When Jesus and his disciples were walking through a field on the Sabbath, they were hungry and picked heads of grain. The Pharisees were furious and told them it was not lawful to “work” on the Sabbath. Jesus said to them,
“Haven’t you read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry–how he entered the house of God, and they ate the sacred bread, which is not lawful for him or for those with him to eat, but only for he priests? Or haven’t you read in the Law that on Sabbath days the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath and are innocent? But I tell you that something greater than the temple is here! If you had known what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath” (Mt 12:3-8).
Jesus knew this story of David, and yet he did not condemn David for providing food for his men on the Sabbath in a desperate situation. The law was meant to serve men and not man the law. Under situations of distress, there were exceptions.
But what about David lying to the priest Ahimelech? When Saul came to Nob and interrogated Ahimelech, Saul said he knew that David was fleeing (1 Sam 22:17). Whether that’s true or not we don’t know because obviously Saul was hyper-jealous and making ridiculous accusations.
The hard thing was that Saul was so out of his mind that he ordered the death of all the priests. The soldiers accompanying him refused to do something so evil. So Doeg, the one who ratted David out, did it himself and killed 85 of the priests as well as the whole village of people.
That raises even more questions. Was this David’s fault? For going to Ahimelech and now all these priests and townspeople are dead because he went there?
Not at all. Not in any way. When someone acts wickedly, the responsibility is on their own head. Saul did not need to kill the priests and it was obviously so wicked his best soldiers refused him, at perhaps a cost to their own life. People may have tried to blame David, but it was Saul who held the responsibility.
But back to whether this was right or not to lie to Ahiemelech. It was a lie. But like Peter who denied Christ three times under duress, we never know how we are going to react when our life is on the line. This isn’t a moral judgment on David, it just is an observation.
And what about faking like he was crazy before the Philistine king? Again, David was fearing for his life. If they thought he was the mighty warrior which he was rumored to be, they would have killed him immediately.
When lives are at stake is it Ok to lie? Was it Ok in WWW2 to fake ID’s and ration cards so people didn’t have to go the gas chamber?
We should always err on the side of the truth and be a people of the truth. And if lives are truly on the line, we must each make our own decision that we can live with before God.
