Do any of you have any insight about the relationship between Saul and David in First Samuel chapters 16 and 17?
Why would Saul be friendly with David in Chapter 16, but then not recognize him in Chapter 17? If any of you have any insight, I’d like for you to comment.
1 Samuel 16:21-23 21 So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer. 22 Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.” 23 And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him.
I blogged about David and Goliath here. I recently received the following comment/question from Rita regarding that blog post (I’ve paraphrased and expanded Rita’s question):
I am in the middle of the Beth Moore bible study and have a question about the David and Goliath story. Before David killed Goliath (1 Samuel Chapter 16)he was in the service of Saul as his harp player. However, after David kills Goliath in the next chapter (1 Samuel Chapter 17) Saul asks who David is and Saul doesn’t recognize him. Any thoughts? This has troubled me while studying the life of David. Your Sister in Christ – Rita
Rita, I’ve left my response below. Not sure if this is helpful or not.
Hi, Rita. I’m glad that you stopped by Cecelia’s Christian Fiction Blog and commented. I tried to email you privately, but, your profile is marked private so I can’t see your email information. The only insight I can give regarding your question is, perhaps, although David was Saul’s harp player, perhaps some time had passed between the chapters and he no longer recognized David because he’d gotten older? Or, perhaps, he didn’t recognize David when he’d killed Goliath because he looked different – he may have looked brave and strong holding that decapitated head? I’m unfamiliar with Biblical history so, I’m not sure how often harp players interact with their superiors. I know David played the harp whenever the distressing spirits came upon Saul, to help him to feel better, and that Saul loved David, initially. So, it is puzzling as to why Saul didn’t recognize David after he killed Goliath. Your question is a valid one, I’m just afraid that I can’t provide much insight, but wish that I could. I’ll post your question on a blog entry to see if any of my blog readers know the answer.
For more insight into the relationship between Saul and David, as well as other little-known Bible facts, I encourage you to read Molly Noble Bull’s recent article on Writers’ Rest Blog. Stop by and leave a comment.