Everyone Has an Opinion
What King David and a bathroom break teaches us about the voices that surround us
Anyone can tell you anything they want in our culture. There’s no shortage of people around or online that will tell you exactly what you need to do.
We’re inundated with algorithms fine tuned to deliver us content that will capture our attention and drive us toward whatever call-to-action makes the most cash. We’re surrounded by so many voices. So many worldviews and opinions. Some are friendly and some want to destroy you. Most don’t really care about you either way. They just want your wallet.
In 1 Samuel 24, David was running for his life. King Saul was chasing him down. But, suddenly, something turned in David’s favor.
After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” So Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats. He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave.
1 Samuel 24:1-3
My middle school mind giggles every time I read this story of David having the opportunity to defeat Saul because the king had to relieve himself. The men with David saw this as the perfect opportunity.
“This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.
1 Samuel 24:4
David had people in his corner who cared about him. They wanted what’s best for him. They were risking their lives to be by his side. When Saul walked into that cave, David’s men didn’t think it was a coincidence. They saw God handing them an ending to the whole mess.
I love what happens next.
Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” With these words David sharply rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.
Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’?”
1 Samuel 24:5-9
Notice what David didn’t do. He didn’t listen to the voices in the cave. Even though these guys loved David, even though they cared about him. Even though they were right…Saul wanted him dead. Even though sparing Saul made David’s own life harder, not easier.
David’s men weren’t con artists trying to trick David. They were good men who’d left everything to follow him. And they were still wrong. Wanting what’s best for someone isn’t the same as knowing what’s best for them. Even the people closest to us only ever have part of the picture.
For David, it was more important to stand true to his principles than to take advantage of the situation. No one would have blamed him for sparing his life at Saul’s expense. But he knew it wouldn’t be right. He knew it wasn’t what God had in mind.
So he asked Saul the question:
“Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’?”
We are surrounded by so many voices. Some are strangers with something to sell. Some are people who love us and would sacrifice everything for us. But the difference between people and God isn’t how much they care. It’s what they know.
People WANT what’s best for us. God KNOWS what’s best for us. We can trust He’s moving even when we don’t understand what He’s doing.
It’s wise to listen to the counsel of others. To hear people out and take advice. But before you act on any voice, whether it’s a stranger’s algorithm or someone who loves you, ask David’s question first. Does it match up to what you know about God?
Everyone has an opinion.
Only one voice actually knows what’s best.