The Song in the Cave

1 Samuel 22:1

“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.”

It was the lowest point in his life so far. After being Israel’s champion, the one who delivered them from the terror of Goliath the giant; after being the mightiest general of King Saul’s army; even being the husband of the King’s daughter Michal—now, David was like a rat fleeing to a cave.

Was this the price to pay for being God’s anointed? Little did he know that Samuel pouring oil on his head that day would be the beginning of a sudden and abrupt change in his life. Oh, how peaceful it was just to be in the fields, taking care of the family’s sheep! He used to be free from cares, spending days and nights singing praises and hymns unto the Lord while gazing at the stars filling up the sky. Lions and bears were nothing to him—he even smote them when they threatened his flock! But now it wasn’t a bear, nor was it a lion. No, it was someone stronger, more influential, more powerful, and more ferocious: the king of Israel, Saul himself, who wanted him dead.

Saul threw spears at him, even tried to have him killed by the Philistines, and now it became more aggressive and no longer in secret. David was officially a fugitive.

He tried to get help from the priests in Nob, but Saul would not spare even Ahimelech and the priests. The king killed them all upon learning they had helped David.

In his desperation, David went to Gath in the land of the Philistines—the very enemies he once fought against—because, where in the land of Israel was Saul not king? So he went to foreign lands seeking refuge from the hostile hands of the people of Goliath, whom he had valiantly defeated. He hoped that maybe he would find some peace, some quiet, some rest.

But David is a man who cannot be easily forgotten. He was recognized by his enemies, and they said,

“Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, ‘Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?”

Is not this David? Yes, I think he is! The champion of Israel! Even the enemies recognized David as the true king of the land.

So they brought David to Achish, the king of Gath. Maybe this was the time for revenge—David had caused many defeats for the Philistines, and now the man was here. Oh, how convenient this was!

And David was sore afraid. Yes, that is what the verse says. Even the bravest warriors can be frightened. Even the most courageous leaders have something to fear. Even the greatest heroes have their down moments.

So David did the unexpected. No, he did not fight them all to death. He did not valiantly cross swords with the king. In the presence of King Achish,

1 Samuel 21:13

“And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.”

David acted like a madman. He scrabbled on the gate just like a child would. And to top it all, making the act more convincing, he let his spittle—his saliva—fall down from his mouth onto his beard.

Can you imagine how suddenly things changed? One moment he was praised by the people—he was the hero of Israel. Women sang how great he was in battle! One moment he was the dignified general of Israel—the great David. Then, in an instant, he was ridiculed, forced to humiliate himself, stripped of his dignity, feigning madness just for survival—just to escape death.

And so Achish believed David’s ploy.

“This is not David,” he said. “This is some crazy man—let him go. This cannot be him! David was dignified! David was a great warrior! Even if his facial features are the same, he has lost his glamour. Away with this man! This is not the deliverer of Israel!”

And David was able to escape with his life by a hair’s breadth. He fled to Adullam and escaped to one of its caves.

What Was David’s “Sin”?

Does he deserve all this? Maybe his only fault was that he was God’s anointed—which was not even a fault.

But to be God’s anointed is to be crushed. As the present king was so inclined to please the people at the expense of disobeying God, David needed to learn how to seek refuge in the Lord alone.

If David were to become a king different from Saul, He needed to learn to humble himself, unlike Saul; to be obedient, unlike Saul; to be dependent and reliant on God, unlike Saul. He needed to know how to be despised, misunderstood, rejected, and still remain submissive and obedient.

So David fled. All these times, King Saul had been unfair to him. He had done nothing wrong to deserve this; he was not even planning to take the kingdom by his own hands. He served loyally. Yet the king was jealous and wanted to kill David with his own hands. And so he went to Adullam. The word “Adullam” literally means “the justice of the Lord.”

When men had been unfair, David went to the justice of the Lord. He found refuge in one of the caves there. Knowing that God sees and knows everything, David did not need to do anything. He did not need to retaliate and exact vengeance. He simply rested in the justice of the Lord. Not even in his imagination did David think about lifting his hand against God’s anointed.

So David found refuge inside that cold, dark cave. He was at his lowest point—lying with his back against the cold, wet rocks. In his discomfort and fear, he simply lay still and trusted his God. Though he was in a cave, he felt as if he were in the valley of the shadow of death. But he knew the Shepherd was with him.

Inside that cold, dark cave, the Psalmist was able to write a song. From the cold, dark cave, David sang a beautiful hymn. In the quiet and stillness of the night, the angels must have been closely listening as this song was heard from the cave of Adullam:

This was his song in the cave:

Psalm 34

A Psalm of David, when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech; who drove him away, and he departed.

I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad.

O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.

I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

While in that situation, David was able to compose and sing this beautiful song!

Are You in a Cave?

Are you in a situation that is cold and full of discomfort? Feeling alone, abandoned, and rejected? While in the cave, why not rest and find hope in the Lord? While you are inside that hole, that situation, why not try to sing a song—a song of hope and confidence in the Lord?

Do we only bless the Lord in good times? Do we only bless Him when we are in comfort? No. David sang while in the cave:

“I will bless the LORD at all times!”

Though he was in a cave, not the palace—though he was somewhere cold—still, “Blessed be the name of the LORD!” His praise should always be in our mouths.

Hebrews 13:15 “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.”

So in good times and in bad times, we must praise Him! Here was David, still fresh from his escape from Saul and Achish, in the moment of humiliation and threat, and he was singing a song of trust unto God!

Hard situations in life must not take away our songs unto God. Actually, during these hard times, our songs become more pleasing to Him because we worship God despite our circumstances.

Singing in the cave is an expression of confidence in the Lord—that no matter what He allows in our lives, there is a purpose being worked out through the events that are unfolding.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.”

One purpose of trials in our lives is to make us mature in our faith.

James 1:3 “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.”

“But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”

God wants to mature us. Through the trying of our faith—which produces patience—we will become mature and complete. Why do we need to be mature in our faith? Not only for our own walk with God, but also to help others in theirs.

Just as the Lord Jesus said to Peter:

Luke 22:31–32 “And the Lord said, ‘Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.’”

The Lord sometimes allows sifting in our lives so that by faith in Him, we endure trials, and afterward we may strengthen others.

We cannot minister to the broken and wounded without having scars ourselves. Our own testimonies and experiences with God become powerful connections to others who are going through trials—and even become inspiration for them to endure as well.

How can we say to someone in a hard situation, “I know how it feels, but let us just trust the Lord,” if we ourselves have not endured similar trials?

So God sometimes allows these trials in our lives—for our maturity and to equip us to minister to others.

David’s New Fellowship

When David went to Adullam, God also sent people to him to lead. As it is written:

First Samuel 22:2

“And everyone that was in distress, and everyone that was in debt, and everyone that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.”

So David became the leader of four hundred men who were in distress, in debt, and discontented (or, as other translations say, bitter in soul). They gathered around David. A “losers’ club,” one might call them! But these “losers,” under David’s leadership, eventually became his mighty men—his mighty warriors in battle.

From bitter, distressed, bankrupt, troubled people, they were turned into great mighty men! David, having experienced troubles himself, led and encouraged these troubled men.

Your God-given trials have a purpose! Therefore, by the grace of God, we must endure them and remain faithful to Him so that our troubles become others’ triumphs, our endurance becomes others’ encouragement, and our faithfulness becomes others’ inspiration. Even in your darkest moments, continue to be a testimony and trust in the Lord—not only for your own sake, but for the sake of others who will benefit from your story.

So maybe you are in the cave right now. Why not sing while you are there? Why not express your trust in God and let your voice be heard by everyone? You will find that some of the most joyous testimonies happen in the hardest situations. You will see that some of the sweetest songs ever made and sung were sung from caves.

All quoted Scriptures are from the King James Version.