How to cultivate a generous spirit (2 Samuel 1)

At the 1956 Australian National Championships race, a runner fell on the tracks towards the last mile. John Landy, another runner coming closely behind, could not quite clear his body and the spikes of his shoes made contact with the fallen man’s arm. As other runners streamed past, Landy doubled back to find out how badly his rival was hurt and to apologise. Urged on by the other runner who was not seriously injured, Landy took off again and, incredibly, won the race. His sportsmanship and generous spirit went into legend. He himself did not understand what the fuss was about – what he did was purely instinctive – but others recognised the chivalrous gesture. Whether we look at sports, politics or the church, such generosity is rare.

Refusing to allow the end to justify the means

In David’s continuing story, we encounter something of this big-heartedness towards Saul, his rival. David will not take delight in Saul’s death, nor reward his alleged killer. At the opening of our reading, David and his troops are just back from saving their kidnapped families from the the Amalekites (2 Sam 1:1 compare 1 Sam 30:1-31). They were otherwise occupied when Saul was killed in the battle against the Philistines, further north, so that it is clear to everyone that David had nothing to do with the king’s death. The messenger’s story about giving Saul the coup de grâce does not tally with the narrator’s earlier account of how Saul died (1 Sam 31:4; 2 Sam 1:9-10) and seems intended to ingratiate the man with David, the next king-in-waiting. The repetition that the messenger is an Amalekite (2 Sam 1:8, 13) alerts us to the man’s untrustworthiness, since the Amalekites had a reputation of taking advantage of the vulnerable (Deut 25:17-19; 1 Sam 30:1-2). David has no delight in Saul’s death but punishes the man who claims to have killed him (2 Sam 1:14-16). His retribution may seem harsh, but it underlines David’s conviction that only God can open the way for him. He will not be party to disposing of Israel’s God-given king and use power to seize the throne (cf. 1 Sam 24:6-7; 26:9-11).

Recognising the greater good

This dependence on the Lord rather than his own strength enables him to be generous about Saul. David does not look to his advantage or gloat over his rival’s death even though he has reason to be bitter towards Saul, who hounded and persecuted him and took every opportunity to kill him. Rather, this man after God’s own heart mourns for the death of this first royal family and for the tragedy of Israel’s defeat at the Philistines’ hands (2 Sam 1:12). The lament he chants expresses something of his personal grief and the loss of his friend, Jonathan, is particularly heart-felt (2 Sam 1:26). However, it is more than that. It is to be taught to his own tribe, Judah (2 Sam 1:18), who in their loyalty to David might think that the elimination of Saul is no bad thing. David knows better. The failure of this first monarch is the tragedy of all Israel. It is only a cause for celebration among the Philistine enemy (2 Sam 1:20). Although Saul and Jonathan had their differences in life, David’s lament pays moving tribute to their courage in battle and their standing together to the last (2 Sam 1:22-23).

Trusting in the Lord

David’s generosity to another servant of the Lord, no matter how frail and fallible, makes for a challenging reading. Christian churches and organisations are not exempt from backbiting and withering criticism of each other or their own leadership. The issue is that such attitudes are not just the problem of individuals but hurt the whole church or Christian mission. Often, behind the disapproval are ambitions of the critic to advance in position and power and remove rivals from their post. While there should be room to confront what is wrong (David himself had done so with Saul; e.g. 1 Sam 24:9-15), manipulation and plotting to remove others will do more harm than good to the whole community in the long term. Like David, who trusted the Lord for his own situation and for bringing justice on Saul, we must not take matters into our own hands or allow the end to justify the means. We need to pray for our churches and their leaderships that we all might exhibit godly dependence on the Lord.

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