Daily Devotional for Tuesday 16th January
The Path of Righteousness
Remember that cut-off piece of Saul’s robe that David took? In this passage, David comes out of the cave after Saul leaves it, and he calls out to him, saying, “My lord the king!” And David bows down to Saul as he turns to look at David.
Then David lays his case before Saul. He waves that cut piece of Saul’s robe before him and says, look, I could have killed you, but I didn’t. And David says, 4 times in this passage, “I will not stretch out my hand against my lord, for he is the LORD’s anointed” and “my hand shall not be against you” (vv. 6,10, 12 & 16). He says to Saul, “…know and perceive that there is no evil or rebellion in my hands, and I have not sinned against you, though you are lying in wait for my life to take it” (v. 11). David also goes on to say he trusts in God to judge rightly between Saul and David.
Saul then lifted his voice and wept. He was convicted that David was innocent and that he was in the wrong to have been pursuing him to kill him. He sees and acknowledges that David was “more righteous than; for you have dealt well with me, while I have dealt wickedly with you.” Saul says he sees now that David will be king after him, and begs David to have mercy on Saul’s household.
Now, this isn’t the end of their story, as Saul goes back on his word in chapter 26 and goes after David again. But in this chapter, the lines are clearly laid out as to who is following God righteously and who is not.
Sometimes it is not easy to choose to be the one who does what is right. We see what looks like the whole world choosing to do whatever they want and calling it right because it’s their choice. That is not God’s way. He says what is right and what is wrong and calls us to live our lives following Him. That is the path of righteousness.
Time to reflect…
· Think about any difficult decisions we may have coming up. What would be the path of righteousness in them? What would God want us to choose?
Pause to pray…
Dear Father God, thank You for your Word which teaches us about You, your ways, and what it means to belong to You. Please help us to make the right choices, so that we too, like David, can look to You Lord God for the outcome. Help us to live more like You, Lord Jesus, in Your name, Amen.
