A Life of Trust

A ragged man rises from his restless sleep in a damp cave. Stepping out on the dewy grass, he sits and begins to write. “I will awaken the dawn,” he pens as he looks east to the sunrise. As he looks out at the white wisps forming over the hills, he considers how God’s truth is great and His faithfulness endures to the clouds. When David was running for his life from King Saul and dodging the Philistines, he took refuge in caves several times. While hiding In one of these caverns, he wrote a psalm of petition and praise:

A cave at Adullam, similar to one David would have stayed in

Psalm 57

Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me,

For my soul takes refuge in You;

And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge

Until destruction passes by.

I will cry to God Most High,

To God who accomplishes all things for me.

He will send from heaven and save me;

He reproaches him who tramples upon me. Selah.

God will send forth His lovingkindness and His truth.

My soul is among lions;

I must lie among those who breathe forth fire,

Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows

And their tongue a sharp sword.

Be exalted above the heavens, O God;

Let Your glory be above all the earth.

They have prepared a net for my steps;

My soul is bowed down;

They dug a pit before me;

They themselves have fallen into the midst of it. Selah.

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;

I will sing, yes, I will sing praises!

Awake, my glory!

Awake, harp and lyre!

I will awaken the dawn.

I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples;

I will sing praises to You among the nations.

For Your lovingkindness is great to the heavens

And Your truth to the clouds.

Be exalted above the heavens, O God;

Let Your glory be above all the earth.

Although surrounded by enemies, David overflows with exaltation to his mighty God. for years his faith will be tested as God continues to deprive him of all the things he “deserved” as the anointed king of Israel. Every time, however the future king responds with praise.

One of the caves David hid in from Saul was a place called the Cave of Adullam. Near the beginning of his flight from Saul, David came to this cave where he was joined by some of his family. Although Psalm 57 doesn’t specify which cave David hid in when he wrote it—he also hid in caves near the Dead Sea—it could have been this one at Adullam. 

The caves at Adullam are located on the top of a hill which is on the eastern edge of a geographic designation called the Shephelah, or lowlands. Adullam looks east over a north-south path called the Chalk Trough Route. Slightly north along this route and to the west, a valley called the Elah valley opens up to the planes below and. Adullam is the perfect lookout to see enemies approaching from far off. The trees and caves also provide good protection from any watching eyes.

The surrounding countryside is filled with tranquil farmland.
In David’s flight it would have been a death sentence to show his face out in the open.

When our group arrived at the base of Adullam on a brisk morning in February, the hill was lush with grass, pine trees, and shrubs. Caves and pits dotted the hillside so I had to choose my path carefully to avoid hidden holes. Our group took shelter from the morning mist in a cave to talk about David, read his story, and peruse over some of the psalms he wrote. 

1 Samuel 19-31 tells the drawn out saga of David’s flight from Saul. I passed through only a few places where David stayed. He fled to locations all around Judah’s hill country, the shephelah, and the philistine coastal plain. David was on foot most of the time. While I could see the land he ran through, our bus, equipped with WiFi and several hundred horsepower, didn’t give us the same experience of fleeing up and down the steep ascents in the hill country.

To the west of Adullam lies Tel Tsafit, the ancient site of Gath. It is a huge hill—over 100 acres. A few weeks after the trip to the shephelah, we began a 5-day trip to the south of Israel, and this was our first stop. The tell was covered with grass and some short trees. Near the bottom, I passed by some limestone caves carved out of the soft Eocene rock. I wondered what made this ancient city so large. Our guide pointed out the city’s strategic location. Gath sits at the western end of the Elah valley as it pours out into the coastal plain. This city is famous for being the  Philistine hometown of Goliath, the boastful giant David slew.

View to the east from the top of Gath, after leaving the city in 2 Samuel 22:1, David heads down this way to Adullam.

After stumbling over the rocky path to the crest of the hill, I saw a clear view of the coastal plain. On the horizon, the color of the Mediterranean Sea blended in with the blue sky. An iron signpost pointed out the direction of nearby cities. The towers of Ashdod and Ashkelon, two Philistine cities mentioned in the Bible, rose from the mist. To the east, I could see up the Elah valley towards Adullam where David went after escaping the Philistines.

Gath is well known for being one of the five major Philistine cities on the coastal plain. It was originally populated by the Canaanites, but sometime between 1150 and 1124 BC the Philistines took control. Before David came to Adullam he took refuge from Saul in Gath. The Philistines recognized him as Israel’s hero who defeated many thousands of their people, so he faked madness to save himself. King Achish, surprised and disgusted at David’s supposed insanity, sent him away. After his escape, David wrote another song of praise, psalm 34. It begins just like psalm 57 ends, “I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”

It’s hard to imagine all the trials David went through during this time. Our group discussed how much David was trusting God. Was it wrong to go to the Philistines? Was it wrong to pretend to be mad? Although I know I don’t have all the answers, I understand that when he lost so much, God grew David’s dependence on Him. David ran from Saul for ten years. He was anointed king before any of his trials began. It’s hard to imagine such a life. David’s years on the run remind me of Moses’ forty years as a shepherd before he started leading God’s people. For all those years of waiting, he needed to trust that God’s promise would be fulfilled.