And David inquired of the LORD, “Shall I pursue after this band? Shall I overtake them?” He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake and shall surely rescue.”
David comes home to Ziklag to find it burned, the families gone, and his own men ready to stone him. His first move is not a war council but a question to God — and the answer comes back larger than the question.
A habit he had dropped
Asking for the ephod marks a return. One writer notes how long it had been since David last asked God anything.
William Kelly"And David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech's son, Please bring me the ephod." Can he not now inquire of the Lord? It was long since he had done so. He had been far from God… And if David encourages himself in the Lord, the Lord surely encourages David.
Another writer compares David here with the David of his strongest days. Depending on God had marked him then, and now he returns to it.
H. L. RossierSamuel was the man of prayer and intercession. In the same way, David, in the time of his strength, was the dependent man who consulted and inquired of the Lord. He returns to this. The Lord who had refused to answer Saul answers David.
Asking when the answer looks obvious
Of course he should chase the raiders. Anyone could see that. So why ask?
F. W. GrantAt once Abiathar and the ephod are what he turns to. Nature had, of course, already decided the question. But the man of faith will not move at the bidding of nature. Faith asks when everything seems plain, just as it finds a plain road when everything is confusing.
The way to God had never closed on David's side. The problem lies elsewhere.
Samuel RidoutThe priest had accompanied David in all his wanderings, just as the believer can never lose, by his own acts, his place of access to God and the priestly intercession of our Lord. The way is always open for him to inquire of the Lord. God always has a mind for His children and knows what is best for them when they are at their wits' end. It is faith alone that will inquire of Him. As long as human effort might still accomplish something, the soul is not likely to turn to God. But here David inquires, and he meets with a most gracious response.
What the ephod was
David does not guess at God's mind. He uses the means God had given, and the garment itself carries a lesson.
Leslie M. GrantDavid asks Abiathar the priest to bring the ephod. This was the garment the high priest wore over his robe. In the ephod was the breastplate. It held the urim and thummim, the twelve precious stones, each one standing for a tribe of Israel. It was used for inquiring of God. The twelve stones stress a vital truth. God will answer only on the basis of His love and care for ALL Israel, not from any partisan viewpoint, as though He favoured one person over another. Saul could not rightly use it, for it was not Israel that he loved, but himself.
The answer outruns the question
David asked two things out loud. Underneath them, one writer hears a third.
F. W. GrantHe recognises now the judgment of God. He must humbly appeal to God's deep compassion: Is it final? And how prompt and tender the answer is! Then at once he is a man of action again, the energetic and courageous leader of men.
Now set David beside Saul. Saul asked God and got no answer.
The Bible TreasurySaul forfeits all by disobedience and finally perishes; whereas David prospers in the school of adversity… and recovers everything from the enemy's hand.
A picture of a greater recovery
One writer reads the whole scene as a picture. A city is stripped bare, its king turns to God, and God sends him after his enemies with a promise.
W. T. P. WolstonDavid comes to Ziklag and finds the city burned and everything taken away. His enemies have had their way and done whatever they liked… It is just a picture of what the world has done with Jesus… See what David does here. He turns to the Lord. And the Lord's answer is striking: "Pursue, for you shall surely overtake and shall surely rescue." It will be just the same with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Summary
- Ruin. Ziklag was burned and everything was gone. That loss is what drove David back to God.
- Return. He had not inquired of the Lord for a long time, yet the way was still open — the ephod and the priest were still with him.
- Ask. The road ahead was obvious, and he asked anyway. Faith asks when everything seems plain, instead of moving because nature says so.
- Answer. God had refused to answer Saul. He answered David at once, and He answered more than David asked: not just the chase, but the outcome.
- All. Saul forfeits everything and perishes; David recovers everything from the enemy's hand. One writer sees a picture there of Christ, rejected now, who will yet recover everything.