WAIT… THAT’S IN THE BIBLE? — DAY 25

A lighthearted look at some of the wonderfully unexpected things you discover when you actually read your Bible, context still matters!

“And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet.” 1 Samuel 24:3 KJV

“SAUL WENT IN TO COVER HIS FEET.”

Sounds innocent enough.

Except…

“Cover his feet” is generally understood here as a rather polite biblical way of saying:

THE KING NEEDED A BATHROOM BREAK.

So Saul finds himself a nice secluded cave.

Finally.

A little privacy.

Nobody around.

Or so he thinks…

Because hiding further inside that exact same cave are:

DAVID AND HIS MEN.

Saul:

“Finally… somewhere private.”

Narrator:

IT WAS NOT, IN FACT, PRIVATE.

Imagine David and his men sitting silently in the darkness as the king who has been hunting them walks straight into their hiding place.

David’s men are basically thinking:

“THIS IS IT! God has delivered Saul right into your hands!”

And David is probably thinking:

“Could we perhaps discuss this AFTER he finishes?”

Context still matters!

Behind this incredibly awkward situation is actually a powerful moment in David’s life.

Saul was pursuing David and wanted him dead.

Now David suddenly had the perfect opportunity to retaliate.

Instead, David refused to kill Saul.

He secretly cut off a corner of Saul’s robe and afterward even felt troubled about doing that.

David had an opportunity to take matters into his own hands…

and chose restraint.

He trusted God with the outcome rather than forcing it himself.

That’s a pretty significant lesson hiding inside one of the Bible’s most awkward bathroom stories.

But still…

Saul walked into that cave believing:

“At last… some privacy.”

Meanwhile, somewhere in the darkness:

David

David’s men

Worst. Bathroom location. Ever.