David Ascendant

by Brian Godawa

  All of Saul’s family were present for the meal, sitting in their respective places on the floor. Jonathan sat across from Saul and his chief advisor, Abner, a weathered and experienced general whom Saul greatly trusted.

  Michal and her new husband, Palti, sat next to Jonathan. They ate in silence.

  Saul guzzled a chalice of wine and said, “Why do you look so dour, my daughter and son-in-law? Newlyweds should be happy and celebrative of their new life together. Drink up!”

  Palti took a long gulp of wine. It was his only way to escape the moment.

  Michal stared with contempt at her father. Though she was not divorced from David, Saul had used his authority as king to nullify their union and force her to marry another, in violation of Yahweh’s Law.

  The seat next to Jonathan was empty.

  Saul said, “Jonathan, where is the son of Jesse? His seat has been empty these two days of the festival?”

  Saul’s insanity was unpredictable. One day, he would madly seek to kill David, the next, he would try to reconcile with him. One moment he would seem normal, the next moment, a dark shadow was over his soul. Everyone had simply gotten used to it.

  Jonathan lied with a deadpan face, “He asked leave of me to return to Bethlehem for a clan sacrifice. I knew you would approve of such a holy endeavor, so I sent him off.”

  It was a direct stab at Saul’s unholiness. Saul burst out shouting like a lion jumping on prey. “You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! You have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness! You are a fool. For as long as the son of Jesse lives, neither you nor your kingdom shall be established!”

  Everyone stopped eating and talking. All eyes were wide open, watching the exchange.

  Jonathan said with resolute firmness, “Father, why do you seek to kill him? What has David done to deserve death? He has been loyal to the crown and to Yahweh all these years. Why do you listen to your spirit counselor and not the Spirit of Yahweh?”

  Nimrod, that spirit counselor, rose up in Saul and his eyes filled red with murder. “How dare you defy me, you godlicker.”

  Jonathan got up from the table and walked toward the door.

  Saul looked frantically around, “Where is my spear? Where is my spear?!”

  A guard handed him his spear and he stood up.

  Women screamed.

  Jonathan turned.

  Saul hurled his spear.

  Jonathan dodged and the spear embedded in the wall next to him.

  “So now you will seek to kill me as you have David. Thank you for the honor of treating me as you treat my future king.” Jonathan turned and left the room.

  Saul screamed out in anger. It was a gurgling, piercing bellow that could be heard throughout the palace.

  A voice diverted the next explosion. “My king.”

  Saul turned to see Doeg the Edomite kneeling before the table.

  “What do you want, sheep lover?” Saul’s chest still heaved with the fury of Nimrod.

  “I know where the son of Jesse is.”

  Suddenly a calm came over Saul, followed by a slight smirk across his lips.

  Michal looked with fear at the kneeling Edomite.

  “I saw him just today at Nob. He sought the ephod of Yahweh from Ahimelech the high priest. And then he received the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”

  Saul immediately barked out a command to Abner, “Draw up a regiment immediately. We ride to Nob.” He pointed at Doeg, “You will come with us.”

  Saul left the room.

  For a minute, everyone sat frozen. Then they resumed their careless eating, in denial of what they had just seen. It was the curse of the aristocracy. As long as they could return to their pleasure, they would close their eyes and deny anything, no matter how outrageous or unrighteous. As long as it would not affect them directly, they simply could not care less.

  But there was one person who still cared. Michal called her manservant over to her, the eunuch Akiva. He was a portly man and very loyal to Michal. She whispered into his ear. “Go secretly and swiftly to Nob and tell David Saul is coming. You must ride quickly ahead of my father, or David will die.”

  “Yes, my lady,” said Akiva, and he left.

  Chapter 41

  Akiva expected to arrive at Nob ahead of Saul that evening. But he would never make it to the sanctuary to alert David, because he met another pair of travelers on the road to that fateful town.

  Ishbi and Saph ate their meal uncooked, to avoid the attention a fire might draw.

  “I must say,” said Ishbi, “eunuch meat is much tastier than other males. It is more like female flesh.” He took a bite out of the leg of Akiva’s captured corpse.

  Saph responded through his own mouthful of food, “That is because they lack the toughening effect of the balls.”

  Saph belched.

  Ishbi wrinkled his nose. “That is one disgusting smell.” He held out a goat wineskin. “Drink more wine to sweeten that sour gut of yours.”

  Saph replied with a smirk, “If you think that is nasty, wait until I release a fart. You might just pass out.”

  Ishbi shook his head with disgust and took another bite of human flesh.

  They were on the outskirts of Nob. They had captured the eunuch just before they were about to ambush the city to kill David. They decided to eat a meal first for the energy they would need for the fight. The Chosen Seed was not to be trifled with. He had, after all, felled their champion years ago, and he was now, no doubt, a more seasoned gibborim.

  Ishbi had longed for this moment for many years. That little insect had taken his companion in life from him. He and Goliath had grown up together and had joined the Sons of Rapha together. They were warriors and they were lovers. The only person more driven to revenge against the son of Jesse was Lahmi, Goliath’s brother, who was elsewhere searching to exact his own planned revenge. Ishbi was only too happy to be beating Lahmi to the punch on this one.

  The two giants paused, listening with preternatural ears. They could hear a desert rat crawling at a hundred feet. This was not the sound of a desert rat. It was the sound of a regiment of horses approaching the town in the distance.

  “Quickly,” barked Ishbi. They gathered up their weapons and left the unfinished carcass of the eunuch for the scavengers of the desert.

  • • • • •

  Saul and his regiment of fifty strong, led by Abner, arrived at the town of Nob on their horses armed for war. They were met by Ahimelech the high priest.

  “My lord, King Saul,” said Ahimelech bowing. “To what do I owe the grace of your presence?”

  Saul looked over at Doeg the Edomite, who nodded. This was the one.

  Saul turned back to Ahimelech. “Why did you conspire with the son of Jesse against me and my kingdom?”

  “My lord? I am no conspirator.”

  “You inquired of Yahweh for him. You gave him bread and a sword to rise up against me. Where is he lying in wait for me at this moment? WHERE?!”

  “Your grace, he is no longer here. He left days ago. But he is not against you. For who in all your household is as faithful as David? He is your son-in-law, the captain of your bodyguard. Is there anyone more honored in all your house?”

  Saul stared down at the priest with boiling rage. Then he said to Abner, “Bring all the priests out to me.”

  A hundred feet away, Ishbi and Saph hid in the brush watching the priests being herded outside and surrounded by the horseback soldiers. The giants were frustrated at having missed David. But now they had the king of Israel in their sights. There were only fifty guards. Ishbi and Saph could easily dispatch them, along with the king, in one fell swoop. It would be a glorious victory for Philistia. They would be rewarded as heroes.

  But there was someone that stood in the way of Ishbi’s glory. He was someone that none of the Israelites could see because they were mere human flesh. But Ishbi and Saph were Rephaim, the flesh of men and angels. They lived simultan
eously in two worlds, flesh and spirit. They could see a giant shadow figure beside Saul that was invisible to normal eyes.

  It was as tall as Saul on his horse. And it sensed their presence. It turned its head to see Ishbi and Saph through the darkness. Ishbi’s familiar spirits became frenetic with fear. Then a voice penetrated his mind that only he could hear. It was the voice of the evil spirit.

  “Stay away. This one is mine.”

  There were few things that frightened Rephaim gibborim, and this was one of them. This entity was more than an evil spirit. It was the most malevolent force that Ishbi had ever encountered, and he had encountered quite a bit of power in his days. It was kingly and it was ancient. It reminded him of Asherah and Dagon. It rivaled them in sheer malignance.

  Ishbi was not going to get in the way of this thing, whatever it was, because it was truly frightening.

  The priests were gathered before Saul and his soldiers. They were like frightened sheep before a pack of wolves. There were eighty-five priests encircled by the fifty warriors on horseback.

  Saul sighed and looked over at Doeg. “You. Kill them all.”

  “Me, my lord?” said Doeg with shock.

  “Yes, you. Consider it your reward of loyalty to me. Kill them all. NOW!”

  Doeg got off his horse and drew his sword. The priests knelt and began to pray to Yahweh with heads bowed. It would make it easier for the Edomite without their sorrowful eyes penetrating into his guilty soul. But his king had commanded him.

  He hacked the priests to pieces. He cut off heads, cleaved bodies in two, and pierced hearts. He became drenched in the blood of the innocents he slaughtered. It would change him forever.

  It changed the watching soldiers on their horses. Everyone watched with horror. In their dread focus, they did not see the single hidden priest sneaking out the alleyway behind them. No one saw the young man get away. No one except Ishbi and Saph. They had a good idea where he was going.

  After Doeg had finished his evil deed for the king, Saul yelled out, “Now, kill every man, woman and child in the town!”

  The warriors balked. Did they hear him correctly?

  “You heard what I said. KILL THEM ALL!”

  The warriors rode through the town to accomplish the diabolical command of their king.

  Nimrod whispered into Saul’s ear, “Yahweh wants a holy war of herem, I will give him herem.”

  The two Rephaim giants in the brush were gone.

  Chapter 42

  David hid in the cave of Adullam, thirteen miles southeast of Nob. It was well hidden in the labyrinth of rocky outcroppings of the area. The interior of the cavern was large enough to accommodate a regiment of men. The brothers Joab and Abishai had met him there. They had brought with them those in the bodyguard who were loyal to David, almost one hundred of them. The force was growing because word had gotten out to the surrounding hills and valleys that David was on the run from Saul.

  Many disgruntled warriors, brigands and outlaws who harbored a hatred for Saul were joining up. David would have his hands full and his leadership tested with these renegades. But he also identified with them. He too had always been an outcast and rebel of sorts.

  But now as a rebel leader, he gathered his men around him, flanked by Joab and Abishai.

  “I am David ben Jesse, the captain of the king’s guard, and married into royal lineage through his daughter, Michal. Some of you have heard that Samuel the Seer has anointed me as the next king of Israel; that Yahweh has rejected Saul and that our king is now possessed and taunted by an evil spirit, who gives him no rest in seeking to kill me.”

  The men murmured their outrage. Words like “tyrant” and “despot” could be heard above the din.

  Joab yelled, “Quiet down!” They reluctantly did so.

  David announced, “I care not what you think of the king. Be he benevolent, or be he tyrant, he is still Yahweh’s anointed. And if we were to rise up in revolt and fight against him, we would be fighting against Yahweh!”

  The men could not contain their anger. A grumbling through their ranks proved that many of them thought fighting the king was fighting for Yahweh.

  Joab meant to quiet them again, maybe even slug a few to the ground. But David gestured to him to let them vent. When they had died down, he continued.

  “Men, I understand your anger with the unrighteousness of King Saul’s government. But if we do not respect the office of authority that Yahweh himself has established, then what hope have we of retaining the respect and obedience of our opponents when we are in authority? Kingdoms in revolution merely replace one form of tyranny with another. And once we have established violent overthrow as the means of justice, then we will no longer have justice, but only a thousand generations of endless violent overthrow: Rahab, chaos. If you follow me, you must be men of law not lawlessness. If you consider me Yahweh’s anointed and support my claim to the throne of Israel, then you will obey me, and you will not attack King Saul. If anyone violates this command, I will kill him myself. If you cannot abide my commands, leave now, for I have no time for rebels against Yahweh’s authority.”

  This time there was no murmuring, but rather a penetrating silence. The men listened and counted the cost of joining David’s band of followers. Could he do it? Could he create a loyal army of honorable warriors out of a band of discontented misfits, riff raff, and rabble rousers? Could he build a kingdom on redeemed outlaws? Only Yahweh knew. Only Yahweh could perform such miracles.

  A warrior stepped out of the crowd with his hands on two sword hilts and asked, “My lord, will we be allowed to continue killing Philistines?”

  “Of course you will,” said David. “That duty remains unchanged.”

  “Then you retain the swords of Sibbecai the Hushathite in loyalty!” He drew his two swords and thrust them into the sky, proclaiming, “A sword for the Lord and for David!”

  The other warriors followed suit, lifting their weapons and shouting, “A sword for the Lord and for David!”

  David smiled. He knew this Sibbecai was adept with his double swords. He only hoped he had many more such skilled fighters in their midst. He was desperately going to need them.

  “David!” The voice came from a lookout outside the cave. “A refugee is here. A priest from Nob!”

  David ran out to meet him. The men followed to see what would cause him such concern.

  When David stepped outside, he saw Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech the high priest. He fell at David’s feet, bloodied, dirty and exhausted. David waved at those around him. “Back away.” David pulled Abiathar over to the bushes by the perimeter of the cave.

  The young priest tried to catch his breath. He had been running the whole way from Nob.

  David yelled, “Get me a water skin!”

  Joab complied. David let Abiathar drink deeply from the skin. He was dehydrated and on the verge of passing out.

  Joab and Abishai had stepped close enough to hear their words, but kept the others back out of earshot.

  David said, “You are Ahimelech’s son. I remember you.”

  Abiathar could not contain himself. He broke down weeping. “They are dead. They are all dead. He killed them. I alone escaped.”

  David heard a rustling in the bushes nearby, away from the others. He thought it was the wind, so he ignored it.

  He did not see the large eyes staring out at him from the foliage.

  David held Abiathar firmly. “Who is dead?” he demanded.

  “My father and all the priests of Nob. He killed them all. And the women and children.”

  “Who? Who killed them?”

  “King Saul.”

  David’s face dropped. He immediately knew that it had to be Doeg the Edomite herdsman of Saul who betrayed him. David’s hair bristled at the back of his neck. He felt as if he was being watched. But his mind was in turmoil over his deadly tactical error. He should have trusted his instincts and detained Doeg, but he let it go. Now the entire town of Nob was dead fo
r helping David. Horror swept over him. How much more evil will follow him? Why was Yahweh allowing this to happen?

  Abiathar made it worse. “But that is not all. Before we were attacked, I heard that Ramah was also attacked by two giant Rephaim. They slaughtered the entire school of prophets.”

  David went flush with shock. “And Samuel?”

  “No,” said Abiathar. “He was in the desert at the time. He is safe. But they skinned alive the students. The killers were servants of Asherah looking for you.”

  David was not the only one overwhelmed by the shock of the revelation. Joab and Abishai looked at each other with fright. There was only one way a servant of Asherah could have known that David had been to Ramah.

  They immediately melted away from David and went to their horses, giving command to the next of rank.

  Abiathar opened a sack he had been carrying, and pulled out the holy ephod from the sanctuary. It was the one that David had asked for. He offered it to him. “You wanted to know the will of the Lord for all your decisions.”

  “Yes,” agreed David.

  “Well, by divine right, I am now high priest. I will inquire of Yahweh for you – wherever you go.”

  David smiled tearfully and grasped Abiathar’s shoulders with great joy. He said simply, “Hallelujah.” Yahweh had answered his prayer. He had taken an evil atrocity of mass murder and turned it around for his own holy purposes. The Chosen Seed would have direct guidance from Yahweh himself.

  David stood up. “I will not touch the king. But I will do to those soldiers what they did to the priests of Yahweh, so help me, God.”

  He heard the wind bristle through the leaves again. Then he realized there was no breeze. It was a dead calm evening.

  Before he could react, a warrior stepped out of the foliage.

  But it was not a giant.

  It was a paladin dressed in strange desert garb, carrying a scimitar and staff.

  His men were too far away to get to him in time. He would be dead.