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Speaker 1: Let us pray. And the time that David dwelt in

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Speaker 1: the country of the Philistines was a full year and

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Speaker 1: four months First Samuel twenty seven seven. Dear Lord, as

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Speaker 1: a tree finds its strength to endure from its roots,

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Speaker 1: I too will find my strength in the depths of

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Speaker 1: my roots and from the ground I choose to grow

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Speaker 1: in in moments of loneliness. Give me the resolve and

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Speaker 1: the strength to remain planted in the place You've called

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Speaker 1: me to. I will not abandon my values and morals

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Speaker 1: to partner with others who offer protection and gain at

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Speaker 1: the cost of my character and right to stand with you.

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Speaker 1: I will not become comfortable with compromise, as David and

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Speaker 1: his men did during their season of loneliness in First

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Speaker 1: Samuel twenty eight. Because I am new and transformed. I

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Speaker 1: will instead take on the latter spirit of David and

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Speaker 1: fight for what is mine. I will retake and regain

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Speaker 1: what the enemy has stolen from me. Through your power, God,

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Speaker 1: I will be able to reclaim my land, my position,

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Speaker 1: and all that belongs to me, my family, and my future.

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Speaker 1: I declare that compromise is not an option. In Jesus' name, Amen,

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Speaker 1: Thanks for making prayer a priority in your life to

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Speaker 1: hear the Bible come to life. Stay tuned for the

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Speaker 1: Bible in a Year brought to you by Bible in

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Speaker 1: a Year dot.

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Speaker 2: Com David in zick leg In our last story, we

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Speaker 2: learned about Saul's latest pursuit to take David's life. David

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Speaker 2: once again had the opportunity to end Saul and with

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Speaker 2: him all the fleeing and exile. Yet David's conviction as

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Speaker 2: a man of God stood its crowd.

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Speaker 3: He spared Saul, and Saul once again repented and left

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Speaker 3: David's presence. Now, David dwells in the land of the Philistines,

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Speaker 3: serving under King Akish. David and his men made raids

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Speaker 3: on the enemies of Israel, pretending to make raids for

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Speaker 3: the Philistines. In this story, we learn about David's continued

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Speaker 3: partnership with the enemies of Israel and how small compromises

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Speaker 3: continue to overshadow David and his men, as inspired by

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Speaker 3: the Book of First Samuel.

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Speaker 4: This is Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible

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Speaker 4: in a Year podcast. In our last episode, we saw

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Speaker 4: how David once again had the opportunity to kill Saul,

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Speaker 4: but he chose not to do it. Rather than choose

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Speaker 4: his own way and try to justify his own actions,

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Speaker 4: he obeyed God. He stood firm in his conviction that

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Speaker 4: God would deal with Assaul. But despite Saul's apparent regret

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Speaker 4: for having chased David down again and his promise to

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Speaker 4: leave him alone, David's faith wavered, and he fled into

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Speaker 4: Philistine country, forming an alliance with a foreign key. Today

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Speaker 4: we'll learn how David's loyalty to Israel will be tested

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Speaker 4: and how his decision to settle in enemy territory will

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Speaker 4: bring peril to his people. So let's listen to the

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Speaker 4: scripture today.

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Speaker 3: David proved himself to be a convincing actor, as if

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Speaker 3: in a play, he played the role of a Philistine marauder.

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Speaker 3: David performed his role daily in front of Akish and

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Speaker 3: the other Philistines. He made raids on neighboring villages, ate

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Speaker 3: and drank as a Philistine, and spoke in their native tongue. However,

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Speaker 3: the lines between fiction and reality slowly began to blur

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Speaker 3: for David. His allegiance to Israel was muddled by his

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Speaker 3: Philistine company. His mind fell into a fog, and his

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Speaker 3: sense of right and wrong began to blend together. Now

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Speaker 3: David found himself among the Philistine camp, where they were

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Speaker 3: marching up against Israel. David, the chosen protector and rightful

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Speaker 3: king to the throne of the Hebrews, was preparing to

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Speaker 3: slaughter Israel. The Philistines began their march and gathered their

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Speaker 3: forces at the peak of Aphek. The Israelites were camped

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Speaker 3: by a spring below. The lords of the Philistines were

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Speaker 3: making their rounds and saw David and his men preparing

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Speaker 3: for battle. What are these Hebrews doing here, the commanders

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Speaker 3: asked Akish. Aikish responded, this is David, who has been

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Speaker 3: under my service for years now. I have found no

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Speaker 3: disloyalty in him. Yet David's eyes looked away. David had

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Speaker 3: given the visage of loyalty to Aikish, but had never

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Speaker 3: actually harmed any Israelites. However, he had not been faithful

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Speaker 3: to Israel either. When his soldiers were men without a country,

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Speaker 3: one of the Philistine commanders approached David and looked him

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Speaker 3: in the eyes. He knew what David had forgotten. David

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Speaker 3: was a Hebrew and their champion. Send the man back

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Speaker 3: with his soldiers. He may be separated from Saul now,

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Speaker 3: but what better way to reconcile with him than to

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Speaker 3: kill us in battle? Don't you remember the song Saul

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Speaker 3: has killed his thousands, but David has killed his ten thousands.

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Speaker 3: Aikish pulled David aside and embraced him. Aikish looked at

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Speaker 3: David and said, as the lord lives, you have been

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Speaker 3: nothing but faithful to me. I have found nothing wrong

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Speaker 3: with you. However, the lords do not approve, and I

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Speaker 3: cannot dispute them. Go and be free. David's heart turned.

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Speaker 3: David was like a child who was rejected by his father.

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Speaker 3: He craved the affirmation from Saul, yet found it in

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Speaker 3: the enemy Aikishavid did not want to hurt the Israelites,

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Speaker 3: but he also did not want to leave Akish's side.

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Speaker 3: What have I done to earn their distrust? David asked.

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Speaker 3: Aikish hugged David and sent him back to the land

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Speaker 3: of the Philistines. That day, David was spared from committing

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Speaker 3: the sin of slaughtering his people. God, in his mercy,

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Speaker 3: kept David from waving his sword against his brothers. So

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Speaker 3: David and his men left back to Zickleg. Still men

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Speaker 3: without a true alliance or country. David and his men

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Speaker 3: returned after a three day journey. As they were approaching

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Speaker 3: the city, they could see smoke rising into the skies.

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Speaker 3: David's eyes widened and the men ran fast into the

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Speaker 3: city of Zickleg. Homes were reduced to ash and smoke

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Speaker 3: emanated from farms. The Amalekites rode in the night and

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Speaker 3: raided the city while the men were away at war

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Speaker 3: against Israel. David and his men ran frantically through the city,

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Speaker 3: shouting for their wives and children, yet they could hear

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Speaker 3: no response. David burst through the doors of his home

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Speaker 3: to find nothing but broken and burnt furniture. Every man's

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Speaker 3: wife and child had been taken by the Amalekites. David's

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Speaker 3: men writhed in tears over their captured wives. They raised

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Speaker 3: their fists at God. They cursed David, and they wept

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Speaker 3: on the floor among the ash and wreckage. While his

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Speaker 3: men yelled and wept in pain, David sat there silently.

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Speaker 3: David stared off into the distance, praying silently. The other

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Speaker 3: men became overwhelmed with grief, but not David. David sat there,

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Speaker 3: remembering his time as a shepherd in Bethlehem. He was

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Speaker 3: reminded of when lions and wolves would come after his

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Speaker 3: sheep and steal them away. David would run after them

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Speaker 3: and slaughter the wild beasts to save his sheep. This

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Speaker 3: would be no different. David rose from his feet to

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Speaker 3: go meet with the Lord. They had some catching up

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Speaker 3: to do. Knelt before God under the stars. He spoke

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Speaker 3: to God as he used to while tending his sheep.

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Speaker 3: David breathed in the cool air and exhaled praises to

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Speaker 3: his Lord. He considered his family who had been taken,

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Speaker 3: and the families of his men. Lord David said, shall

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Speaker 3: I pursue them? Will I overtake them? If I go?

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Speaker 3: God responded to David quietly and firmly, Yes, David, I

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Speaker 3: have already given them into your hands. David stood to

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Speaker 3: his feet, picked up his spear, and marched intently back

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Speaker 3: to his men. The sun rose that morning in a

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Speaker 3: dark red covered the new sky. David, in six hundred

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Speaker 3: of his men ran without stopping, intent on reaching the

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Speaker 3: Amalekites before they could return home. They reached the Brook

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Speaker 3: of Bissor, The waters raged, and many of the men

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Speaker 3: were too exhausted to cross. Discouraged and weary. Two hundred

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Speaker 3: of the men refused to follow David any longer and

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Speaker 3: remained on the shore of the brook. David and the

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Speaker 3: rest of his men crossed the brook. A fire was

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Speaker 3: burning in their soul to save their families, but they

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Speaker 3: had gone three days without food and almost no water.

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Speaker 3: Dragging their feet, they marched further and further. Finally, an

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Speaker 3: Egyptian in the open country gave the men bread, water,

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Speaker 3: fruits and cakes to eat. They were filled and strengthened.

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Speaker 3: At the perfect time. David put his hand on the

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Speaker 3: Egyptian's shoulder and said, thank you, friend. Where do you

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Speaker 3: come from? The boy smiled and said, I served the Amalekites,

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Speaker 3: but was abandoned by them when I became sick. After

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Speaker 3: we raided the Israelites. David's eyes lit up, he smiled

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Speaker 3: to his cheeks and let out a bright laugh.

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Speaker 4: He grabbed the.

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Speaker 3: Boy and asked intently, could you take us to your

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Speaker 3: old band. The boy nodded, and David and his men

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Speaker 3: ran forward faster and with more vigor. Less than a

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Speaker 3: day had passed, and the Egyptian led David and a

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Speaker 3: couple of his men to a cliff overlooking the Amalekite camp.

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Speaker 3: They peeked their heads over the rocks and looked down

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Speaker 3: at the valley. The men were spread out far across

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Speaker 3: a valley. Torches illuminated their dancing, drinking, and feasting. David

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Speaker 3: could spot his wife captive below, along with the wives

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Speaker 3: and children of his men. While the Amalekites were still drinking, dancing,

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Speaker 3: and enjoying the spoils of their raid, they heard the

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Speaker 3: horns of David echoing through the valley. Before any man

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Speaker 3: could realize what was happening, David and his army descended

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Speaker 3: upon the camp with might. They swung their swords with

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Speaker 3: the strength of fathers and husbands, protecting their families. David

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Speaker 3: marched through the camp, striking down every Amalekite soldier in

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Speaker 3: his sight. Some tried to fight, with no success. David

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Speaker 3: and his men were far too angry and skilled for

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Speaker 3: them to stand a chance. Others fled on camels, but

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Speaker 3: all the women and children were saved. The sun began

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Speaker 3: to rise, and David gathered the families, the stolen goods,

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Speaker 3: and all the live stock. David and the families made

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Speaker 3: their way back home. There to greet them were the

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Speaker 3: two hundred men who refused to continue. They came out

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Speaker 3: elated to see their families. Everyone cheered except the men

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Speaker 3: who had fought. They looked at the two hundred men

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Speaker 3: with disgust and said to David, these worthless men did

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Speaker 3: not go with us. They should not get any of

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Speaker 3: the spoil. They should take their families we have saved

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Speaker 3: and leave. David calmed his men down and had them

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Speaker 3: keep quiet. He drew a deep breath and looked at

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Speaker 3: both groups of men. My brothers, this is given to

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Speaker 3: us by the Lord. He is the one who preserved us.

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Speaker 3: David said, as God has shared his goodness with us,

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Speaker 3: so we shall share. Those who battle and those who

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Speaker 3: support from Afar are equally in need of food and shelter.

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Speaker 3: David's words surprised the people, but they were all pleased

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Speaker 3: with his decree. David, still a young man, was just

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Speaker 3: now learning what it truly means to lead like a king.

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Speaker 3: They divided the spoils amongst one another and sent the

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Speaker 3: leftovers back home to Judah. David's heart to protect Israel

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Speaker 3: was beginning to resurface.

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Speaker 4: Today's story begins with David living a lie he has

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Speaker 4: very cleverly convinced Akish of his loyalty to the Philistines,

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Speaker 4: and the king trusts David as one of his own. Still,

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Speaker 4: David had not yet done actual harm to any of

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Speaker 4: his own people, the Israelites. Instead, he was attacking neighboring towns,

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Speaker 4: enemies of Israel, and telling Akish that he was raiding

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Speaker 4: Israeli villages. But now, as the Philistines gather in numbers

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Speaker 4: to attack Israel, David isn't on a solo mission, and

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Speaker 4: he can't hide behind his deception. Were it not for

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Speaker 4: the distrust of Philistine commanders, David might have been compelled

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Speaker 4: to sin against his own people and attack them. The

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Speaker 4: commanders recognize David as a Hebrew, and not just any Hebrew.

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Speaker 4: This is the great shepherd warrior, David, the anointed King,

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Speaker 4: the one who was at one time one of Saul's

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Speaker 4: greatest soldiers. And though Aichis vouches for David, affirming that

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Speaker 4: he is a loyal Philictine, the commanders aren't believing it,

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Speaker 4: and so Achus tells David that while he trust him

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Speaker 4: with his life, the Philistine army commanders have rejected him.

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Speaker 4: He and his men must return to his home in

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Speaker 4: Ziklak David's response is interesting. He appeals to the king

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Speaker 4: to let him stay and serve him in a battle.

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Speaker 4: Perhaps he was finally getting the acceptance he wanted among

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Speaker 4: the Philistines, something that had eluded him with Saul. Or

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Speaker 4: perhaps he was forgetting his calling from God, his anointing

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Speaker 4: to be God's men the king of Israel. Whatever the reason,

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Speaker 4: it appears David was confused that his loyalties were divided,

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Speaker 4: and he may have been willing to turn over his

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Speaker 4: own people to the enemy. But God, in his grace,

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Speaker 4: did not allow David to participate in this battle. He

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Speaker 4: closed the door to protect the man that he had

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Speaker 4: chosen to serve him. How often do we fail to

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Speaker 4: recognize when God has protected us from ourselves, from our sins,

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Speaker 4: leading us out of temptation, and delivering us from evil,

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Speaker 4: as in the case of David, and for you and me,

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Speaker 4: this is all because of God's grace. That grace we

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Speaker 4: know is now found in the Lord Jesus Christ, who

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Speaker 4: went to a cross and died and rose again so

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Speaker 4: that we could receive the gift of eternal life. Not

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Speaker 4: by works of righteousness that we have done, but according

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Speaker 4: to his mercy He has saved us. This is the

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Speaker 4: grace of God. So David returns home with his men,

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Speaker 4: only to find the Amalikites had attacked while they were gone.

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Speaker 4: This is a terrible scene. These enemies of Israel had

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Speaker 4: burned the entire town down, but killing nobody. Instead, they

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Speaker 4: had taken the wives and the children of the men

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Speaker 4: of David captive. Everyone is heartbroken, They are weeping, and

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Speaker 4: the people. The army even turned their anger towards David,

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Speaker 4: wanting to stone him. But the Bible says that David

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Speaker 4: encouraged himself in the Lord. David found his strength in

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Speaker 4: the Lord and sought counsel. He went to the Lord

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Speaker 4: and asked him if he should pursue the Amalekites and

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Speaker 4: take what had been lost. So David and his men

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Speaker 4: went after the Amalekites. It was a long and arduous journey,

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Speaker 4: and they suffered from hunger and exhaustion. Two hundred men

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Speaker 4: actually turned back, unwilling or unable to continue. But David

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Speaker 4: found that Egyptian boy who had once served the Amalekites.

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Speaker 4: He gave them food and water, strengthening them for battle,

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Speaker 4: and led them to the enemy. And just as God

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Speaker 4: had promised, David was victorious. They returned home with their

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Speaker 4: wives and children, and the spoils of war, which David

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Speaker 4: insisted be shared with all, even those who had not

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Speaker 4: gone into battle. Then he sent some of the spoils

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Speaker 4: to Judah. His heart turned again to his people that

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Speaker 4: he was called to lead. Lord, we thank you for

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Speaker 4: this powerful story and how it reminds us that you

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Speaker 4: do protect us from evil and that you often shield

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Speaker 4: us from making terrible and sinful disobedient decisions. Thank you

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Speaker 4: for your grace, Thank you for your salvation in Jesus Christ.

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Speaker 4: And may we always be willing to fight the good

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Speaker 4: fight of faith and win great victories for you in Jesus' name. Amen.

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Speaker 4: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.

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Speaker 4: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download Theprey dot com

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Speaker 4: app and make prayer and Bible study a priority in

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Speaker 4: your life. If you enjoyed this podcast, share it with

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Speaker 4: someone you love or know. And by sharing this podcast,

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Speaker 4: we can get the word of God to the world.

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Speaker 4: And if you want more resources on how to tap

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Speaker 4: into God's power for Christian living, be sure to visit

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Speaker 4: Jack Graham dot org. God bless you