This is a simplified version of the Bible story found in 1 Samuel 24, written for children to understand. For the original version, please refer to the Bible passage.
Once upon a time, there was a man named Saul who was the king of Israel. But Saul was not always kind to a young man named David, who was a soldier in Saul’s army. In fact, Saul was very jealous of David because David was good at many things, including playing music and fighting battles.
One day, Saul heard that David was hiding in a cave, so he took 3,000 men to go and capture him. When they got there, Saul went into the cave to take a bathroom break, and David and his men were hiding in the back of the cave. David’s men told him that God had given Saul into his hand, and that he should kill him.
But David knew that Saul was still the king of Israel, and that it was not right to kill him. So instead, David snuck up to Saul and cut off a piece of his robe. However, afterwards, David felt guilty for doing this and stopped his men from attacking Saul.
When Saul left the cave, David followed him and called out to him, “My lord the king!” Then David bowed down and said to Saul, “Why do you listen to people who say I want to hurt you? Today, you could see that God had given you to me, but I didn’t kill you because you are the Lord’s chosen one. Look, here is a piece of your robe that I cut off. I didn’t want to hurt you. I trust God to judge between us and deliver me from your hand.”
Saul was surprised that David did not hurt him and said, “You are more righteous than I am because you have treated me with kindness, even though I have treated you badly. I know that God has chosen you to be king, and I hope He will bless you. Promise me that you will not kill my family or destroy my name after I die.” David promised, and Saul went home.
Biblical Lessons
- It’s important to treat others with kindness, even if they treat us badly.
- God is the ultimate judge, and we should trust Him to make things right.
- We should always follow God’s commands, even if it’s hard.