And the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, and all the Philistines went up to seek David; and David heard [of it], and went down to the stronghold.
David is now king over all Israel. He has taken the stronghold of Zion for his city. The moment that news travels, the Philistines move. Two questions follow. Why does the anointing itself trigger the attack? And what does the new king do first?
David's crowning is what stirs them. One writer also finds a lasting warning in who this enemy is.
As soon as Israel anointed him king, the hostility of the Philistines woke up again. These were their closest neighbours, and their most constant enemies. Their name means "wallow." They picture people who only "wallow" in Christianity. Such people have the forms and language of the Christian "religion," but not the living, personal knowledge of the Lord Jesus. For this reason images and idols are prominent among them... David had to stay on guard against Philistine attacks. In the same way, religion that is only outward form calls for our constant watchfulness.
Notice who the Philistines are hunting. Not a nation, not an army — David. One writer sees a greater conflict foreshadowed here.
They would soon learn who they were fighting. It was not a Saul, a king the Lord had disowned, but a David, a king the Lord had specially chosen. And this chosen man was only the picture and representative of One infinitely greater. As His representative, David had to win, whatever his failure as a believer, or he would not be a true picture of Him... It is against David; Israel does not seem to count for anything, their strength is in him. The Philistines make war on the anointed king. So when the true David comes to take the kingdom, the world's power will line up against Him.
Not every war in Israel's story carried the same meaning. What settles the meaning here is who sits on the throne.
In David's day this is not judgment, and it is not discipline either. It makes the enemy feel and own the power of the man God has placed on the throne. For David is God's king, and Jerusalem is God's city, and the ark of God is about to come there. All of it stands in the sunshine of God's favour.
It is easy to read this as retreat. One writer says the word "down" rules that out. The move is toward the enemy, not away. Older translations read "the hold" where the ESV has "the stronghold".
When David heard that the Philistines were advancing, he "went down to the hold." Clearly he was going toward the Philistines. He was not staying in Jerusalem, which was also called "the hold," but going there was not going "down." ... But David sought the face of the Lord for guidance.
Commentators differ on this stronghold. Another writer takes it as the place God had chosen for Himself.
The Philistines go up against David (vv. 17-21); the king learns of it and goes down to the stronghold. His retreat was the place where God desired to dwell... Here we see him depending on God as was his habit.
David had beaten the Philistines before. Now he had a throne and an army as well. He asked God anyway.
He did not say: Now I have an army. If I beat the Philistines in the days of my weakness, how much more now that I am in power! Not so. He inquired of the Lord. It takes more faith to depend on God in a day of prosperity than in a day of trouble. That is where we are often put to the test. Souls that stand well under trial often fall badly after the Lord has greatly blessed them. This does not prove that the blessing was not of God; it does prove that we may fail to walk in dependence on God. But as yet David stood, and stood because he was dependent.
- Anointing — the Philistines stir only when they hear David is king. The enemy moves once God has set His man in place.
- Aim — they seek David, not Israel. The nation's strength is in him. One day the world will turn the same hostility on the true King he pictures.
- Purpose — this war is not judgment or chastening on Israel. It makes the enemy feel the power of the man God has enthroned.
- Position — going "down to the stronghold" is not flight. David moves toward the Philistines, and he stands where God chose to dwell.
- Dependence — the throne does not make him self-reliant. Past victories and new resources are no substitute for asking God. It takes more faith to depend on God when blessed than when hunted.
And the Philistines came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.
David has just been crowned king over all Israel. At once the Philistines march up and spread out in the valley below. Two questions follow: why does the attack come now, and what should the new king do about it?
One writer links the attack straight to the anointing, and sees in this old enemy a picture of something the believer still faces:
As soon as he was anointed king over Israel, the hatred of the Philistines flared up again. They were Israel's closest neighbours, and their most constant enemies. Their name means "wallow." They picture people who only "wallow" in Christianity. Such people have the forms and the language of the Christian "religion," but not a living, personal knowledge of the Lord Jesus. That is why images and idols stand out among them... David had to stay on guard against Philistine attacks all the time. In the same way, religion that is only form calls for our constant watchfulness and spiritual strength to stand against this persistent enemy of our Lord.
Notice who the Philistines are hunting. They do not march against the nation, but go looking for one man — and that points ahead to a greater King:
They would soon learn that they were not fighting a Saul, a king the Lord had rejected, but a David, a king specially chosen by Him... "When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David." The war is aimed at David. Israel does not seem to count for anything; their strength is in him. The Philistines make war on the anointed king. So when the true David comes to take the kingdom, the world's power will line up against Him.
The verse notes how the Philistines took the field. Older translations say they "spread themselves." One writer reads that detail, then follows what David does next:
It is an interesting expression, that the Philistines "spread themselves" in the valley of Rephaim. They like at least a show of taking possession. But David sought the Lord's face for guidance. Should he go and meet the Philistines? Would God give him the victory over them? God's answer is yes... Waiting in dependence on God will always bring an answer from God, and that answer gives confidence to act.
Both Philistine attacks in this chapter happen on this same ground. One writer draws out what the place itself adds:
In each case they "spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim" — named after the giants they are so often linked with, who give them a monstrous, satanic character... David meets them by clinging to God and to His word, and the Lord breaks forth upon them like a bursting flood. That is truly how we must meet the power of error.
Not every war in Israel's history meant the same thing. One writer marks off what this one was for:
Now, in the days of David, it is neither judgment nor correction. It is a matter of making the enemy feel and admit the power of the man God has placed on the throne. For David is God's king, and Jerusalem is God's city. The ark of God is about to be put there, and everything stands in the sunshine of God's favour.
David had beaten the Philistines before, in his weak days. Now he has a throne and an army. One writer shows where the harder test lies:
But David stays in the same simple dependence that brought him to the throne. He asked God. He did not say, "Now I have an army. If I beat the Philistines in the days of my weakness, how much more now that I am in power!" Not so... It takes more faith to depend on God in a day of prosperity than in a day of trouble. That is where we are often put to the test. Souls that stand well under trial often fall badly after the Lord has blessed them greatly.
- Crowned, then attacked. The Philistines only stir after David is anointed king over all Israel. The throne itself draws the attack.
- Aimed at the king. They hunt one man, not the nation. In the same way, the world's power will line up against the true King when He comes to take the kingdom.
- A show on giants' ground. Spreading out over the valley is a show of taking possession. The valley's name links the enemy with the giants and gives it a monstrous look. David answers by clinging to God and His word.
- Not judgment, but proof. This war is not God correcting His people. It makes the enemy feel the power of the king God has placed on the throne.
- Power is the harder test. David asks God in his strong days as he did in his weak ones. Depending on God in a day of blessing takes more faith than depending on Him in a day of trouble.
And David inquired of Jehovah, saying, Shall I go up against the Philistines? wilt thou give them into my hand? And Jehovah said to David, Go up; for I will certainly give the Philistines into thy hand.
David is now king over all Israel, and Jerusalem is his. The moment his throne is secure, the Philistines come out to find him. His response is not to count his soldiers but to put two questions to the LORD — one about going, one about winning.
Commentators link the timing of their attack to the anointing of the new king. They also see a pattern here that reaches far beyond David:
The Philistines had overcome Saul. They were no doubt astonished at how fast the kingdom recovered after the crushing defeat on the mountains of Gilboa. They were soon to learn who they were fighting. It was not a Saul, a king disowned by the LORD, but a David, a king specially chosen by Him. And this chosen man was only a picture and representative of One infinitely higher... The Philistines make war on the anointed king. So when the true David comes to take the kingdom, the world's power will line up against Him.
David now had a capital, an army and a crown. Asking is exactly what a successful man is least likely to do:
David stays in the simplicity that brought him to the throne. He inquired of God. He did not say, Now I have an army; if I conquered the Philistines in the days of my weakness, how much more now that I am in power! Not so. He inquired of the LORD. It takes more faith to depend on God in the day of prosperity than in the day of adversity. That is where we are often tested. Souls that stand well under trial often fall badly after the Lord has richly blessed them.
David asks about the action and about the outcome, and God answers both:
David sought the face of the Lord for guidance. Should he go and meet the Philistines? Would God give him the victory over them? The answer from God is positive. He is to go with full confidence that God would deliver the enemy into his hand. Waiting in dependence on God will always bring an answer from God that gives confidence in acting on it.
Another writer draws out how plainly David admits he is at a loss:
Here we see him depending on God as was his habit. Is it a question of going up against the enemy? David does not know what to do: God alone knows, and David asks Him for direction, saying in effect: "What shall I do?"
The Philistines came back to the same valley with the same tactics. David asked again, and God gave a different answer:
He depends entirely on the Lord's direction. This time the Lord gives him a completely different answer: he is not to go up. The circumstances of this attack were the same as before. Why then did God show David a completely different way of fighting? The reason for this change is that God wanted to bring together in His servant's heart the two things David had tended to keep apart. David needed not only to depend upon God but also to obey His word, whether or not he understood it.
The same events appear in 1 Chronicles. An earlier decision had gone wrong there, when David consulted the people instead of the LORD. One writer sets the two side by side:
The Philistines had spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. Did David gather all his army and prepare at once for battle? No, he consulted God... Now it is no longer the people that David consults, it is the Lord, and so the outcome is entirely different. In 1 Chronicles 13:11 the breach is made among David's own people; but here it is made among his enemies, for God acts for him.
One writer takes this victory as a lesson for facing false religion:
David, in meeting them, clings to God and to His word, and the LORD breaks out upon them like a burst of water. That really is the way the power of error is to be met. When the heavens open and pour down their spiritual floods, the ranks of superstition and formalism are defeated. The blocked channels are cleared, and the barriers put up by religious systems are swept away.
- Ask. The Philistines attacked because David was the anointed king. His first move was a question, not a plan. The same power will one day line up against the greater King.
- Ask when strong. It takes more faith to depend on God in the day of success than in the day of trouble. David asked with an army already at his back.
- Ask again. The second attack looked the same, but God gave the opposite command. He wanted David to depend on Him and to obey Him.
- Ask God, not people. When David consulted the people, the breach fell on his own. When he consulted the Lord, it fell on his enemies.
- Then act. Waiting on God brings an answer you can act on with confidence. The victory is His breaking through, not David's strength.
And David came to Baal-perazim, and David smote them there; and he said, Jehovah has broken in upon mine enemies before me, as the breaking forth of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baal-perazim.
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
And they left their images there, and David and his men took them away.
David had just become king when Israel's old enemy, the Philistines, attacked — and they fled so fast they left their gods on the field. What happens to captured idols, and why does Scripture bother to record it?
The images did not end up there by accident. The Philistines carried them in for help, and got none.
The Philistines had brought their images with them even into battle. But the images were no help, and in their haste to retreat they left them behind. David and his men did not take them, or the materials they were made of. They burned them instead.
Years before, the Philistines had carried off the ark of God as a trophy. Now the trophies travel the other way — and the difference between the two captures is the whole point.
David names the place Baal-perazim, the "place of breaches," or "burstings forth." He and his men take away the images of the Philistines. So David pays them back for the capture of the ark in Samuel's day. But these idols cannot speak. Anyone may treat them as the useless junk they are, and they can take no revenge.
What David did to the Philistine gods was not his own private revenge. The law had already required it.
So vengeance was taken, according to Israel's God, for the insult done to the ark of God. If they had carried off the ark, they never burned it. Instead, it burned them, and forced them to work out how to send it back to the God of Israel — to His people. But in this case they left their gods, and David burned them. That was what the law of God required, as we find in Deuteronomy.
The ESV says David and his men "carried them away." Some older translations read "burned them." The parallel account in 1 Chronicles tells us what happened to the idols next.
David goes up. The enemy tries to set a barrier in his way, and it breaks. David and his army rush through like a flood, swallowing up the Philistines and their idols. In 1 Chronicles 14:12 we see what the king did to these idols: "And they left their gods there; and David commanded, and they were burned with fire." In just this way the idols of the nations will be destroyed in the end times (Isaiah 2:18).
David asked the Lord twice before he acted, and obeyed both answers. The burning that followed points forward to something larger.
Twice David enquired of the Lord concerning the Philistines. Once he is told to go up, and the Lord gave him the victory, and he burned the images of the Philistines. It is another picture of how the coming King will make an end of idolatry. Again he asked the Lord and was told not to go up. Then the Lord smote the Philistines Himself. In all this David was obedient.
David and his men took no profit from the wreckage. But an idol could be covered in gold and silver. The law of Deuteronomy had already answered the wish to keep it.
"What!" the heart might say, "are we to destroy the gold and silver that adorn these images? Might not that be put to some good use? Is it not a pity to destroy what is so valuable in itself? It is all right to burn the images, but why not spare the gold and silver?"
The answer leaves nothing. Keeping a scrap is more than an insult to God — it is a trap for the person who keeps it.
Fatal delusion! "You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the LORD your God." All must be given up, all destroyed. To hold on to a scrap of the accursed thing is to fall into the devil's trap. It ties us to something God calls an abomination, no matter how much men value it.
- Helpless. The Philistines carried their images into the fight. The images did nothing. Their owners fled and left them there.
- Harmless. The ark struck its captors until they sent it home. These gods were useless junk and could not strike back.
- Handled. David did not keep them as trophies. Deuteronomy told Israel to burn such images, and the parallel account says fire is what they got.
- Held nothing back. Israel could not keep even the silver or gold on them. A spared fragment becomes a snare to the one who keeps it.
- Heralding. The fire at Baal-perazim previews a greater King who will put an end to idolatry altogether.
And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.
David had already beaten this same army in this same valley and watched them run. Now they are back, and the question is whether yesterday's method will win today's battle.
The defeat did not cure them. The same enemy came back to the same ground with the same show of strength.
However, religious zeal does not easily die out of man's heart. The Philistines later returned to the same location and with the same display of strength (v.22). It is good to observe that David did not rely on his past experience in meeting this fresh attack. In every case we must depend on the Lord Himself.
Two things could have made David act without asking. He had beaten these men once. He also had God's word from the first battle, still ringing in his ears. He refused both shortcuts.
Even then David does not act on the fact that he had beaten them before. Nor does he settle this new need with the answer God had given him for their earlier attack. He asks again, and the Lord trains his obedience with a completely new command.
Last time the word was "Go up." This time it was "You shall not go up." Why the reversal?
That might have been an accident. So "David again inquired of God, and God said to him, 'You shall not go up after them.'" How beautiful! We learn that God would have us always wait on Him. The answer God gives at one time may be nothing like the answer He gives at another.
Everything about the second attack matched the first. So why did God give a completely new battle plan? One writer finds the reason in what David still had to learn.
The enemy renews his attack: the conditions are the same, the people are the same, the methods are the same, the place is the same. David might have said to himself: Since the situation is identical I will do as I did at the first attack. No way! He depends entirely on the Lord's direction… God made this change for a reason. He wanted to join in His servant's heart the two things David had more or less tended to keep apart, as the earlier events showed. David needed not only to depend upon God but also to obey His word, whether or not he understood it.
The same writer names what the new orders guarded David against.
David might have taken some credit for this second victory himself, and he might have grown proud. God does not want this. His servant must understand that he is accountable to obey, and so God gives him signs to watch for. The marching army, whose sound is heard in the tops of the mulberry trees, is the Lord Himself and His army. The main part was the Lord's; David remains humble.
What David refused to do is exactly what most of us do when trouble repeats itself. We reach for the file marked "last time."
We have a strong tendency to make a fixed pattern of our own past practice. When some fresh evil comes in, we insist on what we did before, or on what is usually done. We do not ask God again, and we do not search His word with the actual case in front of us and our own responsibility in view. We need the spirit of dependence to walk rightly with God. The written word of God holds what will meet every claim. But each case should be a fresh occasion for consulting that word in the presence of Him who gave it. People like to be consistent with themselves, and to hold on to their old opinions and practices.
David's new orders made him a follower, not a leader. One writer even asks what the enemy made of the signal.
On one occasion David is told to turn away from his Philistine enemy. He is not to move until he hears the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees. Then he would know that God had gone out ahead of him (1 Chron. 14:15). Did the Philistines hear that sound? If they did, they could have no true understanding of its cause. No doubt it would stir up superstitious fears. Even so, it would prove to them that a mightier sword than David's was against them. David's fame spread far and wide, and the Lord brought the fear of him upon all nations.
- Return. The beaten enemy comes back to the same valley with the same strength; one defeat does not end the opposition.
- Refusal. David will not act on a past victory or on a past word from God, because God gave yesterday's answer for yesterday's battle.
- Renewal. He asks again, and God's reply this time is the opposite of last time — proof that He wants us always waiting on Him.
- Reason. The new orders joined dependence to obedience, and left David no room to credit the win to his own skill.
- Result. The victory belonged to the One who went out ahead of him. David moved only when he heard Him go, and the fame of it reached every nation.
And David inquired of Jehovah; and he said, Thou shalt not go up; turn round behind them and come upon them opposite the mulberry-trees.
The Philistines have come up against David twice in the same valley, using the same tactics. The second time, God's answer is the opposite of the first. Why would God refuse a method He had just blessed? And what does that ask of anyone who wants His guidance? (Where the commentators say "mulberry trees," the ESV reads "balsam trees.")
The circumstances repeat exactly, and that is the trap. A man who has just won might assume the winning move still works. David asks God instead.
It is good to observe that David did not rely on his past experience in meeting this fresh attack. The same circumstances do not always call for the same method of meeting them. In every case we must depend on the Lord Himself. David again inquired of Him, and received different instruction. This time they are not to attack from the front as before. They are to circle around behind the enemy, near a group of baca trees.
Dependence was not the whole lesson. The new order tests whether David will obey an instruction he cannot explain.
God made this change for a reason. He wanted to join in His servant's heart the two things David had more or less kept apart, as we saw in the earlier events. David needed not only to depend upon God but also to obey His word, whether or not he understood it. To win a new victory he had to obey, to carry out the order that God gave.
The rear position was assigned, not chosen. It leaves the main work to God and keeps David waiting for a signal he cannot make himself.
David might have taken some credit for this second victory and become proud, but God does not want that. His servant must understand that he is responsible to obey, and so God gives him signs to watch for. The marching army heard in the tops of the mulberry trees is the Lord Himself and His army. When David heard this sound he could move out from the post God had given him, for acting on God's word he would take the enemy from behind. Before him were the mulberry trees. He knew the Lord would attack the enemy head on, while he, David, would rush on them from behind. So their defeat would be complete. The main part was the Lord's; David remains humble.
Nobody knows for sure which tree the Hebrew word names. What matters is the secret sign God attached to it.
The word baka is thought to come from a root meaning 'weeping,' and to refer to some tree that gives off a sweet-smelling gum; but no one knows which tree it means. David was to wait for some secret sign from God in the mulberry trees before attacking the enemy.
The practical lesson commentators draw from the reversal is about how God leads His people at all times, not only in war.
David, then, walks in dependence and in obedience. And there is more: "the Philistines yet again made a raid in the valley." That might have been an accident; "therefore David inquired again of God, and God said to him, 'You shall not go up after them.'" How beautiful! We learn that God wants us always to wait on Him, because His answer at one time may not be His answer at another.
Success, not hardship, is the harder setting in which to keep depending on God.
It takes more faith to depend on God in the day of prosperity than in the day of adversity. That is where we are often put to the test. People who stand firm under trial often fall badly after the Lord has richly blessed them. This does not prove that the blessing was not of God; it does prove that we may fail to walk in dependence on God. But as yet David stood, and stood because dependent.
Commentators also read the scene forward.
The moment is coming when the Church of God will be taken from the earth, in her last stage here. Then the judgment of the Philistines will take place. Then the "sound of marching" will be heard "in the tops of the mulberry trees" once more, and the Lord will go out to battle with His foes.
- Ask again. The same situation does not call for the same move. David asked God a second time instead of repeating what had just worked.
- Obey, then understand. God changed the order to hold dependence and obedience together. David had to follow it whether or not he understood it.
- Wait for the sign. God gave the signal in the treetops. David only had to hear it and move from the post God assigned him.
- Let God lead. The Lord struck the enemy head on and David came in behind, so no one could credit the victory to David.
- Keep depending when you are winning. Prosperity, not adversity, is where the habit of inquiring most often breaks down.
And it shall be, when thou hearest a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry-trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself; for then will Jehovah have gone forth before thee, to smite the army of the Philistines.
David has just become king over all Israel. Twice the Philistines come up into the valley to break his new kingdom. The second time God gives him a battle plan he could never have guessed: stand behind the trees, listen, and move only when a sound passes overhead. (The ESV's "balsam trees" are the "mulberry trees" of older translations, and the writers below use that older name.)
The Philistines came back to the same valley with the same tactics. David could have repeated what worked before. He did not.
Even now David does not act just because he had beaten them before. He is not content to meet this fresh need with the answer God had given him for their earlier attack. He asks again. The LORD trains his obedience with a completely new command: "You shall not go up; go around to their rear, and come against them opposite the mulberry trees."
What was the sound? Commentators identify it as an army on the move.
The marching army, whose sound is heard in the tops of the mulberry trees, is the Lord Himself and His army. When David heard this sound he could set out from the post assigned to him. By acting on God's word he would take the enemy from behind. In front of him were the mulberry trees. He knew the Lord would attack the enemy head on. He knew that he himself would rush on them from behind. Their defeat would be complete. The main part was the Lord's; David stays humble.
Which tree was it? No one can now say — and the sign was meant to be a hidden one.
The word baka is thought to come from a root meaning "weeping." It seems to refer to some tree that gives off a fragrant gum. Which tree is meant is unknown. David was to wait for some secret sign from God in the mulberry trees before attacking the enemy.
David knew how to depend on God. This order asked something more of him.
The circumstances of this attack were the same as before. Why then did God show David a completely different way of fighting? God wanted to join together in His servant's heart two things David had tended to keep apart. We saw this in the earlier events. David needed not only to depend on God but also to obey His word, whether or not he understood it. To gain a new victory he had to obey, to carry out the order God gave.
God fought these battles Himself, and even the enemy caught something of it.
The Lord God Himself fights their battles and overthrows their enemies, so that Israel has to pursue rather than fight. On one occasion David is to turn away from his Philistine enemy. He is not to move until he heard a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees. Then he would know that God had gone out before him. Did the Philistines hear that sound? If they did, they could have no true understanding of its cause. No doubt it would stir up superstitious fear, but even so it would be proof to them that a mightier sword than David's was against them.
Writers apply this order to the believer's own fight: God moves first, then we move.
It is one thing for me to feel and know that I myself have victory over the world. I can have no rest until I do. It is quite another to know that it is God who sets me on my high places — that He is subduing my enemies for me. Further still, it is when the sound of God is heard that I rouse myself and go out to the fight. Then I know that He has "gone out before me, to strike down the army of the Philistines."
The same sound belongs to a scene still ahead.
The moment is coming when the Church of God will be removed, in her last stage here; then the judgment of the Philistines will take place. Then the "sound of marching" will be heard "in the tops of the mulberry trees" once more. And the Lord will go out to battle with His foes.
- Ask again. Same enemy, same valley, same tactics — but David asked God afresh instead of trusting yesterday's answer. This time God's reply was the opposite of the first.
- Obey blind. Circling behind the trees made no military sense to David. He had to depend on God and carry out a word he did not understand.
- Wait for the sound. The signal was a secret one — even the tree's identity is now unknown — so that no one but David could read the moment.
- God goes first. The marching in the treetops was the Lord and His army striking the enemy head on. David's share was to come in from behind. That left him no room for pride.
- Then move. Our fight starts where God's has already begun. He subdues the enemy; we rouse ourselves at the sound. The same sound will come once more, when the Lord Himself goes out against His foes.
And David did so, as Jehovah had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou comest to Gezer.
David is now king over all Israel, and the Philistines have come up against him twice. The last line of the chapter tells how the second battle ended, and everything rests on one thing: David did exactly what the LORD told him.
The same enemy came back. David could have repeated what had worked before, but he refused two shortcuts: trusting his own record, and reusing an old answer from God.
Even then David does not act just because he had beaten them before. Nor is he satisfied, for this fresh need, with the answer God had given him for their earlier attack. He asks again, and the LORD tests his obedience with a completely new command.
Why change the orders at all? One writer sees God joining two things in David that had drifted apart.
God made this change because He wanted to bring together in His servant's heart the two things David had more or less tended to keep apart, as we have seen in the earlier events. David needed to depend on God, and also to obey His word, whether or not he understood it. To win a new victory he had to obey and carry out the order God gave.
The new order made no military sense. One commentator explains why God gave it anyway.
What did the mulberry trees have to do with the battle? Nothing. But God wanted to be recognised, and this was the further lesson David learned. He obeyed the Lord, and we see the result: the Lord received the glory, and David's reputation spread far and wide. Because David had acknowledged the Lord, the Lord could acknowledge David everywhere.
So what was making the noise in the trees? One writer answers, and shows where David's part fitted in.
The marching army heard in the tops of the mulberry trees is the Lord Himself and His army. When David heard this sound he could move out from his assigned post, for by acting on God's word he would take the enemy from behind. In front of him were the mulberry trees. He knew the Lord would attack the enemy head on, and that he, David, would rush on them from behind. So their defeat would be complete. The main part was the Lord's; David remains humble.
Another writer turns to the enemy's side of the field.
Did the Philistines hear that sound? If they did, they could have no true understanding of what caused it. No doubt it would stir up superstitious fears. Even so, it would prove to them that a mightier sword than David's was against them.
The verse ends with a chase across open country. One commentator draws the lesson first, then gives the distance.
Whatever spiritual meaning these trees have, at least we are to learn this: when we see the evidence of the Lord's leading, we may go forward in confidence. We do not need the details of the victory, only the distance they chased the Philistines while defeating them, from Gibeon to Gazer, about 20 miles.
One writer traces the whole conflict from its start to a greater ending still ahead.
In Judges 13 we find other enemies — not from Canaan — who held Israel in complete bondage for forty years. These people were the Philistines. Israel's dealings with them never ended until David came. When he had taken the stronghold of Zion, the Philistines were finally put down. Then came the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees: the Lord went out before His armies and defeated them (2 Sam. 5). In the same way, the enemy that matches them inside the Church of God, seen as responsible on earth, will never be finally put down until Christ — the true David — comes. Then the victory will be complete.
- Ask again. David refused to treat God's earlier answer as a standing order for a new attack. He asked again, and God gave a completely different command.
- Obey blind. The mulberry trees had nothing to do with the fighting. God gave the order so that He would be recognised, and David obeyed it without understanding it.
- Wait for it. The sound in the treetops meant the LORD's own army was already moving. David's part was to strike from behind a victory God had begun.
- Reap wide. Obedience did not bring a standoff. It brought a rout about twenty miles long, and a name that spread far beyond the battlefield.
- Look ahead. David's victory finally put the Philistines down. In the same way, the enemy that matches them inside the Church will only be put down for good when Christ, the true David, comes.