“But Sha’ul sent messengers to David’s house to watch for him and kill him in the morning. Mikhal David’s wife told him, ‘If you don’t save your life tonight, tomorrow you’ll be dead.’ So Mikhal let David down through the window; and he left, fled and escaped.”-1 Samuel 19:11-12
When Saul sent his so-called “messengers” to assassinate David, how did David’s wife Michal know their true intentions?
Did she possess some kind of supernatural woman’s instinct to sniff out danger or something?
Well, let’s use our common sense a bit, and think about this for a second.
Michal was after all the king’s daughter.
This meant she undoubtedly had many people, other women, guards, and so on, who were secretly loyal to her and by default David inside the palace.
So while her father kept his plans to kill David secret from her, the truth seeped out because that’s the nature of rumors and gossip.
Men share confidential secrets with their wives.
Servants and guards overhear things they shouldn’t hear.
Soldiers gather around the watercooler (or I guess in ancient times, campfires) to gossip with silly grins on their faces.
My point is word gets around homies.
And combine that with a woman’s sharp instincts and intuition, Michal could sense, she darn well knew her husband’s life was in danger.
So she did what all great women do.
She took bold and courageous action.
In a scene straight out of the book of Joshua when Rahab the prostitute enabled the Israelite spies to escape from Jericho by helping them scale down the city wall using a rope, that’s pretty much what Michal did with David.
In fact, Michal’s dwelling place must have been similar to Rahab’s in that it was a house built right into the wall.
That was a common thing during those times.
During the nighttime hours, Michal lowered David down from her window outside the city wall, and he escaped unnoticed.
Okay, so there’s a couple of interesting takeaways I’m getting here.
The first one is that having a righteous wife who loves you, and is constantly watching out for your back, can be a HUGE help in times of peril!
The second takeaway is that even though you may be surrounded by the enemy, you are NOT alone.
Just like Michal had many in the palace who were secretly loyal to her…
God has His secret assistants and helpers strategically hidden to help you…
So be of good cheer…
You are never alone…
Whether they be friendly strangers or invisible angels, your secret helpers remain on standby ready to spring into action at God’s command.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“Do you think I cannot call on my Father,
and He will at once put at my disposal
more than twelve legions of angels?”
-Matthew 26:53
P.S. Although we’re not sure where Michal’s home was located, it was probably in Gibeah, her father’s hometown.
Sadly, she messed up later when David was king and danced before the Ark of the Covenant when it was brought (the second time) into Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:14-22).
But, as they say: “That, my friends, is a different story.”
yup…
Will deal with that topic in due time…