1 Samuel 23:11-13 – Did God Lie?
If whatever God says comes to pass,
did God lie in 1 Samuel 23:11 when he said Saul would come?
Will the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? will Saul come down, as thy servant hath heard? O LORD God of Israel, I beseech thee, tell thy servant. And the LORD said, He will come down. 12Then said David, Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul? And the LORD said, They will deliver thee up. 13Then David and his men, which were about six hundred, arose and departed out of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And it was told Saul that David was escaped from Keilah; and he forbare to go forth.
1 Samuel 23:11-13
It was not a question of whether Saul was coming to get David even if he had to destroy the city of Keilah. David double checked with God on this, but the main question asked of God was will the men of Keilah give him over to Saul.
God knowing the hearts of the people of Keilah knew that they feared Saul and had no desire to fight him for David’s sake. David seeing he was finished if he stayed left which changed the situation as he was no longer at Keilah. Hence, Saul turned back knowing that David was gone and out of his reach.
God did not lie, the situation changed when David left being told the men of keilah would give him up.
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