CHAPTER 18 Jul. 6 
David and Jonathan 
When David had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan became bound to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. 2Saul took him that day and would not let him go home to his father’s house. 3Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as his own soul. 4Jonathan stripped himself of the robe he was wearing and gave it to David with his tunic and even his sword, his bow and his belt.

David’s Successes in Battle
5David went out wherever Saul sent him and behaved himself wisely, and Saul set him over the men of war, which pleased all the people and Saul’s servants. 6When David and the men returned from the slaughter of the Philistine the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul with tambourines, with joy, and with instruments of music. 7The women sang one to another as they played, Saul has slain his thousands and David his ten thousands. 8Saul was very angry; this song displeased him and he said, They have ascribed to David ten thousands and to me they have ascribed only thousands. What more can he have but the kingdom? 9Saul eyed David from that day and onward. 
Jealous Saul Seeks to Kill David
10The next day an evil spirit from God came mightily on Saul, and he prophesied in his house. David played his harp, as he did day by day. Saul had his spear in his hand 11and he threw the spear saying, I will pin David to the wall! David escaped from his presence twice. 12Saul was afraid of David because Yahweh was with him but had departed from Saul. 13Therefore Saul sent David away from him and made him his captain over a thousand, and David went out and came in before the people. 14David behaved himself wisely in all he did, and Yahweh was with him. 15When Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he stood in awe of him. 16But all Israel and Judah loved David, for he went out and came in before them. 17Saul said to David, here is my elder daughter Merab; I will give her to you as a wife. Only be valiant for me, and fight Yahweh’s battles. Saul thought, Don’t let my hand be against him, but let the hand of the Philistines be against him. 18David said to Saul, Who am I, and what is my clan or my father’s family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king? 19But when Merab, Saul’s daughter, should have been given to David, she was given to Adriel the Meholathite as his wife. 20Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David, and when they told Saul he was pleased. 21Saul said, I will give her to him so that she can be a snare to him, and so that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Therefore Saul said to David, You shall this day have a second opportunity to be my son-in-law. 22Saul commanded his servants, Speak to David secretly and say, ‘Look, the king is pleased with you, and all his servants love you; now therefore be the king’s son-in-law’. 23Saul’s servants told David this. David said, Does it seem to you a light thing to be the king’s son-in-law, since I am a poor man, and little known? 24The servants of Saul told him what David said. 25Saul said, Tell David, ‘The king desires no dowry except one hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged on the king’s enemies’. Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines. 26When his servants told David this, he was pleased to be the king’s son-in-law. Before the allotted time 27David arose and went with his men and killed two hundred of the Philistine men, and David brought their foreskins, and gave them in full number to the king so that he might be the king’s son-in-law. Saul gave him Michal his daughter as his wife. 28Saul saw and knew that Yahweh was with David, and Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved him. 29Saul was yet the more afraid of David, and Saul was David’s enemy continually. 30Then the princes of the Philistines went forth and whenever they did so, David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so that his name was highly esteemed.

Commentary

18:3 Our notes on chapter 17 have shown that David’s killing of Goliath was typical of Christ’s killing of sin on the cross. His victory there enabled the new covenant to come into operation with those who believe in Him; and so Jonathan becomes representative of us, and the covenant he enters with David looks ahead to the new covenant. Jonathan as the king’s son and commander of the army was the one who ought to have fought Goliath; but he didn’t (see on 14:6). Instead of being filled with envy, he humbled himself, stripped himself and gave his all to David, as we should to Christ, motivated by the wonder of His victory.
18:5 To achieve this state of mind must have required a lot of conscious thought and self-analysis by David. We get the sense that David pitted his wisdom against Saul's anger and bitter persecution; David's wisdom and prospering is repeatedly mentioned in tandem with Saul's anger against him (:5,11,14,15,30). These words are referring back to Dt. 29:9, which promised that those who kept the words of the covenant would prosper. David's charmed life and prospering despite all manner of plotting against him was due to his single-minded devotion to the Law; to those very chapters which tired Bible readers are wont to skip over as boring and not motivating. Yet David found something immensely inspiring and practical about the Law. The word made him wiser than his foes (Ps. 119:98)- and there is reason to think that Ps. 119, which is all about how much David loved God’s word, was written by David at the time of his persecution by Saul.  
18:10 An evil spirit from God- See on 16:14.