David Defeats the Amalekites

When David and his men saw that the Amalekites had burned their city and taken their wives and children, they didn’t know what to do. David’s men were so bitter that they talked of stoning him! But David strengthened himself in the LORD and inquired of Him. “Should we pursue the Amalekites?”

“And He answered him, ‘Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.’” (1 Samuel 30:8, NKJV)

So four hundred men went with David and two hundred who were too weary stayed behind. David did not force them to go. On the way they encountered an Egyptian slave of an Amalekite who had fallen sick and was left behind. He brought them to where the Amalekites were camped. They were eating, drinking and reveling in all the plunder they had taken from the Philistines and from Judah. David attacked that evening and fought all night and the next day and recovered all of the spoil, their wives and children. Nothing was missing.

Now in Bible typology, the Amalekites represent the flesh. God had told Moses to write in the book that He would utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven (Exodus 17:14). God commanded Saul to wipe out the Amalekites and spare nothing—not even the livestock, but Saul spared their king and the best of the livestock. Therefore, God rejected Saul as king (1 Samuel 15:23).

God will never make a pact with our sinful human flesh. The apostle Paul wrote:

“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” (Romans 13:14, NKJV)

Are there any Amalekites left standing in our life? If we don’t defeat them, they will rip us off! God would call us to make war against them by crucifying the sinful passions of our flesh. He will help us to overcome as He helped David and his men.