The Cave of Adullam & the 3 Anointings of David

The Cave of Adullam
& the 3 Anointings of David

In 1 Samuel 22:1-2 "David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there. All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him."

That is the exact opposite of what most faith teachings emphasize to us today, where we are all supposed to keep upbeat and positive: 'No Debbie Downers, please!' So isn't it interesting that David, who had already been anointed by God in the sight of his family to be the King of Israel, would be immediately joined by in his hideout by those who had witnessed his anointing to be king, but also by 400 men, "all who were distressed or indebted or discontented."  This man on the run, drew men who were looking for a leader which they recognized as David's anointing, so they rallied themselves to his stronghold hideout in the cave of Adullam.

David didn't get to stay in that Messianic cave for long because, "the prophet Gad said to David, "Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah." So David left and went to the forest of Hereth." God did not anoint David to hole up in the safe place of a cave stronghold; He anointed him to go out and fight the battles of kings - recognized by many or not.

The Messianic movement emerged in the United States in the late 1960's-70's Jesus Movement. Indeed many of the young Jewish men and women who came to faith in the midst of that counter-culture generation of Baby Boomers, went on to form "a new thing". Many in the Christian world have not seen any good reason for a "messianic movement" to exist preferring that all Jewish believers merely lose the Jewishness and become good Christians.

It was God who was forming this new thing of identifiably Jewish followers of Jesus: "Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert." Isaiah 43:19

Those young American Jewish men and women were God's building blocks for what He is doing in these last days. Many of them established congregations and ministries in the United States, but then He called a great many of them out. They were to leave the American safe place —  the cave of Adullam — and immigrate to Israel. There they would continue in their calling as ministers of the gospel of Israel's Messiah Yeshua. Are you tracking with me?

Prophetically, these leaders left their nice, safe American congregations and ministries to enter the land of Promise — the promise that their new life in Israel would be taxing! There would be much greater religious opposition, less financial stability and more challenges than they would ever come up against in the nice, safe stronghold of their 'cave of Adullam' of the Messianic Movement in the United States.

Instead God called them out to go into the wilderness of Israel: 1 Samuel 22:5, "... So David left and went to the forest of Hereth." There is something interesting about this word Hareth. First, there is no meaning given that I could find, but the word stems from another Hebrew word, Charath, which means to engrave. Charath is only used once in the Bible and that is in Exodus 32:16, "And the tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven H2801 upon the tablets."

Living Stones. Living Letters. Living tablets engraved by the writing of God, and a work of God Himself. God did not want the Messianic Jewish faith to remain in the stronghold, in the places where it was safe to be a Jewish believer in Yeshua. He wanted them out in the wilderness of Israel where they would walk as living engravings, the work of God in the midst of a people God promised to return to with grace and favor. God wants to reach the Jews where ever in the world they are, but there is special significance attached to raising up a Jewish body of faith within Israel.

Now David was anointed three times to be the King of Israel before he actually became the king over all Israel. The first time David was anointed it was in the presence of his own and having witnessed the prophet Samuel anointing David, they were the first to join David when he was forced to flee from King Saul. But there was a second group that recognized the anointing on David for kingly leadership, so afterwards "All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander."

That description kind of sounds to me like so many of the Christians who have joined themselves to the Messianic movement in the past few decades. I know as a Christian when I joined myself to the Messianic movement back in about 1992, I certainly fit the profile! I was like that song from the U2 Joshua Tree album, "And I still haven't found what I'm looking for." I was distressed, in debt and discontented!

Many Christians who have attached themselves to the Messianic movement have come in distress, debt and discontent with what they received (or didn't receive) in their former church experience. They represent an opportunity to Messianic leaders for the same kind of healing, deliverance and vision that David was able to minister to those who came to him. That's why they came to David, they saw his anointing for good leadership. That's why they come to the Messianic movement, seeking anointed, solid biblical leadership.

Some in the Messianic movement have also seen this as their calling in Yeshua to fulfill the prophetic call to bless "all nations on earth" (goy/nations/gentiles). But many Christians who join the Messianic movement get stuck in bad feelings toward the Church because of Christian history against the Jews...unfortunately, many Messianic Jews are stuck there too.

The horrible history of the church toward the Jews is an important history to know, but we have to move beyond that basis of relating to Israel. David did not cultivate anger against Saul; he modeled respect for God's anointed. In our day this should translate two ways: the Messianic movement should model respect for Israel and respect for the Church. Unlike Saul, God's anointing does rest on the Church despite the failing of many to walk in it throughout history.

That may be why the really cutting edge of anointed, prophetic Christian ministries have looked down on us spiritually — both the Messianic movement and those of us Christians who have joined ourselves to them. Could be. We don't look to them like we're something they want to be part of.

Yet God is doing something magnificent in the Messianic faith and I believe we can also see that progression paralleled in the three separate times David was anointed to be King.

The 3 Anointings of David

The first time he was anointed David was just a teenager of about 15 years old. That same year he killed Goliath and he began to serve King Saul for 7 years. The people recognized David's anointing so much so that it stirred great jealousy in Saul who became increasingly dangerous toward David. Finally at only 22, David had to get out of Saul's reach. But God did not intend for David to stop fighting Israel's enemies so he was continually on the move for 8 years of both hiding from Saul and battling the enemies of Israel.

Throughout those years God was preparing David to be the kind of king that God wanted for Israel. Now Saul wanted to harm David, but David did not want to harm Saul. David recognized that even though Saul was a true enemy, He was also God's anointed. Sound familiar? It sounds just like how Israeli Messianic Jews conduct themselves today even in the face of truly threatening religious jealousy and opposition.

David was about 30 years old when Saul died on the battlefield. David's anointing had been recognized by more and more Jews and at Saul's death the tribe of Judah anointed him as their king in Hebron. The tribes of Israel and Judah were divided for several more years just as today the Messianic Israelis are still mostly divided from unsaved Israel. After a few years of internal conflicts, however, the elders of Israel also saw that David was anointed to be king of "all Israel."

Do you see what I see? In the first anointing young David is like the pioneer generation of Messianic ministry leaders who came to Israel to serve Yeshua in the building up of the Living Stones of Israel. They excelled, increased and grew in much "character building" spiritual maturity facing all the challenges of Israel, especially that of the jealousy of the spiritual establishment.

In 1948 there were only 23 believers in all of Israel. After 1967 with the birth of the Messianic movement in the USA more Messianic believers began to immigrate to Israel. They were called of God to the spiritual wilderness of Israel, because that is where God intended to bless them with ministry fruitfulness.

Today there are 30,000 Israeli Jewish Believers according to a "conservative estimate." Some believe the actual number is double that amount. Despite all the challenges, opposition, and often the spiritual isolation, these Israeli Messianics are like David when he was in the period still fighting Israel's enemies and hiding from Saul.

At the same time while not all the church has recognized Messianic Israel as a significant thing God is doing, increasing numbers of international believers do. There is a seeming parallel of recognition of the anointing that is taking place within the Israeli population and within the international church.

Israel is not to be just a physical restoration of the state, but a spiritual restoration of Israel to God through His Messiah Yeshua. This is like the second anointing of David, where he began to walk in a limited measure of the kingship God intended for him with followers being added to him.  The Israeli believers are like an extension of Yeshua in the Davidic line by faith. 

Jewish believers will continue to increase in followers of the One who will be crowned King of Kings. This Yeshua whose throne is Jerusalem, who is the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the ultimate fulfillment of the covenant God made with David, 

"In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely, and this is the name by which she will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness. For this is what the LORD says: David will never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel" Jeremiah 33:16-17

Soon the time will arrive when even the elders of Israel will see the anointing of the Davidic King that rests upon His Israeli Messianic Jewish people who are called by His Name, walking in His anointing. At that time "all Israel" shall be saved and they will declare Yeshua as the KING of Israel. 

This final anointing by Israel will mean Yeshua will return to capture Jerusalem as David did: Nevermore will it be tread down and trampled by the Jebusites. It is coming and I want to be a part of this blessing that reverberate throughout the world.