When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him. – 1 Samuel 31:5

Today's Scripture Reading (June 17, 2025): 1 Samuel 31

An armor-bearer had a vast range of duties. They were the ones who were sent with messages from their leaders to other battle groups. The armor-bearer could be used as a scout. They carried supplies and provided their battle groups with food and water. Armor-bearers were often enlisted to assist the injured and escort them to a safe location where they could receive help. However, one of the most important duties was to protect the one who employed them. In this case, Saul's armor-bearer was responsible for protecting the king's life. When David takes his armor-bearer with him to scout out Saul's army, he is taking someone who has sworn an oath to protect his life. Saul's armor-bearer would have made the same oath. Armor-bearers occupied a place of intense trust among the soldiers of an army.

I can't imagine what it was like to be Saul's armor-bearer on this dark day. Not only were Saul and his sons injured, but there was no way he could complete one of his responsibilities: getting them to safety where they could be helped. Then, Saul asks this trustworthy man to kill him so that he won't fall into the hands of his enemies. But his armor-bearer, charged with the task of protecting the king, just couldn't do it. His job was to save lives, not to end them. The armor-bearer's fear was well-placed.

A little later, an Amalekite would claim to have done precisely what Saul's armor-bearer had been asked to do.

"I happened to be on Mount Gilboa," the young man said, "and there was Saul, leaning on his spear, with the chariots and their drivers in hot pursuit. When he turned around and saw me, he called out to me, and I said, 'What can I do?'

"He asked me, 'Who are you?'

"'An Amalekite,' I answered.

"Then he said to me, 'Stand here by me and kill me! I'm in the throes of death, but I'm still alive.'

"So I stood beside him and killed him, because I knew that after he had fallen he could not survive. And I took the crown that was on his head and the band on his arm and have brought them here to my lord" (2 Samuel 1:6-10).

David had the Amalekite killed because he dared to lift his sword against the reigning King of Israel, proving that maybe the armor-bearer was right to refuse. But with Saul and his sons dead, the armor-bearer had failed at the one task Saul and God had given to him. As a result of his failure, the armor-bearer felt that there was no choice left to him but to join his leader in death.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 1