2 Samuel 15:18-22
18 Now all of his servants passed by beside him, and all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who had come with him from Gath, passed by before the king.
19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why should you go with us too? Return and stay with your king, since you are a foreigner and an exile as well; return to your own place.
20 You came only yesterday, so should I make you wander with us today, while I go wherever I go? Return and take your brothers back; mercy and truth be with you.”
21 But Ittai answered the king and said, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether for death or for life, there assuredly shall your servant be!”
22 Then David said to Ittai, “Go and cross over the brook Kidron.” So Ittai the Gittite crossed over with all his men and all the little ones who were with him.
Loyalty of a Foreigner
The day of flight
There is no day in David’s life recorded in such detail as the day of his flight from Jerusalem. The reason is that the events of that day had a profound impact on the kingdom of Israel, both in the short term and in the long term. (1) The king’s servants walked at his side. (2) The king’s personal guard went ahead of him. This guard was composed of the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and the Gittites, all of whom were soldiers who had come from the land of the Philistines. (3) Among them, the 600 men from Gath are especially noteworthy. Their leader was Ittai the Gittite. According to rabbinic tradition, Ittai was said to be the son of Achish, the king of Gath.
Ittai’s loyalty
David told Ittai that he did not need to follow him. The reason was that Ittai and his soldiers had only recently become mercenaries under David. (1) David presented Ittai with two options: remain in Jerusalem and become a mercenary for Absalom or return to his original home in the land of the Philistines. (2) In response, Ittai said, “As the Lord lives, and as my Lord the king lives, wherever my Lord the king may be, whether for death or for life, there assuredly shall your servant be!” He made this vow not by the god of the Philistines, but by the name of David’s God, the Lord (Yahweh). (3) Ittai’s loyalty to David is similar to the loyalty and love shown by Ruth the Moabitess to her mother-in-law Naomi. Behind this series of events are various hidden “types”: (1) David is a type of Jesus Christ. (2) Absalom and the Israelites who betrayed David are a type of the people of Israel who rejected Jesus as the Messiah. (3) The Israelites who remained loyal to David are a type of the Messianic Jews who believe in Jesus as the Messiah. (4) Furthermore, the Gentile soldiers loyal to David who were represented by Ittai are a type of Gentile Christians who believe in Jesus as the Messiah and are saved. Let us, like Ittai, also confess: “Wherever my Lord the king may be, whether for death or for life, there assuredly shall your servant be.”
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, wherever You are, your servant will surely be, whether for life or for death. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.