Simple David and Sore Afraid Saul

1 Samuel 17:55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth?

Saul knew whose son David was but he was now wondering if David was a threat to him. David was in fact the great-grandson of Ruth, the Moabitess who was married to Boaz. We are not exactly sure when the book of Ruth was penned. The final chapter gives the lineage of Boaz from as far back as Pharez all the way up to David. That is significant to Saul's fears. It is not known how famous the story of Ruth was at the time of Saul and David. The author of Ruth is unknown but is historically ascribed to Samuel the prophet. If so, we can assume that the story was very popular in Israel at the time of David and the fact that David had descended from Ruth and Boaz made him somebody. Especially somebody enough to give Saul the fantods.

And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell. 

Abner knows who David is as do all of Saul’s servants. But Abner is being a careful counselor. He does not want to end up on the bad side of Saul. Saul may be thinking that David is a threat. Abner does not want to commit either way saying that David is indeed a threat, or an equal mistake, that he is no threat when he really is a great threat.

56 And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is. 

57 And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.  58 And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.

David makes no claims even though he may have had one. He was not simply David, son of Jesse. He was David, son of Jesse, son of Obed, son of Boaz, husband to Ruth, the one whose was faithful to Israel, sticking closer than a brother. He was David, anointed by the prophet Samuel, the one whose words never fall to the ground. He was David, who killed a bear and a lion with his sling and staff. He was David, the giant killer, the bravest man in all of Israel, the one who saved Israel from their sins. David was Moses, and Joshua, Jephthah, Samson and Samuel all rolled into one. And David was all that Saul never could be. This David says simply, I am David, son of thy servant Jesse, the Bethlehemite.