Inner Mercy in Saul & David

Neville's Inner Vision

Inside Neville’s practice, 1 Samuel 26:17-25 is a drama of inner states. Saul’s voice is the fear that hunts us when we forget our I AM, while David’s calm mercy is the consciousness that chooses forgiveness over revenge. The scene is not about two men but about two aspects of the self: the pursued and the pursuer, the impulse to strike and the impulse to bless. When David says he would not stretch forth his hand against the LORD's anointed, he embodies assumption proper to the I AM—treating the inner self as sacred and inviolable. The spear becomes the worn-out belief that separation matters; letting it be seen but not acted on dissolves the sense of lack. The line, the LORD delivered thee into my hand... but I would not, is the proof that the imagined scenario yields to a higher state of awareness. The blessing pronounced—‘thou shalt do great things, and prevail’—confirms that, by feeling the truth of reconciliation now, the outer scene follows. The inner verdict is: forgiveness neutralizes the fear-based motion of the old self.