King David fled from Saul and took refuge in a cave called Adullam. While there, around 400 men who were in distress, debt, or discontented gathered around David and he became their commander. God used David's fear and time in the cave for divine purpose, positioning him as a light of hope for these hopeless souls. The cave experience can be a time of intimacy with God where one discovers humility, dependency on God, and who God is. It is a spiritual process where God isolates, refines, and develops one to emerge as a light for others.

1. CAVE OF ADULLAM
Where light & hope arise
Hope of David Series
Prepared by Philip Tan
Dec 2011
version: 1.0

2. Purpose of a Cave Experience
Understand the
circumstances of King David
1 Samuel 21
10 That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath. 11 But
the servants of Achish said to him, “Isn‟t this David, the king of the land?
Isn‟t he the one they sing about in their dances:
“„Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands‟?”
12 David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish
king of Gath.
1 Samuel 22
1 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. 2 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.

3. Cave of Adullam
Cave mentality
• Cave is a lifestyle, mindset, phase or an experience
we faced because of
– Fear
– Rejection
– Downcast
– Abandonment
– Disappointment
These are dangerous symptoms of hopelessness
Hopelessness will attract you to cave of darkness

4. Cave of Adullam
King David’s Cave
• King David was a great king, great psalmist, great
warrior YET…he has fear like many of us..
• Fear & doubt drove King David to a Cave called
Adullam
• King David seems to have ‘lost’ direction of his life

5. Cave of Adullam
• Adullam means
Refuge
– A place of escape..
– A time of relief..
– A temporary location of pseudo security..

6. Cave of Adullam
• Cave of Adullam was not far from the place
where David defeated Goliath
How is it David who had great faith and bravery
once in the hills of Judah now run for his life to a
place of refuge?

7. Cave of Adullam
• King David’s fear SHIFTED his perception and
worldview to a paradigm of the flesh
• Instead of GOD as his REFUGE, King David
ran to a man made REFUGE

8. Cave of Adullam
Revealing a Divine Purpose
• Nonetheless, GOD used the fear of King David for
a great purpose
• David’s presence attracted 400 men all of
which were - in distress, in debt &
discontented

9. Cave of Adullam
See the divine arrangement when others
knew about King David’s hiding place..
– He attracted his brothers
– He attracted his relatives
– He attracted the marginal and dregs of society

10. Cave of Adullam
Understand who are those attracted to the
presence of King David
• His brothers – those who were closed to
him, knew him well
• His relatives – those who were indirectly
associated to him
• The rest from society -Distress, in
debt, discontented

11. Cave of Adullam
Understand Hopelessness
• Distress
Those with personal crisis, troubled relationship, inability to
cope with pressures of life,…
• In Debt
Those who became slave to the things of the world i.e
financial debt
• Discontented
Those who experienced failures, sink into
bitterness, harboured anger, entangled with dissatisfaction,..

12. Cave of Adullam
Becoming the Light of Christ
• King David became LIGHT in the midst of darkness
• He gathered the hopelessness of man and led them to a
place of HOPE
• God positioned Him to became CAPTAIN over
these 400 once thought to be hopeless souls!

13. Cave of Adullam
So CAN YOU
• God can use you to become His LIGHT of HOPE
• God can place you to a place to shift the focus from
darkness to His marvellous light through you
• His Spirit will draw many to your presence.. Those
close to you, those who are associated with
you, those will hear about your ability to give hope to
them
• You can lead many to the ultimate Hope in Christ
Jesus in the midst of darkness

14. Cave of Adullam
King David a type of
Messiah, foreshadowing the coming King
of Kings
King David is a reference of HOPE
King Jesus is the reality of HOPE

15. Cave of Adullam
The Parallels between King Jesus and King David
(King Jesus understands your Cave experience)
• King David entered into a hiding Cave of Adullam
• King Jesus entered into the darkness of this world
• King David attracted to the hopeless souls
• King Jesus came to save lost souls, the sick, ..
• King David expressed his loneliness and inner pain to the Lord
• King Jesus experienced the agony of pain & suffering of the flesh
• King David became Captain & Leader over 400 men
• King Jesus became Captain of our souls, He leads us in this life
to victory..

16. Cave of Adullam
Your Cave Experience
• When you are in your Cave of Adullam, cry and
reach out to the Lord. It is a place of
intimacy, transparency, abandonment and quiet
confidence
• God wants to strip away the layers of our false
insecurity only to be clothed by the security of His
Son’s salvation – the refuge of eternal life & hope

17. Cave of Adullam
Adullam is a place of discovery &
closeness
• Humbling of Self :
Psalm 57:1 shows David humbling himself asking for mercy from His Maker
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! (Psalm 57:1)
• Total dependency on God
Psalm 57:2 shows David desperate heart
I will cry out to God Most High, to God who performs all things for me.
• Recognize our inadequacy
Psalm 57:4,6 shows David perception of his circumstances:
My soul is among lions . . . they have prepared a net for my steps.
• Recognition of Who God is
Psalm 57:5,9,11 shows David’s praises to the LORD:
I will praise You, O LORD, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the
nations …Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all

18. Cave of Adullam
May our Cry to the Lord be like
that of David
Psalm 142:1-4 reads A Contemplation of David. A prayer when he
was in the cave. It describes David‟s discouraged heart:
I cry out to the LORD with my voice; with my voice to the LORD
I make my supplication. I pour out my complaint before Him; I
declare before Him my trouble.
When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then You knew my
path. In the way in which I
walk they have secretly set a snare for me. Look on my right hand
and see, for there is no one who acknowledges me; refuge has
failed me; no one cares for my soul.

19. Cave of Adullam
We are called to be more than a king ..
1st Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen
people, a royal priesthood, a holy
nation, God‟s special possession, that you
may declare the praises of him who called
you out of darkness (Cave) into his
wonderful light.

20. Cave of Adullam
Quick Recap ..Understand the
Spiritual Process behind ‘Cave of Adullam’
• God allows..
- circumstances to have a seemingly upper hand over you
• God isolates...
- you with jealously to Himself because you need to align with
His kingdom order
• God processes & refines..
- your heart, thoughts & inner motives to be in line with His
• God develops & changes..
- your heart to embrace His purpose & the Father’s will to become a light
• God positions & releases
- you from your cave to a place of leadership of hope

21. Cave of Adullam
Applications
• Can you identify your circumstances to that of King David?
Describe & share
• What do you usually do when you’re in distress? Share
• How can you become a model of hope to those who are
seeking for one?
• How can you reach out to those who are
hopeless, troubled, rejected, disappointed…?