Group Check-in

1. What was the best part of your week?
2. What was the most difficult part of your week?

What Are These Chapters About?

This chapter opens with loyalty and ends with loneliness.

David is once again on the run from Saul—chased by 3,000 elite troops led by the man he once served. The land is full of spies. Trust is scarce. But one voice says, “I’ll go with you.” Abishai—David’s nephew and longtime warrior companion—volunteers for what amounts to a suicide mission: sneaking into Saul’s heavily guarded camp. That’s what faithful friends do—they show up when the risk is high. They go with you into the heart of the battle.

Even when David refuses to kill Saul, Abishai doesn’t argue or bail. He stays close. He fights with David, not against him, even when they don’t agree. It’s a beautiful picture of brotherhood forged in fire.

But chapter 27 takes a turn. Worn down by exhaustion and fear, David gives in to discouragement and runs to the land of the Philistines. He compromises. He lies. He blends in with the enemy. It seems practical, and for a while it even works. But it also marks one of the darkest stretches of his life. What happened to the man after God’s own heart?

These chapters show us the power of true friendship—and the danger of isolation. We were never meant to walk alone. In the cave, David built a band of brothers. In the field, he fought beside men like Abishai. But when David starts doing things alone again, trouble follows.

The same is true for us. We all need an Abishai. But we also need to be one.

Key Verse

“Who will go down with me into the camp to Saul?” Abishai said, “I’ll go with you.” —1 Samuel 26:6 (NIV)

S.O.A.P. for the Week

Passage: Ecclesiastes 4:9–12

Reflect on the kind of friendships God calls us into—relationships where we show up, speak truth, share burdens, and fight alongside one another. What’s one step you can take to move from isolation to intentional brotherhood?

Ice-Breakers

• If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be?
• Name two or three of the greatest years of your life so far. Why were they the best?

Group Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in Abishai’s willingness to go with David into Saul’s camp (26:5–6)? What qualities define that kind of friendship?
2. David refuses to kill Saul (again). How does Abishai respond to that decision? How do you handle it when a friend chooses restraint and integrity over “justified” revenge or shortcut solutions?
3. Chapter 27 shows David at a low point—discouraged, afraid, compromising. What do you think led him to this moment? Have you ever made a decision from a place of fear or fatigue?
4. Why do you think God often uses friendships—like David and Abishai’s—to grow us, protect us, and refine us? What happens when we try to walk through life alone?
5. What does it look like to be an Abishai in someone else’s life? Where can you show up, fight for a friend, or offer strength when they’re weary?
6. Who do you trust to speak into your blind spots, your battles, your burdens? And who are you intentionally inviting into that kind of relationship?

Practical Takeaway

A faithful friend is one of the greatest gifts God can give. Not just a good hang—but someone who’s there when you’re in the cave, on the run, or slipping into compromise. Someone who says, “Let’s go” when others say, “You’re crazy.” Someone who prays, calls you up, and has your back—even when it’s hard.

But that kind of friend doesn’t appear out of thin air. You have to be that person too. It takes vulnerability. Time. Intentionality. It means showing up when it’s inconvenient, speaking up when it’s uncomfortable, and staying when it would be easier to walk away.

David learned that the throne wasn’t reached alone. He needed men like Abishai beside him. So do we.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for the gift of faithful friends—people who stick closer than a brother. Help us recognize the friends You’ve already placed in our lives, and give us the courage to reach out when we feel isolated. Make us trustworthy companions, willing to show up, speak life, and stay close when it counts. And when we’re tired or tempted to compromise, bring friends who remind us of who we are in You. Thank You most of all for Jesus—the Friend who never leaves, never fails, and always fights for us. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.