David recognized that the Lord’s anointed continued to hold a special office—even if he acted in ways that are at odds with God’s law.1 The Lord alone has the right to remove his king and to do so in his time (see Exodus 22:28). To raise your hand against that individual was to raise your hand against the Lord.2
6 He said to his men, “The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD’s anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD’s anointed.”