1 Samuel 21 - 25
David Takes Consecrated Bread
21Then David came to aNob to Ahimelech the priest; and Ahimelech bcame trembling to meet David and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no one is with you?” 2And David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has commanded me with a matter and has said to me, ‘aLet no one know anything about the matter on which I am sending you and with which I have commanded you; and I have directed the young men to a certain place.’ 3“So now, what 1do you have on hand? Give five loaves of bread into my hand, or whatever can be found.” 4And the priest answered David and said, “There is no ordinary bread 1on hand, but there is aconsecrated bread; if only the young men have bkept themselves from women.” 5And David answered the priest and said to him, “aSurely women have been kept from us as previously when I set out and the bvessels of the young men were holy, though it was an ordinary journey; how much more then today will 1their vessels be holy?” 6So athe priest gave him consecrated bread; for there was no bread there but the bbread of the Presence which was removed from before Yahweh, in order to put hot bread in its place when it was taken away.
7Now one of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before Yahweh; and his name was aDoeg the Edomite, the bchief of Saul’s shepherds.
8And David said to Ahimelech, “Now is there not a spear or a sword 1on hand? For I brought neither my sword nor my weapons in my hand because the king’s matter was urgent.” 9Then the priest said, “aThe sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down bin the valley of Elah, behold, it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod; if you would take it for yourself, take it. For there is no other except it here.” And David said, “There is none like it; give it to me.”
David Flees to Gath
10Then David arose and fled that day from Saul and went to aAchish king of Gath. 11But the aservants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? bDid they not sing of this one as they danced, saying, ‘Saul has struck his thousands,And David his ten thousands’?”
12And David atook these words 1to heart and greatly feared Achish king of Gath. 13So he adisguised his sanity in their sight and acted insanely in their hands and scribbled on the doors of the gate and let his saliva run down into his beard. 14Then Achish said to his servants, “Behold, you see the man behaving as a madman. Why do you bring him to me? 15“Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this one to act the madman before me? Shall this one come into my house?”
David at the Cave of Adullam
22So David departed from there and aescaped to bthe cave of Adullam; and his brothers and all his father’s household heard of it and went down there to him. 2Then everyone who was in distress, and everyone who 1was in debt, and everyone who was bitter of soul, gathered to him; and he became a commander over them. Now there were aabout four hundred men with him.
3And David went from there to Mizpah of Moab; and he said to the king of Moab, “Please let my father and my mother come and stay with you until I know what God will do for me.” 4Then he left them with the king of Moab; and they stayed with him all the time that David was in the fortress. 5aAnd the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the fortress; go, and enter into the land of Judah.” So David went and entered into the forest of Hereth.
Saul Puts the Priests at Nob to Death
6Then Saul heard that David and the men who were with him had been discovered. Now aSaul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk tree on the height with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing around him. 7And Saul said to his servants who were standing around him, “Hear now, O Benjamites! Will the son of Jesse also give to all of you fields and vineyards? aWill he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? 8“For all of you have conspired against me so that there is no one who reveals in my ear awhen my son cuts a covenant with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you bwho is sorry for me or reveals in my ear that my son has caused my servant to rise up against me to lie in ambush, as it is this day.” 9Then aDoeg the Edomite, who was 1standing by the servants of Saul, said, “bI saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to cAhimelech the son of Ahitub. 10“aAnd he asked of Yahweh for him, bgave him provisions, and cgave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”
11Then the king sent someone to summon Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father’s household, the priests who were in Nob; and all of them came to the king. 12And Saul said, “Listen now, son of Ahitub.” And he 1answered, “Here I am, my lord.” 13Saul then said to him, “Why have you and the son of Jesse conspired against me, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have asked of God on his behalf, so that he would rise up against me aby lying in ambush as it is this day?”
14aThen Ahimelech answered the king and said, “And who among all your servants is as faithful as David, even the king’s son-in-law, who 1is captain over your guard, and is honored in your house? 15“Did I just begin ato ask of God on his behalf today? Far be it from me! bDo not let the king impute anything to his servant or to any of the household of my father, for your servant knows nothing small or great of this whole affair.” 16But the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s household!” 17And athe king said to the 1guards who were standing by him, “Turn around and put the priests of Yahweh to death because their hand also is with David and because they knew that he was fleeing and did not reveal it in my ears.” But the bservants of the king were not willing to send forth their hands to fall upon the priests of Yahweh. 18Then the king said to Doeg, “You turn around and 1attack the priests.” And Doeg the Edomite turned around and 2attacked the priests, and ahe put to death that day eighty-five men bwho wore the linen ephod. 19So ahe struck Nob the city of the priests with the edge of the sword, both men and women, infants and nursing babies; also oxen, donkeys, and sheep he struck with the edge of the sword.
20But aone son of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, bescaped and fled after David. 21And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of Yahweh. 22Then David said to Abiathar, “I knew on that day, when aDoeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. It is I who have turned against every person in your father’s household. 23“Stay with me; do not be afraid, for ahe who seeks my life seeks your life, for you are 1safe with me.”
David Saves Keilah
23Then they told David, saying, “Behold, the Philistines are fighting against aKeilah and are pillaging the threshing floors.” 2So David aasked of Yahweh, saying, “Shall I go and strike these Philistines?” And Yahweh said to David, “Go and strike the Philistines and save Keilah.” 3But David’s men said to him, “Behold, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Keilah against the battle lines of the Philistines?” 4Then David asked of Yahweh once more. And Yahweh answered him and said, “Arise, go down to Keilah, for aI will give the Philistines into your hand.” 5So David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines; and he led away their livestock and struck them with a great slaughter. Thus David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
6Now it happened when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech afled to David at Keilah, that he came down with an ephod in his hand. 7Then it was told to Saul that David had come to Keilah, so Saul said, “God has 1delivered him into my hand, for he shut himself in by entering a city with double gates and bars.” 8Then Saul summoned all the people for battle, to go down to Keilah to besiege David and his men. 9But David knew that Saul was plotting evil against him; so he said to aAbiathar the priest, “bBring the ephod here.” 10Then David said, “O Yahweh, the God of Israel, Your slave has heard for certain that Saul is seeking to come to Keilah to make the city a ruin on my account. 11“Will the men of Keilah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down just as Your slave has heard? O Yahweh, the God of Israel, I pray, tell Your slave.” And Yahweh said, “He will come down.” 12Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?” And Yahweh said, “aThey will surrender you.” 13Then David and his men, aabout six hundred, arose and departed from Keilah, and they went bwherever they could go. Now it was told to Saul that David had escaped from Keilah, so he ceased going out in pursuit. 14And David stayed in the wilderness in the strongholds and remained in the hill country in the wilderness of aZiph. And Saul sought him every day, but bGod did not give him into his hand.
Saul Pursues David
15Then David saw that Saul had come out to seek his life. Now David was in the wilderness of Ziph at Horesh. 16So Jonathan, Saul’s son, arose and went to David at Horesh and astrengthened his hand in God. 17And he said to him, “aDo not be afraid, because the hand of Saul my father will not find you, and you will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you; and bSaul my father knows that also.” 18So athe two of them cut a covenant before Yahweh; and David stayed at Horesh while Jonathan went to his house.
19Then aZiphites came up to Saul at Gibeah, saying, “Is David not hiding with us in the strongholds at Horesh, on bthe hill of Hachilah, which is on the 1south of 2Jeshimon? 20“So now, O king, according to all the desire of your soul to come down, come down here; and aour part shall be to surrender him into the king’s hand.” 21And Saul said, “May you be blessed of Yahweh, afor you have had compassion on me. 22“Go now, make more sure, and know and see his place—where his very foot is—and who has seen him there; for I am told that he is very crafty. 23“So see and know about all the hiding places where he hides himself and return to me with certainty, and I will go with you; and if he is in the land, I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah.”
24Then they arose and went to Ziph before Saul. Now David and his men were in the wilderness of aMaon, in the Arabah to the 1south of 2Jeshimon. 25So Saul and his men went to seek him, and they told David, and he came down to the rock and stayed in the wilderness of Maon. And Saul heard it and pursued David in the wilderness of Maon. 26And Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain; and David was hurrying to get away from Saul, but Saul and his men awere surrounding David and his men to seize them. 27But a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid on the land.” 28So Saul returned from pursuing David and went to meet the Philistines; therefore they called that place 1the Rock of Escape. 291Then David went up from there and stayed in the strongholds of aEngedi.
David Does Not Kill Saul
24Now awhen Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, bhe was told, saying, “Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.” 2Then aSaul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the Rocks of the Wild Goats. 3And he came to the sheepfolds on the way, where there was a cave; and Saul awent in to 1relieve himself. Now bDavid and his men were sitting in the inner recesses of the cave. 4Then the men of David said to him, “Behold, athis is the day of which Yahweh said to you, ‘Behold, bI am about to give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it seems good in your eyes.’” Then David arose and cut off the edge of Saul’s robe secretly. 5And it happened afterward that aDavid’s heart struck him because he had cut off the edge of Saul’s robe. 6So he said to his men, “aFar be it from me because of Yahweh that I should do this thing to my lord, the anointed of Yahweh, to send forth my hand against him, since he is the anointed of Yahweh.” 7And David tore his men to pieces with these words and did not allow them to rise up against Saul. And Saul arose, 1left the cave, and went on his way.
8Now afterward David arose and went out of the cave and called after Saul, saying, “My lord the king!” And when Saul looked behind him, aDavid bowed with his 1face to the ground and prostrated himself. 9And David said to Saul, “Why do you listen to the words of men, saying, ‘Behold, David seeks 1to do you evil’? 10“aBehold, this day your eyes have seen that Yahweh had given you today into my hand in the cave, and bsome said to kill you, but my eye had pity on you; and I said, ‘I will not send forth my hand against my lord, for he is the anointed of Yahweh.’ 11“Now, amy father, see! Indeed, see the edge of your robe in my hand! For in that I cut off the edge of your robe and did not kill you, know and see that there is no evil or transgression in my hand, and I have not sinned against you, though you bare lying in wait for my life to take it. 12“aMay Yahweh judge between 1you and me, and may Yahweh avenge me on you; but my hand shall not be against you. 13“As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘aOut of the wicked comes forth wickedness’; but my hand shall not be against you. 14“After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? aAfter a dead dog, after ba single flea? 15“aTherefore Yahweh be judge and execute justice between 1you and me; and may He see and bplead my cause and execute justice for me to escape from your hand.”
16Now it happened that when David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, “aIs this your voice, my son David?” Then Saul lifted up his voice and wept. 17aAnd he said to David, “You are more righteous than I; for byou have dealt well with me, while I have dealt evil with you. 18“And you have declared today that you have done good to me, that aYahweh surrendered me into your hand, and yet you did not kill me. 19“For if a man afinds his enemy, will he let him go away 1safely? May Yahweh therefore reward you with good in return for what you have done to me this day. 20“So now, behold, aI know that you will surely be king, and that bthe kingdom of Israel will be established in your hand. 21“So now aswear to me by Yahweh that you will not cut off my seed after me and that you will not destroy my name from my father’s household.” 22So David swore to Saul. And Saul went to his home, but David and his men went up to athe fortress.
The Death of Samuel
25aThen Samuel died; and all Israel gathered together and blamented for him and cburied him at his house in Ramah. And David arose and went down to the dwilderness of Paran.
David and Abigail
2Now there was a man in aMaon whose work was in bCarmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep and one thousand goats. And it happened, while che was shearing his sheep in Carmel 3(now the man’s name was Nabal, and his awife’s name was Abigail. And the woman was good in insight and beautiful in appearance, but the man was harsh and evil in his dealings, and he was ba Calebite), 4that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. 5So David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, come to Nabal, and greet him in my name; 6and thus you shall say, ‘1Have a long life; apeace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have. 7‘So now I have heard athat you have shearers; now your shepherds have been with us; and we have not dishonored them, bnor have they missed anything all the days they were in Carmel. 8‘Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we have come on aa 1festive day. Please give whatever you find at hand to your servants and to your son, to David.’”
9Then David’s young men came and spoke to Nabal according to all these words in David’s name. Then they waited. 10But Nabal answered David’s servants and said, “aWho is David? And who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master. 11“Shall I then atake my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men 1whose origin I do not know?” 12So David’s young men went back on their way and returned; and they came and told him according to all these words. 13Then David said to his men, “Each of you gird on his sword.” So each man girded on his sword. And David also girded on his sword, and about afour hundred men went up behind David, and two hundred bstayed with the baggage.
14But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Behold, David sent messengers from the wilderness to 1,agreet our master, and he rushed at them angrily. 15“Yet the men were very good to us, and we were not adishonored, nor did we miss anything 1as long as we went about with them, while we were in the field. 16“aThey were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the time we were with them shepherding the sheep. 17“So now, know and see what you should do, for evil is decided against our master and against all his household; and he is such a 1vile man that no one can speak to him.”
Abigail’s Discernment
18Then Abigail hurried and atook two hundred loaves of bread and two 1jugs of wine and five sheep already prepared and 2five seahs of roasted grain and one hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys. 19Then she said to her young men, “aGo on before me; behold, I am coming after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal. 20So it was happening, as she was riding on her donkey and coming down by the hidden part of the mountain, that behold, David and his men were coming down toward her; and she met them. 21Now David had said, “Surely for a lie I have guarded all that this man has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him; and he has areturned me evil for good. 22“aMay God do so to the enemies of David, and more also, bif by morning I leave as much as one 1male of any who belong to him.”
23Then Abigail saw David; so she hurried and dismounted from her donkey and fell on her face 1before David aand bowed herself to the ground. 24And she fell at his feet and said, “On me 1alone, my lord, be the blame. And please let your maidservant speak in your ears, and listen to the words of your maidservant. 25“Please do not let my lord 1pay attention to this 2vile man, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. 3Nabal is his name, and wicked foolishness is with him; but I your maidservant did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent.
26“So now, my lord, as Yahweh lives and as your soul lives, since Yahweh has restrained you from 1shedding blood, and afrom saving yourself by your own hand, so now, blet your enemies and those who seek evil against my lord, be as Nabal. 27“So now let athis 1gift which your servant-woman has brought to my lord be given to the young men who 2went about with my lord. 28“Please forgive athe transgression of your maidservant; for bYahweh will certainly make for my lord an enduring house because my lord is cfighting the battles of Yahweh, and devil will not be found in you all your days. 29“And should anyone rise up to pursue you and to seek your 1life, then the 2life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living with Yahweh your God; but the 3lives of your enemies aHe will sling out 4as from the hollow of a sling. 30“And it will be that when Yahweh does for my lord according to all the good that He has spoken concerning you, and aappoints you ruler over Israel, 31then this will not 1cause stumbling or a troubled heart to my lord, both by having shed blood without cause and by my lord having saved himself. aWhen Yahweh deals well with my lord, then remember your maidservant.”
32Then David said to Abigail, “aBlessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me, 33and blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you, awho have kept me this day from 1bloodshed and from saving myself by my own hand. 34“Nevertheless, as Yahweh, the God of Israel, lives, awho has restrained me from harming you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, surely there would not have been left to Nabal until the morning light as much as one 1male.” 35So David received from her hand what she had brought him and said to her, “aGo up to your house in peace. See, I have listened to your voice and 1,bgranted your request.”
36Then Abigail came to Nabal, and behold, he was holding aa feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, bfor he was very drunk; so cshe did not tell him anything small or great until the morning light. 37But in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him so that he became as a stone. 38Now it happened that about ten days later, aYahweh smote Nabal, and he died.
Abigail Becomes David’s Wife
39Then David heard that Nabal was dead, so he said, “Blessed be Yahweh, who has apleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal and bhas kept back His servant from evil. Yahweh has also returned the evil of Nabal on his own head.” Then David sent 1,ca proposal to Abigail, to take her as his wife. 40Then the servants of David came to Abigail at Carmel and spoke to her, saying, “David has sent us to you to take you as his wife.” 41And she arose aand bowed with her 1face to the ground and said, “Behold, your maidservant is a servant-woman bto wash the feet of my lord’s servants.” 42Then aAbigail hurried and arose, and she rode on a donkey, with her five young women who 1went about with her; and she went after the messengers of David and became his wife.