 CHAPTER XXI. Then came David to Knob, to Ahimelech, the priest, and Ahimelech came to meet David, trembling and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee? And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know anything of the business where about I send thee, and what I have commanded thee, and I have appointed the young men to such and such a place. Now therefore, what is under thy hand? Give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatsoever there is present. The priest answered David and said, There is no common bread under my hand, but there is holy bread, if only the young men have kept themselves from women. And David answered the priest and said unto him, Of a truth, women have been kept from us about these three days when I came out. The vessels of the young men were holy, though it was but a common journey. How much more than today shall their vessels be holy? So the priest gave him holy bread, for there was no bread there but the show-bread that was taken from before Jehovah to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away. Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before Jehovah, and his name was Doag the Edomite, the chiefest of the herdsmen that belonged to Saul. And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thy hand spear or sword? For I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste. And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the veil of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephid. If thou wilt take that, take it, for there is no other save that, here. And David said, There is none like that, give it me. And David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish, the king of Gath. And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? And David laid up these words in his heart, and was so afraid of Achish the king of Gath. And he changed his behavior before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo ye see the man is mad, wherefore then have ye brought him to me? Do I lack mad men that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house? CHAPTER XXII David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave of Agilem, and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down dither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented gathered themselves unto him, and he became captain over them, and there were with him about four hundred men. And David went thence to Mispah of Moab, and he said unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother I pray thee, come forth and be with you, till I know what God will do for me. And he brought them before the king of Moab, and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the stronghold. And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the stronghold, depart and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed and came into the forest of Hereth. And Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him now, Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk tree in Reimah, with his spear in his hand. And all his servants were standing about him. And Saul said unto his servants that stood about him, Here now ye Benjaminites, will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards? Will he make you all captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, that all of you have conspired against me? And there is none that disclosedeth to me when my son maketh a league with the son of Jesse? And there is none of you that is sorry for me, or disclosedeth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait as at this day? Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Knob, to Ahimelech the son of Aetub, and he inquired of Jehovah for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath, the Philistine. Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Aetub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Knob, and they came all of them to the king. And Saul said, Here now thou son of Aetub, and he answered, Here I am, my Lord. And Saul said unto him, Why hath ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait as at this day? Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who among all thy servants is so faithful as David, who is the king's son in law, and is taken into thy counsel, and is honorable in thy house? Have I today begun to inquire of God for him? Be it far from me, let not the king impute anything unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father, for thy servant knoweth nothing of all this, less or more. And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou and all thy father's house. And the king said unto the guard that stood about him, Turn and slay the priests of Jehovah, because their hand also is with David, and because they knew that he fled, and did not disclose it to me. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of Jehovah. And the king said to Doag, Turn thou and fall upon the priests. And Doag the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and he slew on that day four score and five persons that did wear a linen ephid. And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen and asses and sheep, with the edge of the sword. And one of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Aetub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David. And Abiathar told David that Saul had slain Jehovah's priests. And David said unto Abiathar, I knew, on that day, when Doag the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul, I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father's house. Abide thou with me, fear not, for he that seeketh my life, seeketh thy life, for with me thou shalt be in safeguard. CHAPTER XXIII And they told David, saying, Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Kela, and are robbing the threshing floors. Before David inquired of Jehovah, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines? And Jehovah said unto David, Go, and smite the Philistines, and save Kela. And David's men said unto him, Behold, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Kela against the armies of the Philistines? Then David inquired of Jehovah yet again. Then Jehovah answered him and said, Arise, go down to Kela, for I will deliver the Philistines into thy hand. And David and his men went to Kela, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and slew them with the great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Kela. And it came to pass when Abiath, the son of Ahimelech, fled to David to Kela, that he came down with an ephid in his hand. And it was told Saul that David was come to Kela, and Saul said, God hath delivered him into my hand, for he is shut in by entering into a town that hath gates and bars. And Saul summoned all the people to war to go down to Kela to besiege David and his men. And David knew that Saul was devising mischief against him, and he said to Abiath or the priest, Bring hither the ephid. Then said David, O Jehovah, the God of Israel, thy servant hath surely heard that Saul seeketh to come to Kela to destroy the city for my sake. Will the men of Kela deliver me up into his hand? Will Saul come down as thy servant hath heard? O Jehovah, the God of Israel, I besiege thee, tell thy servant. And Jehovah said, He will come down. Then said David, Will the men of Kela deliver up me and my men into the hand of Saul? And Jehovah said, They will deliver thee up. Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and departed out of Kela, and went with her so ever they could go. And it was told Saul that David was escaped from Kela, and he forbear to go forth. And David abode in the wilderness and the strongholds, and remained in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziff. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand. And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life, and David was in the wilderness of Ziff in the wood. And Jonathan Saul's son arose and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. And he said unto him, Fear not, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee, and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee. And that also Saul my father knoweth. And they too made a covenant before Jehovah, and David abode in the wood. And Jonathan went to his house. Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself with us in the strongholds in the wood, in the hill of Hakkala, which is on the south of the desert? Now therefore, O king, come down, according to all the desire of thy soul to come down, and our part shall be to deliver him up into the king's hand. And Saul said, Blessed be ye of Jehovah, for ye have had compassion on me. Go I pray you, make yet more sure, and know, and see his place where his haunt is, and who hath seen him there, for it is told me that he dealeth very subtly. See therefore, and take knowledge of all the lurking places where he hideeth himself, and come ye again to me of a certainty, and I will go with you, and it shall come to pass if he be in the land, that I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah. And they arose and went to Ziph before Saul, but David and his men were in the wilderness of Ma'an, in the araba on the south of the desert. And Saul and his men went to seek him, and they told David, wherefore he came down to the rock, and abode in the wilderness of Ma'an. And when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in the wilderness of Ma'an. And Saul went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the mountain, and David made haste to get away for fear of Saul, for Saul and his men compassed David and his men round about to take them. But there came a messenger unto Saul, saying, haste thee and come, for the Philistines have made a raid upon the land. So Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went against the Philistines. Before they called that place Selahamah Lekoth. And David went up from thence, and dwelt in the strongholds of Ingeti. And it came to pass when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying, Behold, David is in the wilderness of Ingeti. Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats. And he came to the sheep coats, by the way, where it was a cave. And Saul went in to cover his feet. Now David and his men were abiding in the innermost parts of the cave. And the men of David said unto him, Behold, the day of which Jehovah said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thy hand, and thou shalt do to him, as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe, privily. And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul's skirt. And he said unto his men, Jehovah forbid that I should do this thing unto my lord, Jehovah's anointed, to put forth my hand against him, seeing he is Jehovah's anointed. So David checked his men with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. And Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way. David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul, saying, My Lord the King! And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth, and did abiescence. And David said to Saul, Wherefore harkenest thou to men's words, saying, Behold, David seeketh thy hurt. Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that Jehovah had delivered thee, today into my hand in the cave. And some bade me kill thee, but mine I spared thee. And I said, I will not put forth my hand against my lord, for he is Jehovah's anointed. Moreover my father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand, for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not. Know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in my hand, and I have not sinned against thee, though thou huntest after my life to take it. Jehovah judge between me and thee, and Jehovah avenge me on thee, but my hand shall not be upon thee. As sayeth the proverb of the ancients, Out of the wicked cometh forth wickedness. But my hand shall not be upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out? After whom dost thou pursue? After a dead dog, after a flea? Jehovah therefore be judged, and give sentence between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and deliver me out of thy hand. And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice and wept, and he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I, for thou hast rendered unto me good, whereas I have rendered unto thee evil. And thou hast declared this day, how that thou hast dealt well with me, for as much as when Jehovah had delivered me up into thy hand, thou killest me not. For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? For Jehovah reward thee good, for that which thou hast done unto me this day. And now, behold, I know that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thy hand. Swear now therefore unto me, by Jehovah, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house. And David swear unto Saul, and Saul went home. But David and his men got them up unto the stronghold. CHAPTER XXV And Samuel died. And all Israel gathered themselves together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose and went down to the wilderness of Paran. And there was a man in Ma'an whose possessions were in Carmel, and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats, and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. Now, the name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. And the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance. But the man was churlish and evil in his doings, and he was of the house of Caleb. And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name, and thus shall ye say to him that liveth in prosperity. Peace be unto thee, and peace be to thy house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. And now I have heard that thou hast shears. Thy shepherds have now been with us, and we did them no hurt, neither was there ought missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee, Wherefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes, for we come in a good day. Give I pray thee whatsoever cometh to thy hand, unto thy servants, and to thy son David. And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. And Nabal answered David's servants and said, Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays that break away every man from his master. Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh, that I have killed for my shears, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they are? So David's young men turned on their way, and went back, and came and told him according to all these words. And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword? And they girded on every man his sword? And David also girded on his sword? And there went up after David about four hundred men, and two hundred abode by the baggage. But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master, and he railed at them. But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we anything as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields. They were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them, keeping the sheep. Now therefore no one consider what thou wilt do, for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house, for he is such a worthless fellow that one cannot speak to him. Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched grain, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. And she said unto her young men, Go on before me, behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband, Nabal. And it was so as she rode on her ass, and came down by the covert of the mountain, that behold, David and his men came down toward her, and she met them. Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him. And he hath returned me evil for good. God do so unto the enemies of David, and more also if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light, so much as one man child. And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and alighted from her ass, and fell before David on her face, and bound herself to the ground. And she fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my Lord, upon me be the iniquity, and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thy handmaid. Let not my Lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless fellow even Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him. But I, thy handmaid, saw not the young men of my Lord, whom thou didst send. Now therefore, my Lord, as Jehovah liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing Jehovah hath withholdened thee from blood-guiltiness, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand. Now therefore, let thine enemies, and them that seek evil to my Lord, be as Nabal. And now, this present which thy servant hath brought unto my Lord, let it be given unto the young men that follow my Lord. For give, I pray thee, the trespass of thy handmaid. For Jehovah will certainly make my Lord a sure house, because my Lord fighteth the battles of Jehovah, and evil shall not be found in thee all thy days. And though man be risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, yet the soul of my Lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with Jehovah thy God, and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out as from the hollow of a sling, and it shall come to pass when Jehovah shall have done to my Lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee Prince over Israel, that this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my Lord, either that thou hast shed blood without cause, or that my Lord hath avenged himself. And when Jehovah shall have dealt well with my Lord, then remember thy handmaid. And David said to Abigail, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me. And blessed be thy discretion, and blessed be thou, that hath kept me this day from blood-guiltiness, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. For in very deed as Jehovah the God of Israel liveth, who hath withholded me from hurting thee, except thou hath hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one man child. So David received of her hand that which she had brought him, and he said unto her, Go up in peace to thy house, see, I have harkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person. And Abigail came to Nabal, and behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king, and Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken. Wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. And it came to pass in the morning when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone, and it came to pass about ten days after that Jehovah smote Nabal, so that he died. And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be Jehovah, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back his servant from evil, and the evil doing of Nabal hath Jehovah returned upon his own head. And David sent in spake concerning Abigail to take her to him, to wife. And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying, David hath sent us unto thee to take thee to him, to wife. And she arose and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said, Behold, thy handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my Lord. And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass with five damsels of hers that followed her. And she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife. David also took a Anoam of Jezreel, and they became both of them his wives. Now Saul had given Michael his daughter, David's wife, to Palti, the son of Leish, whom was of Galim. CHAPTER 26 And the Zipfites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself in the hill of Hakkulah, which is before the desert? Then Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Zipf, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Zipf. And Saul encamped in the hill of Hakkulah, which is before the desert, by the way. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness. David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come of a certainty. And David arose, and came to the place where Saul had encamped. And David beheld the place where Saul lay. And Abner, the son of Ner, the captain of his host, and Saul lay within the place of the wagons, and the people were encamped round about him. Then answered David, and said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zariah, brother to Joab, saying, Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp? And Abishai said, I will go down with thee. So David and Abishai came to the people by night, and behold, Saul lay sleeping within the place of the wagons, with his spear stuck in the ground at his head. And Abner and the people lay round about him. Then said Abishai to David, God hath delivered up thine enemy into thy hand this day. Now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear to the earth at one stroke, and I will not smite him the second time. And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not, for who can put forth his hand against Jehovah's anointed and be guiltless? And David said, As Jehovah liveth, Jehovah will smite him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go down into battle and perish. Jehovah forbid that I should put forth my hand against Jehovah's anointed. But now, take, I pray thee, the spear that is at his head, and the cruise of water, and let us go. So David took the spear and the cruise of water from Saul's head, and they got them away, and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither did any awake, for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from Jehovah was fallen upon them. Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of the mountain afar off, a great space being between them, and David cried to the people, and to Abner, the son of Ner, saying, Answerest thou not, Abner? And Abner cried and said, Who art thou that cryest to the king? And David said to Abner, Are not thou a valiant man? And who is like to thee in Israel? Wherefore then hast thou not kept watch over thy Lord the King? For there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy Lord. This thing is not good that thou hast done. As Jehovah liveth, ye are worthy to die, because ye have not kept watch over your Lord. Jehovah's anointed. And now see where the king's spear is, and the cruise of water that was at his head. And Saul knew David's voice and said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And David said, It is my voice, my Lord. O King! And he said, Wherefore doth my Lord pursue after his servant? For what have I done? Or what evil is in my hand? Now therefore I pray thee, let my Lord the King hear the words of his servant. If it be Jehovah that hath stirred thee up against me, let him accept an offering. But if it be the children of men, cursed be they before Jehovah, for they have driven me out this day, that I should not cleave unto the inheritance of Jehovah, saying, Go serve other gods. Now therefore let not my blood fall to the earth away from the presence of Jehovah, for the king of Israel has come out to seek a flee as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains. Then said Saul, I have sinned, return, my son David, for I will no more do thee harm, because my life was precious in thine eyes this day. Behold, I have played the fool, and have aired exceedingly. David answered and said, Behold, the sphero king, let then one of the young men come over and fetch it, and Jehovah will render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness, for as much as Jehovah delivered thee into my hand today, and I would not put forth my hand against Jehovah's anointed. And behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of Jehovah, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation. Then Saul said to David, Blessed be thou, my son David, thou shalt both do mightily, and shalt surely prevail. So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place. CHAPTER 27 And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines, and Saul will despair of me to seek me any more in all the borders of Israel. So shall I escape out of his hand? And David arose and passed over he and the six hundred men that were with him, and to Akish, the son of Maok, king of Gath. And David dwelt with Akish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household, even David with his two wives, Aenoam, the Jesrolytus, and Abigail, the Carmelitus, Nabal's wife. And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath, and he sought no more again for him. And David said unto Akish, If now I have found favor in thine eyes, let them give me a place in one of the cities in the country that I may dwell there. For why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee? Then Akish gave him Ziklag that day, wherefore Ziklag pertaineth unto the kings of Judah unto this day. And the number of the days that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a full year and four months. And David and his men went up and made a raid upon the Geshurites and the Gersites and the Amalekites, for those nations were the inhabitants of the land who were of old, as thou goest to shore, even unto the land of Egypt. And David smote the land and saved neither man nor woman alive, and took away the sheep and the oxen and the asses and the camels and the apparel, and he returned and came to Akish. And Akish said, Against whom have ye made raid today? And David said, Against the south of Judah, and against the south of the Jeremilites, and against the south of the Kenites. And David saved neither man nor woman alive to bring them to Gath, saying, Lest they should tell of us, saying, So did David, and so hath been his man, or all the while he hath dwelt in the country of the Philistines. And Akish believed David, saying, He hath made his people Israel utterly to appore him. For he shall be my servant for ever." CHAPTER XXVIII And it came to pass in those days that the Philistines gathered their hosts together for warfare to fight with Israel. And Akish said unto David, Know thou assuredly that thou shalt go out with me in the host, thou and thy men. And David said to Akish, Therefore thou shalt know what thy servant will do. And Akish said to David, Therefore will I make thee keeper of my head for ever. Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards out of the land. And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and encamped in Shunem. And Saul gathered all Israel together, and they encamped in Gilboa. And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. And when Saul inquired of Jehovah, Jehovah answered him not, neither by dreams nor by earm nor by prophets. Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit that I may go to her and acquire of her. And his servant said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor. And Saul disguised himself and put on other raiment, and went he and two men with him. And they came to the woman by night, and he said, Divine unto me I pray thee, by the familiar spirit, and bring me up whomsoever I shall name unto thee. And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits and the wizards out of the land. For then layest thou a snare for my life to cause me to die. And Saul swear to her by Jehovah, saying, As Jehovah liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing. Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel. And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice, and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hath thou deceived me, for thou art Saul? And the king said unto her, Be not afraid, for what seeest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I see a God coming up out of the earth. And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up, and he is covered with a robe. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and did obsesence. And Samuel said to Saul, Why hath thou disquieted me to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed, for the Philistines make war against me. And God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by profits nor by dreams. Therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do. And Samuel said, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing Jehovah is departed from thee, and has become thine adversary? And Jehovah hath done unto thee, as he spake by me, and Jehovah hath rent the kingdom out of thy hand, and given it to thy neighbor, even to David. Because thou obeyest not the voice of Jehovah, and it's not execute his fierce wrath upon Amalek. Therefore hath Jehovah done this thing unto thee this day. Moreover, Jehovah will deliver Israel also with thee, and to the hand of the Philistines. And tomorrow, shalt thou and thy sons be with me. Jehovah will deliver the host of Israel also and to the hand of the Philistines. Then Saul fell straightway his full length upon the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel, and there was no strength in him, for he had eaten no bread all the day nor all the night. And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said unto him, Behold thy handmaid hath hearkened unto thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me. Now therefore I pray thee, hearkened thou also unto the voice of thy handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee, and eat, that thou mayest have strength when thou goest on thy way. But he refused, and said, I will not eat. But his servants together with the woman constrained him, and he hearkened unto their voice. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed, and the woman had a fatted calf in the house, and she hasted and killed it, and she took flour and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof, and she brought it before Saul, and before his servants, and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night. CHAPTER XXIX Now the Philistines gathered together all their hosts to Afec, and the Israelites encamped by the fountain which is in Jezreel. And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds and by thousands, and David and his men passed on in the rearward with Akesh. Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews hear? And Akesh said unto the princes of the Philistines, Is not this David, the servant of Saul, the king of Israel, Who hath been with me these days, or rather these years? And I have found no fault in him since he fell away unto me, unto this day. But the princes of the Philistines were wroth with him, and the princes of the Philistines said unto him, Make the man return, that he may go back to his place where thou hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us to battle, lest in the battle he become an adversary to us. For wherewith should this fellow reconcile himself unto his Lord? Should it not be with the heads of these men, is not this David, of whom they sang one to another in dances, saying, Saul slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? Then Akesh called David, and said unto him, As Jehovah liveth, thou hast been upright, and thy going out, and thy coming in with me, and the host is good in my sight, for I have not found evil in thee since the day of thy coming unto me, unto this day. Nevertheless, the lords favor thee not. Wherefore now, return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the lords of the Philistines. And David said unto Akesh, But what have I done, and what hast thou found in thy servant so long as I have been before thee, unto this day, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my Lord the King? And Akesh answered and said to David, I know that thou art good in my sight, as an angel of God, notwithstanding, the princes of the Philistines have said he shall not go up with us to the battle, wherefore now, rise up early in the morning with the servants of thy lords that are come with thee, and as soon as ye are up early in the morning and have light, depart. So David rose up early, he and his men did depart in the morning to return into the land of the Philistines, and the Philistines went up to Jezreel. CHAPTER XXXXX And it came to pass when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day that the Amalekites had made a raid upon the south and upon Ziklag, and had smitten Ziklag and burned it with fire, and had taken captive the women and all that were therein, both small and great. They slew not any, but carried them off and went their way. And when David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives and their sons and their daughters were taken captive. Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept until they had no more power to weep. And David's two wives were taken captive, Aenoam the Jezreelitis and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. And David was greatly distressed, for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters. But David strengthened himself in Jehovah, his God. And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahemalek, I pray thee, bring me hither the ephid. And Abiathar brought thither the ephid to David. And David inquired of Jehovah, saying, If I pursue after this troop shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue, for thou shalt surely overtake them, and shalt without fail recover all. So David went. He and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the brook Bessor, where those that were left behind stayed. But David pursued he and four hundred men, for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they could not go over the brook Bessor. And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat. And they gave him water to drink, and they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins. And when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him, for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights. And David said unto him, To whom belongest thou, and whence art thou? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite, and my master left me, because three days ago I fell sick. We made a raid upon the south of the kerathites, and upon that which belongedeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire. And David said to him, Will thou bring me down to this troop? And he said, Swear unto me by God that thou wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to this troop. And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the ground, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. And David smote them from the twilight, even unto the evening of the next day, and there escaped not a man of them, say four hundred young men who rode upon camels and fled. And David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives, and there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil nor anything that they had taken to them. And David brought back all, and David took all the flocks and the herds which they drove before those other cattle, and said, This is David's spoil. And David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to abide at the brook Besor, and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him. And when David came near to the people, he saluted them, then answered all the wicked men and base fellows of those that went with David, and said, Because they went not with us, we will not give them ought of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that he may lead them away and depart. Then said David, ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which Jehovah hath given unto us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand, and who will hearken unto you in this matter, for as his share is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his share be that terieth by the baggage they shall share alike. And it was so from that day forward, and he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day. And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, Behold, the present for you of the spoil of the enemies of Jehovah, to them that were in Bethel, and to them that were in Ramoth of the south, and to them that were in Jatir, and to them that were in Aror, and to them that were in Sifmoth, and to them that were in Eshtimoa, and to them that were in Raikul, and to them that were in the cities of the Jeremeelites, and to them that were in the cities of the Kenites, and to them that were in Hormah, and to them that were in Boreshan, and to them that were in Ah Thak, and to them that were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were want to haunt." CHAPTER 31 Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in Mount Gilboa. And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons, and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malkishua, the sons of Saul. And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers overtook him, and he was greatly distressed by reason of the archers. Then said Saul to his armour-bearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through and abuse me. But his armour-bearer would not, for he was sore afraid. Before Saul took his sword and fell upon it, and when his armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell upon his sword and died with him. So Saul died, and his three sons and his armour-bearer, and all his men that same day together. And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were beyond the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities and fled, and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. And it came to pass on the morrow, and the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in Mount Gilboa. They cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry the tidings unto the house of their idols and to the people. And they put his armour in the house of the ashtaroth, and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethshan. And when the inhabitants of Jabish Gilead heard concerning him that which the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Bethshan, and they came to Jabish and burnt them there. And they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabish, and fasted seven days. End of Chapter 31. And also the end of First Samuel, American Standard Version.