The First Book of Samuel

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- Chapter 21 -

(Matthew 12:1–8; Mark 2:23–28; Luke 6:1–5)

David fled from there and went to the city of Nob to see Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech trembled when he saw David because he was afraid that something bad had happened. He said to David, “Why are you alone? Why have no men come with you?”

David deceived Ahimelech by replying, “The king sent me. But he does not want anyone to know anything about what he sent me to do. I have told my men where they should meet me.

Now I want to know, do you have any food here for me to eat? Could you give me five loaves of bread, or whatever other food that you can find?”

The priest answered David, “There is no ordinary bread here, but I have some of the sacred bread that was placed before Yahweh. Your men may eat it if they have not slept with women recently.”

David replied, “They have not been near women for many days. I do not allow my men to defile themselves by sleeping with women while they are preparing to fight in battles. They must continue to keep themselves acceptable to God when they are on ordinary trips, and today they have certainly kept themselves acceptable to God because now we are doing something very special.”

Now the only bread that the priest had was the bread on display before God, the bread that had been placed in Yahweh’s presence in the sacred tent. So the priest gave David some of that bread. On that day the priest had taken those loaves from the table and replaced them with fresh loaves.

It happened that Doeg, from the Edom people group, was there on that day to make himself acceptable to Yahweh, and he saw what Ahimelech did. He was one of Saul’s officials and the leader of Saul’s shepherds.

David Flees to Gath

(Psalm 34:1–22; Psalm 56:1–13)

David asked Ahimelech, “Do you have a spear or a sword that I can use? The king appointed us to do this task and told us to leave immediately, so I did not have time to bring any weapons.”

Ahimelech replied, “I have only the sword that belonged to Goliath the giant from the Philisti people group whom you killed in Elah Valley. It is wrapped in a cloth, and is behind the sacred apron in the sacred tent. If you want it, take it, because I have no other weapon here.” David replied, “Truly, there is no other sword that is as good as that one! Give it to me.”

So Ahimelech gave it to him, and David left there. He and his men went to the city of Gath in the region of Philistia, to stay with King Achish.

But the officers of King Achish did not approve of David’s coming. They said to King Achish, “This man David is just as powerful as the king of his land. Our enemies, the Israelite people, honored him by dancing and singing, ’Saul has killed thousands of his enemies, but David has killed tens of thousands of them!’”

David heard what those men were saying, so he was afraid of what King Achish might do to him.

So he pretended that he was insane. He started scratching on the gates of the city and allowing his saliva to run down his beard.

Then King Achish said to his men, “Look at this man! He is acting like an insane man! Why have you brought him to me?

Have you brought him because I do not already have enough insane men here in my house?”

(Matthew 12:1–8; Mark 2:23–28; Luke 6:1–5)

Then David came to Nob to Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech came to meet David trembling, and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no man with you?”

David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has commanded me to do something, and has said to me, ‘Let no one know anything about the business about which I send you, and what I have commanded you. I have sent the young men to a certain place.’

Now therefore what is under your hand? Please give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever is available.”

The priest answered David, and said, “I have no common bread, but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women.”

David answered the priest, and said to him, “Truly, women have been kept from us as usual these three days. When I came out, the vessels of the young men were holy, though it was only a common journey. How much more then 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 the LORD, to be replaced with 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 the LORD; and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the best of the herdsmen who belonged to Saul.

David Flees to Gath

(Psalm 34:1–22; Psalm 56:1–13)

David said to Ahimelech, “Isn’t there here under your hand spear or sword? For I haven’t brought my sword or my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.”

The priest said, “Behold, the sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the valley of Elah, is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you would like to take that, take it, for there is no other except that here.” David said, “There is none like that. Give it to me.”

David arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.

The servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David the king of the land? Didn’t they sing to one another about him in dances, saying, ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?”

David laid up these words in his heart, and was very afraid of Achish the king of Gath.

He changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands, and scribbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down on his beard.

Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why then have you brought him to me?

Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Should this fellow come into my house?”