| Chapter 21 |
1 |
Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech came to meet David trembling, and said to him, Why are you alone, and no man with you? |
2 |
David said to Ahimelech the priest, The king has commanded me a business, and has said to me, Let no man know anything of the business about which I send you, and what I have commanded you: and I have appointed the young men to such and such a place. |
3 |
Now therefore what is under your hand? give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever there is present. |
4 |
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. |
5 |
David answered the priest, and said to 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 then today shall their vessels be holy? |
6 |
So the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the show bread, that was taken from before Yahweh, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away. |
7 |
Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before Yahweh; and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the best of the herdsmen who belonged to Saul. |
8 |
David said to Ahimelech, Isn`t there here under your hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king`s business required haste. |
9 |
The priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the vale of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if you will take that, take it; for there is no other except that here. David said, There is none like that; give it me. |
10 |
David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. |
11 |
The servants of Achish said to him, "Isn`t this David the king of the land? Didn`t they sing one to another about him in dances, saying, `Saul has slain his thousands, David his ten thousands?`" |
12 |
David laid up these words in his heart, and was very afraid of Achish the king of Gath. |
13 |
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 on his beard. |
14 |
Then said Achish to his servants, Look, you see the man is mad; why then have you brought him to me? |
15 |
Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house? |