The Bible (Old and New Testaments)

And the servants of Saul told him, saying: 'On this manner spoke David.'

And Saul said: 'Thus shall ye say to David: The king desireth not any dowry, but a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies.' For Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines.

And when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to be the king's son-in-law. And the days were not expired;

and David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men; and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full number to the king, that he might be the king's son-in-law. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife.

And Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David; and Michal Saul's daughter loved him.

And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul was David's enemy continually.

Then the princes of the Philistines went forth; and it came to pass, as often as they went forth, that David prospered more than all the servants of Saul; so that his name was much set by.

And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should slay David; but Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David.

And Jonathan told David, saying: 'Saul my father seeketh to slay thee; now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself in the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself.

And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will speak with my father of thee; and if I see aught, I will tell thee.'

And Jonathan spoke good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him: 'Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his work hath been very good towards thee;

for he put his life in his hand, and smote the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great victory for all Israel; thou sawest it, and didst rejoice; wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?'

And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan; and Saul swore: 'As the LORD liveth, he shall not be put to death.'

And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan told him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as beforetime.

And there was war again; and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled before him.

And an evil spirit from the LORD was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing with his hand.

And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the spear; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the spear into the wall; and David fled, and escaped that night.

And Saul sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning; and Michal David's wife told him, saying: 'If thou save not thy life to-night, to-morrow thou shalt be slain.'

So Michal let David down through the window; and he went, and fled, and escaped.

And Michal took the teraphim, and laid it in the bed, and put a quilt of goats' hair at the head thereof, and covered it with a cloth.

And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said: 'He is sick.'

And Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying: 'Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him.'

And when the messengers came in, behold, the teraphim was in the bed, with the quilt of goats' hair at the head thereof.

And Saul said unto Michal: 'Why hast thou deceived me thus, and let mine enemy go, that he is escaped?' And Michal answered Saul: 'He said unto me: Let me go; why should I kill thee?'

Now David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth.

And it was told Saul, saying: 'Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.'

And Saul sent messengers to take David; and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over them, the spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied.

And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied.

Then went he also to Ramah, and came to the great cistern that is in Secu; and he asked and said: 'Where are Samuel and David?' And one said: 'Behold, they are at Naioth in Ramah.'

And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah; and the spirit of God came upon him also, and he went on, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah.

And he also stripped off his clothes, and he also prophesied before Samuel, and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Wherefore they say: 'Is Saul also among the prophets?'

And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan: 'What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life?'

And he said unto him: 'Far from it; thou shalt not die; behold, my father doeth nothing either great or small, but that he discloseth it unto me; and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so.'

And David swore moreover, and said: 'Thy father knoweth well that I have found favour in thine eyes; and he saith: Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved; but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death.'

Then said Jonathan unto David: 'What doth thy soul desire, that I should do it for thee?'

And David said unto Jonathan: 'Behold, to-morrow is the new moon, when I should sit with the king to eat; so let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even.

If thy father miss me at all, then say: David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his city; for it is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family.

If he say thus: It is well; thy servant shall have peace; but if he be wroth, then know that evil is determined by him.

Therefore deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of the LORD with thee; but if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?'

And Jonathan said: 'Far be it from thee; for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee?

Then said David to Jonathan: 'Who shall tell me if perchance thy father answer thee roughly?'

And Jonathan said unto David: 'Come and let us go out into the field.' And they went out both of them into the field.

And Jonathan said unto David: 'The LORD, the God of Israel — when I have sounded my father about this time to-morrow, or the third day, behold, if there be good toward David, shall I not then send unto thee, and disclose it unto thee?

The LORD do so to Jonathan, and more also, should it please my father to do thee evil, if I disclose it not unto thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace; and the LORD be with thee, as He hath been with my father.

And thou shalt not only while yet I live show me the kindness of the LORD, that I die not;

but also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever; no, not when the LORD hath cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth.'

So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David: 'The LORD even require it at the hand of David's enemies.'

And Jonathan caused David to swear again, for the love that he had to him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.

And Jonathan said unto him: 'To-morrow is the new moon; and thou wilt be missed, thy seat will be empty.

And in the third day thou shalt hide thyself well, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself in the day of work, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel.

And I will shoot three arrows to the side-ward, as though I shot at a mark.

And, behold, I will send the lad: Go, find the arrows. If I say unto the lad: Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee; take them, and come; for there is peace to thee and no hurt, as the LORD liveth.

But if I say thus unto the boy: Behold, the arrows are beyond thee; go thy way; for the LORD hath sent thee away.

And as touching the matter which I and thou have spoken of, behold, the LORD is between me and thee for ever.'

So David hid himself in the field; and when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to the meal to eat.

And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon the seat by the wall; and Jonathan stood up, and Abner sat by Saul's side; but David's place was empty.

Nevertheless Saul spoke not any thing that day; for he thought: 'Something hath befallen him, he is unclean; surely he is not clean.'

And it came to pass on the morrow after the new moon, which was the second day, that David's place was empty; and Saul said unto Jonathan his son: 'Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to the meal, neither yesterday, nor to-day?'

And Jonathan answered Saul: 'David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem;

and he said: Let me go, I pray thee; for our family hath a sacrifice in the city; and my brother, he hath commanded me; and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he is not come unto the king's table.'

Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him: 'Thou son of perverse rebellion, do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own shame, and unto the shame of thy mother's nakedness?

For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the earth, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he deserveth to die.'

And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him: 'Wherefore should he be put to death? what hath he done?'

And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him; whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to put David to death.

So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no food the second day of the month; for he was grieved for David, and because his father had put him to shame.

And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him.

And he said unto his lad: 'Run, find now the arrows which I shoot.' And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.

And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said: 'Is not the arrow beyond thee?'

And Jonathan cried after the lad: 'Make speed, hasten, stay not.' And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master.

But the lad knew not any thing; only Jonathan and David knew the matter.

And Jonathan gave his weapons unto his lad, and said unto him: 'Go, carry them to the city.'

And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of a place toward the South, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down three times; and they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded.

And Jonathan said to David: 'Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the LORD, saying: The LORD shall be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed, for ever.' And he arose and departed; and Jonathan went into the city.

Then came David to Nob 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 any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee; and the young men have I appointed to such and such a place.

Now therefore what is under thy hand? five loaves of bread? give them in my hand, or whatsoever there is present.'

And 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 then to-day, when there shall be holy bread in their vessels?'

So the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the showbread, that was taken from before the LORD, 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 the LORD; and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul. —

And David said unto Ahimelech: 'And is there peradventure 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 vale of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod; 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 sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath.

And he changed his demeanour 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, when ye see a man that is mad, wherefore do ye bring him to me?

Do I lack madmen, that ye have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?'

David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave of Adullam; and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither 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 Mizpeh 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 Ramah, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him.

And Saul said unto his servants that stood about him: 'Hear now, ye Benjamites; 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 was none that disclosed it to me when my son made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or discloseth 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 was set over the servants of Saul, and said: 'I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub.

And he inquired of the LORD 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 Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob; and they came all of them to the king.

And Saul said: 'Hear now, thou son of Ahitub.' And he answered: 'Here I am, my lord.'