men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou come to the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron. Jos. 15. 36. 53 And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they 54 spoiled their tents. And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it 55 to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent. A ver. St. í ver. 12 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As see ch. 16. 21, 22. 56 thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell. And the king said, Inquire thou whose 57 son the stripling is. And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine 58 in his hand. And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David auswered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite. 18 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that *the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, 'and Jonathan loved him 2 as his own soul. And Saul took him that day, "and would let him go no more 3 home to his father's house. Then Jonathan and David " made a covenant, because 4 he loved him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle. 5 6 * Ge. 44. 20. eh. 19, 2: 20. 17: eb. 20. 8-17, 42 And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely [or, prospered] and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in vers 14, 15, 30. the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants. : And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of music. 7 And the women 'answered one another as they played, and said, 'Saul hath slain his thousands,-and David his ten thousands. 9 ver. 16. Ex. 15.20; Judg. 11. 34: Pa. 68. 25 Ex. 15. 21. fch. 21. 11; 29. 5. "Ecc. 44 8 And Saul was very wroth, and the saying "displeased him; and he said, They 10 = Saul envies David, and seeks his life. AND it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house and David played with his 11 hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul's hand. And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice. 13. 14; 15. 28. ch. 16. 14, 15. a eh. 19. 24: 1 KL18 ch. 19. 9, 10; 20. 33; d vers. 15, 23. ch. 16, 13, 18. ver. 16: Num. 27. 17; 2 Sam. & 2. A ver. 5. 12 And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and was 13 departed from Saul. Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his ch. 16 14; 28. 15. 14 captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people. And David behaved himself wisely [or, prospered "] in all his ways; and the LORD 15 was with him. Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, 16 he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them. And Saul said to David, Behold my elder daughter Merab, 'her will I give ch. 17. 25. thee to wife only be thou valiant for me, and fight the LORD's battles. Forch 5 28; Num. 32 Saul said, "Let not mine hand be upon him, but let the hand of the Philistines 18 be upon him. And David said unto Saul, Who am I? and what is my life, or 19 my father's family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king? But it came to pass at the time when Merab Saul's daughter should have been given to David, that she was given unto Adriel the Meholathite to wife. And Michal Saul's daughter loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing 21 pleased him. And Saul said, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that 'the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt "this day be my son-in-law in the one of the twain. 1 Jonathan's ardent friendship for David began with admiration of his faith and courage in this great exploit, and evidently resulted from that spirit of patriotic piety which these two noble-minded men so strikingly displayed. This friendship appears to have increased as Jonathan became better acquainted with his friend's eminent virtues; overcoming, as his subsequent disinterested conduct shows, all considerations of self-interest. See ch. xx.; xxiii. 16, 17. 2 Ancient poets represent their heroes as exchanging see ver. 23: ch. 9 21; 2 Sam. 7. 18. 2 Sam. 21. 8. 9 Jule. 7. 2 ver. 28 Ex. 10. 7; Pr. 5. 2 £ ver. 17. armour in token of friendship; and, in Eastern countries, a prince can scarcely bestow a greater mark of his favour than by the gift of some article of his dress, especially if he has already worn it. 3 Or, Philistines. These verses probably anticipate some occurrences which took place at various times when David returned with Saul from following up the first victory over the Philistines. See note on ch. xvi. 1. 4 The word seems here to signify, being in a highly excited state, or phrensy. a Ge. 29. 18: 34. 12; * ver. 17. a see ver. 21. 22 And Saul commanded his servants, saying, Commune with David secretly, and 4 h 19 And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should 2 kill David. But Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David: and 'Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee: now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself until the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide 3 thyself: and I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will commune with my father of thee; and what I see, that I will tell thee. And Jonathan spake 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 5 sinned against thee, and because his works have been to thee-ward very good for he did put his life in his hand, and "slew the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great salvation for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice: Pwherefore then 6 wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause? And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul sware, As the LORD liveth, he 7 shall not be slain. And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, 'as in times past. 8 And there was war again: and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled from him. David escapes from Saul, and flees to Samuel at Ramah. b ver. 13. 2 Sam. 3 14 d ch. 24. 20. 2 Sam. 11. 1. 8 ch. 26. 21: 2 Ki. 1. 13; Ps. 116 15. A ch. 18. 1-3 k eh. 20. 32; 22. 14; Pro. 31. 8.9 1 Ge. 42. 22: Ps. 35. 12: 109, 4, 5; Pro. 17. 13, Jer. 18. 20. meh. 28. 21; Judg. 9. 17: 12. 3; Ps. 182. 109. "ch. 17. 49-51. 1 Sam. 11. 13; 1 Chr. 11. 14. P ch. 20. 32. 9 Mt. 27. 4. ch. 16. 21; 18. 2, 13. 9 AND the evil spirit from the LORD was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with ch. 16. 14; 18. 10, 11. 10 his javelin in his hand and David played with his hand. And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the javelin; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that 11 night. Saul also 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 12 thy life to-night, to-morrow thou shalt be slain. So Michal "let David down 13 through a window: and he went, and fled, and escaped. And Michal took an image, and laid it in the bed, and put a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster, 14 and covered it with a cloth. And when Saul sent messengers to take David, 15 she said, He is sick. And Saul sent the messengers again to see David, saying, 16 Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him. And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of 17 goats' hair for his bolster. And Saul said unto Michal, Why hast thou deceived me so, and sent away mine enemy, that he is escaped? And Michal answered Saul, He said unto me, Let me go; why should I kill thee? 18 Ps. 50, title, 3, 4 Ro Jos. 2. 15; Ac. 9. 24, 25. 2 Sam. 2. 22 So David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all ch. 7. 17. 19 that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth. And 20 it was told Saul, saying, Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah. And Saul sent 1 See note on Gen. xxix. 18. See also Josh. xv. 16. 2 Saul required satisfactory evidence that the men slain were Philistines. 3 Within which David was to fulfil the condition. 4 The Septuagint has 'one hundred.' See 2 Sam. iii. 14. 5 Psa. lix. was probably composed on this occasion. 6 When he should come out of his wife's apartments, which were held sacred from intrusion: but even this rule Saul disregarded at last. See ver. 15. see John 7. 32, 45, etc. 7 The Heb. is, 'teraphim.' See note on Gen. xxxi. 19; and on Judg. xvii. 5. The women appear to have been addicted to the use of such superstitious objects. Michal probably, like Rachel, kept this unknown to her husband. The husbands of Eastern princesses have very little control over the interior of the household. 8 The Eastern beds consist merely of two thick cotton quilts; and in these the sick are carried when it is necessary to remove them. b beh. 10. 5, 6; 1 Cor. 14. 3, 24, 25. Num. 11. 25; Joel 2.28. messengers to take David: and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over them, the Spirit of God was 21 upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they prophesied likewise. And Saul sent 22 messengers again the third time, and they prophesied also. Then went he also to Ramah, and came to a great well that is in Sechu: and he asked and said, Where are Samuel and David? And one said, Behold, they be at Naioth in Ramah. 23 And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah : and the Spirit of God was upon him 24 also, and he went on, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah. And he stripped off his clothes also, and prophesied before Samuel in like manner, and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Wherefore they say,2 Is / Mie. 1.8; see 2 Sam. Saul also among the prophets? The friendship and covenant of David and Jonathan. 20 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, 2 that he seeketh my life? And he said unto him, God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father will do nothing either great or small, but that he will show it 3 me: and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so. And David sware moreover, and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I have found grace 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 4 me and death. Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee. 5 And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to-morrow is the new moon,3 and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may *hide 6 myself in the field unto the third day at even. If thy father at all miss me, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run 'to Beth-lehem his 7 city for there is a yearly sacrifice [or, feast"] there for all the family. "If he say thus, It is well; thy servant shall have peace: but if he be very wroth, then 8 be sure that evil is determined by him. Therefore thou shalt deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of the LORD with thee: notwithstanding, if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father? 9 10 And Jonathan said, Far be it from thee: for if I knew certainly that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee? d ch. 10. 10. 6. 14, 20. 8 ch. 10. 11, 12 A ch. 27. 1. Num. 10. 10; 28. 11. * ch. 19. 2 ch. 16. 4; 17. 58. mor. feast, ch. 9. 12 see Deu. L 23; 2 Sam. 17. 4. eh. 25. 17; Est. 7.7. P Jon, 2 14. 9 ver. 16; ch. 18. 3; 23. 18. 2 Sam. 14. 32; P. 7. 3-5 Ru. 1. 17. teh. 10. 7: 11.6-13; 14. 47. 17. 37; 1 Chr. 22. 11, 16. 2 Sam. 9. 1-7; 21. 7. Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? or what if thy father answer 11 thee roughly? And Jonathan said unto David, Come, and let us go out into the 12 field. And they went out both of them into the field. And Jonathan said unto David, O LORD God of Israel, when I have sounded my father about to-morrow any time, or the third day, and, behold, if there be good toward David, and I 13 then send not unto thee, and show it thee; the LORD do so and much more to Jonathan: but if it please my father to do thee evil, then I will show it thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace: and the LORD be with thee, 14 as he hath been with my father. And thou shalt not only while yet I live show 15 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 5 16 of David every one from the face of the earth. So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, Let the LORD even require it at the hand of 7; 218 17 David's enemies. And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him [or, by his love toward him]: for he loved him as he loved his own soul. Then Jonathan said to David, To-morrow is the new moon: and thou shalt 19 be missed, because thy seat will be empty. And when thou hast stayed three days, then thou shalt go down quickly [or, diligently], and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself when the business was in hand, and shalt remain 20 by the stone Ezel [or, that showeth the way]. And I will shoot three arrows on 18 & 1 The messengers whom Saul sent were constrained, by a Divine impulse, to join in the exercises of the holy men whom they found there: and even Saul himself was visited in like manner; and throwing off his outer robes (which is all that the word 'naked' means), retaining only his inner vesture and his girdle, lay as it were in a trance, during which it is probable that David made his escape from Ramah, and returned to Gibeah, in order to get another interview with Jonathan. 2 This revived the use of the proverb which originated on another occasion. See 1 Sam. x. 11. 3 A sacrifice and feast took place every new moon (see 2 Sam. 4. & y ch. 18. 1, 3 a ch. 19. 2 Numb. x. 10; xxviii. 11); and on such occasions David was accustomed to join the king's family. 4 Rather, 'The Lord God of Israel (when I have,' etc., 'thee), the Lord,' etc. The sentence is interrupted by the violence of his feelings. 5 Jonathan by this shows his firm belief in David's advancement, and that entire freedom from ambitious jealousy which springs from true religious friendship. 6 That is, May he punish all David's enemies; even any of my house, if they become so.' Rather, On the third day thou shalt come down quickly.' b 21 the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark.1 And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find out the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come thou: for there is peace to 22 thee, and no hurt; as the LORD liveth. But if I say thus unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee; go thy way: for the LORD hath sent thee 23 away. And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the LORD be between thee and me for ever. 24 So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon was come, the 25 king sat him down to eat meat. And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon a seat by the wall: and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul's 26 side, and David's place was empty. Nevertheless Saul spake not anything that day for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean.2 27 And it came to pass on the morrow, which was the second day of the mouth, that David's place was empty: and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to-day? 28 And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth29 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 to be there: and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he cometh not unto the king's table. 30 30 & Jer. 4. 2. e vers. 14, 15, 42. d Le. 7. 21; 11. 24, 25, 27; 15. 5, etc. e ver. 6 Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him, Thou son of the perverse rebellious woman,s do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own confusion, and unto the confusion of thy mother's 31 nakedness? For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto 32 me, for he shall surely die. And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said 33 unto him, Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done? And Saul & cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of 11. 34 his father to slay David. So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second day of the month: for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame. 35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at 36 the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him. And he said unto his lad, Run, find out now the arrows which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an 37 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 38 thee? And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not. And 39 Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master. But the lad 40 knew not any thing: only Jonathan and David knew the matter. And Jonathan gave his artillery unto his lad, and said unto him, Go carry them to the city. 41 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 himself three times: and they 42 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 [or, the LORD be witness of that which we have sworn both of us], saying, The LORD 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.5 David flees to Nob, and thence to Gath, and to the wilderness of Judah. 21 THEN came David to Nob to 'Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no 2 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 I have 3 appointed my servants to such and such a place. Now therefore what is under 1 These signals were agreed upon in case they should be unable to have a private interview. 2 Supposing that his absence from the sacrificial feast was caused by some ceremonial defilement. 3 It is a common practice among Eastern nations to express resentment against a person by abusing his parents, especially his mother, though without any personal ill feelings towards them: so that Saul, in speaking thus of his wife, intended merely to give the keenest edge to his abuse of Jonathan. 4 Rather, as in ch. xxi. 8, 'his weapons.' 5 The two friends appear never to have met again, ch. 19.5; Mt. 27. 23; L.k. 23. 22. A ver. 7. i eh. 1. 17. * see ver. 23. ch. 14. 3, called Ahigh; called also Abiathar, Mk. 2. 26. mcb. 16. 4. except once by stealth in a wood (ch. xxiii. 16). 6 While the ark remained at Kirjath-jearim, the priests probably removed the sacred utensils, and perhaps the tabernacle, to various places for safety. Nob is supposed to have been in the immediate vicinity of Jerusalem, on or near the mount of Olives. See Isa. x. 32. 7 David's conduct at Nob, and some other of his actions about this period, indicate a low state of religious sensibility, and a want of that confidence in God which at other times so much distinguished him. He evidently needed all the discipline of subsequent years, with much of the influence of the Spirit of God. "Ex. 25. 37; Lev. 24. P1 Thes. 4. 3, 4: 2 Tim. 2. 21; 1 Pet. 37. 9 Le. 24. 9. Mr. 12 3, 4: Mk. 2 25, 26; Lk. 6. 3, 4. Le. 24, 5-9. "Ez. 33. 31; thine hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand, or what there is present. 4 And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is " hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at 5 least from women. And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the P vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, 6 yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel. So the priest gave him hallowed bread:2 for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken 7 away. (Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, "detained 3 before the LORD; and his name was * Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herd8 men that belonged to Saul.) And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor 9 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 valley of ch. 17. 51-54 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. 10 a And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the 11 king of Gath. And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the kings of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, 12 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. 13 And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon 14 his beard. Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: 15 wherefore then have ye brought him to me? Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house? 3 22 David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam:7 and 6 9 WHEN Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him, (now Saul abode in Gibeah under a tree in Ramah, having his spear in his hand, 1 Rather, especially when this day there is consecrated bread placed in the vessel,' i. e. on the table. For 'vessels,' by a slight change, the Septuagint reads 'all,' which improves the sense. The meaning of this obscure verse is supposed to be, that as David and his men were ceremonially clean, and the shewbread was so far common that it was removed every week, and was used as food by the family of the priest, Ahimelech need not hesitate to let him have it. As there was shewbread removed from the table, but not yet eaten, these events may probably have occurred on the sabbath, when the bread is supposed to have been changed. 2 The shewbread taken from the table was appropriated exclusively to the priests and their families; but Moses distinctly taught that ritual observances ought to give place to moral duties. Our Lord alludes to this in Mark ii. 25. Ahimelech seems to have yielded out of respect to the pretended royal command. 3 Doeg may possibly have been detained on his way to Gibeah by some vow or purification, or by the occurrence of the sabbath. 4 According to Josephus, David had consecrated this sword to God as a kind of votive offering. 5 This has been thought to show that David was widely known to be the destined king of Israel. 6 That is, when taken by them. See the superscription Am. 8. 5 ch. 2, 50. @see ch. 31. 10 bor, Abimelech, Ps. 34, title. P. 56, title. d ch. 18. 7; 22. 5. L. 2 19. P34, title; Pro. Ps. 34, title: 57. title; 142, rirle A 2 Sam. 23 13 Judg. 11. 3 & 2 Sam. 24. 11; 1 Chr. 21. 9; 2 Chr. 29. 25. of Psa. lvi., which is supposed to have been written upon this occasion. Psa. xxxiv. may also be of the same date. 7 There was a town named Adullam in the plain country of the tribe of Judah (Josh. xv. 35; xii. 15; 2 Chron. xi. 7); but this cave was probably in the mountainous wilderness in the east of Judah, towards the Dead Sea, where many such caves exist. About six miles south of Bethlehem there is an immense natural cavern, which can be approached only on foot along the side of steep cliffs, with a number of winding passages and chambers, forming altogether a perfect labyrinth. This would lie between Gath and the land of Moab. 8 Some of these afterwards rose to eminent stations in David's service (see 1 Chron. xi. 15, etc.) They doubtless owed much to his discipline, influence, and example. Many think that David wrote Psa. cxlii. about this time. 9 It is not stated why David particularly selected Moab as a place of shelter for his aged parents; but as Ruth, one of his ancestors, had been a Moabitess (see Ruth iv. 17), he perhaps hoped that some regard for her descendants might still exist in that country. 10 One of the natural fortresses in the south-east of Judah. The position and the name suggest the probability that this may have been the site of the celebrated fort of Masada, the last in Judæa which yielded to the Romans. |