David answered the priest, saying to him, "Indeed, women were kept from us as is usual whenever I go out on a mission, and the equipment of the young men is consecrated even when it's an ordinary journey, so how much more is their equipment consecrated today?"

So the priest gave him consecrated bread because no bread was there except the Bread of the Presence that had been removed from the LORD's presence and replaced with hot bread on the day it was taken away.

The priest said, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the Valley of Elah is wrapped up in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want it, take it because there is no other except it here." So David said, "There is none like it. Give it to me."

David went from there to Mizpah of Moab, and he told the king of Moab, "Please let my father and mother come and stay with you until I know what God is going to do for me."

But all of you have conspired against me, and no one tells me about my son's covenant with Jesse's son. None of you feels sorry for me and tells me that my son has stirred up my servant against me to lie in wait, as he's doing this day."

The king sent for Ahitub's son Ahimelech the priest and for all his father's family who were priests at Nob. All of them came to the king.

Then Saul asked him, "Why have you conspired against me you and Jesse's son by giving him food and a sword, and by inquiring of God for him, so he can rise up against me to lie in wait, as he's doing today?"

Is today the first time I inquired of God for him? Absolutely not! The king shouldn't accuse his servant, or any of my father's family of anything, because your servant didn't know anything at all about this."

Someone told David, "Look, the Philistines are fighting at Keilah and are plundering the threshing floors."

It was reported to Saul that David had come to Keilah, and Saul said, "The LORD has delivered him into my hand because he has shut himself in by going into a town with double gates and bars."

David was afraid because Saul had come out to seek his life while David was in the wilderness of Ziph at Horesh.

Saul's son Jonathan got up and went to David at Horesh, and he encouraged him to trust in God.

The two of them made a covenant in the LORD's presence. David remained at Horesh while Jonathan went home.

People from Ziph came up to Saul at Gibeah and informed him, "David is hiding with us in the strongholds in Horesh and on the hill of Hachilah south of Jeshimon, isn't he?

Go and again make sure, find out and investigate where he is and who has seen him there, for people tell me that he's very clever.

Investigate and find out all the hiding places there where he hides, and return to me with reliable information. Then I'll go down with you, and if he's in the land, I'll search him out among all the thousands of Judah."

He told his men, "God forbid that I should do this thing to your majesty, the LORD's anointed, by stretching out my hand against him, since he's the LORD's anointed."

Then David got up, went out of the cave, and called out to Saul: "Your majesty!" Saul looked behind him, and David bowed down with his face to the ground and prostrated himself.

After whom is the king of Israel going out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog or a single flea?

For who would find his enemy and then send him away safely? May the LORD repay you for what you have done for me today.

Samuel died and all Israel assembled to mourn for him. They buried him at his home in Ramah.

Should I take my food, my water, and my meat that I've slaughtered for my shearers and give it to men who came from who knows where?"

Now, one of the young men told Nabal's wife Abigail: "Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our lord, but he screamed insults at them.

Now, be aware of this and consider what you should do. Calamity is being planned against our master and against his entire household. He's such a worthless person that no one can talk to him."

Now David had said, "Surely it was for nothing that I protected everything that belonged to this man in the wilderness, and nothing was missing of all that belonged to him. But he has repaid me with evil for good!

She fell at his feet and pleaded, "Your majesty, let the guilt be on me alone, and please let your servant speak to you. Listen to the words of your servant.

If anyone should arise to pursue you and seek your life, may the life of your majesty be bound up with the LORD your God in a bundle of the living, and may he sling out the lives of your enemies from the pocket of a sling.

this shouldn't be an obstacle or stumbling block for your majesty's conscience, that he poured out blood without cause or that your majesty delivered himself. When the LORD does good things for your majesty, remember your servant."

David took from her what she had brought him and told her, "Go up to your house in peace. Look, I've heard your request and will grant it."

Abigail returned to Nabal, and he was there in his house holding a festival like the festival of a king. Nabal's heart was glad, and he was very drunk, so she didn't tell him anything at all until morning.

When David heard that Nabal had died, he said, "Blessed be the LORD who has judged the dispute over my insult at the hand of Nabal, and has held back his servant from evil. The LORD has repaid Nabal's wickedness."

Then David sent word to Abigail that he would take her as his wife. David's servants went to Abigail at Carmel and told her, "David sent us to you to take you to him as his wife."

David sent out spies and found out for certain that Saul had arrived.

David and Abishai went to the army at night, and Saul was lying there asleep in the encampment. His spear was stuck in the ground at his head, and Abner and the army were lying all around him.

The LORD forbid that I should raise my hand against the LORD's anointed. Now take the spear that is at his head and the jug of water, and let's go."

So David took the spear and the jug of water at Saul's head, and they left. No one saw, and no one knew, because no one was awake. They were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the LORD had fallen over them.

David called out to the army and to Ner's son Abner, "Abner, won't you answer me?" Abner answered: "Who are you who calls out to the king?"

This thing that you did is not good. As the LORD lives, you deserve to die, you who didn't guard your lord, the LORD's anointed. Where is the king's spear and where is the jug of water that was at his head?"

David replied, "It is my voice, your majesty." David said, "Why is your majesty pursuing his servant? For what have I done, and what evil do I bear toward you?

Now let your majesty listen to the words of his servant. If the LORD incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. But if it is people, may they be cursed in the LORD's presence, because they have driven me out today from sharing in the inheritance of the LORD by saying, "Go serve other gods.'

Now, don't let my blood fall to the ground away from the LORD's presence. Indeed, the king of Israel has come out to seek a single flea, like someone hunts a partridge in the mountains."

David replied, "Here's the king's spear. Have one of the young men come over and get it.

David told Achish, "If it pleases you, give me a place in one of the outlying towns, so I may live there. Why should your servant live with you in the royal city?"

David answered, "Against the Negev of Judah, against the Negev of the Jerahmeelites, and against the Negev of the Kenites." David did not leave a man or woman alive to bring to Gath. He told himself, "Otherwise, they'll say, "This is what David is doing, and this has been his practice all the time he has lived in Philistine territory.'"

At that time the Philistines assembled their army for war to fight against Israel. Achish told David, "You know, of course, that you and your men will go out with me into the battle."

David told Achish, "Very well, you will now see what your servant will do." Achish told David, "Very well, I'll appoint you as my permanent bodyguard."

The Philistines assembled, moved out, and camped at Shunem, while Saul assembled all Israel and camped at Gilboa.

Saul told his servants, "Find me a woman who is a medium so I can go to her and make my inquiry through her." His servants told him, "Look, there's a woman at Endor who is a medium."

Saul disguised himself, putting on different clothes. He went along with two men to the woman at night. He said, "Consult a familiar spirit for me and bring up for me the one whom I tell you."

The woman told him, "Look, you know what Saul has done. He has removed mediums and spiritists from the land, so why are you trying to entrap me, so as to cause my death?"

When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out loudly. The woman told Saul, "Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!"

The king told her, "Don't be afraid; but what do you see?" The woman told Saul, "I see a divine being coming up out of the ground."

Saul told her, "What does he look like?" She said, "An old man is coming up, and he's wrapped in a robe." Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed low to the ground and prostrated himself.

Samuel told Saul, "Why did you disturb me by bringing me up?" Saul said, "I'm in great distress. The Philistines are waging war against me. God has departed from me and won't answer me anymore, either by messages written by the hand of the prophets or by dreams. So I've summoned you to tell me what I should do."

The LORD has done to you exactly as he spoke through me. The LORD has torn the kingdom away from you and has given it to your colleague David.

Now, please listen to your servant. I'll put a piece of bread before you so you can eat and have strength to go on your way."

Saul refused, saying, "I won't eat!"

Both his servants and the woman urged him, and so he listened to them. He got up off the ground and sat on the bed. The woman had a fattened calf in the house, and she quickly slaughtered it. She took flour, kneaded it, and baked unleavened bread.

She brought it to Saul and to his servants, and they ate. Then they got up and went out that night.

The Philistines gathered all their troops at Aphek, while Israel was camped at the spring in Jezreel.

The Philistine leaders said, "What are these Hebrews doing here?" Achish asked the Philistine leaders, "Isn't this David, the servant of King Saul of Israel, who has been with me these days, or rather these years? I've found no fault in him from the day he deserted until now."

But the Philistine leaders were angry with him, so they pleaded with him, "Send the man back! Let him return to the place you assigned him. He mustn't go into battle with us. Otherwise, he may become our adversary in the battle! How could there be a better way for this fellow to reconcile himself with his lord? Wouldn't it be with the heads of these men?

Then Achish summoned David and told him, "As surely as the LORD lives, you are trustworthy, and it seems good to me for you to campaign with me as part of the army. Indeed, I've not found any evil in you from the time you came to me until now. But the leaders don't approve of you.

David told Achish, "What have I done, and what have you found in your servant from the time I came before you until this very moment, that I shouldn't go out and fight the enemies of your majesty?"

When David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and set it on fire.

They took the women in it captive, from young to old. They did not kill anyone. Instead, they carried them off and went on their way.

David and his men came to the town, and it had been burned down. Their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive.

The LORD told David, "Pursue them! You will definitely overtake them and rescue the captives." So David and 600 men who were with him set out. They came to the Wadi Besor where those who were left behind stayed.

David and 400 men continued the pursuit, while the 200 men who were too exhausted to cross over the Wadi Besor remained there.

They found an Egyptian man in the field, and they took him to David. They gave him food to eat and provided water for him.

The Egyptian led him to the camp, and there the Amalekites were spread out over the whole area, eating, drinking, and celebrating with the great amount of spoil they had taken from the territory belonging to the Philistines and to Judah.

David came to the 200 men who were too exhausted to follow him and who had been left at the Wadi Besor. They came out to meet David and the people who were with him. As David approached the people, he asked them how they were doing.

At this point, all the wicked and worthless men of the group who had gone with David answered, "Because they didn't go with us, we won't give them any of the spoil that we recovered, except that each person may take his wife and his children and go."

David said, "No, you won't do this, my brothers, with what the LORD has given us. He guarded us and gave the raiding party that came against us into our hand.

From that day forward he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel, and it remains to this present day.

Saul told his armor bearer, "Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised people will come and run me through and make sport of me." But his armor bearer did not want to do it because he was very frightened, so Saul took the sword and fell on it.

When the residents of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,