And when the boy had gone, David came from his secret place by the hill, and falling to the earth went down on his face three times: and they gave one another a kiss, weeping together, till David's grief was the greater.

And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, for we two have taken an oath, in the name of the Lord, saying, The Lord will be between me and you, and between my seed and your seed for ever. Then David went away, and Jonathan went into the town.

Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was full of fear at meeting David, and said to him, Why are you by yourself, having no man with you?

And David said to Ahimelech the priest, The king has given me orders and has said to me, Say nothing to anyone about the business on which I am sending you and the orders I have given you: and a certain place has been fixed to which the young men are to go.

And the priest, answering David, said, I have no common bread here but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women.

And David in answer said to the priest, Certainly women have been kept from us; and as has been done before when I have gone out the arms of the young men were made holy, even though it was a common journey; how much more today will their arms be made holy.

And David said to Ahimelech, Have you no sword or spear with you here? for I have come without my sword and other arms, because the king's business had to be done quickly.

And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you put to death in the valley of Elah, is here folded in a cloth at the back of the ephod: take that, if you will, for there is no other sword here. And David said, there is no other sword like that; give it to me.

Then David got up and went in flight that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish, the king of Gath.

And the servants of Achish said to him, Is not this David, the king of the land? did they not make songs about him in their dances, saying, Saul has put to death thousands, and David tens of thousands?

And David took these words to heart, fearing Achish, the king of Gath.

So David went away from there and took cover in a strong place at Adullam; and his brothers and all his father's people, hearing of it, went down to him there.

And from there David went to Mizpeh in the land of Moab: and he said to the king of Moab, Let my father and mother come and make their living-place with you till it is clear to me what God will do for me.

And he took them to the king of Moab and they went on living with him while David was in his safe place.

And the prophet Gad said to David, Do not go on living in this place but go into the land of Judah. Then David went away and came to the woodland of Hereth.

And news was given to Saul that David had been seen, and the men who were with him: now Saul was in Gibeah, seated under the tree in the high place, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were in their places before him.

Then Ahimelech answering said to the king, Who among all your servants is so true to you as David, who is the king's son-in-law, and is a captain of your armed men, and has a place of honour in your house?

Then the king said to the runners who were waiting near him, Put the priests of the Lord to death; because they are on David's side, and having knowledge of his flight, did not give me word of it. But the king's servants would not put out their hands to make an attack on the Lord's priests.

And Abiathar, one of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, got away and went in flight after David;

And David said to Abiathar, I was certain that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would take the news to Saul: I am responsible for the lives of all your father's family.

And they sent word to David, saying, The Philistines are fighting against Keilah and taking the grain from the grain-floors.

So David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go and make an attack on these Philistines? And the Lord said to David, Go and make an attack on the Philistines so that Keilah may be kept from falling into their hands.

And David's men said to him, Even here in Judah we are full of fear: how much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?

Then David put the question to the Lord again, and the Lord answering said, Up! go down to Keilah; for I will give the Philistines into your hands

So David and his men went to Keilah, and had a fight with the Philistines, and took away their cattle, and put them to the sword with great destruction. So David was the saviour of the people of Keilah.

Now when Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, went in flight to David, he came down to Keilah with the ephod in his hand.

And news was given to Saul that David had come to Keilah. And Saul said, Now God has given him into my hands; for by going into a walled town with locked doors, he has let himself be shut in.

And Saul sent for all the people to come to the fight, and go down to Keilah to make an attack on David and his men.

And it was clear to David that Saul had evil designs against him, and he said to Abiathar the priest, Come here with the ephod.

Then David said, O Lord, the God of Israel, news has been given to your servant that it is Saul's purpose to come to Keilah and send destruction on the town because of me.

Then David said, Will the men of Keilah give me and my men up to Saul? and the Lord said, They will give you up.

Then David and his men, about six hundred of them, went out of Keilah, and got away wherever they were able to go. And Saul, hearing that David had got away from Keilah, did not go there.

And David kept in the waste land, in safe places, waiting in the hill-country in the waste land of Ziph. And Saul was searching for him every day, but God did not give him up into his hands

And David was full of fear, in the knowledge that Saul had come out to take his life; and David was in the waste land of Ziph, in Horesh.

And Saul's son Jonathan went to David in Horesh, and made his hands strong in God;

And the two of them made an agreement before the Lord: and David went on living in Horesh, and Jonathan went back to his house.

Then the Ziphites came up to Gibeah to see Saul, and said, Is not David living secretly among us in the strong places in Horesh, in the hill of Hachilah to the south of the waste land

And they went back and came to Ziph before Saul: but David and his men were in the waste land of Maon, in the dry land south of the waste land.

And Saul and his men went in search of him. And David had word of it, so he came down to the rock in the waste land of Maon. And Saul, hearing of this, went after David into the waste land of Maon.

And Saul and his men went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men went on the other: and David's purpose was to get away as quickly as possible, for fear of Saul; for Saul and his men were making a circle round David and his men in order to take them.

So turning back from going after David, Saul went against the Philistines: so that place was named Sela-hammah-lekoth.

And from there, David went up and took cover in the safe place of En-gedi.

Now when Saul came back from fighting the Philistines, news was given him that David was in the waste land of En-gedi.

Then Saul took three thousand of the best men out of all Israel, and went in search of David and his men on the rocks of the mountain goats.

And on the way he came to a place where sheep were kept, where there was a hollow in the rock; and Saul went in for a private purpose. Now David and his men were in the deepest part of the hollow.

And David's men said to him, Now is the time when the Lord says to you, I will give up your hater into your hands to do with him whatever seems good to you. Then David, getting up, took the skirt of Saul's robe in his hand, cutting off the end of it without his knowledge.

And later, David was full of regret for cutting off Saul's skirt.

And David said to his men, Before the Lord, never let it be said that my hand was lifted up against my lord, the man of the Lord's selection, for the Lord's holy oil has been put on him.

So with these words David kept his servants back, and did not let them make an attack on Saul. And Saul got up and went on his way.

And after that David came out of the hollow rock, and crying after Saul said, My lord the king. And when Saul gave a look back, David went down on his face and gave him honour.

And David said to Saul, Why do you give any attention to those who say that it is my desire to do you wrong?

Now when David had said these words to Saul, Saul said, Is this your voice, David, my son? And Saul was overcome with weeping.

And he said to David, You are right and I am wrong: for you have given me back good, but I have given you evil.

And David gave Saul his oath. And Saul went back to his house; but David and his men went up to their safe place.

And death came to Samuel; and all Israel came together, weeping for him, and put his body in its resting-place in his house at Ramah. Then David went down to the waste land of Maon.

And David had word in the waste land that Nabal was cutting the wool of his sheep.

And David sent ten young men, and said to them, Go up to Carmel and go to Nabal, and say kind words to him in my name;

If your young men are questioned they will say the same thing. So now, let my young men have grace in your eyes, for we are come at a good time; please give anything you may have by you to your servants and to your son David.

And when David's young men came, they said all this to Nabal, in David's name, and said nothing more.

And Nabal gave them his answer and said, Who is David? who is the son of Jesse? there are a number of servants in these days running away from their masters.

So David's young men, turning away, went back and gave him an account of everything he had said.

And David said to his men, Put on your swords, every one of you. And every man put on his sword; and David did the same; and about four hundred men went up with David, and two hundred kept watch over their goods.

But one of the young men said to Nabal's wife Abigail, David sent men from the waste land to say kind words to our master, and he gave them a rough answer.

Now while she was going down under cover of the mountain on her ass, David and his men came down against her, and suddenly she came face to face with them.

Now David had said, What was the use of my taking care of this man's goods in the waste land, so that there was no loss of anything which was his? he has only given me back evil for good.

May God's punishment be on David, if when morning comes there is so much as one male of his people still living.

And when Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her ass, falling down on her face before him.

And David said to Abigail, May the Lord, the God of Israel, be praised, who sent you to me today:

Then David took from her hands her offering: and he said to her, Go back to your house in peace; see, I have given ear to your voice, and taken your offering with respect.

And David, hearing that Nabal was dead, said, May the Lord be praised, who has taken up my cause against Nabal for the shame which he put on me, and has kept back his servant from evil, and has sent on Nabal's head the reward of his evil-doing. And David sent word to Abigail, desiring to take her as his wife.

And when David's servants came to Carmel, to Abigail, they said to her, David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife.

Then Abigail got up quickly and went on her ass, with five of her young women, after the men whom David had sent; and she became David's wife.

And David had taken Ahinoam of Jezreel, to be his wife; these two were his wives.

Now Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Palti the son of Laish of Gallim.

And the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, and said, Is not David waiting secretly near us in the hill of Hachilah, before the waste land?

Then Saul went down to the waste land of Ziph, taking with him three thousand of the best men of Israel, to make search for David in the waste land of Ziph.

And Saul put up his tents on the hill of Hachilah, which is in front of the waste land on the road. But David was in the waste land, and he saw that Saul was coming after him.

And so David sent out watchers, and got word from them that Saul was certainly coming.

And David got up and came to the place where Saul's tents were: and David had a view of the place where Saul was sleeping with Abner, the son of Ner, the captain of his army: and Saul was sleeping inside the ring of carts, and the tents of the people were all round him.

Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, brother of Joab, Who will go down with me to the tents of Saul? And Abishai said, I will go down with you.

So David and Abishai came down to the army by night: and Saul was sleeping inside the ring of carts with his spear planted in the earth by his head: and Abner and the people were sleeping round him.

Then Abishai said to David, God has given up your hater into your hands today; now let me give him one blow through to the earth with his spear, and there will be no need to give him a second.

And David said to Abishai Do not put him to death; for who, without sin, may put out his hand against the man on whom the Lord has put the holy oil?

And David said, By the living Lord, the Lord will send destruction on him; the natural day of his death will come, or he will go into the fight and come to his end.

So David took the spear and the vessel of water from Saul's head; and they got away without any man seeing them, or being conscious of their coming, or awaking; for they were all sleeping because a deep sleep from the Lord had come on them.

Then David went over to the other side, and took his place on the top of a mountain some distance away, with a great space between them;

And crying out to the people and to Abner, the son of Ner, David said, Have you no answer to give, Abner? Then Abner said, Who is that crying out to the king?

And David said to Abner, Are you not a man of war? is there any other like you in Israel? why then have you not kept watch over your lord the king? for one of the people came in to put the king your lord to death.

And Saul, conscious that the voice was David's, said, Is that your voice, David, my son? And David said, It is my voice, O my lord king.

Then Saul said, I have done wrong: come back to me, David my son: I will do you no more wrong, because my life was dear to you today truly, I have been foolish and my error is very great.

Then David said, Here is the king's spear! let one of the young men come over and get it.

Then Saul said to David, May a blessing be on you, David, my son; you will do great things and without doubt you will overcome. Then David went on his way, and Saul went back to his place.

And David said to himself, Some day death will come to me by the hand of Saul: the only thing for me to do is to get away into the land of the Philistines; then Saul will give up hope of taking me in any part of the land of Israel: and so I may be able to get away from him.

So David and the six hundred men who were with him went over to Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath.

And David and his men were living with Achish at Gath; every man had his family with him, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail of Carmel, who had been the wife of Nabal.

And Saul, hearing that David had gone to Gath, went after him no longer.

Then David said to Achish, If now I have grace in your eyes, let me have a place in one of the smaller towns of your land, to be my living-place; for it is not right for your servant to be living with you in the king's town.

And David was living in the land of the Philistines for the space of a year and four months.

And David and his men went up and made attacks on the Geshurites and the Girzites and the Amalekites; for these were the people who were living in the land from Telam on the way to Shur, as far as Egypt.

And David again and again made attacks on the land till not a man or a woman was still living; and he took away the sheep and the oxen and the asses and the camels and the clothing; and he came back to Achish.