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1 Samuel 21:10-22:1
New King James Version
1 Samuel 21:10-22:1
New King James Version
David Flees to Gath
10 Then David arose and fled that day from before Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. 11 And (A)the servants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying:
(B)‘Saul has slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands’?”
12 Now David (C)took these words [a]to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 13 So (D)he changed his behavior before them, pretended [b]madness in their hands, [c]scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard. 14 Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me? 15 Have I need of madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?”
David’s Four Hundred Men(E)
22 David therefore departed from there and (F)escaped (G)to the cave of Adullam. So when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 21:12 Lit. in his heart
- 1 Samuel 21:13 insanity
- 1 Samuel 21:13 scribbled
1 Samuel 21:10-22:1
New International Version
1 Samuel 21:10-22:1
New International Version
David at Gath
10 That day David fled from Saul and went(A) to Achish king of Gath. 11 But the servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Isn’t he the one they sing about in their dances:
“‘Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands’?”(B)
12 David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath. 13 So he pretended to be insane(C) in their presence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a madman, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting saliva run down his beard.
14 Achish said to his servants, “Look at the man! He is insane! Why bring him to me? 15 Am I so short of madmen that you have to bring this fellow here to carry on like this in front of me? Must this man come into my house?”
David at Adullam and Mizpah
22 David left Gath and escaped to the cave(D) of Adullam.(E) When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.