⁴ And the men of David said to him, ^(A)“Here is the day of which the Lord said to you, ‘Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.’” Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul's robe.

^23 (A)The Lord rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness, for the Lord gave you into my hand today, and I would not put out my hand against the Lord's anointed.

⁸ Then Abishai said to David, ^(A)“God has given your enemy into your hand this day. Now please let me pin him to the earth with one stroke of the spear, and I will not strike him twice.” ⁹ But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can put out his hand ^(B)against the Lord's anointed and be guiltless?” ¹⁰ And David said, ^(C)“As the Lord lives, ^(D)the Lord will strike him, or ^(E)his day will come to die, ^(F)or he will go down into battle and perish. ^11 (G)The Lord forbid that I should put out my hand against the Lord's anointed. But take now the spear that is ^(H)at his head and the jar of water, and let us go.”

¹⁰ Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the Lord gave you today into my hand in the cave. ^(A)And some told me to kill you, but I spared you.^[a] I said, ‘I will not put out my hand against my lord, ^(B)for he is the Lord's anointed.’

²⁸ Please forgive the trespass of your servant. For the Lord will certainly make my lord ^(A)a sure house, because my lord ^(B)is fighting the battles of the Lord, and evil shall not be found in you so long as you live. ²⁹ If men rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living in the care of the Lord your God. And the lives of your enemies ^(C)he shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling. ³⁰ And when the Lord has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you and has appointed you prince^[a] over Israel,

¹⁸ And you have declared this day how you have dealt well with me, in that you did not kill me when the Lord put me into your hands.

¹⁷ And he said to him, “Do not fear, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you. You shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you. ^(A)Saul my father also knows this.”

⁷ Now it was told Saul that David had come to Keilah. And Saul said, “God has given him into my hand, for he has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars.”

⁸ and brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David at Hebron. And they said to the king, “Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul, your enemy, ^(A)who sought your life. The Lord has avenged my lord the king this day on Saul and on his offspring.”