⁶ He said to his men, ^(A)“The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the Lord's anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is ^(B)the Lord's anointed.” ⁷ So David persuaded his men with these words ^(C)and did not permit them to attack Saul. And Saul rose up and left the cave and went on his way.

⁸ Afterward David also arose and went out of the cave, and called after Saul, “My lord the king!” And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth and paid homage. ⁹ And David said to Saul, “Why do you listen to the words of men who say, ‘Behold, David seeks your harm’? ¹⁰ Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the Lord gave you today into my hand in the cave. ^(D)And some told me to kill you, but I spared you.^[a] I said, ‘I will not put out my hand against my lord, ^(E)for he is the Lord's anointed.’

⁶ Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Joab's brother ^(A)Abishai the son of Zeruiah, ^(B)“Who will go down with me into the camp to Saul?” And Abishai said, “I will go down with you.” ⁷ So David and Abishai went to the army by night. And there lay Saul sleeping within ^(C)the encampment, with his spear stuck in the ground ^(D)at his head, and Abner and the army lay around him. ⁸ Then Abishai said to David, ^(E)“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 ^(F)against the Lord's anointed and be guiltless?” ¹⁰ And David said, ^(G)“As the Lord lives, ^(H)the Lord will strike him, or ^(I)his day will come to die, ^(J)or he will go down into battle and perish. ^11 (K)The Lord forbid that I should put out my hand against the Lord's anointed. But take now the spear that is ^(L)at his head and the jar of water, and let us go.” ¹² So David took the spear and the jar of water from Saul's head, and they went away. No man saw it or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep, because ^(M)a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen upon them.

¹³ Then David went over to the other side and stood far off on the top of the hill, with a great space between them. ¹⁴ And David called to the army, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not answer, Abner?” Then Abner answered, “Who are you who calls to the king?” ¹⁵ And David said to Abner, “Are you not a man? Who is like you in Israel? Why then have you not kept watch over your lord the king? For one of the people came in to destroy the king your lord. ¹⁶ This thing that you have done is not good. ^(N)As the Lord lives, you deserve to die, because you have not kept watch over your lord, the Lord's anointed. And now see where the king's spear is and the jar of water that was ^(O)at his head.”

¹⁴ David said to him, “How is it you were not ^(A)afraid to put out your hand to destroy ^(B)the Lord's anointed?”