54 Written by David at the time the men of Ziph tried to betray him to Saul.

Come with great power,^[a] O God, and save me! Defend me with your might! ² Oh, listen to my prayer. ³ For violent men have risen against me—ruthless men who care nothing for God are seeking my life.

⁴ But God is my helper. He is a friend of mine!^{[b] 5} He will cause the evil deeds of my enemies to boomerang upon them. Do as you promised and put an end to these wicked men, O God. ⁶ Gladly I bring my sacrifices to you; I will praise your name, O Lord, for it is good.

⁷ God has rescued me from all my trouble, and triumphed over my enemies.

¹⁹ But now the men of Ziph went to Saul in Gibeah and betrayed David to him.

“We know where he is hiding,” they said. “He is in the caves of Horesh on Hachilah Hill, down in the southern part of the wilderness. ²⁰ Come on down, sir, and we will catch him for you and your fondest wish will be fulfilled!”

²¹ “Well, praise the Lord!” Saul said. “At last someone has had pity on me! ²² Go and check again to be sure of where he is staying and who has seen him there, for I know that he is very crafty. ²³ Discover his hiding places and then come back and give me a more definite report. Then I’ll go with you. And if he is in the area at all, I’ll find him if I have to search every inch of the entire land!”

^24-25 So the men of Ziph returned home. But when David heard that Saul was on his way to Ziph, he and his men went even further into the wilderness of Maon in the south of the desert. But Saul followed them there.