1 Samuel 27:1-28:2
Lexham English Bible
David Returns to Achish
27 Then David thought to himself,[a] “Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul! There is nothing better for me but that I must certainly escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will desist from searching for me further in all of the territories of Israel, and so I will escape from his hand.” 2 So David got up and crossed over, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to Achish the son of Maoch, the king of Gath. 3 David settled with Achish in Gath, he and his men, each with his household.[b] David took along his two wives Ahinoam from Jezreel[c] and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 4 And it was reported to Saul that David had fled to Gath, so he no longer searched for him.[d]
5 Then David said to Achish, “Please, if I have found favor in your eyes, then let them give me a place in one of the country towns[e] that I can live there. Why should your servant live in the royal city[f] with you?” 6 So Achish gave him Ziklag on that day. (Therefore, Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah until this day.) 7 The number of days that David lived in the countryside of the Philistines was one year and four months.
8 Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites and the Girzites and the Amalekites, for they had been living in the land for a long time in the direction of[g] Shur and as far as[h] the land of Egypt. 9 So David struck the land and did not leave a man or a woman alive; he took the sheep,[i] the cattle, the donkeys, the camels, and the clothing. Then he returned and came to Achish. 10 And Achish said, “Against whom have you raided today?” David said, “Against the Negev of Judah and against the Negev of the Jerahmeelites and against the Negev of the Kenites.” 11 And David did not leave alive a man or a woman to bring them back to Gath, thinking,[j] “So that they will not report about us, saying, ‘David did thus and so.’” Thus was his practice all the days that he lived in the countryside of the Philistines. 12 And Achish trusted David, saying, “He has made himself utterly hated[k] among his people in Israel, and he will be my servant forever.”
28 Now[l] in those days the Philistines gathered their forces for war to fight against Israel. So Achish said to David, “Certainly you realize that you must go out with me in the army, you and your men.” 2 David said to Achish, “Very well, you will know what your servant can do.” Achish said to David, “Very well, I will make you my bodyguard[m] for life.”
Notas al pie
- 1 Samuel 27:1 Literally “said to his heart”
- 1 Samuel 27:3 Or “family”
- 1 Samuel 27:3 Literally “the Jezreelitess”
- 1 Samuel 27:4 Literally “he does Qere did not again to seek him longer”
- 1 Samuel 27:5 Literally “towns of the open field”
- 1 Samuel 27:5 Literally “the city of the king”
- 1 Samuel 27:8 Literally “as you come”
- 1 Samuel 27:8 Literally “up to”
- 1 Samuel 27:9 Hebrew “flock,” referring to either sheep or goats or both
- 1 Samuel 27:11 Hebrew “saying”
- 1 Samuel 27:12 Literally “Stinking he stink” = “he really stinks”
- 1 Samuel 28:1 Literally “And it happened”
- 1 Samuel 28:2 Literally “the keeper of my head”
1 Samuel 27:1-28:2
Common English Bible
David serves the Philistine Achish
27 David thought, One day I will be destroyed by Saul’s power. The best thing for me to do is to escape to Philistine territory. Then Saul will give up looking for me in Israelite territory, and I will escape his power. 2 So David set out with his six hundred soldiers and went to Achish, Maoch’s son and Gath’s king. 3 David and his soldiers stayed there at Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, Nabal’s widow from Carmel. 4 When Saul was told that David had fled to Gath, he didn’t pursue him anymore.
5 Then David said to Achish, “If you approve of me, please give me a place in one of the towns in the country so I can live there. Why should I, your servant, live in the capital city with you?” 6 So Achish gave the town of Ziklag to David at that time. That’s why Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah until now. 7 David lived in the Philistine countryside for a total of one year and four months.
8 David and his soldiers went out on raids against the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. They were the people who lived in the land from Telam[a] to Shur all the way to the land of Egypt. 9 When David attacked an area, he wouldn’t leave anyone alive, man or woman. He would take the sheep, the cattle, the donkeys, the camels, and the clothes and would then go back to Achish. 10 When Achish asked, “Where did you raid today?”[b] David would say, “The southern plain of Judah,” or “The southern plain of the Jerahmeelites,” or “The southern plain of the Kenites.” 11 David never spared a man or woman so they could be brought back alive to Gath. “Otherwise,” he said, “they might talk about us, and say, ‘David did this or that.’” So this was David’s practice during the entire time he lived in the Philistine countryside.
12 Achish trusted David, thinking, David has alienated himself so badly from his own people in Israel that he’ll serve me forever.
28 At that time, the Philistines gathered their troops for war to fight against Israel. Achish said to David, “Count on you and your soldiers marching out with me in the army.”
2 “Excellent,” David answered Achish. “Now you’ll see for yourself what your servant can do.”
“Excellent,” Achish replied. “I will make you my permanent bodyguard.”
Notas al pie
- 1 Samuel 27:8 LXX; MT from long ago
- 1 Samuel 27:10 DSS (4QSama), LXX
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