1 Samuel 27:1-28:2
New American Standard Bible
David Flees to the Philistines
27 Then David said to [a]himself, “Now I will [b]perish one day by the hand of Saul. (A)There is nothing better for me than to safely escape into the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of searching for me anymore in all the territory of Israel, and I will escape from his hand.” 2 So David set out and went over, he and (B)the six hundred men who were with him, to (C)Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. 3 And David lived with Achish in Gath, he and his men, (D)each with his own household—David with (E)his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal’s [c]widow. 4 Now it was reported to Saul that David had fled to Gath, so he no longer searched for him.
5 Then David said to Achish, “If now I have found favor in your sight, have them give me a place in one of the cities in the country, so that I may live there; for why should your servant live in the royal city with you?” 6 So Achish gave him Ziklag that day; therefore (F)Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah to this day. 7 The number of days that David lived in the country of the Philistines was (G)a year and four months.
8 Now David and his men went up and attacked (H)the Geshurites, the Girzites, and (I)the Amalekites; for they were the inhabitants of the land from ancient times, as you come to (J)Shur even as far as the land of Egypt. 9 David [d]attacked the land and did not leave a man or a woman alive, and he (K)took the sheep, the cattle, the donkeys, the camels, and the clothing. Then he returned and came to Achish. 10 Now Achish said, “[e]Where did you (L)carry out an attack today?” And David said, “Against the [f]Negev of Judah, against the [g]Negev of (M)the Jerahmeelites, and against the [h]Negev of (N)the Kenites.” 11 And David did not leave a man or a woman alive to bring to Gath, saying, “Otherwise they will tell about us, saying, ‘This is what David has done, and this has been his practice all the time that he has lived in the country of the Philistines.’” 12 So Achish believed David, saying, “He has undoubtedly made himself repulsive among his people Israel; therefore he will become my servant forever.”
Saul and the Spirit Medium
28 Now it came about in those days that (O)the Philistines gathered their armed camps for war, to fight against Israel. And Achish said to David, “Know for certain that you will go out with me in the camp, you and your men.” 2 David said to Achish, “Very well, you will learn what your servant can do.” So Achish said to David, “Then I will assuredly make you [i]my bodyguard (P)for [j]life!”
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 27:1 Lit his heart
- 1 Samuel 27:1 Lit be carried away
- 1 Samuel 27:3 Lit wife
- 1 Samuel 27:9 Lit struck
- 1 Samuel 27:10 DSS indicate Against whom
- 1 Samuel 27:10 I.e., South country
- 1 Samuel 27:10 I.e., South country
- 1 Samuel 27:10 I.e., South country
- 1 Samuel 28:2 Lit guardian of my head
- 1 Samuel 28:2 Lit all the days
1 Samuel 27:1-28:2
International Standard Version
David Escapes to Philistine Territory
27 David told himself, “One of these days I’ll perish by Saul’s hand. There is nothing better for me to do than to escape to Philistine territory. Saul will give up searching for me anymore within the borders of Israel, so I’ll escape from him.” 2 So David got up, and he and the 600 men who were with him went to Maoch’s son Achish, the king of Gath. 3 David stayed with Achish in Gath along with his men, each of whom was with his household. David had his two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, who had been the wife of Nabal of Carmel. 4 Saul was told that David had fled to Gath, and he did not continue to search for him.
Achish Gives Ziklag to David
5 David told Achish, “If it pleases you, give me a place in one of the outlying towns,[a] so I may live there. Why should your servant live with you in the royal city?” 6 So that day Achish gave him Ziklag, and therefore, Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah until the present time. 7 David lived in Philistine territory for a year and four months.
David’s Raids on the Land
8 David and his men went up and raided the descendants of Geshur, the descendants of Girzi, and the Amalekites, for they had been living in the land since ancient times, from the entrance of[b] Shur all the way to the land of Egypt. 9 David struck the land and did not leave a man or woman alive. He took sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and clothing, and then came back and went to Achish.
10 Achish said, “Where did you raid today?”
David answered, “Against the Negev[c] of Judah, against the Negev[d] of the Jerahmeelites, and against the Negev[e] of the Kenites.” 11 David did not leave a man or woman alive to bring to Gath. He told himself,[f] “Otherwise, they’ll say, ‘This is what David is doing, and this has been his practice all the time he has lived in Philistine territory.’”
12 Achish believed David, telling himself,[g] “He has certainly made himself repulsive to his people in Israel. He will be my servant forever.”
The Philistines Prepare to Fight against Israel
28 At that time the Philistines assembled their army for war to fight against Israel. Achish told David, “You know, of course, that you and your men will go out with me into the battle.”
2 David told Achish, “Very well, you will now see[h] what your servant will do.”
Achish told David, “Very well, I’ll appoint you as my permanent bodyguard.”
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 27:5 Lit. one of the towns of the field
- 1 Samuel 27:8 Lit. times, where you enter
- 1 Samuel 27:10 I.e. southern region of Israel; cf. Josh 10:40
- 1 Samuel 27:10 Or the southern region
- 1 Samuel 27:10 Or the southern region
- 1 Samuel 27:11 The Heb. lacks himself
- 1 Samuel 27:12 The Heb. lacks himself
- 1 Samuel 28:2 Lit. you will know
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