1

20 1 And David came and said before Jonathan, What have 145 I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life? And he said unto him, God forbid; thou shalt not die behold, my father doeth nothing either great or small, but that he discloseth it unto me: and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so. And 150 David sware moreover, and said, Thy father knoweth well that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved: but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death. Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, 155 I will even do it for thee. And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to-morrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even.2 If thy father miss me at all, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might 160 run to Beth-lehem his city: for it is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family. If he say thus, It is well; thy servant shall have peace but if he be wroth, then know that evil is determined by him. Therefore deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of the LORD with thee: but 165 if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father? And Jonathan said, Far be it from thee for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee? Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me if perchance thy 170 father answer thee roughly? Then Jonathan said unto him, To-morrow is the new moon and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty. And when thou hast stayed three days, thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself when the business was in hand, and shalt remain 175 by the stone Ezel. And I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark. And, behold, I will send the lad, saying, Go, find the arrows. If I say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee: take them, and come,3 for there is peace to thee and no hurt, as the LORD liveth. But if I say 180 thus unto the boy, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee go thy way; for the LORD hath sent thee away. And as touching the

1 For and.

2 For unto

.

to sit read and I will not sit (S).

even read until the evening.

3 For take them, and come read take them: then come thou.

matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the LORD is between thee and me for ever.

24 So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to eat meat. And the king sat 185 upon his seat, as at other times, even upon the seat by the wall; and Jonathan stood up,1 and Abner sat by Saul's side: but David's place was empty. Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean. And it came to pass on the morrow after 190 the new moon, which was the second day, that David's place was empty and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to-day? And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem: and he said, Let me go, I pray thee; 195 for our family hath a sacrifice in the city; and my brother, he hath commanded me to be there and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he is not come unto the king's table. Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him, Thou 200 son of a perverse rebellious woman, do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own shame, and unto the shame of thy mother. For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be stablished, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely 205 die. And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore should he be put to death? what hath he done? And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to put David to death. So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no 210 meat the second day of the month: for he was grieved because his father had done him shame.

35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him. And he said unto his lad, Run, find now the arrows 215 which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Is not the arrow beyond thee? And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not.. And Jonathan's lad gathered up 220 the arrows, and came to his master. But the lad knew not any thing only Jonathan and David knew the matter.

1 For stood up read sat opposite (S).

235

21 1 Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest and Ahimelech came to meet David trembling, and said unto him, 225 Why art thou alone, and no man with thee? And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee and I have appointed the young men to such and 230 such a place. Now therefore what is under thine hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand, or whatsoever there is present. And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women. And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days; when I came out, the vessels of the young men were holy, though it was but a common journey ; how much more then to-day shall their vessels be holy? So the priest gave him holy bread for there was no bread there but the 240 shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away. Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the LORD ; and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul. And David said unto Ahimelech, And is 245 there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste. And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the vale of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me. 22 1 David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave 1 of Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one 255 that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became captain over them and there were with him about four hundred men.

250

3 And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab: and he said 260 unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I know what God will do for me. And he brought them before the king of Moab and they dwelt

1 For the cave read the stronghold.

with him all the while that David was in the hold.1 And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the hold;1 depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and 265 came into the forest of Hereth.

Another account of the rise of David is given in 1 Sam. 17. 12-14; 17. 16-18. 5; 18. 17-19. 7; 18. 10, 11; 19. 18-24; 20. 11-17.

1 For in the hold read in Mizpeh.

LESSON XXXIX

DAVID THE OUTLAW

Saul pursues David with an army, but returns home after David has chivalrously spared his life. David marries Abigail, a wealthy widow, who brings him much land

and cattle.

1 SAMUEL XXII., XXIII., XXV., XXVI.

22 6 And Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk tree in Ramah,1 with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. And Saul said unto his 5 servants that stood about him, Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all captains of thousands and captains of hundreds; that all of you have conspired against me, and there is none that discloseth to me when my son maketh a league with the son of Io Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or discloseth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait 2 as at this day? Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which stood by the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. And he 15 inquired of the LORD for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine. Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob: and they came all of them to the king. And Saul said, Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. 20 And he answered, Here I am, my lord. And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as

1 For in Ramah read on the height (R and S), or better in the high place.

2 For to lie in wait read as an enemy (S).