David & His Men Hide From Saul in the Mountains |
1 Samuel 23:1-29 The Book of 1 Samuel [in Smaller Chunks] |
Then they told David, saying, [Look,] the Philistines fight against Keilah & they [are stealing grain] from the threshing floors. Therefore, David [consulted] the Lord, saying, Shall I go & [attack] these Philistines? |
And the Lord said to David, Go & [attack] the Philistines & save Keliah. David’s men [told] him, [See,] we’ve been afraid here in Judah. How much [worse will it be] if we come to Keilah against the [Philistine] armies? |
Then, David [consulted] the Lord again & the Lord answered him & said, Arise & go down to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hands. So, David & his men went to Keilah & fought with the Philistines & [took] away their cattle & [struck the Philistines] with great slaughter. |
So, David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. It [happened,] when Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, fled to David [in] Keilah & he came with an ephod in his hand. [1 Samuel 22:20-21 And one of the sons named Abiathar, of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, escaped & fled after David. And Abiathar [showed] David that Saul had [killed] the Lord’s priests.] |
[When] Saul was told David was [in] Keilah, Saul said, God has delivered [David] into [my] hand; for [David has trapped himself] in, by entering into [a walled city] with gates & bars. |
Saul called the people together to go down to Keilah & [attack] David & his men. And David knew Saul secretly [planned harm] against him & [David] said to Abiathar, the priest, Bring the ephod here. |
[1 Samuel 2:28 And [didn’t] I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be My priest, to offer upon [My] altar, to burn incense & to wear an ephod before Me? And [didn’t] I give to the house of your father all the offerings made by fire of the children [people] of Israel?] |
Then, David said, O Lord God of Israel, [I,] Your servant has certainly heard that Saul [plans] to come to Keilah, to destroy the city for my sake. Will the men of Keilah [turn me over to Saul?] Will Saul come down as [I,] Your servant has heard? |
O Lord God of Israel, I [beg that] You, tell [me,] Your servant. And the Lord said, [Saul] will come down. Then, David said, Will the men of Keilah deliver me & my men [over] into the hand of Saul? The Lord said, They will deliver you [to them.] |
Then, David & about 600 [of] his men [left] Keilah & went [wherever] they could [find.] [When] Saul was told David [had] escaped from Keilah, he [declined to go there.] |
And David [stayed] in the wilderness [in safe places of refuge] & remained in a mountain in the Wilderness of Ziph. Saul [searched for David] every day, but God didn’t deliver [David] into [Saul’s] hand. |
While David was in the wilderness in the [woods in Horesh,] David saw that Saul had come to [take his] life. Jonathan, Saul’s son, [rose] & went to David into the [woods] & [encouraged him to keep his faith strong] in God. |
Jonathan said, [Don’t] fear, for my father, Saul, shall not find you & you will be the king over Israel. And I will be next to you, [which] my father also knows. They [both] made a covenant [promise] before the Lord & David [stayed] in the [woods] & Jonathan went to his house. |
Then, the Ziphites came to Saul [in] Gibeah & [said,] Doesn’t David hide himself with us in [safe places of refuge] in the [woods,] in the Hill of Hachilah, which is south of Jeshimon? |
Therefore, O king, now come down [as] your soul [desires] & our part shall be to deliver him [over to you.] Saul said, Blessed you of the Lord, for you have [had] compassion on me. I pray [that] you go & prepare [further] & [watch to] see where his [hideout] is & who has seen him there. |
For [I’ve] been told that he is very [subtle & crafty.] Therefore, take [note] of all the places where he [hides] himself & come to me again [when you are certain] & I will go with you. |
It [shall happen,] if [he’s] in the land, I will [search & find] him [among] the 1,000’s of Judah. And they arose & went to Ziph: but David & his men were in the Wilderness of Maon, in the plain south of Jeshimon. |
Saul & his men also went to [search for] him. David [was] told & he came down [to] a rock & [stayed] in the Wilderness of Maon. When Saul heard that, he pursued after David in the Wilderness of Maon. And Saul went on [1] side of the mountain & David & his men [were] on the [other] side of the mountain. |
David [hurried] to get away for fear of Saul, [since] Saul & his men [surrounded] David & his men to [capture] them. But a messenger came to Saul, saying, [Hurry] & come: for the Philistines have invaded the land. |
[For this reason,] Saul returned from pursuing after David & went [to fight] against the Philistines. Therefore, they [call] that place, Sela Hammahlekoth. And David went up from [there] & [stayed] in the [safe place of refuge] at En Gedi. |