1 Samuel 21

1 Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was full of fear at meeting David, and said to him, Why are you by yourself, having no man with you?

Then David came to Nob to see Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech came to meet David trembling and said to him, “Why are you alone and have no one with you?”

2 And David said to Ahimelech the priest, The king has given me orders and has said to me, Say nothing to anyone about the business on which I am sending you and the orders I have given you: and a certain place has been fixed to which the young men are to go.

David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has sent me on a mission and has said to me, 'Let no one know anything about the business I am sending you, and what I have commanded you.' I have directed the young men to a certain place.

3 So now, if you have here five cakes of bread, give them into my hand, or whatever you have.

Now then what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever is here.”

4 And the priest, answering David, said, I have no common bread here but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women.

The priest answered David and said, “There is no ordinary bread on hand, but there is holy bread—if the young men have kept themselves from women.”

5 And David in answer said to the priest, Certainly women have been kept from us; and as has been done before when I have gone out the arms of the young men were made holy, even though it was a common journey; how much more today will their arms be made holy.

David answered the priest, “Surely women have been kept from us for the past three days, as usual when I set out. The things belonging to the men have been set apart even on ordinary missions. How much more today will what they have be set apart!”

6 So the priest gave him the holy bread: there was no other, only the holy bread which had been taken from before the Lord, so that new bread might be put in its place on the day when it was taken away.

So the priest gave him the bread that was set apart. For there was no bread there except the bread of the presence, which was removed from before Yahweh, in order to put hot bread in its place on the day it was taken away.

7 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, kept back before the Lord; his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the strongest of Saul's runners.

Now one of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before Yahweh. His name was Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul's herdsmen.

8 And David said to Ahimelech, Have you no sword or spear with you here? for I have come without my sword and other arms, because the king's business had to be done quickly.

David said to Ahimelech, “Now is there not here on hand any spear or sword? For I brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business was urgent.”

9 And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you put to death in the valley of Elah, is here folded in a cloth at the back of the ephod: take that, if you will, for there is no other sword here. And David said, there is no other sword like that; give it to me.

The priest said, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want to take that, take it, for there is no other weapon here.” David said, “There is no other sword like that one; give it to me.”

10 Then David got up and went in flight that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish, the king of Gath.

David arose and fled that day from Saul and went to Achish, the king of Gath.

11 And the servants of Achish said to him, Is not this David, the king of the land? did they not make songs about him in their dances, saying, Saul has put to death thousands, and David tens of thousands?

Achish's servants said to him, “Is not this David, the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another about him in dances, 'Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands?'”

12 And David took these words to heart, fearing Achish, the king of Gath.

David took these words to heart and was very afraid of Achish, the king of Gath.

13 So changing his behaviour before them, he made it seem as if he was off his head, hammering on the doors of the town, and letting the water from his mouth go down his chin.

He changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands; he made marks on the doors of the gate and let his saliva run down his beard.

14 Then Achish said to his servants, Look! the man is clearly off his head; why have you let him come before me?

Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is mad. Why have you brought him to me?

15 Are there not enough unbalanced men about me, that you have let this person come and do such tricks before me? is such a man to come into my house?

Do I lack madmen, so that you have brought this fellow to behave like one in my presence? Will this fellow really come into my house?”