1 Samuel 21

1 And David came to Nobe to Achimelech the priest: and Achimelech was astonished at David’s coming. And he said to him: Why art thou alone, and no man with thee?

Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And when Ahimelech met David, he trembled and asked him, “Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?”

2 And David said to Achimelech the priest: The king hath commanded me a business, and said: Let no man know the thing for which thou art sent by me, and what manner of commands I have given thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place.

“The king has given me a mission,” David replied. “He told me no one is to know about the mission or charge. And I have directed my young men to meet me at a certain place.

3 Now therefore if thou have any thing at hand, though it were but five loaves, give me, or whatsoever thou canst find.

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

4 And the priest answered David, saying: I have no common bread at hand, but only holy bread, if the young men be clean, especially from women?

“There is no common bread on hand,” the priest replied, “but there is some consecrated bread—provided that the young men have kept themselves from women.”

5 And David answered the priest, and said to him: Truly, as to what concerneth women, we have refrained ourselves from yesterday and the day before, when we came out, and the vessels of the young men were holy. Now this way is defiled, but it shall also be sanctified this day in the vessels.

David answered, “Women have indeed been kept from us, as is usual when I set out. And the equipment of the young men is holy, as it is even on common missions, and all the more at this time.”

6 The priest therefore gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there, but only the loaves of proposition, which had been taken away from before the face of the Lord, that hot loaves might be set up.

So the priest gave him the consecrated bread, since there was no bread there but the Bread of the Presence, which had been removed from before the LORD and replaced with hot bread on the day it was taken away.

7 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, within the tabernacle of the Lord: and his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of Saul’s herdsmen.

Now one of Saul’s servants was there that day, detained before the LORD. And his name was Doeg the Edomite, the chief shepherd for Saul.

8 And David said to Achimelech: Hast thou here at hand a spear, or a sword? for I brought not my own sword, nor my own weapons with me, for the king’s business required haste.

Then David asked Ahimelech, “Is there not a spear or sword on hand here? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business was urgent.”

9 And the priest said: Lo, here is the sword of Goliath the Philistine whom thou slewest in the valley of Terebinth, wrapped up in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take this, take it, for here is no other but this. And David said: There is none like that, give it me.

The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here; it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want, you may take it. For there is no other but this one.” And David said, “There is none like it; give it to me.”

10 And David arose and fled that day from the face of Saul: and came to Achis the king of Geth:

That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.

11 And the servants of Achis, when they saw David, said to him: Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing to him in their dances, saying: Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

But the servants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David, the king of the land? Did they not sing about him in their dances, saying: ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands’?”

12 But David laid up these words in his heart, and was exceedingly afraid at the face of Achis the king of Geth.

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

13 And he changed his countenance before them, and slipt down between their hands: and he stumbled against the doors of the gate, and his spittle ran down upon his beard.

So he changed his behavior before them and feigned madness in their hands; he scratched on the doors of the gate and let his saliva run down his beard.

14 And Achis said to his servants: You saw the man was mad: why have you brought him to me?

Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you can see that the man is insane! Why have you brought him to me?

15 Have we need of madmen, that you have brought in this fellow, to play the madman in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?

Am I in need of madmen, that you have brought this man to rave in my presence? Must this man come into my house?”