1 Samuel 27
1 Na Dawid dwen ho se, “Da bi, mɛtɔ wɔ Saulo nsa ano. Na nea mɛyɛ a eye pa ara ne sɛ, meguan akɔ Filistifo nkyɛn. Ɛba saa a, Saulo begyae mʼakyidi na menya bammɔ.”
David, however, said to himself, “One of these days now I will be swept away by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will stop searching for me all over Israel, and I will slip out of his hand.”
2 Na Dawid ne mmarima ahansia tutu kɔtenaa Gat kɔhyɛɛ Maok babarima ɔhene Akis ase.
So David set out with his six hundred men and went to Achish son of Maoch, the king of Gath.
3 Na Dawid de ne yerenom baanu a wɔyɛ Ahinoam a ofi Yesreel ne Abigail a ofi Karmel a na ɔyɛ Nabal kunabea no kɔe.
David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.
4 Saulo tee sɛ Dawid aguan kɔ Gat no, wanni nʼakyi anhwehwɛ no bio.
And when Saul learned that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.
5 Na Dawid ka kyerɛɛ Akis se, “Sɛ ɛrenhaw wo a, ma yɛn baabi wɔ nkurow no bi so na yɛnkɔtena hɔ sen sɛ yɛbɛtena ahenkurow yi mu.”
Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let me be assigned a place in one of the outlying towns, so I can live there. For why should your servant live in the royal city with you?”
6 Enti Akis de Siklag kurow maa no, (na efi saa da no, ɛhɔ abɛyɛ Yuda ahemfo atenae de besi nnɛ),
That day Achish gave him Ziklag, and to this day it still belongs to the kings of Judah.
7 na wɔtenaa Filistifo no mu afe ne asram anan.
And the time that David lived in Philistine territory amounted to a year and four months.
8 Afei, Dawid ne ne dɔm kɔtow hyɛɛ Gesurfo, Girsifo ne Amalekfo so. Saa nnipa yi na na kan no, wɔtete asase a ɛtrɛw kɔ Sur a ɛwɔ Misraim kwan so no.
Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. (From ancient times these people had inhabited the land extending to Shur and Egypt.)
9 Dawid annyaw onipa baako anikann wɔ nkuraa a ɔkɔtow hyɛɛ wɔn so no mu. Ɔfaa nguan, anantwi, mfurum, yoma ne ntade nyinaa ansa na ɔresan akɔ Akis nkyɛn.
Whenever David attacked a territory, he did not leave a man or woman alive, but he took the flocks and herds, the donkeys, camels, and clothing. Then he would return to Achish,
10 Akis bisaa Dawid se, “Ɛhe na nnɛ mofom nneɛma kodui?” Dawid buae se, “Yɛkɔɔ Yuda anafo fam kɔtow hyɛɛ Yerahmeelfo ne Kenifo so.”
who would ask him, “What have you raided today?” And David would reply, “The Negev of Judah,” or “The Negev of Jerahmeel,” or “The Negev of the Kenites.”
11 Dawid kum wɔn nyinaa. Wannyaw obiara a obetumi aba Gat abɛkyerɛ faako a ɔkɔe. Saa ade yi kɔɔ so ara wɔ bere a na Dawid te Filistifo mu no.
David did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he said, “Otherwise they will report us, saying, ‘This is what David did.’” And this was David’s custom the whole time he lived in Philistine territory.
12 Akis gyee Dawid dii, na ɔkaa wɔ ne tirim se, “Saa bere yi de, Israelfo bekyi no kɔkɔɔkɔ, na ɛbɛma no atena ha, na wasom me afebɔɔ.”
So Achish trusted David, thinking, “Since he has made himself an utter stench to his people Israel, he will be my servant forever.”
