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.”
But David said to himself, “One of these days Saul is going to get me. I think I'd better run away to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will give up looking for me all over Israel and he won't catch me.”
2 Na Dawid ne mmarima ahansia tutu kɔtenaa Gat kɔhyɛɛ Maok babarima ɔhene Akis ase.
So David and the six hundred men with him set off, crossed the border, 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 down with Achish in Gath. All the men had their families with them, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail from Carmel, Nabal's widow.
4 Saulo tee sɛ Dawid aguan kɔ Gat no, wanni nʼakyi anhwehwɛ no bio.
When Saul found out that David had run away to Gath, he didn't go on looking 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.”
David said to Achish, “Please do me a favor: assign me somewhere in one of the towns in the countryside so I can live there. I, your servant, don't really deserve to 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),
Achish gave him Ziklag right away, and the town still belongs to the kings of Judah to this day.
7 na wɔtenaa Filistifo no mu afe ne asram anan.
David lived in the country of the Philistines for 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.
During that time David and his men were raiding the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. These people had lived in the land as far as Shur and Egypt from ancient times.
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.
When David attacked a place, he did not leave anybody alive. He took the flocks and herds, the donkeys, camels, and clothing. Then he would go back 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.”
When Achish asked him, “Where have you been raiding today?” David would reply, “In the desert of Judah,” or “the desert of Jerahmeel,” or “the desert 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 didn't leave anybody alive that could come to Gath because he thought, “They might tell on us and say, ‘David did this.’” This is what he did all the time he lived in the country of the Philistines.
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.”
Achish trusted David, and said to himself, “He's made himself so offensive to his people the Israelites that he'll have to serve me forever.”
