out, as outof the middle of a sling.
30 And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the
good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel;
31 That this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast
shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself: but when the LORD shall have dealt
well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid.
32 And David said to Abigail, Blessed bethe LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to
meet me:
33 And blessed bethy advice, and blessed bethou, which hast kept me this day from coming to
shedblood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand.
34 For in very deed, asthe LORD God of Israel liveth, which hath kept me back from hurting
thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal
by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall.
35 So David received of her hand thatwhich she had brought him, and said unto her, Go up in
peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.
36 And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king;
and Nabal's heart wasmerry within him, for he wasvery drunken: wherefore she told him
nothing, less or more, until the morning light.
37 But it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and his wife had
told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became asa stone.
38 And it came to pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, that he died.
39 And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed bethe LORD, that hath pleaded
the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept his servant from evil: for the
LORD hath returned the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. And David sent and communed
with Abigail, to take her to him to wife.
40 And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying,
David sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife.
41 And she arose, and bowed herself on herface to the earth, and said, Behold, letthine
handmaid bea servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.
42 And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with five damsels of hers that went
after her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife.
43 David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they were also both of them his wives.
44 But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Phalti the son of Laish, which was
of Gallim.
1 And the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself in the hill of
Hachilah, which isbefore Jeshimon?
2 Then Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men
of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph.
3 And Saul pitched in the hill of Hachilah, which isbefore Jeshimon, by the way. But David
abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness.
4 David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come in very deed.
5 And David arose, and came to the place where Saul had pitched: and David beheld the place
where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host: and Saul lay in the trench, and
the people pitched round about him.
6 Then answered David and said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah,
brother to Joab, saying, Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp? And Abishai said, I will
go down with thee.
7 So David and Abishai came to the people by night: and, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the
trench, and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster: but Abner and the people lay round about

him.
8 Then said Abishai to David, God hath delivered thine enemy into thine hand this day: now
therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear even to the earth at once, and I will not
smitehim the second time.
9 And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not: for who can stretch forth his hand against the
LORD'S anointed, and be guiltless?
10 David said furthermore, Asthe LORD liveth, the LORD shall smite him; or his day shall come
to die; or he shall descend into battle, and perish.
11 The LORD forbid that I should stretch forth mine hand against the LORD'S anointed: but, I
pray thee, take thou now the spear that isat his bolster, and the cruse of water, and let us go.
12 So David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's bolster; and they gat them away,
and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither awaked: for they wereall asleep; because a deep sleep
from the LORD was fallen upon them.
13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of an hill afar off; a great space
beingbetween them:
14 And David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, Answerest thou not,
Abner? Then Abner answered and said, Who artthou thatcriest to the king?
15 And David said to Abner, Artnot thou a valiantman? and who islike to thee in Israel?
wherefore then hast thou not kept thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in to
destroy the king thy lord.
16 This thing isnot good that thou hast done. Asthe LORD liveth, ye areworthy to die, because
ye have not kept your master, the LORD'S anointed. And now see where the king's spear is, and
the cruse of water that wasat his bolster.
17 And Saul knew David's voice, and said, Isthis thy voice, my son David? And David said, It is
my voice, my lord, O king.
18 And he said, Wherefore doth my lord thus pursue after his servant? for what have I done? or
what evil isin mine hand?
19 Now therefore, I pray thee, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If the LORD
have stirred thee up against me, let him accept an offering: but if they bethe children of men,
cursed bethey before the LORD; for they have driven me out this day from abiding in the
inheritance of the LORD, saying, Go, serve other gods.
20 Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth before the face of the LORD: for the king of
Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains.
21 Then said Saul, I have sinned: return, my son David: for I will no more do thee harm, because
my soul was precious in thine eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred
exceedingly.
22 And David answered and said, Behold the king's spear! and let one of the young men come
over and fetch it.
23 The LORD render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness: for the LORD delivered
thee into myhand to day, but I would not stretch forth mine hand against the LORD'S anointed.
24 And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by
in the eyes of the LORD, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation.
25 Then Saul said to David, Blessed bethou, my son David: thou shalt both do great things, and
also shalt still prevail. So David went on his way, and Saul returned to his place.
1 And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul: there isnothing
better for me than that I should speedily escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul shall
despair of me, to seek me any more in any coast of Israel: so shall I escape out of his hand.
2 And David arose, and he passed over with the six hundred men that werewith him unto
Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath.

3 And David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household, even
David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal's wife.
4 And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath: and he sought no more again for him.
5 And David said unto Achish, If I have now found grace in thine eyes, let them give me a place
in some town in the country, that I may dwell there: for why should thy servant dwell in the
royal city with thee?
6 Then Achish gave him Ziklag that day: wherefore Ziklag pertaineth unto the kings of Judah
unto this day.
7 And the time that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a full year and four
months.
8 And David and his men went up, and invaded the Geshurites, and the Gezrites, and the
Amalekites: for those nations wereof old the inhabitants of the land, as thou goest to Shur,
even unto the land of Egypt.
9 And David smote the land, and left neither man nor woman alive, and took away the sheep, and
the oxen, and the asses, and the camels, and the apparel, and returned, and came to Achish.
10 And Achish said, Whither have ye made a road to day? And David said, Against the south of
Judah, and against the south of the Jerahmeelites, and against the south of the Kenites.
11 And David saved neither man nor woman alive, to bring tidingsto Gath, saying, Lest they
should tell on us, saying, So did David, and so will behis manner all the while he dwelleth in the
country of the Philistines.
12 And Achish believed David, saying, He hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor him;
therefore he shall be my servant for ever.
1 And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines gathered their armies together for
warfare, to fight with Israel. And Achish said unto David, Know thou assuredly, that thou shalt
go out with me to battle, thou and thy men.
2 And David said to Achish, Surely thou shalt know what thy servant can do. And Achish said to
David, Therefore will I make thee keeper of mine head for ever.
3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his
own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the
land.
4 And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Shunem: and Saul
gathered all Israel together, and they pitched in Gilboa.
5 And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled.
6 And when Saul enquired of the LORD, the LORD answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by
Urim, nor by prophets.
7 Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go
to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there isa woman that hath a
familiar spirit at Endor.
8 And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and
they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit,
and bring me himup, whom I shall name unto thee.
9 And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off
those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a
snare for my life, to cause me to die?
10 And Saul sware to her by the LORD, saying, Asthe LORD liveth, there shall no punishment
happen to thee for this thing.
11 Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.
12 And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spake to Saul,
saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou artSaul.