22 the matter is over, as the Lord liveth. But if I say to the lad,

Here, the dart is from thee There. Go thou away, for the Lord 23 hath sent thee away. Now touching the matter of which I and

thou have spoken, behold the Lord is witness between me and 24 thee forever. So David hid himself in the field, and when the 25 new moon came, the king came to the table to dine. And when he had seated himself as heretofore, on the seat by the wall, he faced Jonathan, and Abenner sat by Saul's side, but 26 David's seat was vacant. And on that day Saul said nothing, for he thought it was accidental-that being unclean he had 27 not purified himself. But on the morrow, the second day of the moon, when David's seat was vacant, Saul said to his son Jonathan, Why hath not the son of Jessai come to table yes28 terday and to-day? And Jonathan answered Saul and said to 29 him, David earnestly entreated me, that he might go to his city Bethlehem, and said, Let me go, I entreat thee, for we have a sacrifice of our community in the city, and my brethren have sent for me. Now therefore if I have found favour in thy sight, let me, I pray thee, go down and see my brethren. 30 For this cause he hath not come to the king's table. Upon this Saul was greatly enraged at Jonathan, and said to him, Thou son of the perverse and rebellious! For do I not know that thou art an accomplice of the son of Jessai, to thy own shame, 31 and the confusion of thy mother? For as long as the son of Jessai liveth, thy kingdom will not be established. Now therefore send and seize that young man, for he shall surely die. 32 And when Jonathan in reply said to Saul, Why must he die? 33 What hath he done? Saul lifted up his spear against Jonathan,

to put him to death. So Jonathan knew that his father was fully 34 bent on this mischief, to slay David, and started up from the

table in great wrath, and did not eat bread the second day of the moon: for he was grieved for David, because his father 35 was determinately set against him. And when it was morning

Jonathan went out to the field, as he had fixed by appoint36 ment with David, and a little boy with him. And he said to the lad, Run, find for me the dart which I threw. And as the boy was running, he threw a dart, and it passed the other; 37 and when the boy came to the place where the dart lay which Jonathan had thrown, Jonathan cried with a loud voice after

the boy, and said, There: the dart is from thee, even There. 38 Then Jonathan cried with a loud voice after the boy, saying, Haste with all speed. Tarry not. So when Jonathan's servant 39 had picked up the darts, and brought them to his master (Now

the boy knew nothing, Jonathan and David only understood 40 the matter) Jonathan gave his weapons to the servant, and said 41 to him, Go, return to the city. And when the servant was

gone, David arose from the Argab, and fell on his face, and made obeisance to him three times. And when they had kiss42. ed each other, and wept over each other a great while, Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have both sworn by the name of the Lord, saying, The Lord be a witness between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed, forever. Then David arose and departed, and Jonathan returned to the city.

XXI. Now when David came to Nomba, to Abimelech the priest, Abimelech was astonished at meeting him, and said to 2 him, Why art thou alone, and nobody with thee? Thereupon David said to the priest, The king hath given me to-day a business in charge, and said to me, Let none know the business on which I send thee, and with which I have charged thee; therefore I appointed my servants to meet me at the place call3 ed Faith of God Phellani Maemoni. Now therefore hast thou 4 five loaves at hand? Give me what thou hast ready. And the priest in reply said to David, I have no common bread at hand. Because there is none but the holy bread; if thy servants have 5 but kept themselves from women they may eat it. And Da. vid in answer to the priest, said to him, Of a truth we have kept ourselves from women these three days. When I set out on the journey, all the servants were purified (though the journey was on secular affairs) because they were to be holy 6 this day, on account of my provision for it. So Abimelech the priest gave him the presence loaves, because he had no other, but only those loaves which were taken from the presence of the Lord, that fresh bread might be put in their 7 place on the day he took them. Now there was there that day, near the Neessaran before the Lord, one of Saul's servants. 8 His name was Doek, the Syrian, who tended Saul's asses. Then David said to Abimelech, See if there be at hand a spear

or a sword, for I did not bring my sword, nor my arms with 9 me, because the king's business required haste. And the priest said, Behold here is the sword of Goliath, the Philistine, whom thou didst slay in the valley of Ela. It is wrapped up in a garment. If thou wilt take that, take it; for there is no 10 other besides that here. And David said, There is none like

it, give it me. And when he had given it to him, David arose, 11 and fled that day from the presence of Saul. And when David came to Angchus, king of Geth, the servants of Angchus said to him, Is not this David the king of the land? Was it not of him the choirs of women sung their responsive song saying, Saul hath slain his thousands-And David his ten thou12 sands. And David treasured up these words in his mind, and 13 was greatly afraid of Angchus king of Geth, therefore he changed his countenance before him, and personated a character on that day, and beat as on a tympanum on the city gates, and scrabbled with his hands, and fell against the doors 14 of the gate, and let his spittle run down on his beard. There

upon Angchus said to his servants, Behold, you see the man 15 is epileptic! Why have you brought him to me? Am I in want of epileptics, that you should bring him to be taken with a fit before me? He shall not enter my house.

XXII. Then David departed thence, and having escaped, he 2 went to the cave Odollam. And when his brethren, and the house of his father heard it, they went down to him there. And every one who was in distress, and every one in debt, and every one aggrieved in mind, collected to him, and he 3 was their leader. So there were with him about four hundred

men. And from that place David went to Massephath of Moab, and said to the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, be with thee, till I know what God will do for me. 4 So he conciliated the favour of the king of Moab, and they dwelt with him all the time that David was at that fortress.

5

And Gad the prophet said to David, Abide not in this fortress; depart and go to the land of Judea. Thereupon David set out, and came and took up his abode in the city Sarick. 6 When Saul heard that David and his men who were with him

shewed themselves, (Now Saul had seated himself on the eminence below the cultivated ground at Rama, with his spear in

7 his hand, and all his servants stood around him) Saul said to his servants who attended him, Hearken, I pray you, ye sons of Benjamin! Can the son of Jessai really give every one of you fields, and vineyards, and make you all captains of hundreds, 8 and captains of thousands, that you all conspire against me; and there is not one who informed me when my son made a league with the son of Jessai; nor one of you who is sorry for me, or informeth me that my son hath stirred up my vassal against me 9 to be my enemy, as is now the case? Then Dock the Syrian, who had the care of Saul's asses, answered and said, I saw the son of Jessai coming to Nomba, to Abimelech the son of Achi10 tob, the priest; and he inquired of God for him, and gave him 11 victuals. He gave him also the sword of Goliath. Upon this

the king sent for Abimelech, son of Achitob, and all his father's 12 sons, the priests at Nomba; and when they all came to the king,

Saul said, Hear now thou son of Achitob! And he said, Here 13 I am. Speak, my lord. Then Saul said to him, Why hast thou conspired against me, thou and the son of Jessai, that thou shouldst give him bread, and a sword, and consult God for him 14 to make him my enemy, as is now the case? And Abimelech answered the king and said, Who among all thy servants was like David, in high trust, and the king's son in law, and thy 15 prime minister, and highly honoured in thy house? Have I now begun to consult God for him? No. Let not the king bring a charge against his servant, and against all my father's house. For thy servant knew nothing of all these things, less or more. 16 Then Saul the king said, Thou shalt surely be put to death, 17 both thou Abimelech, and all the house of thy father. And the king said to the light infantry who stood before him, Go near and put to death the priests of the Lord, because their hand was with David; and because they knew that he was fleeing, and did not inform me. And when the servants of the king refused 18 to lift their hands against the priests of the Lord, the king said to Doek, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. Thereupon Doek, the Syrian, turned and slew the priests of the Lord that 19 day, three hundred and five men, all wearing an ephod. Then he smote Nomba the city of the priests, with the edge of the sword, both men and women, infant and suckling, with the 20 cattle, and the asses, and the sheep. But one son of Abime

lech, son of Achitob, escaped. His name was Abiathar, and he fled to David. And when Abiathar told David that Saul had slain all the priests of the Lord, David said to Abiathar, I might have known that day-that Doek the Syrian-that he would tell Saul-I am answerable for the lives of thy father's 23 household. Stay with me. Fear not. For wherever I provide a place for my own safety, I will provide also for thy safety; for thou hast been preserved to be with me.

XXIII.

Now when it was told David, saying, Behold the Philistines are making war on Keila: They are ravaging, and de2 stroying the threshing floors, David inquired of the Lord saying, Shall I go and smite the Philistines? And the Lord said, Go, and thou shalt make a slaughter among the Philistines and 3 save Keila. But David's men said to him, Behold we are in terror here in Judea; and how must it be if we go to Keila? 4 Shall we go to be a prey to the Philistines? Then David inquired again of the Lord, and the Lord answered him, and said to him, Arise and go down to Keila; for I will deliver the Phi5 listines into thy hands. So David went with his men to Keila,

and fought the Philistines and they fled before him, and he took their cattle, and made a great slaughter among them. So David 6 saved the inhabitants of Keila. Now as Abiathar, son of Abi

melech, had fled to David, he went down with him to Keila, 7 having the ephod in his hand. And when Saul was told that

David was come to Keila, Saul said, God hath sold him into my hands; for he is shut up by coming into a city with gates 8 and bars. So Saul gave orders to all the people to go down for 9 battle, to Keila, to take David and his men. And David knew it; for Saul did not conceal his mischievous intention respecting him. Therefore David said to Abiathar the priest, Bring 10 here the ephod of the Lord. And David said, O Lord God of Israel, thy servant hath heard that Saul seeketh to come 11 against Keila to destroy the city on my account. Will it be

shut up? Or will Saul come down now as thy servant hath 13 heard? O Lord God of Israel tell thy servant. And the Lord said, It will be shut up. Thereupon David arose, and his men with him, about three hundred, and departed out of Keila, and went wherever they could go. And when Saul was told that 14 David had escaped from Keila, he forbore going. So David