halted at Maserem, in the wilderness, at the straits, and fixed himself in the wilderness on mount Ziph, in that parched land. Though Saul continually sought David, yet the Lord did not 15 deliver him into his hands. Even when David saw that Saul

was coming to seek him, when he was on the desert moun16 tain in Kaina Ziph, Jonathan son of Saul arose, and went to

David at Kaina, and strengthened his confidence in the Lord, 17 and said to him, Fear not; for the hand of my father Saul cannot find thee; so that thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be second to thee, and Saul my father knoweth that this will be 18 the case. So they two made a covenant before the Lord, and David abode at Kaina, and Jonathan returned to his house. 19 Then the Ziphites went up from the wilderness to Saul, on the mount, and said, Behold doth not David hide himself near us at Messara, at the straits by Kaina, on mount Echala, which is 20 to the right of Jessamon? Now therefore every thing answer

eth the king's desire to induce him to come down. Come down 21 to us. He is shut into the king's hands. Thereupon Saul said

to them, Blessed are you of the Lord; for you have cared for 22 me. Go, I pray you, and make ready, and examine his haunt,

whether there be any trace of him there lately, where you men 23 tioned. Perhaps he will practise wiles. Take a view therefore,

and know, and I will go down with you, and if he be in that country I will search him out among all the thousands of Juda. 24 So the Ziphites arose and went before Saul. Now David and

his men were in the wilderness of Maon, westward, on the right 25 of Jessamon. And when Saul with his men went to seek him, and David was told, he went down to the rock which is in the wilderness of Maon; and when Saul heard, he pursued after 26 David to the wilderness of Maon. And Saul and his men marched on one side of the mountain, while David and his men were on the other side of the mountain. But David was protected in escaping from the presence of Saul. For while 27 Saul and his men were encamping against David and his men, to take them, a messenger came to Saul, and said, Haste and 28 come; for the Philistines have invaded the land. Whereupon

Saul returned from pursuing David, and went to meet the Philistines. For this cause that place was called, The dividing 29 rock. Then David removed from that place, and took up his abode at the straits of Engaddi.

XXIV.

And when Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, and was told by men, saying, David is in the wilderness 2 of Engaddi, he took with him three thousand men, selected out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men in front 3 of Saddaiem. And when he came to the sheepcots by the way

side, where there was a cave, Saul went into it to prepare himself. Now David and his men had taken up their abode in the 4 inner part of the cave. So David's men said to him, Behold

this is the day, which the Lord mentioned to thee, that he would deliver thine enemy into thy hands, that thou mayst do to him what seemeth good in thine eyes. Then David arose, 5 and cut off the skirt of Saul's cloak privily. And after this

David's heart smote him, because he had cut off the skirt of 6 Saul's cloak. And David said to his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the anointed of the Lord, to lift up my hand against him; for he is the Lord's anointed. 7 So David prevailed on his men by these words, and did not 8 permit them to rise, and kill Saul. And when Saul arose and went on his way, David went after him out of the cave. And David cried with a loud voice after Saul, and said, My lord, O king! And when Saul looked about behind him, David bowed down, with his face to the ground, and made obeisance 9 to him. Then David said to Saul, Why dost thou hearken to the words of the people who say, Behold David secketh thy 10 life? Behold this very day thine eyes have seen, how the Lord delivered thee to-day into my hands, in the cave, and I would not kill thee, but spared thee, and said, I will not lift up my 11 hand against my lord, because he is the Lord's anointed. Now behold here is the skirt of thy cloak in my hand. I cut off the skirt, but did not kill thee. Know, therefore, and see now that there is no wickedness in my hand-no impiety nor disloyalty; nor have I sinned against thee, though thou huntest my life to 12 take it. The Lord judge between me and thee. And the Lord 13 avenge thee on thyself. Let not my hand be upon thee. Ac

cording to the old proverb, From the wicked will proceed 14 transgression. So let not my hand be upon thee. And now, after whom art thou coming out, O king of Israel? And after whom art thou in pursuit? After a dead dog? Or after 15 a flea? The Lord be a judge, and a discerner of right, bc

tween me and thee. May the Lord see, and judge my cause, 16 and deliver me out of thy hand! And when David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, Is this thy voice, 17 my son David? And Saul raised his voice, and wept. Then

Saul said to David, Thou art more righteous than I; for thou 18 hast returned me good; but I have returned thee evil. Thou

hast indeed proved to me this day the good thou hast done me; as the Lord delivered me this day into thy hands, and 19 thou hast not slain me. Now, because if any man find his enemy in distress, and send him away well, the Lord will reward 20 him with good, therefore now behold I know that thou shalt

surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will be esta21 blished in thy hand. Now therefore swear to me by the

Lord, that thou wilt not destroy my seed after me; nor blot 22 out my name from the house of my father. So David swore to Saul, and Saul departed to his place, and David and his men went up to the straits of Messara. XXV. Now when Samuel died all Israel assembled, and be

wailed him, and buried him at his house at Armathaim. Then 2 David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Maon. Now there was a man at Maon whose flocks were at Carmel. He was a very wealthy man. He had three thousand sheep, and a 3 thousand goats, and he was sheering his sheep at Carmel. The man's name was Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigaia. Hiswife was a woman of good understanding, and very beautiful; but the man was morose, and ill natured, and of a surly dispo4 sition. And when David heard in the wilderness that Nabal 5 the Carmelite was sheering his flocks, David sent ten young

men, and said to the young men, Go up to Carmel and when you come to Nabal, salute him in my name and say thus6 Health and prosperity to thee, and thy house, and to all that 7 thou hast. Now behold I have heard, that thy shepherds who were with us in the wilderness are now shearing. We did not molest them, nor exact any thing of them all the time they were at Carmel. Inquire of thy servants, and they will tell thee. 8 Let thy servants therefore find favour in thy sight, for we are come in a good time. Give, we pray thee, whatever thou 9 canst conveniently to thy son David. So the young men went and delivered the message, in David's name, to Nabal; in

10 these very words. Upon which Nabal started up, and in reply said to David's young men, Who is David? and who is the son of Jessai? There are now a days many slaves who run 11 away every one from his master; and shall I take my bread, and my wine, and the flesh I have killed for my sheep shearers, and give them to men whom I know not whence they 12 be? At this David's young men turned about, and came away, and having returned, they came and told David these words, whereupon David said to his men, Gird on every man 13 his sword. So there went up with David about four hundred 14 men, and two hundred staid with the baggage. Now one of

the servants had told Abigaia, the wife of Nabal, saying, Behold, David sent messengers from the wilderness to salute 15 our master; but he turned away from them. Now those men were very kind to us. They never molested us, nor exacted 16 any thing from us, all the time we were with them. And when

we were in the fields, they were like a wall around us night and day, all the time we were near them, tending the flock. 17 Now therefore consider, and see what thou canst do: for there is mischief determined on against our master, and his household; but he is so perverse that there is no speaking to him. 18 Upon this Abigaia hasted, and took two hundred loaves, and two vessels of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five ephahs of barley meal, and a gomer of dried raisins, and two 19 hundred fig cakes, and laid them on asses, and said to her servants, Go on before me, and behold I will come after you: but 20 she did not tell her husband. And it happened, that as she,

mounted on her ass, was going down under the covert of the mountain, behold David and his men were coming down over 21 against her; so she met them. Now David had said, Surely for an unrighteous fellow have I guarded all that he had in the wilderness, and we have not ordered the taking of any thing 22 belonging to him: but he hath rewarded me evil for good.

God do so to David, and more also, if by to-morrow morning 23 I leave of all that belong to Nabal one man-And when Abigaia saw David, she hasted, and alighted from her ass, and fell on her face before David, and made obeisance to him on the ground, at his feet, and said, On me, my lord, be my ini24 quity. Let thy servant, I beseech thee, speak in thine audience,

25 and hear the words of thy servant. Let not my lord, I pray thee, set his heart against this perverse man. For as is his name so is he. His name is Nabal, and with him is folly. But I thy servant did not see my lord's servants whom thou didst send. 26 Now therefore, my lord, as the Lord liveth, and thy soul liveth, as the Lord hath withheld thee from coming to shed innocent blood, it was to save thy hand for thyself. Now therefore let all thine enemies and those who seek to hurt my lord be like 27 Nabal. And now accept this present, which thy servant hath brought for my lord, and give it to the young men who attend 28 my lord. Forgive, I beseech thee, what is amiss in thy servant. Because the Lord will assuredly make for my lord a faithful house-because the Lord will fight the battle of my lord, there29 fore there must never be iniquity found in thee. Though a man may rise up to pursue thee, and seek thy life, yet will the life of my lord be bound up in the bundle of life by the Lord God; but the life of thy enemies thou shalt sling out with a 30 sling. And when the Lord shall do for my lord all the good

things which he hath spoken concerning thee, and hath made 31 thee ruler over Israel, thou my lord must not have the stain or

guilt of having causelessly shed innocent blood. May the Lord therefore save the hand of my lord for himself, and kindly dispose my lord, that thou mayst remember thy servant, to deal 32 kindly by her. Thereupon David said to Abigaia, Blessed be

the Lord, the God of Israel, who hath sent thee this day to meet 33 me. And blessed be thy conduct, and blessed thou who hast kept

me back from coming to blood, that I might save my hand for 34 myself. For as the Lord God of Israel liveth, who hath this day withheld me from doing thee an injury, if thou hadst not hastened, and come to meet me, I had determined that by the morning light there should not be left to Nabal one man.

35

Then David received at her hand all that she brought him, and said to her, Go up in peace to thy house. See, I have 36 hearkened to thy voice from a personal regard to thee. Ther Abigaia went to Nabal, and behold he had an entertainment at his house like that of a king, and Nabal's heart was elated for he was very drunk, so she told him nothing less or more 37 till the next morning. But in the morning when Nabal had recovered from his wine, his wife told him all these things,