1 Samuel 27–31

27TH CHAPTER

David at Ziklag

¹David said to himself, “One of these days Saul will sweep me away. The best thing for me to do is to make sure that I escape to Philistine territory. Then Saul will give up looking all over Israel for me, and I’ll escape from him.” ²So David went with his 600 men to King Achish of Gath, Moach’s son. ³David and his men stayed with Achish in Gath. Each one had his family, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail (who had been Nabal’s wife) from Carmel. ⁴When Saul was told that David had fled to Gath, he didn’t search for him anymore. 

⁵David said to Achish, “If you will permit me, let me have a place in one of the outlying towns so that I can live there. Why should I live in the royal city with you?” ⁶So Achish immediately gave him Ziklag. (This is why Ziklag still belongs to the kings of Judah today.) 

⁷David stayed in Philistine territory for one year and four months. ⁸Then David and his men went to raid the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. (They lived in the territory which extends from Telaim^ato Shur and Egypt.) ⁹Whenever David attacked the territory, he left no man or woman alive. He also took sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and clothing and returned to Achish. 

¹⁰Achish would ask, “Whom did you raid today?”^b

And David would answer, “the Negev in Judah,” or “the portion of the Negev where the descendants of Jerahmeel live,” or “the portion of the Negev where the Kenites live.” ¹¹He did not bring a single man or woman back to Gath alive. He thought, “They could tell Achish what I ⸤really⸥ did.” This was his practice as long as he lived in Philistine territory. ¹²And Achish believed David. Achish thought, “He has definitely made his own people in Israel despise him. He’ll be my servant from now on.” 

28TH CHAPTER

¹At that time the Philistines had gathered their army to fight against Israel. Then Achish said to David, “You need to know that you and your men will be going with me into battle.” 

²“Very well,” David responded to Achish, “you will then know what I can do.” 

“Very well,” Achish told David, “I will make you my bodyguard for life.” 

Saul’s Sin—the Occult

³Meanwhile, Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in his hometown Ramah. (Saul had rid the land of mediums and psychics.) 

⁴The Philistines assembled and camped in Shunem. Saul also assembled the whole Israelite army, and they camped at Gilboa. ⁵When Saul looked at the Philistine army, he was very afraid—terrified. ⁶He prayed to the Lord, but the Lord didn’t answer him through dreams, the Urim,^aor prophets. ⁷Saul told his officers, “Find me a woman who conjures up the dead. Then I’ll go to her and ask for her services.” 

His officers told him, “There is a woman at Endor who conjures up the dead.” 

⁸After disguising himself by putting on other clothes, Saul left with two men and came to the woman that night. He said to her, “Please consult with a dead person for me. Conjure up the person I request.” 

⁹The woman told him, “You know that Saul rid the land of mediums and psychics. Why are you trying to trap me and have me killed?” 

¹⁰But Saul took an oath in the Lord’s name, “I solemnly swear, as the Lord lives, you will not be harmed if you do this.” 

¹¹“Whom should I conjure up for you?” the woman asked. 

“Conjure up Samuel for me,” he answered. 

¹²When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out loudly and asked, “Why did you deceive me? You’re Saul!” 

¹³“Don’t be afraid,” the king said to her. “What do you see?” 

“I see a god rising from the ground,” the woman answered. 

¹⁴“In what form?” he asked her. 

She answered, “An old man is coming up, and he’s wearing a robe.” Then Saul knew it was Samuel. Saul knelt down with his face touching the ground. 

¹⁵Samuel asked Saul, “Why did you disturb me by conjuring me up?” 

Saul answered, “I’m in serious trouble. The Philistines are at war with me, and God has turned against me and doesn’t answer me anymore—either by the prophets or in dreams. So I’ve called on you to tell me what to do.” 

¹⁶Samuel said, “Why are you asking me when the Lord has turned against you and become your enemy? ¹⁷The Lord has done to you ⸤exactly⸥ what he spoke through me: The Lord has torn the kingship out of your hands and given it to your fellow Israelite David. ¹⁸The Lord is doing this to you today because you didn’t listen to him or unleash his burning anger on Amalek. ¹⁹For the same reasons the Lord will hand you and Israel over to the Philistines. Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. And then the Lord will hand Israel’s army over to the Philistines.” 

²⁰Immediately, Saul fell flat on the ground. He was frightened by Samuel’s words. He also had no strength left, because he hadn’t eaten anything all day or all night. ²¹The woman came over to Saul and saw that he was terrified. “I listened to you,” she told him, “and I took my life in my hands when I did what you told me to do. ²²Now please listen to me. I will serve you something to eat. Eat it so that you will have strength when you leave.” 

²³But he refused. “I don’t want to eat,” he said. Nevertheless, his officers and the woman kept urging^bhim until he listened to them. So he got up from the ground and sat on the bed. 

²⁴The woman immediately butchered a fattened calf that she owned. She took flour, kneaded it, and baked some unleavened bread. ²⁵Then she served it to Saul and his officers. They ate and left that ⸤same⸥ night. 

29TH CHAPTER

The Philistines Reject David

¹The Philistines assembled their whole army at Aphek, and Israel camped at the spring in Jezreel. ²The Philistine leaders were marching by with their companies and regiments. David and his men were marching in the rear with Achish. 

³The Philistine officers asked, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” 

Achish asked the Philistine officers, “Isn’t this David, the servant of King Saul of Israel, who has been with me now for a year or two? I’ve found nothing wrong with him from the day he defected until now.” 

⁴But the Philistine officers were angry with Achish. “Send the man back,” the Philistine officers told him. “Return him to the place you assigned him. He shouldn’t go with us into battle. He shouldn’t ⸤be allowed to⸥ become our enemy during the battle. Is this man going to try to regain his master’s favor? He’ll do it with the lives of our men! ⁵Isn’t this David of whom people sing in dances: 

‘Saul has defeated thousands 

but David tens of thousands’?” 

⁶Then Achish called David and told him, “I solemnly swear, as the Lord lives, you are a dependable man. I consider your campaigning with me a good thing, because I’ve never found anything wrong with you from the day you came to me until now. But the rulers don’t approve of you. ⁷So leave peacefully without doing anything to displease the Philistine rulers.” 

⁸“What have I done?” David asked Achish. “What have you learned about me from the time I came to you until now? Why shouldn’t I fight your enemies, Your Majesty?” 

⁹Achish answered David, “I admit that in my judgment you’re as good as God’s Messenger. However, the Philistine officers said, ‘He shouldn’t go into battle with us.’ ¹⁰Get up early in the morning with Saul’s servants who came with you, and go to the place I have assigned to you. Don’t worry about the unkind words, because I still approve of you.^aGet up in the morning, and leave when it’s light.” 

¹¹Early the next morning David and his men returned to Philistine territory, while the Philistines went to Jezreel. 

30TH CHAPTER

David Defeats the Amalekites

¹Two days later, when David and his men came to Ziklag, the Amalekites had raided the Negev, including Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it. ²Although they captured the young and old women who were there, they killed no one. Instead, they had taken ⸤the women and other prisoners⸥ and gone away. ³By the time David and his men came to the town, it had been burned down, and their wives, sons, and daughters had been taken captive. ⁴Then David and his men cried loudly until they didn’t have the strength to cry anymore. ⁵The Amalekites also captured David’s two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail (who had been Nabal’s wife) from Carmel. ⁶David was in great distress because the people in their bitterness said he should be stoned. (They were thinking of their sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.) 

⁷David told the priest Abiathar, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring me the priestly ephod.”^aSo Abiathar brought David the ephod. 

⁸Then David asked the Lord, “Should I pursue these troops? Will I catch up with them?” 

“Pursue them,” the Lord told him. “You will certainly catch up with them and rescue the captives.” 

⁹So David and his 600 men went to the Besor Valley, where some were left behind. ¹⁰David and 400 men went in pursuit, while 200 men who were too exhausted to cross the Besor Valley stayed behind. 

¹¹David’s men found an Egyptian in the open country and took him to David. They gave him food to eat and water to drink. ¹²They gave him a slice of fig cake and two bunches of raisins. After he had eaten, he revived. (He hadn’t eaten any food or drunk any water for three whole days.) ¹³David asked him, “To whom do you belong? Where do you come from?” 

“I’m an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite,” the young man answered. “My master left me behind because I got sick three days ago. ¹⁴We raided the portion of the Negev where the Cherethites live, the territory of Judah, the portion of the Negev where Caleb settled, and we burned down Ziklag.” 

¹⁵“Will you lead me to these troops?” David asked him. 

He answered, “Take an oath in front of God that you won’t kill me or hand me over to my master, and I’ll lead you to these troops.” 

¹⁶The Egyptian led him ⸤to them⸥. They were spread out all over the land, eating, and drinking. They were celebrating because they had taken so much loot from Philistine territory and from the land of Judah. ¹⁷From dawn until evening the next…