^23:6Now when Abiathar son of Ahimelech had fled to David at Keilah, he had brought with him an ephod.²^23:7When Saul was told that David had come to Keilah, Saul said, “God has delivered³ him into my hand, for he has boxed himself into a corner by entering a city with two barred gates.”⁴^23:8So Saul mustered all his army to go down to Keilah and besiege David and his men.⁵

^23:9When David realized that Saul was planning to harm him,⁶ he told Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod!”

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Footnotes

2 Heb “an ephod went down in his hand.”
3 The reading (“God has alienated him into my hand”) in v. 7 is a difficult and uncommon idiom. The use of this verb in Jer 19:4 is somewhat parallel, but not entirely so. Many scholars have therefore suspected a textual problem here, emending the word נִכַּר (nikkar, “alienated”) to סִכַּר (sikkar, “he has shut up [i.e., delivered]”). This is the idea reflected in the translations of the and , although it is not entirely clear whether they are reading something different from the or are simply paraphrasing what for them too may have been a difficult text. The has “God has sold him into my hands,” apparently reading מַכַר (makar, “sold”) for ’s נִכַּר. The present translation is a rather free interpretation.
4 Heb “with two gates and a bar.” Since in English “bar” could be understood as a saloon, it has been translated as an attributive: “two barred gates.”
5 Heb “So Saul mustered all his army for battle to go down to Keilah to besiege against David and his men.”
6 Heb “Saul was planning the evil against him.”

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

When Abiathar the son of Ahimelech had fled to David to Keilah, he had come down with an ephod in his hand. Now it was told Saul that David had come to Keilah. And Saul said, “God has given him into my hand, for he has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars.” And Saul summoned all the people to war, to go down to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. David knew that Saul was plotting harm against him. And he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

(Now Abiathar son of Ahimelek had brought the ephod down with him when he fled to David at Keilah.)

Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah, and he said, “God has delivered him into my hands, for David has imprisoned himself by entering a town with gates and bars.” And Saul called up all his forces for battle, to go down to Keilah to besiege David and his men.

When David learned that Saul was plotting against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Abiathar son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, and he brought an ephod with him.

When it was reported to Saul that David had gone to Keilah, he said, “God has handed him over to me, for he has trapped himself by entering a town with barred gates.” Then Saul summoned all the troops to go to war at Keilah and besiege David and his men.

When David learned that Saul was plotting evil against him, he said to the priest Abiathar, “Bring the ephod.”

NLTNew Living Translation

Now when Abiathar son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, he brought the ephod with him.

Saul soon learned that David was at Keilah. “Good!” he exclaimed. “We’ve got him now! God has handed him over to me, for he has trapped himself in a walled town!” So Saul mobilized his entire army to march to Keilah and besiege David and his men.

But David learned of Saul’s plan and told Abiathar the priest to bring the ephod and ask the Lord what he should do.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

Now when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, he went down with an ephod in his hand. When it was told to Saul that David had gone to Keilah, Saul said, “God has given him into my hand, because he has shut himself in by going into a city with two barred gates. Saul then summoned all of the army for the battle, to go down to Keilah to lay a siege against David and his men. When David learned that Saul was plotting evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.”

KJV 1900King James Version

And it came to pass, when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David to Keilah, that he came down with an ephod in his hand.

And it was told Saul that David was come to Keilah. And Saul said, God hath delivered him into mine hand; for he is shut in, by entering into a town that hath gates and bars. And Saul called all the people together to war, to go down to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. And David knew that Saul secretly practised mischief against him; and he said to Abiathar the priest, Bring hither the ephod.

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