1 SamuelChapter 23

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¹Someone told David, "Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah. They are robbing the threshing floors." ²So David asked the LORD, "Should I go and attack these Philistines?" The LORD said to David, "Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah." ³But David's men said to him, "Look, we're afraid even here in Judah. We'll be even more afraid if we go to Keilah to fight the Philistine armies!" ⁴So David asked the LORD again. The LORD answered him, "Go down to Keilah now. I'm going to hand the Philistines over to you." ⁵So David and his men went to Keilah and fought the Philistines. They struck them hard and took away their animals. So David saved the people of Keilah. ⁶(Abiathar son of Ahimelech had brought the ephod with him when he ran away to David at Keilah.) ⁷Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah. He said, "God has handed him over to me! He has trapped himself by going into a town with gates and bars." ⁸Then Saul called all his troops to go to war at Keilah. They would surround David and his men. ⁹David found out that Saul was planning evil against him. So he said to Abiathar the priest, "Bring the ephod." ¹⁰David said, "LORD, God of Israel, I, your servant, have heard something. Saul plans to come to Keilah and destroy the town because of me. ¹¹Will the leaders of Keilah hand me over to him? Will Saul come down, as I, your servant, have heard? LORD, God of Israel, please tell your servant." The LORD said, "He will come down." ¹²Then David asked, "Will the leaders of Keilah hand me and my men over to Saul?" "They will," the LORD said. ¹³So David and his men left Keilah. There were about six hundred of them. They kept moving from place to place. Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah. So he did not go there. ¹⁴David stayed in strong hiding places in the wilderness. He stayed in the hill country of the Wilderness of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him. But God did not hand David over to him. ¹⁵David was at Horesh in the Wilderness of Ziph. He saw that Saul had come out to kill him. ¹⁶Saul's son Jonathan came to David at Horesh. He helped him find strength in God. ¹⁷He said, "Don't be afraid. My father Saul will never lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I'll be next to you. Even my father Saul knows this is true." ¹⁸So the two of them made a covenant before the LORD. David stayed at Horesh, and Jonathan went home. ¹⁹Then the people of Ziph went up to Saul at Gibeah. They said, "David is hiding among us! He's in the strong places at Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah, south of Jeshimon. ²⁰Now, our king, come down whenever you want to. We'll make sure to hand him over to you." ²¹"May the LORD bless you," Saul answered. "You have shown that you care about me. ²²Please go and get more ready. Find out more. Watch carefully where he goes and who has seen him there. I'm told he is very clever. ²³Watch him and find out all the places where he hides. Then come back to me when you are sure. I'll go with you. If he is in the land, I'll hunt him down among all the clans of Judah." ²⁴So they set out and went to Ziph ahead of Saul. David and his men were in the Wilderness of Maon. It was in the Arabah, south of Jeshimon. ²⁵Saul and his men went to look for him. David was told about it. So he went down to the rock and stayed in the Wilderness of Maon. When Saul heard this, he chased David there. ²⁶Saul was going along one side of the mountain. David and his men were going along the other side. David was hurrying to get away. But Saul and his men were closing in on David and his men to capture them. ²⁷Then a messenger came to Saul. He said, "Come quickly! The Philistines have attacked the land!" ²⁸So Saul stopped chasing David and went to fight the Philistines. That's why that place is called Sela-hammahlekoth.a ²⁹David went up from there. He lived in the strong hiding places at En-gedi.