The First Book of Samuel (WEB)
22: 1David therefore departed there, and escaped to the cave of Adullam: and when his brothers
and all his father's house heard it, they went down there to him. 22:2Everyone who was in distress,
and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented, gathered themselves to him;
and he became captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men. 22:3David
went there to Mizpeh of Moab: and he said to the king of Moab, Please let my father and my
mother come forth, and be with you, until I know what God will do for me. 22:4He brought them
before the king of Moab: and they lived with him all the while that David was in the stronghold.
22:5The prophet Gad said to David, Don't stay in the stronghold; depart, and get you into the land of
Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hereth. 22:6Saul heard that David was
discovered, and the men who were with him: now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk
tree in Ramah, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. 22:7Saul
said to his servants who stood about him, Hear now, you Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give
everyone of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all captains of thousands and captains of
hundreds, 22:8that all of you have conspired against me, and there is none who discloses to me
when my son makes a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you who is sorry for me,
or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
22:9Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of
Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. 22:10He inquired of Yahweh for him, and
gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine. 22:11Then the king sent to call
Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests who were in Nob:
and they came all of them to the king. 22:12Saul said, Hear now, you son of Ahitub. He answered,
Here I am, my lord. 22:13Saul said to him, Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of
Jesse, in that you have given him bread, and a sword, and have inquired of God for him, that he
should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day? 22:14Then Ahimelech answered the king, and
said, Who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king's son-in-law, and is
taken into your council, and is honorable in your house? 22:15Have I today begun to inquire of God
for him? be it far from me: don't let the king impute anything to his servant, nor to all the house of
my father; for your servant knows nothing of all this, less or more. 22:16The king said, You shall
surely die, Ahimelech, you, and all your father's house. 22:17The king said to the guard who stood
about him, Turn, and kill the priests of Yahweh; because their hand also is with David, and
because they knew that he fled, and didn't disclose it to me. But the servants of the king wouldn't
put forth their hand to fall on the priests of Yahweh. 22:18The king said to Doeg, Turn you, and fall
on the priests. Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell on the priests, and he killed on that day
eighty-five persons who wore a linen ephod. 22:19Nob, the city of the priests, struck he with the
edge of the sword, both men and women, children and nursing babies, and oxen and donkeys and
sheep, with the edge of the sword. 22:20One of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, named
Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David. 22:21Abiathar told David that Saul had slain Yahweh's
priests. 22:22David said to Abiathar, I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he
would surely tell Saul: I have occasioned the death of all the persons of your father's house.
22:23Abide you with me, don't be afraid; for he who seeks my life seeks your life: for with me you
shall be in safeguard.
World English Bible