1 Samuel 19
19
Saul Tries to Kill David
1And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David. #ch. 18:1But Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted much in David. 2And Jonathan told David, “Saul my father seeks to kill you. Therefore be on your guard in the morning. Stay in a secret place and hide yourself. 3And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak to my father about you. And if I learn anything I will tell you.” 4And Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king #[Gen. 42:22]sin against his servant David, because he has not sinned against you, and because his deeds have brought good to you. 5For #ch. 28:21; Judg. 12:3; [Judg. 9:17] he took his life in his hand #ch. 17:49, 50 and he struck down the Philistine, #[ch. 11:13; 1 Chr. 11:14] and the Lord worked a great salvation for all Israel. You saw it, and rejoiced. Why then will you sin against #Matt. 27:4innocent blood by killing David without cause?” 6And Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan. Saul swore, #See Ruth 3:13“As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death.” 7And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan reported to him all these things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence #ch. 16:21; 18:2, 13as before.
8And there was war again. And David went out and fought with the Philistines and struck them with a great blow, so that they fled before him. 9#See ch. 16:14 Then a harmful spirit from the Lord came upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand. #See ch. 16:16And David was playing the lyre. 10#ch. 18:11; 20:33And Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear, but he eluded Saul, so that he struck the spear into the wall. And David fled and escaped that night.
11 # See Ps. 59 Saul sent messengers to David’s house to watch him, that he might kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, told him, “If you do not escape with your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed.” 12#[Josh. 2:15; Acts 9:24, 25]; 2 Cor. 11:33So Michal let David down through the window, and he fled away and escaped. 13Michal took #See Gen. 31:19an image#19:13 Or a household god and laid it on the bed and put a pillow of goats’ hair at its head and covered it with the clothes. 14And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.” 15Then Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying, “Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may kill him.” 16And when the messengers came in, behold, #[See ver. 13 above]the image was in the bed, with the pillow of goats’ hair at its head. 17Saul said to Michal, “Why have you deceived me thus and let my enemy go, so that he has escaped?” And Michal answered Saul, “He said to me, ‘Let me go. #[2 Sam. 2:22]Why should I kill you?’”
18Now David fled and escaped, and he came to Samuel at #ch. 1:19Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and lived at Naioth. 19And it was told Saul, “Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.” 20Then Saul sent messengers to take David, and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over them, #[ch. 10:5, 6, 10] the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, #[Num. 11:25; Joel 2:28]and they also prophesied. 21When it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, #[See ver. 20 above]and they also prophesied. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, #[See ver. 20 above]and they also prophesied. 22Then he himself went to Ramah and came to the great well that is in Secu. And he asked, “Where are Samuel and David?” And one said, “Behold, they are at Naioth in #[See ver. 18 above]Ramah.” 23And he went there to Naioth in Ramah. #[ch. 18:10]And the Spirit of God came upon him also, and as he went he prophesied until he came to Naioth in Ramah. 24#Isa. 20:2; Mic. 1:8; [2 Sam. 6:20] And he too stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel and lay naked all that day and all that night. Thus it is said, #ch. 10:11, 12“Is Saul also among the prophets?”
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The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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1 Samuel 19
19
Jonathan Helps David
1Saul told his son Jonathan and his officers to kill David. But Jonathan liked David very much, 2-3so he warned him. “Be careful! Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. In the morning go into the field and hide. I will go out into the field with my father. We will stand in the field where you are hiding. I will talk to my father about you, and I will tell you what I learn.”
4Jonathan talked to his father Saul. Jonathan said good things about David. He said, “You are the king. David is your servant. David hasn’t done anything wrong to you, so don’t do anything wrong to him. He has always been good to you. 5He risked his life when he killed the Philistine. The Lord won a great victory for all Israel. You saw it, and you were happy. Why do you want to hurt David? He’s innocent. There is no reason to kill him.”
6Saul listened to Jonathan and made a promise. He said, “As surely as the Lord lives, David won’t be put to death.”
7So Jonathan called David and told him everything that was said. Then Jonathan brought David to Saul, and David was with Saul as before.
Saul Tries Again to Kill David
8Once again there was war with the Philistines, and David went out to fight. He defeated them badly, and they ran away. 9Later, in Saul’s house, David was playing the harp. Saul was there with his spear in his hand. Then an evil spirit from the Lord came on Saul. 10Saul threw his spear at David and tried to pin him to the wall. David jumped out of the way, so the spear missed him and stuck in the wall. That night, David ran away.
11Saul sent men to watch David’s house. They stayed there all night. They were waiting to kill David in the morning, but David’s wife Michal warned him. She said, “You must run away tonight and save your life. If you don’t, you will be killed tomorrow.” 12Then Michal let David down out of a window, and he escaped and ran away. 13Michal took the household god, put clothes on it, and put goats’ hair on its head. Then she put the statue in the bed.
14Saul sent messengers to take David prisoner. But Michal said, “David is sick.”
15The men went and told Saul, but he sent the messengers back to see David. Saul told these men, “Bring David to me. Bring him lying on his bed if you must, even if it kills him.”
16The messengers went to David’s house. They went inside to get him, but they saw it was only a statue and that its hair was only goats’ hair.
17Saul said to Michal, “Why did you trick me like this? You let my enemy escape, and now he is gone.”
Michal answered Saul, “David told me he would kill me if I didn’t help him escape.”
David Goes to the Camps at Ramah
18David escaped and ran away to Samuel at Ramah. He told Samuel everything that Saul had done to him. Then David and Samuel went to the camps where the prophets stayed. David stayed there.
19Saul heard that David was there in the camps near Ramah. 20So he sent some men to arrest David. But when they came to the camps, there was a group of prophets prophesying.#19:20 prophesying This usually means “speaking for God.” But here, this also means that the Spirit of God took control of the people, causing them to sing and dance. Also in verse 23. Samuel was standing there leading the group. The Spirit of God came on Saul’s messengers and they began prophesying.
21Saul heard about this, so he sent other messengers, but they also began prophesying. So Saul sent messengers a third time, and they also began prophesying. 22Finally, Saul himself went to Ramah. Saul came to the big well by the threshing floor at Secu. He asked, “Where are Samuel and David?”
The people answered, “In the camps near Ramah.”
23So Saul went out to the camps near Ramah. The Spirit of God came on Saul, and he also began prophesying. He prophesied all the way to the camps at Ramah. 24Saul even took off his clothes. He lay there naked all day and through the night. So even Saul prophesied there in front of Samuel.
That is why people say, “Is Saul also one of the prophets?”
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