1And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, to slay David.

2And Jonathan, Saul's son, ¹⁴⁰loved David much: and Jonathan told David, saying, Saul seeks to kill thee: take heed to thyself therefore to-morrow morning, and hide thyself, and dwell in secret.

3And I will go forth, and stand near my father in the field where thou shalt be, and I will speak concerning thee to my father; and I will see what his answer may be, and I will tell thee.

4And Jonathan spoke favourably concerning David to Saul his father, and said to him, Let not the king sin against thy servant David, for he has not sinned against thee, and his deeds are very good.

5And he put his life in his hand, and smote the Philistine, and the Lord wrought a great deliverance; and all Israel saw, and rejoiced: why then dost thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?

6And Saul hearkened to the voice of Jonathan; and Saul swore, saying, As the Lord lives, ¹⁴¹he shall not die.

7And Jonathan called David, and told him all these words; and Jonathan brought David in to Saul, and he was before him as in former times.

8And ¹⁴²there was again war against Saul; and David did valiantly, and fought against the Philistines, and smote them with a very great slaughter, and they fled from before him.

9And an evil spirit ¹⁴³from God was upon Saul, and he was ¹⁴⁴resting in his house, and a spear was in his hand, and David was playing on the harp with his hands.

10And Saul sought ¹⁴⁵to smite David with the spear; and David withdrew suddenly from the presence of Saul; and he drove the spear into the wall; and David retreated and escaped.

11And it came to pass in that night, that Saul sent messengers to the house of David to watch him, in order to slay him in the morning; and Melchol ¹⁴⁶David's wife told him, saying, Unless thou save thy life this night, to-morrow thou shalt be slain.

12So Melchol lets David down by the window, and he departed, and fled, and escaped.

13And Melchol took ¹⁴⁷images, and laid them on the bed, and she put the ¹⁴⁸liver of a goat by his head, and covered them with clothes.

14And Saul sent messengers to take David; and they say that he is sick.

15And he sends to David, saying, Bring him to me on the bed, that I may slay him.

16And the messengers come, and, behold, the images were on the bed, and the goat's liver at his head.

17And Saul said to Melchol, Why hast thou thus deceived me, and suffered my enemy to depart, and he has escaped? and Melchol said to Saul, He said, Let me go, and if not, I will slay thee.

18So David fled, and escaped, and comes to Samuel to Armathaim, and tells him all that Saul had done to him: and Samuel and David went, and dwelt in Navath in Rama.

19And it was told Saul, saying, Behold, David is in Navath in Rama.

20And Saul sent messengers to take David, and they saw the assembly of the prophets, and Samuel stood as appointed over them; and the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they prophesy.

21And it was told Saul, and he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied: and Saul sent again a third set of messengers, and they also prophesied.

22And Saul was very angry, and went himself also to Armathaim, and he comes as far as the well of the threshing-floor that is in Sephi; and he asked and said, Where are Samuel and David? and they said, Behold, in Navath in Rama.

23And he went thence to Navath in Rama: and there came the Spirit of God upon him also, and he went on prophesying till he came to Navath in Rama.

24And he took off his clothes, and prophesied before them; and lay down naked all that day and all that night: therefore they said, Is Saul also among the prophets?