1And David arose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city.

2And David comes to Nomba to Abimelech the priest: and Abimelech was amazed at meeting him, and said to him, Why art thou alone, and nobody with thee?

3And David said to the priest, The king gave me a command to-day, and said to me, Let no one know the matter on which I send thee, and concerning which I have charged thee: and I have charged my servants to be in the place that is called, ¹⁶⁸The faithfulness of God, ¹⁶⁹phellani maemoni.

4And now if there are under thy hand five loaves, give into my hand what is ready.

5And the priest answered David, and said, There are no common loaves under my hand, for I have none but holy loaves: if the young men have been kept at least from women, then they shall eat them.

6And David answered the priest, and said to him, Yea, we have been kept from women for three days: when I came forth for the journey all the young men were purified; but this expedition is unclean, wherefore it shall be sanctified this day because of my weapons.

7So Abimelech the priest gave him the shewbread; for there were no loaves there, but only the presence loaves which had been removed from the presence of the Lord, in order that hot bread should be set on, on the day on which he took them.

8And there was there on that day one of Saul's servants ¹⁷⁰detained before the Lord, and his name was Doec the Syrian, tending the mules of Saul.

9And David said to Abimelech, See if there is here under thy hand spear or sword, for I have not ¹⁷¹brought in my hand my sword or my weapons, for the word of the king was urgent.

10And the priest said, Behold the sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou smotest in the valley of Ela; and it is wrapt in a ¹⁷²cloth: if thou wilt take it, take it for thyself, for there is no other except it here. And David said, Behold, there is none like it; give it me.

11And he gave it him; and David arose, and fled in that day from the presence of Saul: and David came to Anchus king of Geth.

12And the servants of Anchus said to him, Is not this David the king of the land? Did not the dancing women begin the song to him, saying, Saul has smitten his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

13And David ¹⁷³laid up the words in his heart, and was greatly afraid of Anchus king of Geth.

14And he changed his appearance before him, and feigned himself a false character in that day; and drummed upon the doors of the city, and used extravagant gestures with his hands, and fell against the doors of the gate, and his spittle ran down upon his beard.

15And Anchus said to his servants, Lo! ye see the man is ¹⁷⁴mad: why have ye brought him in to me?

16Am I in want of madmen, that ye have brought him in to me to play the madman? he shall not come into the house.