First Book of Samuel, Chapter 21

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1 Samuel 21 NWT - New World Translation

Chapter 21 of 1 Samuel—New World Translation (NWT)

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1. ¶ Later David came into Nob¹ to A·himʹe·lech the priest; and A·himʹe·lech² began to tremble at meeting David and then said to him: “Why is it you are by yourself, and no one is with you?”³
2. At this David said to A·himʹe·lech the priest: “The king himself commanded me as to a matter,⁴ and he went on to say to me, ‘Let no one know anything at all of the matter concerning which I am sending you and concerning which I have commanded you.’ And I have made an appointment with the young men^[a] for such and such a place.
3. And now, if there are five loaves of bread at your disposal, just give them into my hand, or^[b] whatever may be found.”⁵
4. But the priest answered David and said: “There is no ordinary bread under my hand, but there is holy bread;⁶ provided that the young men have at least kept themselves from womankind.”⁷
5. So David answered the priest and said to him: “But womankind has been kept away from us the same as formerly when I went out,^[c]8 and the organisms^[d] of the young men continue holy, although the mission itself is ordinary. And how much more so today, when one becomes holy in [his] organism?”
6. At that the priest gave him what was holy,⁹ because there happened to be no bread there but the showbread^[e] that had been removed from before Jehovah¹⁰ so as to place fresh^[f] bread there on the day of its being taken away.
7. ¶ Now one of Saul’s servants was there on that day, detained¹¹ before Jehovah, and his name was Doʹeg¹² the Eʹdom·ite,¹³ the principal one of the shepherds^[g] that belonged to Saul.¹⁴
8. ¶ And David went on to say to A·himʹe·lech: “And is there nothing here at your disposal, a spear or a sword? For neither my own sword nor my weapons did I take in my hand, because the king’s matter proved to be urgent.”
9. To this the priest said: “The sword of Go·liʹath¹⁵ the Phi·lisʹtine, whom you struck down in the low plain of Eʹlah¹⁶—here it is, wrapped up in a mantle, behind the ephʹod.¹⁷ If it is what you would take for yourself, take it, because there is no other here except it.” And David went on to say: “There is none like it. Give it to me.”
10. ¶ Then David rose up and continued running away¹⁸ on account of Saul on that day, and at length came to Aʹchish the king of Gath.¹⁹
11. And the servants of Aʹchish began to say to him: “Is not this David the king²⁰ of the land? Was it not to this one that they kept responding with^[h] dances,²¹ saying,
    ¶ ‘Saul has struck down his thousands,
    ¶ And David his tens of thousands’?”^[i]22
12. ¶ And David began to take these words to his heart, and he became very much afraid²³ on account of Aʹchish the king of Gath.
13. So he disguised²⁴ his sanity under their eyes²⁵ and began acting insane in their hand and kept making cross marks^[j] on the doors of the gate^[k] and let his saliva run down upon his beard.
14. Finally Aʹchish said to his servants: “Here YOU see a man behaving crazy. Why should YOU bring him to me?
15. Am I in need of people driven crazy, so that YOU have brought this one to behave crazy by me? Should this one come into my home?”

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FOOTNOTES

1. ^ “Young men,” that is, of his escort.
2. ^ “If there are five loaves of bread under your hand, give into my hand,” LXX; MSy, “what is there under your hand? Just give five loaves of bread into my hand.”
3. ^ That is, on a military expedition.
4. ^ Or, “vessels.”
5. ^ Or, “bread of Presence,” M; Vg, “bread of presentation.”
6. ^ Lit., “hot,” that is, freshly baked.
7. ^ “The mightiest one of the runners,” by a change of one letter in M.
8. ^ Lit., “in the.”
9. ^ Or, “his myriads.”
10. ^ “And kept drumming,” LXX.
11. ^ Or, “city,” as represented by the gate. LXX, “city.”

REFERENCES

1. ^ 1Sa 22:19; Ne 11:32; Is 10:32
2. ^ 1Sa 22:9
3. ^ 1Sa 18:13
4. ^ Mt 10:16
5. ^ Ps 37:25
6. ^ Ex 25:30; Le 24:5, 9; Mt 12:4; Lu 6:4
7. ^ Ex 19:15; Le 15:16; 2Sa 11:11
8. ^ Le 15:18; De 23:10
9. ^ Le 24:9; Mt 12:4; Mr 2:26; Lu 6:4
10. ^ Le 24:8
11. ^ Le 13:2; Nu 5:2; Ps 66:13
12. ^ 1Sa 22:9; Ps 52:superscription
13. ^ Ge 36:1; Ex 12:49; Le 19:34; De 2:4; 1Sa 14:47
14. ^ 1Sa 8:17; 11:5; 1Ch 27:29; 2Ch 26:10
15. ^ 1Sa 17:51, 54
16. ^ 1Sa 17:2, 50
17. ^ Ex 28:6
18. ^ 1Sa 27:1
19. ^ Jos 11:22; 1Sa 5:8; 17:4; 27:2; 1Ki 2:39; 2Ki 12:17; Ps 56:superscription
20. ^ 1Sa 16:1, 13; 18:8
21. ^ 1Sa 18:6; Ps 150:4; Je 31:4
22. ^ 1Sa 18:7; 29:5
23. ^ Ps 56:3
24. ^ Ps 34:superscription; Mt 10:16
25. ^ Ps 56:6

Read 1 Samuel Chapter 21 in other Bible versions:

• 1 Samuel Chapter 21 - ASV
• 1 Samuel Chapter 21 - KJV
• 1 Samuel Chapter 21 - NASB
• 1 Samuel Chapter 21 - RSV