The. holie. Bible. conteynyng the olde Testament and the newe.

The .xxiii. Chapter.

5 Dauid chaseth the Philistines from Keila. 13 Dauid departeth from Keila, and remay∣neth in the wyldernesse of Ziph. 16 Ionathan comforteth Dauid. 28 Sauls enterprise is broken in pursuyng Dauid.

[unspec A] 1 THen they tolde Dauid, saying: Beholde, the Philistines fight a∣gainst (a) 1.1 Keila, and spoyle the barnes.

2 Therfore Dauid as∣ked counsell of the lord, saying: Shal I go and smyte these Phi∣listines? And the Lord aunswered vnto Dauid: Go, and smite the Philistines, and saue Keila.

3 And Dauids men said vnto him, See, we be afrayde here (b) 1.2 in Iuda: howe much more then if we come to Keila against the hoast of the Philistines?

4 Then Dauid asked counsell of the Lorde agayne. And the Lorde aunswe∣red him, and sayd: Aryse, and go downe to Keila, for I will deliuer the Phili∣stines into thyne hande.

5 And so Dauid and his men went to Keila, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattell, & smote them with a great slaughter, and so Dauid saued y^e inhabitauntes of Keila.

6 And when Abiathar the sonne of Ahi∣melech [unspec B] fled to Dauid to Keila, he brought an (c 1.3 Ephod with him in his hande.

7 And it was tolde Saul that Dauid was come to Keila: And Saul sayde, God hath deliuered him into myne hande: For he is shut in, now that he is come into a towne that hath gates and barres.

8 And Saul called all the people toge∣ther to warre, for to go downe to Keila, and to besiege Dauid and his men.

9 And Dauid hauing knowledge that Saul imagined mischiefe agaynst him, sayde to Abiathar the priest: (d) 1.4 Bring the Ephod.

10 Then sayde Dauid: O Lorde God of Israel, thy seruaunt hath hearde that Saul is about to come to Keila to de∣stroye the citie for my sake:

11 Will the lordes of Keila deliuer me into his hande? And will Saul come downe, as thy seruaunt hath hearde, O Lorde God of Israel? I besech thee tell thy seruaunt. And the Lorde sayde: He wil come downe.

12 Then sayde Dauid: Will the lordes of Keila deliuer me and the men that are with me into the hand of Saul? And the Lorde sayde: They will deliuer thee vp.

13 Then Dauid, & his men, whiche were vpon a sixe hundred, arose and departed out of Keila, and went (e) 1.5whyther they coulde: And it was tolde Saul that Da∣uid was fled from Keila, and he let the iourney alone.

14 Dauid abode in the wildernesse in [unspec C] strong holdes, and remained in a moun∣tayne in the wildernesse of Ziph: And Saul sought him euery day, but God (f) 1.6 deliuered him not into his hande.

15 And Dauid sawe that Saul was come out to seke his lyfe: And Dauid was in the wildernesse of Ziph in the wood.

16 And Ionathan Sauls sonne arose and went to Dauid into the wood, and com∣forted his (g) 1.7 hande in God,

17 And sayd vnto him: Feare not, for the hand of Saul my father shall not finde thee, & thou shalt be king ouer Israel, and I shall be next vnto thee: and that doeth Saul my father knowe.

18 And they made a bond both of them together before the Lorde: And Dauid taried still in the wood, and Ionathan went to his house.

19 Then came the Ziphites to Saul to Gibea, saying: Doth not Dauid hyde him selfe fast by vs in strong holdes, in the wood in the hill of Hachila, on the right side of “ 1.8 Iesimon?

Nowe therfore O king, thou mayest come downe according to all the lust of thy soule, and our part shalbe to deliuer

him into the kinges hande.

[unspec D] 21 And Saul sayde: Blessed are ye in the Lord, for ye haue compassion on me:

22 Go I pray you and prepare yet better, knowe and see where his b 1.9 foote hath ben, & who hath seene him there: for it is tolde me that he is very subtyll.

23 See therfore, and know al the lurking places where he hydeth him selfe, and come ye againe to me with y^e certaintie, and I wil go with you: And yf he be in the * 1.10 lande, I will searche him out throughout al the thousandes of Iuda.

24 And they arose, and went to Ziph be∣fore Saul: But Dauid & his men were in the wildernesse of Maon, in the plaine that is on the right hande of Ie∣simon.

25 Saul also and his men went to seke him: And they told Dauid, wherfore he came downe vnto a rocke, and abode in the wildernesse of (k) 1.11 Maon: And when Saul heard that, he folowed after Da∣uid in the wildernesse of Maon.

26 And Saul and his men went on the one syde of the mountayne, and Dauid & his men on the other syde of the moun∣taine: And Dauid made haste to get frō the presence of Saul. For Saul and his men, compassed Dauid and his men round about, to take them.

27 But ther came a messenger to Saul, saying: Haste thee and come, for the Phi∣listines haue inuaded the lande.

28 Wherfore Saul returned from perse∣cuting Dauid, and went against the [unspec E] Philistines: And therfore they called that place, (l) 1.12 Sela Hanmahlekoth. And Dauid went thence, and dwelt in strong holdes at Engadi.

Notes

• (a) 1.1

  Which was a citie in the tribe of Iuda Iosu. 15. f.
• (b) 1.2

  That is, in the middest of Iuda, muche more when we come to the borders a∣gaynst our enemies.
• (c 1.3

  So that Saul was nowe destitute of the vse of priesthod and the Ephod▪ God by his prouidence transferring both to Dauid
• (d) 1.4

  To consult with the lorde by Vrim, and Thuruim.
• (e) 1.5

  To, and fro as hauing no certayne place to go to.
• (f) 1.6

  No power nor pollicy can preuayle against gods children but when he ap∣poynteth the time.
• (g) 1.7

  W••led him to be of good corage and bold, for God was on his side.
• “ 1.8

  Or, Of the wilder∣nesse.
• b 1.9

  That is, ••e place where he ••teth.
• * 1.10

  In your countrey of Ziph.
• (k) 1.11

  Which was also in the tribe of Iuda. Iosu. 15.
• (l) 1.12

  That is, the stone of diuision: be∣cause there they deuided them selues.