1 Samuel 21

Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee?

1David came to the town of Nob. He went to Ahimelech, a priest. A priest was a man who served God at the holy place. Ahimelech shook with fear when he saw David. He asked, "Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?"

2And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place.

2David said to Ahimelech, "The king gave me a job to do. He told me not to tell anyone about it. I told my men to meet me at a certain place."

3Now therefore what is under thine hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand, or what there is present.

3"So what food do you have here? Please give me five loaves of bread. Or give me whatever you can find."

4And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at least from women.

4The priest answered, "I have no ordinary bread here. I only have holy bread, set apart for God. Your young men may eat it if they have kept away from women."

5And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel.

5David said, "Yes, we have kept away from women. We always do when I go out. My men and their things are clean and ready. That is true even on ordinary trips. It is even more true today."

6So the priest gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away.

6So the priest gave him the holy bread. It was the only bread he had. It was the special bread kept in front of the LORD. Fresh warm bread had just been put in its place.

NoteThe KJV calls this bread "shewbread." It was bread the priests set out in front of God each week. When they took it away, they put fresh bread in its place.

7Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the LORD; and his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul.

7One of King Saul's servants was there that day. He was being kept at the holy place for some reason. His name was Doeg, and he came from Edom. He was the chief of Saul's shepherds.

NoteThe KJV says Doeg was "detained before the LORD." That means he was staying at the holy place. The old writing does not say why.

8And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.

8David asked Ahimelech, "Do you have a spear or a sword here? I did not bring my sword or my other weapons. The king's job had to be done in a hurry."

9And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me.

9The priest said, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine is here. You killed him in the valley of Elah. The sword is wrapped in cloth behind the ephod. Take it if you want it. There is no other sword here." David said, "There is none like it. Give it to me."

NoteAn ephod was a special piece of clothing that a priest wore. Goliath's sword was stored behind it.

10And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.

10That day David ran away from Saul. He went to Achish, the king of the city of Gath.

11And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

11The servants of Achish said to him, "Isn't this David, the king of his land? People danced and sang about him. They sang, 'Saul has killed thousands, and David ten thousands.'"

12And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath.

12David kept thinking about what they said. He became very afraid of Achish, the king of Gath.

13And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.

13So he acted strangely in front of them. He pretended to be out of his mind. He scratched marks on the doors of the gate. He let his spit run down his beard.

14Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?

14Then Achish said to his servants, "Look, this man is out of his mind. So why did you bring him to me?"

15Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?

15"Do I need more men like this? You brought him here to act wild in front of me. Should a man like this come into my house?"