The Holy Bible

Part 16 out of 74

This shall be a sign. . .It is likely Jonathan was instructed by divine
inspiration to make a choice of this sign: otherwise the observation of
omens is superstitious and sinful.

14:11. So both of them discovered themselves to the garrison of the
Philistines: and the Philistines said: Behold the Hebrews come forth
out of the holes wherein they were hid.

14:12. And the men of the garrison spoke to Jonathan, and to his
armourbearer, and said: Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing.
And Jonathan said to his armourbearer: Let us go up, follow me: for the
Lord hath delivered them into the hands of Israel.

14:13. And Jonathan went up creeping on his hands and feet, and his
armourbearer after him. And some fell before Jonathan, others his
armourbearer slew as he followed him.

14:14. And the first slaughter which Jonathan and his armourbearer
made, was of about twenty men, within half an acre of land, which a
yoke of oxen is wont to plough in a day.

14:15. And there was a miracle in the camp, in the fields: and all the
people of their garrison, who had gone out to plunder, were amazed, and
the earth trembled: and it happened as a miracle from God.

14:16. And the watchmen of Saul, who were in Gabaa of Benjamin looked,
and behold a multitude overthrown, and fleeing this way and that.

14:17. And Saul said to the people that were with him: Look, and see
who is gone from us. And when they had sought, it was found that
Jonathan and his armourbearer were not there.

14:18. And Saul said to Achias: Bring the ark of the Lord. (For the ark
of God was there that day with the children of Israel.)

14:19. And while Saul spoke to the priest, there arose a great uproar
in the camp of the Philistines: and it increased by degrees, and was
heard more clearly. And Saul said to the priest: Draw in thy hand.

14:20. Then Saul, and all the people that were with him, shouted
together, and they came to the place of the fight: and behold every
man's sword was turned upon his neighbour, and there was a very great
slaughter.

14:21. Moreover, the Hebrews that had been with the Philistines
yesterday and the day before, and went up with them into the camp,
returned to be with the Israelites, who were with Saul and Jonathan.

14:22. And all the Israelites that had hid themselves in mount Ephraim,
hearing that the Philistines fled, joined themselves with their
countrymen in the fight. And there were with Saul about ten thousand
men.

14:23. And the Lord saved Israel that day. And the fight went on as far
as Bethaven.

14:24. And the men of Israel were joined together that day: and Saul
adjured the people, saying: Cursed be the man that shall eat food till
evening, till I be revenged of my enemies. So none of the people tasted
any food.

14:25. And all the common people came into a forest, in which there was
honey upon the ground.

14:26. And when the people came into the forest, behold the honey
dropped, but no man put his hand to his mouth. For the people feared
the oath.

14:27. But Jonathan had not heard when his father adjured the people:
and he put forth the end of the rod, which he had in his hand, and dipt
it in a honeycomb: and he carried his hand to his mouth, and his eyes
were enlightened.

14:28. And one of the people answering, said: Thy father hath bound the
people with an oath, saying: Cursed be the man that shall eat any food
this day. (And the people were faint.)

14:29. And Jonathan said: My father hath troubled the land: you have
seen yourselves that my eyes are enlightened, because I tasted a little
of this honey:

14:30. How much more if the people had eaten of the prey of their
enemies, which they found? had there not been made a greater slaughter
among the Philistines?

14:31. So they smote that day the Philistines, from Machmas to Aialon.
And the people were wearied exceedingly.

14:32. And falling upon the spoils, they took sheep, and oxen, and
calves, and slew them on the ground: and the people ate them with the
blood.

14:33. And they told Saul that the people had sinned against the Lord,
eating with the blood. And he said: You have transgressed: roll here
to me now a great stone.

14:34. And Saul said: Disperse yourselves among the people, and tell
them to bring me every man his ox and his ram and slay them upon this
stone, and eat, and you shall not sin against the Lord, in eating with
the blood. So all the people brought every man his ox with him till the
night: and slew them there.

14:35. And Saul built an altar to the Lord: and he then first began to
build an altar to the Lord.

14:36. And Saul said: Let us fall upon the Philistines by night, and
destroy them till the morning light, and let us not leave a man of
them. And the people said: Do all that seemeth good in thy eyes. And
the priest said: Let us draw near hither unto God.

14:37. And Saul consulted the Lord: Shall I pursue after the
Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into the hands of Israel? And he
answered him not that day.

14:38. And Saul said: Bring hither all the corners of the people: and
know, and see by whom this sin hath happened to day.

14:39. As the Lord liveth, who is the Saviour of Israel, if it was done
by Jonathan, my son, he shall surely die. In this none of the people
gainsayed him.

14:40. And he said to all Israel: Be you on one side and I, with
Jonathan, my son, will be on the other side. And the people answered
Saul: Do what seemeth good in thy eyes.

14:41. And Saul said to the Lord: O Lord God of Israel, give a sign, by
which we may know, what the meaning is, that thou answerest not thy
servant to day: If this iniquity be in me, or in my son Jonathan, give
a proof: or if this iniquity be in thy people, give holiness. And
Jonathan and Saul were taken, and the people escaped.

14:42. And Saul said: (Cast lots between me, and Jonathan, my son. And
Jonathan was taken.

Jonathan was taken. . .Though Jonathan was excused from sin, through
ignorance of the prohibition, yet God was pleased on this occasion to
let the lot fall upon him, to shew unto all the great obligation of
obedience to princes and parents.

14:43. And Saul said to Jonathan: Tell me what thou hast done. And
Jonathan told him, and said: I did but taste a little honey with the
end of the rod, which was in my hand, and behold I must die.

14:44. And Saul said: May God do so and so to me, and add still more:
for dying thou shalt die, O Jonathan.

14:45. And the people said to Saul: Shall Jonathan then die, who hath
wrought this great salvation in Israel? this must not be: As the Lord
liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground, for he
hath wrought with God this day. So the people delivered Jonathan, that
he should not die.

14:46. And Saul went back, and did not pursue after the Philistines:
and the Philistines went to their own places.

14:47. And Saul having his kingdom established over Israel, fought
against all his enemies round about, against Moab, and against the
children of Ammon, and Edom, and the kings of Soba, and the
Philistines: and whithersoever he turned himself, he overcame.

14:48. And gathering together an army, he defeated Amalec, and
delivered Israel from the hand of them that spoiled them.

14:49. And the sons of Saul, were Jonathan, and Jessui, and Melchisua:
and the names of his two daughters, the name of the firstborn was
Merob, and the name of the younger Michol.

14:50. And the name of Saul's wife was Achinoam, the daughter of
Achimaas; and the name of the captain of his army was Abner, the son of
Ner, the cousin german of Saul.

14:51. For Cis was the father of Saul, and Ner, the father of Abner,
was son of Abiel.

14:52. And there was a great war against the Philistines all the days
of Saul. For whomsoever Saul saw to be a valiant man, and fit for war,
he took him to himself.

1 Kings Chapter 15

Saul is sent to destroy Amalec: he spareth their king and the best of
their cattle: for which disobedience he is cast off by the Lord.

15:1. And Samuel said to Saul: The Lord sent me to anoint thee king
over his people Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of
the Lord:

15:2. Thus saith the Lord of hosts: I have reckoned up all that Amalec
hath done to Israel: how he opposed them in the way when they came up
out of Egypt.

15:3. Now therefore go, and smite Amalec, and utterly destroy all that
he hath: spare him not, nor covet anything that is his: but slay both
man and woman, child and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

Child. . .The great Master of life and death (who cuts off one half of
all mankind whilst they are children) has been pleased sometimes to
ordain that children should be put to the sword, in detestation of the
crimes of their parents, and that they might not live to follow the
same wicked ways. But without such ordinance of God it is not
allowable, in any wars, how just soever, to kill children.

15:4. So Saul commanded the people, and numbered them as lambs: two
hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand of the men of Juda.

15:5. And when Saul was come to the city of Amalec, he laid ambushes in
the torrent.

15:6. And Saul said to the Cinite: Go, depart, and get ye down from
Amalec: lest I destroy thee with him. For thou hast shewn kindness to
all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. And the
Cinite departed from the midst of Amalec.

15:7. And Saul smote Amalec from Hevila, until thou comest to Sur,
which is over against Egypt.

15:8. And he took Agag, the king of Amalec, alive: but all the common
people he slew with the edge of the sword.

15:9. And Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the flocks
of sheep, and of the herds, and the garments and the rams, and all that
was beautiful, and would not destroy them: but every thing that was
vile, and good for nothing, that they destroyed.

15:10. And the word of the Lord came to Samuel,

15:11. It repenteth me that I have made Saul king: for he hath forsaken
me, and hath not executed my commandments. And Samuel was grieved, and
he cried unto the Lord all night.

15:12. And when Samuel rose early, to go to Saul in the morning, it was
told Samuel that Saul was come to Carmel, and had erected for himself a
triumphant arch, and returning had passed on, and gone down to Galgal.
And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul was offering a holocaust to the Lord,
out of the choicest of the spoils, which he had brought from Amalec.

15:13. And when Samuel was come to Saul, Saul said to him: Blessed be
thou of the Lord, I have fulfilled the word of the Lord.

15:14. And Samuel said: What meaneth then this bleating of the flocks,
which soundeth in my ears, and the lowing of the herds, which I hear?

15:15. And Saul said: They have brought them from Amalec: for the
people spared the best of the sheep and of the herds, that they might
be sacrificed to the Lord thy God, but the rest we have slain.

15:16. And Samuel said to Saul: Suffer me, and I will tell thee what
the Lord hath said to me this night. And he said to him: Speak.

15:17. And Samuel said: When thou wast a little one in thy own eyes,
wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord
anointed thee to be king over Israel.

15:18. And the Lord sent thee on the way, and said: Go, and kill the
sinners of Amalec, and thou shalt fight against them until thou hast
utterly destroyed them.

15:19. Why then didst thou not hearken to the voice of the Lord: but
hast turned to the prey, and hast done evil in the eyes of the Lord?

15:20. And Saul said to Samuel: Yea, I have hearkened to the voice of
the Lord, and have walked in the way by which the Lord sent me, and
have brought Agag, the king of Amalec, and Amalec I have slain.

15:21. But the people took of the spoils, sheep and oxen, as the
firstfruits of those things that were slain, to offer sacrifice to the
Lord their God in Galgal.

15:22. And Samuel said: Doth the Lord desire holocausts and victims,
and not rather that the voice of the Lord should be obeyed? For
obedience is better than sacrifices: and to hearken rather than to
offer the fat or rams.

15:23. Because it is like the sin of witchcraft, to rebel: and like the
crime of idolatry, to refuse to obey. Forasmuch, therefore, as thou
hast rejected the word of the Lord, the Lord hath also rejected thee
from being king.

15:24. And Saul said to Samuel: I have sinned, because I have
transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and thy words, fearing the
people, and obeying their voice.

15:25. But now bear, I beseech thee, my sin, and return with me, that I
may adore the Lord.

15:26. And Samuel said to Saul: I will not return with thee, because
thou hath rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord hath rejected
thee from being king over Israel.

15:27. And Samuel turned about to go away: but he laid hold upon the
skirt of his mantle, and it rent.

15:28. And Samuel said to him: The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel
from thee this day, and hath given it to thy neighbour who is better
than thee.

15:29. But the triumpher in Israel will not spare, and will not be
moved to repentance: for he is not a man that he should repent.

15:30. Then he said: I have sinned: yet honour me now before the
ancients of my people, and before Israel, and return with me, that I
may adore the Lord thy God.

15:31. So Samuel turned again after Saul: and Saul adored the Lord.

15:32. And Samuel said: Bring hither to me Agag, the king of Amalec.
And Agag was presented to him very fat, and trembling. And Agag said:
Doth bitter death separate in this manner?

15:33. And Samuel said: As thy sword hath made women childless, so
shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed him in
pieces before the Lord in Galgal.

15:34. And Samuel departed to Ramatha: but Saul went up to his house in
Gabaa.

15:35. And Samuel saw Saul no more till the day of his death:
nevertheless, Samuel mourned for Saul, because the Lord repented that
he had made him king over Israel.

Saw Saul no more till the day of his death. . .That is, he went no more
to see him: he visited him no more.

1 Kings Chapter 16

Samuel is sent to Bethlehem, where he anointeth David: who is taken
into Saul's family.

16:1. And the Lord said to Samuel: How long wilt thou mourn for Saul,
whom I have rejected from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil,
and come, that I may send thee to Isai, the Bethlehemite: for I have
provided me a king among his sons.

16:2. And Samuel said: How shall I go? for Saul will hear of it, and he
will kill me. And the Lord said: Thou shalt take with thee a calf of
the herd, and thou shalt say: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.

16:3. And thou shalt call Isai to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee
what thou art to do, and thou shalt anoint him whom I shall shew to
thee.

16:4. Then Samuel did as the Lord had said to him. And he came to
Bethlehem, and the ancients of the city wondered, and meeting him, they
said: Is thy coming hither peaceable?

16:5. And he said: It is peaceable: I am come to offer sacrifice to the
Lord, be ye sanctified, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he
sanctified Isai and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

16:6. And when they were come in, he saw Eliab, and said: Is the Lord's
anointed before him?

16:7. And the Lord said to Samuel: Look not on his countenance, nor on
the height of his stature: because I have rejected him, nor do I judge
according to the look of man: for man seeth those things that appear,
but the Lord beholdeth the heart.

16:8. And Isai called Abinadab, and brought him before Samuel. And he
said: Neither hath the Lord chosen this,

16:9. And Isai brought Samma, and he said of him: Neither hath the Lord
chosen this.

16:10. Isai therefore brought his seven sons before Samuel: and Samuel
said to Isai: The Lord hath not chosen any one of these.

16:11. And Samuel said to Isai: Are here all thy sons? He answered:
There remaineth yet a young one, who keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said
to Isai: Send, and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come
hither.

16:12. He sent therefore and brought him. Now he was ruddy and
beautiful to behold, and of a comely face. And the Lord said: Arise,
and anoint him, for this is he.

16:13. Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst
of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that
day forward: and Samuel rose up, and went to Ramatha.

16:14. But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil
spirit from the Lord troubled him.

From the Lord. . .An evil spirit, by divine permission, and for his
punishment, either possessed or obsessed him.

16:15. And the servants of Saul said to him: Behold now an evil spirit
from God troubleth thee.

16:16. Let our lord give orders, and thy servants who are before thee,
will seek out a man skilful in playing on the harp, that when the evil
spirit from the Lord is upon thee, he may play with his hand, and thou
mayst bear it more easily.

16:17. And Saul said to his servants: Provide me then some man that can
play well, and bring him to me.

16:18. And one of the servants answering, said: Behold I have seen a
son of Isai, the Bethlehemite, a skilful player, and one of great
strength, and a man fit for war, and prudent in his words, and a comely
person: and the Lord is with him.

16:19. Then Saul sent messengers to Isai, saying: Send me David, thy
son, who is in the pastures.

16:20. And Isai took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and
a kid of the flock, and sent them by the hand of David, his son, to
Saul.

16:21. And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him
exceedingly, and made him his armourbearer.

16:22. And Saul sent to Isai, saying: Let David stand before me: for he
hath found favour in my sight.

16:23. So whensoever the evil spirit from the Lord was upon Saul, David
took his harp, and played with his hand, and Saul was refreshed, and
was better, for the evil spirit departed from him.

Departed from him. . .Chased away by David's devotion.

1 Kings Chapter 17

War with the Philistines. Goliath challengeth Israel. He is slain by
David.

17:1. Now the Philistines gathering together their troops to battle,
assembled at Socho of Juda: and camped between Socho and Azeca, in the
borders of Dommim.

17:2. And Saul and the children of Israel being gathered together, came
to the valley of Terebinth, and they set the army in array to fight
against the Philistines.

17:3. And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and
Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley
between them.

17:4. And there went out a man baseborn from the camp of the
Philistines, named Goliath, of Geth, whose height was six cubits and a
span:

17:5. And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clothed
with a coat of mail with scales, and the weight of his coat of mail was
five thousand sicles of brass:

17:6. And he had greaves of brass on his legs, and a buckler of brass
covered his shoulders.

17:7. And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and the head
of his spear weighed six hundred sicles of iron: and his armourbearer
went before him.

17:8. And standing, he cried out to the bands of Israel, and said to
them: Why are you come out prepared to fight? am not I a Philistine,
and you the servants of Saul? Choose out a man of you, and let him come
down and fight hand to hand.

17:9. If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, we will be servants
to you: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, you shall be
servants, and shall serve us.

17:10. And the Philistine said: I have defied the bands of Israel this
day: give me a man, and let him fight with me hand to hand.

17:11. And Saul and all the Israelites hearing these words of the
Philistine, were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

17:12. Now David was the son of that Ephrathite, of Bethlehem Juda,
before mentioned, whose name was Isai, who had eight sons, and was an
old man in the days of Saul, and of great age among men.

17:13. And his three eldest sons followed Saul to the battle: and the
names of his three sons that went to the battle, were Eliab, the
firstborn, and the second, Abinadab, and the third Samma:

17:14. But David was the youngest. So the three eldest having followed
Saul,

17:15. David went, and returned from Saul, to feed his father's flock
at Bethlehem.

17:16. Now the Philistine came out morning and evening, and presented
himself forty days.

17:17. And Isai said to David, his son: Take for thy brethren an ephi
of frumenty, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp to thy brethren,

17:18. And carry these ten little cheeses to the tribune: and go see
thy brethren, if they are well: and learn with whom they are placed.

17:19. But Saul, and they, and all the children of Israel, were in the
valley of Terebinth, fighting against the Philistines.

17:20. David, therefore, arose in the morning, and gave the charge of
the flock to the keeper: and went away loaded, as Isai had commanded
him. And he came to the place of Magala, and to the army, which was
going out to fight, and shouted for the battle.

17:21. For Israel had put themselves in array, and the Philistines who
stood against them were prepared.

17:22. And David leaving the vessels which he had brought, under the
care of the keeper of the baggage, ran to the place of the battle, and
asked if all things went well with his brethren.

17:23. And as he talked with them, that baseborn man, whose name was
Goliath, the Philistine, of Geth, shewed himself coming up from the
camp of the Philistines: and he spoke according to the same words, and
David heard them,

17:24. And all the Israelites, when they saw the man, fled from his
face, fearing him exceedingly.

17:25. And some one of Israel said: Have you seen this man that is come
up, for he is come up to defy Israel. And the man that shall slay him,
the king will enrich with great riches, and will give him his daughter,
and will make his father's house free from tribute in Israel.

17:26. And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying: What shall
be given to the man that shall kill this Philistine, and shall take
away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised
Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?

17:27. And the people answered him the same words, saying: These things
shall be given to the man that shall slay him.

17:28. Now when Eliab his eldest brother heard this, when he was
speaking with others, he was angry with David, and said: Why camest
thou hither? and why didst thou leave those few sheep in the desert? I
know thy pride, and the wickedness of thy heart: that thou art come
down to see the battle.

17:29. And David said: What have I done? is there not cause to speak?

17:30. And he turned a little aside from him to another: and said the
same word. And the people answered him as before.

17:31. And the words which David spoke were heard, and were rehearsed
before Saul.

17:32. And when he was brought to Saul, he said to him. Let not any
man's heart be dismayed in him: I thy servant will go, and will fight
against the Philistine.

17:33. And Saul said to David: Thou art not able to withstand this
Philistine, nor to fight against him: for thou art but a boy, but he is
a warrior from his youth.

17:34. And David said to Saul: Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and
there came a lion, or a bear, and took a ram out of the midst of the
flock:

17:35. And I pursued after them, and struck them, and delivered it out
of their mouth: and they rose up against me, and I caught them by the
throat, and I strangled, and killed them.

17:36. For I thy servant have killed both a lion and a bear: and this
uncircumcised Philistine shall be also as one of them. I will go now,
and take away the reproach of the people: for who is this uncircumcised
Philistine, who hath dared to curse the army of the living God?

17:37. And David said: The Lord who delivered me out of the paw of the
lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the
hand of this Philistine. And Saul said to David: Go, and the Lord be
with thee.

17:38. And Saul clothed David with his garments, and put a helmet of
brass upon his head, and armed him with a coat of mail.

17:39. And David having girded his sword upon his armour, began to try
if he could walk in armour: for he was not accustomed to it. And David
said to Saul: I cannot go thus, for I am not used to it. And he laid
them off,

17:40. And he took his staff, which he had always in his hands: and
chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them into the
shepherd's scrip, which he had with him, and he took a sling in his
hand, and went forth against the Philistine.

17:41. And the Philistine came on, and drew nigh against David, and his
armourbearer went before him.

17:42. And when the Philistine looked, and beheld David, he despised
him. For he was a young man, ruddy, and of a comely countenance.

17:43. And the Philistine said to David: Am I a dog, that thou comest
to me with a staff? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

17:44. And he said to David: Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to
the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.

17:45. And David said to the Philistine: Thou comest to me with a
sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the
name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which thou
hast defied

17:46. This day, and the Lord will deliver thee into my hand, and I
will slay thee, and take away thy head from thee: and I will give the
carcasses of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the
air, and to the beasts of the earth: that all the earth may know that
there is a God in Israel.

17:47. And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with
sword and spear: for it is his battle, and he will deliver you into our
hands.

17:48. And when the Philistine arose, and was coming, and drew nigh to
meet David, David made haste, and ran to the fight to meet the
Philistine.

17:49. And he put his hand into his scrip, and took a stone, and cast
it with the sling, and fetching it about, struck the Philistine in the
forehead, and he fell on his face upon the earth.

17:50. And David prevailed over the Philistine, with a sling and a
stone, and he struck, and slew the Philistine. And as David had no
sword in his hand,

17:51. He ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and
drew it out of the sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head. And the
Philistines seeing that their champion was dead, fled away.

17:52. And the men of Israel and Juda rising up shouted, and pursued
after the Philistines till they came to the valley and to the gates of
Accaron, and there fell many wounded of the Philistines in the way of
Saraim, and as far as Geth, and as far as Accaron.

17:53. And the children of Israel returning, after they had pursued the
Philistines, fell upon their camp.

17:54. And David taking the head of the Philistine, brought it to
Jerusalem: but his armour he put in his tent.

17:55. Now at the time that Saul saw David going out against the
Philistines, he said to Abner, the captain of the army: Of what family
is this young man descended, Abner? And Abner said: As thy soul liveth,
O king, I know not.

17:56. And the king said: Inquire thou, whose son this young man is.

17:57. And when David was returned, after the Philistine was slain,
Abner took him, and brought him in before Saul, with the head of the
Philistine in his hand.

17:58. And Saul said to him: Young man, of what family art thou? And
David said: I am the son of thy servant Isai the Bethlehemite.

1 Kings Chapter 18

The friendship of Jonathan and David. The envy of Saul, and his design
upon David's life. He marrieth him to his daughter Michol.

18:1. And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking to Saul,
the son of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved
him as his own soul.

18:2. And Saul took him that day, and would not let him return to his
father's house.

18:3. And David and Jonathan made a covenant, for he loved him as his
own soul.

18:4. And Jonathan stripped himself of the coat with which he was
clothed, and gave it to David, and the rest of his garments, even to
his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.

18:5. And David went out to whatsoever business Saul sent him, and he
behaved himself prudently: and Saul set him over the soldiers, and he
was acceptable in the eyes of all the people, and especially in the
eyes of Saul's servants.

18:6. Now when David returned, after he slew the Philistine, the women
came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king
Saul, with timbrels of joy, and cornets.

18:7. And the women sung as they played, and they said: Saul slew his
thousands, and David his ten thousands.

18:8. And Saul was exceeding angry, and this word was displeasing in
his eyes, and he said: They have given David ten thousands, and to me
they have given but a thousand, what can he have more but the kingdom?

18:9. And Saul did not look on David with a good eye from that day and
forward.

18:10. And the day after, the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and
he prophesied in the midst of his house. And David played with his hand
as at other times. And Saul held a spear in his hand,

Prophesied. . .Acted the prophet in a mad manner.

18:11. And threw it, thinking to nail David to the wall: and David
stept aside out of his presence twice.

18:12. And Saul feared David, because the Lord was with him, and was
departed from Saul himself.

18:13. Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him a captain over
a thousand men, and he went out and came in before the people.

18:14. And David behaved wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with
him.

18:15. And Saul saw that he was exceeding prudent, and began to beware
of him.

18:16. But all Israel and Juda loved David, for he came in and went out
before them.

18:17. And Saul said to David: Behold my elder daughter Merob, her will
I give thee to wife: only be a valiant man, and fight the battles of
the Lord. Now Saul said within himself: Let not my hand be upon him,
but let the hands of the Philistines be upon him.

18:18. And David said to Saul: Who am I, or what is my life, or my
father's family in Israel, that I should be son in law of the king?

18:19. And it came to pass at the time when Merob, the daughter of
Saul, should have been given to David, that she was given to Hadriel,
the Molathite, to wife.

18:20. But Michol, the other daughter of Saul, loved David. And it was
told Saul, and it pleased him.

18:21. And Saul said: I will give her to him, that she may be a
stumblingblock to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be upon
him. And Saul said to David: In two things thou shalt be my son in law
this day.

18:22. And Saul commanded his servants to speak to David privately,
saying: Behold, thou pleasest the king, and all his servants love thee.
Now, therefore be the king's son in law.

18:23. And the servants of Saul spoke all these words in the ear of
David. And David said: Doth it seem to you a small matter to be the
king's son in law? But I am a poor man, and of small ability.

18:24. And the servants of Saul told him, saying: Such words as these
hath David spoken.

18:25. And Saul said: Speak thus to David: The king desireth not any
dowry, but only a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged
of the king's enemies. Now Saul thought to deliver David into the hands
of the Philistines.

18:26. And when his servants had told David the words that Saul had
said, the word was pleasing in the eyes of David to be the king's son
in law.

18:27. And after a few days David rose up, and went with the men that
were under him, and he slew of the Philistines two hundred men, and
brought their foreskins and numbered them out to the king, that he
might be his son in law. Saul therefore gave him Michol, his daughter,
to wife.

18:28. And Saul saw, and understood that the Lord was with David. And
Michol, the daughter of Saul, loved him.

18:29. And Saul began to fear David more: and Saul became David's enemy
continually.

18:30. And the princes of the Philistines went forth: and from the
beginning of their going forth, David behaved himself more wisely than
all the servants of Saul, and his name became very famous.

1 Kings Chapter 19

Other attempts of Saul upon David's life. He cometh to Samuel. Saul's
messengers, and Saul himself prophesy.

19:1. And Saul spoke to Jonathan, his son, and to all his servants,
that they should kill David. But Jonathan, the son of Saul, loved David
exceedingly.

19:2. And Jonathan told David, saying: Saul, my father, seeketh to kill
thee: wherefore look to thyself, I beseech thee, in the morning and
thou shalt abide in a secret place, and shalt be hid.

19:3. And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where
thou art: and I will speak of thee to my father, and whatsoever I shall
see, I will tell thee.

19:4. And Jonathan spoke good things of David to Saul, his father: and
said to him: Sin not, O king, against thy servant, David, because he
hath not sinned against thee, and his works are very good towards thee.

19:5. And he put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, and the
Lord wrought great salvation for all Israel. Thou sawest it and didst
rejoice. Why therefore wilt thou sin against innocent blood, by killing
David, who is without fault?

19:6. And when Saul heard this, he was appeased with the words of
Jonathan, and swore: As the Lord liveth, he shall not be slain.

19:7. Then Jonathan called David, and told him all these words: and
Jonathan brought in David to Saul, and he was before him, as he had
been yesterday and the day before.

19:8. And the war began again, and David went out, and fought against
the Philistines, and defeated them with a great slaughter, and they
fled from his face.

19:9. And the evil spirit from the Lord came upon Saul; and he sat in
his house, and held a spear in his hand: and David played with his
hand.

19:10. And Saul endeavoured to nail David to the wall with his spear.
And David slipt away out of the presence of Saul: and the spear missed
him, and was fastened in the wall, and David fled, and escaped that
night.

19:11. Saul therefore sent his guards to David's house to watch him,
that he might be killed in the morning. And when Michol, David's wife,
had told him this, saying: Unless thou save thyself this night, to
morrow thou wilt die:

19:12. She let him down through a window. And he went and fled away,
and escaped.

19:13. And Michol took an image, and laid it on the bed, and put a
goat's skin, with the hair at the head of it, and covered it with
clothes.

19:14. And Saul sent officers to seize David; and it was answered that
he was sick.

19:15. And again Saul sent to see David, saying: Bring him to me in the
bed, that he may be slain.

19:16. And when the messengers were come in, they found an image upon
the bed, and a goat skin at his head.

19:17. And Saul said to Michol: Why hast thou deceived me so, and let
my enemy go and flee away? And Michol answered Saul: Because he said to
me: Let me go, or else I will kill thee.

19:18. But David fled and escaped, and came to Samuel in Ramatha, and
told him all that Saul had done to him: and he and Samuel went and
dwelt in Najoth.

Najoth. . .It was probably a school or college of prophets, in or near
Ramath under the direction of Samuel.

19:19. And it was told Saul by some, saying: Behold David is in Najoth,
in Ramatha.

19:20. So Saul sent officers to take David: and when they saw a company
of prophets prophesying, and Samuel presiding over them, the Spirit of
the Lord came also upon them, and they likewise began to prophesy.

Prophesying. . .That is, singing praises to God by a divine impulse. God
was pleased on this occasion that both Samuel's messengers and himself
should experience the like impulse, that he might understand, by this
instance of the divine power, how vain are the designs of man against
him whom God protects.

19:21. And when this was told Saul, he sent other messengers: but they
also prophesied. And again Saul sent messengers the third time: and
they prophesied also. And Saul being exceeding angry,

19:22. Went also himself to Ramatha, and came as far as the great
cistern, which is in Socho, and he asked, and said: In what place are
Samuel and David? And it was told him: Behold they are in Najoth, in
Ramatha.

19:23. And he went to Najoth, in Ramatha, and the Spirit of the Lord
came upon him also, and he went on, and prophesied till he came to
Najoth, in Ramatha.

19:24. And he stripped himself also of his garments, and prophesied
with the rest before Samuel, and lay down naked all that day and night.
This gave occasion to a proverb: What! is Saul too among the prophets?

1 Kings Chapter 20

Saul being obstinately bent upon killing David, he is sent away by
Jonathan.

20:1. But David fled from Najoth, which is in Ramatha, and came and
said to Jonathan: What have I done? what is my iniquity, and what is my
sin against thy father, that he seeketh my life?

20:2. And he said to him: (God forbid, thou shalt not die: for my
father will do nothing, great or little, without first telling me: hath
then my father hid this word only from me? no, this shall not be.

20:3. And he swore again to David. And David said: Thy father certainly
knoweth that I have found grace in thy sight, and he will say: Let not
Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved. But truly as the Lord liveth,
and thy soul liveth, there is but one step (as I may say) between me
and death.

20:4. And Jonathan said to David: Whatsoever thy soul shall say to me,
I will do for thee.

20:5. And David said to Jonathan: Behold to morrow is the new moon, and
I, according to custom, am wont to sit beside the king to eat: let me
go then that I may be hid in the field till the evening of the third
day.

To morrow is the new moon. . .The neomenia, or first day of the moon,
kept according to the law, as a festival; and therefore Saul feasted on
that day: and expected the attendance of his family.

20:6. If thy father look and inquire for me, thou shalt answer him:
David asked me that he might run to Bethlehem, his own city: because
there are solemn sacrifices there for all of his tribe.

20:7. If he shall say: It is well: thy servant shall have peace: but
if he be angry, know that his malice is come to its height.

20:8. Deal mercifully then with thy servant: for thou hast brought me,
thy servant, into a covenant of the Lord with thee. But if there be any
iniquity in me, do thou kill me, and bring me not in to thy father.

20:9. And Jonathan said: Far be this from thee: for if I should
certainly know that evil is determined by my father against thee, I
could do no otherwise than tell thee.

20:10. And David answered Jonathan: Who shall bring me word, if thy
father should answer thee harshly concerning me?

20:11. And Jonathan said to David: Come, and let us go out into the
field. And when they were both of them gone out into the field,

20:12. Jonathan said to David: O Lord God of Israel, if I shall
discover my father's mind, to morrow, or the day after, and there be
any thing good for David, and I send not immediately to thee, and make
it known to thee,

20:13. May the Lord do so and so to Jonathan, and add still more. But
if my father shall continue in malice against thee, I will discover it
to thy ear, and will send thee away, that thou mayst go in peace, and
the Lord be with thee, as he hath been with my father.

20:14. And if I live, thou shalt shew me the kindness of the Lord: but
if I die,

20:15. Thou shalt not take away thy kindness from my house for ever,
when the Lord shall have rooted out the enemies of David, every one of
them from the earth, may he take away Jonathan from his house, and may
the Lord require it at the hands of David's enemies.

May he take away Jonathan, etc. . .It is a curse upon himself, if he
should not be faithful to his promise.--Ibid. Require it, etc. . .That
is, revenge it upon David's enemies, and upon me, if I should fail of
my word given to him.

20:16. Jonathan therefore made a covenant with the house of David: and
the Lord required it at the hands of David's enemies.

20:17. And Jonathan swore again to David, because he loved him: for he
loved him as his own soul.

20:18. And Jonathan said to him: To morrow is the new moon, and thou
wilt be missed:

20:19. For thy seat will be empty till after to morrow. So thou shalt
go down quickly, and come to the place where thou must he hid, on the
day when it is lawful to work, and thou shalt remain beside the stone,
which is called Ezel.

20:20. And I will shoot three arrows near it, and will shoot as if I
were exercising myself at a mark.

20:21. And I will send a boy, saying to him: Go and fetch me the
arrows.

20:22. If I shall say to the boy: Behold the arrows are on this side of
thee, take them up: come thou to me, because there is peace to thee,
and there is no evil, as the Lord liveth. But if I shall speak thus to
the boy: Behold the arrows are beyond thee: go in peace, for the Lord
hath sent thee away.

20:23. And concerning the word which I and thou have spoken, the Lord
be between thee and me forever.

20:24. So David was hid in the field, and the new moon came, and the
king sat down to eat bread.

20:25. And when the king sat down upon his chair, (according to custom)
which was beside the wall, Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul's
side, and David's place appeared empty.

20:26. And Saul said nothing that day, for he thought it might have
happened to him, that he was not clean, nor purified.

20:27. And when the second day after the new moon was come, David's
place appeared empty again. And Saul said to Jonathan, his son: Why
cometh not the son of Isai to meat neither yesterday, nor to day?

20:28. And Jonathan answered Saul: He asked leave of me earnestly to go
to Bethlehem.

20:29. And he said: Let me go, for there is a solemn sacrifice in the
city, one of my brethren hath sent for me: and now if I have found
favour in thy eyes, I will go quickly, and see my brethren. For this
cause he came not to the king's table.

20:30. Then Saul being angry against Jonathan, said to him: Thou son of
a woman that is the ravisher of a man, do I not know that thou lovest
the son of Isai to thy own confusion, and to the confusion of thy
shameless mother?

20:31. For as long as the son of Isai liveth upon earth, thou shalt not
be established, nor thy kingdom. Therefore now presently send, and
fetch him to me: for he is the son of death.

The son of death. . .That is, one that deserveth death, and shall surely
be put to death.

20:32. And Jonathan answering Saul, his father, said: Why shall he die?
What hath he done?

20:33. And Saul caught up a spear to strike him. And Jonathan
understood that it was determined by his father to kill David.

20:34. So Jonathan rose from the table in great anger, and did not eat
bread on the second day after the new moon. For he was grieved for
David, because his father had put him to confusion.

20:35. And when the morning came, Jonathan went into the field
according to the appointment with David, and a little boy with him.

20:36. And he said to his boy: Go, and fetch me the arrows which I
shoot. And when the boy ran, he shot another arrow beyond the boy.

20:37. The boy therefore came to the place of the arrow which Jonathan
had shot: and Jonathan cried after the boy, and said: Behold the arrow
is there further beyond thee.

20:38. And Jonathan cried again after the boy, saying: Make haste
speedily, stand not. And Jonathan's boy gathered up the arrows, and
brought them to his master:

20:39. And he knew not at all what was doing: for only Jonathan and
David knew the matter.

20:40. Jonathan therefore gave his arms to the boy, and said to him:
Go, and carry them into the city.

20:41. And when the boy was gone, David rose out of his place, which
was toward the south, and falling on his face to the ground, adored
thrice: and kissing one another, they wept together; but David more.

20:42. And Jonathan said to David: Go in peace: and let all stand that
we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying: The Lord be
between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever.

20:43. And David arose, and departed: and Jonathan went into the city.

1 Kings Chapter 21

David receiveth holy bread of Achimelech, the priest: and feigneth
himself mad before Achis, king of Geth.

21:1. And David came to Nobe, to Achimelech, the priest and Achimelech
was astonished at David's coming. And he said to him: Why art thou
alone, and no man with thee?

Nobe. . .A city in the tribe of Benjamin, to which the tabernacle of the
Lord had been translated from Silo.

21:2. And David said to Achimelech, the priest: The king hath commanded
me a business, and said: Let no man know the thing for which thou art
sent by me, and what manner of commands I have given thee: and I have
appointed my servants to such and such a place.

21:3. Now therefore if thou have any thing at hand, though it were but
five loaves, give me, or whatsoever thou canst find.

21:4. And the priest answered David, saying: I have no common bread at
hand, but only holy bread, if the young men be clean, especially from
women?

If the young men be clean, etc. . .If this cleanness was required of
them that were to eat that bread, which was a figure of the bread of
life which we receive in the blessed sacrament; how clean ought
Christians to be when they approach to our tremendous mysteries. And
what reason hath the church of God to admit none to be her ministers to
consecrate and daily receive this most pure sacrament, but such as
devote themselves to a life of perpetual purity.

21:5. And David answered the priest, and said to him: Truly, as to what
concerneth women, we have refrained ourselves from yesterday and the
day before, when we came out, and the vessels of the young men were
holy. Now this way is defiled, but it shall also be sanctified this day
in the vessels.

The vessels. . .i. e., the bodies, have been holy, that is, have been
kept from impurity.--Ibid. Is defiled. . .Is liable to expose us to
dangers of uncleanness.--Ibid. Be sanctified, etc. . .That is, we shall
take care, notwithstanding these dangerous circumstances, to keep our
vessels holy, that is, to keep our bodies from every thing that may
defile us.

21:6. The priest therefore gave him hallowed bread: for there was no
bread there, but only the loaves of proposition, which had been taken
away from before the face of the Lord, that hot loaves might be set up.

21:7. Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day,
within the tabernacle of the Lord: and his name was Doeg, an Edomite,
the chiefest of Saul's herdsmen.

21:8. And David said to Achimelech: Hast thou here at hand a spear, or
a sword? for I brought not my own sword, nor my own weapons with me,
for the king's business required haste.

21:9. And the priest said: Lo, here is the sword of Goliath, the
Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Terebinth, wrapped up in
a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take this, take it, for here
there is no other but this. And David said: There is none like that,
give it me.

21:10. And David arose and fled that day from the face of Saul: and
came to Achis, the king of Geth:

21:11. And the servants of Achis, when they saw David, said to him: Is
not this David, the king of the land? Did they not sing to him in their
dances, saying: Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten
thousands?

21:12. But David laid up these words in his heart, and was exceedingly
afraid at the face of Achis, the king of Geth.

21:13. And he changed his countenance before them, and slipt down
between their hands: and he stumbled against the doors of the gate, and
his spittle ran down upon his beard.

21:14. And Achis said to his servants: You saw the man was mad: why
have you brought him to me?

21:15. Have we need of mad men, that you have brought in this fellow,
to play the madman in my presence? shall this fellow come into my
house?

1 Kings Chapter 22

Many resort to David. Doeg accuseth Achimelech to Saul. He ordereth him
and all the other priests of Nobe to be slain. Abiathar escapeth.

22:1. David therefore went from thence, and fled to the cave of
Odollam. And when his brethren, and all his father's house, had heard
of it, they went down to him thither.

22:2. And all that were in distress, and oppressed with debt, and under
affliction of mind, gathered themselves unto him: and he became their
prince, and there were with him about four hundred men.

22:3. And David departed from thence into Maspha of Moab: and he said
to the king of Moab: Let my father and my mother tarry with you, I
beseech thee, till I know what God will do for me.

22:4. And he left them under the eyes of the king of Moab, and they
abode with him all the days that David was in the hold.

The hold. . .The strong hold, or fortress of Maspha.

22:5. And Gad the prophet said to David: Abide not in the hold, depart,
and go into the land of Juda. And David departed, and came into the
forest of Haret.

22:6. And SauI heard that David was seen, and the men that were with
him. Now whilst Saul abode in Gabaa, and was in the wood, which is by
Rama, having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing
about him,

22:7. He said to his servants that stood about him: Hear me now, ye
sons of Jemini: will the son of Isai give every one of you fields, and
vineyards, and make you all tribunes, and centurions:

22:8. That all of you have conspired against me, and there is no one to
inform me, especially when even my son hath entered into league with
the son of Isai? There is not one of you that pitieth my case, nor that
giveth me any information: because my son hath raised up my servant
against me, plotting against me to this day.

22:9. And Doeg, the Edomite, who stood by, and was the chief among the
servants of Saul, answering, said: I saw the son of Isai, in Nobe, with
Achimelech, the son of Achitob, the priest.

22:10. And he consulted the Lord for him, and gave him victuals, and
gave him the sword of Goliath, the Philistine.

22:11. Then the king sent to call for Achimelech, the priest, the son
of Achitob, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nobe,
and they came all of them to the king.

22:12. And Saul said to Achimelech: Hear, thou son of Achitob. He
answered: Here I am, my lord.

22:13. And Saul said to him: Why have you conspired against me, thou,
and the son of Isai, and thou hast given him bread and a sword, and
hast consulted the Lord for him, that he should rise up against me,
continuing a traitor to this day.

22:14. And Achimelech answering the king, said: And who amongst all thy
servants is so faithful as David, who is the king's son in law, and
goeth forth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thy house?

22:15. Did I begin to day to consult the Lord for him? far be this from
me: let not the king suspect such a thing against his servant, or any
one in all my father's house: for thy servant knew nothing of this
matter, either little or great.

22:16. And the king said: Dying thou shalt die, Achimelech, thou and
all thy father's house.

22:17. And the king said to the messengers that stood about him: Turn,
and kill the priests of the Lord, for their hand is with David, because
they knew that he was fled, and they told it not to me. And the king's
servants would not put forth their hands against the priests of the
Lord.

22:18. And the king said to Doeg: Turn thou, and fall upon the priests.
And Doeg, the Edomite, turned, and fell upon the priests, and slew in
that day eighty-five men that wore the linen ephod.

22:19. And Nobe, the city of the priests, he smote with the edge of the
sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and ox, and ass, and
sheep, with the edge of the sword.

22:20. But one of the sons of Achimelech, the son of Achitob, whose
name was Abiathar, escaped, and fled to David,

22:21. And told him that Saul had slain the priests of the Lord.

22:22. And David said to Abiathar: I knew that day when Doeg, the
Edomite, was there, that without doubt he would tell Saul: I have been
the occasion of the death of all the souls of thy father's house.

22:23. Abide thou with me, fear not: for he that seeketh my life,
seeketh thy life also, and with me thou shalt be saved.

1 Kings Chapter 23

David relieveth Ceila, besieged by the Philistines. He fleeth into the
desert of Ziph. Jonathan and he confirm their former covenant. The
Ziphites discover him to Saul, who pursuing close after him, is called
away by an invasion from the Philistines.

23:1. And they told David, saying: Behold the Philistines fight against
Ceila, and they rob the barns.

23:2. Therefore David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I go and smite
these Philistines? And the Lord said to David: Go, and thou shalt smite
the Philistines, and shalt save Ceila.

23:3. And the men that were with David, said to him: Behold we are in
fear here in Judea, how much more if we go to Ceila against the bands
of the Philistines?

23:4. Therefore David consulted the Lord again. And he answered and
said to him: Arise, and go to Ceila: for I will deliver the Philistines
into thy hand.

23:5. David, therefore, and his men, went to Ceila, and fought against
the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and made a great
slaughter of them: and David saved the inhabitants of Ceila.

23:6. Now at that time, when Abiathar, the son of Achimelech, fled to
David, to Ceila, he came down, having an ephod with him.

An ephod. . .Or the ephod. That is, the vestment of the high priest,
with the urim and thummim, by which the Lord gave his oracle.

23:7. And it was told Saul that David was come to Ceila: and Saul said:
The Lord hath delivered him into my hands, and he is shut up, being
come into a city that hath gates and bars.

23:8. And Saul commanded all the people to go down to fight against
Ceila, and to besiege David and his men.

23:9. Now when David understood that Saul secretly prepared evil
against him, he said to Abiathar, the priest: Bring hither the ephod.

23:10. And David said: O Lord God of Israel, thy servant hath heard a
report, that Saul designeth to come to Ceila, to destroy the city for
my sake:

23:11. Will the men of Ceila deliver me into his hands? and will Saul
come down, as thy servant hath heard? O Lord God of Israel, tell thy
servant. And the Lord said: He will come down.

23:12. And David said: Will the men of Ceila deliver me and my men into
the hands of Saul? And the Lord said: They will deliver thee up.

23:13. Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose, and
departing from Ceila, wandered up and down, uncertain where they should
stay: and it was told Saul that David was fled from Ceila, and had
escaped: wherefore he forbore to go out.

23:14. But David abode in the desert in strong holds, and he remained
in a mountain of the desert of Ziph, in a woody hill. And Saul sought
him always: but the Lord delivered him not into his hands.

23:15. And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life. And David
was in the desert of Ziph, in a wood.

23:16. And Jonathan, the son of Saul, arose, and went to David, into
the wood, and strengthened his hands in God: and he said to him:

23:17. Fear not: for the hand of my father, Saul, shall not find thee,
and thou shalt reign over Israel, and I shall be next to thee; yea and
my father knoweth this.

23:18. And they two made a covenant before the Lord: and David abode in
the wood: but Jonathan returned to his house.

23:19. And the Ziphites went up to Saul, in Gabaa, saying: Lo, doth not
David lie hid with us in the strong holds of the wood, in mount
Hachila, which is on the right hand of the desert.

23:20. Now therefore come down, as thy soul hath desired to come down:
and it shall be our business to deliver him into the king's hands.

23:21. And Saul said: Blessed be ye of the Lord, for you have pitied my
case.

23:22. Go, therefore, I pray you, and use all diligence, and curiously
inquire, and consider the place where his foot is, and who hath seen
him there: for he thinketh of me, that I lie craftily in wait for him.

23:23. Consider, and see all his lurking holes, wherein he is hid, and
return to me with the certainty of the thing, that I may go with you.
And if he should even go down into the earth to hide himself, I will
search him out in all the thousands of Juda.

23:24. And they arose, and went to Ziph before Saul: and David and his
men were in the desert of Maon, in the plain at the right hand of
Jesimon.

23:25. Then Saul and his men went to seek him: and it was told David,
and forthwith he went down to the rock, and abode in the wilderness of
Maon: and when Saul had heard of it, he pursued after David in the
wilderness of Maon.

23:26. And Saul went on this side of the mountain: and David and his
men were on the other side of the mountain: and David despaired of
being able to escape from the face of Saul: and Saul and his men
encompassed David and his men round about, to take them.

23:27. And a messenger came to Saul, saying: Make haste to come, for
the Philistines have poured in themselves upon the land.

23:28. Wherefore Saul returned, leaving the pursuit of David, and went
to meet the Philistines. For this cause they called that place the rock
of division.

1 Kings Chapter 24

Saul seeketh David in the wilderness of Engaddi: he goeth into a cave
where David hath him in his power.

24:1. Then David went up from thence, and dwelt in strong holds of
Engaddi.

24:2. And when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, they
told him, saying: Behold, David is in the desert of Engaddi.

24:3. Saul, therefore, took three thousand chosen men out of all
Israel, and went out to seek after David and his men, even upon the
most craggy rocks, which are accessible only to wild goats.

24:4. And he came to the sheepcotes which were in his way. And there
was a cave, into which Saul went, to ease nature: now David and his men
lay hid in the inner part of the cave.

24:5. And the servants of David said to him: Behold the day, of which
the Lord said to thee: I will deliver thy enemy unto thee, that thou
mayst do to him as it shall seem good in thy eyes. Then David arose,
and secretly cut off the hem of Saul's robe.

24:6. After which David's heart struck him, because he had cut off the
hem of Saul's robe.

Heart struck him. . .Viz., with remorse, as fearing he had done amiss.

24:7. And he said to his men: The Lord be merciful unto me, that I may
do no such thing to my master, the Lord's anointed, as to lay my hand
upon him, because he is the Lord's anointed.

24:8. And David stopped his men with his words, and suffered them not
to rise against Saul: but Saul, rising up out of the cave, went on his
way.

24:9. And David also rose up after him: and going out of the cave,
cried after Saul, saying: My lord the king. And Saul looked behind him:
and David bowing himself down to the ground, worshipped,

24:10. And said to Saul: Why dost thou hear the words of men that say:
David seeketh thy hurt?

24:11. Behold this day thy eyes have seen, that the Lord hath delivered
thee into my hand, in the cave, and I had a thought to kill thee, but
my eye hath spared thee. For I said: I will not put out my hand against
my lord, because he is the Lord's anointed.

A thought to kill thee. . .That is, a suggestion, to which I did not
consent.

24:12. Moreover, see and know, O my father, the hem of thy robe in my
hand, that when I cut off the hem of thy robe, I would not put out my
hand against thee. Reflect, and see, that there is no evil in my hand,
nor iniquity, neither have I sinned against thee: but thou liest in
wait for my life, to take it away.

24:13. The Lord judge between me and thee and the Lord revenge me of
thee: but my hand shall not be upon thee.

Revenge me of thee. . .Or, as it is in the Hebrew, will revenge me. The
meaning is, that he refers his whole cause to God, to judge and punish
according to his justice: yet so as to keep himself in the mean time,
from all personal hatred to Saul, or desire of gratifying his own
passion, by seeking revenge. So far from it, that when Saul was
afterwards slain, we find, that instead of rejoicing at his death, he
mourned most bitterly for him.

24:14. As also it is said in the old proverb: From the wicked shall
wickedness come forth: therefore my hand shall not be upon thee. After
whom dost thou come out, O king of Israel?

24:15. After whom dost thou pursue? After a dead dog, after a flea.

24:16. Be the Lord judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and
judge my cause, and deliver me out of thy hand.

24:17. And when David had made an end of speaking these words to Saul,
Saul said: Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his
voice, and wept:

24:18. And he said to David: Thou art more just than I: for thou hast
done good to me, and I have rewarded thee with evil.

24:19. And thou hast shewed this day what good things thou hast done to
me: how the Lord delivered me into thy hand, and thou hast not killed
me.

24:20. For who when he hath found his enemy, will let him go well away?
But the Lord reward thee for this good turn, for what thou hast done to
me this day.

24:21. And now as I know that thou shalt surely be king, and have the
kingdom of Israel in thy hand:

24:22. Swear to me by the Lord, that thou wilt not destroy my seed
after me, nor take away my name from the house of my father.

24:23. And David swore to Saul. So Saul went home: and David and his
men went up into safer places.

1 Kings Chapter 25

The death of Samuel. David, provoked by Nabal, threateneth to destroy
him: but is appeased by Abigail.

25:1. And Samuel died, and all Israel was gathered together, and they
mourned for him, and buried him in his house in Ramatha. And David
rose, and went down into the wilderness of Pharan.

25:2. Now there was a certain man in the wilderness of Maon, and his
possessions were in Carmel, and the man was very great: and he had
three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and it happened that he was
shearing his sheep in Carmel.

25:3. Now the name of the man was Nabal: and the name of his wife was
Abigail. And she was a prudent and very comely woman: but her husband
was churlish, and very bad and ill natured: and he was of the house of
Caleb.

25:4. And when David heard in the wilderness, that Nabal was shearing
his sheep,

25:5. He sent ten young men, and said to them: Go up to Carmel, and go
to Nabal, and salute him in my name with peace.

25:6. And you shall say: Peace be to my brethren, and to thee, and
peace to thy house, and peace to all that thou hast.

25:7. I have heard that thy shepherds that were with us in the desert
were shearing: we never molested them, neither was there ought missing
to them of the flock at any time, all the while they were with us in
Carmel.

25:8. Ask thy servants, and they will tell thee. Now therefore let thy
servants find favour in thy eyes: for we are come in a good day,
whatsoever thy hand shall find give to thy servants, and to thy son
David.

25:9. And when David's servants came, they spoke to Nabal all these
words in David's name, and then held their peace.

25:10. But Nabal answering the servants of David, said: Who is David?
and what is the son of Isai? servants are multiplied now days who flee
from their masters.

25:11. Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and the flesh of my
cattle, which I have killed for my shearers, and give to men whom I
know not whence they are?

25:12. So the servants of David went back their way, and returning came
and told him all the words that he said.

25:13. Then David said to his young men: Let every man gird on his
sword. And they girded on every man his sword. And David also girded on
his sword: and there followed David about four hundred men, and two
hundred remained with the baggage.

25:14. But one of the servants told, Abigail, the wife of Nabal,
saying: Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness, to salute
our master: and he rejected them.

25:15. These men were very good to us, and gave us no trouble: Neither
did we ever lose any thing all the time that we conversed with them in
the desert.

25:16. They were a wall unto us, both by night and day, all the while
we were with them keeping the sheep.

25:17. Wherefore consider, and think what thou hast to do: for evil is
determined against thy husband, and against thy house, and he is a son
of Belial, so that no man can speak to him.

25:18. Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves, and two
vessels of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of
parched corn, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes
of dry figs, and laid them upon asses:

25:19. And she said to her servants: Go before me: behold, I will
follow after you: but she told not her husband, Nabal.

25:20. And when she had gotten upon an ass, and was coming down to the
foot of the mountain, David and his men came down over against her, and
she met them.

25:21. And David said: Truly in vain have I kept all that belonged to
this fellow in the wilderness, and nothing was lost of all that
pertained unto him: and he hath returned me evil for good.

25:22. May God do so and so, and add more to the foes of David, if I
leave of all that belong to him till the morning, any that pisseth
against the wall.

If I leave, etc. . .David certainly sinned in his designs against Nabal
and his family, as he himself was afterwards sensible, when he blessed
God for hindering him from executing the revenge he had proposed.

25:23. And when Abigail saw David, she made haste and lighted off the
ass, and fell before David, on her face, and adored upon the ground.

25:24. And she fell at his feet, and said: Upon me let this iniquity
be, my lord: let thy handmaid speak, I beseech thee, in thy ears, and
hear the words of thy servant.

25:25. Let not my lord the king, I pray thee, regard this naughty man,
Nabal: for according to his name, he is a fool, and folly is with him:
but I, thy handmaid, did not see thy servants, my lord, whom thou
sentest.

His name. . .Nabal, in Hebrew, signifies a fool.

25:26. Now therefore, my lord, the Lord liveth, and thy soul liveth,
who hath withholden thee from coming to blood, and hath saved thy hand
to thee: and now let thy enemies be as Nabal, and all they that seek
evil to my lord.

25:27. Wherefore receive this blessing, which thy handmaid hath brought
to thee, my lord: and give it to the young men that follow thee, my
lord.

25:28. Forgive the iniquity of thy handmaid: for the Lord will surely
make for my lord a faithful house, because thou, my lord, fightest the
battles of the Lord: let not evil therefore be found in thee all the
days of thy life.

25:29. For if a man at any time shall rise, and persecute thee, and
seek thy life, the soul of my lord shall be kept, as in the bundle of
the living, with the Lord thy God: but the souls of thy enemies shall
be whirled, as with the violence and whirling of a sling.

25:30. And when the Lord shall have done to thee, my lord, all the good
that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have made thee prince
over Israel,

25:31. This shall not be an occasion of grief to thee, and a scruple of
heart to my lord, that thou hast shed innocent blood, or hast revenged
thyself: and when the Lord shall have done well by my lord, thou shalt
remember thy handmaid.

25:32. And David said to Abigail: Blessed be the Lord the God of
Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me, and blessed be thy speech:

25:33. And blessed be thou, who hast kept me to day from coming to
blood, and revenging me with my own hand.

25:34. Otherwise, as the Lord liveth, the God of Israel, who hath
withholden me from doing thee any evil, if thou hadst not quickly come
to meet me, there had not been left to Nabal by the morning light, any
that pisseth against the wall.

25:35. And David received at her hand all that she had brought him, and
said to her: Go in peace into thy house, behold I have heard thy voice,
and honoured thy face.

25:36. And Abigail came to Nabal: and behold he had a feast in his
house, like the feast of a king: and Nabal's heart was merry, for he
was very drunk: and she told him nothing less or more until morning.

25:37. But early in the morning, when Nabal had digested his wine, his
wife told him these words, and his heart died within him, and he became
as a stone.

25:38. And after ten days had passed, the Lord struck Nabal, and he
died.

25:39. And when David had heard that Nabal was dead, he said: Blessed
be the Lord, who hath judged the cause of my reproach, at the hand of
Nabal, and hath kept his servant from evil, and the Lord hath returned
the wickedness of Nabal upon his head. Then David sent and treated with
Abigail, that he might take her to himself for a wife.

Blessed be, etc. . .David praiseth God, on this occasion, not out of joy
for the death of Nabal (which would have argued a rancour of heart),
but because he saw that God had so visibly taken his cause in hand, in
punishing the injury done to him; whilst, by a merciful providence he
kept him from revenging himself.

25:40. And David's servants came to Abigail, to Carmel, and spoke to
her, saying: David hath sent us to thee, to take thee to himself for a
wife.

25:41. And she arose, and bowed herself down with her face to the
earth, and said: Behold, let thy servant be a handmaid, to wash the
feet of the servants of my lord.

25:42. And Abigail arose, and made haste, and got upon an ass, and five
damsels went with her, her waiting maids, and she followed the
messengers of David, and became his wife.

25:43. Moreover David took also Achinoam of Jezrahel: and they were
both of them his wives.

25:44. But Saul gave Michol, his daughter, David's wife, to Phalti, the
son of Lais, who was of Gallim.

1 Kings Chapter 26

Saul goeth out again after David, who cometh by night where Saul and
his men are asleep, but suffereth him not to be touched. Saul again
confesseth his fault, and promiseth peace.

26:1. And the men of Ziph came to Saul in Gabaa, saying: Behold David
is hid in the hill of Hachila, which is over against the wilderness.

26:2. And Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Ziph having
with him three thousand chosen men of Israel, to seek David in the
wilderness of Ziph.

26:3. And Saul encamped in Gabaa Hachila, which was over against the
wilderness in the way: and David abode in the wilderness. And seeing
that Saul was come after him into the wilderness,

26:4. He sent spies, and learned that he was most certainly come
thither.

26:5. And David arose secretly, and came to the place where Saul was:
and when he had beheld the place, wherein Saul slept, and Abner, the
son of Ner, the captain of his army, and Saul sleeping in a tent, and
the rest of the multitude round about him,

26:6. David spoke to Achimelech, the Hethite, and Abisai, the son of
Sarvia, the brother of Joab, saying: Who will go down with me to Saul
into the camp? And Abisai said: I will go with thee.

26:7. So David and Abisai came to the people by night, and found Saul
lying and sleeping in the tent, and his spear fixed in the ground at
his head: and Abner and the people sleeping round about him.

26:8. And Abisai said to David: God hath shut up thy enemy this day
into thy hands: now then I will run him through with my spear, even to
the earth at once, and there shall be no need of a second time.

26:9. And David said to Abisai: Kill him not: for who shall put forth
his hand against the Lord's anointed, and shall be guiltless?

26:10. And David said: As the Lord liveth, unless the Lord shall strike
him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go down to battle, and
perish:

26:11. The Lord be merciful unto me, and keep me that I never put forth
my hand against the Lord's anointed. But now take the spear which is at
his head, and the cup of water, and let us go.

26:12. So David took the spear, and the cup of water which was at
Saul's head, and they went away: and no man saw it, or knew it, or
awaked, but they were all asleep, for a deep sleep from the Lord was
fallen upon them.

26:13. And when David was gone over to the other side, and stood on the
top of the hill afar off, and a good space was between them,

26:14. David cried to the people, and to Abner, the son of Ner, saying:
Wilt thou not answer, Abner? And Abner answering, said: Who art thou,
that criest, and disturbest the king?

26:15. And David said to Abner: Art not thou a man? and who is like
unto thee in Israel? why then hast thou not kept thy lord the king? for
there came one of the people in to kill the king thy lord.

26:16. This thing is not good, that thou hast done: as the Lord liveth,
you are the sons of death, who have not kept your master, the Lord's
anointed. And now where is the king's spear, and the cup of water,
which was at his head?

26:17. And Saul knew David's voice, and said: Is this thy voice, my son
David? And David said: It is my voice, my lord the king.

26:18. And he said: Wherefore doth my lord persecute his servant? What
have I done? or what evil is there in my hand?

26:19. Now therefore hear, I pray thee, my lord the king, the words of
thy servant: If the Lord stir thee up against me, let him accept of
sacrifice: but if the sons of men, they are cursed in the sight of the
Lord, who have cast me out this day, that I should not dwell in the
inheritance of the Lord, saying: Go, serve strange gods.

26:20. And now let not my blood be shed upon the earth before the Lord:
for the king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as the partridge is
hunted in the mountains.

26:21. And Saul said: I have sinned; return, my son David, for I will
no more do thee harm, because my life hath been precious in thy eyes
this day: for it appeareth that I have done foolishly, and have been
ignorant in very many things.

26:22. And David answering, said: Behold the king's spear: let one of
the king's servants come over and fetch it.

26:23. And the Lord will reward every one according to his justice, and
his faithfulness: for the Lord hath delivered thee this day into my
hand, and I would not put forth my hand against the Lord's anointed.

26:24. And as thy life hath been much set by this day in my eyes, so
let my life be much set by in the eyes of the Lord, and let him deliver
me from all distress.

26:25. Then Saul said to David: Blessed art thou, my son David: and
truly doing thou shalt do, and prevailing thou shalt prevail. And David
went on his way, and Saul returned to his place.

1 Kings Chapter 27

David goeth again to Achis king of Geth, and obtaineth of him the city
of Siceleg.

27:1. And David said in his heart: I shall one day or other fall into
the hands of Saul: is it not better for me to flee, and to be saved in
the land of the Philistines, that Saul may despair of me, and cease to
seek me in all the coasts of Israel? I will flee then out of his hands.

27:2. And David arose, and went away, both he and the six hundred men
that were with him, to Achis, the son of Maoch, king of Geth.

27:3. And David dwelt with Achis at Geth, he and his men; every man
with his household, and David with his two wives, Achinoam, the
Jezrahelitess, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.

27:4. And it was told Saul that David was fled to Geth, and he sought
no more after him.

27:5. And David said to Achis: If I have found favour in thy sight, let
a place be given me in one of the cities of this country, that I may
dwell there: for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with
thee?

27:6. Then Achis gave him Siceleg that day: for which reason Siceleg
belongeth to the kings of Juda unto this day.

27:7. And the time that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines,
was four months.

27:8. And David and his men went up, and pillaged Gessuri, and Gerzi,
and the Amalecites: for these were of old the inhabitants of the
countries, as men go to Sur, even to the land of Egypt.

Pillaged Gessuri, etc. . .These probably were enemies of the people of
God: and some, if not all of them, were of the number of those whom God
had ordered to be destroyed: which justifies David's proceedings in
their regard. Though it is to be observed here, that we are not under
an obligation of justifying every thing that he did: for the scripture,
in relating what was done, does not say that it was well done. And even
such as are true servants of God, are not to be imitated in all they
do.

27:9. And David wasted all the land, and left neither man nor woman
alive: and took away the sheep, and the oxen, and the asses, and the
camels, and the apparel, and returned and came to Achis.

27:10. And Achis said to him: Whom hast thou gone against to day? David
answered: Against the south of Juda, and against the south of Jerameel,
and against the south of Ceni.

27:11. And David saved neither man nor woman, neither brought he any of
them to Geth, saying: Lest they should speak against us. So did David,
and such was his proceeding all the days that he dwelt in the country
of the Philistines.

27:12. And Achis believed David, saying: He hath done much harm to his
people Israel: Therefore he shall be my servant for ever.

1 Kings Chapter 28

The Philistines go out to war against Israel. Saul being forsaken by
God, hath recourse to a witch. Samuel appeareth to him.

28:1. And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines gathered
together their armies, to be prepared for war against Israel: And Achis
said to David: Know thou now assuredly, that thou shalt go out with me
to the war, thou, and thy men.

28:2. And David said to Achis: Now thou shalt know what thy servant
will do. And Achis said to David: And I will appoint thee to guard my
life for ever.

28:3. Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel mourned for him, and buried
him in Ramatha, his city. And Saul had put away all the magicians and
soothsayers out of the land.

28:4. And the Philistines were gathered together, and came and encamped
in Sunam: and Saul also gathered together all Israel, and came to
Gelboe.

28:5. And Saul saw the army of the Philistines, and was afraid, and his
heart was very much dismayed.

28:6. And he consulted the Lord, and he answered him not, neither by
dreams, nor by priests, nor by prophets.

28:7. And Saul said to his servants: Seek me a woman that hath a
divining spirit, and I will go to her, and enquire by her. And his
servants said to him: There is a woman that hath a divining spirit at
Endor.

28:8. Then he disguised himself: and put on other clothes, and he went,
and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night, and he said
to her: Divine to me by thy divining spirit, and bring me up him whom I
shall tell thee.

28:9. And the woman said to him: Behold thou knowest all that Saul hath
done, and how he hath rooted out the magicians and soothsayers from the
land: why then dost thou lay a snare for my life, to cause me to be put
to death?

28:10. And Saul swore unto her by the Lord, saying: As the Lord liveth,
there shall no evil happen to thee for this thing.

28:11. And the woman said to him: Whom shall I bring up to thee? And he
said, Bring me up Samuel.

28:12. And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice,
and said to Saul: Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.

28:13. And the king said to her: Fear not: what hast thou seen? and
the woman said to Saul: I saw gods ascending out of the earth.

28:14. And he said to her: What form is he of? And she said: An old
man cometh up, and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul understood that
it was Samuel, and he bowed himself with his face to the ground, and
adored.

Understood that it was Samuel. . .It is the more common opinion of the
holy fathers, and interpreters, that the soul of Samuel appeared
indeed: and not, as some have imagined, an evil spirit in his shape.
Not that the power of her magic could bring him thither, but that God
was pleased for the punishment of Saul, that Samuel himself should
denounce unto him the evils that were falling upon him. See Eccli.
46.23.

28:15. And Samuel said to Saul: Why hast thou disturbed my rest, that I
should be brought up? And Saul said: I am in great distress: for the
Philistines fight against me, and God is departed from me, and would
not hear me, neither by the hand of prophets, nor by dreams: therefore
I have called thee, that thou mayst shew me what I shall do.

28:16. And Samuel said: Why askest thou me, seeing the Lord has
departed from thee, and is gone over to thy rival?

28:17. For the Lord will do to thee as he spoke by me, and he will rend
thy kingdom out of thy hand, and will give it to thy neighbour David:

28:18. Because thou didst not obey the voice of the Lord, neither didst
thou execute the wrath of his indignation upon Amalec. Therefore hath
the Lord done to thee what thou sufferest this day.

28:19. And the Lord also will deliver Israel with thee into the hands
of the Philistines: and to morrow thou and thy sons shall be with me:
and the Lord will also deliver the army of Israel into the hands of the
Philistines.

With me. . .That is, in the state of the dead, and in another world,
though not in the same place.

28:20. And forthwith Saul fell all along on the ground; for he was
frightened with the words of Samuel, and there was no strength in him,
for he had eaten no bread all that day.

28:21. And the woman came to Saul, (for he was very much troubled) and
said to him: Behold thy handmaid hath obeyed thy voice, and I have put
my life in my hand: and I hearkened unto the words which thou spokest
to me.

28:22. Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also to the voice of
thy handmaid, and let me set before thee a morsel of bread, that thou
mayst eat and recover strength, and be able to go on thy journey.

28:23. But he refused, and said: I will not eat. But his servants and
the woman forced him, and at length hearkening to their voice, he arose
from the ground, and sat upon the bed.

28:24. Now the woman had a fatted calf in the house, and she made haste
and killed it: and taking meal, kneaded it, and baked some unleavened
bread,

28:25. And set it before Saul, and before his servants. And when they
had eaten they rose up, and walked all that night.

1 Kings Chapter 29

David going with the Philistines is sent back by their princes.

29:1. Now all the troops of the Philistines were gathered together to
Aphec: and Israel also encamped by the fountain, which is in Jezrahel.

29:2. And the lords of the Philistines marched with their hundreds and
their thousands: but David and his men were in the rear with Achis.

29:3. And the princes of the Philistines said to Achis: What mean these
Hebrews? And Achis said to the princes of the Philistines: Do you not
know David who was the servant of Saul, the king of Israel, and hath
been with me many days, or years, and I have found no fault in him,
since the day that he fled over to me until this day?

29:4. But the prices of the Philistines were angry with him, and they
said to him: Let this man return, and abide in his place, which thou
hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us to battle, lest he
be an adversary to us, when we shall begin to fight: for how can he
otherwise appease his master, but with our heads?

29:5. Is not this David, to whom they sung in their dances, saying:
Saul slew his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

29:6. Then Achis called David, and said to him: As the Lord liveth,
thou art upright and good in my sight: and so is thy going out, and thy
coming in with me in the army: and I have not found any evil in thee,

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