1 Samuel 26

₁People from the town of Ziph went to Saul in the town of Gibeah. They said to him: ‘David is hiding on Mount Hakilah near Jeshimon.’ ₂Saul chose 3 000 men and he took them with him to the Ziph Desert to look for David. ₃Saul put up his tents on Mount Hakilah near Jeshimon next to the road. David stayed in the desert and they told him that Saul had come to look for him. ₄David sent men to make sure if Saul was really coming and when he would be there. ₅Then David secretly went to Saul's camp and he saw where Saul and Abner were sleeping. Abner, the chief of the army, was the son of Ner. Saul was sleeping in the camp and his men were lying around him. ₆David asked Ahimelek the Hittite man and Abishai, son of Zeruiah, brother of Joab: ‘Who will go with me into Saul's camp?’ Abishai said: ‘I will go with you.’

₇David and Abishai went to Saul's camp that night. Saul was asleep in the camp. He had put the point of his spear into the ground and it was standing upright near his head. Abner and the other men were sleeping around him. ₈Then Abishai said to David: ‘God has helped you today to catch your enemy. I will kill him with my spear and pin him to the ground. I will do it only once, then he will be dead.’

₉But David said to Abishai: ‘Do not kill him. The Lord will punish anyone who does something against his anointed one. ₁₀I know, as sure as the Lord lives, He will cause Saul to die, or Saul will die when it is his time to die, or he will die in war. ₁₁No, I will not do anything against the anointed one of the Lord. But let us take the spear and the water jar near his head and then we can go.’

₁₂David took the spear and the water jar from near Saul's head and they went away. No one saw or heard them or woke up. Everyone was sleeping because the Lord had made them sleep very deeply. ₁₃David went to the other side of the valley to the hill, far from Saul and his men. ₁₄Then David shouted to Saul's men and to Abner, son of Ner. He said: ‘Abner, can you hear me?’

Abner said: ‘Who are you? Why do you call and wake up the king?’ ₁₅Then David said to Abner: ‘I thought that you were a brave man and that no one in the land_of_Israel was like you. But why did you not guard your king? Someone came into the camp. He could have killed the king if he had wanted to. ₁₆What you have done is not good. As sure as the Lord lives, you and your men must die, because you did not guard your king and he is the anointed one of the Lord. Look, here are the king's spear and the water jar that were at his head.’

₁₇Saul heard that it was David who was talking and he asked: ‘Is it you, my son David, who speaks?’ And David said: ‘Yes, it is I, Your_Majesty the king. ₁₈Why are you chasing me? What have I done wrong? ₁₉Your_Majesty, please listen to what I say. If it was the Lord who told you to kill me, then we must bring an offering to Him. But if it was people who told you to kill me, then I pray that God will punish them, because they have chased me away from the land of the Lord. They want me to go and serve the gods of the Gentiles. ₂₀But you must not let me die far away from the place where God is. I am as unimportant as an insect, but the king_of_Israel chases me like someone hunts a bird in the mountains.’

₂₁Then Saul said: ‘My son David, I have done wrong. You must come back. Today you have shown that my life is important to you. Now I will do nothing bad to you. Yes, I was a fool, and I have been very wrong.’

₂₂David answered and said: ‘Here is the king's spear. Send one of the young men to come and get it. ₂₃The Lord has given you to me today. I could have killed you if I had wanted to, but I decided to do nothing bad against the anointed one of the Lord. I know the Lord is good to people who do right and live as He wants. ₂₄Your life was important to me today. I pray that my life will also be important to the Lord and that He will always save me and help me in all my trouble.’

₂₅Then Saul said to David: ‘My son David, I pray that God will be with you. I know that God will make all your plans succeed, this is sure.’ David went away and Saul went home.