1 Samuel 21
1 Samuel 21 consists of two main events that David experiences as he flees from Saul and escapes.
- Verses 1–9: David requests food and weapons from Ahimelech the priest at the city of Nob.
- Verses 10–15: He saves his life by pretending to be insane before the Philistine king’s guards at Gath.
1verseThen David came to Nob to Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech came to meet David trembling, and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no man with you?”
2verseDavid said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has commanded me to do something, and has said to me, ‘Let no one know anything about the business about which I send you, and what I have commanded you. I have sent the young men to a certain place.’
3verseNow therefore what is under your hand? Please give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever is available.”
4verseThe priest answered David, and said, “I have no common bread, but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women.”
5verseDavid answered the priest, and said to him, “Truly, women have been kept from us as usual these three days. When I came out, the vessels of the young men were holy, though it was only a common journey. How much more then today shall their vessels be holy?”
6verseSo the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the show bread that was taken from before the LORD, to be replaced with hot bread in the day when it was taken away.
7verseNow a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the LORD; and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the best of the herdsmen who belonged to Saul.
8verseDavid said to Ahimelech, “Isn’t there here under your hand spear or sword? For I haven’t brought my sword or my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.”
9verseThe priest said, “Behold, the sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the valley of Elah, is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you would like to take that, take it, for there is no other except that here.” David said, “There is none like that. Give it to me.”
10verseDavid arose and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.
11verseThe servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David the king of the land? Didn’t they sing to one another about him in dances, saying, ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?”
12verseDavid laid up these words in his heart, and was very afraid of Achish the king of Gath.
13verseHe changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands, and scribbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down on his beard.
14verseThen Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why then have you brought him to me?
15verseDo I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Should this fellow come into my house?”
Flow and Meaning of the Chapter
When David’s situation becomes desperate, he goes to find the closest source of help. From the priest, the “consecrated bread” that was usually part of everyday life is provided as a supply of life, and Goliath’s sword is used as an instrument that symbolizes past victory. However, beyond simply obtaining resources, David experiences God’s providence, who governs his destiny, and at the same time shows ingenuity even within human weakness.
Meditation Points
- Remember God’s providence that fills you with what you need, even in hardship.
- Think about how past experiences (the war with Goliath) can become resources for overcoming the current crisis.
- Reflect on the importance of the “community of wisdom (the priest)” that you can rely on when things are desperate.
Apply It to Me
The difficulties I face today, like David, can become new nourishment when I seek prayer and wisdom.
- Who is my trustworthy mentor or community that I can call my “priest”?
- How can the experiences I have built up so far be used to overcome my current crisis?
