1 Samuel 24

The TorahRooted Bible (TRB), translated directly from the Hebrew and Greek.

David spares Saul in the cave

¹ Now when Saul returned from following the Philistines, it was told him, saying, "See, David is in the wilderness of En-gedi." ² Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the Rocks of the Wild Goats. ³ And he came to the sheepfolds by the way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. ⁴ Then David's men said to him, "See, this is the day of which Yahweh said to you, 'See, I am giving your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it seems good to you.'" Then David arose and secretly cut off the corner of Saul's robe. ⁵ And afterward David's heart struck him, because he had cut off the corner of Saul's robe. ⁶ He said to his men, "Far be it from me, by Yahweh, that I should do this thing to my lord, Yahweh's anointed, to put forth my hand against him, for he is Yahweh's anointed." ⁷ So David restrained his men with these words and did not allow them to rise against Saul. And Saul rose up out of the cave and went on his way.

David pleads with Saul

⁸ Afterward David also arose and went out of the cave and called after Saul, saying, "My lord the king!" And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the ground and prostrated himself. ⁹ And David said to Saul, "Why do you listen to the words of men who say, 'See, David seeks your harm'? ¹⁰ See, this day your eyes have seen how Yahweh gave you today into my hand in the cave. Some told me to kill you, but I spared you; and I said, 'I will not put forth my hand against my lord, for he is Yahweh's anointed.' ¹¹ Now, my father, see, yes, see the corner of your robe in my hand! For in that I cut off the corner of your robe and did not kill you, know and see that there is no evil or rebellion in my hand, and I have not sinned against you, though you are hunting my life to take it. ¹² May Yahweh judge between me and you, and may Yahweh avenge me on you; but my hand shall not be against you. ¹³ As the proverb of the ancients says, 'Out of the wicked comes wickedness'; but my hand shall not be against you. ¹⁴ After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog! A single flea! ¹⁵ May Yahweh therefore be judge and judge between me and you, and see and plead my cause, and vindicate me from your hand."

¹⁶ When David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, "Is this your voice, my son David?" And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. ¹⁷ And he said to David, "You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me with good, whereas I have repaid you with evil. ¹⁸ And you have shown today how you have dealt well with me, in that when Yahweh delivered me into your hand, you did not kill me. ¹⁹ For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go away safely? So may Yahweh reward you with good for what you have done to me this day. ²⁰ And now, see, I know that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand. ²¹ Now therefore swear to me by Yahweh that you will not cut off my seed after me, and that you will not destroy my name from my father's house." ²² So David swore this to Saul. And Saul went home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

Notes

• 24:3 "To relieve himself" is literally "to cover his feet," the same polite Hebrew expression as in Judges 3:24. The heading of Psalm 57 places it "when he fled from Saul, in the cave," and that of Psalm 142 "when he was in the cave"; the headings do not say whether this cave or Adullam (22:1) is meant.
• 24:4 No such word from Yahweh is recorded; David's men may be reading His promises of the kingdom as permission to kill Saul. "Corner" is kanaf, the edge of the robe (me'il). When Saul seized the hem (kanaf) of Samuel's robe and it tore, Samuel said Yahweh had torn the kingdom from Saul (15:27-28), and many readers see the cut edge here as a quiet sign of the same thing (compare verse 20).
• 24:6 "Yahweh's anointed" is meshiach Yahweh, the word behind "Messiah" (see the note on 2:10). David will not lift his hand against the king Yahweh anointed, even one who hunts him; he leaves the matter in Yahweh's hands (verses 12, 15).
• 24:14 "A dead dog" and "a single flea" are images of utter worthlessness and harmlessness: David is no threat worth the king's pursuit. Mephibosheth will use the same words of himself before David (2 Samuel 9:8), and David repeats the image of the flea in 26:20.
• 24:17 "More righteous than I" (tsaddiq … mimmeni) echoes Judah's confession about Tamar, "She is more righteous than I" (Genesis 38:26). Saul admits openly that David has done right and he has done wrong, yet the same story repeats in chapter 26.

1 Samuel 23 · 1 Samuel 25

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