1    ^noteDavid made his way to the priest Ahimelech at Nob, who hurried out to meet him and said, ‘Why have you come alone and no one with you?’ 2   David answered Ahimelech, ‘I am under orders from the king: I was to let no one know about the mission on which he was sending me or

Saul and David what these orders were. When I took leave of my men I told them to meet me in such and such a place. 3   Now, what have you got by you? 4   Let me have five loaves, or as many as you can find.’ The priest answered David, ‘I have no ordinary bread available. There is only the sacred bread; but have the young men kept themselves from women?’ 5   David answered the priest, ‘Women have been denied us hitherto, when I have been on campaign, even an ordinary campaign, and the young men's bodies have remained holy; and how much more will they be holy today?’ 6   So, as there was no other bread there, the priest gave him the sacred bread, the Bread of the Presence, which had just been taken from the presence of the Lord to be replaced by freshly baked bread on the day that the old was removed. 7   One of Saul's servants happened to be there that day, detained before the Lord; his name was Doeg the Edomite, and he was the strongest of all Saul's herdsmen. 8   David said to Ahimelech, ‘Have you a spear or sword here at hand? I have no sword or other weapon with me, because the king's business was urgent.’ 9   The priest answered, ‘There is the sword of Goliath the Philistine whom you slew in the Vale of Elah; it is wrapped up in a cloak behind the ephod. If you wish to take that, take it; there is no other weapon here.’ David said, ‘There is no sword like it; give it to me.’

10   That day, David went on his way, eluding Saul, and came to Achish king of Gath. 11   The servants of Achish said to him, ‘Surely this is David, the king of his country, the man of whom they sang as they danced:

  Saul made havoc among thousands
  but David among tens of thousands.’

12   These words were not lost on David, and he became very much afraid of Achish king of Gath. 13   So he altered his behaviour in public and acted like a lunatic in front of them all, scrabbling on the double doors of the city gate and dribbling down his beard. 14   Achish said to his servants, ‘The man is mad! 15   Why bring him to me? Am I short of madmen that you bring this one to plague me? Must I have this fellow in my house?’

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