April 3 Daily Devotional

1 Samuel 21–22; 1 Chronicles 11

David came to Ahimelech, the high priest, at Nob, where the tabernacle was kept after it was removed from Shiloh. Ahimelech was surprised to see David. He had heard of him and of his courage in the battles against the Philistines, but he did not know that Saul hated David and desired to kill him. David was careful not to tell the high priest about his troubles. He asked for bread; because he was hungry. Ahimelech gave him five loaves of shewbread, taken from the tabernacle.

David also asked for a sword. He said, “I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.” Ahimelech replied, “The sword of Goliath … whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah … is here … take it.” David was glad to take it. He said, “There is none like that.” While David was speaking to Ahimelech, another man was near, it was Doeg the Edomite; he was the chief of the herdmen of king Saul. When David saw him he was afraid he would go back and tell him where David could be found.

David feared to fall into the hands of Saul, so he hurried into the homeland of Saul’s enemies, the Philistines. He came to king Achish at Gath. His servants knew David. They remembered the affair with Goliath. It was dangerous territory for David. To protect himself at one time he pretended to be insane. Soon he made it possible to get back to the land of Israel. In the wilderness of Judah he found a cave, the cave of Adullam. There he stayed for many days. His friends heard about his hiding place and came to see him. His parents and brothers stayed with him for a while, because they were not safe at Bethlehem. Somewhat later David took his parents to Moab, where his great grandmother Ruth used to live. He asked the king to permit them to live in that country until a better place could be found.

A number of men gathered around David until he had a little army of four hundred men. He became their captain, and they loved him dearly. At one time three of them heard that David longed to have a drink of the good water from the old well at the gate of Bethlehem, familiar to him from his shepherd days. At that time Bethlehem was in the hands of the Philistines, and it was very dangerous to get to the well. David would not send any one, but the three one evening risked their lives. Through the shadows of darkness they came to the gate and drew some water and brought it to their beloved captain at the cave. David’s heart was touched. He said, “My God forbid it me, that I should do this thing: shall I drink the blood of these men that have put their lives in jeopardy?” He did not drink the water.