¶ Then came David to Nob¹ to Ahimelech² the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid⁵ at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee?

And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king⁶ hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place.

Now therefore what is under thine⁷ hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand, or what there is present⁸.

And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread⁹; if the young¹⁰ men have kept themselves at least from women.

And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels¹¹ of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner¹² common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel¹³.

So the priest gave him¹⁴ hallowed bread: for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread¹⁵ in the day when it was taken away.

Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained¹⁶ before the LORD; and his name was Doeg¹⁷, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen¹⁸ that belonged to Saul.

And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste.

And the priest said, The sword¹⁹ of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley²⁰ of Elah, behold,²¹ it is here wrapped in a cloth behind²² the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me.

¶ And David arose, and fled²³ that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish²⁴ the king of Gath²⁵.

And the servants²⁶ of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king²⁷ of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

And David laid up²⁸ these words in his heart, and was sore²⁹ afraid of Achish the king of Gath.

And he changed³⁰ his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled³¹ on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.

Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad³²: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?

Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?