1 Samuel 22:1-23
1 David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to him.
2 And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.
3 And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab: and he said unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I know what God will do for me.
4 And he brought them before the king of Moab: and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the hold.
5 And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the hold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hareth.
6 When Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him, (now Saul abode in Gibeah under a treea in Ramah, having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him;)
7 Then Saul said unto his servants that stood about him, Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, and make you all captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds;
8 That all of you have conspired against me, and there is none that shewethb me that my son hath made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or sheweth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which was set over the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub.
10 And he enquired of the LORD for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.
11 Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob: and they came all of them to the king.
12 And Saul said, Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. And he answered, Here I am, my lord.
13 And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast enquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faithful among all thy servants as David, which is the king's son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thine house?
15 Did I then begin to enquire of God for him? be it far from me: let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father: for thy servant knew nothing of all this, lessc or more.
16 And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house.
17 And the king said unto the footmend that stood about him, Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD; because their hand also is with David, and because they knew when he fled, and did not shew it to me. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD.
18 And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen ephod.
19 And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen, and asses, and sheep, with the edge of the sword.
20 And one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David.
21 And Abiathar shewed David that Saul had slain the LORD'S priests.
22 And David said unto Abiathar, I knew it that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul: I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father's house.
23 Abide thou with me, fear not: for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life: but with me thou shalt be in safeguard.
David wrotePsalms 34:1 at this time, which shows that he was truly restored to the Lord. Verse 4 of that Psalm is particularly significant, "I sought the Lord and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears." His painful experience was evidently profitable for him in that it drove him to the Lord. It seems therefore that the Lord guided him to escape to the cave Adullam. He did not have to remain lonely there for long. His reputation before the people could not but influence some to seek his leadership. His brothers (who were all older than he -- ch.16:11) and others of his father's house were attracted to take part with him in his exile.
Three other classes of people are mentioned as coming to him also: those who were in distress, those who were in debt and those who were discontented. This was not an elite gathering, but it illustrates the fact that necessity is often a large factor in people being drawn to take a stand for Christ when He is rejected, as in the present dispensation of the grace of God. Though it is true that we should not be guided by circumstances, yet God often orders our circumstances in such a way that we are driven by these people just as the Lord Jesus holds the place of leadership over His redeemed saints today. About 400 men were included in this company.
The history that follows proves that this group was not formed with any intention of opposing Saul, but rather because of their being attracted by respect for David. Believers today also must remember that our business is not to fight against established government, though it may be guilty of corrupt and unjust practices but rather to follow the Lord Jesus in personal devotion to Himself and to the truth of His word. David's parents being no longer young, would find exile with David a rigorous experience, and David was likely apprehensive that his parents would be in danger of persecution by Saul if they were in their own home. Therefore he took them to Moab (v.3), asking the king of Moab to keep them under his protection until David's circumstances were stabilized. This was not the resource of faith, but of natural expediency.
God intended David to learn by suffering: therefore the prophet Gad told David not to dwell in "the hold," the cave Adullam, but go into Judah, there to be more exposed to danger (v.5).
David with his 400 men could certainly not remain hidden. Saul hears of him at a time when Saul's servants are with him (v.6). Evidently he was suspicious that his own men might be induced to follow David, so he appeals to their natural greed. Would David give them fields and vineyards and make them captains of thousands and of hundreds? He accuses them of conspiring against him because they have not taken sides against Jonathan, his own son, whom he claims has been guilty of stirring up David against Saul. His language sounds like that of a petulant child, displeased because his men have not shown themselves sorry for him! It was not David who was stirred up against Saul, but Saul who had stirred himself up against David. But such is the twisted reasoning of self-centered men.
This gives occasion to Doeg the Edomite to deceitfully seek Saul's favor. Nor only did he inform Saul of David's visit to Ahimelech the priest, but embellished his account by adding the falsehood that Ahimelech had enquired of God for David (v.10). The fact that Saul employed an Edomite in a responsible position indicates a serious lack of discernment on Saul's part, and he ought to have known better than to accept his word without question. But Saul's unreasonable prejudice against David outweighed any sensible consideration of simple facts.
He summoned not only Ahimelech, but all his relatives, the priests who were at Nob, not to enquire if Doeg's words were true, but to unjustly accuse them all of conspiracy together with David against Saul. This was totally false, as was his assumption that what Ahimelech had done for David was with the motive of having David raise insurrection against Saul (v.13). Neither David nor Ahimelech had any such motives.
Ahimelech's answer (vs.14-15) was straightforward and honorable. He reminded the king that David had established a reputation of being a faithful servant of Saul, willingly taking orders from him. This was reason enough that Ahimelech should give him bread and a sword. However, he denied that he had even begun to enquire of God for David, for this was not true. Nor did he know anything of any friction existing between Saul and David. On the very face of things Ahimelech was thoroughly innocent.
However, the truth had no effect on Saul's cold blooded arrogance. He sentenced Ahimelech and all the priests to an immediate death, only because of his unreasoning fear and hatred of David. The soldiers, being ordered to kill the priests were sensible enough to disobey Saul's foolish command, particularly so because these men were priests of the Lord (v.17). The soldiers at least realized they would have to answer to the Lord for such an atrocious action: they were engaged to fight ENEMIES, not their own people Israel.
This does not bother the conscience of Doeg the Edomite, however. When Saul orders him to kill the priests, he gladly indulges in this cowardly slaughter, for none had a weapon to withstand him, and it is likely that he would as soon kill Israelite priests as anyone else. Yet, who can doubt that Saul's own conscience would afterward painfully accuse him for the awful guilt of the murder of 85 priests of the Lord?
However, it was not only this: Doeg's thirst for blood did not abate until he had gone through Nob, the city of the priests, killing both men and women, little children and domesticated animals (v.19). What honorable person in Israel would not be appalled at this indiscriminate wicked rampage of cold blooded murder? Being ordered by the king only increased the horror of it.
One son of Ahimelech escaped, however, and went to David, the only possible refuge at the time. When he gave the report to David of all that had transpired, David felt himself responsible for occasioning the death of the priests, for, as he said, he knew that Doeg would be an informer when he saw him at Nob (v.22). One wonders what David could have done to protect the priests, but no doubt he did not expect so great a slaughter as took place. The comforting words of David to Abiathar remind us of the Lord's care for those who take a place of rejection with Him: "Stay with me, do not be afraid, for he who seeks my life seeks your life: for you are safe with me" (v.23).