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1 Samuel 23:14-29
New King James Version
1 Samuel 23:14-29
New King James Version
David in Wilderness Strongholds
14 And David stayed in strongholds in the wilderness, and remained in (A)the mountains in the Wilderness of (B)Ziph. Saul (C)sought him every day, but God did not deliver him into his hand. 15 So David saw that Saul had come out to seek his life. And David was in the Wilderness of Ziph [a]in a forest. 16 Then Jonathan, Saul’s son, arose and went to David in the woods and [b]strengthened his hand in God. 17 And he said to him, (D)“Do not fear, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you. You shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you. (E)Even my father Saul knows that.” 18 So the two of them (F)made a covenant before the Lord. And David stayed in the woods, and Jonathan went to his own house.
19 Then the Ziphites (G)came up to Saul at Gibeah, saying, “Is David not hiding with us in strongholds in the woods, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon? 20 Now therefore, O king, come down according to all the desire of your soul to come down; and (H)our part shall be to deliver him into the king’s hand.”
21 And Saul said, “Blessed are you of the Lord, for you have compassion on me. 22 Please go and find out for sure, and see the place where his hideout is, and who has seen him there. For I am told he is very crafty. 23 See therefore, and take knowledge of all the lurking places where he hides; and come back to me with certainty, and I will go with you. And it shall be, if he is in the land, that I will search for him throughout all the [c]clans of Judah.”
24 So they arose and went to Ziph before Saul. But David and his men were in the Wilderness (I)of Maon, in the plain on the south of Jeshimon. 25 When Saul and his men went to seek him, they told David. Therefore he went down [d]to the rock, and stayed in the Wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard that, he pursued David in the Wilderness of Maon. 26 Then Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain. (J)So David made haste to get away from Saul, for Saul and his men (K)were encircling David and his men to take them.
27 (L)But a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come, for the Philistines have invaded the land!” 28 Therefore Saul returned from pursuing David, and went against the Philistines; so they called that place [e]the Rock of Escape. 29 Then David went up from there and dwelt in strongholds at (M)En Gedi.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Samuel 23:15 Or in Horesh
- 1 Samuel 23:16 encouraged him
- 1 Samuel 23:23 Lit. thousands
- 1 Samuel 23:25 Or from the rock
- 1 Samuel 23:28 Heb. Sela Hammahlekoth
1 Samuel 23:14-29
New International Version
1 Samuel 23:14-29
New International Version
14 David stayed in the wilderness(A) strongholds and in the hills of the Desert of Ziph.(B) Day after day Saul searched(C) for him, but God did not(D) give David into his hands.
15 While David was at Horesh in the Desert of Ziph, he learned that[a] Saul had come out to take his life.(E) 16 And Saul’s son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength(F) in God. 17 “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king(G) over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this.” 18 The two of them made a covenant(H) before the Lord. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh.
19 The Ziphites(I) went up to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding among us(J) in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hakilah,(K) south of Jeshimon? 20 Now, Your Majesty, come down whenever it pleases you to do so, and we will be responsible for giving(L) him into your hands.”
21 Saul replied, “The Lord bless(M) you for your concern(N) for me. 22 Go and get more information. Find out where David usually goes and who has seen him there. They tell me he is very crafty. 23 Find out about all the hiding places he uses and come back to me with definite information. Then I will go with you; if he is in the area, I will track(O) him down among all the clans of Judah.”
24 So they set out and went to Ziph ahead of Saul. Now David and his men were in the Desert of Maon,(P) in the Arabah south of Jeshimon.(Q) 25 Saul and his men began the search, and when David was told about it, he went down to the rock and stayed in the Desert of Maon. When Saul heard this, he went into the Desert of Maon in pursuit of David.
26 Saul(R) was going along one side of the mountain, and David and his men were on the other side, hurrying to get away from Saul. As Saul and his forces were closing in on David and his men to capture them, 27 a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Come quickly! The Philistines are raiding the land.” 28 Then Saul broke off his pursuit of David and went to meet the Philistines. That is why they call this place Sela Hammahlekoth.[b] 29 And David went up from there and lived in the strongholds(S) of En Gedi.[c](T)
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 23:15 Or he was afraid because
- 1 Samuel 23:28 Sela Hammahlekoth means rock of parting.
- 1 Samuel 23:29 In Hebrew texts this verse (23:29) is numbered 24:1.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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