1 Samuel 19

Revised Standard Version

Jonathan Intercedes for David

19 And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted much in David. ² And Jonathan told David, “Saul my father seeks to kill you; therefore take heed to yourself in the morning, stay in a secret place and hide yourself; ³ and I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak to my father about you; and if I learn anything I will tell you.” ⁴ And Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father, and said to him, “Let not the king sin against his servant David; because he has not sinned against you, and because his deeds have been of good service to you; ⁵ for he took his life in his hand and he slew the Philistine, and the Lord wrought a great victory for all Israel. You saw it, and rejoiced; why then will you sin against innocent blood by killing David without cause?” ⁶ And Saul hearkened to the voice of Jonathan; Saul swore, “As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death.” ⁷ And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all these things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence as before.

Michal Helps David Escape from Saul

⁸ And there was war again; and David went out and fought with the Philistines, and made a great slaughter among them, so that they fled before him. ⁹ Then an evil spirit from the Lord came upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing the lyre. ¹⁰ And Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear; but he eluded Saul, so that he struck the spear into the wall. And David fled, and escaped.

¹¹ That night Saul^[a] sent messengers to David’s house to watch him, that he might kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, told him, “If you do not save your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed.” ¹² So Michal let David down through the window; and he fled away and escaped. ¹³ Michal took an image^[b] and laid it on the bed and put a pillow^[c] of goats’ hair at its head, and covered it with the clothes. ¹⁴ And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.” ¹⁵ Then Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying, “Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may kill him.” ¹⁶ And when the messengers came in, behold, the image^[d] was in the bed, with the pillow^[e] of goats’ hair at its head. ¹⁷ Saul said to Michal, “Why have you deceived me thus, and let my enemy go, so that he has escaped?” And Michal answered Saul, “He said to me, ‘Let me go; why should I kill you?’”

David Joins Samuel in Ramah

¹⁸ Now David fled and escaped, and he came to Samuel at Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt at Nai′oth. ¹⁹ And it was told Saul, “Behold, David is at Nai′oth in Ramah.” ²⁰ Then Saul sent messengers to take David; and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. ²¹ When it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied. ²² Then he himself went to Ramah, and came to the great well that is in Secu; and he asked, “Where are Samuel and David?” And one said, “Behold, they are at Nai′oth in Ramah.” ²³ And he went from^[f] there to Nai′oth in Ramah; and the Spirit of God came upon him also, and as he went he prophesied, until he came to Nai′oth in Ramah. ²⁴ And he too stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel, and lay naked all that day and all that night. Hence it is said, “Is Saul also among the prophets?”