²⁴ So David hid himself in the field.

When the new moon festival began and the king sat down to eat, ²⁵ he took his usual seat in a place of safety with his back to the wall. Abner, his general, sat at the king’s side; Jonathan stood, but David’s seat was empty. ²⁶ That first night, Saul said nothing. He thought that perhaps David had somehow become ritually unclean, and he could not attend a sacred feast.