1 Samuel 21
The full text of 1 Samuel 21 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
1 David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech came trembling to meet David and said to him, "Why are you alone, and no one is with you?"
2 David said to Ahimelech the priest, "The king has charged me with a matter and said to me, 'Let no one know anything about the matter on which I am sending you and with which I have charged you.' I have directed the young men to a certain place.
3 "Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever can be found."
4 The priest answered David, "There is no common bread on hand, but there is holy bread—provided the young men have kept themselves from women."
5 David answered the priest, "Certainly women have been kept from us as usual when I set out. The young men's bodies are holy even on an ordinary journey; how much more today when there will be holy bread in their vessels."
6 So the priest gave him the holy bread, for there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence that had been removed from before the LORD, to be replaced by hot bread on the day it was taken away.
7 Now a certain man of Saul's servants was there that day, detained before the LORD. His name was Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul's herdsmen.
8 David said to Ahimelech, "Is there not here on hand a spear or a sword? For I brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business was urgent."
9 The priest said, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the Valley of Elah—it is here, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want to take it, take it, for there is no other except that one here." David said, "There is none like it; give it to me."
10 David rose and fled that day from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.
11 The servants of Achish said to him, "Is this not David, the king of the land? Is this not the one of whom they sing in their dances, saying, 'Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands'?"
12 David took these words to heart and was very afraid of Achish king of Gath.
13 So he changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands. He made marks on the doors of the gate and let his saliva run down his beard.
14 Achish said to his servants, "Look, you see the man is mad. Why do you bring him to me?
15 "Am I so short of madmen that you have brought this one to rave in my presence? Shall this one come into my house?"
Translation notes (15)
- 1 Samuel 21:1a The Hebrew vayyecherad liq'rath means 'trembled to meet,' indicating that the priest sensed something unusual.
- 1 Samuel 21:2a David deceives the priest, and this lie will have fatal consequences (22:9-19).
- 1 Samuel 21:4a The Hebrew lechem chol means 'profane/ordinary bread,' as opposed to lechem qodesh, which is 'holy bread' (also known as the bread of the Presence).
- 1 Samuel 21:4b Ritual purity required abstinence before consuming sacred food.
- 1 Samuel 21:5a The Hebrew text is difficult here; the word 'vessels' (kelim) may refer to their bodies or their gear.
- 1 Samuel 21:5b Jesus cites this episode in Mark 2:25-26.
- 1 Samuel 21:6a Heb. lechem happanim, 'bread of the face/presence'; twelve loaves set before the LORD weekly (Lev 24:5-9)
- 1 Samuel 21:7a The Hebrew ne'etsar means 'detained/confined,' perhaps for a vow, ritual obligation, or purification.
- 1 Samuel 21:7b Doeg will report this to Saul (22:9) and massacre the priests (22:18).
- 1 Samuel 21:9a The Hebrew 'acharey ha-'ephod means 'behind the ephod,' indicating it was stored in the sanctuary as a trophy.
- 1 Samuel 21:10a Achish is likely the same Philistine king mentioned in chapters 27-29; compare Psalm 34's superscription, which names him Abimelech.
- 1 Samuel 21:11a They call David 'king of the land,' which is perhaps an exaggeration or an acknowledgment of his reputation.
- 1 Samuel 21:13a The Hebrew vayyithholel means 'acted like a madman,' which is a form of the Hebrew verb halal.
- 1 Samuel 21:13b The Hebrew vayyithav means 'scratched/scribbled'; this word is rare.
- 1 Samuel 21:15a The Hebrew chaser m'shugg'a'im 'ani literally means 'am I lacking madmen?'; this is a sarcastic rhetorical question.
About this translation
The Trinity Bible Version (TBV) is Trinity Bible's own translation of Scripture, made directly from the original Hebrew rather than revised from an older English Bible. Completed in 2026, it is the most modern English Bible translation available, and it is exclusive to Trinity Bible. Reading the TBV here on the web is free — the full study edition, with original-language tools and notes on every verse, lives in the Trinity Bible app.
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