1 Samuel 21:12

_AND DAVID LAID UP THESE WORDS IN HIS HEART, AND WAS SORE AFRAID OF ACHISH THE KING OF GATH._ David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath This terror, and the sad extremities of destitution and peril to which he was now reduced, may be inferred from the scheme of deception to which he resorted to extricate himself from those difficulties....

10-15 God's persecuted people have often found better usage from Philistines than from Israelites. David had reason to put confidence in Achish, yet he began to be afraid. His conduct was degrading, and discovered wavering in his faith and courage. The more simply we depend on God, and obey him, the more comfortably and surely we shall walk through this troublesome world....

DAVID'S FLIGHT TO NOB, AND SUBSEQUENTLY TO THE PHILISTINES (1 Samuel 21:1.). EXPOSITION DAVID'S FLIGHT TO NOB (1 Samuel 21:1). 1 SAMUEL 21:1 THEN CAME DAVID TO NOB. Nob means a _knoll _or _hill, _and apparently was situated a little to the north of Jerusalem on the road leading to Gath. The ark had evidently been removed thither by Saul early in his reign, after it had remained for twenty years in the house of Abinadab; a

AND DAVID LAID UP THESE WORDS IN HIS HEART,.... Pondered upon them, and thought them over in his mind, finding that he was known, and his character also, and considered with himself what might be the consequence of this: AND WAS SORE AFRAID OF ACHISH THE KING OF GATH; lest he should be set against him, and be prevailed upon by his servants to take away his life, or deliver him up into the hands of Saul....

6. DAVID'S VARIED EXPERIENCES CHAPTER 21 _ 1. David at Nob with Ahimelech (1 Samuel 21:1)_ 2. David's flight to Achish, King of Gath (1 Samuel 21:10) With this chapter begins the record of David's wanderings as an exile. A number of Psalms were written by him during this period of the rejection of the Lord's anointed. We shall point out some of them. These Psalms are prophetic also foreshadowing the rejection and the sufferings of Christ as well as the tribulations of the pious remnant of Israel during the closing years of the age, preceding the coming and enthronement of the King of Israel, our Lord. He reached Nob after his separation from Jonathan. At Nob the tabernacle of the Lord had been established and Ahimelech (my brother is King) the son of Ahitub (22:9) and g

1 SAMUEL 21. DAVID AT NOB AND GATH. 1 Samuel 21:1 (J). From one of the ancient documents; it is not clear which of the previous sections finds its sequel here. It is often connected with 1 Samuel 19:17: if this is right, David fled straight from his own house to Nob. It is likely that originally stories of single episodes of David's adventures circulated separately by oral tradition or otherwise, not forming a connected narrative. When they were collected, different editors might arrange and connect them in different ways. David fled to Nob to Ahimelech the priest. Nob was probably a little N. of Jerusalem, on the way from Gibeah to Bethlehem. According to 1 Samuel 22:9 Ahimelech was the son of Ahitub, and

ACHISH. See subscription of Psalms 55 _(Comp. Bible)._ (Not superscription of Psalms 56 as in Authorized Version) [_Conversion Note_] Subscription of Psalms 55 reads: To the chief Musician ° upon ° Jonath-elem-rechokim. Psalms 34:1 contains. reference to Achish (referenced in the original text below), and the author may have intended to reference it instead....

David's flight to Gath 10. _and went to Achish_ In the extremity of peril, David was driven to take refuge among Saul's bitterest enemies, and offer himself as a servant to Achish (1 Samuel 21:15). He hoped no doubt that the Philistines would not recognise the stripling who slew their champion. Unlike Themistocles and Alcibiades when they were banished from Athens, he had no intention of turning traitor to his country. The circumstances of this sojourn at Gath and that recorded in ch. 27 are entirely unlike, and correspond exactly to the difference of occasion. In the present case David went alone, was ill received, and was compelled to feign madness for safety and escape as soon as possible: later on when his breach with Saul was notorious, he went with a numerous following, was received and established at Ziklag, and remained for more than a year....

_David At Gath._ 1 Samuel 21:10-15 10 And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. 11 And the servants of Achish said unto him, _Is_ not this David king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? 12 And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 13 And he changed his behavior before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. 14 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore _then_ have ye brought him to me? 15 Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this _fellow_ to play the mad man in my presence? shall this _fellow_ come into my ho

THE FLIGHT OF DAVID David first of all flees to Nob, where Ahimelech supplies him with food and gives him the sword of Goliath. He next takes refuge with Achish at Gath....