1
David fled from the city of Gath and went to a cave near the town of Adullam. When his brothers and the rest of the family heard that he was there, they joined him.
2
People who were oppressed or in debt or dissatisfied went to him, about four hundred men in all, and he became their leader.
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David went on from there to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, "Please let my father and mother come and stay with you until I find out what God is going to do for me."
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So David left his parents with the king of Moab, and they stayed there as long as David was hiding out in the cave.
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Then the prophet Gad came to David and said, "Don't stay here; go at once to the land of Judah." So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.
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One day Saul was in Gibeah, sitting under a tamarisk tree on a hill, with his spear in his hand, and all his officers were standing around him. He was told that David and his men had been located,
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and he said to his officers, "Listen, men of Benjamin! Do you think that David will give fields and vineyards to all of you, and make you officers in his army?
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Is that why you are plotting against me? Not one of you told me that my own son had made an alliance with David. No one is concerned about me or tells me that David, one of my own men, is right now looking for a chance to kill me, and that my son has encouraged him!"
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Doeg was standing there with Saul's officers, and he said, "I saw David when he went to Ahimelech son of Ahitub in Nob.
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Ahimelech asked the LORD what David should do, and then he gave David some food and the sword of Goliath the Philistine."
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So King Saul sent for the priest Ahimelech and all his relatives, who were also priests in Nob, and they came to him.
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Saul said to Ahimelech, "Listen, Ahimelech!" "At your service, sir," he answered.
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Saul asked him, "Why are you and David plotting against me? Why did you give him some food and a sword, and consult God for him? Now he has turned against me and is waiting for a chance to kill me!"
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Ahimelech answered, "David is the most faithful officer you have! He is your own son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard, and highly respected by everyone in the royal court.
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Yes, I consulted God for him, and it wasn't the first time. As for plotting against you, Your Majesty must not accuse me or anyone else in my family. I don't know anything about this matter!"
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The king said, "Ahimelech, you and all your relatives must die."
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Then he said to the guards standing near him, "Kill the LORD's priests! They conspired with David and did not tell me that he had run away, even though they knew it all along." But the guards refused to lift a hand to kill the LORD's priests.
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So Saul said to Doeg, "You kill them!"---and Doeg killed them all. On that day he killed eighty-five priests who were qualified to carry the ephod.
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Saul also had all the other inhabitants of Nob, the city of priests, put to death: men and women, children and babies, cattle, donkeys, and sheep---they were all killed.
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But Abiathar, one of Ahimelech's sons, escaped, and went and joined David.
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He told him how Saul had slaughtered the priests of the LORD.
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David said to him, "When I saw Doeg there that day, I knew that he would be sure to tell Saul. So I am responsible for the death of all your relatives.
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Stay with me and don't be afraid. Saul wants to kill both you and me, but you will be safe with me."
1
Listen, O LORD, to my plea for justice; pay attention to my cry for help! Listen to my honest prayer.
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You will judge in my favor, because you know what is right.
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You know my heart. You have come to me at night; you have examined me completely and found no evil desire in me. I speak no evil,
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as others do; I have obeyed your command and have not followed paths of violence.
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I have always walked in your way and have never strayed from it.
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I pray to you, O God, because you answer me; so turn to me and listen to my words.
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Reveal your wonderful love and save me; at your side I am safe from my enemies.
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Protect me as you would your very eyes; hide me in the shadow of your wings
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from the attacks of the wicked. Deadly enemies surround me;
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they have no pity and speak proudly.
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They are around me now, wherever I turn, watching for a chance to pull me down.
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They are like lions, waiting for me, wanting to tear me to pieces.
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Come, LORD! Oppose my enemies and defeat them! Save me from the wicked by your sword;
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save me from those who in this life have all they want. Punish them with the sufferings you have stored up for them; may there be enough for their children and some left over for their children's children!
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But I will see you, because I have done no wrong; and when I awake, your presence will fill me with joy.
1
Oppose those who oppose me, LORD, and fight those who fight against me!
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Take your shield and armor and come to my rescue.
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Lift up your spear and war ax against those who pursue me. Promise that you will save me.
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May those who try to kill me be defeated and disgraced! May those who plot against me be turned back and confused!
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May they be like straw blown by the wind as the angel of the LORD pursues them!
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May their path be dark and slippery while the angel of the LORD strikes them down!
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Without any reason they laid a trap for me and dug a deep hole to catch me.
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But destruction will catch them before they know it; they will be caught in their own trap and fall to their destruction!
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Then I will be glad because of the LORD; I will be happy because he saved me.
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With all my heart I will say to the LORD, "There is no one like you. You protect the weak from the strong, the poor from the oppressor."
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Evil people testify against me and accuse me of crimes I know nothing about.
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They pay me back evil for good, and I sink in despair.
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But when they were sick, I dressed in mourning; I deprived myself of food; I prayed with my head bowed low,
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as I would pray for a friend or a brother. I went around bent over in mourning, as one who mourns for his mother.
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But when I was in trouble, they were all glad and gathered around to make fun of me; strangers beat me and kept striking me.
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Like those who would mock a cripple, they glared at me with hate.
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How much longer, Lord, will you just look on? Rescue me from their attacks; save my life from these lions!
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Then I will thank you in the assembly of your people; I will praise you before them all.
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Don't let my enemies, those liars, gloat over my defeat. Don't let those who hate me for no reason smirk with delight over my sorrow.
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They do not speak in a friendly way; instead they invent all kinds of lies about peace-loving people.
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They accuse me, shouting, "We saw what you did!"
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But you, O LORD, have seen this. So don't be silent, Lord; don't keep yourself far away!
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Rouse yourself, O Lord, and defend me; rise up, my God, and plead my cause.
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You are righteous, O LORD, so declare me innocent; don't let my enemies gloat over me.
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Don't let them say to themselves, "We are rid of him! That's just what we wanted!"
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May those who gloat over my suffering be completely defeated and confused; may those who claim to be better than I am be covered with shame and disgrace.
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May those who want to see me acquitted shout for joy and say again and again, "How great is the LORD! He is pleased with the success of his servant."
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Then I will proclaim your righteousness, and I will praise you all day long.
1
"Make certain you do not perform your religious duties in public so that people will see what you do. If you do these things publicly, you will not have any reward from your Father in heaven.
2
"So when you give something to a needy person, do not make a big show of it, as the hypocrites do in the houses of worship and on the streets. They do it so that people will praise them. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.
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But when you help a needy person, do it in such a way that even your closest friend will not know about it.
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Then it will be a private matter. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.
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"When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites! They love to stand up and pray in the houses of worship and on the street corners, so that everyone will see them. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.
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But when you pray, go to your room, close the door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.
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"When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as the pagans do, who think that their gods will hear them because their prayers are long.
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Do not be like them. Your Father already knows what you need before you ask him.
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This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven: May your holy name be honored;
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may your Kingdom come; may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
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Give us today the food we need.
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Forgive us the wrongs we have done, as we forgive the wrongs that others have done to us.
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Do not bring us to hard testing, but keep us safe from the Evil One.'
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"If you forgive others the wrongs they have done to you, your Father in heaven will also forgive you.
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But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive the wrongs you have done.
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"And when you fast, do not put on a sad face as the hypocrites do. They neglect their appearance so that everyone will see that they are fasting. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.
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When you go without food, wash your face and comb your hair,
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so that others cannot know that you are fasting---only your Father, who is unseen, will know. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.
19
"Do not store up riches for yourselves here on earth, where moths and rust destroy, and robbers break in and steal.
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Instead, store up riches for yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and robbers cannot break in and steal.
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For your heart will always be where your riches are.
22
"The eyes are like a lamp for the body. If your eyes are sound, your whole body will be full of light;
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but if your eyes are no good, your body will be in darkness. So if the light in you is darkness, how terribly dark it will be!
24
"You cannot be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
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"This is why I tell you: do not be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn't life worth more than food? And isn't the body worth more than clothes?
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Look at the birds: they do not plant seeds, gather a harvest and put it in barns; yet your Father in heaven takes care of them! Aren't you worth much more than birds?
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Can any of you live a bit longer by worrying about it?
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"And why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow: they do not work or make clothes for themselves.
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But I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers.
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It is God who clothes the wild grass---grass that is here today and gone tomorrow, burned up in the oven. Won't he be all the more sure to clothe you? What little faith you have!
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"So do not start worrying: 'Where will my food come from? or my drink? or my clothes?'
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(These are the things the pagans are always concerned about.) Your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things.
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Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things.
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So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings.
