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When Saul came back from fighting the Philistines, he was told that David was in the wilderness near Engedi.
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Saul took three thousand of the best soldiers in Israel and went looking for David and his men east of Wild Goat Rocks.
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He came to a cave close to some sheep pens by the road and went in to relieve himself. It happened to be the very cave in which David and his men were hiding far back in the cave.
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They said to him, "This is your chance! The LORD has told you that he would put your enemy in your power and you could do to him whatever you wanted to." David crept over and cut off a piece of Saul's robe without Saul's knowing it.
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But then David's conscience began to hurt,
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and he said to his men, "May the LORD keep me from doing any harm to my master, whom the LORD chose as king! I must not harm him in the least, because he is the king chosen by the LORD!"
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So David convinced his men that they should not attack Saul. Saul got up, left the cave, and started away.
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Then David went out after him and called to him, "Your Majesty!" Saul turned around, and David bowed down to the ground in respect
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and said, "Why do you listen to people who say that I am trying to harm you?
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You can see for yourself that just now in the cave the LORD put you in my power. Some of my men told me to kill you, but I felt sorry for you and said that I would not harm you in the least, because you are the one whom the LORD chose to be king.
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Look, my father, look at the piece of your robe I am holding! I could have killed you, but instead I only cut this off. This should convince you that I have no thought of rebelling against you or of harming you. You are hunting me down to kill me, even though I have not done you any wrong.
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May the LORD judge which one of us is wrong! May he punish you for your action against me, for I will not harm you in the least.
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You know the old saying, 'Evil is done only by evil people.' And so I will not harm you.
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Look at what the king of Israel is trying to kill! Look at what he is chasing! A dead dog, a flea!
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The LORD will judge, and he will decide which one of us is wrong. May he look into the matter, defend me, and save me from you."
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When David had finished speaking, Saul said, "Is that really you, David my son?" And he started crying.
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Then he said to David, "You are right, and I am wrong. You have been so good to me, while I have done such wrong to you!
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Today you have shown how good you are to me, because you did not kill me, even though the LORD put me in your power.
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How often does someone catch an enemy and then let him get away unharmed? The LORD bless you for what you have done to me today!
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Now I am sure that you will be king of Israel and that the kingdom will continue under your rule.
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But promise me in the LORD's name that you will spare my descendants, so that my name and my family's name will not be completely forgotten."
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David promised that he would. Then Saul went back home, and David and his men went back to their hiding place.
1
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful, because I come to you for safety. In the shadow of your wings I find protection until the raging storms are over.
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I call to God, the Most High, to God, who supplies my every need.
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He will answer from heaven and save me; he will defeat my oppressors. God will show me his constant love and faithfulness.
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I am surrounded by enemies, who are like lions hungry for human flesh. Their teeth are like spears and arrows; their tongues are like sharp swords.
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Show your greatness in the sky, O God, and your glory over all the earth.
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My enemies have spread a net to catch me; I am overcome with distress. They dug a pit in my path, but fell into it themselves.
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I have complete confidence, O God; I will sing and praise you!
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Wake up, my soul! Wake up, my harp and lyre! I will wake up the sun.
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I will thank you, O Lord, among the nations. I will praise you among the peoples.
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Your constant love reaches the heavens; your faithfulness touches the skies.
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Show your greatness in the sky, O God, and your glory over all the earth.
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Do you rulers ever give a just decision? Do you judge everyone fairly?
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No! You think only of the evil you can do, and commit crimes of violence in the land.
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Evildoers go wrong all their lives; they tell lies from the day they are born.
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They are full of poison like snakes; they stop up their ears like a deaf cobra,
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which does not hear the voice of the snake charmer, or the chant of the clever magician.
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Break the teeth of these fierce lions, O God.
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May they disappear like water draining away; may they be crushed like weeds on a path.
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May they be like snails that dissolve into slime; may they be like a baby born dead that never sees the light.
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Before they know it, they are cut down like weeds; in his fierce anger God will blow them away while they are still living.
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The righteous will be glad when they see sinners punished; they will wade through the blood of the wicked.
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People will say, "The righteous are indeed rewarded; there is indeed a God who judges the world."
1
When Jesus came down from the hill, large crowds followed him.
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Then a man suffering from a dreaded skin disease came to him, knelt down before him, and said, "Sir, if you want to, you can make me clean."
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Jesus reached out and touched him. "I do want to," he answered. "Be clean!" At once the man was healed of his disease.
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Then Jesus said to him, "Listen! Don't tell anyone, but go straight to the priest and let him examine you; then in order to prove to everyone that you are cured, offer the sacrifice that Moses ordered."
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When Jesus entered Capernaum, a Roman officer met him and begged for help:
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"Sir, my servant is sick in bed at home, unable to move and suffering terribly."
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"I will go and make him well," Jesus said.
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"Oh no, sir," answered the officer. "I do not deserve to have you come into my house. Just give the order, and my servant will get well.
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I, too, am a man under the authority of superior officers, and I have soldiers under me. I order this one, 'Go!' and he goes; and I order that one, 'Come!' and he comes; and I order my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it."
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When Jesus heard this, he was surprised and said to the people following him, "I tell you, I have never found anyone in Israel with faith like this.
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I assure you that many will come from the east and the west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of heaven.
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But those who should be in the Kingdom will be thrown out into the darkness, where they will cry and gnash their teeth."
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Then Jesus said to the officer, "Go home, and what you believe will be done for you." And the officer's servant was healed that very moment.
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Jesus went to Peter's home, and there he saw Peter's mother-in-law sick in bed with a fever.
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He touched her hand; the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on him.
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When evening came, people brought to Jesus many who had demons in them. Jesus drove out the evil spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.
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He did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah had said, "He himself took our sickness and carried away our diseases."
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When Jesus noticed the crowd around him, he ordered his disciples to go to the other side of the lake.
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A teacher of the Law came to him. "Teacher," he said, "I am ready to go with you wherever you go."
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Jesus answered him, "Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lie down and rest."
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Another man, who was a disciple, said, "Sir, first let me go back and bury my father."
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"Follow me," Jesus answered, "and let the dead bury their own dead."
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Jesus got into a boat, and his disciples went with him.
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Suddenly a fierce storm hit the lake, and the boat was in danger of sinking. But Jesus was asleep.
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The disciples went to him and woke him up. "Save us, Lord!" they said. "We are about to die!"
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"Why are you so frightened?" Jesus answered. "What little faith you have!" Then he got up and ordered the winds and the waves to stop, and there was a great calm.
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Everyone was amazed. "What kind of man is this?" they said. "Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
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When Jesus came to the territory of Gadara on the other side of the lake, he was met by two men who came out of the burial caves there. These men had demons in them and were so fierce that no one dared travel on that road.
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At once they screamed, "What do you want with us, you Son of God? Have you come to punish us before the right time?"
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Not far away there was a large herd of pigs feeding.
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So the demons begged Jesus, "If you are going to drive us out, send us into that herd of pigs."
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"Go," Jesus told them; so they left and went off into the pigs. The whole herd rushed down the side of the cliff into the lake and was drowned.
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The men who had been taking care of the pigs ran away and went into the town, where they told the whole story and what had happened to the men with the demons.
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So everyone from the town went out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their territory.
