Then David went to ^1aNob to ²Ahimelech the priest; and Ahimelech ^bcame trembling in fear to meet David and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no one with you?” 2 David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has commissioned me with a matter and has told me, ‘^aLet no one know anything about the matter for which I am sending you and with which I have commissioned you. I have directed the young men to a certain place.’ 3 Now what food do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever can be found.” 4 The priest answered David, “There is no ordinary (unconsecrated) bread on hand, but there is ^1aconsecrated bread; you may have it if only the young men have ^bkept themselves from women.” 5 David answered the priest, “^aBe assured that ¹women have been kept from us in these three days since I set out, and the ^2bbodies of the young men were consecrated (ceremonially clean) , although it was an ordinary (unconsecrated) journey; so how much more will their vessels be holy today?” 6 So ^athe priest gave him the consecrated bread; for there was no bread there except the ^bbread of the ¹Presence which was removed from before the LORD in order to put hot bread in its place when it was taken away.

7 Now one of Saul’s servants was there that day, detained before the LORD; his name was ^aDoeg the Edomite, the ^bchief of Saul’s shepherds.

8 David said to Ahimelech, “Do you not have a sword or spear here on hand? For I brought neither my sword nor my other weapons with me, because the king’s business was urgent.” 9 Then the priest said, “^aThe sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed ^bin the Valley of Elah, is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod; if you would take it for yourself, do so. For there is no other here except for it.” And David said, “There is none like that; give it to me.”

10 Then David arose and fled from Saul that day, and went to ^aAchish king of ¹Gath. 11 The ^aservants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? ^bDid they not sing in praise of this one as they danced, saying,‘Saul has slain his thousands,And David his ten thousands’?” 12 David ^atook these words to heart and was greatly afraid of Achish king of Gath. 13 So fearing for his life he ^achanged his behavior in their sight, and acted insanely in their hands, and he scribbled on the doors of the gate, and drooled on his beard. 14 Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see that the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me? 15 Do I lack madmen, that you bring this one to behave like a madman in my presence? Shall this one come into my house?”