David at Nob

21 ^[a]David went to Nob,^(A) to Ahimelek the priest. Ahimelek trembled^(B) when he met him, and asked, “Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?”

² David answered Ahimelek the priest, “The king sent me on a mission and said to me, ‘No one is to know anything about the mission I am sending you on.’ As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place. ³ Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever you can find.”

⁴ But the priest answered David, “I don’t have any ordinary bread^(C) on hand; however, there is some consecrated^(D) bread here—provided the men have kept^(E) themselves from women.”

⁵ David replied, “Indeed women have been kept from us, as usual^(F) whenever^[b] I set out. The men’s bodies are holy^(G) even on missions that are not holy. How much more so today!” ⁶ So the priest gave him the consecrated bread,^(H) since there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence that had been removed from before the Lord and replaced by hot bread on the day it was taken away.

⁷ Now one of Saul’s servants was there that day, detained before the Lord; he was Doeg^(I) the Edomite,^(J) Saul’s chief shepherd.

⁸ David asked Ahimelek, “Don’t you have a spear or a sword here? I haven’t brought my sword or any other weapon, because the king’s mission was urgent.”

⁹ But Doeg^(A) the Edomite, who was standing with Saul’s officials, said, “I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelek son of Ahitub^(B) at Nob.^{(C) 10} Ahimelek inquired^(D) of the Lord for him; he also gave him provisions^(E) and the sword^(F) of Goliath the Philistine.”

¹¹ Then the king sent for the priest Ahimelek son of Ahitub and all the men of his family, who were the priests at Nob, and they all came to the king. ¹² Saul said, “Listen now, son of Ahitub.”

“Yes, my lord,” he answered.

¹³ Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired^(G) against me, you and the son of Jesse, giving him bread and a sword and inquiring of God for him, so that he has rebelled against me and lies in wait for me, as he does today?”

¹⁴ Ahimelek answered the king, “Who^(H) of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king’s son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard and highly respected in your household? ¹⁵ Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Of course not! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of his father’s family, for your servant knows nothing at all about this whole affair.”

¹⁶ But the king said, “You will surely die, Ahimelek, you and your whole family.^(I)”

¹⁷ Then the king ordered the guards at his side: “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because they too have sided with David. They knew he was fleeing, yet they did not tell me.”

But the king’s officials were unwilling^(J) to raise a hand to strike the priests of the Lord.

¹⁸ The king then ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests.”^(K) So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck them down. That day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod.^{(L) 19} He also put to the sword^(M) Nob,^(N) the town of the priests, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep.

²⁰ But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub,^(O) named Abiathar,^(P) escaped and fled to join David.^(Q)

⁶ (Now Abiathar^(A) son of Ahimelek had brought the ephod^(B) down with him when he fled to David at Keilah.)

⁷ Then David said to Abiathar^(A) the priest, the son of Ahimelek, “Bring me the ephod.^(B)” Abiathar brought it to him,