1Samuel:21

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* And David came to Nobe to Achimelech the priest : and Achimelech was astonished at David 's coming . And he said to him : Why art thou alone , and no man with thee ? * And David said to Achimelech the priest : The king hath commanded me a business , and said : Let no man know the thing for which thou art sent by me , and what manner of commands I have given thee : and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place . * Now therefore if thou have any thing at hand , though it were but five loaves , give me , or whatsoever thou canst find . * And the priest answered David , saying : I have no common bread at hand , but only holy bread , if the young men be clean , especially from women ? * And David answered the priest , and said to him : Truly , as to what concerneth women , we have refrained ourselves from yesterday and the day before , when we came out , and the vessels of the young men were holy . Now this way is defiled , but it shall also be sanctified this day in the vessels . * The priest therefore gave him hallowed bread : for there was no bread there , but only the loaves of proposition , which had been taken away from before the face of the Lord , that hot loaves might be set up . * Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day , within the tabernacle of the Lord : and his name was Doeg , an Edomite , the chiefest of Saul 's herdsmen . * And David said to Achimelech : Hast thou here at hand a spear , or a sword ? for I brought not my own sword , nor my own weapons with me , for the king 's business required haste . * And the priest said : Lo , here is the sword of Goliath the Philistine whom thou slewest in the valley of Terebinth , wrapped up in a cloth behind the ephod : if thou wilt take this , take it , for here is no other but this . And David said : There is none like that , give it me . * And David arose and fled that day from the face of Saul : and came to Achis the king of Geth : * And the servants of Achis , when they saw David , said to him : Is not this David the king of the land ? Did they not sing to him in their dances , saying : Saul hath slain his thousands , and David his ten thousands ? * But David laid up these words in his heart , and was exceedingly afraid at the face of Achis the king of Geth . * And he changed his countenance before them , and slipt down between their hands : and he stumbled against the doors of the gate , and his spittle ran down upon his beard . * And Achis said to his servants : You saw the man was mad : why have you brought him to me ? * Have we need of madmen , that you have brought in this fellow , to play the madman in my presence ? shall this fellow come into my house ?

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