Now David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech came trembling to meet David, and he said to him, "Why are you alone and there are no men with you?" So David said to Ahimelech the priest, "The king charged me with a matter and said to me, ‘No one must know anything about this matter on which I am sending you, with which I have charged you and the servants.’" So I have arranged to meet with my servants at a certain place. Now then, what do you have at hand? Give me five loaves of bread or whatever is here." The priest answered David and said, "There is no ordinary bread here at hand; there is only holy bread, but only if the young men have kept themselves from women." David answered the priest and said to him, "Indeed, women were held back from us as it has been when I’ve gone out before. And the things of the young men are holy when it is an ordinary journey. How much more today will the things be holy?" So the priest gave him the holy bread, for there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence, which was removed from before Yahweh, in order to set hot bread there on the day when it was taken away.

Now there was a man from the servants of Saul on that day, detained before Yahweh, whose name was Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul’s shepherds. David asked Ahimelech, "Is there not at your disposal a spear or a sword? For I took neither my sword nor my weapons with me because the king’s matter was urgent." So the priest said, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine whom you killed in the valley of Elah is here, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want to take it for yourself, then take it, for there is no other except it here." And David said, "There is none like it; give it to me."

So David got up and fled on that day from the presence of Saul, and he came to Achish the king of Gath. The servants of Achish said to him, "Is not this David the king of the land? Is it not for this one that they sang in the dances, saying, ‘Saul killed his thousands, but David his ten thousands?’" David took these words seriously and felt severely threatened by Achish the king of Gath. So he changed his behavior before them and pretended to be mad in their presence. He made scratches on the doors of the gate and let his saliva run down into his beard. Then Achish said to his servants, "Look, you see a madman! Why did you bring him to me? Do I lack madmen that you have brought this one to act like a madman before me? Should this one enter my household?"

David went from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and all his father’s household heard, they came down to him there. Every man in distress and every man who had a creditor and every embittered man gathered to him, and he became their commander. Now there were about four hundred men with him. And David went up from there to Mizpah of Moab. He said to the king of Moab, "Please let my father and my mother stay with you until I know what God will do for me." So he brought them before the king of Moab, and they stayed with him all the days David was in the stronghold.

Then Gad the prophet said to David, "You should not stay in the stronghold; leave and go into the land of Judah." So David left and came to the forest of Hereth. Now Saul heard that David and the men who were with him had been located. Saul was sitting at Gibeah under the tamarisk tree at Ramah. Now his spear was in his hand and all his servants were stationed around him. Then Saul said to the servants who were standing around him, "Please listen, Benjaminites! Will the son of Jesse give you all fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? For all of you have conspired against me, and no one discloses to me the making of an agreement between my son and the son of Jesse! None of you have had sympathy for me or disclosed to me that my son commissioned my servant against me to ambush me as has been done this day!"

But Doeg the Edomite, who was stationed among the servants of Saul, answered and said, "I saw the son of Jesse going to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. And he inquired of Yahweh for him and gave him provisions and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine." So the king sent to summon Ahimelech the son of Ahitub the priest, and all his father’s household, the priests who were at Nob. So all of them came to the king. Saul said, "Listen please, son of Ahitub." He said, "Here I am, my lord." Then Saul said to him, "Why did you conspire against me, you and the son of Jesse, when you gave to him bread and a sword, and by inquiring of God for him so that he might arise against me to ambush me as has been done this day?" But Ahimelech answered the king and said, "And who among all your servants is as faithful as David? He is the son-in-law of the king who moves quickly to safeguard you and is honored in your house. Only today I began to inquire of God for him. Far be it from me that the king should impute anything against his servant or against my father’s household, for your servant has not known any of this matter, little or much." Then the king said, "You must certainly die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s household!" So the king said to the runners who were stationed around him, "Turn and kill the priests of Yahweh, because they also support David and because they knew that he was fleeing and did not disclose it to me." But the servants of the king were not willing to raise their hand to attack the priests of Yahweh. Then the king said to Doeg, "You turn and attack the priests!" So Doeg the Edomite turned and attacked the priests himself, and on that day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. And he put to the sword Nob, the city of the priests, from man to woman, from child to infant, and ox and donkey and sheep; all to the sword.

But, one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, whose name was Abiathar, escaped and fled after David. Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of Yahweh. Then David said to Abiathar, "I knew on that day that Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would certainly tell Saul. I am responsible for the deaths of all your father’s household! Stay with me! Do not fear, because he who seeks my life seeks your life. You are in good care with me."

The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (for he was the firstborn, but when he defiled the couch of his father, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, so that he was not enrolled in the genealogy as the firstborn, though Judah became strong among his brothers and a chief came from him, but the birthright belonged to Joseph). The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel: Enoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. The sons of Joel: Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son, Micah his son, Reaiah his son, Baal his son, Beerah his son, a leader of the Reubenites, whom Tiglath-Pilneser king of Assyria deported into exile. And his kinsmen by their families, when their generations were recorded in the genealogy: the chief, Jeiel, and Zechariah, and Bela son of Azaz, son of Shema, son of Joel, who lived in Aroer, as far as Nebo and Baal-Meon. He also lived to the east up to the entrance of the desert this side of the River Euphrates, for their livestock had multiplied in the land of Gilead. And in the days of Saul they made war against the Hagrites, and they fell into their hand. And they lived in their tents in all the region east of Gilead.

And the sons of Gad lived near to them in the land of Bashan as far as Salecah: Joel the chief, Shapham the second, Janai, and Shaphat in Bashan. And their kinsmen according to their fathers’ households: Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jacan, Zia, and Eber, seven. These were the sons of Abihail the son of Huri, son of Jaroah, son of Gilead, son of Michael, son of Jeshishai, son of Jahdo, son of Buz. Ahi son of Abdiel, son of Guni, was chief in their fathers’ households. And they lived in Gilead, in Bashan, and in its towns, and in all the pasturelands of Sharon to their limits. All of them were enrolled in the genealogy in the days of Jotham, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, king of Israel.

The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had valiant men who carried a shield and a sword, and archers, and who were expert in war, forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty for going out as an army. And they made war against the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab. And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites and all who were with them were given into their hand, for they cried out to God in the battle, and he responded to their prayer because they trusted in him. And they captured their livestock: fifty thousand of their camels; two hundred and fifty thousand sheep; two thousand donkeys; and one hundred thousand men alive. For many were slain because the war was of God. And they lived under them until the exile.

And the sons of the half-tribe of Manasseh lived in the land from Bashan to Baal-Hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon. They were numerous. Now these were the heads of their fathers’ households: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, mighty men of strength, famous men, heads of their fathers’ households. But they transgressed against the God of their ancestors and prostituted themselves after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul, king of Assyria, and the spirit of Tiglath-Pilneser, king of Assyria, and he took them into exile, namely, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. And he brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river Gozan, until this day.

For the music director. A maskil of David.

When Doeg the Edomite came and informed Saul.

And he said to him, "David has come to the house of Ahimelech."

And some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom prescribed by Moses, you cannot be saved." And after there was no little strife and debate by Paul and Barnabas against them, they appointed Paul and Barnabas and some others from among them to go up to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem concerning this issue. So they were sent on their way by the church, and passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, telling in detail the conversion of the Gentiles and bringing great joy to all the brothers. And when they arrived in Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and reported all that God had done with them. But some of those who had believed from the party of the Pharisees stood up, saying, "It is necessary to circumcise them and to command them to observe the law of Moses!"

Both the apostles and the elders assembled to deliberate concerning this matter. And after there was much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, "Men and brothers, you know that in the early days God chose among you through my mouth that the Gentiles should hear the message of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he also did to us. And he made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. So now why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus in the same way those also are." And the whole group became silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul describing all the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. And after they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, "Men and brothers, listen to me! Simeon has described how God first concerned himself to take from among the Gentiles a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written:

Therefore I conclude we should not cause difficulty for those from among the Gentiles who turn to God, but we should write a letter to them to abstain from the pollution of idols and from sexual immorality and from what has been strangled and from blood. For Moses has those who proclaim him in every city from ancient generations, because he is read aloud in the synagogues on every Sabbath."

Then it seemed best to the apostles and the elders, together with the whole church, to send men chosen from among them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas—Judas who was called Barsabbas and Silas, men who were leaders among the brothers— writing this letter to be delivered by them:

The apostles and the elders, brothers.

To the brothers who are from among the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia.

So when they were sent off, they came down to Antioch, and after calling together the community, they delivered the letter. And when they read it aloud, they rejoiced at the encouragement. Both Judas and Silas, who were also prophets themselves, encouraged and strengthened the brothers by a long message. And after spending some time, they were sent away in peace from the brothers to those who had sent them. But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch teaching and proclaiming the word of the Lord with many others also.

And after some days, Paul said to Barnabas, "Come then,let us return and visit the brothers in every town in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, to see how they are doing." Now Barnabas wanted to take John who was called Mark along also, but Paul held the opinion they should not take this one along, who departed from them in Pamphylia and did not accompany them in the work. And a sharp disagreement took place, so that they separated from one another. And Barnabas took along Mark and sailed away to Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and departed, after being commended to the grace of the Lord by the brothers. And he traveled through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.