22

Tavi nyob Antulaa hab Mixape

¹Tavi kuj tswv hov ntawd moog nyob huv lub qhov tsua Antulaa. Thaus nwg cov tijlaug hab nwg txwv tsev tuabneeg suavdawg tau nov tej xuv hov puab kuj moog cuag nwg hov ntawd. ²Txhua tug kws raug kev txom nyem hab txhua tug kws tshuav nuj tshuav nqe hab txhua tug kws tsw txaus sab kuj sau zog tuaj nrug nwg nyob. Nwg ua puab tug thawj. Muaj tuabneeg tuaj nrug nwg nyob kwvlaam plaub puas leej.
³Tavi kuj tawm hov ntawd moog rua lub moos Mixape huv Mau‑a tebchaws. Nwg has rua Mau‑a tug vaajntxwv tas, “Thov ca kuv nam kuv txwv nrug koj nyob moog txug thaus kuv paub tas Vaajtswv yuav ua le caag rua kuv.” ⁴Tes nwg txawm tseg nwg nam nwg txwv nrug Mau‑a tug vaajntxwv nyob mas ob tug nrug vaajntxwv nyob moog taag swjhawm kws Tavi nyob huv lub chaw ruaj khov. ⁵Mas Kab kws yog xwbfwb cev Vaajtswv lug has rua Tavi tas, “Koj tsw xob nyob huv qhov chaw ruaj khov nuav koj ca le moog rua huv Yuta tebchaws.” Tavi txhad tawm moog nyob lub haav zoov Helej.

Xa‑u tua cov pov thawj huv lub moos Nau

⁶Xa‑u nov tas muaj tuabneeg pum Tavi hab cov tuabneeg kws nrug Tavi ua ke. Thaus hov Xa‑u nyob quas tsawg huv lub moos Kinpe‑a huv qaab tsob ntoo tamalis sau lub pov roob tuav rawv raab muv, nwg cov tub teg tub taw suavdawg sawv vej vog nwg. ⁷Xa‑u has rua cov tub teg tub taw kws sawv vej vog nwg tas, “Mej cov tuabneeg Npeeyamee ca le noog kuv has. Yexi tug tub yuav muab teb hab vaaj txwv maab rua mej txhua tug lov? Nwg yuav tsaa mej txhua tug ua thawj kaav ib txheeb leej ib puas leej lov, ⁸mej suavdawg txawm xaav faav xeeb rua kuv? Thaus kuv tug tub nrug Yexi tug tub cog lug sws raug zoo hov tsw muaj leejtwg yuav qha rua kuv paub le. Mej cov tsw muaj ib tug yuav hlub kuv le, hab tsw qha rua kuv paub tas kuv tug tub tshaum kuv tug qhev tawm tsaam kuv, tog nrhw kuv kev yaam le naj nub nwgnuav.” ⁹Ntau‑e kws yog tuabneeg Entoo kws sawv ze Xa‑u cov tub teg tub taw txhad teb tas, “Kuv pum Yexi tug tub tuaj rua ntawm lub moos Nau tuaj cuag Ahithu tug tub Ahimelej, ¹⁰mas Ahimelej nug Yawmsaub rua nwg hab pub mov rua nwg noj hab pub Kaulia kws yog tuabneeg Filixatee raab ntaaj rua nwg lawm.”
¹¹Mas vaajntxwv txawm tso tuabneeg moog hu pov thawj Ahimelej kws yog Ahithu tug tub hab nwg txwv tsev tuabneeg suavdawg kws ua pov thawj huv lub moos Nau kuas tuaj, mas suavdawg txhad tuaj cuag vaajntxwv. ¹²Mas Xa‑u has tas, “Ahithu tug tub ca le noog kuv has.” Nwg teb tas, “Kuv tug tswv kuv nyob ntawm nuav 'os.” ¹³Mas Xa‑u has rua nwg tas, “Ua caag koj yuav nrug Yexi tug tub faav xeeb rua kuv, tsua qhov kws koj muab mov hab ntaaj rua nwg hab nug Vaajtswv rua nwg, mas nwg txhad tawm tsaam kuv tog nrhw kuv yaam le naj nub nwgnuav.”
¹⁴Mas Ahimelej teb vaajntxwv tas, “Taag nrho koj cov tub teg tub taw sub nyim muaj ib tug twg yuav npuab koj yaam le koj tug vauv Tavi kws ua thawj kaav cov tub rog kws tsom kwm koj hab muaj meej huv koj vaaj koj tsev. ¹⁵Nub nua yog thawj zag kws kuv thov nug Yawmsaub rua nwg lov? Tsw yog. Thov vaajntxwv tsw xob muab ib yaam daabtsw lug rau txem rua kuv kws yog koj tug qhev lossws rua kuv txwv tsev tuabneeg. Tsua qhov koj tug qhev yeej tsw paub zaaj nuav ib nyuas qhov le tsw has ntau los tsawg.” ¹⁶Vaajntxwv has rua Ahimelej tas, “Koj yuav tuag tag tag le, koj hab koj txwv tsev tuabneeg suavdawg yuav tuag xwb.” ¹⁷Mas vaajntxwv has rua cov tub rog kws sawv vej vog nwg tas, “Muab Yawmsaub cov pov thawj nuav tua pov tseg, tsua qhov puab txhais teg nrug Tavi nyob, puab yeej paub tas Tavi tswv lawm kuas puab tsw qha rua kuv paub.” Tassws cov tub teg tub taw tsw kaam nqeg teg tua Yawmsaub cov pov thawj.
¹⁸Mas vaajntxwv txhad has rua Ntau‑e tas, “Koj ca le nqeg teg tua cov pov thawj.” Mas Ntau‑e kws yog tuabneeg Entoo txhad moog tua cov pov thawj mas nub hov nwg tua cov kws naav lub tsho efauj⚓ ntaub maag yim caum tswb leeg. ¹⁹Nwg xuas ntaaj tua lub moos Nau kws yog cov pov thawj lub moos, tsw has quaspuj quasyawg hab tej mivnyuas yau hab mivnyuas kws noj mig hab tej nyuj tej neeg luav hab tej yaaj huvsw.
²⁰Tassws Ahimelej ib tug tub kws yog Ahithu xeeb ntxwv hu ua Anpiyatha tswv dim hab lawv Tavi qaab moog. ²¹Mas Anpiyatha has rua Tavi tas, “Xa‑u muab Yawmsaub cov pov thawj tua taag lawm.” ²²Tavi has rua Anpiyatha tas, “Nub hov thaus Ntau‑e kws yog tuabneeg Entoo nyob hov ntawd kuv yeej paub tas nwg yuav qha rua Xa‑u xwb xwb le. Yog tim kuv mas koj txwv tsev tuabneeg suavdawg txhad le tuag. ²³Ca le nrug kuv nyob tsw xob ntshai le tsua qhov yog tug kws xaav tua koj los kuj xaav tua kuv hab. Koj ca le nrug kuv nyob txhad le tso sab plhuav.”

22

David at Adullam and Mizpah

¹David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there. ²All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.
³From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, “Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?” ⁴So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.
⁵But the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.

Saul Kills the Priests of Nob

⁶Now Saul heard that David and his men had been discovered. And Saul was seated, spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with all his officials standing at his side. ⁷He said to them, “Listen, men of Benjamin! Will the son of Jesse give all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? ⁸Is that why you have all conspired against me? No one tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is concerned about me or tells me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me, as he does today.”
⁹But Doeg the Edomite, who was standing with Saul’s officials, said, “I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelek son of Ahitub at Nob. ¹⁰Ahimelek inquired of the Lord for him; he also gave him provisions and the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”
¹¹Then 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. ¹²Saul said, “Listen now, son of Ahitub.”
“Yes, my lord,” he answered.
¹³Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired 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?”
¹⁴Ahimelek answered the king, “Who 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? ¹⁵Was 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.”
¹⁶But the king said, “You will surely die, Ahimelek, you and your whole family.”
¹⁷Then 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 to raise a hand to strike the priests of the Lord.
¹⁸The king then ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests.” So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck them down. That day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. ¹⁹He also put to the sword Nob, the town of the priests, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep.
²⁰But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David. ²¹He told David that Saul had killed the priests of the Lord. ²²Then David said to Abiathar, “That day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family. ²³Stay with me; don’t be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You will be safe with me.”