¹ The Philistine kept coming closer to David, with his shield bearer walking in front of him.

Do I have a shortage of fools, that you have brought me this man to display his insanity in front of me? Should this man enter my house?”

David took all the flocks and herds and drove them in front of the rest of the animals. People were saying, “This is David’s plunder!”

He said, “Here are the policies of the king who will rule over you: He will conscript your sons and put them in his chariot forces and in his cavalry; they will run in front of his chariot.

So the cook picked up the leg and brought it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel ¹  said, “What was kept is now set before you! Eat, for it has been kept for you for this meeting time, from the time I said, ‘I have invited the people.’” So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

Samuel replied to Saul, “I am the seer! Go up in front of me to the high place! Today you will eat with me and in the morning I will send you away. I will tell you everything that you are thinking. ¹ 

The cliff to the north was closer to Micmash, the one to the south closer to Geba.

Then Jesse called Abinadab and presented him to Samuel. ¹  But Samuel ²  said, “The Lord has not chosen this one, either.”

Meanwhile for forty days the Philistine approached every morning and evening and took his position.

So Saul took three thousand select men from all Israel and went to find ¹  David and his men in the region of ²  the rocks of the mountain goats. ³ 

So Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring near the ephod,” ¹  for he was at that time wearing the ephod. ² 

and said to her servants, “Go on ahead of me. I will come after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

The king sat down in his usual place by the wall, with Jonathan opposite him ¹  and Abner at his side. ²  But David’s place was vacant.

When the residents of Ashdod got up early the next day, ¹  Dagon was lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set him back in his place.

Saul camped by the road on the hill of Hakilah near Jeshimon, but David was staying in the desert. When he realized that Saul had come to the desert to find ¹  him,

While they were going down to the edge of town, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us.” So he did. ¹  Samuel then said, ²  “You remain here awhile, so I can inform you of God’s message.”

Afterward you will go to Gibeah of God, where there are Philistine officials. ¹  When you enter the town, you will meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place. They will have harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres, and they will be prophesying.