I Samuel 22:14
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Ahimelech answered the king, “Who among all your servants is as faithful as David, the king’s son-in-law, the captain of your bodyguard who is honored in your house?
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
David, being driven from Achish, returns into the land of Israel to be hunted by Saul. I. David sets up his standard in the cave of Adullam, entertains his relations (Sa1 22:1), enlists soldiers (Sa1 22:2), but removes his aged parents to a more quiet settlement (Sa1 22:3, Sa1 22:4), and has the prophet Gad for his counsellor (Sa1 22:5). Saul resolves to pursue him and find him out, complains of his servants and Jonathan (Sa1 22:6-8), and, finding by Doeg's information that Ahimelech had been kind to David, he ordered him and all the priests that were with him, eighty-five in all, to be put to death, and all that belonged to them destroyed (Sa1 22:9-19) from the barbarous execution of which sentence Abiathar escaped to David (Sa1 22:20-23).
Open source ↗22:14 your son-in-law: David had married Saul’s daughter (18:17-29).
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
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“Why must he be put to death?” Jonathan replied. “What has he done?”
See, my father, look at the corner of your robe in my hand. For I cut it off, but I did not kill you. See and know that there is no evil or rebellion in my hands. I have not sinned against you, even though you are hunting me down to take my life.
“The king has given me a mission,” David replied. “He told me no one is to know about the mission or charge. And I have directed my young men to meet me at a certain place.
Therefore Saul sent David away and gave him command of a thousand men. David led the troops out to battle and back,
May the LORD repay every man for his righteousness and faithfulness. For the LORD delivered you into my hand today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the LORD’s anointed.
And Saul asked him, “Why have you and the son of Jesse conspired against me? You gave him bread and a sword and inquired of God for him so that he could rise up against me to lie in wait, as he is doing today.”
David and his men went out and killed two hundred Philistines. He brought their foreskins and presented them as payment in full to become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave his daughter Michal to David in marriage.
Now the men of Israel had been saying, “Do you see this man who keeps coming out to defy Israel? To the man who kills him the king will give great riches. And he will give him his daughter in marriage and exempt his father’s house from taxation in Israel.”