21:1 David went to Ahimelech the priest in Nob. Ahimelech was shaking with fear when he met David, and said to him, “Why are you by yourself with no one accompanying you?”
At this time in his life, David was about twenty years old. He was labeled as a national criminal by King Saul. The entire army was looking for him. He was living a Robin Hood existence in the wilderness. He knew the wilderness very well, because he was a former shepherd in this area. David found many reclusive and outcasts of Jewish society and trained them to become a powerful army. They were basically a raiding party who performed good acts, such as protecting Israel from the Philistines.
Samuel was dead, so David fled to Nob. At this time, Nob was housing the Tabernacle. Ahimelech was the High Priest. Ahimelech did not know that David was a national enemy. It did alarm him to see David alone, so this caused some initial fear.
21:2 David replied to Ahimelech the priest, “The king instructed me to do something, but he said to me, ‘Don’t let anyone know the reason I am sending you or the instructions I have given you.’ I have told my soldiers to wait at a certain place.
David fabricated a lie to hide his intent.
21:3 Now what do you have at your disposal? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever can be found.”
David was hungry. He asked the High Priest for food.
21:4 The priest replied to David, “I don’t have any ordinary bread at my disposal. Only holy bread is available, and then only if your soldiers have abstained from sexual relations with women.”
The holy bread was changed out every day and replaced with fresh bread. Once the holy bread was removed and replaced, then it was considered as unsacred. Only the priests and their families could eat the unsacred bread. Since David and his soldiers were in danger of starvation, the High Priest allowed the solders to eat the bread if they had abstained from sexual relations.
21:5 David said to the priest, “Certainly women have been kept away from us, just as on previous occasions when I have set out. The soldiers’ equipment is holy, even on an ordinary journey. How much more so will they be holy today, along with their equipment!”
David assured the High Priest that his soldiers had abstained from sexual relations.
21:6 So the priest gave him holy bread, for there was no bread there other than the bread of the Presence. It had been removed from before the Lord in order to replace it with hot bread on the day it had been taken away.
The priest gave the bread to David. Later, Jesus was condemned by the Pharisees for gathering wheat on the Sabbath. Jesus used this verse to condemn the false oral teachings of the Pharisees. Jesus did not condemn Ahimelech or David for this violation of the Mosaic Law in an emergency situation. Therefore, the Pharisees should not be condemning Jesus, who was greater than David.
21:7 (One of Saul’s servants was there that day, detained before the Lord. His name was Doeg the Edomite, who was in charge of Saul’s shepherds.)
Doeg was an Edomite, meaning that he was a descendant of Esau. He was a spy for King Saul. He was in charge of Saul’s shepherds.
21:8 David said to Ahimelech, “Is there no sword or spear here at your disposal? I don’t have my own sword or equipment in hand due to the urgency of the king’s instructions.”
David asked the High Priest if he had any swords or spears. David had a small group of men, with him, but he lacked weapons.
David Goes to Gath
21:9 The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the valley of Elah, is wrapped in a garment behind the ephod. If you wish, take it for yourself. Other than that, there’s nothing here.” David said, “There’s nothing like it! Give it to me!”
David began his career as a fugitive at twenty years of age. He started his life without soldiers, food, or weapons. The entire nation of Israel was attempting to kill the man that God had chosen to become the next king.
21:10 So on that day David arose and fled from Saul. He went to King Achish of Gath.
David was desperate. He fled to Gath, which was a city of the Philistines. This city was also the hometown of Goliath. Goliath most likely still had family living in this town. David would later kill Goliath’s other four brothers.
21:11 The servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Isn’t he the one that they sing about when they dance, saying, ‘Saul struck down his thousands, But David his tens of thousands’?”
King Achish did not want David around. David was a feared enemy of the Philistines.
21:12 David thought about what they said and was very afraid of King Achish of Gath.
David had nothing to fear. He was protected by Samuel’s prophecy.
21:13 He altered his behavior in their presence. Since he was in their power, he pretended to be insane, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting his saliva run down his beard.
David pretended to be insane. Insanity was thought to be caused by demons. There may be something to this. There are many people living today who possess split personalities. This may be a form of demon-possessed,
21:14 Achish said to his servants, “Look at this madman! Why did you bring him to me?
King Achish saw a madman as a demonic curse upon his land. Thinking that David was demon possessed, he wanted David out of his area.
21:15 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 was relying upon his lies to protect him rather than on God.