Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of 1 Samuel
Chapter 21: The Fugitive King
David the anointed is now a hunted fugitive. At Nob he is given the holy shewbread, an act Jesus would later cite to teach that mercy outweighs ritual. Then, gripped by fear, he flees to enemy Gath and escapes only by pretending to be insane. Even the man after God's heart wavers, yet from this valley of fear David would write some of his sweetest psalms of trust.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of 1 Samuel chapter 21. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Hebrew words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Chapter 21 begins David's fugitive years, with a famous act of mercy and a sad lapse into fear. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
David at Nob (1 Samuel 21:1-9)
Fleeing Saul, David comes to the priest at Nob, receives the holy shewbread and Goliath's sword, but shades the truth in his fear.
There Was No Bread but the Shewbread
"Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee? And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place. Now therefore what is under thine hand? give me five loaves of bread in mine hand, or what there is present. And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at least from women. And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel. So the priest gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away. Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the LORD; and his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul. And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste. And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me."
Word Study
"shewbread," Hebrew lechem ha-panim (לֶחֶם הַפָּנִים), literally "the bread of the face / of the presence." The shewbread was the twelve loaves set continually "before the LORD" on the golden table in the holy place, changed each Sabbath, and reserved by law for the priests alone (Leviticus 24:5-9). Yet Ahimelech gave it to David and his men in their need. Long after, the Lord Jesus pointed to this very event to rebuke the Pharisees who condemned His hungry disciples: "Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred... how he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat?" (Matthew 12:3-4). Jesus drew the principle: "I will have mercy, and not sacrifice" (Matthew 12:7); human need and mercy take precedence over ceremonial regulation, for the sabbath and the ritual were made for man, not man for them. The bread of the Presence prefigures Christ, the true Bread from the presence of God, freely given to the hungry and needy, "the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world" (John 6:33).
Explanation
David, now a fugitive, arrives alone at Nob, where the tabernacle then stood. To the wary priest Ahimelech he tells a false story, that he is on secret royal business, to explain his solitary state and get provisions. It is a lapse: David's fear leads him into deception, and this lie will later bring terrible consequences on the priests of Nob (chapter 22). Ahimelech, having only the holy shewbread, gives it to David in his need. David also takes a weapon, and the only one available is fitting indeed: the sword of Goliath, kept behind the ephod, "there is none like that; give it me." The trophy of his greatest faith-victory is now his companion in his fearful flight. And ominously, Doeg the Edomite, Saul's chief herdsman, is present and watching, a witness who will bring death.
Gospel Focus
Jesus made this scene a cornerstone of His teaching that "mercy" outweighs "sacrifice", that God's law serves human need and never becomes a heartless burden. The showbread rightly went to the hungry, and Christ used it to defend compassion against cold legalism. Learn from Him not to prize ritual over mercy: "the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath" (Mark 2:27). And see in the bread of the Presence a picture of Christ, the Bread of Life, taken from before God and given freely to the needy and hungry soul. Yet the chapter also warns: David, in fear, resorted to a lie, and even the man after God's heart stumbled when he stopped trusting God and started managing his own survival. Fear is a poor counselor; it led David to deceit that cost lives. Better to trust God than to scheme our own safety.
David Feigns Madness (1 Samuel 21:10-15)
David flees to the enemy city of Gath, is recognized and endangered, and escapes only by pretending to be insane.
He Feigned Himself Mad
"And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me? Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?"
Word Study
"was sore afraid," Hebrew yare (יָרֵא), "to fear, be afraid." The chapter twice roots David's actions in fear: "David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul," and at Gath he "was sore afraid of Achish." Fear drove him from Saul into the hands of the Philistines, straight to the hometown of Goliath, whose sword he was carrying, and there fear drove him to the humiliating pretense of madness. This is the man who once faced Goliath fearless; now, having taken his eyes off the LORD, he is ruled by dread. It is a sobering picture of how even great faith can waver into fear when we look at the danger instead of God. Yet, gloriously, it was out of this very episode at Gath that David wrote Psalm 56, "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee" (Psalm 56:3), and Psalm 34, "I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears" (Psalm 34:4). David turned his fear into faith and his deliverance into a song. The cure for the fear of man is trust in God: "the fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe" (Proverbs 29:25).
Explanation
David's fear of Saul drives him to a desperate refuge, the Philistine city of Gath, Goliath's own city, while carrying Goliath's sword. It is a measure of his panic. But he is recognized at once: "Is not this David the king of the land?" Now "sore afraid," David saves himself by feigning insanity, scratching at the gate doors and letting spittle run down his beard, until Achish dismisses him in contempt as a useless madman. David escapes, but by a demeaning ruse born of fear, hardly the conduct of the confident shepherd who trusted God against the giant. Yet this low valley became a mountain of worship: Psalms 34 and 56, two of the most beloved songs of trust, were born here. David's failure of faith drove him at last back to the God who "delivered me from all my fears."
Gospel Focus
David's slide into fear is strangely comforting, for it shows that the heroes of faith were men "subject to like passions as we are" (James 5:17). The same David who slew Goliath cowered before Achish; faith is not a permanent possession but a moment-by-moment trust that can waver when we look away from God. Yet grace shines even here: God did not abandon His fearful servant, and David, in the very pit of his fear, "sought the LORD" and turned his trembling into a psalm. "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee." This is the gospel answer to fear, not self-confidence, but casting ourselves on God. The fear of man is a snare, but "there is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear" (1 John 4:18). When you have failed, when fear has driven you to folly, do as David did: seek the LORD, and He will deliver you from all your fears, and even turn your low valley into a song.
Chapter 21 in Review
1 Samuel 21 begins David's fugitive years with a famous mercy and a sad lapse. At Nob the priest gives the hungry David the holy shewbread, an act the Lord Jesus would later cite to teach that "mercy" outweighs "sacrifice" and that God's law serves human need. David also takes Goliath's sword, but shades the truth to the priest in his fear, a lie that will bring tragedy. Then, driven by fear of Saul, David flees to enemy Gath, is recognized, and escapes only by feigning madness. Even the man after God's heart wavers into fear and folly.
For the Apostolic reader, the chapter teaches two great things. First, mercy over ritual: the shewbread rightly fed the hungry, and it prefigures Christ, the Bread of the Presence given freely to the needy. Second, the danger of fear: David, once fearless before Goliath, was ruled by dread when he looked away from God, and it led him into deceit and humiliation. Yet from this very valley he wrote Psalms 34 and 56, turning fear into trust, "what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee." The fear of man is a snare; the cure is to seek the LORD, who delivers from all our fears.
- The shewbread given to hungry David taught "mercy, and not sacrifice"; it prefigures Christ the Bread of Life.
- David's fear led him into a lie at Nob, with tragic consequences; fear is a poor counselor.
- Even the man after God's heart wavered, feigning madness at Gath; faith can falter when we look from God.
- From this valley David wrote Psalms 34 and 56, turning fear into trust, "what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee."
Questions for Reflection
- Do you value mercy over mere ritual, as Jesus taught from David's shewbread?
- When has fear driven you, like David, into deceit or folly instead of trusting God?
- Can you, like David, turn your fear into a song, seeking the LORD who delivers from all our fears?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). The Hebrew terms are standard and can be checked in any Hebrew lexicon. Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The shewbread; mercy over ritual; the Bread of Life: 1 Samuel 21:1-9; Leviticus 24:5-9; Matthew 12:3-7; Mark 2:27; John 6:33.
- Fear at Gath; turning fear into trust: 1 Samuel 21:10-15; Psalm 56:3; 34:4; Proverbs 29:25; James 5:17; 1 John 4:18.