Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of 1 Samuel
Chapter 22: With Me Thou Shalt Be in Safeguard
Into the cave of Adullam gather the distressed, the indebted, and the discontented, and David becomes their captain, a picture of the greater Son of David to whom the weary come. Meanwhile Saul, consumed by paranoia, slaughters the innocent priests of Nob at Doeg's hand. One priest escapes to David, who takes him in: 'with me thou shalt be in safeguard.'
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of 1 Samuel chapter 22. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Hebrew words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Chapter 22 gathers David's band at Adullam and records Saul's darkest deed, the murder of the priests. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
The Distressed Gather to David (1 Samuel 22:1-5)
The debtors, the distressed, and the discontented come to David in his exile, and he becomes captain over a band of the desperate.
Every One That Was in Distress
"David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men. And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab: and he said unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I know what God will do for me. And he brought them before the king of Moab: and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the hold. And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the hold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hareth."
Word Study
"a captain," Hebrew sar (שַׂר), "chief, prince, commander." To David at Adullam gathered "every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented," the desperate, the bankrupt, the bitter of soul, and "he became a captain (sar) over them." From this ragtag band David would forge his mighty men. It is one of the loveliest pictures of Christ in David's life. For to the greater Son of David still come the distressed, the debtors, and the discontented, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden" (Matthew 11:28), and He receives them, transforms them, and makes them His own. "The common people heard him gladly" (Mark 12:37); "publicans and sinners" drew near to Him (Luke 15:1). The rejected King in the cave gathering the outcasts foreshadows the rejected Christ gathering the lost, and making captains and kings out of debtors and the distressed. If you are in distress, in debt to God, discontented with the world, there is a Captain in the cave who receives all who come.
Explanation
David, driven from Gath, takes refuge in the cave of Adullam, and there his family joins him, and then a remarkable company: "every one that was in distress... in debt... discontented," about four hundred men. These were the marginal and the desperate, and David became their leader. He also, in filial care, arranges asylum for his aged parents with the king of Moab (his great-grandmother Ruth's people), "till I know what God will do for me", a phrase of trusting dependence. And the prophet Gad brings God's direction: leave the stronghold and return to Judah. Even as a fugitive, David is guided by God's word through the prophet, gathering a people and waiting on the LORD.
Gospel Focus
Adullam is a gospel picture. The rejected but anointed king, in exile, becomes the refuge and captain of the distressed, the indebted, and the discontented, exactly the kind of people the world discards. So the Lord Jesus, rejected by the rulers, gathered to Himself the weary and the outcast and made them His own. Not many wise, not many mighty, not many noble are called, for "God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty" (1 Corinthians 1:26-27). What the four hundred found in David's cave, sinners find in Christ: a captain who receives them as they are and makes them into something glorious. Do not think yourself too broken, too indebted, too discontented to come. The cave of Adullam is open, and the true David welcomes all who gather to Him, and He says to each, "him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out" (John 6:37).
The Priests of Nob Slain (1 Samuel 22:6-19)
Saul, paranoid and enraged, believes Doeg's report and orders the slaughter of the innocent priests of the LORD.
Turn, and Slay the Priests of the LORD
"When Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him, (now Saul abode in Gibeah under a tree in Ramah, having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him;) Then Saul said unto his servants that stood about him, Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, and make you all captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds; That all of you have conspired against me, and there is none that sheweth me that my son hath made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or sheweth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day? Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which was set over the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. And he enquired of the LORD for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine. Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob: and they came all of them to the king. And Saul said, Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. And he answered, Here I am, my lord. And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast enquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day? Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faithful among all thy servants as David, which is the king's son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thine house? Did I then begin to enquire of God for him? be it far from me: let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father: for thy servant knew nothing of all this, less or more. And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house. And the king said unto the footmen that stood about him, Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD; because their hand also is with David, and because they knew when he fled, and did not shew it to me. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD. And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen ephod. And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen, and asses, and sheep, with the edge of the sword."
Word Study
"the priests of the LORD," and the servants who "would not put forth their hand." Saul's descent reaches its nadir when he commands, "Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD." The horror is underlined by the title: these are "the priests of the LORD," His anointed ministers, and Saul orders their murder over a lie. Remarkably, "the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD", even hardened soldiers recoiled from such sacrilege, showing a conscience their king had lost. Only Doeg the Edomite, the foreigner and informer, would do it, slaying eighty-five priests and then destroying the whole town. Saul, who had spared Agag and the Amalekite spoil in disobedience (chapter 15), now spares nothing in Nob, "men and women, children and sucklings", the very total destruction he withheld from God's enemy, he pours out on God's priests. Sin unrepented always inverts a man's values, making him merciful where he should judge and merciless where he should spare. When conscience is silenced, there is no atrocity a man will not commit.
Explanation
Saul, spear ever in hand, rages in self-pity to his fellow Benjamites, accusing everyone of conspiracy and feeling sorry for himself that no one tells him of Jonathan's "league" with David. Doeg the Edomite seizes the moment to inform on Ahimelech's kindness to David at Nob. Saul summons the priests and accuses them of treason. Ahimelech's defense is truthful and dignified, he had helped David as the loyal king's son-in-law, knowing nothing of any conflict, but Saul, past reason, condemns them all. When his own soldiers refuse to kill the LORD's priests, Doeg carries out the massacre: eighty-five priests slain, and then Nob itself put to the sword, men, women, children, and animals. It is Saul's most monstrous act, the murder of the innocent priesthood of God, and it fulfills, terribly, the earlier judgment on the house of Eli.
Gospel Focus
The massacre at Nob shows the terrible end of unrepented sin: a heart so darkened by jealousy and self-pity that it murders the innocent servants of God. Saul had rejected the word of the LORD, and now he slaughters the priests of the LORD; the two go together, for once we cast off God's rule, no wickedness is off limits. Yet even here shines a gleam of grace: the ordinary soldiers "would not put forth their hand" against the priests. When those in authority command evil, there is a higher loyalty; "we ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). Their refusal is a rebuke to Doeg's cruelty and a call to every conscience: do not lend your hand to wickedness, whatever the command. And the blood of the innocent priests, crying out under a jealous king, joins the long testimony of the righteous who suffer, awaiting the just Judge who will avenge, and pointing to the innocent High Priest slain by envy, whose blood "speaketh better things" (Hebrews 12:24).
Abiathar Escapes to David (1 Samuel 22:20-23)
One priest survives the slaughter and flees to David, who accepts responsibility and offers him safe refuge.
With Me Thou Shalt Be in Safeguard
"And one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David. And Abiathar shewed David that Saul had slain the LORD'S priests. And David said unto Abiathar, I knew it that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul: I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father's house. Abide thou with me, fear not: for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life: but with me thou shalt be in safeguard."
Word Study
"in safeguard," Hebrew mishmeret (מִשְׁמֶרֶת), "a keeping, watch, safe keeping, charge." David says to the surviving priest, "with me thou shalt be in safeguard (mishmeret)", under safe keeping, in protective custody, watched over. The very man for whose sake Abiathar's family was killed becomes his refuge. There is deep gospel comfort here. The persecuted find their safest place beside the persecuted king, "he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life," so their dangers are shared and their safety is one. So it is with Christ and His people: to be with Him is to share His reproach, yet also to be forever safe, "your life is hid with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:3). The world that hates the Master hates the servants, "if they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you" (John 15:20), but with Him we are in mishmeret, kept and guarded, "kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation" (1 Peter 1:5). The safest place in a hostile world is at the side of the rejected King.
Explanation
Abiathar, one son of Ahimelech, escapes the massacre and flees to David with the dreadful news. David's response is striking for its honesty: he takes responsibility, "I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father's house." He had known, seeing Doeg at Nob, that his deception would bring danger; he does not excuse himself. This is the fruit of a tender conscience, so unlike Saul's. Then David offers Abiathar refuge: "Abide thou with me, fear not... with me thou shalt be in safeguard." The last legitimate priest of Eli's line now finds his home and protection with the future king, and Abiathar will serve David for years to come. Out of Saul's atrocity, God preserves a priest for David, and the hunted find shelter with the hunted anointed.
Gospel Focus
David's honest ownership of his part, "I have occasioned the death", is the mark of a true and tender heart, and a rebuke to the self-justifying Saul. When we have contributed to harm, even indirectly, godliness owns it rather than shifting blame. But the sweeter note is David's welcome: "with me thou shalt be in safeguard." The rejected king becomes the refuge of the endangered, and shares his own peril and his own protection with the one who comes to him. This is the gospel invitation: come to the rejected but anointed King, and though you share His reproach, you will share His safety, "kept by the power of God." "Fear not," He says to all who flee to Him from the destroyer, "with me thou shalt be in safeguard." Your life will be hidden with Christ in God, beyond the reach of every Saul and every Doeg.
Chapter 22 in Review
1 Samuel 22 gathers David's people and records Saul's darkest deed. At the cave of Adullam, "every one that was in distress... in debt... discontented" gathers to David, and he becomes their captain, a picture of the greater Son of David who receives the weary and the outcast. Meanwhile Saul, consumed by paranoia and self-pity, believes Doeg's report and, when his own soldiers refuse, has the Edomite slaughter the innocent priests of the LORD at Nob, men, women, and children. One priest, Abiathar, escapes to David, who honestly owns his part in the tragedy and offers refuge: "with me thou shalt be in safeguard."
For the Apostolic reader, the chapter sets the rejected king as refuge against the reigning tyrant as destroyer. Adullam foreshadows Christ gathering the distressed and making them His own; Saul's massacre shows where unrepented sin ends, murdering the very priests of God; and David's welcome of Abiathar pictures the safety of all who flee to the rejected King, sharing His reproach but kept forever safe. To be "with me" the true David is to be in safeguard, your life hidden with Christ in God.
- Adullam: the distressed, indebted, and discontented gather to David, a picture of Christ receiving the weary.
- Saul's servants "would not put forth their hand" against the priests; we must obey God rather than men.
- Unrepented sin darkened Saul until he murdered the priests of the LORD; casting off God's rule knows no limit.
- "With me thou shalt be in safeguard", the rejected king is the refuge of the hunted, as Christ is ours.
Questions for Reflection
- Have you, distressed or in debt to God, come to gather with the true David, who receives all?
- Saul's soldiers refused an evil command. Where might loyalty to God require you to refuse men?
- Do you know the safety of being "with" the rejected King, your life hidden with Christ in God?
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.
- Adullam; the distressed gathered to David and to Christ: 1 Samuel 22:1-5; Matthew 11:28; Mark 12:37; Luke 15:1; 1 Corinthians 1:26-27; John 6:37.
- The massacre of the priests; obeying God rather than men: 1 Samuel 22:6-19; Acts 5:29; Hebrews 12:24.
- Abiathar in safeguard with David; refuge in the King: 1 Samuel 22:20-23; Colossians 3:3; John 15:20; 1 Peter 1:5.