1 Samuel 21:10-22:5 – Fugitive Under God’s Protection

Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 25 July 2021

Introduction

1) Seeking Asylum in Philistia

1) put his trust in God,

2) it was not in any religious matter which tended to the deniall of his faith, but [was merely] in his civill behaviour:

3) neither did any receive hurt thereby, but he intended his own deliverance without damage to any.”

      1. God is all -powerful. He can stop the hand of evil men even as He did for David when he fled to Samuel at Naioth of Ramah.

      2. God is just. He not only can but will punish the evil men in the final tally.

      3. God loves me, but I am not indispensable. So what if I die? Paul (Phil. 1:21-23) says that it would be "gain," for I will be with Jesus! In that day, God's people must fear God more than they fear man and simply obey God, no matter what. God will be more pleased with our faithfulness to Him than He would be with how long we manage to retain our possessions and our lives on earth!

2) Seeking Asylum in Moab

3) Seeking Asylum in the Judean Wilderness

      1. They were “distressed” (imagine being squeezed from different directions by people who want to get rid of you until you can’t hang in there any longer),

      2. They were “indebted” (not able to make enough money to make ends meet - all you have to your name is debt, and your creditors – the loan sharks – are threatening you with slavery),

      3. and they were literally “bitter of soul” – other versions translate it “discontent” (all you’ve had is hard, bitter experiences, and that has shrivelled and dried up your soul)

Conclusion

  1. God's providences sometimes seem to run counter to his promises, for the trial of his people's faith, and the glorifying of his name, in the accomplishment of his counsels...” ~Matthew Henry

  1. In the midst of the deep trouble, David begins his psalm with the confession, ‘I will bless the Lord at all times’ (Ps. 34:1). Such is the confession of the one who trusts in the Lord regardless of the external situation.” ~David Tsumura (NICOT)

  1. According to the counsels of God, David was not to seek for refuge outside the land; not only that he might not be estranged from his fatherland and the people of Israel, which would have been opposed to his calling to be the king of Israel, but also that he might learn to trust entirely in the Lord as his only refuge and fortress.” ~Keil & Delitzsch

1 Samuel 21:10 - 15 – Side-by side comparison of versionsA

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11 [καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτὴν αὐτῷ]· καὶ ἀνέστη Δαυιδ καὶ ἔφυγεν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐκ προσώπου Σαουλ. Καὶ ἦλθεν [Δαυιδ] πρὸς Αγχους βασιλέα Γεθ.

10 [And he gave it him;] and David arose, and fled in that day from the presence of Saul: and [David] came to Anchus king of Geth.

10 And David arose and fled that day from the face of Saul: and came to Achis, the king of Geth:

10 And David arose, and fled that day for fearB of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.

10 Then David arose and fled that day from X X Saul, and went to Achish king of Gath.

10 X That day David X X fled from X X Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.

10 Then David got up and fled on that day from the presence of Saul, so he went to Akish, king of Gath.

11 וַיָּקָםC דָּוִד וַיִּבְרַחD בַּיּוֹם- הַהוּא מִפְּנֵי שָׁאוּל וַיָּבֹא אֶל-אָכִישׁ מֶלֶךְ גַּת:

12 καὶ εἶπαν οἱ παῖδες Αγχους πρὸς αὐτόν Οὐχὶ οὗτος Δαυιδ ὁ βασιλεὺς τῆς γῆς; οὐχὶ τούτῳ ἐξῆρχονE αἱ χορεύουσαι λέγουσαι Ἐπάταξεν Σαουλ ἐν χιλιάσιν αὐτοῦ καὶ Δαυιδ ἐν μυριάσιν αὐτοῦ;

11 And the servants of Anchus said to him, Is not this David the king of the land? Did not the dancing women begin the song to him, saying, Saul has smitten his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

11 And the servants of Achis, [when they saw David,] said to him: Is not this David, the king of the land? Did they not sing to him in their dances, saying: Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?

11 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?

11 But the servants of Achish said to him, "Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of this one as they danced, saying, 'Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands'?"

11 But the servants of Achish said to him, "Isn't this David, the king of the land? Isn't he the one they sing about in their dances: "'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?"

11 But the servants of Akish said to him, “Isn’t this David, king of the land? Wasn’t it about this guy that they were singing antiphonally during their circle-dances, saying, ‘Saul struck down his thousands, but David his multiplied tens of thousands’?”

12 וַיֹּאמְרוּ עַבְדֵי אָכִישׁ אֵלָיו הֲלוֹא- זֶה דָוִד מֶלֶךְ הָאָרֶץ הֲלוֹא לָזֶה יַעֲנוּF בַמְּחֹלוֹת לֵאמֹר הִכָּה שָׁאוּל בַּאֲלָפָָוֹG וְדָוִד בְּרִבְבֹתוֹ בְּרִבְבֹתָיו:

13 καὶ ἔθετο Δαυιδ τὰ ῥήματα ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐφοβήθη σφόδρα ἀπὸ προσώπου Αγ­χους βασιλέως Γεθ.

12 And David laid up the words in his heart, and was greatly afraid of Anchus king of Geth.

12 But David laid up these words in his heart, and was exceedingly afraid at the face of Achis, the king of Geth.

12 And David laid up these words in his heart, and was soreH afraid of Achish the king of Gath.

12 X David took these words to X heart and greatly feared Achish king of Gath.

12 X David took these words to X heart and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath.

12 Then David sank these words into his heart and became very scared of the presence of Akish, king of Gath.

13 וַיָּשֶׂם דָּוִד אֶת-הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה בִּלְבָבוֹ וַיִּרָא מְאֹד מִפְּנֵי אָכִישׁ מֶלֶךְ-גַּת:

14 καὶ ἠλλοίωσενI τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦXJ καὶ προσεποιήσατοK ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃL καὶ ἐτυμπάνιζενM ἐπὶ ταῖς θύραις τῆς [πόλεως καὶ παρεφέρετο ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔπιπτεν ἐπὶ τὰς θύρας τῆς] πύλης, καὶ τὰ σίελα αὐτοῦ κατέρρει ἐπὶ τὸν πώγωνα αὐτοῦ.

13 And he chan­ged his appearance before him, and feigned himself a false character in that day; and drum­med upon the doors of the [city, and used extravagant gestures with his hands, and fell against the doors of the] gate, and his spittle ran down upon his beard.

13 And he changed his countenance before X them, and slipt down between their hands: and he stumbled against the doors of the gate, and his spittle ran down upon his beard.

13 And he changed his behaviourN before X them, and feigned himself madO in their hands, and scrabbledP on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fallQ down upon his beard.

13 So he disguised his sanity before X them, and acted insanely in their hands, and scribbled on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva run down into his beard.

13 So he pretended to be insane in their presence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a madman, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting X saliva run down his beard.

13 So he resorted to duplicity in his presentation of himself in their eyes, and acted insanely while in their control, and banged up the doors of the gate and let his drool run down his beard.

14 וַיְשַׁנּוֹR אֶת-טַעְמוֹ בְּעֵינֵיהֶםS וַיִּתְהֹלֵלT בְּיָדָם וַיְתַוU עַל-דַּלְתוֹת הַשַּׁעַר וַיּוֹרֶד רִירוֹ אֶל-זְקָנוֹ:

15 καὶ εἶπεν Αγχους πρὸς τοὺς παῖδας αὐτοῦ Ἰδοὺ ἴδετε ἄνδρα ἐπίλημπτονV· ἵνα τί εἰσηγάγετε αὐτὸν πρός με;

14 And Anchus said to his servants, Lo! ye see the man is mad: why have ye brought him in to me?

14 And Achis said to his servants: X You saw the man was mad: why have you brought him to me?

14 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?

14 Then Achish said to his servants, "Behold, you see the man behaving as a madman. Why do you bring him to me?

14 X Achish said to his servants, "Look at the man! X X He is insane! Why bring him to me?

14 And Akish said to his servants, “Look, y’all can see the man is raving-mad! What are you bringing him to me for?

15 וַיֹּאמֶר אָכִישׁ אֶל-עֲבָדָיו הִנֵּה תִרְאוּ אִישׁ מִשְׁתַּגֵּעַ לָמָּה תָּבִיאוּ אֹתוֹ אֵלָי:

16 ἦ ἐλαττοῦμαι ἐπιλήμπτων ἐγώ, ὅτι εἰσαγειόχατε αὐτὸν ἐπιλημπτεύεσθαι πρός με; οὗτος οὐκ εἰσελεύσεται εἰς οἰκίαν.

15 Am I in want of madmen, that ye have brought him in to me to play the madman? He shall not come into the house.

15 Have we need of mad men, that you have brought in this fellow, to play the madman in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?

15 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?

15 "Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this one to act the madman in my presence? Shall this one come into my house?"

15 Am I so short of madmen that you have to bring this fellow [here] to carry on [like this] in front of me? Must this man come into my house?"

15 Am I lacking in raving-madmen that y’all have to bring in this guy to rave for me? Is this guy going to come in to my house?”

16 חֲסַר מְשֻׁגָּעִים אָנִי כִּי-הֲבֵאתֶם אֶת-זֶה לְהִשְׁתַּגֵּעַ עָלָי הֲזֶה יָבוֹא אֶל-בֵּיתִי: ס


1 Samuel 22:1-5 – Side-by side comparison of versionsW

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1 Καὶ ἀπῆλθεν ἐκεῖ­θεν Δαυιδ καὶ διεσώ­θη [καὶ ἔρχεται] εἰς τὸ σπήλαιον τὸ Οδο­λλαμ. καὶ ἀκούουσιν οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ XX ὁ οἶκος τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ καταβαίνουσιν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐκεῖ.

1 And David departed thence, and escaped; [and he comes] to the cave of Odollam, and his brethren hear, and X the house of his father, and they go down to him there.

1 David therefore went from thence, and fled to the cave of Odollam. And when his breth­ren, and all his father's house, had heard of it, they went down to him thither.

1 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.

1 So David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam; and when his brothers and all his father's household heard of it, they went down there to him.

1 X David left X Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and X his father's household heard about it, they went down to him there.

1 So David went out from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. Then his brothers and all his father’s household heard about it, and they went down there to him.

1 וַיֵּלֶךְ דָּוִד מִשָּׁם וַיִּמָּלֵט אֶל-מְעָרַת עֲדֻלָּם וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ אֶחָיו וְכָל-בֵּית אָבִיו וַיֵּרְדוּ אֵלָיו שָׁמָּה:

2 καὶ συνήγοντο πρὸς αὐτὸν πᾶς X ἐν ἀνάγκῃY καὶ πᾶς X X ὑπόχρεως X X καὶ πᾶς X κατώδυνοςZ ψυχῇ, καὶ ἦν ἐπ᾿ αὐτῶν ἡγούμενος· καὶ ἦσαν μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ ὡς τετρακόσιοι ἄνδρες.

2 And there gathered to him every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was troubled in mind; and he was a leader over them, and there were with him about four hundred men.

2 And all that were in distress, and oppressed X with debt, and X under affliction of mind, gathered themselves unto him: and he became X their prince, and there were with him about four hundred men.

2 And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented X, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.

2 Everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented X gathered to him; and he became captain over them. Now there were about four hundred men with him.

2 All those who were in distress or X X X in debt or X X discontented X gathered around him, and he became X their leader. X About four hundred men were with him.

2 Also, there assembled to him every one who was distressed and every one who had debt, and every one who was bitter in soul. So he became captain over them, and there were about 400 men with him.

2 וַיִּתְקַבְּצוּ אֵלָיו כָּל-אִישׁ מָצוֹק וְכָל-אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר- לוֹ נֹשֶׁא וְכָל- אִישׁ מַר-נֶפֶשׁ וַיְהִי עֲלֵיהֶם לְשָׂר וַיִּהְיוּ עִמּוֹ כְּאַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת אִישׁ:

3 καὶ ἀπῆλθεν Δαυιδ ἐκεῖθεν εἰς Μασσηφα τῆς Μωαβ καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς βασιλέα Μωαβ Γινέσθωσαν δὴ ὁ πατήρ μου καὶ ἡ μήτηρ μου παρὰ σοί, ἕως ὅτου γνῶ τί ποιήσει μοι ὁ θεός.

3 And David departed thence to Massephath of Moab, and said to the king of Moab, Let, I pray thee, my father and my mother be with thee, until I know what God will do to me.

3 And David departed from thence into Maspha of Moab: and he said to the king of Moab: Let my father and my mother tarry with you, I beseech thee, till I know what God will do for me.

3 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.

3 And David went from there to Mizpah of Moab; and he said to the king of Moab, "Please let my father and my mother come and stay with you until I know what God will do for me."

3 X From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, "Would you let my father and mother come [and stay] with you until I learn what God will do for me?"

3 Then David went to Mitzpah of Moab from there and spoke to the king of Moab: “Please let my father go out with my mother to be with y’all until whenever I know what God is going to do for me.”

3 וַיֵּלֶךְ דָּוִד מִשָּׁם מִצְפֵּה מוֹאָב וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל-מֶלֶךְ מוֹאָב יֵצֵא-נָא אָבִי וְאִמִּי אִתְּכֶם עַד אֲשֶׁר אֵדַע מַה-יַּעֲשֶׂה-לִּי אֱלֹהִים:

4 καὶ παρεκάλεσενAA τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ βασιλέως Μωαβ, καὶ κατῴκουν μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ὄντος τοῦ Δαυιδ ἐν τῇ περιοχῇAB.

4 And he persuaded X X the King of Moab, and they dwell with him continually X X, while David was in the hold.

4 And he left them under the eyes of the king of Moab, and they abode with him all the days that David was in the hold.

4 And he brought them before the king of Moab: and they dwelt with him all the whileX that David was in the hold.

4 Then he left them with X the king of Moab; and they stayed with him all the timeX that David was in the stronghold.

4 So he left them with X the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.

4 So he led them into the presence of the king of Moab, and they settled down with him all the days of David’s being in the stronghold.

4 וַיַּנְחֵם אֶת-פְּנֵי מֶלֶךְ מוֹאָב וַיֵּשְׁבוּ עִמּוֹ כָּל- יְמֵי הֱיוֹת-דָּוִד בַּמְּצוּדָה: ס

5 καὶ εἶπεν Γαδ ὁ προφήτης πρὸς Δαυιδ Μὴ κάθου ἐν τῇ περιοχῇ, πορεύου καὶ ἥξεις εἰς γῆν Ιουδα. καὶ ἐπορεύθη Δαυιδ καὶ ἦλθεν [καὶ ἐκάθισεν] ἐν πόλει ΣαριχAC.

5 And Gad the prophet said to David, Dwell not in the hold: go, and thou shalt enter the land of Juda. So David went, and came [and dwelt] in the city of Saric.

5 And Gad the prophet said to David: Abide not in the hold, depart, and go into the land of Juda. And David departed, and came into the forest of Haret.

5 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.

5 X The prophet Gad said to David, "Do not stay in the stronghold; depart, and go into the land of Judah." So David departed and went into the forest of Hereth.

5 But the prophet Gad said to David, "Do not stay in the stronghold. X X Go into the land of Judah." So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.

5 But Gad the prophet said to David, “Don’t settle down in the stronghold. Go and get yourself into the land of Judah.” So David went out and entered the forest of Charet.

5 וַיֹּאמֶר גָּד הַנָּבִיא אֶל-דָּוִד לֹא תֵשֵׁב בַּמְּצוּדָה לֵךְAD וּבָאתָ-לְּךָ אֶרֶץ יְהוּדָה וַיֵּלֶךְ דָּוִד וַיָּבֹא יַעַר חָרֶת: ס


1Matthew Henry, after admitting he knew not what would induce David to flee to Gath, suggested that perhaps Goliath had been a problem for Akish, so Akish might have appreciated rather than resenting David’s elimination of Goliath.

2Akish was king over only one city. Rainey theorized, however, that Akish was the senior of the five Philistine city-state governors.

3In contradiction to Gill, K&D and others, Tsumura put it the other way around in NICOT: “Achish could be a title or a common name for a Philistine ruler [noting other incidences of the name Ikausu in Akkadian king lists, and an inscription in Ekron], like ‘Pharaoh’ for an Egyptian king… Note that ‘Abimelech’ in the title of Psalm 34 may be the Semitic name of Achish...”

4This is added in the Septuagint.

5Matthew Henry suggested that perhaps Akish had an appreciation for David and saw through David’s deceptive behavior, but judged that it would be dangerous for David to stay in Gath, and thus dismissed him for his own safety.

6Keil & Delitzsch suggested that it was further north and therefore accessed by crossing the Jordan River. Who knows?

7Bemnidbar Rabba, sect. 14. fol. 212. 1. Tanchuma apud Jarchium says that the king of Moab killed David’s parents as soon as he left the stronghold, but other commentators, such as Hertzberg and Klein maintained that David’s parents survived and returned to Judah.

8See also Psalms 31:4; 71:3; 91:2; and 144:2.

AMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scroll containing any part of 1 Samuel 21 is 4Q52 Samuela, which contains fragments of vs. 1-10, and which has been dated around 250 B.C. Where the DSS and MT agree, the MT is colored purple. Where the DSS supports the LXX with omissions or text not in the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

BThe Greek and Hebrew read “from the presence/face of Saul” and so do other English versions, although many omit the “presence/face”

CInchoative verb (NICOT)

D This is the 4th and final repetition of this verb in the narrative of David fleeing (1 Sam. 19:12, 18; 20:1; 21:11).

ESymmmachus’ translation was katelegon “speak against”

FLit. “answer” – Goldman noted that this is a “frequentative” imperfect “did they not use to sing?”

GThe original Masoretic spelling here could be singular or it could be an abbreviated plural, but it’s plural in the LXX, Syriac, Targums, and Vulgate. Masorite scribes suggested adding a yod between the last two letters (בַּאֲלָפָיו) to make it more clear that it is plural. They did the same the first time this quote was printed in 18:7. The only difference between the quote of 18:7 and here is that here, there is an extra “tens of thousands” added to David, that is to say the last word is repeated.

HNASB = “greatly,” NIV = very,” ESV = “much”

IAquila: enhllaxen (“went in the opposite direction”), S. metebalen (“changed his mind”)

JThe Syriac also has a singular direct object “him.” I suspect that here (and later in the verse where the LXX renders “in that day” instead of the MT “in their hands” – and at the end, where the LXX renders “city” instead of the MT “gates” – in both cases the difference of only one letter in Hebrew), the LXX translators were looking at a different text than the MT, but no such ancient text has survived for comparison (The DSS is obliterated here). However, it does not significantly change the story whether David was feigning insanity before King Akish or before Akish’s courtiers (or whether the timing of the incident is referenced by a particular day or by a particular set of persons in control – or whether the doors were to the city or to the gate – which would be the same thing).

KThe LXX word has more to do with “acting;” Aq. translated more like the MT with parieto (“was negligent/listless”).

LAquila corrected the LXX to the MT with en ceiri autwn (“in their hands”).

MAq. prosekrouen (“knocked at), S.,Q. eyofei (“made noise) – all the Greek reading as though the Hebrew were וָיָּתָף

NNASB = “disguised his sanity,” NIV = “pretended to be insane”

OThe concept of “feigning/pretending” is not really in the meaning of this Hebrew word, even though the story indicates that David was acting. cf. NASB = “acted insanely,” NIV = “acted like a madman,” ESV = “pretended to be insane”

PNASB = “scribbled,” NIV, ESV = “made marks”

QNASB, NIV = “saliva run”

RK&D and Driver took the final vav as “circumstance of conversation” and “anticipatory pronomial suffix” that is, a 3ms object, translating “and he changed it, that is his understanding” Tsumura, on the other hand, commented that “the [vav] should be taken as part of the verbal root… as a shortened form [of]… wayyešannaw (*šnw, Pi.),” but there is no such root in my Hebrew lexicons.

SThere are a couple of Hebrew manuscripts with a different preposition before this word (ל = “before” rather than “in”), and the LXX, Vulgate, and some Targum manuscripts support this.

TThis Hithpolel is uncommon, but it is also found in Jer. 25:16; 46:9; 50:38; 51:7; and Nah. 2:5, all describing out-of-control behavior.

UThis verb תוה only occurs two other times in the Hebrew Bible: Ps. 78:41 (where it is translated “limited, pained, vexed, provoked” the LORD) and Ezek. 9:4 (where it is translated “make a mark” on foreheads). The spelling in the MT is slightly abbreviated, so Masoretic scribes noted in the margin that a yod should be inserted before the last letter (וַיְתָיו ), a practice followed by several Hebrew manuscripts, and no different in meaning. (A couple of Hebrew manuscripts, however inserted an aleph as the last letter, rendering an unintelligible word awtyw. And Tsumura claimed that the Qere was from a different root, תיו, but that root is not in BDB or Davidson’s Hebrew lexicons, so I’m skeptical.) The LXX adds an interesting insertion which further describes David’s crazy act, but the source of its extra words is not known. (The DSS text type might possibly be a source, but no legible copies of this verse have survived among the Dead Sea Scrolls.)

Vcf. synonymns: Aq. paraplhkteuomenon (“troubled”), S. parafrona (“out of his mind” - in the next verse, Symmachus switches to μαινομαι/insane).

WMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scrolls containing 1 Samuel 22 are 4Q51Samuela (dated between 50-25 B.C.), which contains fragments of vs. 10-11, and 4Q52 (dated 250BC), which has fragments of vs. 8 & 9. I have colored in purple the text in the MT which corroborates with the DSS. Where the DSS supports the LXX with omissions or text not in the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

XThe “all” is also missing in the Targum (and the NIV). It doesn’t change the story, though.

YAq., Q. sunecomenoV (“under compulsion/hard-pressed/distressed/incarcerated?”), S. stenocwroumenoV (“confined/restricted”)

Z Aq. translated more literally pikroV (“bitter”).

AAAq. and others changed the LXX to eqeto autouV pro (“put them before the presence”), to be more in line with the MT.

ABcf. synonyms in later Greek versions: Aq. ocurwmati (“fortress”), S. eqiboulh (“throw-place/where one is accustomed to be flung?”), Q. (eiV) katafughn (“place that one flees down to”).

ACThe Hebrew word for “forest” (יער) and the word for “city” (עיר) contain the same three letters, so the confusion between them is easier to see, but the LXX Sarich (שרח) only has two of the same letters as the MT Hebrew חרת, both the starting and ending letters being different, so it’s hard to imagine where the LXX reading came from.

ADTsumura explained this awkward grammar, “‘to you’ functions as something like an Akkadian ventive… a directional element that denotes motion or activity in the direction of, or to a point near, the speaker...”

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