1 Samuel 29

¹And the Philistines gathered all their forces at Aphek; and Israel was encamped at the spring that is in Jezreel.

²And the lords of the Philistines were passing by in hundreds and in thousands, and David and his men were passing in the rear with Achish.

³And the commanders of the Philistines said, 'What are these Hebrews doing here?' And Achish said to the commanders of the Philistines, 'Is this not David, the servant of Saul king of Israel, who has been with me these days or these years, and I have found nothing wrong with him from the day he defected until this day?'

⁴And the commanders of the Philistines were angry with him, and the commanders of the Philistines said to him: 'Send the man back, that he may return to his place where you assigned him, and let him not go down with us into battle, lest he become an adversary to us in the battle. For by what means would this fellow reconcile himself to his lord? Is it not with the heads of those men?'

⁵'Is this not David, of whom they sang to one another in the dances, saying, "Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands"?'

⁶Then Achish called David and said to him: 'As the Lord lives, you are upright, and good in my eyes is your going out and your coming in with me in the camp, for I have found no wrong in you from the day of your coming to me until this day. Yet in the eyes of the lords you are not good.'

⁷And now return and go in peace, and do not do evil in the eyes of the lords of the Philistines.

⁸And David said to Achish: 'What have I done, and what have you found in your servant from the day I have been before you until this day, that I should not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?'

⁹And Achish answered and said to David: 'I know that you are good in my eyes, like an angel of God; nevertheless, the commanders of the Philistines have said: He shall not go up with us in the battle.'

¹⁰Now rise early in the morning, you and the servants of the lord of you all who came with you, and rise early in the morning when it is light, and go.

¹¹So David rose early, he and his men, to go in the morning, to return to the land of the Philistines; and the Philistines went up to Jezreel.