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¹ And Saul spake to Ionathan his sonne, and to all his seruants, that they should kill Dauid. ² But Ionathan Sauls sonne delighted much in Dauid, and Ionathan told Dauid, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee: Now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thy selfe vntill the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thy selfe: ³ And I will goe out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will commune with my father of thee, and what I see, that I will tell thee. ⁴ And Ionathan spake good of Dauid vnto Saul his father, and said vnto him, Let not the King sinne against his seruant, against Dauid: because hee hath not sinned against thee, and because his workes haue bene to thee ward very good. ⁵ For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, & the Lord wrought a great saluation for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst reioyce: Wherefore then wilt thou sinne against innocent blood, to slay Dauid without a cause? ⁶ And Saul hearkened vnto the voyce of Ionathan; and Saul sware, As the Lord liueth, he shall not be slaine. ⁷ And Ionathan called Dauid, and Ionathan shewed him all those things: and Ionathan brought Dauid to Saul, and he was in his presence, as in times past.

⁸ And there was warre againe, and Dauid went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter, & they fled from him. ⁹ And the euill spirit from the Lord was vpon Saul, as he sate in his house with his iauelin in his hand: and Dauid played with his hand. ¹⁰ And Saul sought to smite Dauid euen to the wall with the iauelin: but hee slipt away out of Sauls presence, and he smote the iauelin into the wall: and Dauid fled, and escaped that night.

¹¹ Saul also sent messengers vnto Dauids house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal Dauids wife tolde him, saying, If thou saue not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slaine. ¹² So Michal let Dauid downe thorow a window: and hee went and fled, and escaped. ¹³ And Michal tooke an image, and laid it in the bedde, and put a pillow of goats haire for his bolster, and couered it with a cloth. ¹⁴ And when Saul sent messengers to take Dauid, she said, He is sicke. ¹⁵ And Saul sent the messengers againe to see Dauid, saying, Bring him vp to me in the bedde, that I may slay him. ¹⁶ And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goates haire for his bolster. ¹⁷ And Saul said vnto Michal, Why hast thou deceiued me so, and sent away mine enemie, that he is escaped? And Michal answered Saul, Hee said vnto me, Let mee goe; Why should I kill thee?

¹⁸ So Dauid fledde, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him: and hee and Samuel went, and dwelt in Naioth. ¹⁹ And it was told Saul, saying, Behold, Dauid is at Naioth in Ramah. ²⁰ And Saul sent messengers to take Dauid: and when they sawe the company of the Prophets prophecying, and Samuel standing as appointed ouer them, the Spirit of God was vpon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophecied. ²¹ And when it was tolde Saul, he sent other messengers, and they prophecied likewise: and Saul sent messengers againe the third time, and they prophecied also. ²² Then went hee also to Ramah, and came to a great well that is in Sechu: and he asked, and said, Where are Samuel and Dauid? And one said, Behold, they be at Naioth in Ramah. ²³ And hee went thither to Naioth in Ramah: and the Spirit of God was vpon him also, and he went on and prophecied vntill hee came to Naioth in Ramah: ²⁴ And he stript off his clothes also, and prophecied before Samuel in like manner, and lay downe naked all that day, and all that night: wherefore they say, Is Saul also among the Prophets?