1 Samuel 29:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: 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 now for days and years, and since he deserted to me I have found no fault in him to this day."

NIV: The commanders of the Philistines asked, "What about these Hebrews?" Achish replied, "Is this not David, who was an officer of Saul king of Israel? He has already been with me for over a year, and from the day he left Saul until now, I have found no fault in him."

NASB: Then 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 the king of Israel, who has been with me these days, or rather these years, and I have found nothing at all suspicious in him since the day he deserted to me to this day?'

CSB: Then the Philistine commanders asked, "What are these Hebrews doing here?" Achish answered the Philistine commanders, "That is David, servant of King Saul of Israel. He has been with me a considerable period of time. From the day he defected until today, I’ve found no fault with him."

NLT: But the Philistine commanders demanded, 'What are these Hebrews doing here?' And Achish told them, 'This is David, the servant of King Saul of Israel. He’s been with me for years, and I’ve never found a single fault in him from the day he arrived until today.'

KJV: Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews here? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines, Is not this David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, which hath been with me these days, or these years, and I have found no fault in him since he fell unto me unto this day?

NKJV: Then the princes of the Philistines said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” And Achish said to the princes 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 to this day I have found no fault in him since he defected to me.”

First Samuel 29:1–5 contains another example of God protecting David from having to fight his future army. Achish has allowed David, his men, and their families to settle in Ziklag for over a year (1 Samuel 27). Achish wants David's group to fight with him against the Israelites, but the other Philistine commanders wisely disagree. Achish will send David's group home (1 Samuel 29:6–11) where they find the Amalekites have kidnapped their wives and kids and burned their city (1 Samuel 30). While David is marching, the Philistines kill Saul's sons, and Saul kills himself (1 Samuel 31).

David, his men, and their families have been hiding from King Saul under the protection of Achish, Philistine king of Gath (1 Samuel 27:1–2). Achish so thoroughly trusts that David has rejected the Israelites that he plans to take David and his men into battle with him against the Israelites. The Philistine commanders reject this idea and tell Achish to send David back home. David protests, but Achish has no choice but to order David to return to the land of the Philistines to sit out the battle against Israel.

The Philistines are renewing their war against the Israelites (1 Samuel 28:1). Achish, king of Gath, insists that David and his men fight with him in the battle against Israel. The Philistine commanders wisely reject the idea of allowing these Israelites among their ranks in battle, no matter how much Achish trusts David. David protests, and Achish expresses his regret, but the king sends David and his men back home. They will arrive to find their families captured and their city burnt (1 Samuel 30:1).

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.