While Saul was yet king, the Phil-is-tines came forth once more to fight the chil-dren of Is-ra-el. And Saul and his men went out to meet them. There were two high hills on each side of a deep vale, and from these two hills the foe-men fought.

The Phil-is-tines had on their side a man who was more than ten feet high. He wore a coat of mail, and was bound with brass from head to foot, so that no sword or spear could wound him.

And he cried out to Saul's men, Choose a man from your midst and let him come down to me. If he can fight with me and kill me, then we will be your slaves. But if I kill him then you must serve us. I dare you to send a man to fight with me.

When Saul and his men heard these words they were in great fear, for there was no one in their ranks who would dare fight with such a gi-ant.

And each morn and eve, for more than a month, this great man, whose name was Go-li-ath, drew near Saul and his troops and dared them to send a man out to fight him.

Now when the war broke out three of Jes-se's sons went with Saul, but Da-vid went back to Beth-le-hem to feed sheep.

And Jes-se said to Da-vid, Take this parched corn and these ten loaves of bread, and run down to camp and bring me back word how thy broth-ers are.

And Da-vid rose up the next morn, and found some one to take care of his sheep, and went as his fath-er told him.

And he came to the camp just as the men were on their way to the fight, and the air was filled with their shouts.

And he left the goods he had brought in the care of a man, and ran in the midst of the troops, and spoke to his three broth-ers.

And while he stood there, Go-li-ath came out from the ranks of the Phil-is-tines, and dared some one to fight with him.

And Da-vid heard his words. And the men of Is-ra-el fled from his face. And Da-vid heard them speak of what would be done to the man who should kill him; for the king would give him great wealth, and set him in a high place.

And Da-vid spoke to the men near him, and made use of strong words.

And his broth-ers told him to go home and take care of his sheep, for it was just a trick of his to come up to camp that he might see the fight.

Da-vid said, I have done no wrong! and the men to whom he spoke went and told Saul what he had said. And Saul sent for him, but did not know that he was the same one who used to play on the harp for him.

And Da-vid told Saul he would go out and fight the great man from Gath. And Saul said, Thou art but a youth, and he has been a man of war all his days.

Then Da-vid told Saul how he had fought with and slain the wild beasts that came out of the woods to eat up the lambs of his flock. And, said he, this man is no more than a wild beast, and the Lord will save me from him as he did from the paw of the li-on and the bear.

And Saul said, Go, and the Lord go with thee. And Saul put on him a coat of mail, and clothed him in brass from head to foot, and hung a sword at his side. But Da-vid took them all off, and said, I have not tried them, and can-not use them.

And he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in a bag that he wore. And his sling was in his hand when he drew near to Go-li-ath.

Go-li-ath came near to Da-vid, and when he saw what a youth he was, he drew up his head with great scorn.

Da-vid ran to meet him, and put his hand in his bag and drew forth a stone, and slung it, and struck Go-li-ath on the fore-head with such force that the stone sank in through the bone and he fell on his face to the earth.

Then Da-vid ran and stood on Go-li-ath, and drew his sword from its sheath, and slew him and cut off his head.

And when the Phil-is-tines saw that the man in whom they had put their trust was dead they fled.

And Da-vid came back from the fight with the head of Go-li-ath in his hand, and was brought to Saul.

And Saul would not let Da-vid go back to his own home, but made him stay with him. And Jon-a-than fell in love with him, and to show his love, took off all the rich clothes he had on and put them on Da-vid, and gave him his sword, his bow, and his belt. And Da-vid did as Saul told him, and all who saw him were pleased with him, and Saul put him at the head of his men of war.

But when King Saul and his men went through the towns on their way back from the fight, the folks came out and sang and danced to praise them for what they had done.

But they said more in praise of Da-vid than of Saul, and when Saul heard it he was wroth, and from that day ceased to be Da-vid's friend.

The next day Da-vid stood near Saul with his harp in his hand to play him some sweet tunes.[162]
[163] And Saul held a spear in his hand, and he cast it at Da-vid so that it would go through him and pin him to the wall. But Da-vid saw it and took a step one side, and it did him no harm.

Twice was this done, and when Saul found that he could not hurt Da-vid, he was in great fear of him, for he knew the Lord was with him. So he drove Da-vid from his house, and sent men to lay in wait to kill him.

But Da-vid fled from them and ran to the place where Jon-a-than was, and said to him, What have I done that the king seeks my life?

Now Jon-a-than did not know that the king meant to kill Da-vid, so he said to him, Thou shalt not die. My fath-er would have told me if he meant to kill thee. But Da-vid said it was true.

The next day was to be a feast day, and the king would look for Dav-id to come and eat with him. But Da-vid was in such fear of Saul that he did not care to go, and begged Jon-a-than to let him hide him-self for three days. If the king asks where I am, said Da-vid, tell him that thou did'st give me leave to go home.

Jon-a-than told Da-vid that at the end of the three days he should come and hide in the field near a rock that was there. And Jon-a-than said he would shoot three ar-rows as if he took aim at a mark. And he would send a lad out to pick them up. And if he said to the lad, Go, find them, they are on this side of thee, then Da-vid might know that all was at peace and the king would do him no harm. But if he should cry out that the darts were be-yond the lad, then Da-vid would know that he must flee, for the king meant to do him harm.

So Da-vid hid him-self in the field; and when the feast day came Saul sat down to eat with his back to the wall. And he saw that Da-vid was not in his place, but said not a word. The next day when he found Da-vid was not in his place, Saul said to his son, Why comes not Da-vid to eat these two days?

Jon-a-than said that Da-vid pled so hard for leave to go home to his own folks, that he had told him to go, and that was why he was not at the feast.

Then Saul was in a great rage, and said to his son, As long as Da-vid lives thou canst not be a king. Send for him, and bring him here that he may be put to death.

And Jon-a-than said, Why should he be slain? What hath he done?

Saul threw his spear at Jon-a-than. And the young man knew by this that the king meant to kill Da-vid. So the next morn the king's son went out to the field, and took a lad with him. And he said, Run now, and pick up the ar-rows that I shoot.

And as he ran, Jon-a-than sent a dart o'er his head; and when the lad came to the place where it fell, the king's son cried out, It is be-yond thee. Make haste, and stay not.

Da-vid heard these words and knew that he must flee, for if Saul caught him he would kill him.

The lad brought the darts to Jon-a-than, and did not know why the king's son had shot them and called out to him as he did. And Jon-a-than gave him his bow and ar-rows, and sent him back to town with them.

As soon as the lad was gone, Da-vid came out from the place where he was hid, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times. Then he rose and threw his arms round Jon-a-than's neck, and the two friends wept as if their hearts would break.

Then Da-vid fled from Saul, and hid in the woods and caves.

Saul went out with a large force of men to seek Da-vid on the rocks where the wild goats fed. And Saul came to a cave, and went in to lie down and rest.

Da-vid and his men were in the cave, but Saul could not see them. And the men wished to kill Saul; but Da-vid would not let them. While he was there Da-vid stole up to Saul and cut off a piece of his robe. And Saul did not know it.

When Saul went out of the cave, Da-vid went out af-ter him and cried out, My lord and my king!

And when Saul looked back, Da-vid bowed down to him with his face to the earth. And he told Saul to pay no heed to those who said he meant to harm the king. For if he had sought to kill Saul he might have done so that day while he was in the cave. And Da-vid showed Saul the piece of his robe he had cut off.

And some bade me kill thee, said Da-vid, but I would not, for thou art my lord and my king. Then Da-vid held up the piece of cloth he had cut from Saul's robe, and said, Since I was so near thee as to cut this off and did not kill thee, thou may'st know that I have no wish to harm thee. Yet thou dost hunt for me to kill me. Let the Lord judge 'twixt thee and me, and save me from thy hand, and save thee as he will, for I will not harm thee.

When Saul heard Da-vid speak thus, all hate went out of his heart, and he wept as he said, Thou hast done good to me for the wrongs I did thee, and may the Lord bless thee for it. Now I know that thou wilt some day be the king of Is-ra-el.

And Saul went home, and Da-vid and his men went back to the cave.

But Da-vid knew that he could not trust Saul, so he fled to the land of the Phil-is-tines, and he and his men dwelt there in the town of Gath for the space of a year and four months.

While he was there, the Phil-is-tines went out to fight with Saul once more, and when he saw what a host of them there was, his heart shook with fear. He asked the Lord what he should do, but the Lord did not come to him in dreams, or speak one word to him.

Sam-u-el was dead, and the Lord had said it was a sin to go to a witch, or a seer, to find out the things that would take place, and Saul had sent all these folks out of the land.

But now he was in such a strait that he felt he must have help of some sort. And one of his men told him there was at En-dor a witch who could work strange charms, and fore-tell what was to take place. So the king drest him-self so that he would not be known, and went at night with two of his men to see the witch of En-dor. And he said to her, Bring me up him whom I shall name to thee.

And the witch said to him, Dost thou not know that Saul has sent all those that work charms out of the land? And why dost thou set a snare for my life, so that I will be put to death?

And Saul said, As the Lord lives there shall no harm come to thee for this thing.

Then the witch said, Whom shall I bring up to thee? And he said, Bring me Sam-u-el.

So the witch made strange signs and spoke strange words, and swept her wand round and round. And when she saw the form of Sam-u-el rise up, she cried with a loud voice, Why did'st thou not tell me the truth? for thou art Saul!

And the king said, Have no fear. What did'st thou see?

And the witch said, I saw an old man with a cloak round him.

And Saul knew it was Sam-u-el, and bowed his face to the ground. And Sam-u-el said, Why hast thou brought me up? And Saul told him that he was in a great strait, that God had left him, and did not come to him in dreams or by the hand of wise men, and he thought that Sam-u-el might tell him what to do.

Sam-u-el said, Why then dost thou ask of me if the Lord hath left thee? He hath done to thee just as he said he would. Thy reign is at an end, and Da-vid shall rule in thy stead. And he told Saul that the next day he and his sons would be dead, and Is-ra-el in the hands of the foes.

When Saul heard these words he fell down in a swoon, for he had had no food for a day and a night.

And the witch brought bread and bade him eat, that he might have strength to go on his way. And Saul and his men ate of the food, and went their way that night.

Now the lords of the Phil-is-tines brought all their troops to a place called A-phek. And the king of Gath went there, and took Da-vid and his men with him. But the lords of the Phil-is-tines would not have the Jews in their midst lest they should turn on them and give them in-to the hands of king Saul.

So Da-vid and his men had to leave the camp, and the Phil-is-tines went out to fight, and the men of Is-ra-el fled from them with great loss. The king's three sons were slain, and an ar-row struck Saul and gave him a bad wound.

And Saul said to the man who bore his shield, Draw thy sword and put me to death. But the man did not dare to kill his king. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it, and thus died by his own hand. And when the man saw that Saul was dead, he fell on his sword and died with him.

And when it was known that Saul and his sons were dead, the Jews fled from that part of the land, and the Phil-is-tines went to live there.

In the course of a few years Da-vid was made king of Is-ra-el, and then went to live at Je-ru-sa-lem. He went to war, and took spoils of rich kings, and the Lord was with him, for he sought to do that which was right and just.

Da-vid had two sons: Sol-o-mon and Ab-sa-lom.

And in all the land there was no man with such a fine face and form as Ab-sa-lom, and he won much praise for his good looks. And he had a thick growth of long hair. But Ab-sa-lom had a bad heart, and his sins made Da-vid weep. But he did not scold Ab-sa-lom as he should have done, for the king was fond of his son, and so Ab-sa-lom went on from bad to worse.

He told what he would do when he was king, and made friends with those who thought it a fine thing to be on good terms with the king's son.

When he was two-score years of age, Ab-sa-lom said to the king, Let me, I pray thee, go up to Heb-ron to pay my vows.

And Da-vid told him to go. But it was not to serve the Lord that Ab-sa-lom went, but to have him-self made king in-stead of Da-vid. And he took ten score men with him, who did not know why or where they went, and sent spies all through the land to speak in his praise and urge that he be made king.

And when Da-vid heard of it he said to his men, Rise, let us flee from this place, lest Ab-sa-lom come and put us to death.

And they all fled from Je-ru-sa-lem, and went to hide in some lone place. And when Ab-sa-lom came to Je-ru-sa-lem he went to one of Da-vid's friends and asked him what he should do to be made king. A-hith-o-phel, who had once been a friend of Da-vid, and had now gone with the king's son, had said that he would go out with a large force and come up with Da-vid when he was weak and faint, so that he would be in a great fright. Those who were with Dav-id would flee, and he would soon put the king to death. Then, of course, Ab-sa-lom would be king.

But Ab-sa-lom would not do this till he had heard what Hu-sha-i said. Now Hu-sha-i was a true friend of Da-vid, and he told Ab-sa-lom to take more men than A-hith-o-phel had said, for he thought that would give Da-vid a chance to get out of the way. And Hu-sha-i sent two young men to tell Da-vid not to stop on the plains that night, but to cross the Jor-dan, lest he and all who were with him should be put to death.

But a boy saw the two sons of the high-priest who were on their way to Da-vid, and went and told Ab-sa-lom. And the priest's sons ran to a house near by, and hid in the well. And the wo-man who kept the house spread corn on top so that no one could see that a well was there.

And when Ab-sa-lom's men came in and asked the wo-man where the priest's sons were, she said they had gone on past the brook Ked-ron. And when the two could not be found the men went back.

Then the priest's sons came up out of the well, and made haste to give to Da-vid the word that Hu-sha-i had sent. And at dawn Da-vid and all his men crossed Jor-dan.

As soon as Ab-sa-lom had all the men he thought he would need, he set out to fight with Da-vid. And Da-vid drew up his men in line, and put Jo-ab at their head. And the king said, I will go out with you. But the men said he should not; so Da-vid staid by the gate and saw them go out to the fight, and bade them be kind to Ab-sa-lom for his sake.

The fight took place in a wood. Ab-sa-lom rode on a mule, and as the mule passed 'neath a great oak, Ab-sa-lom's head caught in a branch, and he hung in mid air, while the mule went off down the road.

And a man saw it and told Jo-ab. And Jo-ab said, Why did'st thou not kill him? And the man said he would not kill the king's son, for he had heard Da-vid ask them to be kind to him.

But Jo-ab said, I can-not waste time with thee. And he took three darts in his hand and thrust them through Ab-sa-lom, so that he died. And he was thrown in-to a pit that was in the wood, and a great heap of stones was piled on him. And all the men who had been with him went back to their tents.

Da-vid sat in the gate, and when men came back with news of the fight, he would ask of each one, Is Ab-sa-lom safe? And at last one of them said, May all the king's foes be as this young man is. Then Da-vid knew that Ab-sa-lom was dead, and he went to his own room and wept.

And he cried out with a loud voice, O, my son, Ab-sa-lom; my son, my son Ab-sa-lom! I would that God had let me die in thy stead, O, Ab-sa-lom, my son, my son!

Da-vid was king for two-score years, and was an old man when he died and had hosts of friends. And when he felt that his death was near, he bade his men take Sol-o-mon to a place called Gi-hon, and pour oil on his head. Then they were to blow the horn and cry out. God save King So-lo-mon.

And this was done; and when Da-vid died, Sol-o-mon sat on his throne and ruled Is-ra-el.