I Samuel 23:13 · Bible study
1 Samuel 23:13 Commentary: David's Flight from Keilah
Hebrew · 4 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Examine how 1 Samuel 23:13 reveals God's providential guidance as David escapes Keilah safely, and Saul's pursuit ceases, a lesson in trusting divine timing.
Research Summary
- Meaning: David's departure from Keilah and Saul's cessation of pursuit demonstrate God's active protection and guidance over David even in apparent aimlessness.
- Key words: yithalleku (they went about, Hitpael indicating wandering); chadal (ceased, complete stop); nagad (told, Hophal passive, Saul is informed by others).
- Main debate: Minimal, some debate whether Saul's forbearance was due to voluntary decision or divine intervention, but most agree God providentially halted the pursuit.
- Theological theme: God's sovereignty over human plans; the hidden guidance of Providence for the faithful.
- Best use: Preaching on trusting God in seasons of uncertainty and fleeing danger; small-group study on God's protection and guidance.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Then David and his men, about six hundred strong, set out and departed from Keilah, moving from place to place. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he declined to go forth.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and departed out of Keilah and went wherever they could go. Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah; and he gave up going there.
KJV King James Version 1769
Then David and his men, which were about six hundred, arose and departed out of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And it was told Saul that David was escaped from Keilah; and he forbare to go forth.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and departed out of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And it was told Saul that David was escaped from Keilah; and he forbare to go forth.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
And David riseth--and his men--about six hundred men, and they go out from Keilah, and go up and down where they go up and down; and to Saul it hath been declared that David hath escaped from Keilah, and he ceaseth to go out.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Then David and his men, about six hundred, arose and departed out of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And it was told Saul that David had escaped from Keilah, and he forbore to go forth.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose, and departing from Ceila, wandered up and down, uncertain where they should stay: and it was told Saul that David was fled from Ceila, and had escaped: wherefore he forbore to go out.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
David entonces se levantó con sus hombres, que eran como seiscientos|strong="H8337, H3967, H0376", y saliéronse de Keila, y fuéronse de una parte á otra. Y vino la nueva á Saúl de como David se había escapado de Keila; y dejó de salir.
Davi então se levantou com seus homens, que eram como seiscentos, e sairam de Queila, e foram-se de uma parte à outra. E veio a nova a Saul de como Davi se havia escapado de Queila; e deixou de sair.
Alors David se leva avec ses gens au nombre d’ environ six cents hommes; ils sortirent de Keïla, et s’ en allèrent où ils purent. Saül, informé que David s’ était sauvé de Keïla, suspendit sa marche.
Da machte sich David auf samt seinen Männern, deren bei sechshundert waren, und zogen aus von Kegila und wandelten, wo sie konnten. Da nun Saul angesagt ward, daß David von Kegila entronnen war, ließ er sein Ausziehen anstehen.
Toen maakte zich David en zijn mannen op, omtrent zeshonderd man, en zij gingen uit Kehila, en zij gingen heen, waar zij konden gaan. Toen aan Saul geboodschapt werd, dat David uit Kehila ontkomen was, zo hield hij op uit te trekken.
Allora Davide e la sua gente, circa seicento uomini, si levarono, uscirono da Keila e andaron qua e là a caso; e Saul informato che Davide era fuggito da Keila, rinunziò alla sua spedizione.
Wstał tedy Dawid i mężowie jego około sześciu set mężów, i wyszli z Ceili, a uchodzili kędy mogli. A gdy oznajmiono Saulowi, że uszedł Dawid z Ceili, tedy zaniechał wyciągnienia.
Тогда поднялся Давид и люди его, около шестисот человек, и вышли из Кеиля и ходили, где могли. Саулу же было донесено, что Давид убежал из Кеиля, и тогда он отменил поход.
大衛 和跟隨他的 約有六 百 人，就起身 出了 基伊拉，往 他們所 能往的地方去。有人告訴 掃羅， 大衛 離開基伊拉 逃走；於是掃羅不 出來了。
Then David and his men, about six hundred of them, went out of Keilah, and got away wherever they were able to go. And Saul, hearing that David had got away from Keilah, did not go there.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · I Samuel 23:13
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree this verse marks a decisive turn in David's wilderness years. Gill notes the increase of David's men from four hundred to six hundred since Adullam (1 Samuel 22:2), showing that God had protected him in battle against the Philistines at Keilah. Matthew Henry observes that Saul, hearing of David's escape, abandoned his plan to besiege the city, a clear sign that divine Providence had overruled the king's designs. The Geneva Bible simply states that David and his men went wherever they could, while Saul left off his journey. The verb forms in the Hebrew, the Hitpael of halak (they went about) and the Hophal of nagad (it was told), emphasize both the aimlessness of David's movement from a human perspective and the passive reception of news by Saul. Together, commentators highlight that God's guidance was at work even in the uncertainty of flight.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: God providentially protected David by revealing the betrayal of Keilah and causing Saul to abandon his pursuit, demonstrating divine guidance even in the midst of uncertain wandering.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Reason for Saul's cessation | Saul stopped pursuing David once he learned David had escaped Keilah; this was a direct answer to David's prayer for guidance. | Some see Saul's decision as purely pragmatic (no point besieging an empty town), while others emphasize God's sovereign hand overriding Saul's intentions. |
| David's men numbering 600 | The increase from 400 to 600 shows God was multiplying David's support even during flight. | Some commentators focus on the practical aspect (survivors from battle, new recruits), others see it as God building a kingdom army. |
| Significance of the ephod | David relied on Abiathar's ephod for divine guidance, showing a pattern of prayerful dependence. | Reformed traditions emphasize the ephod as a means of prophetic guidance; Catholic and Orthodox see it within the broader pattern of God speaking through priests and prophets. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The city of Keilah was a fortified town in the lowlands of Judah, about eight miles northwest of Hebron. David had just rescued it from Philistine raiders (1 Samuel 23:1-5), only to learn through Abiathar the priest's ephod that the citizens would betray him to Saul (vv.9-12). This bitter irony, savior delivered by those he saved, shaped David's decision to leave. The Hebrew verb yithalleku (they went about) in the reflexive Hitpael stem suggests restless wandering, not a direct retreat to a known hideout. Ellicott's commentary notes that the wilderness of Ziph, where David next abode, was rugged and difficult, well suited for a band on the run.
Saul's interpretation of David's presence inside city walls as divine delivery (v.7) echoed common Ancient Near Eastern beliefs: a god had trapped the enemy. Yet God's actual guidance, through the ephod, contradicted Saul's expectation. For David, every step, from his initial inquiry (v.2) to the repeated confirmations (v.4, 11-12), depended on direct communication with God. This narrative contrasts human planning with divine direction. The increase of David's forces from 400 to 600 (compare 1 Samuel 22:2 and 25:13) also signifies God's quiet building of a future king's support base, even in exile.
Textual Notes
The supplied sources and consulted commentaries note no significant textual variants for 1 Samuel 23:13. The Hebrew text is stable across major manuscripts. The phrase "about six hundred" appears consistently, and the key verbs are well attested.
Reception History
This verse has been read throughout church history as a testament to God's hidden providence in the life of a fugitive king. Early Christian writers often saw David as a type of Christ, rejected by the people He saved (the men of Keilah) and forced into the wilderness. The Geneva Bible (1599) and Matthew Henry (1710) both highlight the irony that Saul's own logic (David trapped in a walled city) was overturned by God's direct warning. In Reformation-era preaching, the episode illustrated the doctrine of God's sovereign protection: even when the faithful seem to wander without direction, God orders their steps. Later devotional literature, such as Charles Spurgeon's Treasury of David, used the verse to comfort believers in seasons of flight and uncertainty, reminding them that the Lord sees every move of the enemy and closes doors before danger arrives.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God's guidance in the midst of uncertainty. David did not know where to go, "went wherever they could go", yet God had a path prepared. The same faithful God directs His people when their way is unclear.
- Human betrayal cannot thwart divine protection. The men of Keilah were ready to hand David over, but God revealed their hearts and led him away before Saul could strike.
- The frustration of the wicked is a sign of God's hand. Saul's ceasing to go forth shows that no enemy can outpace the Lord's timing. God simply closed the door on Saul's plan.
Five-point outline
- David's growth in the wilderness: From 400 to 600 men, God increases a faithful servant even in danger.
- The ephod as a means of guidance: David inquired of the Lord repeatedly. Prayer and Scripture remain our ephod.
- The unreliability of human gratitude: Keilah forgot its deliverer. Our hope rests in God's faithfulness, not human reward.
- The sovereignty of God over Saul's decisions: Saul "forbore", the Hebrew chadal implies a complete cessation. God changed the king's mind or circumstances.
- David's posture of obedience: He did not stay to fight Saul; he moved when God said move. Trust often looks like leaving.
Illustration hooks
- Evacuation plan: A family forced from their home by an approaching storm, with no clear destination except safety. The shelter was not yet visible, but the decision to leave was right.
- Job change that seemed aimless: When a layoff forces a career shift into unknown territory, and only later the reasons become clear. The wandering was actually guidance.
Questions your congregation is asking
- How can I know when God is telling me to leave a situation, and how do I trust that step without a road map?
- Why do people I have helped sometimes turn against me, and what should I do when that happens?
- Does God still speak guidance today, the way He spoke to David through the ephod?
Leading a Discussion
This verse sits at a pivot point: David had just saved Keilah, only to learn he must flee from the very people he rescued. His response models dependence on God's direct guidance. As you discuss, consider how uncertainty can be a crucible for faith.
Discussion questions
- Read 1 Samuel 23:1-13. What do we learn about David's pattern of seeking God before every major decision?
- Why do you think David's men had grown from 400 to 600? What does this suggest about how God works during seasons of hardship?
- Saul believed God had delivered David into his hand (v.7). How did that assumption differ from what was really happening? What does this teach about misreading circumstances?
- The verb for David's departure in verse 13 (yithalleku) suggests wandering. Has there been a time when following God felt like wandering? How did that affect your trust in Him?
- How does the fact that God warned David about Keilah's betrayal shape your view of God's protection, even when protection looks like escape rather than victory?
- Saul's pursuit "ceased" (the Hebrew chadal means to completely stop). How have you seen God change the direction of someone who intended you harm?
- What does this passage suggest about the relationship between human responsibility (David moving, inquiring) and divine sovereignty (God directing events)?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| I Samuel 22:2 | Everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered themselves to him; and he became captain over them. There were with him about four hundred men. |
| I Samuel 25:13 | David said to his men, “Every man put on his sword!” Every man put on his sword. David also put on his sword. About four hundred men followed David, and two hundred stayed by the baggage. |
| I Samuel 30:9 | So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those who were left behind stayed. |
| I Samuel 30:10 | But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they couldn’t go over the brook Besor. |
| II Samuel 15:20 | Whereas you came but yesterday, should I today make you go up and down with us, since I go where I may? Return, and take back your brothers. Mercy and truth be with you.” |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
4 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
Then Dauid and his men, which were about sixe hundreth, arose, and departed out of Keilah, and went whither they coulde. And it was tolde Saul, that Dauid was fled from Keilah, and he left off his iourney.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill notes that David left Keilah without a fixed destination, moving wherever seemed safest at the moment. He also points out that David's force had grown to six hundred men and that the people of Keilah likely informed Saul of David's escape, showing they were ready to hand him over.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange emphasizes that David repeatedly inquired of the Lord through the high priest's ephod, treating each decision as a matter of prayerful submission to God's will. Saul, by contrast, misinterpreted his own temporary advantage as divine approval, falling into the self-deception that God had abandoned David to him.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry highlights Saul's ugly ingratitude: David had just rescued Keilah from the Philistines, yet Saul sees only an opportunity to trap him. Instead of honoring David's service, Saul twists the rescue into a supposed divine delivery of David into his hands, showing how malice corrupts even good news.