Dafite unotizha Saulo
1 Dafite wakazha ku Nobhu ku mpirisiti Ahimeleki. Ahimeleki kayenda etetema enonshanganidza, ngono kambhuzwa kati, “Ini wazha ngeno woga kusina waunaye?”
2 Dafite wakashandula mpirisiti Ahimeleki eti, “Ndakadwiwa ndi mambo kuti ndithame tjimwe, ngono wakandidwa kati, ‘Akuna wakafanila ziba ngekwe nshingo uwo kene tjawadwiwa.’ Koga ngekwe bathu bangu, ndakababudza kwabanga ndishanganidza. 3 Ngono ngwenu, wakabhatani mu luboko? Undipe zwiwunga zwishanu, kene tjimwe tjaungabe unatjo.”
4 Mpirisiti akashandula Dafite eti, “Andina tjiwunga tjinojiwa koga, kuna tjiwunga tjakayengemala koga, ha kusi kuti balume bakazwithubukanya ne bakadzi.”
5 Dafite kadabila mpirisiti eti, “Ku malebeswa, bakadzi bagala bakathubukanyiwa naswi se kwagala, andakazwimisila gwendo, mibili ye balume inogala yakayengemala nakuto guli gwendo gwakawolobeleka. Ngono nasi inowoyengemala kungapani kene?”
6 Ndizo mpirisiti akampa tjiwunga tjakayengemala, ngobe kwakabe kusina tjiwunga ipapo, kuzhe kwe tjiwunga tje Tjipo tje Ndzimu, tjakabe tjadusiwa mbeli kwa Yahwe, tjokowomisigwa nge tjiwunga tjadwa pabhugwa.
7 Mu zhuba ilelo, kwakabe kuna mmwe we balanda ba Saulo akasungwa mbeli kwa Yahwe, zina lile liyi Doegi we N'edomu, nlauli we balisi be pkhwizi dza Saulo.
8 Dafite kabhuzwa Ahimeleke kati, “Amuna thumo kene bukano ipapa? Andizozha ne bukano gwangu kene tjimwe tje zwibhayano, ngobe nshingo wa mambo wabe undishaka tjinyolotjo.”
9 Mpirisiti kadabila eti, “Bukano gwa Goliati we Nfilisitiya wawakabulaya mu nkuku we Ela, guyapo gwakapetegwa nge jila shule kwe efodi, ha ugushaka ugutole, akuna gumwe ipapa kuzhe kwago.”
Dafite kabe eti, “Akuna gumwe gunonga igo, undipe igo.”
10 Mu zhuba ilelo Dafite kamilika kayenda kuna Akhishi mambo we Gati, etizha Saulo. 11 Balanda ba Akhishi bakandwa bakati, “Apa ate Dafite iwoyu, mambo we shango iyeyi kene? Apa ate iye wabakabe bemba nge kukwe bezana beti, ‘Saulo wakabulaya tjiwulu tjitje, ngono Dafite kabulaya zwiwulu zwili gumi kene?’ ”
12 Matama abo kangina Dafite mu moyo kwazo, ngono katja Akhishi mambo we Gati kwazo. 13 Ndizo kazwishanganya nsholo mbeli kwabo, kazwithama se unopenga, kapala mazhalilo ye mikoba nge nyala, akaletjedza mate awe ewungila mu ndedu. 14 Akhishi kadwa balanda babe eti, “Bonani, nlume iwoyu unopenga, apa hwutini manzhisa kundili kene? 15 Apa ndoshaka bapengo imi, kwamazhisa nthu iwoyu kuwothamila bupengo mbeli kwangu? Apa nlume iwoyu wafanila ngina mu ng'umba yangu kene?”
Ahimelech Helps David
1 David went to see Ahimelech, a priest who lived in the town of Nob. Ahimelech was trembling with fear as he came out to meet David. “Why are you alone?” Ahimelech asked. “Why isn't anyone else with you?”
2 “I'm on a mission for King Saul,” David answered. “He ordered me not to tell anyone what the mission is all about, so I ordered my soldiers to stay somewhere else. 3 Do you have any food you can give me? Could you spare five loaves of bread?”
4 “The only bread I have is the sacred bread,” the priest told David. “You can have it if your soldiers didn't sleep with women last night.”
5 “Of course we didn't sleep with women,” David answered. “I never let my men do that when we're on a mission. They have to be acceptable to worship God even when we're on a regular mission, and today we're on a special mission.”
6 The only bread the priest had was the sacred bread that he had taken from the place of worship after putting out the fresh loaves. So he gave it to David.
7 It so happened that one of Saul's officers was there, worshiping the Lord that day. His name was Doeg the Edomite, and he was the strongest of Saul's shepherds.
8 David asked Ahimelech, “Do you have a spear or a sword? I had to leave so quickly on this mission for the king that I didn't bring along my sword or any other weapons.”
9 The priest answered, “The only sword here is the one that belonged to Goliath the Philistine. You were the one who killed him in Elah Valley, and so you can take his sword if you want to. It's wrapped in a cloth behind the statue.”
“It's the best sword there is,” David said. “I'll take it!”
David Tries To Find Safety in Gath
10 David kept on running from Saul that day until he came to Gath, where he met with King Achish. 11 The officers of King Achish were also there, and they asked Achish, “Isn't David a king back in his own country? Don't the Israelites dance and sing,
‘Saul has killed
a thousand enemies;
David has killed
ten thousand’?”
12 David thought about what they were saying, and it made him afraid of Achish. 13 So right there in front of everyone, he pretended to be insane. He acted confused and started making scratches on the doors of the town gate, while drooling in his beard.
14 “Look at him!” Achish said to his officers. “You can see he's crazy. Why did you bring him to me? 15 I have enough crazy people without your bringing another one here. Keep him away from my palace!”