1 Kings 21:2
And David said to Achimelech the priest: The king hath commanded me a business, and said: Let no man know the thing for which thou art sent by me, and what manner of commands I have given thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place.
Open 1 Kings 21:2 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Et ait David ad Achimelech sacerdotem : Rex præcepit mihi sermonem, et dixit : Nemo sciat rem propter quam missus es a me, et cujusmodi præcepta tibi dederim : nam et pueris condixi in illum et illum locum.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- καὶ εἶπεν Δαυεὶδ τῷ ἱερεῖ Ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐντέταλταί μοι ῥῆμα σήμερον καὶ εἶπέν μοι Μηδεὶς γνώτω τὸ ῥῆμα περὶ οὗ ἐγὼ ἀποστέλλω σε καὶ ὑπὲρ οὗ ἐντέταλμαί σοι· καὶ τοῖς παιδαρίοις διαμεμαρτύρημαι ἐν τῷ τόπῳ τῷ λεγομένῳ Θεοῦ πίστις, Φελλανεὶ Μαεμωνεί.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from 1 Kings 21:3
- וַיֹּ֨אמֶר דָּוִ֜ד לַאֲחִימֶ֣לֶךְ הַכֹּהֵ֗ן הַמֶּלֶךְ֮ צִוַּ֣נִי דָבָר֒ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֗י אִ֣ישׁ אַל יֵ֧דַע מְא֛וּמָה אֶת הַדָּבָ֛ר אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִ֥י שֹׁלֵֽחֲךָ֖ וַאֲשֶׁ֣ר צִוִּיתִ֑ךָ וְאֶת הַנְּעָרִ֣ים יוֹדַ֔עְתִּי אֶל מְק֥וֹם פְּלֹנִ֖י אַלְמוֹנִֽי
Haydock's commentary
The king, &c. This was an untruth, which David, like many other great men, might think lawful in such an emergency. But it is essentially evil. (Calmet)
And such, which he deems it unnecessary to specify. Septuagint retain the Hebrew words, "Phelanni almoni." See Ruth iv. 1.
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
Tertullian The Five Books Against Marcion, Christ's Authority Over the Sabbath. As Its Lord He Recalled It from Pharisaic Neglect to the Original Purpose of Its Institution by the Creator the Case of the Disciples Who Plucked the Ears of Corn on the Sabbath. The Withered Hand Healed on the Sabbath
Concerning the Sabbath also I have this to premise, that this question could not have arisen, if Christ did not publicly proclaim the Lord of the Sabbath. Nor could there be any discussion about His annulling the Sabbath, if He had a right to annul it. Moreover, He would have the right, if He belonged to the rival god; nor would it cause surprise to any one that He did what it was right for Him to do. Men’s astonishment therefore arose from their opinion that it was improper for Him to proclaim the Creator to be God and yet to impugn His Sabbath. …
St John Cassian The Conferences of John Cassian. Part II. Containing Conferences XI-XVII, Chapter XVIII. An objection that only those men employed lies with impunity, who lived under the law
Germanus : It is no wonder that these schemes were properly employed in the Old Testament, and that some holy men laudably or at any rate venially told lies, as we see that many worse things were permitted to them owing to the rude character of the times. For why should we wonder that when the blessed David was fleeing from Saul, in answer to the inquiry of Abimelech the priest who said: “Why art thou alone, and is no man with thee?” he replied as follows: “The king hath commanded me a business, and said, Let no man know the thing for which thou art sent by me, for I have appointed my servants to such and such a place;” and again: “Hast thou here at hand a spear or a sword, for I brought not my own sword nor my own weapon with me, for the king’s business required haste;” or this, when he was brought to Achish king of Gath, and feigned himself mad and frantic, “and changed his countenance …