1 Samuel 26:3

3 Sha'ul encamped in the hill of Hakhilah, which is before the desert, by the way. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Sha'ul came after him into the wilderness.

1 Samuel 26:3 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 26:3

And Saul pitched in the hill of Hachilah, which [is] before
Jeshimon, by the way
To the wilderness; the very same place where the Ziphites suggested David was:

but David abode in the wilderness;
not in the hill of Hachilah, but in the wilderness of Ziph itself:

and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness;
he understood, by some information he had, that Saul had set out from Gibeah, and was coming to seek for him in the wilderness of Ziph; perhaps Jonathan had given him intelligence; however, he was not quite certain, as appears by what follows.

1 Samuel 26:3 In-Context

1 The Zifim came to Sha'ul to Gevah, saying, Doesn't David hide himself in the hill of Hakhilah, which is before the desert?

2 Then Sha'ul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Zif, having three thousand chosen men of Yisra'el with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Zif.

3 Sha'ul encamped in the hill of Hakhilah, which is before the desert, by the way. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Sha'ul came after him into the wilderness.

4 David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Sha'ul was come of a certainty.

5 David arose, and came to the place where Sha'ul had encamped; and David saw the place where Sha'ul lay, and Aviner the son of Ner, the captain of his host: and Sha'ul lay within the place of the wagons, and the people were encamped round about him.