1 Samuel 24:1

1 After Saul returned from fighting the Philistines, he was told that David had gone into the wilderness of En-gedi.

1 Samuel 24:1 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 24:1

And it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the
Philistines
Having, as it should seem, got the victory over them, and driven them out of his country, and pursued them to their own:

that it was told him, saying, behold, David [is] in the wilderness of
Engedi;
in the strong holds of it, the high rocks and mountains in it, ( 1 Samuel 23:29 ) .

1 Samuel 24:1 In-Context

1 After Saul returned from fighting the Philistines, he was told that David had gone into the wilderness of En-gedi.

2 So Saul chose 3,000 elite troops from all Israel and went to search for David and his men near the rocks of the wild goats.

3 At the place where the road passes some sheepfolds, Saul went into a cave to relieve himself. But as it happened, David and his men were hiding farther back in that very cave!

4 “Now’s your opportunity!” David’s men whispered to him. “Today the LORD is telling you, ‘I will certainly put your enemy into your power, to do with as you wish.’” So David crept forward and cut off a piece of the hem of Saul’s robe.

5 But then David’s conscience began bothering him because he had cut Saul’s robe.

Footnotes

• [a] Verses 24:1-22 are numbered 24:2-23 in Hebrew text.