1 Samuele 21:6

6 Il sacerdote gli diè dunque del pane consacrato perché non v’era quivi altro pane tranne quello della presentazione, ch’era stato tolto d’innanzi all’Eterno, per mettervi invece del pan caldo nel momento in cui si toglieva l’altro.

1 Samuele 21:6 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 21:6

So the priest gave him hallowed [bread]
Being satisfied with the account he gave of himself, and his young men, and of the lawfulness of it in case of necessity, acts of mercy being to be preferred to ritual services. Whether he gave him five loaves, as he desired, is not said; but the reason of his giving him such sort of bread is observed,

for there was no bread there;
in the tabernacle, whatever might be in the house of the priest:

but the shewbread that was taken from before the Lord;
from off of the shewbread table; and it seems to have been just taken off, it being sabbath day, and not as yet carried to the house of the priest, and divided among the other priests as usual; and which was then removed, to put hot bread, in the day that it was taken away; that is, new bread, twelve fresh cakes; for when the twelve, that had stood a week on the shewbread table were removed, twelve more were immediately put in their room, and it seems by this they were put hot there; but here arises a difficulty, how they could be put hot there, when it was not lawful to bake on a sabbath day. About this the Jews are divided; some say they were baked on the sabbath day, but the greater part say that baking did not drive away the sabbath, or it was lawful on the sabbath day; but others say that they were baked on the evening of the sabbath, and kept in the oven until the time of their being set upon the table {h}; and, as Abarbinel observes, the mouth of the oven might be stopped up till that time to keep in the heat; but others say ^F9 this heat was miraculous, or that a miracle was wrought for the sake of it; which is not probable.

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FOOTNOTES:

F8 T. Bab. Menachot, fol. 95. 2.
F9 T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 2l. 1. Menachot, fol. 96. 2.

1 Samuele 21:6 In-Context

4 Il sacerdote rispose a Davide, dicendo: "Non ho sotto mano del pane comune, ma c’è del pane consacrato; ma la tua gente s’è almeno astenuta da contatto con donne?"

5 Davide rispose al sacerdote: "Da che son partito, tre giorni fa, siamo rimasti senza donne; e quanto ai vasi della mia gente erano puri; e se anche la nostra incombenza è profana, essa sarà oggi santificata da quel che si porrà nei vasi.

6 Il sacerdote gli diè dunque del pane consacrato perché non v’era quivi altro pane tranne quello della presentazione, ch’era stato tolto d’innanzi all’Eterno, per mettervi invece del pan caldo nel momento in cui si toglieva l’altro.

7 Or quel giorno, un cert’uomo di tra i servi di Saul si trovava quivi, trattenuto in presenza dell’Eterno; si chiamava Doeg, era Edomita, e capo de’ pastori di Saul.

8 E Davide disse ad Ahimelec: "Non hai tu qui disponibile una lancia o una spada? Perché io non ho preso meco né la mia spada né le mie armi, tanto premeva l’incombenza del re".