Bible Strands
1 Samuel 27:1
David, however, said to himself, “One of these days now I will be swept away by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will stop searching for me all over Israel, and I will slip out of his hand.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — David speaks internally to his own heart, resolving to flee to Philistine territory to evade Saul’s pursuit. This calculation immediately precedes his departure with six hundred men to Gath.
The words — The Hebrew אֶסָּפֶה יוֹם אֶחָד ('e.sa.Peh yom-'e.Chad) literally means "I will be swept away one day," while אֶל־לִבּוֹ ('el-libbo) denotes speaking inwardly to his heart. These terms record David’s assessment of imminent danger and his pragmatic decision to escape.
The thread — This internal calculation appears alongside Isaiah 40:27’s warning against claiming God’s way is hidden, and contrasts with Isaiah 51:12’s command to fear no mortal man who withers like grass. It follows the Spirit’s empowerment at his anointing in 1 Samuel 16:13, yet shows David shifting from reliance on divine presence to human strategy.
Why it lands — The text records David’s fear-driven reasoning before interpreting his choice as a departure from trust. It asks the reader to confront how threat can trigger calculated self-preservation instead of steadfast reliance on God.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul: there is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul shall despair of me, to seek me any more in any coast of Israel: so shall I escape out of his hand.
Cross-references
- Isaiah 40:27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and why do you assert, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my claim is ignored by my God”?
- Isaiah 51:12 “I, even I, am He who comforts you. Why should you be afraid of mortal man, of a son of man who withers like grass?
- 1 Samuel 16:13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.
- 1 Samuel 21:10 That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.
- 1 Samuel 23:17 saying, “Do not be afraid, for my father Saul will never lay a hand on you. And you will be king over Israel, and I will be your second-in-command. Even my father Saul knows this is true.”
- 1 Samuel 27:10 who would ask him, “What have you raided today?” And David would reply, “The Negev of Judah,” or “The Negev of Jerahmeel,” or “The Negev of the Kenites.”
- 1 Samuel 28:1 Now in those days the Philistines gathered their forces for warfare against Israel. So Achish said to David, “You must understand that you and your men are to go out to battle with me.”
- Isaiah 30:15 For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said: “By repentance and rest you would be saved; your strength would lie in quiet confidence—but you were not willing.”
- Exodus 14:12 Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”
- 1 Samuel 16:1 Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have selected from his sons a king for Myself.”