Tyndale Open Study Notes1 Samuel 27

David fled to the Philistines to get away from Saul for good. Rather than killing Saul, David chose the dangerous life of a fugitive.

This was David’s second stay with Achish, the Philistine king (see 1 Samuel 21:10–15). On both occasions, David lied to him (see 1 Samuel 27:10).

• Ziklag was about 35.4 kilometers (22 miles) southwest of Gath.

• still belongs to the kings of Judah: This note was written after Solomon’s death in 931 BC and before the beginning of the Babylonian exile in 586 BC.

• the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites: These groups lived on the edges of the southern desert and caused problems for both the Philistines and Israelites. (For more on the Amalekites, see 1 Samuel 14:48; 15; for more on the Geshurites, see Joshua 13:2, 13; 2 Samuel 3:3.)

• Shur was somewhere east of Egypt (1 Samuel 15:7; Genesis 16:7; 20:1; 25:18).

he did not leave a man or woman alive: At least some of these people were among those whom God had commanded Israel to destroy (see 1 Samuel 15:3; 28:18; Deuteronomy 25:17–19; Joshua 13:13).

• David misled Achish by claiming his attacks were against his own people of Judah and two other related groups. The text neither praises nor criticizes David for lying to the foreign king.

• The Jerahmeelites were a Semitic tribe (an ancient people group from the Middle East who shared related languages and customs) living in southern Judah (see 1 Chronicles 2:9, 25–27, 33, 42).

• Kenites: The father-in-law of Moses was a Kenite (see Judges 1:16; 4:11; see also study note on 1 Samuel 15:6).