And the king said unto the footmen that stood about him, Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD: because their hand also is with David, and because they knew when he fled, and did not shew it to me. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD.
Then the king said to the guards standing around him, 'Turn and kill the LORD's priests, because they have helped David, and because they knew he was running away but didn't tell me.' But the king's servants refused to raise their hands to attack the LORD's priests.
King Saul ordered his guards to kill God's priests because they helped David, but his own servants refused to harm God's holy servants.
📚 Historical Context
This occurred when King Saul was consumed with jealousy and paranoia about David, whom he saw as a threat to his throne. Earlier, the priest Ahimelech had unknowingly helped David by giving him food and Goliath's sword when David was fleeing from Saul. Saul's own servants recognized that killing God's priests would be a terrible sin, showing they still feared God more than their earthly king.
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