(21:1-6) Ahimelech Feeds David -  This is the first time Ahimelech is mentioned. Either he was the Ahiah mentioned in 14:3, 18, or, more likely, he was Ahiah's successor. In either case, Ahimelech had to go against the law to give the "hallowed" bread to David because the bread was supposed to be given only to the priests (Leviticus 24:5-9). But Ahimelech put David's need and life ahead of religious ceremony and fed him the holy food. This upheld a higher law of love (Leviticus 19:18). Centuries later, Jesus would refer to this incident to show that God's laws should be applied with compassion. To do good and to save life is God's greater law (Matthew 12:1-8; Luke 6:1-5).

(21:2) David Chooses to Lie - David lied to protect himself from Saul (21:10). Some excuse this lie because a war was going on, and it is the duty of a good soldier to deceive the enemy. But nowhere is David's lie condoned. In fact, the opposite is true, because his lie led to the death of 85 priests (22:9-19). David's small lie seemed harmless enough, but it led to tragedy. The Bible makes it very clear that lying is wrong (Leviticus 19:11). Lying, like every other sin, is serious in God's sight and may lead to all sorts of harmful consequences. Don't minimize or categorize sins. All sins must be avoided, whether or not we can foresee their potential consequences.

(21:6) The Bread of Life - Once a week on the Sabbath, a priest would enter the holy place in the tabernacle and place 12 freshly baked loaves of bread on a small table. This bread, called "shewbread" or the Bread of the Presence, symbolized God's presence among his people as well as his loving care that met their physical needs. The bread that was replaced was to be eaten only by the priests on duty.

Jesus would one day refer to himself as the Bread of Life (John 6:35) in reference to his ability to meet both our physical and spiritual needs.

(21:7) Doeg is detained -  We don't know why Doeg was detained at the tabernacle. Perhaps he had made some sort of vow, was waiting for a word from the Lord, or was kept there by some kind of impurity.

(21:9) The Ehpod and Sword - An ephod was a vest worn by a priest (see chapter 2:18 for a more detailed explanation). David didn't know Goliath's sword was there, probably because David was a young man when he killed the giant and had spent much of his time at home.

(21:10-15) Gath Gives Refuge to David - Gath was one of the five major Philistine cities. Why did the Philistines allow their archenemy, David, into their camp? They may have been initially happy to accept a defector who was a high military leader. Any enemy of Saul would have been a friend of theirs. They could not have known that David had been anointed Israel's next king (16:13). Soon, however, the Philistines became nervous about David's presence. After all, he had slain thousands of their people (18:7). David then protected himself by acting insane because it was the custom not to harm mentally unstable people.