Translations
F.O.G.MPrimary
F.O.G Message"So don't let my blood be spilled here, far from Yahweh's presence! The king of Israel has mobilised an army to hunt down a single flea — like a hunter flushing a partridge out of the mountains."
F.O.GSecondary
The F.O.G"Now then, let not my blood fall to the ground away from the face of YHWH — for the king of Yisra'el has come out to hunt down a single flea, as one might hunt a partridge in the mountains."
KJV
King James VersionNow therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth before the face of the LORD: for the king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains.
BSB
Berean Standard BibleSo do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the LORD. For the king of Israel has come out to look for a flea, like one who hunts a partridge in the mountains.”
Footnotes
The partridge (קֹרֵא, qore) was hunted by repeatedly driving it from cover until it was too exhausted to flee — a pursuit method well attested in the ancient Near East. Dawid's image captures the absurdity of his situation: not killed outright, but slowly worn down by relentless disproportionate pursuit. The flea image (כֶּרֶא אֶחָד) echoes 1 Samuel 24:14 word for word, binding these two encounters — the cave of Adullam and the camp at Hakhalah — as a literary diptych of loyal, non-retaliating restraint.