1. 1 Samuel 26:2 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

Why did Saul leave Gibeah to go and search for David?

1 Samuel 26:2 (ESV)

2 So Saul arose and went down to the wilderness of Ziph with three thousand chosen men of Israel to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph.

We are not told the reason why Saul decided to once again chase after David. Perhaps the Ziphites reminded him of an unresolved problem and caused him to have doubts about David’s loyalty once again. He may also have heard about David’s two marriages (see 1 Samuel 25:42–43), seeing them as evidence of David growing his support in Judah. In either case, the words spoken to him by David in 1 Samuel 24:1–22 did not have an enduring effect.1