Chapter 19 is the chapter in which the hidden confrontation between Shaul and David comes to an end and the open confrontation begins. Until now Shaul tried to be rid of David indirectly: through a dangerous mission, through the hundred Philistine foreskins, through the promise of his daughter. From here on he speaks openly about killing him, sends messengers to David's house, and in the end even goes out himself to pursue him. And within all this two opposite things are revealed: how much Shaul is dragged along by an irrational fear, and how great David is, for precisely at the hour of his flight he sits with Shmuel and occupies himself with the beauty of the world.
וַיְדַבֵּר שָׁאוּל אֶל־יוֹנָתָן בְּנוֹ וְאֶל־כָּל־עֲבָדָיו לְהָמִית אֶת־דָּוִד וִיהוֹנָתָן בֶּן־שָׁאוּל חָפֵץ בְּדָוִד מְאֹד׃ - And Shaul spoke to Yonatan his son and to all his servants about putting David to death, but Yehonatan son of Shaul delighted greatly in David.
Here Shaul already speaks of the matter openly, but the Metzudot says that his intention was to kill David through cunning and by seeming accident, as something that would occur unintentionally and not as something done by the king's command. Shaul understood well that if the matter became known, it would not go well for him: to kill his son in law, and moreover the beloved of the people, is not a thing that would pass quietly. He therefore called his servants and his son, so that they would know of the matter, but so that the people would not know and it would not become known.
וַיַּגֵּד יְהוֹנָתָן לְדָוִד לֵאמֹר מְבַקֵּשׁ שָׁאוּל אָבִי לַהֲמִיתֶךָ וְעַתָּה הִשָּׁמֶר־נָא בַבֹּקֶר וְיָשַׁבְתָּ בַסֵּתֶר וְנַחְבֵּאתָ׃ - And Yehonatan told David, saying: Shaul my father seeks to put you to death. Now therefore be on guard in the morning, and stay in a secret place and hide yourself.
Yonatan is, as it were, Shaul's fifth column within his own house: he is the one who helps David and reveals to him what is said in the war room. He comes and says to David: Know that my father has firmly resolved to kill you. "Be on guard in the morning" - for Shaul will want to seize you in the morning while you are still on your bed, and therefore stay in a secret place where they cannot reach you.
וַאֲנִי אֵצֵא וְעָמַדְתִּי לְיַד־אָבִי בַּשָּׂדֶה אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה שָׁם וַאֲנִי אֲדַבֵּר בְּךָ אֶל־אָבִי וְרָאִיתִי מָה וְהִגַּדְתִּי לָךְ׃ - And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak of you to my father, and I will see what happens and tell you.
Yonatan says to David: I want to examine the matter carefully, and to try to persuade my father, perhaps I will succeed in removing his anger from you, and then you will be able to continue as usual without fear.
Regarding the changes in the name: there is a rule here that both the Radak and the Malbim mention. Many times we find names appearing with a slight change, sometimes "Michah" and sometimes "Michayahu," Yosef and Yehosef, and at times with greater changes. The reason is that the same person was called by two names, and therefore he is sometimes called by this one and sometimes by that one. There are indeed places where the change is meant to disgrace or diminish, as with Amnon who is called "Aminon" - "Is this you, Aminon" - a diminutive, on account of the base deed he did to Tamar. But in general no importance is attached to the change of name, since both names were in use for him.
The Malbim asks: everywhere the phrase "spoke against" (dibber be) appears, it carries a negative connotation. "וַתְּדַבֵּר מִרְיָם בְּמֹשֶׁה" - did she speak well of him? No, she spoke badly. "תֵּשֵׁב בְּאָחִיךָ תְדַבֵּר בְּבֶן אִמְּךָ תִּתֶּן דֹּפִי". Any "speaking" followed by the letter bet is speaking negatively. If so, why does Yonatan say to David "וַאֲנִי אֲדַבֵּר בְּךָ אֶל־אָבִי", meaning I will speak badly of you? The Malbim explains: Yonatan told David to adopt a strategy of cunning. I will speak disparagingly of you, and I will see whether my father agrees and joins in. If my father rejoices and says "finally there is someone who understands me, someone who thinks as I do," then I will know that his intent is truly evil.
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוֹנָתָן בְּדָוִד טוֹב אֶל־שָׁאוּל אָבִיו וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו אַל־יֶחֱטָא הַמֶּלֶךְ בְּעַבְדּוֹ בְדָוִד כִּי לוֹא חָטָא לָךְ וְכִי מַעֲשָׂיו טוֹב־לְךָ מְאֹד׃ - And Yonatan spoke well of David to Shaul his father, and said to him: Let not the king sin against his servant, against David, for he has not sinned against you, and because his deeds have been very good for you.
Seemingly there is a contradiction here: the verse says "וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוֹנָתָן בְּדָוִד טוֹב" - did he speak of him well or badly? The Malbim explains: in truth he spoke of him badly, but it was an evil that contained good. And this was the argument: this David is a man who places no value on human life, who abandons his own life and risks himself to die for nothing. What kind of person goes to fight Goliath? Who puts his life in his hands like that? It is utter suicide. And for what? To marry the king's daughter? That is something an upright, decent, rational person does not do. But, father, for you it is excellent. It is good for the king to have such a one who is willing to sacrifice himself. "וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוֹנָתָן בְּדָוִד טוֹב אֶל־שָׁאוּל אָבִיו" - the evil he spoke of him was good for Shaul.
And from here comes the precision of the wording: "כִּי לוֹא חָטָא לָךְ". True, in itself this is an unworthy act, and a person is forbidden to endanger himself, and as it were David would have to give an accounting for it in Heaven for endangering his life - but toward the king, toward Shaul, there is no sin in it whatsoever. "וְכִי מַעֲשָׂיו טוֹב־לְךָ מְאֹד" - you will derive only benefit from this, and no harm will come to you from David behaving in an illogical way and being willing to take his own life instead of preserving it.
וַיָּשֶׂם אֶת־נַפְשׁוֹ בְכַפּוֹ וַיַּךְ אֶת־הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי וַיַּעַשׂ יְהֹוָה תְּשׁוּעָה גְדוֹלָה לְכָל־יִשְׂרָאֵל רָאִיתָ וַתִּשְׂמָח וְלָמָּה תֶחֱטָא בְּדָם נָקִי לְהָמִית אֶת־דָּוִד חִנָּם׃ - He put his life in his hand and struck down the Pelishti, and Hashem wrought a great salvation for all Israel; you saw it and rejoiced. Why then would you sin against innocent blood by putting David to death for no reason?
Now he brings him the example: he put his life in his hand and struck down the Pelishti. What rational person would be willing to put his life in his hand and go into a battle that was lost from the start? And yet "וַיַּעַשׂ ה' תְּשׁוּעָה גְדוֹלָה לְכָל־יִשְׂרָאֵל, רָאִיתָ וַתִּשְׂמָח" - after all, even you yourself admit that in the end good came to you from it. If so, he does not deserve death, since you benefit from him. David may not be right with himself, but what do you care? It does no harm to you, for you it is good.
Why did Yonatan take this crooked path rather than a straight one? Two reasons. First, further on we will see that Shaul is very upset with Yonatan for befriending David, and if Yonatan revealed that he was for David, Shaul would block him and isolate him and not disclose his plans to him - whereas Yonatan wants to know everything, for only in that way can he manage to warn David. Second, he did not want to reach a state of hatred with his father, who indeed later called him "בֶּן נַעֲוַת הַמַּרְדּוּת" (son of a perverse, rebellious woman) for being for David and not for his father. Therefore he came from the opposite direction: why do you need to pursue him? For you it is excellent.
וַיִּשְׁמַע שָׁאוּל בְּקוֹל יְהוֹנָתָן וַיִּשָּׁבַע שָׁאוּל חַי־יְהֹוָה אִם־יוּמָת׃ - And Shaul listened to the voice of Yonatan, and Shaul swore: As Hashem lives, he shall not be put to death.
Shaul accepts the words sincerely and wholeheartedly and swears in the name of Hashem that David will not be put to death. And here is proof of what we said: Shaul's action was not rational, but stemmed from fear and psychological anxiety, from a tremendous dread of this man called David. And do not misunderstand this: it does not mean, Heaven forbid, that he was a fool. A person can be completely sane, sharp and astute in every field, but if there is someone he feels is pursuing him, the matter can become dreadful and terrible. And precisely for this reason, when one speaks to him with rational arguments he accepts and is persuaded, and so we will see further on that he will be persuaded several more times. The pursuit did not depend on Shaul's will or logic, but on his fear of being persecuted.
וַיִּקְרָא יְהוֹנָתָן לְדָוִד וַיַּגֶּד־לוֹ יְהוֹנָתָן אֵת כָּל־הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה וַיָּבֵא יְהוֹנָתָן אֶת־דָּוִד אֶל־שָׁאוּל וַיְהִי לְפָנָיו כְּאֶתְמוֹל שִׁלְשׁוֹם׃ - And Yonatan called David, and Yonatan told him all these things, and Yonatan brought David to Shaul, and he was before him as in times past.
Yonatan tells David: you have nothing to fear, my father swore not to harm you, and what more could you want? And indeed David returns to serve before Shaul as before.
וַתּוֹסֶף הַמִּלְחָמָה לִהְיוֹת וַיֵּצֵא דָוִד וַיִּלָּחֶם בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיַּךְ בָּהֶם מַכָּה גְדוֹלָה וַיָּנֻסוּ מִפָּנָיו׃ - And the war continued to be, and David went out and fought against the Philistines and struck them a great blow, and they fled before him.
"וַתּוֹסֶף הַמִּלְחָמָה" - that same war which began in the wake of the two hundred foreskins of the Philistines goes on and continues.
וַתְּהִי רוּחַ יְהֹוָה רָעָה אֶל־שָׁאוּל וְהוּא בְּבֵיתוֹ יוֹשֵׁב וַחֲנִיתוֹ בְּיָדוֹ וְדָוִד מְנַגֵּן בְּיָד׃ - And an evil spirit from Hashem was upon Shaul as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand, and David was playing music with his hand.
Let us note two differences between this time and the previous one. The first time the spear came into Shaul's hand while David was playing, and David did not sense how the spear came into his hand. Now the spear is already in Shaul's hand from the outset, and David senses it and guards himself, because he already has experience in the matter. Second, there it says "וַיָּטֶל שָׁאוּל אֶת הַחֲנִית וַיֹּאמֶר אַכֶּה בְדָוִד וּבַקִּיר", that he wanted to strike him by stealth.
וַיְבַקֵּשׁ שָׁאוּל לְהַכּוֹת בַּחֲנִית בְּדָוִד וּבַקִּיר וַיִּפְטַר מִפְּנֵי שָׁאוּל וַיַּךְ אֶת־הַחֲנִית בַּקִּיר וְדָוִד נָס וַיִּמָּלֵט בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא׃ - And Shaul sought to strike David with the spear into the wall, but he slipped away from before Shaul, and the spear struck into the wall, and David fled and escaped that night.
Here it is already a direct attempt: "וַיְבַקֵּשׁ שָׁאוּל לְהַכּוֹת בַּחֲנִית בְּדָוִד וּבַקִּיר" - to strike David and the wall, a mighty blow that would pass through his body and go into the wall. "וַיִּפְטַר מִפְּנֵי שָׁאוּל" - he freed himself from him, got away from him and slipped out, and David fled and escaped that night.
וַיִּשְׁלַח שָׁאוּל מַלְאָכִים אֶל־בֵּית דָּוִד לְשָׁמְרוֹ וְלַהֲמִיתוֹ בַּבֹּקֶר וַתַּגֵּד לְדָוִד מִיכַל אִשְׁתּוֹ לֵאמֹר אִם־אֵינְךָ מְמַלֵּט אֶת־נַפְשְׁךָ הַלַּיְלָה מָחָר אַתָּה מוּמָת׃ - And Shaul sent messengers to David's house to watch him and to kill him in the morning, and Michal his wife told David, saying: if you do not save your life tonight, tomorrow you will be put to death.
Seemingly one should wonder: if you want to kill him, why watch over him and wait until morning? Is there a prohibition against killing at night? Rather the Malbim explains that Shaul wanted to find a pretext against him. As we said, Shaul had difficulty killing David officially and sending a troop to do away with him, at least at this stage, for everyone would ask the questions Yonatan asked: what did he do to you? He brought you only honor and success, so why would you kill David, in whose hand there is no wrong? Therefore he decided to frame him. I will send messengers to watch the house: if I send to kill him immediately, they will say I killed without trial and without judgment and committed a wrong. But if they guard him and he tries to flee, then his status is that of a rebel against the throne: the king seeks to bring you, and you flee? Then I will bring him to me and put him on trial, and I will already find a pretext against him. And if he does not flee, and they say to me, behold he could have fled and did not flee, I will answer that there is no point in his favor in this, for my guards are all around, and he did not flee because he was unable to.
וַתֹּרֶד מִיכַל אֶת־דָּוִד בְּעַד הַחַלּוֹן וַיֵּלֶךְ וַיִּבְרַח וַיִּמָּלֵט׃ - So Michal let David down through the window, and he went, and fled, and escaped.
What is "the window"? On this the Sages differed: Rabbi Abbahu says that David's house had two gates, one large and one small, and he went down through the small gate, for the small one relative to the large is called a window. And Rabbi Avin said he had only one gate, and the two watchmen stood at the gate, so what did Michal do? She lowered David through the window. "וַיִּבְרַח וַיִּמָּלֵט" - he fled from the house and escaped far away, escaping from the city.
וַתִּקַּח מִיכַל אֶת־הַתְּרָפִים וַתָּשֶׂם אֶל־הַמִּטָּה וְאֵת כְּבִיר הָעִזִּים שָׂמָה מְרַאֲשֹׁתָיו וַתְּכַס בַּבָּגֶד׃ - And Michal took the teraphim, and laid them in the bed, and put a quilt of goats' hair at its head, and covered it with a garment.
The teraphim are made in the form of a person, some of them for idolatry and some in the form of a known person, like a skull. The quilt of goats' hair was placed at the head, so that in the darkness it would appear, and if they were to feel it, like the hair of his head. And the whole plan: when the messengers enter she would tell them, here he is, ill and unable to go out, and they would see it and say, here he is present, and be reassured.
The question arises: how did Michal, the daughter of Shaul, have teraphim in her house? The Metzudat Tzion explains that it was customary in their time that a woman who loved her husband very much would make a kind of doll in the likeness of her husband, a face resembling her husband, so that she could always meditate upon him and gaze at his form, for there were no pictures then. The Radak says: Heaven forbid to explain that there was idolatry in David's house, and one must not explain teraphim according to its plain sense. And some say that it is a copper instrument made to know through it the divisions of the hours and to see the future through it according to the judgment of the constellations, as Lavan had. And even though such an instrument has no human form, when she showed them the teraphim her intention was to say: Do you see? Through this instrument he knew that you were about to come, and by this she raised the matter. And the Ibn Ezra says that the teraphim are in the form of a person and are made to receive supernal powers through them, not for the sake of idolatry, but that through them they would draw down supernal powers and ask questions, similar to what we find that it is permitted to inquire of demons about a lost object, not for a forbidden matter and not for idolatry.
וַיִּשְׁלַח שָׁאוּל מַלְאָכִים לָקַחַת אֶת־דָּוִד וַתֹּאמֶר חֹלֶה הוּא׃ - And Shaul sent messengers to take David, and she said, He is ill.
Note the change: the first messengers were sent to watch, and these are now sent already "לָקַחַת", to take.
וַיִּשְׁלַח שָׁאוּל אֶת־הַמַּלְאָכִים לִרְאוֹת אֶת־דָּוִד לֵאמֹר הַעֲלוּ אֹתוֹ בַמִּטָּה אֵלַי לַהֲמִתוֹ׃ - And Shaul sent the messengers to see David, saying, Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may kill him.
Shaul wants to kill him in any case: if he is not truly ill, then he is a rebel in that he made himself out to be ill. And if he is truly ill, Shaul would say to the people: Do you know why he did not flee? Because he was ill and had no choice and could not flee, and not because of his integrity.
וַיָּבֹאוּ הַמַּלְאָכִים וְהִנֵּה הַתְּרָפִים אֶל־הַמִּטָּה וּכְבִיר הָעִזִּים מְרַאֲשֹׁתָיו׃ - And when the messengers came in, behold, the teraphim were in the bed, with the quilt of goats' hair at its head.
וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל־מִיכַל לָמָּה כָּכָה רִמִּיתִנִי וַתְּשַׁלְּחִי אֶת־אֹיְבִי וַיִּמָּלֵט וַתֹּאמֶר מִיכַל אֶל־שָׁאוּל הוּא־אָמַר אֵלַי שַׁלְּחִנִי לָמָה אֲמִיתֵךְ׃ - And Shaul said to Michal, Why have you deceived me so, and sent away my enemy, that he has escaped? And Michal said to Shaul, He said to me, Let me go, why should I kill you?
Shaul is furious with his daughter for having sent off his enemy, and she answers: What do you want from me? He threatened my life, telling me that if I would not do this he would kill me. I was afraid and frightened, and I feared he would carry out his words, so I acted this way.
The Malbim points to an interesting distinction: in verse 10 it says "וְדָוִד נָס וַיִּמָּלֵט" (And David fled and escaped), in verse 12 "וַיִּבְרַח וַיִּמָּלֵט" (And he fled and escaped), and in verse 18 "וְדָוִד בָּרַח וַיִּמָּלֵט" (And David fled and escaped). Why does the matter of fleeing and escaping repeat three times? He explains: "And David fled and escaped" in verse 18 means that here he fled and escaped completely, whereas beforehand he was still within Shaul's net. In addition, what is the difference between "נָס" (nas) and "בָּרַח" (barach)? "Nas" is when someone is chasing you at that very moment, and the danger is close, as with the wife of Potifar: "וַיָּנָס וַיַּעֲזֹב בִּגְדוֹ אֶצְלָהּ" (And he fled and left his garment in her hand). "Fleeing" (bericha), on the other hand, is from one who could pursue me also in the future, and I flee so as not to come near him at all. Therefore in verse 10, when Shaul himself pursued him and the danger was close, it says "נָס"; in verse 12, when he was further from Shaul, it says "וַיִּבְרַח"; and in verse 18 he left entirely the region in which Shaul was and reached Naiot in Rama.
וְדָוִד בָּרַח וַיִּמָּלֵט וַיָּבֹא אֶל־שְׁמוּאֵל הָרָמָתָה וַיַּגֶּד־לוֹ אֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה־לוֹ שָׁאוּל וַיֵּלֶךְ הוּא וּשְׁמוּאֵל וַיֵּשְׁבוּ בְּנָיוֹת׃ - And David fled and escaped and came to Shmuel in Rama, and told him all that Shaul had done to him, and he and Shmuel went and dwelt in Naiot.
Why specifically to Shmuel? Because Shmuel is the one who anointed Shaul and the one who anointed David, and now David wants to ask him: What should happen from here on? Behold, I am being pursued by Shaul.
It is written "וַיֵּשְׁבוּ בְּנָיוֹת" (and they dwelt in Naiot), and in the next verse "הִנֵּה דָוִד בְּנָיוֹת בָּרָמָה" (behold, David is in Naiot in Rama). Chazal ask: What has Naiot to do with Rama, for they are two separate places? Rather, Rava expounded: They were sitting in Rama and occupying themselves with the beauty (naveh) of the world. At that time it was not yet known where the Beit HaMikdash would be built. And when did we come to know this? When there was the plague and David saw the angel with his hand stretched out over Yerushalayim, and there the angel stopped. They said that from that vision of the angel David grew cold, and this is why "וְהַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִד זָקֵן בָּא בַּיָּמִים וַיְכַסֻּהוּ בַּבְּגָדִים וְלֹא יִחַם לוֹ" (And King David was old, advanced in years, and they covered him with garments, but he could not get warm) - one explanation is because he tore the corner of Shaul's robe, and a second explanation is because he saw the angel and was so terrified that his blood grew cold. In any case, since he saw that the angel stopped there, he knew that this was the place of the Mikdash.
And what was the essence of their discussion? On one hand they saw Ein Eitam, which was a high place, and said it was a fitting spot; on the other hand it is written "וּבֵין כְּתֵפָיו שָׁכֵן" (and He dwells between his shoulders), and what is the finest place on an ox? Between its shoulders. From this they reached the conclusion that the place had to be at the very location known today as Har HaBayit.
This is David's greatness: he is pursued, his life hangs in the balance, and what occupies him? He sits with Shmuel and immerses himself with him in the question of where the Beit HaMikdash will be built. Even in the most difficult situations they engage in Torah. I recently read about one of the great sages of Israel who writes that his greatest and most special novel insights came to him when he was in Russia during the Second World War: all the young men had left the yeshivot because of the war, and they opened a small beit midrash, and he would walk from his home to deliver a shiur there while bullets whistled over his head. With such self sacrifice to teach Torah, there his most tremendous insights came to him. So too the Rambam, who testifies of himself that he was under terrible and dreadful pressure from all the disturbances surrounding him, and with all this composed for us the work upon which, to this day, thousands of books are written to explain and delve into every single word. This teaches us that specifically in the most difficult situations a person draws out from within himself the most wondrous powers: "Torah that I learned in distress." See too where the Talmud Bavli was composed - in Bavel, in exile, whereas the Yerushalmi was composed here, and specifically the Bavli, which was composed when the people of Israel was in exile, is the one that was accepted.
And what was there in Naiot? A beit midrash. The background is well known: every prophet had disciples of prophets, so it was with Shmuel, so with Eliyahu, and so with Elisha. And who are the disciples of the prophets, or the sons of the prophets? Those who were training in prophecy, that is, learning the way to merit the divine spiritual bounty. And to there David goes and sits, in Naiot in Rama.
וַיֻּגַּד לְשָׁאוּל לֵאמֹר הִנֵּה דָוִד בְּנָיוֹת בָּרָמָה׃ - And it was told to Shaul, saying, Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.
וַיִּשְׁלַח שָׁאוּל מַלְאָכִים לָקַחַת אֶת־דָּוִד וַיַּרְא אֶת־לַהֲקַת הַנְּבִיאִים נִבְּאִים וּשְׁמוּאֵל עֹמֵד נִצָּב עֲלֵיהֶם וַתְּהִי עַל־מַלְאֲכֵי שָׁאוּל רוּחַ אֱלֹהִים וַיִּתְנַבְּאוּ גַּם־הֵמָּה׃ - And Shaul sent messengers to take David, and they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Shmuel standing appointed over them, and the spirit of God came upon Shaul's messengers, and they too prophesied.
What is the "company of the prophets"? The Malbim explains that "lahak" is like "kahal" with the letters transposed, in the way that keves interchanges with kesev and simlah with salmah, and lahakah means a congregation. Sometimes we find "a band (chevel) of prophets" and sometimes "a company (lahakat) of prophets," and what is the difference? "Chevel" denotes a small portion, as in "chevel eretz" - a small portion of land, whereas "lahak" is a large group.
And what is the doubling "standing appointed" (omed nitzav), since being appointed (nitzav) is itself a form of standing? The Malbim explains: "to stand" means to halt, and also the opposite of sitting - he is not sitting but standing. "Nitzav" always denotes holding firmly in place, standing in a stable manner, and it generally comes when there are people beneath him whom he must oversee. That is why those set over others are called "netzivim" - he is like one who supervises them, their master and the one appointed over them.
And what is meant by Shmuel not merely standing but also being appointed (nitzav)? Prophecy, the root of its unfolding, comes from the sefirot of Netzach and Hod. And who opened the Netzach and Hod that had been sealed? Shmuel. It was said earlier, "and there was no vision breaking forth," until Shmuel came and he opened the foundations of Netzach and Hod. And where are Netzach and Hod in the body? In the thighs, in the shok (the leg). Therefore, when Shaul came to Shmuel, what did Shmuel keep for him? The shok - he called the cook and commanded that the shok which he had kept for him be brought, and he said to him, "I have kept the shok for you," to hint that through him and in his generation prophecy, whose source is in Netzach and Hod, would develop.
In any case, through the power of the prophet an immense flow of abundance would pour out upon all those around him. Shmuel was the one who opened this great wellspring, and from him prophecy began to spread. This is "nitzav": standing and pouring abundance upon them. Shmuel stood there, and when he prophesied he was in the aspect of a channel, as the Gemara says, "for the sake of My son Chanina" - along the very channel that My son Chanina created, the abundance descends and flows out to all. Therefore he was standing and appointed over them, pouring upon them an abundance of holiness.
And the abundance of holiness was so immense that not only did the disciples of the prophets, who were prepared and capable of prophecy, begin to prophesy, but even Shaul's messengers, who were not prepared for prophecy and were not worthy of it in themselves - "and they too prophesied," the spirit rested upon them as well.
And what happens to a person at the moment he prophesies? He loses all his composure and all the powers of his body. So much so that the prophets' nickname was "the madmen": a person who received prophecy was like one connected to high voltage, his whole body trembling as he lay on the floor, and it seemed to onlookers as though he were seized by an epileptic fit or a falling sickness, God forbid. It was frightening to see how the prophet, at the moment of receiving prophecy, took an immense power within himself. And all this except for Moshe Rabbeinu, of whom it is said, "Mouth to mouth I speak with him," "and in a vision and not in riddles," as one man speaks to his fellow. This was the level of Moshe alone, and all the others received their prophecy either in this manner or in a dream.
וַיַּגִּדוּ לְשָׁאוּל וַיִּשְׁלַח מַלְאָכִים אֲחֵרִים וַיִּתְנַבְּאוּ גַּם־הֵמָּה וַיֹּסֶף שָׁאוּל וַיִּשְׁלַח מַלְאָכִים שְׁלִשִׁים וַיִּתְנַבְּאוּ גַּם־הֵמָּה׃ - And they told Shaul, and he sent other messengers, and they too prophesied. And Shaul sent messengers again, a third time, and they too prophesied.
Shaul does not give up. He sends more and more messengers, and each time the same thing happens: they go, they prophesy, and they do not return. So he decides to go out himself.
וַיֵּלֶךְ גַּם־הוּא הָרָמָתָה וַיָּבֹא עַד־בּוֹר הַגָּדוֹל אֲשֶׁר בַּשֶּׂכוּ וַיִּשְׁאַל וַיֹּאמֶר אֵיפֹה שְׁמוּאֵל וְדָוִד וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה בְּנָיוֹת בָּרָמָה׃ - And he too went to Ramah, and came to the great pit that is in Sechu, and he asked and said: Where are Shmuel and David? And one said: Behold, they are at Naioth in Ramah.
The Malbim asks: Why did he go to Ramah, when he had already been told that David was at Naioth? And why did he arrive at the great pit that is in Sechu and ask there? He explains: At first Shaul did not want to go to Naioth but to Ramah. He thought that by the time he reached Ramah, time would pass, and Shmuel would presumably finish his affairs and return to Ramah, to his home. For it is not respectable to seek out David in the place where the prophet is, to come and seize David beside Shmuel, who had anointed him as king. So he thought: I will head toward Ramah, meet Shmuel there upon his return, and then I will know that David at least is not with Shmuel, and I can pursue him at ease and not while he is with the prophet, before whom I am ashamed. This was his reasoning and his plan. And when he reached the great pit that is in Sechu, which is on the roadside between Ramah and Naioth, he asked: Where are Shmuel and David, in Ramah or in Naioth? So that he would know how to proceed. And they answered him, "הִנֵּה בְּנָיוֹת בָּרָמָה" - not as you thought, that Shmuel had already left and was going to Ramah, but rather he is still at Naioth. And so, having no choice, he decided to go to Naioth.
וַיֵּלֶךְ שָׁם אֶל־נָיוֹת בָּרָמָה וַתְּהִי עָלָיו גַּם־הוּא רוּחַ אֱלֹהִים וַיֵּלֶךְ הָלוֹךְ וַיִּתְנַבֵּא עַד־בֹּאוֹ בְּנָיוֹת בָּרָמָה׃ - And he went there, to Naioth in Ramah, and the spirit of God came upon him too, and he went on prophesying until he came to Naioth in Ramah.
Notice when the spirit of God came upon him: not when he arrived, but while he was still far off, and he went on prophesying all the way until his arrival at Naioth in Ramah. And why did it begin with him even earlier? Because Shaul had already prophesied once, when he encountered the band of prophets and they all said, "הֲגַם שָׁאוּל בַּנְּבִיאִים". And since the divine flow had rested upon him once before, he is considered more receptive to prophecy, and therefore the wellspring was drawn to him from the start, even before he arrived.
וַיִּפְשַׁט גַּם־הוּא בְּגָדָיו וַיִּתְנַבֵּא גַם־הוּא לִפְנֵי שְׁמוּאֵל וַיִּפֹּל עָרֹם כָּל־הַיּוֹם הַהוּא וְכָל־הַלָּיְלָה עַל־כֵּן יֹאמְרוּ הֲגַם שָׁאוּל בַּנְּבִיאִם׃ - And he too stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Shmuel, and he lay naked all that day and all that night; therefore they say: Is Shaul too among the prophets?
Why did he need to strip off his clothes? Because the force of the spiritual flow is a very heavy burden, and prophecy is like a heavy load, to the point that a person collapses under the weight of the immense spiritual burden and loses his composure. And the king's garments are heavy garments, royal robes of weight and of splendor and glory, like a precious mantle, and all these weighed upon him all the more. Therefore he stripped off his garments and remained in his tunic alone, for the strength of his body had failed him.
"וַיִּתְנַבֵּא גַם־הוּא לִפְנֵי שְׁמוּאֵל" - but it was already said before this that he prophesied until his arrival at Naioth? Rather, this is an added measure of prophecy: the level of prophecy before Shmuel is higher and greater, for the closer you are to the prophet, the higher the level. And not only that, but he remained all that day and all that night, and the spirit did not depart from him, and this is yet another level in prophecy in terms of its duration.
And therefore they said, "הֲגַם שָׁאוּל בַּנְּבִיאִים". Now, we saw that Shaul's messengers also prophesied, so why were people not astonished at them? Because with them it was a small prophecy of a low level, whereas with Shaul it was of a high and immense level, as we have seen. And from this the matter became a proverb in the mouths of the people: when one wishes to say of someone that he has risen to a high level not expected of him, and wonders whether he has truly reached such a level, one says, "Is Shaul too among the prophets?"
In this chapter, Shaul's pursuit of David moves from the stage of subterfuge to the stage of open action: Shaul speaks to his son and his servants about killing him, Yonatan saves David through the wisdom of "an evil that contains within it good" and obtains an oath from his father, but the evil spirit returns and the spear is thrown once again, and Michal saves David through the window and by means of the terafim. From this pursuit we learn two things: Shaul acts not out of reason but out of the fear of persecution, and therefore he is persuaded yet returns to pursue; and David, who at the very moment his life hangs in the balance flees to Shmuel and dwells with him in Nayot in Ramah, occupying himself with the noy (beauty) of the world, the place of the Mikdash, which is a sign of the greatness of Israel, who davka in a time of distress bring forth from within themselves the most wondrous powers. And in the end, whoever went out to seize David fell himself into the abundance of Shmuel's prophecy, naked all that day and all that night, until they said: Is Shaul too among the prophets?