Achish

AI summary: Achish matters because the cross references show David living in morally and politically ambiguous territory before becoming king. He first appears in the episode where David feigns madness, and later becomes the ruler who trusts David enough to grant him Ziklag and consider taking him into battle. That relationship highlights both David's desperation and his skill in surviving between hostile powers. Taken together, the material presents Achish as a significant Philistine king whose dealings with David illuminate one of the most precarious phases of David's rise.¹

The king with whom David sought refuge when he fled from Saul (1 Sam. 21:10-15). He is called Abimelech in the superscription of Ps. 34. It was probably this same king to whom David a second time repaired at the head of a band of 600 warriors, and who assigned him Ziklag, whence he carried on war against the surrounding tribes (1 Sam. 27:5-12). Achish had great confidence in the valour and fidelity of David (1 Sam. 28:1, 2), but at the instigation of his courtiers did not permit him to go up to battle along with the Philistine hosts (1 Sam. 29:2-11). David remained with Achish a year and four months. ³