Doeg

Biblical Account

Doeg was an Edomite and a servant of King Saul who appears in 1 Samuel 21–22. First Samuel 21:7 introduces him as "the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul," that is, the head of those who tended the king's livestock. When David fled from Saul and came to Nob, the city of the priests, the priest Ahimelech gave David the showbread (the holy bread set out in the sanctuary) and the sword of Goliath. Doeg was present that day, "detained before the LORD." The text does not explain why he remained there.

Some time later, Saul pressed his servants to reveal who had sided with David. Doeg then reported that Ahimelech had inquired of the LORD for David and had given him provisions and the sword of Goliath (1 Samuel 22:9–10). Saul ordered that the priests of Ahimelech's house be put to death. When the guards refused, saying they could not strike the priests of the LORD, Doeg stepped forward and killed eighty-five priests who wore a linen ephod. He then put the city of Nob to the sword, striking men and women, children and nursing infants, and even the livestock (22:17–19).

Only Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, escaped and fled to David. David acknowledged his own responsibility, saying to Abiathar, "I knew it that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul" (22:22). The Bible does not record Doeg's later activities or his death.

Significance Within Scripture

The superscription of Psalm 52 states that the psalm was composed "when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, and said unto him, David is come to the house of Ahimelech." The psalm describes the tongue of one who boasts in evil as "like a sharp razor, working deceitfully," and declares that God will root him out. By contrast, the psalmist likens himself to "a green olive tree in the house of God."

Doeg's name does not appear in the New Testament. The passages in which Jesus refers to David eating the showbread (Mark 2:25–26 and parallels) presuppose the same event, but Doeg is not mentioned there either.

Interpretations and Issues

• Evil done with the truth: Doeg's report was outwardly accurate. It omitted, however, the fact that Ahimelech had helped David without knowing the circumstances (22:14–15). For this reason, many interpreters associate truthful words used with intent to harm with the "deceitful tongue" of Psalm 52.
• The prophecy against the house of Eli: Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, is generally regarded as a member of the priestly family of Eli (compare 1 Samuel 14:3 and 22:20). Accordingly, some commentators read the massacre at Nob as one stage in the fulfillment of the prophecy of judgment against Eli's house (1 Samuel 2:31–33). The text of 1 Samuel, however, does not link the two directly. The passage that explicitly identifies the fulfillment of the prophecy is 1 Kings 2:27, where Abiathar is removed from the priesthood.
• David's responsibility: David concealed his situation from Ahimelech and told him something untrue (21:2). On the basis of this and his confession in 22:22, some interpreters examine the tragedy in light of David's deception.
• Extrabiblical tradition: Rabbinic literature reportedly preserves stories portraying Doeg as a highly learned scholar of the Law. The Mishnah tractate Sanhedrin lists him, together with Balaam, Ahithophel, and Gehazi, among the commoners who have no share in the world to come. All of these are later traditions not found in the biblical text.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, Doeg is mentioned mainly in expositions of Psalm 52 and in sermons on the massacre at Nob. In such sermons he serves as an example of harmful speech, informing on others, and the expedient abandonment of conscience to please those in power. In Sunday school and Bible studies, he is usually introduced briefly as a character in the story of David's flight rather than treated as a separate topic.