שמואל א, פרק ל״א, פסוק א׳

The biblical narrative shifts away from David's journeys and returns to the central, tragic conflict between the Philistines and the Israelites. This moment marks the complete collapse of the Israelite army lines, a devastating defeat that begins with a mass retreat and ends in a heavy disaster on the mountain slopes. The primary approach among commentators is that this transition serves to bring the reader back to the main story of the war. In reality, these events unfold at the exact same time that David parted ways with Achish and fought against Amalek [ביאור שטיינזלץ].

Facing the enemy, the Israelite fighters experienced a complete break in morale. They lost their courage entirely, making no attempt to fight back, and instead immediately turned to flee [מלבי״ם]. A deeper, spiritual reason for this sudden retreat suggests that the souls and destinies of the warriors foresaw the great sorrow and harsh decrees that were about to happen, prompting them to run for their lives [חומת אנך].

This desperate flight directly caused massive casualties. As a general rule of warfare, the beginning of any military defeat is the retreat itself. Once the Israelites began to run, the Philistines quickly caught up to them and struck them down [מלבי״ם, אברבנאל]. Geographically, while the battle may have started in one specific location, the chaotic retreat caused the conflict to spread over a wide area. As a result, the bodies of the fallen were left scattered all across the surroundings of Mount Gilboa [ביאור שטיינזלץ].