The second novel in the "Age of the Kingdom" series begins where Quest for a King left off.

When David, whom many believe will be the next king, is forced into exile, will Azel desert his post and follow? Will Jeriah continue to loyally serve Saul? How can the young nation survive the forces of jealousy and violence that threaten to rip it apart?

God's curse still hangs over the house of Eli. After one of the priests, a son of Ahitub, helps David, Saul orders a massacre of the whole town of Nob, which once again leaves the Tent of Meeting without priests to serve there. History repeats itself when again a single young priest survives.

Saul is intent on killing David, the primary threat to his dynasty. In desperation, David and his band of 600 men and their families flee from one hiding place to another, then finally to the haven of Philistine Gath, of all places. Achish, king of Gath, is just as taken with David as anyone and so is blind to David's divided loyalties. How will David and his men avoid fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with the Philistines against the army of Israel?

Faced with another Philistine war, Saul is desperate to hear from the Lord, but Samuel is dead, so he seeks out a witch he once tried to kill. Jeriah is with him when a voice from the grave predicts death on the mountain for Saul and his sons. Can Jeriah avoid being caught up in the king's self-destructive obsessions?