The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach, or Ecclesiasticus 8:10 Kommentar

Saul chased David, who in fact carried out these words, “When they persecute you in this city, flee into another.” He fled in order not to irritate his enemy with his presence and to become for him a reason to spill blood. In fact, David grasped the saying, “Do not incite the arm of a sinner,” better than anyone. This is why he withdrew and moved away, although he was loved by all the people and had many who shared his pains and his sorrow and who would have been able to receive him and hide him in their homes. But, in order not to become a cause of danger to others, he fled into the desert and preferred to live in caves. It seems to me that the holy apostle also alludes to him when he says, “They wandered in deserts, in the mountains, in dens and in caves of the earth.”