Albert Barnes Commentary 1 Samuel 23:29

"And David went up from thence, and dwelt in the strongholds of En-gedi." — 1 Samuel 23:29 (ASV)

En-gedi (meaning "the fountain of the kid"), anciently called Hazezon-Tamar (Genesis 14:7) because of the palm trees that grew there, still preserves its name as Ain-Djedy. It is located about 200 yards from the Dead Sea, near the center of its western shore. The area is marked by great luxuriance of vegetation, though the approach to it is through most dangerous and precipitous passes. The country is full of caverns, which serve as lurking places for outlaws to this day. One of these—a spacious one called Bir-el-Mauquouchieh, with a well in it suitable for watering sheep and close to the Wady Hasasa—may have been the identical cavern in which David cut off Saul’s skirt.