Charles Ellicott Commentary 1 Samuel 19:18

"Now David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth." — 1 Samuel 19:18 (ASV)

And came to Samuel. —The influence and authority which Samuel still preserved in the nation, even in the stormy close of Saul’s career, must have been very great for the frightened David to have sought a refuge in his quiet home of prayer and learning. The exile, fleeing before his sovereign, felt that in the residence of the old seer he would be safe from all pursuit, as in a sanctuary. David’s intimate connection with Samuel has been alluded to on several occasions. He stood to the old seer as a loved pupil.