1 Samuel 20
20
David and Jonathan
1David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my offense? And what is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?”
2And he said to him, “Far from it! You shall not die. Behold, my father does nothing either great or small that he does not reveal to me. Why would my father hide this thing from me? It is not so.”
3David vowed # Dt 6:13 again and said, “Your father certainly knows that I have found favor in your sight. And he says, ‘Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he be distressed.’ However, as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, # 1Sa 25:26 there is but a step between me and death.”
4Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you say, I will do it for you.”
5David said to Jonathan, “Behold, tomorrow is the New Moon, # Nu 10:10; 28:11 and I should not fail to sit with the king to eat. But let me go that I may hide myself in the field until the evening of the third day. 6If your father misses me at all, then say, ‘David asked for leave from me that he might run to Bethlehem his city, for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.’ # 1Sa 9:12; 17:58 7If he says, ‘Good,’ it will be well for your servant. But if he gets angry, know that evil is determined by him. # 1Sa 25:17; Est 7:7 8Therefore deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you. # 1Sa 18:3; 23:18 But if there is any guilt in me, kill me yourself, for why should you bring me to your father?”
9Then Jonathan said, “Far be it from you, for if I indeed knew that my father had determined evil against you, would I not tell you?”
10David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me? Or what if your father answers you roughly?”
11So Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out into the field.” And the two of them went out to the field.
12Then Jonathan said to David, “The Lord God of Israel is witness. When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow, or by the third day, and behold, if he is favorable toward David, then will I not send and reveal it to you? 13May the Lord do so to Jonathan and much more. # Ru 1:17 If it pleases my father to do you evil, then I will reveal it you and send you away that you may go in peace. And may the Lord be with you # Jos 1:5 as He has been with my father. 14And if I live, not only will you show me the kindness of the Lord, that I shall not die, 15but you will not cut off your faithfulness from my house forever, even when the Lord has cut off each one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.”
16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “May the Lord require it at the hand of the enemies of David.” # 1Sa 25:22 17Jonathan made David swear again, because he loved him, and he loved him as he loved his own soul. # 1Sa 18:1, 3
18Then Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon, # 1Sa 20:5 and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty. # 1Sa 20:25 19When you have stayed three days, you will surely go down and come to the place where you hid yourself on the day this happened, # 1Sa 19:2 and wait there beside the stone Ezel. 20And I will shoot three arrows to its side, as though I shot at a target. 21And behold, I will send a boy, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I expressly say to the boy, ‘See, the arrows are on this side of you, take them,’ then come, for it will be safe for you. And as the Lord lives, it is nothing of concern. 22But if I say to the young man, ‘See, the arrows are beyond you,’ # 1Sa 20:37 go, for the Lord has sent you away. 23As for the matter upon which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord is between you and me forever.” # 1Sa 20:14–15, 42
24So David hid himself in the field. And when the New Moon appeared, the king sat down over food to eat. 25Now the king sat on his seat, as at other times, even on a seat by the wall. Then Jonathan arose and Abner sat by Saul’s side, but David’s place was empty. # 1Sa 20:18 26Nevertheless Saul did not say anything that day. For he thought, “Something has happened. He is not clean; surely he is not clean.” # Lev 11:24; 15:5 27It happened on the following day, which was the second day of the month, that David’s place remained empty. So Saul said to Jonathan his son, “Why has the son of Jesse not come to eat food either yesterday or today?”
28And Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked leave from me to go to Bethlehem. # 1Sa 20:6 29And he said, ‘Please let me go, for our family has a sacrifice in the city and my brother has commanded me to come. Now, if I have found favor in your sight, please let me leave and see my brothers.’ This is why he has not come to the king’s table.”
30Then Saul was angry # Pr 21:24 with Jonathan and he said to him, “You son of a perverse rebellious woman, do I not know that you are choosing the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness? 31For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Now, send and bring him to me, for he is a dead man.”
32Jonathan answered Saul his father and said to him, “Why should he be killed? What has he done?” # 1Sa 19:5; Mt 27:23 33So Saul cast a spear at him to strike him. # 1Sa 18:11 Therefore Jonathan knew that his father was determined to kill David. # 1Sa 20:7
34And Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger and did not eat food on the second day of the month. For he was grieved for David, because his father had dishonored him.
35In the morning Jonathan went out to the field at the time appointed with David, and a little boy was with him. 36And he said to his boy, “Run, find the arrows which I shoot.” He ran, and he shot the arrow over him. 37When the boy came to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan called after the boy and said, “Is not the arrow beyond you?” # 1Sa 20:22 38Then Jonathan cried after the boy, “Hurry quickly! Do not stay!” And Jonathan’s boy gathered up the arrow and came to his master. 39But the boy did not know anything. Only Jonathan and David knew the matter. 40Jonathan gave his weapons to his boy and said to him, “Go, carry them to the city.”
41When the boy had gone, David rose from the south side of the stone, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times. They kissed one another and wept together, but David wept more. # 1Sa 18:3
42Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, # 1Sa 1:17 since the two of us swore in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord will be between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants forever.’ ” So he arose and departed, but Jonathan went into the city.
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1 Samuel 20: MEV
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The Holy Bible, Modern English Version
Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.
1 Samuel 20
20
Reaffirming Covenant Loyalty
1Then David fled from Naioth at Ramah, came before Jonathan and said, “What have I done? What is my crime? What is my sin against your father that he should be seeking my life?”
2“Never!” he said to him. “You will not die! Behold, my father does nothing great or small without disclosing it to me. So why should my father hide this matter from me? It cannot be.”
3Then David swore again saying, “Your father knows very well that I have found favor in your eyes. So he must have thought, ‘Let’s not let Jonathan know about this, else he will be grieved.’ But truly as Adonai lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death.”
4Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you say, I will do for you!”
5So David said to Jonathan, “Look, tomorrow is the New Moon, when I am supposed to sit down with the king to eat. Instead, let me go hide myself in the countryside until the third evening.
6If your father misses me at all, then say: ‘David earnestly asked my permission to run to Beth-lehem, his town, for it is the annual sacrifice there for the whole family.’
7If he says thus, ‘Very well,’ then your servant is safe; but if he becomes very angry, then know that he is determined to harm me.
8Therefore deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of Adonai with you. But if there is any iniquity in me, then kill me yourself! Why should you bring me to your father?”
9Jonathan replied, “Far be it from you! For if I know for sure that my father has determined evil to come on you, then wouldn’t I tell you about it?”
10Then David asked Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?”
11Jonathan said to David, “Come, let’s go out to the field.” So they both went out to the field.
12Then Jonathan said to David, “By Adonai, God of Israel, I will sound out my father about this time tomorrow or the day after. Look, if it is good toward David, wouldn’t I then send word to you and disclose it to you?
13May Adonai do so to Jonathan and even worse, should my father intend to do you evil, if I don’t disclose it to you and send you away, that you may go in shalom. So may Adonai be with you as He has been with my father.
14“Now if I am still alive, wouldn’t you show me the loyal love of Adonai so I wouldn’t die?
15Yet also, don’t cut off your loyal love from my household ever—not even when Adonai cuts off all of David’s enemies from the face of the earth.”
16So Jonathan cut a covenant with the house of David, “So may Adonai requite David’s enemies.”
17Jonathan made David swear again because of the love he had for him, for he loved him as he loved himself.
18Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the New Moon. You’ll be missed because your seat will be empty.
19On the third day, you must go down quickly and come to the place where you hid as you did on that day, and remain close to the stone Ezel.
20I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I were shooting at a target.
21Now look, I will send a lad saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I specifically say to the lad, ‘See, the arrows are on this side of you—get them,’ then come; for it is safe for you and no danger, as Adonai lives.
22But if I say to the boy: ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go your way, for Adonai has released you.
23But as for the matter which I and you have spoken about, behold, Adonai is between me and you forever.”
24So David hid himself in the field, and when the New Moon came, the king sat down to eat a meal.
25So the king sat on his seat—as usual, the seat by the wall—Jonathan stood up and Abner sat down by Saul’s side, but David’s place was empty.
26Nevertheless, Saul said nothing that day, for he thought, “It must be an accident; he must be ceremonially unclean—yes, that’s it, he’s unclean.”
27Yet it came to pass on the day following the New Moon, the second day, that David’s place was still empty. So Saul asked his son Jonathan, “Why didn’t Jesse’s son come to the meal yesterday or today?”
28Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem,
29as he said, ‘Please let me go, for we are going to have a family feast in the town, and my brother has commanded me. So now, if I have found favor in your eyes, let me go, please, to see my brothers. That’s why he hasn’t come to the king’s table.”
30Then Saul’s rage blazed against Jonathan and he said to him, “You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you have chosen the son of Jesse—to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness?
31For as long as the son of Jesse lives on earth, neither you nor your kingship will be secure. Now, send word and bring him to me, for he is a son of death!”
32But Jonathan answered his father Saul, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?”
33Then Saul hurled his spear at him to strike him down. So Jonathan knew that his father was determined to put David to death.
34So Jonathan rose up from the table in fierce anger, and did not eat food the second day of the new month, for he was grieved over David, because his father had dishonored him.
35It came to pass in the morning that Jonathan went out to the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad was with him.
36He said to his lad, “Run, find now the arrows that I am about to shoot.” Now as the lad was running, he shot an arrow past him.
37When the lad reached the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried out after the lad and said, “Isn’t the arrow beyond you?”
38Then Jonathan called out after the lad, “Quick, hurry! Don’t stand there!” So Jonathan’s lad picked up the arrow and came to his master.
39But the lad knew nothing; only Jonathan and David knew the arrangement.
40Then Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad and said to him, “Go, take them back to the town.”
41As soon as the lad was gone, David emerged from the south side and fell on his face to the ground and bowed down three times. Then they kissed each other and wept together, though David wept more.
42Then Jonathan said to David, “Go in the shalom that we both have sworn to each other in the Name of Adonai saying: ‘May Adonai be between me and you, and between my offspring and your offspring, forever.’”
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