1 Samuel 20
20
David and Jonathan’s Covenant
1David fled from Naioth in Ramah and he came and said to Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my #Or iniquity.guilt? What is my sin before (against) your father, that he is seeking my life?” 2Jonathan said to him, “Far from it! You shall not die. My father does nothing #Lit great or small.important or insignificant without telling me. So why would he hide this thing from me? It is not so!” 3But David vowed again, saying “Your father certainly knows that I have found favor in your sight, and he has said, ‘Do not let Jonathan know this, or he will be worried.’ But truly as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, there is hardly a step between me and death.” 4Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.” 5David said to Jonathan, “Behold, tomorrow is the New Moon [observance], and I should sit at the table to eat [the sacrificial meal] with the king; but let me go, so that I may hide myself in the field until the third evening. 6If your father misses me at all, then say, ‘David earnestly asked permission from me to go to Bethlehem, his city, because it is the yearly sacrifice there for the entire family.’ 7If he says, ‘All right,’ your servant will be safe; but if he is very angry, then be certain that he has decided on evil. 8Therefore show kindness to your servant, because you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you. But if there is iniquity (guilt) in me, kill me yourself; for why should you bring me to your father [to be killed]?” 9Jonathan said, “Far be it from [happening to] you! In fact, if I indeed learn that my father has decided to harm you, would I not tell you about it?” 10Then David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?” 11Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out into the field [to talk].” So they went out to the field.
12Then Jonathan said to David, “The Lord, the God of Israel, is my witness! When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if he has a good feeling toward #Lit David.you, shall I not then send word to you and make it known to you? 13But if it pleases my father to do you harm, may the Lord do so to Jonathan, and more if I do not let you know about it and send you away, so that you may go in #Lit shalom.safety. And #With this statement Jonathan acknowledges that David has been anointed king.may the Lord be with you as He has been with my father. 14If I am still alive, will you not show me the lovingkindness and faithfulness of the Lord, #To secure his throne a new king would usually kill anyone who was a potential rival for the throne. Jonathan is asking assurance that he will not be assassinated after David becomes king.so that I will not die? 15You shall never cut off your lovingkindness and faithfulness from my house, not even when the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.” 16So Jonathan made a covenant with the #This covenant was binding not only on David and Jonathan, but also on their descendants.house of David. [#This may have been the additional vow mentioned in v 17.He added,] “May #Jonathan was aligning himself with David against all of David’s enemies, including Saul.the Lord require it at the hands of David’s enemies. [that is, hold them accountable for any harm they inflict on David].” 17Jonathan made David vow again because of his love for him, for Jonathan loved him as himself.
18Then Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon [festival], and you will be missed because your seat will be empty. 19When you have stayed for three days, you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself #Lit on the day of the doing.on that eventful day [when my father tried to kill you], and shall stay by the stone Ezel. 20I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I shot at a target. 21And I will send a boy, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I specifically say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you, get them,’ then come [back to my father’s table]; for it is #Lit shalom.safe for you and there is #Lit nothing.no danger, as the Lord lives. 22But if I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go, for the Lord has sent you away. 23As for the agreement of which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord is between you and me forever [making sure that we each keep our word].”
24So David hid in the field; and when the New Moon [festival] came, the king sat down to eat food. 25The king sat on his seat as on previous occasions, on his seat by the wall; then Jonathan stood up, and Abner [his commander] sat down by Saul’s side, but David’s place was empty. 26Yet Saul did not say anything that day, for he thought, “It is an incident [of some kind] and #Saul assumed that David had come into contact with a source of ritual pollution, such as a corpse, and was for that reason temporarily disqualified from participating in the New Moon Festival.he is not [ceremonially] clean—surely he is unclean.” 27But on the next day, the second day of the new moon, David’s place was empty [again]; and Saul said to Jonathan his son, “Why has the son of Jesse not come to the meal, either yesterday or today?” 28Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked me for permission to go to Bethlehem. 29He said, ‘Please let me go because our family is holding a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to attend. Now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me slip away so that I may see my brothers.’ That is why he has not come to the king’s table.”
Saul Is Angry with Jonathan
30Then Saul’s anger burned against Jonathan and he said to him, “You son of a #The vulgar language of this Hebrew idiom demeaned Jonathan, not his mother, and Saul implied that she was ashamed of giving birth to him.wayward, rebellious woman! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse [over me] 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 [as heir to the throne] nor your kingdom will be established. So now, send [someone] and bring him to me, for he #Lit is a son of death.must die.” 32Jonathan answered Saul his father, “Why must he be put to death? What has he done?” 33Then Saul hurled his spear at him to strike him down, so Jonathan knew [without any doubt] that his father had decided to put David to death. 34Then Jonathan stood up from the table in the heat of anger, and ate no food on that second day of the new moon (month), for he grieved and worried about David because his father had dishonored him.
35In the morning Jonathan went out to the field for the meeting with David, and a young boy was with him. 36And he said to his boy, “Run, please find the arrows which I am about to shoot.” As the boy ran, he shot an arrow past him. 37When the boy came to the place where Jonathan had shot the arrow, Jonathan called to him, “Is the arrow not beyond you?” 38And Jonathan called out after the boy, “Hurry, be quick, do not stay!” So Jonathan’s boy picked up the arrow and came back to his master. 39But the boy was not aware of anything; only Jonathan and David knew about the matter. 40Jonathan gave his weapons to his boy and said to him, “Go, take them to the city.” 41As soon as the boy was gone, David got up from the south side [beside the mound of stones] and fell on his face to the ground [in submission and respect], and bowed three times. Then they kissed one another and wept together, but David wept more. 42Jonathan told David, “Go #Lit in shalom.in safety, inasmuch as we have sworn to each other in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord shall be between me and you, and between my descendants and yours forever.’ ” #In Hebrew, this is v 1 of the next chapter making the versification different throughout ch 21.Then he stood and left, while Jonathan went into the city.
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1 Samuel 20
20
Jonathan Protects David
1David fled from Naioth in Ramah and came to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? # 1Sm 24:9 What did I do wrong? How have I sinned against your father so that he wants to take my life? ”
2Jonathan said to him, “No, you won’t die. Listen, my father doesn’t do anything, great or small, without telling me. # Lit without uncovering my ear So why would he hide this matter from me? This can’t be true.”
3But David said, “Your father certainly knows that you have come to look favorably on me. He has said, ‘Jonathan must not know of this, or else he will be grieved.’ ” David also swore, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you yourself live, there is but a step between me and death.” # 1Sm 25:26; 2Kg 2:6
4Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.”
5So David told him, “Look, tomorrow is the New Moon, # Nm 10:10; 28:11-15; Am 8:5 and I’m supposed to sit down and eat with the king. # 1Sm 20:24,27 Instead, let me go, and I’ll hide in the field until the third night. # 1Sm 19:2 6If your father misses me at all, say, ‘David urgently requested my permission to quickly go to his town Bethlehem # 1Sm 17:58 for an annual sacrifice # Dt 12:5 there involving the whole clan.’ 7If he says, ‘Good,’ then your servant is safe, but if he becomes angry, you will know he has evil intentions. 8Deal faithfully with your servant, for you have brought me into a covenant with you before the Lord. # 1Sm 18:3; 20:16; 23:18 If I have done anything wrong, # 2Sm 14:32 then kill me yourself; why take me to your father? ”
9“No! ” Jonathan responded. “If I ever find out my father has evil intentions against you, wouldn’t I tell you about it? ”
10So David asked Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly? ”
11He answered David, “Come on, let’s go out to the field.” So both of them went out to the field. 12“By the Lord, the God of Israel, I will sound out my father by this time tomorrow or the next day. If I find out that he is favorable toward you, will I not send for you and tell you? # Lit and uncover your ear 13If my father intends to bring evil on you, may God punish Jonathan and do so severely # Ru 1:17; 1Sm 3:17 if I do not tell you # Lit will uncover your ears and send you away so you may go in peace. May the Lord be with you, # 1Sm 18:12 just as He was with my father. 14If I continue to live, treat me with the Lord’s faithful love, but if I die, 15don’t ever withdraw your faithful love from my household — not even when the Lord cuts off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth.” # 2Sm 9:1 16Then Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, # 1Sm 18:3; 23:18 saying, “May the Lord hold David’s enemies accountable.” # Lit Lord require it from the hand of David’s enemies # Dt 23:21 17Jonathan once again swore to David # LXX; MT reads Jonathan once again made David swear in his love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself. # 1Sm 18:1
18Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the New Moon; # Nm 10:10 you’ll be missed because your seat will be empty. 19The following day hurry down and go to the place where you hid on the day this incident began and stay beside the rock Ezel. 20I will shoot three arrows beside it as if I’m aiming at a target. 21Then I will send the young man and say, ‘Go and find the arrows! ’ Now, if I expressly say to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you — get them,’ then come, because as the Lord lives, it is safe for you and there is no problem. 22But if I say this to the youth: ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you! ’ # 1Sm 20:37 then go, for the Lord is sending you away. 23As for the matter you and I have spoken about, # 1Sm 20:14-15 the Lord will be a witness # LXX; MT omits a witness between you and me forever.” # Gn 31:49,53 24So David hid in the field.
At the New Moon, the king sat down to eat the meal. 25He sat at his usual place on the seat by the wall. Jonathan sat facing him # Text emended; MT reads Jonathan got up and Abner took his place beside Saul, but David’s place was empty. # 1Sm 20:18 26Saul did not say anything that day because he thought, “Something unexpected has happened; he must be ceremonially unclean — yes, that’s it, he is unclean.” # Lv 7:20-21; Nm 10:10
27However, the day after the New Moon, the second day, David’s place was still empty, and Saul asked his son Jonathan, “Why didn’t Jesse’s son come to the meal either yesterday or today? ”
28Jonathan answered, “David asked for my permission to go to Bethlehem. # 1Sm 20:6 29He said, ‘Please let me go because our clan is holding a sacrifice in the town, and my brother has told me to be there. So now, if you are pleased with me, let me go so I can see my brothers.’ That’s why he didn’t come to the king’s table.”
30Then Saul became angry with Jonathan and shouted, “You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you are siding with Jesse’s son to your own shame and to the disgrace of your mother? # Lit your mother’s genitals 31Every day Jesse’s son lives on earth you and your kingship are not secure. Now send for him and bring him to me — he deserves to die.” # 2Sm 12:5
32Jonathan answered his father back: “Why is he to be killed? What has he done? ” # 1Sm 19:5
33Then Saul threw his spear at Jonathan to kill him, # 1Sm 18:11; 19:10 so he knew that his father was determined to kill David. # 1Sm 20:7 34He got up from the table in fierce anger and did not eat any food that second day of the New Moon, for he was grieved because of his father’s shameful behavior toward David.
35In the morning Jonathan went out to the field for the appointed meeting with David. A small young man was with him. 36He said to the young man, “Run and find the arrows I’m shooting.” # 1Sm 20:20-21 As the young man ran, Jonathan shot an arrow beyond him. 37He came to the location of the arrow that Jonathan had shot, but Jonathan called to him and said, “The arrow is beyond you, isn’t it? ” # 1Sm 20:22 38Then Jonathan called to him, “Hurry up and don’t stop! ” Jonathan’s young man picked up the arrow and returned to his master. 39He did not know anything; only Jonathan and David knew the arrangement. 40Then Jonathan gave his equipment to the young man who was with him and said, “Go, take it back to the city.”
41When the young man had gone, David got up from the south side of the stone Ezel, fell with his face to the ground, and bowed three times. # Gn 42:6 Then he and Jonathan kissed each other and wept with each other, though David wept more. # 1Sm 18:3
42Jonathan then said to David, “Go in the assurance the two of us pledged in the name of the Lord when we said: The Lord will be a witness between you and me and between my offspring and your offspring forever.” # The last sentence of v. 42 is 1Sm 21:1 in Hb. # 1Sm 20:15-23 Then David left, and Jonathan went into the city.
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