1Samuel 20
20Then David fled from Naioth at Ramah and went to Jonathan and asked, "What have I done? What is my crime? How have I wronged your father, that he is trying to take my life?"H1732H1272H5121H7414H935H559H6440H3083H6213H5771H2403H6440H1H1245H53152"Never!" Jonathan replied. "You are not going to die! Look, my father doesn't do anything, great or small, without letting me know. Why would he hide this from me? It isn't so!"H559H2486H4191H1H6213H6213H1697H1419H6996H1540H241H1H5641H16973But David took an oath and said, "Your father knows very well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he has said to himself, 'Jonathan must not know this or he will be grieved.' Yet as surely as the LORD lives and as you live, there is only a step between me and death."H1732H7650H559H1H3045H3045H4672H2580H5869H559H3083H3045H6087H199H3068H2416H5315H2416H6587H41944Jonathan said to David, "Whatever you want me to do, I'll do for you."H559H3083H1732H5315H559H62135So David said, "Look, tomorrow is the New Moon feast, and I am supposed to dine with the king; but let me go and hide in the field until the evening of the day after tomorrow.H1732H559H3083H4279H2320H3427H3427H4428H398H7971H5641H7704H7992H61536If your father misses me at all, tell him, 'David earnestly asked my permission to hurry to Bethlehem, his hometown, because an annual sacrifice is being made there for his whole clan.'H1H6485H6485H559H1732H7592H7592H7323H1035H5892H3117H2077H49407If he says, 'Very well,' then your servant is safe. But if he loses his temper, you can be sure that he is determined to harm me.H559H2896H5650H7965H2734H2734H3045H7451H36158As for you, show kindness to your servant, for you have brought him into a covenant with you before the LORD. If I am guilty, then kill me yourself! Why hand me over to your father?"H6213H2617H5650H935H5650H1285H3068H3426H5771H4191H935H19"Never!" Jonathan said. "If I had the least inkling that my father was determined to harm you, wouldn't I tell you?"H3083H559H2486H3045H3045H7451H3615H1H935H504610David asked, "Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?"H559H1732H3083H5046H1H6030H718611"Come," Jonathan said, "let's go out into the field." So they went there together.H3083H559H1732H3212H3318H7704H3318H8147H770412Then Jonathan said to David, "I swear by the LORD, the God of Israel, that I will surely sound out my father by this time the day after tomorrow! If he is favorably disposed toward you, will I not send you word and let you know?H3083H559H1732H3068H430H3478H2713H1H4279H6256H7992H2895H1732H7971H1540H24113But if my father intends to harm you, may the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if I do not let you know and send you away in peace. May the LORD be with you as he has been with my father.H3068H6213H3541H3254H3083H3190H1H7451H1540H241H7971H1980H7965H3068H114But show me unfailing kindness like the LORD's kindness as long as I live, so that I may not be killed,H518H2416H6213H2617H3068H419115and do not ever cut off your kindness from my family—not even when the LORD has cut off every one of David's enemies from the face of the earth."H3772H2617H1004H5704H5769H3068H3772H341H1732H376H6440H12716So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the LORD call David's enemies to account."H3083H3772H1004H1732H3068H1245H3027H1732H34117And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself.H3083H1732H7650H3254H160H157H160H531518Then Jonathan said to David, "Tomorrow is the New Moon feast. You will be missed, because your seat will be empty.H3083H559H1732H4279H2320H6485H4186H648519The day after tomorrow, toward evening, go to the place where you hid when this trouble began, and wait by the stone Ezel.H8027H3381H3966H935H4725H5641H3117H4639H3427H681H68H23720I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I were shooting at a target.H3384H7969H2671H6654H7971H430721Then I will send a boy and say, 'Go, find the arrows.' If I say to him, 'Look, the arrows are on this side of you; bring them here,' then come, because, as surely as the LORD lives, you are safe; there is no danger.H7971H5288H3212H4672H2671H559H559H5288H2671H3947H935H7965H1697H3068H241622But if I say to the boy, 'Look, the arrows are beyond you,' then you must go, because the LORD has sent you away.H559H5958H2671H1973H3212H3068H797123And about the matter you and I discussed—remember, the LORD is witness between you and me forever."H1697H1696H3068H5704H576924So David hid in the field, and when the New Moon feast came, the king sat down to eat.H1732H5641H7704H2320H4428H3427H398H389925He sat in his customary place by the wall, opposite Jonathan, and Abner sat next to Saul, but David's place was empty.H4428H3427H4186H6471H4186H7023H3083H6965H74H3427H7586H6654H1732H4725H648526Saul said nothing that day, for he thought, "Something must have happened to David to make him ceremonially unclean—surely he is unclean."H7586H1696H3972H3117H559H4745H1115H2889H288927But the next day, the second day of the month, David's place was empty again. Then Saul said to his son Jonathan, "Why hasn't the son of Jesse come to the meal, either yesterday or today?"H4283H8145H2320H1732H4725H6485H7586H559H3083H1121H935H1121H3448H3899H8543H311728Jonathan answered, "David earnestly asked me for permission to go to Bethlehem.H3083H6030H7586H1732H7592H7592H5978H103529He said, 'Let me go, because our family is observing a sacrifice in the town and my brother has ordered me to be there. If I have found favor in your eyes, let me get away to see my brothers.' That is why he has not come to the king's table."H559H7971H4940H2077H5892H251H6680H4672H2580H5869H4422H7200H251H935H4428H797930Saul's anger flared up at Jonathan and he said to him, "You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don't I know that you have sided with the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of the mother who bore you?H7586H639H2734H3083H559H1121H5753H4780H3045H977H1121H3448H1322H1322H517H617231As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Now send someone to bring him to me, for he must die!"H3117H1121H3448H2425H127H3559H4438H7971H3947H1121H419432"Why should he be put to death? What has he done?" Jonathan asked his father.H3083H6030H7586H1H559H4191H621333But Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him. Then Jonathan knew that his father intended to kill David.H7586H2904H2595H5221H3083H3045H3617H1H4191H173234Jonathan got up from the table in fierce anger; on that second day of the feast he did not eat, because he was grieved at his father's shameful treatment of David.H3083H6965H7979H2750H639H398H3899H8145H3117H2320H6087H1732H1H363735In the morning Jonathan went out to the field for his meeting with David. He had a small boy with him,H1242H3083H3318H7704H4150H1732H6996H528836and he said to the boy, "Run and find the arrows I shoot." As the boy ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.H559H5288H7323H4672H2671H3384H5288H7323H3384H2678H567437When the boy came to the place where Jonathan's arrow had fallen, Jonathan called out after him, "Isn't the arrow beyond you?"H5288H935H4725H2678H3083H3384H3083H7121H310H5288H559H2678H197338Then he shouted, "Hurry! Go quickly! Don't stop!" The boy picked up the arrow and returned to his master.H3083H7121H310H5288H4120H2363H5975H3083H5288H3950H2671H2678H935H11339(The boy knew nothing about all this; only Jonathan and David knew.)H5288H3045H3972H3083H1732H3045H169740Then Jonathan gave his weapons to the boy and said, "Go, carry them back to town."H3083H5414H3627H5288H559H3212H935H589241After the boy had gone, David got up from the south side of the stone and bowed down before Jonathan three times, with his face to the ground. Then they kissed each other and wept together—but David wept the most.H5288H935H1732H6965H681H5045H5307H639H776H7812H7969H6471H5401H376H7453H1058H376H7453H1732H143142Jonathan said to David, "Go in peace, for we have sworn friendship with each other in the name of the LORD, saying, 'The LORD is witness between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants forever.' " Then David left, and Jonathan went back to the town.H3083H559H1732H3212H7965H7650H8147H8034H3068H559H3068H2233H2233H5704H5769H6965H3212H3083H935H5892
Columbus, OH
