1 Samuel 20

Revised Geneva Translation

20 And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my iniquity? And what sin have I committed before your father, that he seeks my life?”

² And he said to him, “May it never be! You shall not die. Behold, my father will do nothing great or small before he tells it to me. And why should my father hide this thing from me? He will not do it.”

³ And David swore again and said, “Your father knows that I have found grace in your eyes. Therefore, he thinks, ‘Jonathan shall not know it, lest he is grieved.’ But indeed, as the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death!”

⁴ Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever your soul requires, that I will do to you.”

⁵ And David said to Jonathan, “Behold, tomorrow is the first day of the month, and I should sit with the king to eat. But let me go, so that I may hide myself in the fields until the third day at evening.

⁶ “If your father mentions me, then say, ‘David asked leave of me, so that he might go to Bethlehem, to his own city.’ For there is a yearly sacrifice for that whole family.’

⁷ “And if he says this: ‘It is well,’ your servant shall have peace. But if he is angry, be sure that wickedness is his conclusion.

⁸ “So shall you show mercy to your servant. For you have brought your servant into a Covenant of the LORD with you. And if there is iniquity in me, kill me yourself. For why should you bring me to your father?”

⁹ And Jonathan answered, “God keep you from that! For if I knew that my father had intended to bring wickedness upon you, would I not tell you?”

¹⁰ Then David said to Jonathan, “Who shall tell me? How shall I know if your father answers you roughly?”

¹¹ And Jonathan said to David, “Come and let us go out into the field.” And they both went out into the field.

¹² Then Jonathan said to David, “O LORD God of Israel, when I have searched my father’s mind tomorrow at this time, within these three days, and if it is well with David, and I then do not send to you and tell you,

¹³ “the LORD do so and much more to Jonathan! But, if my father has a mind to do you evil, I will also tell you and send you away, so that you may go in peace. and the LORD is with you as He has been with my father.

¹⁴ “Likewise, not only you will show me the mercy of the LORD while I live, so that I do not die,

¹⁵ “but you will never cut off your mercy from my house ever, not even when the LORD has destroyed the enemies of David, each one from the Earth.”

¹⁶ So, Jonathan made a bond with the House of David, saying, “Let the LORD require it at the hands of David’s enemies.”

¹⁷ And again, Jonathan swore to David, because he loved him (for he loved him as his own soul).

¹⁸ Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the first day of the month. And you shall be missed, for your place shall be empty.

¹⁹ “Therefore you shall hide yourself for three days. Then, you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself when this matter occurred and remain by the stone Ezel.

²⁰ “And I will shoot three arrows to its side, as though I shot at a mark.

²¹ “And afterward, I will send a boy, saying, ‘Go! Seek the arrows!’ If I say to the boy, ‘See, the arrows are on this side of you. Bring them and come.’ It is well with you and there is no danger, as the LORD lives.

²² “But if I say this to the boy: ‘Behold, the arrows are beyond you,’ go your way. For the LORD has sent you away.

²³ “As for the thing which you and I have spoken of, behold, the LORD is between you and me forever.”

²⁴ So David hid himself in the field. And when the first day of the month came, the king sat to eat food.

²⁵ And the king sat, as at other times upon his seat, upon his seat by the wall. And Jonathan arose and Abner sat by Saul’s side. But David’s place was empty.

²⁶ And Saul said nothing that day. For he thought, “Something has befallen him. He is not clean. Surely, he was not purified.”

²⁷ But the next day, which was the second day of the month, David’s place was empty again. And Saul said to Jonathan, his son, “Why does not the son of Jesse come to eat, neither yesterday nor today?”

²⁸ And Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked permission of me to go to Bethlehem.

²⁹ “For he said, ‘Please let me go. For our family offers a Sacrifice in the city and my brother has sent for me. Therefore, now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me go and see my brethren.’ This is why he has not come to the king’s table.”

³⁰ Then Saul was angry with Jonathan, and said to him, “You son of the wicked rebellious woman! Do not I know that you have chosen the son of Jesse, to your shame and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness?

³¹ “For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon the Earth, you shall not be established, nor your kingdom! Therefore, send now and fetch him to me! For he shall surely die!”

³² And Jonathan answered Saul, his father, and said to him, “Why shall he die? What has he done?”

³³ And Saul cast a spear at him, to hit him, by which Jonathan knew that his father had determined to kill David.

³⁴ So, Jonathan arose from the table in great anger, and ate no food on the second day of the month; for he was sorry for David because his father had humiliated him.

³⁵ The next morning, therefore, Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David. And a little boy went with him.

³⁶ And he said to his boy, “Run now! Seek the arrows which I shoot!” And as the boy ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.

³⁷ And when the boy had come to the place where the arrow was that Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the boy, and said, “Is not the arrow beyond you?”

³⁸ And Jonathan cried after the boy, “Hurry! Make haste! Do not stand still!” And Jonathan’s boy gathered up the arrows and came to his master.

³⁹ But the boy knew nothing. Only Jonathan and David knew the matter.

⁴⁰ Then, Jonathan gave his bow and arrows to the boy who was with him, and said to him, “Go. Carry them into the city.”

⁴¹ As soon as the boy was gone, David arose out of a place that was toward the South and fell on his face to the ground and bowed himself three times. And they kissed one another, and they both wept. But David more so.

⁴² Therefore, Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace. That which we have sworn, both of us, in the Name of the LORD, saying, ‘The LORD be between me and you, and between my seed and between your seed,’ let it stand forever.”

⁴³ And he arose and departed. And Jonathan went into the city.