David and Jonathan’s Covenant
July 20, 2020
Commentary
After leaving Ramah, David returned to Jonathan, his closest friend and brother-in-law, for help and advice (vv. 1-4). Knowing of Saul’s hostility toward him, David sought to learn from Jonathan what the real problem was and if there might be a reconciliation. The test would be David’s absence from the New Moon feast (v.5) which was soon to be held. If Saul became upset about David’s absence, then David would know that there was no hope of patching things up. If the king was not angry then there was hope for reconciliation (vv. 6-8). Jonathan would approach his father on the matter and communicate the results to David by signaling with arrows (vv. 9-23). David and Jonathan made a covenant that David would treat Jonathan’s children kindly in the future (vv. 14-17). As a result, David took great pains years later to fulfill this promise as he invited Mephibosheth into his palace to live (2 Sam. 9).
Things happened just as David had predicted as Saul became violently angry when David did not show for the feast of the New Moon. Jonathan tried to reason with his father as he had done a few weeks before (vv. 24-31). Saul, however, hurled his spear, narrowly missing his son. Jonathan knew now that David would never again be safe in Saul’s presence. He left the room in anger because of the way his mother and his best friend had been treated by Saul. Jonathan fasted in grief over the treatment of David (vv. 32-34). The next morning under the pretext of practicing archery Jonathan went out into the field to keep his appointment with David. A little lad accompanied him. Jonathan carried out the prearranged signal with David because he feared that he might be watched. After the danger signal had been given, however, Jonathan threw caution to the wind. He gave his bow and quiver to the lad and sent him back to the city. David then came out of hiding. Both friends thought that this would be the last time they would ever see one another. David expressed gratitude to Jonathan by bowing three times to the ground. In eastern style the friends kissed one another and wept. Then David and Jonathan went their separate ways (vv. 35-42).
Application
What are some things that have been hard for me to go through in my life but have perhaps been preparing me to better serve God? What is my reaction when I have to rely solely upon the Lord, rather than on the schemes of men? Have I thanked Him for these times? And how, am I putting these principles into practice for His glory?
1 Samuel 20:1– 42 (NET)
1 David fled from Naioth in Ramah. He came to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? What is my offense? How have I sinned before your father, that he is seeking my life?”
2 Jonathan said to him, “By no means are you going to die! My father does nothing large or small without making me aware of it. Why would my father hide this matter from me? It just won’t happen!”
3 Taking an oath, David again said, “Your father is very much aware of the fact that I have found favor with you, and he has thought, ‘Don’t let Jonathan know about this, or he will be upset.’ But as surely as the Lord lives and you live, there is about one step between me and death!” 4 Jonathan replied to David, “Tell me what I can do for you.”
5 David said to Jonathan, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and I am certainly expected to join the king for a meal. You must send me away so I can hide in the field until the third evening from now. 6 If your father happens to miss me, you should say, ‘David urgently requested me to let him go to his town Bethlehem, for there is an annual sacrifice there for his entire family.’ 7 If he should then say, ‘That’s fine,’ then your servant is safe. But if he becomes very angry, be assured that he has decided to harm me. 8 You must be loyal to your servant, for you have made a covenant with your servant in the Lord’s name. If I am guilty, you yourself kill me! Why bother taking me to your father?”
9 Jonathan said, “Far be it from you to suggest this! If I were at all aware that my father had decided to harm you, wouldn’t I tell you about it?” 10 David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?” 11 Jonathan said to David, “Come on. Let’s go out to the field.”
12 Jonathan said to David, “The Lord God of Israel is my witness! I will feel out my father about this time the day after tomorrow. If he is favorably inclined toward David, will I not then send word to you and let you know? 13 But if my father intends to do you harm, may the Lord do all this and more to Jonathan, if I don’t let you know and send word to you, so you can go safely on your way. May the Lord be with you, as he was with my father. 14 While I am still alive, extend to me the loyalty of the Lord, or else I will die. 15 Don’t ever cut off your loyalty to my family, not even when the Lord has cut off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth 16 and called David’s enemies to account.” So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David. 17 Jonathan once again took an oath with David, because he loved him. In fact Jonathan loved him as much as he did his own life. 18 Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, for your seat will be empty. 19 On the third day you should go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself the day this all started. Stay near the stone Ezel. 20 I will shoot three arrows near it, as though I were shooting at a target. 21 When I send a boy after them, I will say, ‘Go and find the arrows.’ If I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; get them,’ then come back. For as surely as the Lord lives, you will be safe and there will be no problem. 22 But if I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on the other side of you,’ then get away. For in that case the Lord has sent you away. 23 With regard to the matter that you and I discussed, the Lord is the witness between us forever.”
24 So David hid in the field. When the new moon came, the king sat down to eat his meal. 25 The king sat down in his usual place by the wall, with Jonathan opposite him and Abner at his side. But David’s place was vacant. 26 However, Saul said nothing about it that day, for he thought, “Something has happened to make him ceremonially unclean. Yes, he must be unclean.” 27 But the next morning, the second day of the new moon, David’s place was still vacant. So Saul said to his son Jonathan, “Why has Jesse’s son not come to the meal yesterday or today?”
28 Jonathan replied to Saul, “David urgently requested that he be allowed to go to Bethlehem. 29 He said, ‘Permit me to go, for we are having a family sacrifice in the town, and my brother urged me to be there. So now, if I have found favor with you, let me go to see my brothers.’ For that reason he has not come to the king’s table.”
30 Saul became angry with Jonathan and said to him, “You stupid traitor! Don’t I realize that to your own disgrace and to the disgrace of your mother’s nakedness you have chosen this son of Jesse? 31 For as long as this son of Jesse is alive on the earth, you and your kingdom will not be established. Now, send some men and bring him to me. For he is as good as dead!”
32 Jonathan responded to his father Saul, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?” 33 Then Saul threw his spear at Jonathan in order to strike him down. So Jonathan was convinced that his father had decided to kill David. 34 Jonathan got up from the table enraged. He did not eat any food on that second day of the new moon, for he was upset that his father had humiliated David.
35 The next morning Jonathan, along with a young servant, went out to the field to meet David. 36 He said to his servant, “Run, find the arrows that I am about to shoot.” As the servant ran, Jonathan shot the arrow beyond him. 37 When the servant came to the place where Jonathan had shot the arrow, Jonathan called out to the servant, “Isn’t the arrow farther beyond you?” 38 Jonathan called out to the servant, “Hurry! Go faster! Don’t delay!” Jonathan’s servant retrieved the arrow and came back to his master. 39 (Now the servant did not understand any of this. Only Jonathan and David knew what was going on.) 40 Then Jonathan gave his equipment to the servant who was with him. He said to him, “Go, take these things back to the town.”
41 When the servant had left, David got up from beside the mound, knelt with his face to the ground, and bowed three times. Then they kissed each other and they both wept, especially David. 42 Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, for the two of us have sworn together in the name of the Lord saying, ‘The Lord will be between me and you and between my descendants and your descendants forever.’”