Jonathan Supports David over Saul

¹ Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah and came and said before Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my guilt and what is my sin before your father that he is ⌞trying to kill me⌟?¹

1. Literally “seeking my life”

² And he said to him, “Far from it! You will not die! Look, my father does not do¹ ⌞anything large or small unless he reveals it to me⌟.² Why should my father hide this thing or anything from me?”

1. The Masoretic Hebrew text (Kethib) reads “he does to/for him”; the translation follows the reading tradition (Qere) which has “does not do”
2. Literally “a large thing or a small thing and he does not reveal to my ear”

³ Then David ⌞took an oath⌟¹ again and said, “Your father knows very well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he thought, ‘Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he worry.’ But ⌞as Yahweh lives⌟² and ⌞as your soul lives⌟,³ surely there is merely a step between me and death!”

1. Literally “swore”
2. Literally “the life of Yahweh”
3. Literally “the life of your soul”

⁴ Then Jonathan said to David, “⌞Whatever you wish⌟,¹ I will do for you.”

1. Literally “What your soul says”

⁵ David said to Jonathan, “Look, tomorrow is the new moon, and I should certainly sit with the king to eat. You must send me away so that I can hide myself in the field until the third evening.

⁶ If your father misses me at all, then you must say, ‘David earnestly asked from me to run to Bethlehem his city, for ⌞the yearly sacrifice⌟¹ is there for all the clan.’

1. Literally “the sacrifice of the days”

⁷ If he says ‘Good,’ it will mean peace for your servant; but if he is very angry, know that ⌞he has decided to do me harm⌟.¹

1. Literally “the evil has been determined from with him”

⁸ So you must show loyal love to your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of Yahweh with you. But if there is guilt in me, then kill me yourself! But why should you bring me to your father?”

⁹ Then Jonathan said, “Far be it from you! For if I know for certain that ⌞my father decided evil should come upon you⌟,¹ would I not have told it to you?”

1. Literally “the evil is determined from with my father to come over you”

¹⁰ Then David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if what your father answers you is harsh?”

¹¹ And Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out to the field.” So the two of them went out to the field.

¹² Then Jonathan said to David, “Yahweh the God of Israel is my witness¹ that I will question my father ⌞by this time the day after tomorrow⌟.² And look, ⌞if he is well disposed toward you⌟,³ will I not send word to you and ⌞disclose it to you⌟?⁴

1. The phrase “is my witness” is supplied based on the Syriac version
2. Literally “as the time tomorrow the third”
3. Literally “if he is good to David”
4. Literally “I will reveal it to your ear”

¹³ ⌞So may Yahweh punish Jonathan and more⌟¹ if ⌞my father decides to do you harm⌟² and if ⌞I fail to disclose it to you⌟³ and send word to you that you can go safely. And may Yahweh be with you, as he has been with my father.

1. Literally “So may Yahweh do to Jonathan and so may he add”
2. Literally “the evil over you is regarded as good by my father”
3. Literally “I will reveal it to your ear”

¹⁴ And not while I am still alive, will you not show the loyal love of Yahweh with me, that I may not die?¹

1. Or perhaps “and if I die, may you not …”

¹⁵ And do not cut off your loyal love from ⌞my family⌟¹ forever, not even when Yahweh ⌞exterminates⌟² each of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.”

1. Literally “my house”
2. Literally “cuts off”

¹⁶ So Jonathan ⌞made a covenant⌟¹ with the house of David, saying, “May Yahweh ⌞call the enemies of David to account⌟.”²

1. Literally “cut a covenant”
2. Literally “seek from the hand of the enemies of David”

¹⁷ And Jonathan again made David swear an oath, because he loved him; for with the love of his soul he loved him.

¹⁸ Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, for your seat will stay empty.

¹⁹ On the third day you must go down quickly and go to the place where you hid yourself ⌞on the day all this started⌟¹ and remain beside the stone Ezel.

1. Literally “on the day of the deed”

²⁰ I will shoot three arrows to the side as if I were shooting at a target.

²¹ ⌞Then⌟¹ I will send word to my servant, ‘Go, find the arrows!’ If I clearly say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are ⌞on this side of you⌟;² ⌞bring⌟³ it,’ then⁴ come, for it means peace for you. And there is no problem, ⌞as Yahweh lives⌟.⁵

1. Literally “And look”
2. Literally “from you and here”
3. Literally “take”
4. Hebrew “and”
5. Literally “the life of Yahweh”

²² But if I say this to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are ⌞beyond you⌟,’¹ go, for Yahweh has sent you away.

1. Literally “from you and beyond”

²³ And as for the matter about which you and I spoke, look, Yahweh is between you and me forever.”

²⁴ So David hid himself in the field. ⌞When the new moon came⌟,¹ ⌞the king was seated at the feast⌟.²

1. Literally “And it was the new moon”
2. Literally “the king sat at the food to eat”

²⁵ The king sat at his seat ⌞as before⌟,¹ the seat by the wall, and Jonathan got up, and Abner sat beside Saul, but David’s place was empty.

1. Literally “as occurrence at occurrence”

²⁶ But Saul said nothing on that day, for he thought, “⌞Something happened to him⌟.¹ He is not ceremonially clean; surely he is not clean.”

1. Literally “It is incident”

²⁷ ⌞And then⌟¹ on the next day, the second day of the new moon, that David’s place was empty. So Saul asked Jonathan his son, “Why did the son of Jesse not come either yesterday or today to the feast?”

1. Literally “And it happened”

²⁸ Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked permission from me to go up to Bethlehem.

²⁹ He said, ‘Send me away, please, for our clan sacrifice is in the city, and my brother commanded¹ me to be present. So then, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me slip away and see my brothers.’ Therefore he has not come to the table of the king.”

1. Or “urged”

³⁰ Then ⌞Saul became angry⌟¹ at Jonathan and said to him, “You son of a perverse, rebellious woman!² Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your shame and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness?

1. Literally “the nose of Saul became hot”
2. Or “bastard of a wayward woman” (HALOT 796)

³¹ For ⌞as long as⌟¹ the son of Jesse is alive on the earth, you and your kingdom will not be established! So then, send and bring him to me, for ⌞he will surely die⌟!”²

1. Literally “all the days which”
2. Literally “he is a son of death”

³² But Jonathan answered his father Saul and said to him, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?”

³³ Then Saul hurled his¹ spear at him to kill him. So Jonathan knew ⌞that his father had decided⌟² to kill David.

1. Hebrew “the”
2. Literally “it was complete from with his father”

³⁴ Jonathan got up from the table ⌞enraged⌟,¹ and did not eat on the second day of the new moon because he was upset about David, because his father had disgraced him.

1. Literally “with burning of nose”

³⁵ ⌞And then⌟¹ in the morning Jonathan went out to the field for the appointment with David, and a young boy² was with him.

1. Literally “And it happened”
2. Or “young servant”

³⁶ He said to his servant,¹ “Run, please find the arrows that I am shooting!” The boy² ran, and he shot the arrow to pass over him.

1. Or “boy”
2. Or “servant”

³⁷ When the boy came up to the place of the arrow that Jonathan had shot, Jonathan called out after the boy and said, “Is not the arrow ⌞beyond you⌟?”¹