1 Samuel 20
1 And David fled from Nayoth near Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? what is my iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life?
Forsothe Dauid fledde fro Naioth, which is in Ramatha, and cam and spak bifor Jonathas, What haue Y do? what is my wickidnesse, and what is my synne ayens thi fadir, for he sekith my lijf?
2 And he said unto him, God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father is not wont to do a great thing or a small thing, which he doth not inform me of; and why should my father conceal this thing from me? it is not so.
And Jonathas seide to hym, Fer be it fro thee, thou schalt not die, for my fadir schal not do ony thing greet ether litil, `no but he schewe firste to me; therfor my fadir kepte preuy fro me this word oneli, forsothe it schal not be.
3 But David swore again, and said, Thy father well knoweth that I have found grace in thy eyes; wherefore he said, Jonathan must not know this, lest he be grieved: nevertheless, as truly as the Lord liveth, and thy soul liveth, there was but one step between me and death.
And eft he swoor to Dauid. And Dauid seide, Treuli thi fadir woot, that Y haue founde grace `in thin iyen, and he schal seie, Jonathas wite not this, lest perauenture he be sory; certis the Lord lyueth, `and thi soule lyueth, for, that Y seie so, Y and deeth ben departid oneli bi o degree.
4 Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul sayeth will I do for thee.
And Jonathas seide to Dauid, What euer thing thi soule schal seie to me, Y schal do to thee.
5 And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, tomorrow is the new-moon, and I should as usual sit with the king to eat; but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field until the third evening.
And Dauid seide to Jonathas, Lo! calendis ben to morewe, and bi custom Y am wont to sitte bi the kyng to ete; therfor suffre thou me, `that Y be hid in the feeld `til to euentid of the thridde dai.
6 If thy father at all miss me, then do thou say, David asked earnestly leave of me that he might run to Beth-lechem his city; for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.
If thi fadir biholdith, and axith me, thou schalt answere to hym, Dauid preiede me, that he schulde go swiftli into Bethleem, his citee, for solempne sacrifices ben there to alle the men of his lynage.
7 If he should say thus, It is well: then shall thy servant have peace; but if it be at all displeasing to him, then know that the evil is determined on by him.
If he seith, Wel, pees schal be to thi seruaunt; forsothe if he is wrooth, wite thou, that his malice is fillid.
8 And do thou deal kindly with thy servant; for into a covenant of the Lord hast thou brought thy servant with thee; but if there be in me any iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldst thou bring me to thy father?
Therfor do thou mercy in to thi seruaunt, for thou madist me thi seruaunt to make with thee the boond of pees of the Lord; sotheli if ony wickidnesse is in me, sle thou me, and brynge thou not in me to thi fadir.
9 And Jonathan said, Far be it from thee; for if I should know for certain that evil were determined on by my father to come upon thee, would I not tell it thee?
And Jonathas seide, Fer be this fro me, for it mai not be doon, that Y telle not to thee, if Y knowe certeynli, that the malice of my fadir is fillid ayens thee.
10 Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell it me? or what, if thy father answer thee roughly?
And Dauid answeride to Jonathas, Who schal telle to me, if in caas thi fadir answerith harde ony thing of me?
11 And Jonathan said unto David, Come, let us go out into the field. And they went out, both of them, into the field.
And Jonathas seide to Dauid, Come thou, and go we forth in to the feeld. And whanne bothe hadden go in to the feeld,
12 And Jonathan said unto David, May the God of Israel [punish me] if, when I have sounded my father about this time tomorrow, or of the third day, and, behold, if he be good toward David, I do not then send unto thee, and inform thee of it.
Jonathas seide to Dauid, Lord God of Israel, if Y enquere the sentence of my fadir to morewe, ether in the nexte dai aftir, and ony `thing of good is of Dauid, and Y sende not anoon to thee,
13 May the Lord do so to Jonathan and continue so yet farther, that, if it please my father [to do] thee evil, I will inform thee of it, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace; and may the Lord be with thee, as he hath been with my father.
and make knowun to thee, God do these thingis to Jonathas, and `adde these thingis. Forsothe if the malice of my fadir contynueth ayens thee, Y schal schewe to thin eere, and Y schal delyuere thee, that thou go in pees; and the Lord be with thee, as he was with my fadir.
14 And wilt thou not, should I be yet alive, show me the kindness of the Lord, that I may not die?
And if Y lyue, do thou the mercies of the Lord to me;
15 But, surely, thou wilt not withdraw thy kindness from my house for ever, not even when the Lord cutteth off the enemies of David, every one, from off the face of the earth.
forsothe if Y am deed, `thou schalt not take awei thi mercy fro myn hows `til in to with outen ende; `and yif Y do it not, whanne the Lord schal drawe out bi the roote the enemyes of Dauid, ech man fro the lond, take he awei Jonathas fro his hows, and seke the Lord of the hond of the enemyes of Dauid.
16 So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, [saying, ] May the Lord require it at the hand of David's enemies.
Therfor Jonathas made boond of pees with the hows of Dauid, and the Lord souyte of the hond of enemyes of Dauid.
17 And Jonathan caused David to swear again, by his love for him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
And Jonathas addide to swere stedfastli to Dauid, for he louyde Dauid; for he louyde so Dauid, as his owne soule.
18 Then Jonathan said to David, Tomorrow is the new-moon: and thou wilt be missed, because thy seat will be left empty.
And Jonathas seide to hym, `Calendis ben to morewe, and thou schalt be souyt;
19 And when thou hast stayed till the third day, then shalt thou go down greatly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself on the work-day; and thou shalt remain by the stone Ezel.
for thi sittyng schal be souyt til after to morewe. Therfor thou schalt go doun hastili, and thou schalt come in to the place, where thou schalt be hid in the day, whanne it is leueful to worche; and thou schalt sitte bisidis the stoon, `to which the name is Ezel.
20 And I will myself shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I were shooting at a mark.
And Y schal sende thre arowis bisidis that stoon, and Y schal caste as `excercisynge ether pleiynge me at a signe.
21 And, behold, I will send the lad, saying, Go, find the arrows; if I should now say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee: then take him and come; for there is peace to thee, and it is nothing; as the Lord liveth.
Y schal sende also and my child, and Y schal seie to hym, Go thou, and brynge to me the arewis.
22 But if thus I should say unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee: then go thy way, for the Lord hath sent thee off.
If Y seie to the child, Lo! the arewis ben `with ynne thee, take thou tho; come thou to me, for pees is to thee, and no thing is of yuel, the Lord lyueth. Sotheli if Y speke thus to the child, Lo! the arowis ben biyende thee; go thou in pees, for the Lord deliuerede thee.
23 And touching the matter of which we have spoken, thou and I, behold, the Lord is between me and thee for ever.
Forsothe of the word, which thou and Y han spoke, the Lord be bitwixe me and thee til in to with outen ende.
24 So David hid himself in the field: and when the new-moon was come, the king set himself down to the repast to eat.
Therfor Dauid was hid in the feeld; and the `calendis camen, and the kyng sat to ete breed.
25 And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, upon the seat by the wall: and when Jonathan arose, Abner seated himself by the side of Saul, and David's place was left empty.
And whanne the kyng hadde seete on his chaier bi custom, `which chaier was bisidis the wal, Jonathas roos, and sat `aftir Abner, and Abner sat at the side of Saul, and the place of Dauid apperide voide.
26 Nevertheless Saul spoke not the least on that day; for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; because he hath not yet purified himself.
And Saul spak not ony thing in that dai; for he thouyte, that `in hap it bifelde to hym, that he was not clene `nether purified.
27 And it came to pass on the morrow, the second day of the new-moon, that David's place was left empty; and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore is the son of Jesse not come, both yesterday and today, to the repast?
And whanne the secounde dai aftir the calendis hadde schyned, eft the place of Dauid apperide voide. And Saul seide to Jonathas his sone, Whi cometh not the sone of Isai, nether yisterdai, nether to dai to ete?
28 And Jonathan answered Saul, David asked earnestly leave of me to go as far as Beth-lechem.
And Jonathas answeride to Saul, He preiede me mekeli, that he schulde go in to Bethleem;
29 And he said, Let me go, I pray thee; for we have a family-sacrifice in the city, and my brother himself hath commanded it to me; and now, if I have found favor in thy eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, that I may see my brothers: therefore is he not come unto the king's table.
and he seide, Suffre thou me, for solempne sacrifice is in my citee; oon of my britheren clepide me; now therfor if Y foond grace `in thin iyen, Y schal go soone, and `Y schal se my britheren; for this cause he cometh not to the `table of the kyng.
30 And the anger of Saul was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him, Thou son of perverse rebelliousness! do I not know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thy own shame, and to the shame of thy mother's nakedness?
Forsothe Saul was wrooth ayens Jonathas, and seide to hym, Thou sone of a womman `rauyschynge at her owne wille a man, whether Y woot not, that thou louest the sone of Ysay in to thi confusioun, and in to the confusioun of thi schendful modir?
31 For all the days that the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou wilt not have any permanence with thy kingdom: therefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die.
For in alle the daies in whiche the sone of Isai lyueth on erthe, thou schalt not be stablischid, nether thi rewme; therfor `riyt now sende thou, and brynge hym to me, for he is the sone of deeth.
32 And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore shall he be put to death? what hath he done?
Sotheli Jonathas answeride to Saul his fadir, and seide, Whi schal he die? what hath he do?
33 And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him: and Jonathan understood that it was determined on by his father to put David to death.
And Saul took the spere, that he schulde smyte hym, and Jonathas vndirstood, that it was determynd of his fadir, that Dauid schulde be slayn.
34 And Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no food on the second day of the new-moon; for he was grieved for David; because his father had made him feel ashamed.
Therfor Jonathas roos fro the table in `the ire of woodnesse, and he ete not breed in the secounde dai of calendis; for he was sori on Dauid, for his fadir hadde schent him.
35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field to the place appointed with David, and a little lad was with him.
And whanne the morewtid `hadde schyned, Jonathas cam in to the feeld, and a litil child with hym, bi the couenaunt of Dauid.
36 And he said unto his lad, Run, do find out the arrows which I shoot: and the lad ran, and he shot the arrow so as to pass beyond him.
And Jonathas seide to his child, Go thou, and brynge to me the arowis whiche Y caste. And whanne the child hadde runne, he castide another arowe biyende the child.
37 And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan called after the lad, and said, Behold, the arrow is beyond thee!
Therfor the child cam to the place of the arowe which Jonathas hadde sent; and Jonathas criede bihynde the `bak of the child, and seide, Lo! the arowe is not there, certis it is biyende thee.
38 And Jonathan called after the lad, Make haste, speed, stay not: and Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master.
And Jonathas criede eft bihynde the bak of the child, `and seide, Haste thou swiftli, stonde thou not. Therfor the child gaderide the arowis of Jonathas, and brouyte to his lord,
39 But the lad knew not the least: only Jonathan and David knew the matter.
and outerli he wiste not what was doon; for oonli Jonathas and Dauid knewen the thing.
40 And Jonathan gave his weapons unto the lad who was with him, and said unto him, Go, carry them to the city.
Therfor Jonathas yaf hise armeris to the child, and seide to hym, Go thou, bere in to the citee.
41 And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose from the south side [of the stone], and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times: and they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded.
And whanne the child hadde go, Dauid roos fro the place that `yede to the south; and he felde low `in to the erthe, and worschipide the thridde tyme, and thei kissiden hem silf to gidere, and `wepten to gidere; forsothe Dauid wepte more.
42 And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace: what we have sworn, both of us, in the name of the Lord, saying, The Lord shall be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever, [shall be kept]. And he arose and departed; and Jonathan went into the city.
Therfor Jonathas seide to Dauid, Go thou in pees; what euer thingis we bothe han swoore in the `name of the Lord, `and seiden, `The Lord be bitwixe me and thee, and bitwixe my seed and thi seed til in to with outen ende, `be stidfast. And Dauid roos, and yede, but also Jonathas entride in to the citee.
