1 Samuel 20
1 And David flees from Naioth in Ramah, and comes, and says before Jonathan, “What have I done? What [is] my iniquity? And what [is] my sin before your father, that he is seeking my life?”
And David fled from Naioth by Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? what is mine iniquity, and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeks my life?
2 And he says to him, “Far be it! You do not die; behold, my father does not do anything great or small and does not uncover my ear; and why does my father hide this thing from me? This [thing] is not.”
And he said to him, God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father will do nothing either great or small, and not apprise me; and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so.
3 And David swears again and says, “Your father has certainly known that I have found grace in your eyes, and he says, Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he is grieved; and yet, YHWH lives, and your soul lives, but—as a step between me and death.”
And David swore again and again, and said, Thy father certainly knows that I have found favour in thy sight: and he has thought, Jonathan shall not know this, lest he be grieved; but truly [as] Jehovah liveth, and [as] thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death.
4 And Jonathan says to David, “What does your soul [desire]? Command and I do it for you.”
And Jonathan said to David, What thy soul may say, I will even do it for thee.
5 And David says to Jonathan, “Behold, the new moon [is] tomorrow; and I certainly sit with the king to eat; and you have sent me away, and I have been hidden in a field until the third evening;
And David said to Jonathan, Behold, to-morrow is new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat; but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field until the third evening.
6 if your father looks after me at all, then you have said, David earnestly asked of me to run to his city of Beth-Lehem, for there [is] a sacrifice of the days for all the family.
If thy father should actually miss me, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Bethlehem his city; for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.
7 If thus he says: Good; [there is] peace for your servant; and if it is very displeasing to him—know that the evil has been determined by him;
If he say thus, It is well, — thy servant shall have peace; but if he be very wroth, be sure that evil is determined by him.
8 and you have done kindness to your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of YHWH with you—and if there is iniquity in me, put me to death yourself; for why [is] this [that] you bring me to your father?”
Deal kindly then with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of Jehovah with thee; but if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?
9 And Jonathan says, “Far be it from you! For I certainly do not know that the evil has been determined by my father to come on you, and I do not declare it to you.”
And Jonathan said, Far be it from thee; for, if I knew with certainty that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, would I not tell it thee?
10 And David says to Jonathan, “Who declares [it] to me? Or what [if] your father answers you sharply?”
Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? or what if thy father answer thee roughly?
11 And Jonathan says to David, “Come, and we go out into the field”; and both of them go out into the field.
And Jonathan said to David, Come and let us go out into the field. And they went out both of them into the field.
12 And Jonathan says to David, “YHWH, God of Israel, [is my witness]—when I search out my father about [this] time tomorrow [or] the third [day], and behold, [there is] good toward David, and I do not then send to you, and have uncovered your ear—
And Jonathan said to David, Jehovah, God of Israel, when I sound my father about this time to-morrow, [or] the next day, and behold, there be good toward David, and I then send not to thee, and apprise thee of it,
13 thus YHWH does to Jonathan, and thus He adds; when the evil concerning you is good to my father, then I have uncovered your ear, and sent you away, and you have gone in peace, and YHWH is with you, as he was with my father;
Jehovah do so and much more to Jonathan. Should it please my father [to do] thee evil, then I will apprise thee of it, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace; and Jehovah be with thee, as he has been with my father.
14 and not only while I am alive do you do the kindness of YHWH with me, and I do not die,
And thou shalt not only while yet I live shew me the kindness of Jehovah, that I die not,
15 but you do not cut off your kindness from my house for all time, nor in YHWH’s cutting off the enemies of David, each one from off the face of the ground.”
but thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever, no, not when Jehovah cuts off the enemies of David, every one from the face of the earth.
16 So Jonathan cuts [a covenant] with the house of David, and YHWH has sought [it] from the hand of the enemies of David;
And Jonathan made [a covenant] with the house of David, [saying, ] Let Jehovah even require [it] at the hand of David's enemies!
17 and Jonathan adds to cause David to swear, because he loves him, for he has loved him [as] the love [for] his own soul.
And Jonathan caused David to swear again, by the love he had for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
18 And Jonathan says to him, “Tomorrow [is] the new moon, and you have been looked after, for your seat is looked after;
And Jonathan said to him, To-morrow is the new moon; and thou wilt be missed, for thy seat will be empty;
19 and on the third day you certainly come down, and have come to the place where you were hidden in the day of the work, and have remained near the stone of Ezel.
but on the third day thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself on the day of the business, and abide by the stone Ezel.
20 And I shoot three of the arrows at the side, sending out at a mark for myself;
And I will shoot three arrows on the side of it, as though I shot at a mark.
21 and behold, I send the youth, [saying], Go, find the arrows. If I say to the youth at all, Behold, the arrows [are] on this side of you—take them and come, for [there is] peace for you, and there is no [adverse] word—[as] YHWH lives.
And behold, I will send the lad, [saying, ] Go, find the arrows. If I expressly say to the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come, for there is peace for thee, and it is nothing; [as] Jehovah liveth.
22 And if thus I say to the young man, Behold, the arrows [are] beyond you—go, for YHWH has sent you away;
But if I say thus to the youth: Behold, the arrows are beyond thee, — go thy way; for Jehovah sends thee away.
23 as for the thing which you and I have spoken, behold, YHWH [is] between me and you for all time.”
And as to the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, Jehovah is between me and thee for ever.
24 And David is hidden in the field, and it is the new moon, and the king sits down by the food to eat,
And David hid himself in the field; and it was the new moon, and the king sat at table to eat.
25 and the king sits on his seat, as time by time, on a seat by the wall, and Jonathan rises, and Abner sits at the side of Saul, and David’s place is looked after.
And the king sat on his seat, as at other times, on the seat by the wall; and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul's side, and David's place was empty.
26 And Saul has not spoken anything on that day, for he said, “It [is] an accident; he is not clean—surely not clean.”
And Saul said nothing that day; for he thought, Something has befallen [him], that he is not clean: surely he is not clean.
27 And it comes to pass on the second day of the new moon, that David’s place is looked after, and Saul says to his son Jonathan, “Why has the son of Jesse not come in, either yesterday or today, to the food?”
And it came to pass the next day after the new moon, the second [day of the month], as David's place was empty, that Saul said to Jonathan his son, Why has not the son of Jesse come to table, neither yesterday nor to-day?
28 And Jonathan answers Saul, “David has earnestly asked [permission] from me [to go] to Beth-Lehem,
And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me [to go] to Bethlehem,
29 and he says, Please send me away, for we have a family sacrifice in the city, and my brother has given command to me himself, and now, if I have found grace in your eyes, please let me go away and see my brothers; therefore he has not come to the table of the king.”
and said, Let me go, I pray thee; for we have a family sacrifice in the city; and my brother himself has commanded me [to be there]; and now, if I have found favour in thy sight, let me go away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. He has therefore not come to the king's table.
30 And the anger of Saul burns against Jonathan, and he says to him, “Son of a perverse [woman] of rebellion! Have I not known that you are fixing on the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of the nakedness of your mother?
And Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him, Son of the perverse rebellious woman, do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own shame and to the shame of thy mother's nakedness?
31 For all the days that the son of Jesse lives on the ground you are not established, you and your kingdom; and now, send and bring him to me, for he [is] a son of death.”
For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon earth, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. And now send and fetch him to me, for he must die.
32 And Jonathan answers his father Saul and says to him, “Why is he put to death? What has he done?”
And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, Why should he be put to death? what has he done?
33 And Saul casts the javelin at him to strike him, and Jonathan knows that it has been determined by his father to put David to death.
Then Saul cast the spear at him to smite him; and Jonathan knew that it was determined by his father to put David to death.
34 And Jonathan rises from the table in the heat of anger, and has not eaten food on the second day of the new moon, for he has been grieved for David, for his father put him to shame.
And Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and ate no meat the second day of the new moon; for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame.
35 And it comes to pass in the morning, that Jonathan goes out into the field for the appointment with David, and a little youth [is] with him.
And it came to pass in the morning that Jonathan went out into the field, to the place agreed on with David, and a little lad with him.
36 And he says to his youth, “Now run, find the arrows which I am shooting”; the youth is running, and he has shot the arrow, causing [it] to pass over him.
And he said to his lad, Run, find now the arrows which I shoot. The lad ran, and he shot the arrow beyond him.
37 And the youth comes to the place of the arrow which Jonathan has shot, and Jonathan calls after the youth, and says, “Is the arrow not beyond you?”
And when the lad came to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad and said, Is not the arrow away beyond thee?
38 And Jonathan calls after the youth, “Speed, hurry, do not stand”; and Jonathan’s youth gathers the arrows, and comes to his lord.
And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not! And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master.
39 And the youth has not known anything, only Jonathan and David knew the word.
And the lad knew nothing: only Jonathan and David knew the matter.
40 And Jonathan gives his weapons to the youth whom he has and says to him, “Go, carry into the city.”
And Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad, and said to him, Go, carry them to the city.
41 The youth has gone, and David has risen from Ezel, at the south, and falls on his face to the earth, and bows himself three times, and they kiss one another, and they weep with one another, until David exerted himself;
The lad went, and David arose from the side of the south, 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.
42 and Jonathan says to David, “Go in peace, in that we have sworn—the two of us—in the Name of YHWH, saying, YHWH is between me and you, and between my seed and your seed—for all time”; and he rises and goes; and Jonathan has gone into the city.
And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have both of us sworn in the name of Jehovah, saying, Jehovah be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever! And he arose and departed; and Jonathan went into the city.
