1 Samuel 20
1 And David fled from Naioth, in Ramah, —and came in, and said before Jonathan—What have I done? What is my transgression, and what 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—Far be it! thou shalt not die. Lo! my father doeth nothing, great or small, without unveiling mine ear, —wherefore, then, should my father hide from me, this thing? There is, nothing, in this.
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 sware yet further, and said—Thy father, doth know, that I have found favour in thine eyes, therefore saith he, —Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he grieve; but, indeed, by the life of Yahweh, and by the life of thine own soul, surely there is but as it were a step betwixt 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 And Jonathan said unto David, —Whatsoever thy soul shall desire, I will 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—Lo! the new moon, is to-morrow, and, I, must not sit with the king, to eat, —let me go then, and hide myself in the field, until the 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, enquire, for me, then shalt thou say—David, did ask leave, of me, to run to Bethlehem, his own city, for, a yearly sacrifice, [is to be held] 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, thus, he say—It is well, —thy servant shall have, peace, —but, if it, anger, him, know that harm hath been determined 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 Thus shalt thou do a lovingkindness for thy servant, for, into a covenant of Yahweh, hast thou brought thy servant, with thee, —But, if there is in me transgression, put me to death, thyself, for, unto thy father, wherefore shouldst thou bring me in?
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! but, if I, get to know, that harm is determined by my father, to bring it upon thee, is not, that, the thing that I will tell 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 unto Jonathan, Who shall tell me, —if thy father answer thee aught that is, harsh?
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! and let us go out into the field. And they two went out 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 Then said Jonathan unto David—Witness [be] Yahweh God of Israel, that I will sound my father about this time to-morrow or the third day, and lo! if there he good towards David, will I not, then, send unto thee, and unveil thine ear?
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 So, let Yahweh do unto Jonathan, and, so, let him add—when harm against thee seemeth good unto my father, then will I unveil thine ear, and let thee go, and thou shall depart in peace, —then Yahweh 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, not only while I yet live, shalt thou deal with me in the lovingkindness of Yahweh, that I die not:
And if Y lyue, do thou the mercies of the Lord to me;
15 but thou shalt not cut off thy lovingkindness from my house, unto times age-abiding, —no! not when Yahweh hath cut off the enemies of David, every one from off the face of the ground.
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 Thus Jonathan solemnised a covenant with the house of David [saying], —So let Yahweh require it, at the hand of the enemies of David.
Therfor Jonathas made boond of pees with the hows of Dauid, and the Lord souyte of the hond of enemyes of Dauid.
17 And again Jonathan sware unto David, by his love to him, —for, as he loved his own soul, so loved he him.
And Jonathas addide to swere stedfastli to Dauid, for he louyde Dauid; for he louyde so Dauid, as his owne soule.
18 Then said Jonathan unto him—To-morrow, is the new moon, and thou wilt be missed, for thy seat will be empty;
And Jonathas seide to hym, `Calendis ben to morewe, and thou schalt be souyt;
19 and, when thou hast tarried three days, thou shalt come down quickly and enter the place, where thou didst hide thyself on the day of the deed, and shall remain by the side of this mound.
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, as for me—three arrows to the side, will I shoot, —as though I shot 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 lo! I will send the boy [saying], Go, find the arrow! If I, say, to the boy—Lo! the arrows, are on this side of thee—take them, then come, for there is peace for thee, and no cause [for fear], by the life of Yahweh.
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 say to the youth, Lo! the arrows are beyond thee, depart, for Yahweh hath sent thee away.
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 But, as touching the matter whereof we spake—I and thou, lo! Yahweh, be betwixt me and thee, unto times age-abiding.
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 had come, the king sat down to eat, food,
Therfor Dauid was hid in the feeld; and the `calendis camen, and the kyng sat to ete breed.
25 yea the king sat down on his seat, as at other times, by the seat against the wall, and, when Jonathan arose, Abner seated himself by the side of Saul, —but David’s place was 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 Saul, however, spake nothing that day, —for he said to himself—It is, an accident, he is, not clean, because he hath not been cleansed.
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 of the month, that David’s place was empty, —and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore hath not the son of Jesse come in, either yesterday or to-day, to meat?
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 leave, of me, [to go] as far as Bethlehem;
And Jonathas answeride to Saul, He preiede me mekeli, that he schulde go in to Bethleem;
29 and said—Let me go, I pray thee, for, a family sacrifice, have we in the city, and my brethren have commanded me, now, therefore, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me slip away, I pray thee, that I may see my brethren. For this cause, hath he not come in unto the table of the king.
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 Then was Saul’s anger kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him, Thou son of rebellious perversity! do I not know that thou art, confederate, with the son of Jesse to thine own confusion, and to the confusion of the shame of thy mother?
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, as long as, the son of Jesse, liveth on the ground, thou wilt not be established, thou nor thy kingdom, Now, therefore, send and fetch him unto me, for, doomed to death, is he!
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 responded to Saul his father, —and said unto him—Wherefore must 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 hurled his spear at him, to smite him. So Jonathan knew that it was, determined, of 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 Jonathan therefore rose up from the table, in a glow of anger, —and did eat no food on the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David, because his father had reviled him.
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 forth into the field, to the place appointed with David, —a little lad, being 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 to his lad—Run, find, I pray thee, the arrows which I am about to shoot. The boy, ran, but, he, shot the arrow 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 came as far as the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Is not the arrow, 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 cried after the lad, Haste thee—be quick, do not stay! so Jonathan’s lad picked up the arrows and brought [them] unto 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, nothing, only Jonathan and David, knew the matter.
and outerli he wiste not what was doon; for oonli Jonathas and Dauid knewen the thing.
40 So Jonathan gave his weapons unto his lad, and said to him, Go carry them into the city.
Therfor Jonathas yaf hise armeris to the child, and seide to hym, Go thou, bere in to the citee.
41 As soon as, the lad, was gone, David, arose from beside the South, and fell on his face to the earth, and bowed himself down three times, —and they kissed each other, and wept over each other, 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 Then said Jonathan unto David—Go in peace, —[remembering] that, we, have both sworn in the name of Yahweh, saying, Yahweh shall be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed, unto times age-abiding. And he arose, and departed, —and, Jonathan, entered 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.
