1 Samuel 20
1 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?
And David fled from Navath in Rama, and comes into the presence of Jonathan; and he said, What have I done, and what [is] my fault, and wherein have I sinned before your father, that he seeks my life?
2 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.
And Jonathan said to him, Far be it from you: you shall not die: behold, my father will not do any thing great or small without discovering it to me; and why should my father hide this matter from me? This thing is not [so].
3 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.
And David answered Jonathan, and said, Your father knows surely that I have found grace in your sight, and he said, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he refuse his consent: but [as] the Lord lives and your soul lives, as I said, [the space] is filled up between me and death.
4 And Jonathas seide to Dauid, What euer thing thi soule schal seie to me, Y schal do to thee.
And Jonathan said to David, What does your soul desire, and what shall I do for you.
5 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.
And David said to Jonathan, Behold, to-morrow [is] the new moon, and I shall not on any account sit down to eat, but you shall let me go, and I will hide in the plain till the evening.
6 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.
And if your father do in anyway enquire for me, then shall you say, David earnestly asked leave of me to run to Bethleem his city, for [there is] there, a yearly sacrifice for all the family.
7 If he seith, Wel, pees schal be to thi seruaunt; forsothe if he is wrooth, wite thou, that his malice is fillid.
If he shall say thus, Well, — [all is] safe for your servant: but if he shall answer harshly to you, know that evil is determined by him.
8 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.
And you shall deal mercifully with your servant; for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with yourself: and if there is iniquity in your servant, kill me yourself; but why do you thus bring me to your father?
9 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.
And Jonathan said, That be far from you: for if I surely know that evil is determined by my father to come upon you, although it should not be against your cities, I will tell you.
10 And Dauid answeride to Jonathas, Who schal telle to me, if in caas thi fadir answerith harde ony thing of me?
And David said to Jonathan, Who can tell me if your father should answer roughly?
11 And Jonathas seide to Dauid, Come thou, and go we forth in to the feeld. And whanne bothe hadden go in to the feeld,
And Jonathan said to David, Go, and abide in the field. And they went out both into the field.
12 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,
And Jonathan said to David, the Lord God of Israel knows that I will sound my father as I have an opportunity, three several times, and, behold, [if good] should be determined concerning David, and I do not send to you to the field,
13 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.
God do so to Jonathan and more also: as I shall [also] report the evil to you, and make it known to you, and I will let you go; and you shall depart in peace, and the Lord shall be with you, as he was with my father.
14 And if Y lyue, do thou the mercies of the Lord to me;
And if indeed I continue to live, then shall you deal mercifully with me; and if I indeed die,
15 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.
you shall not withdraw your mercy from my house for ever: and if you do not, when the Lord cuts off the enemies of David each from the face of the earth,
16 Therfor Jonathas made boond of pees with the hows of Dauid, and the Lord souyte of the hond of enemyes of Dauid.
[should it happen] that the name of Jonathan be discovered by the house of David, then let the Lord seek out the enemies of David.
17 And Jonathas addide to swere stedfastli to Dauid, for he louyde Dauid; for he louyde so Dauid, as his owne soule.
And Jonathan swore yet again to David, because he loved the soul of him that loved him.
18 And Jonathas seide to hym, `Calendis ben to morewe, and thou schalt be souyt;
And Jonathan said, To-morrow [is] the new moon, and you will be enquired for, because your seat will be observed as vacant.
19 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.
And you shall stay three days, and watch an opportunity, and shall come to your place where you may hide yourself in the day of your business, and you shall wait by that stone Ezel.
20 And Y schal sende thre arowis bisidis that stoon, and Y schal caste as `excercisynge ether pleiynge me at a signe.
And I will shoot three arrows, aiming them at a mark.
21 Y schal sende also and my child, and Y schal seie to hym, Go thou, and brynge to me the arewis.
And behold, I [will] send a lad, saying, Go find me the arrow.
22 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.
If I should expressly say to the lad, The arrow [is] here, and on this side of you, take it; [then] come, for it is well with you, and there is no reason [for fear, as] the Lord lives: [but] if I should say thus to the young man, The arrow [is] on that side of you, and beyond; go, for the Lord has sent you away.
23 Forsothe of the word, which thou and Y han spoke, the Lord be bitwixe me and thee til in to with outen ende.
And as for the word which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord [is] witness between me and you for ever.
24 Therfor Dauid was hid in the feeld; and the `calendis camen, and the kyng sat to ete breed.
So David hides himself in the field, and the [new] month arrives, and the king comes to the table to eat.
25 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.
And he sat upon his seat as in former times, even on his seat by the wall, and he went before Jonathan; and Abenner sat on one side of Saul, and the place of David was empty.
26 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.
And Saul said nothing on that day, for he said, It seems to have fallen out that he is not clean, because he has not purified himself.
27 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?
And it came to pass on the morrow, on the second day of the month, that the place of David was empty; and Saul said to Jonathan his son, Why has not the son of Jessae attended both yesterday and today at the table?
28 And Jonathas answeride to Saul, He preiede me mekeli, that he schulde go in to Bethleem;
And Jonathan answered Saul, and said to him, David asked leave of me to go as far as Bethleem his city;
29 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.
and he said, Let me go, I pray you, for we have a family sacrifice in the city, and my brethren have sent for me; and now, if I have found grace in your eyes, I will even go over and see my brethren: therefore he is not present at the table of the king.
30 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?
And Saul was exceedingly angry with Jonathan, and said to him, You son of traitorous damsels! for do I not know that you are an accomplice with the son of Jessae to your same, and to the shame of your mother's nakedness?
31 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.
For so long as the son of Jessae lives upon the earth, your kingdom shall not be established: now then send and take the young man, for he shall surely die.
32 Sotheli Jonathas answeride to Saul his fadir, and seide, Whi schal he die? what hath he do?
And Jonathan answered Saul, Why is he to die? What has he done?
33 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.
And Saul lifted up his spear against Jonathan to kill him: so Jonathan knew that this evil was determined on by his father to kill David.
34 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.
And Jonathan sprang up from the table in great anger, and did not eat bread on the second [day] of the month, for he grieved bitterly for David, because his father determined [on mischief] against him.
35 And whanne the morewtid `hadde schyned, Jonathas cam in to the feeld, and a litil child with hym, bi the couenaunt of Dauid.
And morning came, and Jonathan went out to the field, as he appointed [to do] for a signal to David, and a little boy [was] with him.
36 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.
And he said to the boy, Run, find me the arrows which I shoot: and the boy ran, and [Jonathan] shot an arrow, and sent it beyond [him].
37 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.
And the boy came to the place where the arrow was which Jonathan shot; and Jonathan cried out after the lad, and said, The arrow [is] on that side of you and beyond you.
38 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,
And Jonathan cried out after his boy, saying, Make all speed, and stay not. And Jonathan's boy gathered up the arrows, and brought the arrows to his master.
39 and outerli he wiste not what was doon; for oonli Jonathas and Dauid knewen the thing.
And the boy knew nothing, only Jonathan and David [knew].
40 Therfor Jonathas yaf hise armeris to the child, and seide to hym, Go thou, bere in to the citee.
And Jonathan gave his weapons to his boy, and said to his boy, Go, enter into the city.
41 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.
And when the lad went in, then David arose from the south, and fell upon his face, and did obeisance to him three times, and they kissed each other, and wept for each other, for a great while.
42 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.
And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, and as we have both sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, The Lord shall be witness between me and you, and between my seed and your seed for ever—[even so let it be]. And David arose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city.
