1 Samuel 20:18-42

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁸ Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon; and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty. ¹⁹ And on the third day you will be greatly missed;^[a] then go to the place where you hid yourself when the matter was in hand, and remain beside yonder stone heap.^{[b] 20} And I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I shot at a mark. ²¹ And behold, I will send the lad, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I say to the lad, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you, take them,’ then you are to come, for, as the Lord lives, it is safe for you and there is no danger. ²² But if I say to the youth, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go; for the Lord has sent you away. ²³ And as for the matter of which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord is between you and me for ever.”

²⁴ So David hid himself in the field; and when the new moon came, the king sat down to eat food. ²⁵ The king sat upon his seat, as at other times, upon the seat by the wall; Jonathan sat opposite,^[c] and Abner sat by Saul’s side, but David’s place was empty.

²⁶ Yet Saul did not say anything that day; for he thought, “Something has befallen him; he is not clean, surely he is not clean.” ²⁷ But on the second day, the morrow after the new moon, David’s place was empty. And Saul said to Jonathan his son, “Why has not the son of Jesse come to the meal, either yesterday or today?” ²⁸ Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Bethlehem; ²⁹ he said, ‘Let me go; for our family holds a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to be there. So now, if I have found favor in your eyes, let me get away, and see my brothers.’ For this reason he has not come to the king’s table.”

³⁰ Then Saul’s anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him, “You son of a perverse, rebellious woman, do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness? ³¹ For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon the earth, neither you nor your kingdom shall be established. Therefore send and fetch him to me, for he shall surely die.” ³² Then Jonathan answered Saul his father, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?” ³³ But Saul cast his spear at him to smite him; so Jonathan knew that his father was determined to put David to death. ³⁴ And Jonathan rose from the table in fierce anger and ate no food the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David, because his father had disgraced him.

³⁵ In the morning Jonathan went out into the field to the appointment with David, and with him a little lad. ³⁶ And he said to his lad, “Run and find the arrows which I shoot.” As the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. ³⁷ And when the lad came to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan called after the lad and said, “Is not the arrow beyond you?” ³⁸ And Jonathan called after the lad, “Hurry, make haste, stay not.” So Jonathan’s lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master. ³⁹ But the lad knew nothing; only Jonathan and David knew the matter. ⁴⁰ And Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad, and said to him, “Go and carry them to the city.” ⁴¹ And as soon as the lad had gone, David rose from beside the stone heap^[d] and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times; and they kissed one another, and wept with one another, until David recovered himself.^{[e] 42} Then Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord shall be between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants, for ever.’” And he rose and departed; and Jonathan went into the city.^[f]