The Friendship of David and Jonathan

20 David fled from Naioth in Ramah. He came before Jonathan and said, “What have I done? What is my guilt? And what is my sin against your father that he is trying to take my life?”^{(A) 2} He said to him, “Far from it! You shall not die. My father does nothing either great or small without disclosing it to me, and why should my father hide this from me? Never!” ³ But David also swore, “Your father knows well that you like me, and he thinks, ‘Do not let Jonathan know this, or he will be grieved.’ But truly, as the Lord lives and as you yourself live, there is but a step between me and death.” ⁴ Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.” ⁵ David said to Jonathan, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at the meal, but let me go, so that I may hide in the field until the third evening.^{(B) 6} If your father misses me at all, then say, ‘David earnestly asked leave of me to run to Bethlehem his city, for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.’^{(C) 7} If he says, ‘Good!’ it will be well with your servant, but if he is angry, then know that evil has been determined by him. ⁸ Therefore deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a sacred covenant^[a] with you. But if there is guilt in me, kill me yourself; why should you bring me to your father?”^{(D) 9} Jonathan said, “Far be it from you! If I knew that it was decided by my father that evil should come upon you, would I not tell you?” ¹⁰ Then David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?” ¹¹ Jonathan replied to David, “Come, let us go out into the field.” So they both went out into the field.

¹² Jonathan said to David, “By the Lord, the God of Israel! When I have sounded out my father, about this time tomorrow or on the third day, if he is well disposed toward David, shall I not then send and disclose it to you? ¹³ But if my father intends to do you harm, the Lord do so to Jonathan and more also, if I do not disclose it to you and send you away, so that you may go in safety. May the Lord be with you, as he has been with my father.^{(E) 14} If I am still alive, show me the faithful love of the Lord, but if I die,^{[b] 15} never cut off your faithful love from my house, even if the Lord were to cut off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.”^{(F) 16} Thus Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “May the Lord seek out the enemies of David.” ¹⁷ Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own life.^(G)

¹⁸ Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon; you will be missed because your place will be empty.^{(H) 19} On the day after tomorrow, you shall go a long way down; go to the place where you hid yourself earlier, and remain beside the stone there.^{[c](I) 20} I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I shot at a mark. ²¹ Then I will send the boy, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; collect 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 young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go, for the Lord has sent you away.^{(J) 23} As for the matter about which you and I have spoken, the Lord be between you and me forever.”^(K)

²⁴ So David hid himself in the field. When the new moon came, the king sat at the feast to eat. ²⁵ The king sat upon his seat, as at other times, upon the seat by the wall. Jonathan stood, while Abner sat by Saul’s side, but David’s place was empty.^(L)

²⁶ Saul did not say anything that day, for he thought, “Something has befallen him; he is not clean; surely he is not clean.”^{(M) 27} But on the second day, the day after the new moon, David’s place was empty. And Saul said to his son Jonathan, “Why has the son of Jesse not come to the feast, either yesterday or today?” ²⁸ Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Bethlehem;^{(N) 29} he said, ‘Let me go, for our family is holding a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to be there. So now, if I have found favor in your sight, 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. He said to him, “You son of a rebellious woman!^[d] 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?^{(O) 31} For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon the earth, neither you nor your kingdom shall be established. Now send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die.” ³² Then Jonathan answered his father Saul, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?”^{(P) 33} But Saul threw his spear at him to strike him, so Jonathan knew that it was the decision of his father to put David to death.^{(Q) 34} Jonathan sprang up^[e] from the table in fierce anger and ate no food on the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David and because his father had disgraced him.

³⁵ In the morning Jonathan went out into the field to the appointment with David, and with him was a little boy. ³⁶ He said to the boy, “Run and find the arrows that I shoot.” As the boy ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.^{(R) 37} When the boy came to the place where Jonathan’s arrow had fallen, Jonathan called after the boy and said, “Is the arrow not beyond you?”^{(S) 38} Jonathan called after the boy, “Hurry, be quick, do not linger.” So Jonathan’s boy gathered up the arrows and came to his master. ³⁹ But the boy knew nothing; only Jonathan and David knew the arrangement. ⁴⁰ Jonathan gave his weapons to the boy and said to him, “Go and carry them to the city.” ⁴¹ As soon as the boy had gone, David rose from beside the stone heap^[f] and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He bowed three times, and they kissed each other and wept with each other; David wept the more.^{[g] 42} Then Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, since both of us have sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord shall be between me and you and between my descendants and your descendants forever.’ ” He got up and left, and Jonathan went into the city.^[h](T)

Descendants of Judah

4 The sons of Judah: Perez, Hezron, Carmi, Hur, and Shobal.^{(A) 2} Reaiah son of Shobal became the father of Jahath, and Jahath became the father of Ahumai and Lahad. These were the families of the Zorathites. ³ These were the sons^[a] of Etam: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash; and the name of their sister was Hazzelelponi, ⁴ and Penuel was the father of Gedor, and Ezer was the father of Hushah. These were the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah, the father of Bethlehem.^{(B) 5} Ashhur father of Tekoa had two wives, Helah and Naarah;^{(C) 6} Naarah bore him Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari.^[b] These were the sons of Naarah. ⁷ The sons of Helah: Zereth, Izhar,^[c] and Ethnan. ⁸ Koz became the father of Anub, Zobebah, and the families of Aharhel son of Harum. ⁹ Jabez was honored more than his brothers, and his mother named him Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.”^{(D) 10} Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory and that your hand might be with me and that you would keep me from hurt and harm!” And God granted what he asked. ¹¹ Chelub the brother of Shuhah became the father of Mehir, who was the father of Eshton. ¹² Eshton became the father of Beth-rapha, Paseah, and Tehinnah the father of Ir-nahash. These are the men of Recah. ¹³ The sons of Kenaz: Othniel and Seraiah; and the sons of Othniel: Hathath and Meonothai.^{[d](E) 14} Meonothai became the father of Ophrah, and Seraiah became the father of Joab father of Ge-harashim,^[e] so-called because they were artisans.^{(F) 15} The sons of Caleb son of Jephunneh: Iru, Elah, and Naam; and the son of Elah: Kenaz. ¹⁶ The sons of Jehallelel: Ziph, Ziphah, Tiria, and Asarel. ¹⁷ The sons of Ezrah: Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. These are the sons of Bithiah, daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered married,^[f] and she conceived and bore^[g] Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah father of Eshtemoa. ¹⁸ And his Judean wife bore Jered father of Gedor, Heber father of Soco, and Jekuthiel father of Zanoah. ¹⁹ The sons of the wife of Hodiah, the sister of Naham, were the fathers of Keilah the Garmite and Eshtemoa the Maacathite. ²⁰ The sons of Shimon: Amnon, Rinnah, Ben-hanan, and Tilon. The sons of Ishi: Zoheth and Ben-zoheth. ²¹ The sons of Shelah son of Judah: Er father of Lecah, Laadah father of Mareshah, and the families of the guild of linen workers at Beth-ashbea;^{(G) 22} and Jokim, and the men of Cozeba, and Joash, and Saraph, who married into Moab but returned to Lehem^[h] (the records^[i] are ancient). ²³ These were the potters and inhabitants of Netaim and Gederah; they lived there with the king in his service.

Descendants of Simeon

²⁴ The sons of Simeon: Nemuel, Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, Shaul;^{[j](H) 25} Shallum was his son, Mibsam his son, Mishma his son. ²⁶ The sons of Mishma: Hammuel his son, Zaccur his son, Shimei his son. ²⁷ Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters, but his brothers did not have many children, nor did all their family multiply like the Judeans. ²⁸ They lived in Beer-sheba, Moladah, Hazar-shual,^{(I) 29} Bilhah, Ezem, Tolad, ³⁰ Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag,^{(J) 31} Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susim, Beth-biri, and Shaaraim. These were their towns until David became king. ³² And their villages were Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan, five towns, ³³ along with all their villages that were around these towns as far as Baal. These were their settlements. And they kept a genealogical record.

³⁴ Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshah son of Amaziah, ³⁵ Joel, Jehu son of Joshibiah son of Seraiah son of Asiel, ³⁶ Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah, ³⁷ Ziza son of Shiphi son of Allon son of Jedaiah son of Shimri son of Shemaiah— ³⁸ these mentioned by name were leaders in their families, and their clans increased greatly. ³⁹ They journeyed to the entrance of Gedor, to the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks, ⁴⁰ where they found rich, good pasture, and the land was very broad, quiet, and peaceful, for the former inhabitants there belonged to Ham.^{(K) 41} These, registered by name, came in the days of King Hezekiah of Judah and attacked their tents and the Meunim who were found there and exterminated them to this day and settled in their place, because there was pasture there for their flocks.^{(L) 42} And some of them, five hundred men of the Simeonites, went to Mount Seir, having as their leaders Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel, sons of Ishi; ⁴³ they destroyed the remnant of the Amalekites who had escaped, and they have lived there to this day.^(M)

Psalm 56

Trust in God under Persecution

To the leader: according to The Dove on Far-off Terebinths. Of David. A Miktam, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

Psalm 57

Praise and Assurance under Persecution

To the leader: Do Not Destroy. Of David. A Miktam, when he fled from Saul, in the cave.

Psalm 142

Prayer for Deliverance from Persecutors

A Maskil of David. When he was in the cave. A Prayer.

Paul and Barnabas in Iconium

14 The same thing occurred in Iconium, where Paul^[a] and Barnabas^[b] went into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks became believers. ² But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. ³ So they remained for a long time speaking boldly for the Lord, who testified to the word of his grace by granting signs and wonders to be done through them.^{(A) 4} But the residents of the city were divided: some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles.^{(B) 5} And when an attempt was made by both gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them,^{(C) 6} the apostles^[c] learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region,^{(D) 7} and there they continued proclaiming the good news.

Paul and Barnabas in Lystra and Derbe

⁸ In Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet and had never walked, for he had been lame from birth.^{(E) 9} He listened to Paul as he was speaking. And Paul, looking at him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed,^{(F) 10} said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.” And the man^[d] sprang up and began to walk. ¹¹ When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”^{(G) 12} Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. ¹³ The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city,^[e] brought oxen and garlands to the gates; he and the crowds wanted to offer sacrifice. ¹⁴ When the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting, ¹⁵ “People,^[f] why are you doing this? We are mortals just like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.^{(H) 16} In past generations he allowed all peoples to follow their own ways,^{(I) 17} yet he has not left himself without a witness in doing good, giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons and filling you with food and your hearts with joy.”^{(J) 18} Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds from offering sacrifice to them.

¹⁹ But Jews came there from Antioch and Iconium and won over the crowds. Then they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.^{(K) 20} But when the disciples surrounded him, he got up and went into the city. The next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe.^(L)

The Return to Antioch in Syria

²¹ After they had proclaimed the good news to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, then on to Iconium and Antioch. ²² There they strengthened the souls of the disciples and encouraged them to continue in the faith, saying, “It is through many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God.”^{(M) 23} And after they had appointed elders for them in each church, with prayer and fasting they entrusted them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.^(N)

²⁴ Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. ²⁵ When they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. ²⁶ From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work^[g] that they had completed.^{(O) 27} When they arrived, they called the church together and related all that God had done with them and how he had opened a door of faith for the gentiles. ²⁸ And they stayed there with the disciples for some time.