Berean Study Bible

New American Standard Bible 1995

1Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah. He came to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? What is my iniquity? How have I sinned against your father, that he wants to take my life?”

1Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said to Jonathan, "What have I done? What is my iniquity? And what is my sin before your father, that he is seeking my life?"

2“Far from it!” Jonathan replied. “You will not die. Indeed, my father does nothing, great or small, without telling me. So why would he hide this matter from me? This cannot be true!”

2He said to him, "Far from it, you shall not die. Behold, my father does nothing either great or small without disclosing it to me. So why should my father hide this thing from me? It is not so!"

3But David again vowed, “Your father knows very well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he has said, ‘Jonathan must not know of this, or he will be grieved.’ As surely as the LORD lives and as you yourself live, there is but a step between me and death.”

3Yet David vowed again, saying, "Your father knows well that I have found favor in your sight, and he has said, 'Do not let Jonathan know this, or he will be grieved.' But truly as the LORD lives and as your soul lives, there is hardly a step between me and death."

4Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you desire, I will do for you.”

4Then Jonathan said to David, "Whatever you say, I will do for you."

5So David told him, “Look, tomorrow is the New Moon, and I am supposed to dine with the king. Instead, let me go and hide in the field until the third evening from now.

5So David said to Jonathan, "Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I ought to sit down to eat with the king. But let me go, that I may hide myself in the field until the third evening.

6If your father misses me at all, tell him, ‘David urgently requested my permission to hurry to Bethlehem, his hometown, because there is an annual sacrifice for his whole clan.’

6"If your father misses me at all, then say, 'David earnestly asked leave of me to run to Bethlehem his city, because it is the yearly sacrifice there for the whole family.'

7If he says, ‘Good,’ then your servant is safe, but if he is enraged, you will know he has evil intentions.

7"If he says, 'It is good,' your servant will be safe; but if he is very angry, know that he has decided on evil.

8Therefore deal faithfully with your servant, for you have brought me into a covenant with you before the LORD. If there is iniquity in me, then kill me yourself; why should you bring me to your father?”

8"Therefore deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the LORD with you. But if there is iniquity in me, put me to death yourself; for why then should you bring me to your father?"

9“Never!” Jonathan replied. “If I ever found out that my father had evil intentions against you, would I not tell you?”

9Jonathan said, "Far be it from you! For if I should indeed learn that evil has been decided by my father to come upon you, then would I not tell you about it?"

10Then David asked Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?”

10Then David said to Jonathan, "Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?"

11“Come,” he replied, “let us go out to the field.” So the two of them went out into the field,

11Jonathan said to David, "Come, and let us go out into the field." So both of them went out to the field.

12and Jonathan said, “By the LORD, the God of Israel, I will sound out my father by this time tomorrow or the next day. If he is favorable toward you, will I not send for you and tell you?

12Then Jonathan said to David, "The LORD, the God of Israel, be witness! When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if there is good feeling toward David, shall I not then send to you and make it known to you?

13But if my father intends to bring evil on you, then may the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if I do not tell you and send you on your way in safety. May the LORD be with you, just as He has been with my father.

13"If it please my father to do you harm, may the LORD do so to Jonathan and more also, if I do not make it known to you and send you away, that you may go in safety. And may the LORD be with you as He has been with my father.

14And as long as I live, treat me with the LORD’s loving devotion, that I may not die,

14"If I am still alive, will you not show me the lovingkindness of the LORD, that I may not die?

15and do not ever cut off your loving devotion from my household—not even when the LORD cuts off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth.”

15"You shall not cut off your lovingkindness from my house forever, not even when the LORD cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth."

16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “May the LORD hold David’s enemies accountable.”

16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the LORD require it at the hands of David's enemies."

17And Jonathan had David reaffirm his vow out of love for him, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.

17Jonathan made David vow again because of his love for him, because he loved him as he loved his own life.

18Then Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon, and you will be missed if your seat is empty.

18Then Jonathan said to him, "Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed because your seat will be empty.

19When you have stayed three days, hurry down to the place you hid on the day this trouble began, and remain beside the stone Ezel.

19"When you have stayed for three days, you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself on that eventful day, and you shall remain by the stone Ezel.

20I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as if I were aiming at a target.

20"I will shoot three arrows to the side, as though I shot at a target.

21Then I will send a boy and say, ‘Go, find the arrows!’ Now, if I expressly say to him, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; bring them,’ then come, because as surely as the LORD lives, it is safe for you and there is no danger.

21"And behold, I will send the lad, saying, 'Go, find the arrows.' If I specifically say to the lad, 'Behold, the arrows are on this side of you, get them,' then come; for there is safety for you and no harm, as the LORD lives.

22But if I say to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then you must go, for the LORD has sent you away.

22"But if I say to the youth, 'Behold, the arrows are beyond you,' go, for the LORD has sent you away.

23And as for the matter you and I have discussed, the LORD is a witness between you and me forever.”

23"As for the agreement of which you and I have spoken, behold, the LORD is between you and me forever."

24So David hid in the field, and when the New Moon had come, the king sat down to eat.

24So David hid in the field; and when the new moon came, the king sat down to eat food.

25He sat in his usual place by the wall, opposite Jonathan and beside Abner, but David’s place was empty.

25The king sat on his seat as usual, the seat by the wall; then Jonathan rose up and Abner sat down by Saul's side, but David's place was empty.

26Saul said nothing that day because he thought, “Something has happened to David to make him ceremonially unclean—surely he is unclean.”

26Nevertheless Saul did not speak anything that day, for he thought, "It is an accident, he is not clean, surely he is not clean."

27But on the day after the New Moon, the second day, David’s place was still empty, and Saul asked his son Jonathan, “Why hasn’t the son of Jesse come to the meal either yesterday or today?”

27It came about the next day, the second day of the new moon, that David's place was empty; so Saul said to Jonathan his son, "Why has the son of Jesse not come to the meal, either yesterday or today?"

28Jonathan answered, “David urgently requested my permission to go to Bethlehem,

28Jonathan then answered Saul, "David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Bethlehem,

29saying, ‘Please let me go, because our clan is holding a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has told me to be there. So now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me go and see my brothers.’ That is why he did not come to the king’s table.”

29for he said, 'Please let me go, since our family has a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to attend. And now, if I have found favor in your sight, please let me get away that I may see my brothers.' For this reason he has not come to the king's table."

30Then Saul’s anger burned against Jonathan, and he said to him, “You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the disgrace of the mother who bore you?

30Then Saul's anger burned against Jonathan and he said to him, "You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! Do I not know that you are choosing the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of your mother's nakedness?

31For as long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingship shall be established. Now send for him and bring him to me, for he must surely die!”

31"For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Therefore now, send and bring him to me, for he must surely die."

32“Why must he be put to death?” Jonathan replied. “What has he done?”

32But Jonathan answered Saul his father and said to him, "Why should he be put to death? What has he done?"

33Then Saul hurled his spear at Jonathan to kill him; so Jonathan knew that his father was determined to kill David.

33Then Saul hurled his spear at him to strike him down; so Jonathan knew that his father had decided to put David to death.

34Jonathan got up from the table in fierce anger and did not eat any food that second day of the month, for he was grieved by his father’s shameful treatment of David.

34Then Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did not eat food on the second day of the new moon, for he was grieved over David because his father had dishonored him.

35In the morning Jonathan went out to the field for the appointment with David, and a small boy was with him.

35Now it came about in the morning that Jonathan went out into the field for the appointment with David, and a little lad was with him.

36He said to the boy, “Run and find the arrows I shoot.” And as the boy ran, Jonathan shot an arrow beyond him.

36He said to his lad, "Run, find now the arrows which I am about to shoot." As the lad was running, he shot an arrow past him.

37When the boy reached the place where Jonathan’s arrow had fallen, Jonathan called to him, “Isn’t the arrow beyond you?”

37When the lad reached the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan called after the lad and said, "Is not the arrow beyond you?"

38Then Jonathan cried out, “Hurry! Make haste! Do not delay!” So the boy picked up the arrow and returned to his master.

38And Jonathan called after the lad, "Hurry, be quick, do not stay!" And Jonathan's lad picked up the arrow and came to his master.

39But the boy did not know anything; only Jonathan and David knew the arrangement.

39But the lad was not aware of anything; only Jonathan and David knew about the matter.

40Then Jonathan gave his equipment to the boy and said, “Go, take it back to the city.”

40Then Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad and said to him, "Go, bring them to the city."

41When the young man had gone, David got up from the south side of the stone, fell facedown, and bowed three times. Then he and Jonathan kissed each other and wept together—though David wept more.

41When the lad was gone, David rose from the south side and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times. And they kissed each other and wept together, but David wept the more.

42And Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, for the two of us have sworn in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘May the LORD be a witness between you and me, and between your descendants and mine forever.’ ” Then David got up and departed, and Jonathan went back into the city.

42Jonathan said to David, "Go in safety, inasmuch as we have sworn to each other in the name of the LORD, saying, 'The LORD will be between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants forever.'" Then he rose and departed, while Jonathan went into the city.

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