Daniel P. Barron

1 And David fled from Naioth in the Height and came and said to Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my iniquity, and what is my sin before your father that he seeks my soul?” 2 And he said to him, “Far be it! You shall not die. Behold, my father, for him, he does ⁱ a great thing or a small thing and does not reveal in my ear? And why would my father hide from me this thing? This is not so.” 3 And again David swore and said, “Your father surely knows that I have found favor in your eyes and said, 'Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved.' But indeed, Yehvah lives and your soul lives, for it's as a step between me and the death.” 4 And Jonathan said to David, “What your soul says, so I will do for you.”

5 And David said to Jonathan, “Behold, tomorrow is a new moon, ⁱⁱ and I should surely sit with the king to eat. So, send me away, and I will be hidden in the field until the third evening. 6 And if your father missing, he misses me, so you shall say, 'David earnestly asked from me to run to House of Bread, his city, because the sacrifice of the days is there for all the family.' 7 If thus he says, 'Good.' Peace is to your servant. If he is really angry, know that the bad is determined by him. 8 And do kindness upon your servant, for in a covenant of Yehvah you have brought your servant with you. And if there is in me iniquity, you kill me. So, why should you bring me to your father?”

9 And Jonathan said, “Far be it for you! For if I surely knew that the bad was determined from my father to come upon you, then would I not tell you?” 10 And David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me, if what your father answers you is harsh?” 11 And Jonathan said to David, “Come, and let's go out to the field.” And the two of them went out to the field.

12 And Jonathan said to David, “Yehvah, Gods of Israel, when I have searched my father about this time tomorrow, the third, ⁱⁱⁱ and behold, good is toward David, and I do not then send to you and uncover your ear, 13 thus may Yehvah do to Jonathan and thus may he add. If the bad upon you is good to my father, so I will uncover your ear. And I will send you away, and you will go in peace. And may Yehvah be with you just as he was with my father. 14 And am I not yet alive, and will you not deal with me Yehvah's kindness and I not die? 15 And you shall not cut off your kindness from with my house forever, not even when Yehvah cuts off David's enemies, each one from upon the face of the ground.” 16 And Jonathan cut with David's house, “May Yehvah seek from David's enemies' hand.” 17 And Jonathan again caused David to swear in his love for him, for he loved him, love of his soul.

18 And Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is a new moon, and you shall be missed, because your seat will be missed. 19 And doing three, ^iv you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you were hid on the day of the deed and stay beside the stone, the Ezel. ^v 20 And I will shoot three arrows to a side to send for me for a target. 21 And behold, I will send the boy, 'Go, find the arrows.' If saying, I say to the boy, 'Behold, the arrows are from you. Get it and come.' That is peace to you. So, there is nothing. Yehvah lives. 22 And if I say thus to the young man, 'Behold, the arrows are from you and onward.' Go, for Yehvah has sent you away. 23 And the word that we have spoken, I and you, behold, Yehvah be between me and you forever.”

24 And David hid in the field, and there was the new moon. And the king sat by ^vi the bread to eat. 25 And the king sat on his seat as other times, to the seat of the wall, and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat beside Saul. And David's place was missed. 26 And Saul didn't say anything that day, for he said, “Something has happened. He is not clean, indeed not clean.”

27 And it was, on the second day of the new moon, David's place was missed. And Saul said to Jonathan, his son, “Why has Jesse' son not come, both yesterday and today, to the bread?” 28 And Jonathan answered Saul, “Asking, David asked from me unto House of Bread. 29 And he said, 'Please send me away, for we have a family sacrifice in the city; and my brother himself commanded me. And now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me escape and see my brothers.' Therefore, he has not come to the table of the king.”

30 And Saul's anger burned against Jonathan, and he said to him, “Son of the perverse rebellious woman! Do I not know that you are choosing Jesse's son to your shame and to the shame of your mother's nakedness? 31 For all the days that Jesse' son lives upon the ground, you and your kingdom shall not be established. And now, send and bring him to me, for he is a son of death.” 32 And Jonathan answered Saul his father and said to him, “Why should he be killed? What did he do?” 33 And Saul cast the spear at him to strike him. And Jonathan knew that it had been determined by his father to kill David. 34 And Jonathan rose from the table burning with anger. And he did not eat bread on the second day of the new moon, for he was grieved for David; because his father humiliated him.

35 And it was in the morning, so Jonathan went out to the field at the appointed time with David, and a small boy was with him. 36 And he said to his boy, “Run. Please find the arrows that I am shooting.” The boy ran and he shot the arrow to pass over him. 37 And the boy came to the place of the arrow that Jonathan shot. And Jonathan called out after the boy and said, “Is not the arrow from you and onward?” ^vii 38 And Jonathan called after the boy, “Hurry, make haste. Do not stand.” And Jonathan's boy gathered the arrow ^viii and came to his lords. ^ix 39 And the boy did not know anything, but Jonathan and David knew the matter.

40 And Jonathan gave his things to the boy who was his and said to him, “Go, bring to the city.” 41 The boy went, and David arose from the south and fell to his face to earth and bowed down three times. And they kissed each other and wept with each other, but David more so. 42 And Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace in which we have sworn, both of us, in Yehvah's name, saying, 'Yehvah be between me and you and between my seed and your seed forever.'” ^x And he arose and went, and Jonathan went in the city.

1 Samuel 19 - 1 Samuel 21

Translated by Darwin Fish. See original pdf.

1. Written הה( הש( לוע־ע) lo-`âsâh) “for him, he does”; read ה שה אאע־יעעש ל) lo'-ya`aseh) “does not do” LEB, “doth not do” YLT, “will do nothing” NKJV. The written makes sense if it is as a question. ^
2. חאדהש) chodesh) “new moon” - this can mean either “new moon” or “month” (e.g. Genesis 7:11) depending on context. ^
3. ת שי לי של) sheloshiyt) “third”; NKJV, YLT “or the third day” - see 1 Samuel 20:5, there he speaks of the “third evening.” ^
4. ה( שילעשלת)shillashtâ) “doing three”; YLT “on the third day”; NKJV “you have stayed three days” - context weighs heavily on this word. It is literally “doing three . . .,” here context implies three days. Yet, e.g. in Deuteronomy 19:3 it equals “making into three” (TT) sections of land, or 1 Kings 18:34 to do something three times (2x). ^
5. אהזהל') ezel) “Ezel” YLT, etc.; “Departure” Stone CJB; “Going-Away” Rock CEV – related verb, הזעל( א ('âzal) “gone” e.g. Deuteronomy 32:36; 1 Samuel 9:7; Proverbs 20:14. ^
6. Written ל עע`) al) “by” YLT, Green; read אהל') el) “to” the meal GNT ^
7. This is what Jonathan said in vs 22 to signify to David that his father wants to harm him. ^
8. Written י צי חצ) chêtsiy) “arrow”; read ים צי חי) chitstsiym) “arrows” ^
9. ו( אשדאנ') adonâyv) “his lords” - see footnote for Genesis 24:9. ^
10. Verse 42 ends here in the Hebrew, and the remaining text is called the first verse of the next chapter. ^