1 Samuel 20:1-33 ▼

1 And Dauid fled from Naioth whiche is in Rama, and came, and said before Ionathan, What haue I done? wherin am I faultie? what is the sinne that I haue committed before thy father, that he seketh my lyfe?

2 He sayde vnto him: God forbid, thou shalt not dye: Behold, my father wil do nothing either great or smal, but that he will shewe it me: And howe should my father hyde this thing from me? He will not do it.

3 And Dauid sware againe, and sayde: Thy father knoweth that I haue found grace in thyne eyes, & therfore he thinketh, Ionathan shall not knowe it, lest he be sory: And in very deede, euen as the Lorde lyueth, and as thy soule liueth, there is but a steppe betweene me and death.

4 Then sayde Ionathan vnto Dauid: Whatsoeuer thy soule desireth, that I will do vnto thee.

5 And Dauid sayd vnto Ionathan: Beholde, to morowe is the beginning of the moneth, and I should sit with the king at meate: But let me go, that I may hide my selfe in the fieldes vnto the thirde day at euen.

6 If thy father speake of me, then say: Dauid asked leaue of me, that he might go to Bethlehem to his owne citie, for there is holden a yerely feast for all the kinred.

7 And if he say it is well done, then thy seruaunt shal haue peace: But and if he be angry, then be sure that wickednesse is vtterly concluded of him.

8 And then thou shalt shewe mercy vnto thy seruaunt for thou hast ioyned thy seruaunt into a couenant of the Lord with thee: Notwithstandyng, if there be in me iniquitie, slay me thy selfe? for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?

9 And Ionathan aunswered, God kepe that from thee: For if I knewe that wickednesse were concluded of my fathere to come vpon thee, woulde not I tel it thee?

10 Then sayd Dauid to Ionathan: Who shall tell me? how shall I knowe if thy father aunswere thee cruelly?

11 And Ionathan sayde vnto Dauid: Come, and let vs go out into the fielde. And they went out both of them into the fielde.

12 And Ionathan sayde vnto Dauid: O Lorde God of Israel, when I haue groped my fathers mynd, as this time to morowe, or within these three dayes, and if it be wel with Dauid, and I then sende not vnto thee, and shew it thee:

13 The Lord do so and muche more vnto Ionathan, But if my father haue pleasure to do thee euyll, I will shewe thee also, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace, and the Lorde be with thee, as he hath ben with my father.

14 And I require not whiles I liue, for I dout not but thou wilt shewe me the mercie of the Lord, that I die not:

15 But I require that thou cut not of thy mercy from my house for euer, no not when the Lord hath destroyed the enemies of Dauid, euery one from the face of the earth.

16 And so Ionathan made a bonde with the house of Dauid, saying: Let the lord require it at the handes of Dauids enemies.

17 And Ionathan sware againe vnto Dauid, because he loued him (For he loued him as his owne soule)

18 Then sayde Ionathan to Dauid: To morowe is the first day of the moone, and thou shalt be missed, because the place where thou wast wont to sit, shall be emptie.

19 Therfore thou shalt hyde thy self three dayes, then thou shalt go downe quickly, and come to the place where thou diddest hyde thy selfe when the busines was in hande, and shalt remayne by the stone Esel.

20 And I wil shoote three arowes on the syde therof, as though I shot them at a marke,

21 And I wil sende a lad, and byd him go seke the arrowes. And if I say vnto the lad, See, the arrowes are on this side thee, bring them: then come thou, for it is peace and no hurt, as the Lorde lyueth:

22 But and if I say vnto the lad, behold the arows are beyond thee, go thy way, for the Lorde hath sent thee away.

23 And as touching this which thou and I haue spoken, behold the Lorde be betweene thee and me for euer.

24 And so Dauid hid him selfe in the fielde: And when the newe moone was come, the king sate him downe to eate meate.

25 And the king sate as at other times vpon his seate, euen vpon his seate by the wall: And Ionathan arose, and Abner sate by Sauls syde, and Dauids place was emptie.

26 Neuerthelesse, Saul sayde nothing at all that day: For he thought, Some thing hath befallen him, though he were cleane.

27 But on the morowe, whiche was the second day of the newe moone, Dauids place was emptie againe: And Saul sayde vnto Ionathan his sonne, Wherfore commeth not that sonne of Isai to meate, neither yesterday nor to day?

28 And Ionathan aunswered vnto Saul: Dauid asked licence of me to go to Bethlehem.

29 For he sayd: Let me go I pray thee, for our kinred doth hold an offering in the citie, and my brother hath sent for me: and therfore if I haue found fauour in thyne eyes, let me go I pray thee, and see my brethren. This is the cause that he commeth not vnto the kinges table.

30 Then was Saul angry with Ionathan, and sayd vnto him: Thou sonne of the wicked rebellious woman, do not I knowe that thou hast chosen the sonne of Isai vnto thyne owne rebuke, and vnto the rebuke and shame of thy mother?

31 For as long as the sonne of Isai liueth vpon the earth, thou shalt not be stablished, nor yet thy kingdome: Wherfore nowe send and fet him vnto me, for he is the childe of death.

32 And Ionathan aunswered vnto Saul his father, and sayde to him: Wherfore should he dye? what hath he done?

33 And Saul lift vp a speare to hit him, wherby Ionathan wist well that it was vtterly determined of his father to slay Dauid.