1 Samuel 20

1 Samuel 20 is part of the narrative of David's flight from Saul. It opens as David, who had taken refuge at Naioth in Ramah in 1 Samuel 19, comes to Jonathan. The chapter closes with David leaving the royal court and beginning his life as a fugitive.

Outline

• Verses 1–4: David flees from Naioth in Ramah and asks Jonathan what his sin is. Jonathan insists that his father would not hide anything from him, but David replies that "there is but a step between me and death."
• Verses 5–10: David proposes a plan. He will be absent from the new moon meal, and Jonathan will explain that he has gone to a family sacrifice in Bethlehem, so that they can observe Saul's reaction.
• Verses 11–17: In the field, Jonathan makes a covenant with the house of David and asks David never to cut off his kindness from Jonathan and his house.
• Verses 18–23: Jonathan arranges to shoot three arrows as a signal. If he says, "the arrows are on this side of thee," David is safe; if he says, "the arrows are beyond thee," David must go away.
• Verses 24–34: On the second day, Saul asks why David's place is empty. On hearing Jonathan's answer, Saul reviles him, declares that David must die, and hurls a javelin at him. Jonathan leaves the table in fierce anger.
• Verses 35–42: As agreed, Jonathan shoots the arrows and gives the signal for David to leave. After sending the lad back to the city, the two men kiss one another, weep together, and part.

Key Verses

• 1 Samuel 20:3, "there is but a step between me and death": shows the peril David faces.
• 1 Samuel 20:17, "for he loved him as he loved his own soul": the verse that best represents the friendship between the two men.
• 1 Samuel 20:42, "The LORD be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever": a declaration that this covenant extends to their descendants.

People and Places

• David: The son of Jesse, pursued by Saul.
• Jonathan: The son of Saul and David's friend.
• Abner: The captain of Saul's army, who sits beside Saul at the meal.
• Jonathan's lad: An unnamed boy who gathers the arrows without knowing the meaning of the signal.
• Naioth in Ramah: The place where David had taken refuge just before this chapter.
• Bethlehem: David's hometown, where he was said to have gone.
• The stone Ezel: The place where David hid and waited for the signal.

Points for Reflection

• The word rendered "kindness" in the KJV (inja in the Korean Revised Version) in verses 8, 14, and 15 is the Hebrew hesed, which denotes faithful love grounded in a covenant.
• This covenant is kept in 2 Samuel 9, where David cares for Jonathan's son Mephibosheth.
• In verse 31, Saul tells Jonathan that as long as David lives, Jonathan's kingdom will not be established. Many interpreters read this as showing that Jonathan gave up his own claim to the throne and chose David.
• Some modern interpreters read the relationship between the two men as a same-sex romantic attachment. Traditional interpretation and most Korean denominations, by contrast, regard it as a friendship grounded in covenant (see Homosexuality and the Church).

In the Korean Church

• "The friendship of David and Jonathan" is a frequent theme in sermons for Sunday school and young adult ministries.
• The name of the gospel music duo David and Jonathan (Dawitgwa Yonadan) is also taken from these two men.