Jonathan

Biblical Account

The name means "the LORD has given" in Hebrew. Several people in the Bible bear this name; this article treats Jonathan the son of Saul.

• The Battle of Michmash: In 1 Samuel 13–14, Jonathan, accompanied only by his young armor-bearer, attacks a Philistine garrison and sets the stage for victory. On this occasion he says, "there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few" (1 Samuel 14:6). During the battle, unaware of the oath Saul had imposed forbidding the people to eat, he eats honey and faces death, but the people rescue him (1 Samuel 14:24–45).
• Covenant with David: After the episode with Goliath, Jonathan's soul is knit with the soul of David, and the two make a covenant. Jonathan gives David his robe and his garments, along with his sword, his bow, and his girdle (1 Samuel 18:1–4).
• Protecting David: When Saul seeks to kill David, Jonathan defends David before his father (ch. 19). He warns David of danger by a prearranged signal of shooting arrows and then renews his covenant with David's house (ch. 20). When David is a fugitive in the wilderness, Jonathan goes to him and "strengthened his hand in God," telling him that David will be king and that he himself will be next to him (1 Samuel 23:16–18).
• Death: He is killed alongside his father and brothers in the battle on Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 31; 1 Chronicles 10). David composes a lament in his honor (2 Samuel 1:17–27).
• Aftermath: For Jonathan's sake, David seats Jonathan's lame son Mephibosheth at the king's table (2 Samuel 4:4; ch. 9).

Significance Within the Bible

Jonathan is portrayed as one who, though heir to the throne, accepted that God had chosen David. The kindness David showed to Mephibosheth is recorded as the keeping of the covenant between the two men. The New Testament does not mention Jonathan directly.

Interpretations and Debates

• Covenant friendship: Many church traditions read the relationship between the two men as a model of faithful friendship pledged before God. Some scholars note that the term "love" could also denote political loyalty in ancient Near Eastern treaty documents.
• The nature of the relationship: Some modern interpreters, citing "passing the love of women" in 2 Samuel 1:26, read the relationship as homosexual. Traditional interpretation and the major Korean denominations reject this reading and regard the relationship as a friendship (see Homosexuality and the Church).
• The choice to remain with his father: Some interpreters view Jonathan's decision to stay at Saul's side rather than follow David as an expression of filial devotion and loyalty, while others see it as a failure to make a decisive choice.
• Details beyond the text: The claim that Jonathan was much older than David is an inference drawn from such factors as the length of Saul's reign; the text does not state his age directly.

In the Korean Church

In sermons and Sunday school lessons, the story of "David and Jonathan" is frequently used to teach true friendship, self-giving love, and the courage of faith (the Battle of Michmash). A gospel music group called "David and Jonathan," named after the two men, is also known to have been active.