1And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life? 2And he said unto him, God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father will do nothing either great or small, but that he will shew it me: and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so.20.2 shew…: Heb. uncover mine ear 3And David sware moreover, and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved: but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death. 4Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee.20.4 Whatsoever…: or, Say what is thy mind and I will do, etc20.4 desireth: Heb. speaketh, or, thinketh 5And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to morrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even. 6If thy father at all miss me, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his city: for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.20.6 sacrifice: or, feast 7If he say thus, It is well; thy servant shall have peace: but if he be very wroth, then be sure that evil is determined by him. 8Therefore thou shalt deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of the LORD with thee: notwithstanding, if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?
9And Jonathan said, Far be it from thee: for if I knew certainly that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee? 10Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? or what if thy father answer thee roughly?
11¶ And Jonathan said unto David, Come, and let us go out into the field. And they went out both of them into the field. 12And Jonathan said unto David, O LORD God of Israel, when I have sounded my father about to morrow any time, or the third day, and, behold, if there be good toward David, and I then send not unto thee, and shew it thee;20.12 sounded: Heb. searched20.12 shew…: Heb. uncover thine ear 13The LORD do so and much more to Jonathan: but if it please my father to do thee evil, then I will shew it thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace: and the LORD be with thee, as he hath been with my father.20.13 shew…: Heb. uncover thine ear 14And thou shalt not only while yet I live shew me the kindness of the LORD, that I die not: 15But also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever: no, not when the LORD hath cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth. 16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, Let the LORD even require it at the hand of David’s enemies.20.16 made: Heb. cut 17And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul.20.17 because…: or, by his love toward him 18Then Jonathan said to David, To morrow is the new moon: and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty.20.18 empty: Heb. missed 19And when thou hast stayed three days, then thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself when the business was in hand, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel.20.19 quickly: or, diligently: Heb. greatly20.19 when the…: Heb. in the day of the business20.19 Ezel: or, that sheweth the way 20And I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark. 21And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find out the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come thou: for there is peace to thee, and no hurt; as the LORD liveth.20.21 no hurt: Heb. not any thing 22But if I say thus unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee; go thy way: for the LORD hath sent thee away. 23And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the LORD be between thee and me for ever.
24¶ So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to eat meat. 25And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon a seat by the wall: and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul’s side, and David’s place was empty. 26Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean. 27And it came to pass on the morrow, which was the second day of the month, that David’s place was empty: and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to day? 28And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem: 29And he said, Let me go, I pray thee; for our family hath a sacrifice in the city; and my brother, he hath commanded me to be there: and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he cometh not unto the king’s table. 30Then Saul’s anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him, Thou son of the perverse rebellious woman, do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own confusion, and unto the confusion of thy mother’s nakedness?20.30 Thou…: or, Thou perverse rebel: Heb. Son of perverse rebellion 31For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die.20.31 shall…: Heb. is the son of death 32And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done? 33And Saul cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to slay David. 34So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second day of the month: for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame.
35¶ And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him. 36And he said unto his lad, Run, find out now the arrows which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.20.36 beyond…: Heb. to pass over him 37And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Is not the arrow beyond thee? 38And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not. And Jonathan’s lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master. 39But the lad knew not any thing: only Jonathan and David knew the matter. 40And Jonathan gave his artillery unto his lad, and said unto him, Go, carry them to the city.20.40 artillery: Heb. instruments20.40 his lad: Heb. the lad that was his
41¶ And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of a place toward the south, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times: and they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded. 42And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the LORD, saying, The LORD be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed for ever. And he arose and departed: and Jonathan went into the city.20.42 forasmuch…: or, the LORD be witness of that which etc
Davids og Jonatans venskab
1David flygtede så fra Najot ved Rama og opsøgte Jonatan. „Hvad har jeg gjort?” udbrød han. „Har jeg fornærmet din far, siden han er så opsat på at slå mig ihjel?”
2„Min far har ikke i sinde at slå dig ihjel,” protesterede Jonatan. „Han har altid fortalt mig om sine planer. Jeg er sikker på, at han ikke ville skjule en så alvorlig plan for mig. Det hele må være en misforståelse.”
3„Jamen, din far ved jo, at vi er venner,” indvendte David. „Derfor tænker han: ‚Jeg vil ikke sige noget til Jonatan, for det vil bare gøre ham ked af det.’ Men sandheden er, at jeg går med livet i hænderne—det sværger jeg på.”
4„Hvad vil du have, jeg skal gøre?” spurgte Jonatan.
5David svarede: „I morgen begynder nymånefesten, og din far regner med, at jeg kommer til hans fest. Men jeg vil bede dig om at give mig fri, så vil jeg gemme mig ude på marken indtil i overmorgen om aftenen. 6Hvis din far spørger efter mig ved måltidet, skal du sige til ham: ‚David bad mig om lov til at tage hjem til Betlehem for at deltage i den årlige offerfest med sin familie.’ 7Svarer han så: ‚Det er i orden!’ er det et tegn på, at jeg ikke behøver at bekymre mig, men bliver han vred, er det, fordi han er besluttet på at slå mig ihjel. 8Jonatan, jeg ved, jeg kan regne med dig, for vi har indgået en bindende venskabspagt for Herrens ansigt. Hvis jeg har gjort noget, jeg fortjener døden for, foretrækker jeg, at du slår mig ihjel, frem for at din far gør det.”
9„Jeg kunne aldrig finde på at slå dig ihjel,” udbrød Jonatan. „Og hvis jeg havde den mindste anelse om, at min far stræbte dig efter livet, tror du så ikke, jeg straks ville advare dig?”
10Da spurgte David: „Hvem kan fortælle mig om din fars reaktion ved nymånefesten?”
11„Kom, lad os gå ud på marken,” svarede Jonatan. Det gjorde de så. 12„Jeg lover dig ved Herren, Israels Gud, at enten i morgen eller i overmorgen ved denne tid vil jeg have fundet ud af, hvad min far tænker om dig,” sagde Jonatan. „Så vil det vise sig, at din bekymring er ubegrundet. Ellers skal jeg nok give dig besked. 13Må Herren straffe mig, hvis jeg ikke fortæller dig det, hvis min far ønsker at dræbe dig. Hvis det er tilfældet, skal jeg nok sørge for, at du kan undslippe i god behold. Må Herren selv beskytte dig, som han har beskyttet min far. 14-15Og må du altid vise mig den samme trofaste kærlighed, som Herren gør, så længe jeg lever. Og skulle jeg dø, så vær nådig mod mine børn, når Herren hjælper dig med at tilintetgøre alle dine fjender.”
16Derefter bad Jonatan denne højtidelige pagtsbøn for David og hans efterkommere: „Må Herren straffe Davids fjender.”20,16 Teksten er uklar. 17Således stadfæstede Jonatan sin venskabspagt med David på grund af sin kærlighed til ham, for Jonatan elskede David lige så højt, som han elskede sig selv.
18Derefter sagde Jonatan: „I morgen under nymånefesten vil de uden tvivl savne dig, når de opdager, at din plads ved bordet står tom, 19og i overmorgen vil de alle sammen spørge efter dig. Gem dig derfor i det gamle skjulested, du brugte sidste gang Saul var ude efter dig,20,19 Jf. 1.Sam. 19,1-4. derude bag rokkestenen. 20Bagefter kommer jeg derud og lader, som om jeg øver mig i at skyde til måls med min bue. Jeg skyder tre pile af sted, 21hvorefter jeg sender en dreng ud efter pilene. Hvis du hører mig råbe til drengen: ‚Pilene ligger her hen mod mig!’ er det signal til, at der ikke er fare på færde. 22Men hvis jeg råber: ‚Gå længere frem! Pilene ligger foran dig!’ er det signal til, at du må skynde dig at flygte. 23Må Herren hjælpe os til altid at holde den venskabspagt, vi har svoret hinanden, for han er vores vidne.” 24-25Så gemte David sig i sit skjulested på marken.
Da nymånefesten begyndte, indtog kongen sin sædvanlige plads ved bordet, ind mod væggen. Jonatan satte sig overfor, og Abner satte sig ved siden af Saul. Davids plads stod tom. 26Men Saul spurgte ikke til David den dag, for han gik ud fra, at der var sket noget, som havde gjort David uren indtil om aftenen. Ja, det måtte være grunden til hans udeblivelse. 27Næste dag, da Davids plads stadig stod tom, spurgte Saul: „Hvor er vores unge helt blevet af? Hverken i går eller i dag har han deltaget i måltidet.”
28-29„Han bad mig om lov til at tage hjem til Betlehem og deltage i en familiesammenkomst,” svarede Jonatan. „Hans bror forlangte, at han kom hjem, så jeg gav ham min tilladelse.”
30Da kogte Saul af raseri og råbte: „Hvilken udspekuleret oprørskhed! Tror du ikke, jeg ved, at du holder med den fyr til skam og skændsel for dig selv og for din mor. 31Er du klar over, at så længe han er i live, bliver du aldrig konge? Få fat i ham, så jeg kan slå ham ihjel.”
32„Hvad ondt har han gjort?” blev Jonatan ved. „Hvorfor skal han dø?”
33Som svar kastede Saul sit spyd efter Jonatan for at dræbe ham. Da gik det op for Jonatan, at hans far var fast besluttet på at slå David ihjel. 34Han rejste sig fnysende fra bordet og spiste intet resten af dagen, for han var ked af det for Davids skyld og oprørt over sin fars hån.
35Næste morgen gik Jonatan som aftalt ud på marken sammen med en dreng.
36„Løb hen og saml de pile op, jeg skyder,” befalede han drengen. Drengen begyndte at løbe, og Jonatan skød en pil forbi ham. 37Kort før drengen nåede frem til pilen, råbte Jonatan: „Gå længere frem! Pilen ligger foran dig! 38Skynd dig af sted!” Så skyndte drengen sig hen og samlede pilen op, hvorefter han bragte den til sin herre. 39Han anede naturligvis ikke noget om, hvad der gik for sig, kun Jonatan og David kendte det hemmelige signal. 40Jonatan gav nu buen og pilene til drengen og sagde: „Gå du bare hjem med dem.”
41Så snart drengen var forsvundet, kom David frem fra sit skjulested bag stenen og bøjede sig tre gange mod jorden. Derpå kyssede de hinanden på kinden og tog grædende afsked. 42„Gå med fred!” sagde Jonatan. „Husk, at Herren var vidne til den pagt, vi indgik med hinanden. Han vil altid stå som vidne mellem os to og mellem vores børn.”
