1 Samuel 20:7-23
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 20
7If he says, ‘ That is good,’ your servant will be safe; but if he is very angry, be aware that he has decided on evil. 8So deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you. But if I am guilty of wrongdoing, kill me yourself; for why then should you bring me to your father?' 9Jonathan said, 'Far be it from you! For if I in fact learn that my father has decided to inflict harm on you, would I not inform you?' 10Then David said to Jonathan, 'Who will inform me if your father answers you harshly?' 11Jonathan said to David, 'Come, and let’s go out to the field.' So both of them went out to the field.
12Then Jonathan said to David, 'The Lord, the God of Israel, is my witness! When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow or the third day, behold, if he has a good feeling toward you, shall I not then send word to you and inform you?
13If it pleases my father to do you harm, may the Lord do so to me and more so, if I fail to inform you and send you away, so that you may go in safety. And may the Lord be with you as He has been with my father.
14And if I am still alive, will you not show me the faithfulness of the Lord, so that I do not die?
15And you shall never cut off your loyalty to my house, not even when the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.'
16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, 'May the Lord demand it from the hands of David’s enemies.'
17And Jonathan made David vow again because of his love for him, because he loved him as he loved his own life.
18Then Jonathan said to him, 'Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed since your seat will be empty.
19When you have stayed for three days, you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself on that eventful day, and you shall remain beside the stone Ezel.
20And I will shoot three arrows to the side, as though I shot at a target.
21Then behold, I will send the boy, telling him, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I specifically say to the boy, ‘Behold, the arrows are on this side of you, get them,’ then come, because it is safe for you and there is nothing to harm you, as the Lord lives.
22But if I say to the youth, ‘Behold, the arrows are beyond you,’ go, because the Lord has sent you away.
23As for the agreement of which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord is between you and me forever.'
King James Version
Chapter 20
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?
11And 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;
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.
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.
17And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
18Then Jonathan said to David, To morrow is the new moon: and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty.
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.
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.
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.
Christian Standard Bible
Chapter 20
7If he says, ‘Good,’ then your servant is safe, but if he becomes angry, you will know he has evil intentions. 8Deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought me into a covenant with you before the Lord. If I have done anything wrong, then kill me yourself; why take me to your father?"
11He answered David, "Come on, let’s go out to the countryside." So both of them went out to the countryside.
12"By the Lord, the God of Israel, I will sound out my father by this time tomorrow or the next day. If I find out that he is favorable toward you, will I not send for you and tell you?
13If my father intends to bring evil on you, may God punish Jonathan and do so severely if I do not tell you and send you away so you may leave safely. May the Lord be with you, just as he was with my father.
14If I continue to live, show me kindness from the Lord, but if I die,
15don’t ever withdraw your kindness from my household—not even when the Lord cuts off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth."
16Then Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the Lord hold David’s enemies accountable."
17Jonathan once again swore to David in his love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself.
18Then Jonathan said to him, "Tomorrow is the New Moon; you’ll be missed because your seat will be empty.
19The following day hurry down and go to the place where you hid on the day this incident began and stay beside the rock Ezel.
20I will shoot three arrows beside it as if I’m aiming at a target.
21Then I will send a servant and say, ‘Go and find the arrows!’ Now, if I expressly say to the servant, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you—get them,’ then come, because as the Lord lives, it is safe for you and there is no problem.
22But if I say this to the youth, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you!’ then go, for the Lord is sending you away.
23As for the matter you and I have spoken about, the Lord will be a witness between you and me forever."
New Living Translation
Chapter 20
7If he says, ‘Fine!’ you will know all is well. But if he is angry and loses his temper, you will know he is determined to kill me. 8Show me this loyalty as my sworn friend — for we made a solemn pact before the Lord — or kill me yourself if I have sinned against your father. But please don’t betray me to him!'
11Come out to the field with me,' Jonathan replied. And they went out there together.
12Then Jonathan told David, 'I promise by the Lord, the God of Israel, that by this time tomorrow, or the next day at the latest, I will talk to my father and let you know at once how he feels about you. If he speaks favorably about you, I will let you know.
13But if he is angry and wants you killed, may the Lord strike me and even kill me if I don’t warn you so you can escape and live. May the Lord be with you as he used to be with my father.
14And may you treat me with the faithful love of the Lord as long as I live. But if I die,
15treat my family with this faithful love, even when the Lord destroys all your enemies from the face of the earth.'
16So Jonathan made a solemn pact with David, saying, 'May the Lord destroy all your enemies!'
17And Jonathan made David reaffirm his vow of friendship again, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.
18Then Jonathan said, 'Tomorrow we celebrate the new moon festival. You will be missed when your place at the table is empty.
19The day after tomorrow, toward evening, go to the place where you hid before, and wait there by the stone pile.
20I will come out and shoot three arrows to the side of the stone pile as though I were shooting at a target.
21Then I will send a boy to bring the arrows back. If you hear me tell him, ‘They’re on this side,’ then you will know, as surely as the Lord lives, that all is well, and there is no trouble.
22But if I tell him, ‘Go farther — the arrows are still ahead of you,’ then it will mean that you must leave immediately, for the Lord is sending you away.
23And may the Lord make us keep our promises to each other, for he has witnessed them.'
English Standard Version
Chapter 20
7If he says, ‘Good!’ it will be well with your servant, but if he is angry, then know that harm is determined by him. 8Therefore deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you. But if there is guilt in me, kill me yourself, for why should you bring me to your father?" 9And Jonathan said, "Far be it from you! If I knew that it was determined by my father that harm should come to you, would I not tell you?" 10Then David said to Jonathan, "Who will tell me if your father answers you roughly?" 11And Jonathan said to David, "Come, let us go out into the field." So they both went out into the field.
12And Jonathan said to David, "The Lord, the God of Israel, be witness! When I have sounded out my father, about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if he is well disposed toward David, shall I not then send and disclose it to you?
13But should it please my father to do you harm, the Lord do so to Jonathan and more also if I do not disclose it to you and send you away, that you may go in safety. May the Lord be with you, as he has been with my father.
14If I am still alive, show me the steadfast love of the Lord, that I may not die;
15and do not cut off your steadfast love from my house forever, when the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth."
16And Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the Lord take vengeance on David 's enemies."
17And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
18Then Jonathan said to him, "Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty.
19On the third day go down quickly to the place where you hid yourself when the matter was in hand, and remain beside the stone heap.
20And I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I shot at a mark.
21And behold, I will send the boy, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you, take them,’ then you are to come, for, as the Lord lives, it is safe for you and there is no danger.
22But if I say to the youth, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go, for the Lord has sent you away.
23And as for the matter of which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord is between you and me forever."
New International Version
Chapter 20
7If he says, ‘Very well,’ then your servant is safe. But if he loses his temper, you can be sure that he is determined to harm me. 8As for you, show kindness to your servant, for you have brought him into a covenant with you before the Lord. If I am guilty, then kill me yourself! Why hand me over to your father?"
12Then Jonathan said to David, "I swear by the Lord, the God of Israel, that I will surely sound out my father by this time the day after tomorrow! If he is favorably disposed toward you, will I not send you word and let you know?
13But if my father intends to harm you, may the Lord deal with Jonathan, be it ever so severely, if I do not let you know and send you away in peace. May the Lord be with you as he has been with my father.
14But show me unfailing kindness like the Lord’s kindness as long as I live, so that I may not be killed,
15and do not ever cut off your kindness from my family—not even when the Lord has cut off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth."
16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the Lord call David’s enemies to account."
17And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself.
18Then Jonathan said to David, "Tomorrow is the New Moon feast. You will be missed, because your seat will be empty.
19The day after tomorrow, toward evening, go to the place where you hid when this trouble began, and wait by the stone Ezel.
20I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I were shooting at a target.
21Then I will send a boy and say, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I say to him, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; bring them here,’ then come, because, as surely as the Lord lives, you are safe; there is no danger.
22But if I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then you must go, because the Lord has sent you away.
23And about the matter you and I discussed—remember, the Lord is witness between you and me forever."
New King James Version
Chapter 20
7If he says thus: ‘ It is well,’ your servant will be safe. But if he is very angry, be sure that evil is determined by him. 8Therefore you shall deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you. Nevertheless, if there is iniquity in me, kill me yourself, for why should you bring me to your father?”
11And Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out into the field.” So both of them went out into the field.
12Then Jonathan said to David: “The Lord God of Israel is witness! When I have sounded out my father sometime tomorrow, or the third day, and indeed there is good toward David, and I do not send to you and tell you,
13may the Lord do so and much more to Jonathan. But if it pleases my father to do you evil, then I will report it to you and send you away, that you may go in safety. And the Lord be with you as He has been with my father.
14And you shall not only show me the kindness of the Lord while I still live, that I may not die;
15but you shall not cut off your kindness from my house forever, no, not when the Lord has cut off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.”
16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “Let the Lord require it at the hand of David’s enemies.”
17Now Jonathan again caused David to vow, because he loved him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
18Then Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon; and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty.
19And when you have stayed three days, go down quickly and come to the place where you hid on the day of the deed; and remain by the stone Ezel.
20Then I will shoot three arrows to the side, as though I shot at a target;
21and there I will send a lad, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I expressly say to the lad, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; get them and come’—then, as the Lord lives, there is safety for you and no harm.
22But if I say thus to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you’—go your way, for the Lord has sent you away.
23And as for the matter which you and I have spoken of, indeed the Lord be between you and me forever.”
