Ep. 88 – David & Jonathan

Last we left our story, David was on the run. Saul had told his whole household and all his servants that he wanted David killed. But Jonathan stepped in and convinced his father to let David live. Saul listened to Jonathan, and for a while things were peaceful in Saul’s home. But as soon as the Philistines went back to war, and David had a chance to shine again, Saul’s rage returned and Saul was back on the kill David train again. With the help of his new wife Michal, David was able to escape the city, and he went to Naioth in Ramah…where the old prophet Samuel still lived. So Saul sent his men after David. But when his men arrived, the strangest thing happened. When they saw Samuel and his students prophesying, they began to prophecy too. When Saul heard about this, he sent a second group of men and then a third group of men…but they all prophesied too. Then a frustrated Saul decided to go himself. But when Saul arrived, even Saul started prophesying. And not only did Saul prophecy, but he took off all his clothes and laid down on the ground all day and all night! It was the craziest thing! It was obvious that God was protecting David. And Saul had experienced it personally. So the question was, what was Saul going to do? Would he continue to try to kill David? Or would Saul realize, as everyone else had, that God was with David? Well, let’s find out.

Now as far as Jonathan figured, his father was a changed man. Saul had gone to Ramah and had been overcome by the Spirit…he’d prophesied for a whole day and a whole night…he’d personally experienced God’s protection of David. Surely his father wasn’t still going to try to kill David now…was he? There was no way. It wouldn’t make any sense. But as for David, he wasn’t convinced. Sure, Saul had prophesied for a day, but that didn’t mean that Saul wasn’t still a raging, paranoid, spotlight-seeking man. Too many times, David had hoped Saul had changed, only for Saul’s jealousy and rage to come roaring back. David had learned that one dramatic experience wasn’t enough to prove that Saul had really changed. David knew in his heart that Saul was who he was…no matter how much he wanted Saul to change. So, while all this prophesying stuff was happening in Ramah, David took it as his chance to hightail it out of there…which he did.

So where did David go this time? Well, he went to find the one person he trusted more than almost anyone else…his friend Jonathan. And when David found Jonathan, David said to him, “What have I done? What is my iniquity, and what is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?” (20:1) But of course, for Jonathan, the whole trying to kill David thing was over. His father had changed. And so, he answered David, and said, “By no means! You shall not die! Indeed, my father will do nothing either great or small without first telling me. And why should my father hide this thing from me? It is not so!” (20:2) But David knew that Saul had every reason to hide something like this from Jonathan. And David replied and said, “Your father certainly knows that I have found favour in your eyes, and he has said, ‘Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved.’ But truly, as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death.” (20:3)

So, David thought that Saul was still out to get him, and Jonathan thought the whole thing was over. How could they figure out who was right? Well, David had an idea, and he said to Jonathan, “Indeed tomorrow is the New Moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king to eat. But let me go, that I may hide in the field until the third day at the evening. If your father misses me at all, then say, ‘David earnestly asked permission of me that he might run over to Bethlehem, his city, for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.’ If he says this: ‘It is well,’ your servant will be safe. But if he is very angry, be sure that evil is determined by him.” (20:5-6) So basically David is suggesting a test – if David didn’t show up at the king’s monthly feast, and Saul lost it again…well that would mean that the king still wanted David dead. But if Saul took it all in stride, well then that meant everything was ok. This sounded good to Jonathan, and so he agreed. I mean, why would his father get super angry just because David didn’t show up at this one feast? It seemed like a safe bet for Jonathan.

But how would Jonathan let David know how it went? I mean, if the king did indeed still want David dead, well then Jonathan couldn’t just send a messenger to David…that would put David in danger. So, what could they do? Well, Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out into the field. … 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. Then I will shoot three arrows to the side, as though I shot at a target; and 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. But if I say thus to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you’ – go your way, for the Lord has sent you away.’” (20:11,19-22) So on the third day, while David was still hiding in a field, Jonathan would come out to do some target practice. After he’d shot his arrows, Jonathan would send a boy to go out there and bring the arrows back to him. And if while the boy was looking for the arrows, Jonathan told him that he’d gone too far and to come back towards to Jonathan, well that meant that all was well and that it was safe for David to come back to court. But if Jonathan told the boy to go away farther to find the arrows, well that meant that all was not well, that it wasn’t safe for David to return, and that David would need to go away. David agreed and went and hid in the field to await the king’s feast. (Now, just as a side note kidzos, I’m sure you all noticed that David is asking Jonathan to lie. Would David actually be going to Bethlehem? No. For whatever reason, it seems that David has picked up Saul’s household’s bad habit of lying. And while we can certainly understand why David is doing it, lying is still wrong and always catches up to you…even when you do it for the best of reasons…as we are going to find in the next episodes.)

The next day, the king’s New Moon feast began as expected. And the way these things usually worked in the king’s court is that everyone had an assigned seat at the king’s table. And usually, the closer that you sat to the king, the more important you were. So if you were someone important like David (who was the king’s son-in-law), and you didn’t show up, well the king would notice right away. So of course, when the feast started, and everyone sat down in their assigned seat, there was David’s seat…empty. Of course right away, Saul noticed that David wasn’t there. But on the first day, Saul didn’t say anything. It happened all the time that his soldiers didn’t show up on the first day of a feast because, according to the law of Moses, you were supposed to stay away from other people if you’d become “unclean” by doing something like touching a dead body…which of course soldiers did all the time.

But then the second day of the feast came, and David’s seat was still empty. And so, Saul asked Jonathan about it, saying, “Why has the son of Jesse not come to eat, either yesterday or today?” (20:27) And Jonathan gave Saul the answer that he’d agreed on with David, saying, “David earnestly asked permission of me to go to Bethlehem. And he said, ‘Please let me go, for our family has a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to be there. And now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me get away and see my brothers.’ Therefore he has not come to the king’s table.” (20:28-29) And how did Saul react to this? Well, just as David expected. Saul flew into a rage, and yelled at Jonathan, saying, “You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness? For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, you shall not be established, nor your kingdom. Now therefore, send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die.” (20:30-31)

Jonathan was shocked by his father’s response. It didn’t make any sense to him. After everything that had happened in Naioth, he still wanted to kill David? And besides that, what had David ever done to his father in the first place to deserve all this anger? And Jonathan replied to his father, and said, “Why should he be killed? What has he done?” (20:32) But these questions just made Saul even angrier. And in a blind rage, Saul picked up a nearby spear and threw it at Jonathan…trying to kill him! Now either because Saul missed him, or more likely because Jonathan dodged it, the spear did not kill Jonathan. But while Jonathan’s body wasn’t hurt, the truth fell on his heart like a ton a bricks – his father did indeed still want to kill David, his father didn’t seem to care at all about God’s Will, and his father was well beyond reason. David had been right. The insanity and hopelessness of the situation was crushing. And in a moment of frustration and anger, Jonathan arose from his father’s table and left the feast.

After Jonathan had a chance to calm down a bit, the reality really set in. If his father couldn’t be reasoned with after everything that happened in Naioth, well then nothing would change his mind. His father had set his will against the will of God. And that meant that meant that Jonathan and the whole family of Saul were doomed. But despite what this meant for him and his family, Jonathan’s heart grieved for his friend David. As long as his father continued to be king, Saul would keep on trying to kill David. David would have to go on the run. David would be hunted. It was going to be a difficult time for David. And it was all so unnecessary…why not let David shine if that was God’s will? Why not let David be king if that was God’s will? All throughout the second day of the feast Jonathan didn’t eat anything while he grieved for his friend.

In the morning of the third day, a sad Jonathan headed out to the field that he had agreed to meet David, along with his bow, some arrows, and a young boy in tow. Once Jonathan found a good place to shoot the arrows, he sent the boy out into the field…right to the place where he knew David was hiding. As the boy was approaching the right spot, Jonathan got out an arrow, drew his bow…and with a heavy heart, Jonathan aimed high and loosed the arrow. The arrow went flying over the boy’s head. And when the boy, wondering where the arrow had gone, looked questioningly at Jonathan, Jonathan yelled to the boy (in a voice loud enough to be heard by anyone in the field), “Is not the arrow beyond you?” (20:37)

After the boy had gathered up the arrows, he called the boy to come back to him. Then Jonathan gave him all his weapons, and said to him, “Go, carry them to the city.” (20:40) Who knows…even though it would be super risky…before he went on the run, maybe David would come out of hiding and talk to him. And sure enough, after the boy was safely out of sight, David came out of hiding to talk to Jonathan. As the Bible says, “As soon as the lad had gone, David arose from a place toward the south, fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times. And they kissed one another; and they wept together, but David more so.” (20:41)

Of course, David was super thankful for what Jonathan had done for him. Even though David had been quite confident about Saul still wanting to kill him, Jonathan had taken a huge risk to find out for sure. But while David was thankful, at the same time both David and Jonathan were very sad. They’d been friends for a long time. They’d shared their thoughts with each other, probably fought battles together, they saw in each other someone who just “got it” – kindred spirits as they say. And now they would be separated. Probably for a long time. And after they’d cried together, Jonathan had to send David away, saying, “Go in peace, since we have both sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘May the Lord be between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants, forever.’” (20:42) And with a heavy heart, David turned and disappeared into the wilderness.

And David and Jonathan were right to be sad. Because in fact according to the Bible, the two friends would only see each other one more time after this. And David was starting down a very difficult path. A path where he would always be on the run, always looking over his shoulder…a path where he would have to make many difficult decisions. Where would David go? What would David do? How could David possibly escape the clutches of King Saul? Well, we will find out all about it…next time.