Read 1 Samuel Chapter 20
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash.
So David has left the retreat of the old prophet Samuel and his school of prophets. He fled from Naioth which was some sort of camp - maybe a camp normally used by shepherds. David is in a panic again because of the arrival of Saul. His messengers had failed to arrest David and bring him to Saul to be killed as so Saul makes the journey himself. The journey for Saul did not go as planned and he ended up lying naked outside overnight. He found it impossible to resist the influence of the Spirit of God. David ignores the fact that God has preserved his life despite Saul's determination to kill him. Jonathan showed genuine affection for David - even though David was his rival for the throne of Israel. I see some good features in Jonathan - he illustrates the kind of love which is spoken about in Paul's letter to the Corinthians.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 NIV]
Just to pick out some features of the love Jonathan showed to David mentioned in this well-known chapter.
Love is kind - Jonathan showed kindness towards David many times
Love does not envy -Jonathan did not envy David's success on the battlefield or his popularity with the people - especially women.
Love is not proud - Jonathan displays humility - prepared to advance David to his own disadvantage.
Love is not self-seeking. Jonathan's behaviour is very unselfish and altruistic - he is risking his own relationship with his father to help his friend, David.
Love always hopes. Jonathan is optimistic and wants a good outcome for David.
What about the lie that Jonathan tells David in verse 2 this chapter?
Then David fled from Naioth at Ramah and went to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? What is my crime? How have I wronged your father, that he is trying to kill me?”
“Never!” Jonathan replied. “You are not going to die! Look, my father doesn’t do anything, great or small, without letting me know. Why would he hide this from me? It isn’t so!” [1 Samuel 20:1-2 NIV]
I am not seeking to defend lying which is condemned in the Bible. David is in despair and asks two very genuine questions, "Why is your father trying to kill me? What harm have I done to him? I have separated David's words into two related questions. Jonathan does not answer the first question - and in fact, he had asked his father that same question (1 Samuel 19:4-5). He corrects David's suggestion that his father was trying to kill him. My old commentator is very critical of Jonathan for doing this and this is further evidence that Jonathan was not 'a saved man.' I think that Jonathan is very misguided in this remark to David. There is ample evidence that Saul is only too eager to assassinate David. Saul had even tried to recruit his own son, Jonathan to carry out the execution of his rival (1 Samuel 19: 1). Jonathan was trying to protect David from the reality of the situation. He wanted to believe that David was safe even though all the evidence pointed to the contrary. I would say that Jonathan is being very naïve and blinkered. There are times when we find it hard to be honest with friends when they are facing difficult times. There is a temptation to try to hide the truth when the prospect is bleak. We mistakenly try to preserve them from facing the facts.
David is not in a good emotional state. He is very vulnerable. He is obsessed with himself. Read through verse 1 of the chapter and notice how often David spoke about himself -
Then David fled from Naioth at Ramah and went to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? What is my crime? How have I wronged your father, that he is trying to kill me?”
David is not in the same spiritual condition he was in previously in chapter 17 of this same book when he faced the Philistine. Then he was trusting in the Lord. His talk was all about God's power. "The battle is the Lord's." David's downward path began when he stopped trusting in God to protect him against the mad king and he fled in a panic to Samuel. He then took another downward slide when he left Naioth and Ramah in a panic and fled to Jonathan. David takes another leap downwards spiritually when he arranges for Jonathan to lie for him.
The situation is that the two young men want to find out whether it is safe for David to be in Saul's presence. There was an important feast the next day and it was agreed that David would not attend this banquet even though it was expected that the king's son-in-law would attend - also in light of David's important role in fighting the Philistines. How would Saul react to David not being there would give a clue as to his attitude towards David. So there is a plan worked out. Jonathan would watch Saul's reaction and would report back to David. They agreed a signal to be given so that David would know the outcome of the test and would run away if this was necessary. Saul did notice that David's seat was empty - not evidence of amazing faculties of observation on his part! He ignored David's absence on the first day but the next day he challenged Jonathan about David's absence. Then Jonathan told his father the lie that he had agreed with David. Saul told his father, " David is away home to his family in Bethlehem. There is a special sacrifice being held there and his brother has ordered him to attend the family gathering." This was all a big lie and Saul was not deceived for a minute. He saw through the lies. Maybe Jonathan was not a convincing liar or else the substance of the lie was not credible. David did not get on particularly well with his family and he has not been too eager to go there previously. There are some people who are very convincing liars and there are other who give the game away by their body language. I wasted many hours listening to young people telling one lie after another and they thought that I would believe them. So this lie was totally pointless.
So was the signal that they had arranged. Saul lost his temper with Jonathan and accused him of bringing the family into disrepute. That is almost laughable - considering the conduct of this evil king. Saul accused his own son of being 'the son of a perverse and rebellious woman.' - interesting that he blamed Jonathan's mother! (verse 30) He savaged Jonathan for choosing to protect David. Saul's language is very extreme - 'Don’t I know that you have sided with the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of the mother who bore you?' [1 Samuel 20:30 NIV] If there was any doubt in Jonathan's mind of his father's hatred of David and his evil plans, this was totally dispelled when Saul ordered his son to bring David to him to have him executed. Then when Jonathan, bravely or foolishly, tried to defend David and ask what he had done to offend the king, Saul hurled his spear at Jonathan in blind anger. So Jonathan is very upset and has to pass on this news to David. There is an agreed signal using arrows and giving commands to the young boy who looked after his armour. But after all this coded signals, Jonathan and David meet in person and he is able to explain precisely the sequence of events. This prompts David to go into hiding again.
This whole episode was unnecessary. David must have had no doubts that Saul intended to kill him and that Jonathan was not able to protect him. David is understandably in despair and in a panic and he is not acting out of faith. He is not even behaving rationally. All this subterfuge is not what God wanted from his anointed king. The incident in chapter 20 does show clear evidence of Jonathan's genuine, selfless affection for David. But sadly, David is out of touch with the Lord and has left the place where God's presence was clearly demonstrated by the power of the Spirit of God. David was safe at Naioth in Ramah because he was where the Holy Spirit was active and was protecting him from evil. He did not need to flee - he needed to learn to commit his ways to the Lord and trust in Him for protection.
This well-known hymn brings this study into New Testament times.
What a friend we have in Jesus
All our sins and griefs to bear
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer.
O what peace we often forfeit
O what needless pains we bear
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer
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