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¹ And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? what is my iniquity? and what is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?² And he said to him, Far from it; you shall not die: look, my father does nothing either great or small, but that he discloses it to me; and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so.³ And David swore moreover, and said, Your father knows well that I have found favor in your eyes; and he says, Don't let Jonathan know this, or else he will be grieved: but truly as Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death.⁴ Then Jonathan said to David, Whatever your soul desires, I will even do it for you.⁵ And David said to Jonathan, Look, tomorrow 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 until the evening.⁶ If your father misses me at all, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his city; for it is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family.⁷ If he says thus, It is well; your slave shall have peace: but if he is angry, then know that evil has been determined by him.⁸ Therefore deal kindly with your slave; for you have brought your slave into a covenant of Yahweh with you: but if there is iniquity in me, slay me yourself; for why should you bring me to your father?

⁹ And Jonathan said, Far be it from you; for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come on you, then would not I tell it you?¹⁰ Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me if perchance your father answers you roughly?¹¹ And Jonathan said to David, Come, and let us go out into the field. And they went out both of them into the field.¹² And Jonathan said to David, [By] Yahweh, God of Israel: surely I will sound out my father by about this time on the third day, look, if there is good toward David, shall I not then send to you, and disclose it to you?¹³ Yahweh do so to Jonathan, and more also, should it please my father to do you evil, if I don't disclose it to you, and send you away, that you may go in peace: and Yahweh be with you, as he has been with my father.¹⁴ And you shall not only while I yet live show me the loving-kindness of Yahweh, that I will not die;¹⁵ but also you shall not cut off your kindness from my house forever; no, not when Yahweh has cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth.¹⁶ So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, [saying], And Yahweh will require it at the hand of the sons of David.¹⁷ And Jonathan caused David to swear again, for the love that he had to him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.¹⁸ Then Jonathan said to him, Tomorrow is the new moon: and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty.¹⁹ And on the third day, you shall go down quickly, and come to the place where you hid yourself when the business was in hand, and shall remain by the stone Ezel.²⁰ And I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark.²¹ And, look, I will send the lad, [saying], Go, find the arrows. If I say to the lad, Look, the arrows are on this side of you; take them, and come; for there is peace to you and no hurt, as Yahweh lives.²² But if I say thus to the boy, Look, the arrows are beyond you; go your way; for Yahweh has sent you away.²³ And as concerning the matter which you and I have spoken of, look, Yahweh is between you and me forever.

²⁴ So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon came, the king sat him down to eat food.²⁵ And the king sat on his seat, as at other times, even on the seat by the wall; and Jonathan sat opposite, and Abner sat by Saul's side: but David's place was empty.²⁶ Nevertheless Saul did not speak anything that day: for he thought, Something has befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean.²⁷ And it came to pass on the next day, the second of the month, that David's place was empty: and Saul said to Jonathan his son, Why didn't the son of Jesse come to meat, neither yesterday, nor today?²⁸ And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem:²⁹ and he said, Let me go, I pray you; for our family has a sacrifice in the city; and my brother, he has commanded me [to be there]: and now, if I have found favor in your eyes, let me get away, I pray you, and see my brothers. Therefore he didn't come to the king's table.³⁰ Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him, You son of a perverse rebellious woman, don't I know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother's nakedness?³¹ For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the ground, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Therefore now send and fetch him to me, for he shall surely die.³² And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, Why should he be put to death? what has he done?³³ And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him; whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to put David to death.³⁴ So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and ate no food 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.³⁶ And he said to his lad, Run, find now the arrows which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.³⁷ And when the lad came to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Isn't the arrow beyond you?³⁸ And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, hurry, don't stay. And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master.³⁹ But the lad didn't know anything: only Jonathan and David knew the matter.⁴⁰ And Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad, and said to him, Go, carry them to the city.⁴¹ And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose from beside the mound, 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.⁴² And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, since we have sworn both of us in the name of Yahweh, saying, Yahweh shall be between me and you, and between my seed and your seed, forever. And he arose and departed: and Jonathan went into the city.