Jonathan Warns David

As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.

Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.

1 Samuel 20:1-4
1 Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah and came and said before Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my guilt? 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. Behold, my father does nothing either great or small without disclosing it to me. And why should my father hide this from me? It is not so.”
3 But David vowed again, saying, “Your father knows well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he thinks, ‘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.”
4 Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.”

In our last passage, Saul had sent three companies of messengers to Naioth in Ramah, where David had fled to be with Samuel. All three companies had been frustrated in their mission, to the point that Saul decided to go himself.

Even as the king approached the city that harbored David and Samuel, the king fell under the power of God and was restrained from accomplishing his will for a full day and night. With this occurrence, David fled.

Consider David’s situation. His arch enemy, the king of Israel has made four concerted efforts to restrain him, and each time God had restricted them. There comes a time when it becomes obvious to relocate, and with Saul flailing about under the trance, David chose to flee to the kings house! He fled to see his friend and ally Jonathon, and it is assumed this meeting took place in the very home of David’s enemy.

David confronted Jonathon, as only the closest of friends can, with piercing questions.

• What have I done?
• What is my iniquity?
• What is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?

Note that David’s three questions are not necessarily to the same the, for only the third question refers to the king. Is David checking on Jonathon’s attitude regarding himself, that possibly the king has infected Jonathon with malice towards his friend? After all, Jonathon was loosing out on the chance of a life, to become the next king of Israel. Beyond that, Jonathon would fall into the non-enviable position of a challenger to the throne after the transition. David understood this and needed to be reassured of Jonathon’s commitment to him.

Essentially, in the first two questions, he is asking Jonathon of his attitude toward himself, if there is anything that he has done that has turned the friendship sour.

The third question is the tripping point, for David realized that Saul may hide his intentions from Jonathon due to their obvious friendship, but David pushes nonetheless! He had not been warned of Saul’s attempt in Ramah, and now David may be considering Jonathon to have less than full disclosure from the king of his plans. What else does Jonathon not know, or hasn’t been forthright to David about.

David states the obvious to Jonathon, in that he is nearer to death at the hand of Saul than ever before. One wrong step and he would be eliminated.

But hold on here. David just experienced four deliverances of the Lord from the evil king, and had been supernaturally protected. Is David forgetting this conveniently to make a point with Jonathon? Possibly!

Or it may be that David understood far better than I that he was to make every effort to preserve his life for the sake of the name of God, and to leave the impossible to God. He was not to presume upon the deliverance of God, to fall into an assumption that God would “do all the work”.

In David’s ascension to the throne, David was an integral partner in the work of God to this goal. Of course self preservation was kicking in, and David was seeking to make a point with his friend Jonathon, but the balance between God’s providence and mans responsibility seems to be exhibited in this story line.

Nevertheless, Jonathon reassures David of his commitment to his purpose and flatly, without conditions, states that what David wishes, he will do.

Jonathon’s commitment was stable and continual, providing David the means to understand the royal court’s intention towards him.

In our next passage, David lays out a plan to test Saul’s attitude toward him. This will be the test that finally determines the next six years of David’s life as a fugitive. (See Introduction for dating used for this study)

In summary, David’s life is about to be upended even more than the confusing period he has experienced with the king, since his victory over the giant. As my momma used to say, he is about to go from the fry pan into the fire, and this next six years would produce some of the most stunning acts of loyalty and grace exhibited in the Old Testament, apart from God’s continual faithfulness to His people.

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