Day 1169: A covenant of love - 1 Samuel 20 vs 5 - 17
5- 7 David said to Jonathan, “Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit at table with the king. But let me go, that I may hide myself in the field till the third day at evening. If your father misses me at all, then say, ‘David earnestly asked leave of me to run to Bethlehem his city, for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the clan.’ If he says, ‘Good!’ it will be well with your servant, but if he is angry, then know that harm is determined by him. 8 Therefore 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?” 9 And 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?”
10-11 Then David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you roughly?” And Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out into the field.” So they both went out into the field. 12 And 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? 13 But 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. 14-15 If I am still alive, show me the steadfast love of the Lord, that I may not die; and do not cut of 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.”
16-17 And Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “May the Lord take vengeance on David’s enemies.” And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul. 1 Samuel 20:5-17 English Standard Version
This is an incident in the Bible where some might ask “was David lying?” Clearly he and Jonathan were devising a plan to see if it was safe for David to continue serving Saul. It may be there was a yearly sacrifice in Bethlehem, but if so, David did not plan to attend. So yes, David and Jonathan were not being truthful. But with his life at stake it seemed to him the best idea. Rahab acted in a similar way when she hid the Jewish spies in Jericho and told the soldiers seeking them that they had left the city earlier.
But David wasn't perfect and we should not be hasty in condemning his action. God's command to Israel was “Do not steal. Do not lie. Do not deceive one another.” (Leviticus 19:11) That command was to keep people from getting their own way and exploiting others. That was not David's intention. The apostle Paul wrote to Christians: “Do not lie to each other, since you've taken off your old self with its practices.” Again, this is a call to live honestly and not exploit others, and it should always be our aim.
The better part of today's section reminds us of the lovely covenant made between Jonathan and David. David said “deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you.” Jonathan replied “If I knew that it was determined by my father that harm should come to you, would I not tell you?” David's part of the covenant was that “he would not cut of his steadfast love from Jonathan’s house forever, when the Lord had cut off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.” David would keep his side of the covenant. When Jonathan died, he would ask “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” (2 Samuel 9:1)
What a blessing a covenant can be! And Christians have been brought into a covenant with the Lord Himself. “Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old, as the covenant He mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises.” (Hebrews 8:6) They can say with David:“Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.” (Psalm 23:6) The word used there for 'unfailing love' is the Hebrew 'hesed', and it means God's unfailing covenant love.