Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 20:10
Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? or what [if] thy father answer thee roughly?
10. Who shall tell me, &c.] The double question answers to Jonathan’s double promise in 1Sa 20:12-13, that he will let David know the result in either event. But perhaps the words should be rendered simply, who shall tell me if haply thy father answer thee roughly?
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
1Sa 20:10
What if thy father answer thee roughly?
A word for the persecuted
I. Our first point is, what you may do, what there is a possibility of you doing, should your friends answer you roughly.
1. You may by-and-by be offended. I mean that you may leave Christ altogether, because you cannot bear his cross.
2. Or, it may happen to you that, instead of being by-and-by offended, you may continue for awhile, but you may gradually give way, and at last yield altogether. There are many among us who could bear to lose our heads at a stroke for Christ, but to be burned at a slow fire–ah, that would try us!
3. But if left to ourselves we may fall into what is as bad as open apostasy. When we find the father, or the wife, or the friend answering us roughly, we may make a pitiful compromise between Christ and the world.
4. I will tell you what you may do also, and I pray that the Holy Spirit may lead you to do it. You may take up humbly, but firmly, this decided stand:–If my father answer me roughly he must do so, but I have another Father who is in heaven and I shall appeal to him. If the world condemn me, I shall accept its condemnation.
II. What the trial will do for us if we are helped to bear up under it. What if thy father answer thee roughly?
1. First, it will grieve us. It is by no means pleasant to be opposed in doing right by those who ought to help us in it. It is very painful to flesh and blood to go contrary to those we love.
2. The opposition of your friends will try your sincerity. If you are a hypocrite you will soon yield to opposition.
3. The rough answers of opponents will try your faith. You say you believe in Jesus: now we shall see if you do, for if you cannot bear a little trial from men and women, surely you will not be able to bear the worse trials from the devil and his angels. If you cannot bear the trials of life, how will you endure the ordeals of death?
4. Persecution will try your love to Jesus. If you really love Him you will cheerfully stand in the pillory of reproach with Him. Your valiant soldier in quiet barracks at home could fight, no doubt, but how do you know till he has passed through a campaign?
5. The rough answers of those who should be your friends will keep us awake. I think it was Erskine who used to say, Lord, deliver me from a sleepy devil.
6. Such afflictions drive you to your knees.
7. Trials from the enemies of Jesus confirm our faith. Those who are never tried usually possess a poor, tottering faith, but trial, especially persecution, is like the rough March wind which goes howling through the forest, and while the young oaks are almost torn up by the roots at first, it loosens the soil for them, and they send out more rootlets, till they get such a firm grip that they defy the hurricane.
8. Rough speeches, too, will have this good effect, upon genuine Christians, it will lead them to plead for those who utter them.
9. Certainly opposition has another good effect, that it drives those subject to it into the truly separated path; they are known to be Christians, and proclaimed as such by their revilers.
10. One good effect of being persecuted at home is this, it makes you gentler abroad.
III. How should you behave under the trial?
1. Never court opposition.
2. Endure whatever you have to endure with the greatest possible meekness.
3. After bearing with meekness return good for evil. For cruel words return warmer love and increased kindness. The most renowned weapon for a Christian to fight his antagonists with is that of overcoming evil with good.
4. Here let, me also remark that to this gentle endurance there must be added by the persecuted Christian much exactness of life.
IV. In doing all this what comfort may you expect.
1. You may have this for your comfort, that the persecutor is in Gods hands. He cannot do more than God lets him, and if God permits him to annoy, you may cheerfully bear it.
2. Next, remember, if you keep your conscience clear it is a great joy. Rough answers outside need not trouble you while within there is the answer of a good conscience towards God. Injure your conscience and you lose that consolation; preserve it from evil and you must be happy.
3. Remember that by patiently enduring and persevering you will have fellowship with the grandest spirits that ever lived.
4. Remember, too, that if you have extraordinary troubles Jesus will be doubly near to you.
5. You have the sweet thought also that you are doing more good where you are than if you were placed altogether among the godly. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 10. Who shall tell me?] Who shall give me the necessary information? What means wilt thou use to convey this intelligence to me?
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
By what means or messenger shall I understand this? for peradventure thou wilt not be able to come to me thyself.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Then said David to Jonathan, who shall tell me?…. The disposition of Saul’s mind towards him, whether he gave a kind answer to the report of Jonathan concerning him:
or what [if] thy father answer thee roughly? or hard words, as the Targum, whether he answers in a kind, loving, and smooth manner, or whether in a rough and angry one: the question is here, how he should be informed of this, since especially, if in the latter, it would not be safe for Jonathan to come himself to him, nor could he well trust the message with any other. Abarbinel thinks, that the first of these expressions is by way of question, who should declare to him his father’s will and intention, whether good or bad: and the latter by way of outcry, woe unto me, if thy father should answer thee roughly; I greatly fear he will chide thee for my sake; my heart will be filled with sorrow if thou shouldest suffer reproach and rebuke on my account.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(10) Who shall tell me? or what if thy father answer thee roughly?The language in the original is here very abrupt and involved. Evidently the very words uttered in the memorable scene by the excited and sorrowful friends are remembered and reported.
The if supplied in the English Version probably is nearest the meaning intended to be conveyed by the broken, agitated words. Another rendering is, If thy father shall answer thee harshly, who will declare it to me?
These questions of David were suggested by a correct estimate of the circumstancesnamely, that Sauls suspicions would lead him to the conclusion that there was some understanding between Jonathan and David, and that he would take steps, in consequence, to prevent Jonathan from making David acquainted with the result of his conversation with Saul.Keil.
In the next verse Jonathan leads David into a solitary spotthe fieldwhere, before saying their last words together, they might agree upon some secret sign by means of which Sauls real mind towards David might be communicated, if necessary, by Jonathan to his friend.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Jonathan Explains His Plan For Letting David Know What The Situation Is, And Renews Their Firm Covenant ( 1Sa 20:10-24 a).
In response to David’s request Jonathan now outlined his plan for keeping David informed of whatever decision Saul showed himself to have come to, and at the same time renewed and expanded his covenant with David. He was now aware in his heart that the throne was not for him, and that YHWH eventually intended that David would sit on the throne of Israel. Indeed we have to consider it a good possibility that David had confided to him what Samuel had done in anointing him at Bethlehem. And Jonathan was seemingly quite satisfied with the situation. Unlike his father he had no overweening ambition.
Analysis.
a
b And Jonathan said to David, “YHWH, the God of Israel, be witness. When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if there be good toward David, will I not then send to you, and disclose it to you? YHWH do so to Jonathan, and more also, should it please my father to do you evil, if I do not disclose it to you, and send you away, that you may go in peace. And YHWH be with you, as he has been with my father” (1Sa 20:12-13).
c “And you shall not only, while yet I live, show me the lovingkindness of YHWH, that I die not, but also you shall not cut off your kindness from my house for ever, no, not when YHWH has cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth” (1Sa 20:14).
d So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “And YHWH will require it at the hand of David’s enemies” (1Sa 20:16).
c And Jonathan made David swear again, for the love that he had to him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul (1Sa 20:17).
b Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty. And when you have stayed three days, 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. And I will shoot three arrows on its side, as though I shot at a mark. And, see, 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 YHWH lives. But if I say thus to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you’, go your way, for YHWH has sent you away. And as touching the matter which you and I have spoken of, behold, YHWH is between you and me for ever” (1Sa 20:18-23).
a So David hid himself in the countryside (1Sa 20:24 a).
Note than in ‘a’ they go out into the countryside, and in the parallel David hides himself in the countryside. In ‘b’ Jonathan speaks of the two day feast that is coming, and promises to connect with David on the third day in order to reveal the result of his testing out of Saul, and ends with a request that YHWH be with David as He has been with his father, and in the parallel he refers to the feast and to the three days, and explains how he will convey the information in such a way that no one will be suspicious, and ends with a request that YHWH will YHWH will be between them both for ever. In ‘c’ Jonathan asks that David will show him the lovingkindness of YHWH and will make a covenant with him, and in the parallel he makes David swear to that covenant again and it is because of his true love for David. Central in ‘d’ is the solemn nature of that covenant.
1Sa 20:10
‘ Then David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if perhaps your father answers you roughly?”
David now raised the question as to how, if Saul’s verdict went against him, he was to obtain the information. Clearly he could not approach Jonathan openly because too many people would know about it, and it would be dangerous. And in view of what Saul knew about their friendship it was always likely that Jonathan’s movements would be watched. Who then would come and give him the information?
1Sa 20:11
‘ And Jonathan said to David, “Come, and let us go out into the countryside.” And they both went out to the countryside.’
Jonathan then suggested that they leave the town and go out into the countryside. He was concerned that nothing that they discussed might be overheard. And once there he would show David what he intended to do. So that is what they both did.
1Sa 20:12
‘ And Jonathan said to David, YHWH, the God of Israel, be witness. When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if there be good toward David, will I not then send to you, and disclose it to you?” ’
Once they were in the countryside Jonathan called on YHWH to witness the absolute certainty of what he was saying, and he confirmed that if Saul’s disposition turned out to be good he would immediately tell him of it.
1Sa 20:13
“ YHWH do so to Jonathan, and more also, should it please my father to do you evil, if I do not disclose it to you, and send you away, that you may go in peace. And YHWH be with you, as he has been with my father.”
On the other hand if he discerned that his father planned evil towards David, then he affirmed equally strongly that he would disclose it to David and send him away that he might go in peace. Then he added words which were very significant. It would seem clear from this that he recognised that David was destined for higher things, for he adds, ‘YHWH be with you, as he has been with my father.’ There is the underlying thought here that David was following in Saul’s footsteps and would one day be king. It seems that Jonathan did not have any particular desire to be king, and did not consider himself kingship material (although he would have made a better king than most). He was quite happy that his comrade-in-arms be king in his place.
1Sa 20:14-15
“ And you shall not only, while yet I live, show me the lovingkindness of YHWH, that I die not, but also you shall not cut off your kindness from my house for ever, no, not when YHWH has cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth.”
One thing only he asked, and that was that, once YHWH had once for all removed all David’s enemies, David would himself show to him the lovingkindness of YHWH and guarantee his life (it was quite normal for men who took over a kingship to kill off all the close relatives of the previous king, especially the heir apparent), and also that he would guarantee that mercy for all who were descended from, or close relations of, Jonathan.
1Sa 20:16
‘ So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “And YHWH will require it at the hand of David’s enemies.” ’
In this way Jonathan made a covenant with ‘the house of David’, and backed it up with a curse, namely that if David proved unfaithful to it then YHWH would require it of him by giving David’s enemies victory over him.
1Sa 20:17
‘ And Jonathan made David swear again, for the love that he had to him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul.’
Thus did the heir apparent to the throne of Israel willingly yield his throne to David by covenant, because of the great love that he had for him, requiring only that he in return Jonathan honour himself and his descendants. It is apparent from this that Jonathan now recognised the seriousness of the situation and realised that they must soon part.
1Sa 20:18
‘ Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty.”
Having confirmed the covenant between them Jonathan now went into the details of what was to happen in the next three days. Again we have it confirmed that David would be expected to take his place at the coming new moon celebration. And he would be missed, because his seat would be empty. Precedents as to who sat where were clearly firmly set at such festivals, and David, as the king’s son-in-law, would have a place set near the king.
1Sa 20:19-22
“ And when you have stayed three days, 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. And I will shoot three arrows on its side, as though I shot at a mark. And, see, 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 YHWH lives. But if I say thus to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you’, go your way, for YHWH has sent you away.”
Jonathan then explained what David was to do in order to receive his prearranged signal. He was to come to the place where he had hidden himself when ‘the business was in hand’ (possibly the incident in 1Sa 19:1-7), and take up his place by the stone Ezel. And then he, Jonathan, would come there with a lad to practise archery. This would allay any suspicion that Jonathan had come out on some secret assignment. On arrival there he would shoot three arrows at the side of the stone, as though shooting at a mark. Then he would send the lad to find the arrows, and if he called out ‘the arrows are on this side’ David could take that as a signal that all was well and that he was in no danger. But if he yelled, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you’ then that would be a signal for David to flee for his life. It would indicate that there was danger and that YHWH had thus sent him away. Note the regular assumption, common in the former prophets (Joshua-Kings), that whatever happened was due to the activity of YHWH.
“The stone Ezel.” This means literally, ‘the stone of departure’. Out of sentimentality Jonathan may well have chosen to pass on his message at this stone for that very reason. The name presumably commemorated some well known ‘departure’ in the past. Others, however, consider that it was named Ezel because of this incident.
The shooting of arrows symbolically may well have had an important and recognised significance in Israel, possibly signifying the certainty of final triumph, or as an indication of certain judgment on the enemy (Deu 32:23). We can compare how Elisha arranged for Joash to shoot an arrow as an acted out prophecy of coming victory for him and coming judgment on his enemies (2Ki 13:14-19). Thus in this case arrows that went their full length indicated judgment determined on David, whereas arrows that fell short indicated that judgment like that would not reach David.
1Sa 20:23
“ And as touching the matter which you and I have spoken of, behold, YHWH is between you and me for ever.”
Jonathan then completed his words with a further reminder of the covenant and bond between himself and David. They were each to remember that they were bound to each other by YHWH.
1Sa 20:24
‘ So David hid himself in the countryside.’
This does not necessarily mean that he did not attend at his family’s celebrations in Bethlehem. It may simply indicate that he kept out of the way of the large cities, and especially of Gibeah, thus remaining out of public view. He would know that he was safe while the feast at Gibeah was in progress. Or it may simply be indicating what he did after he had been to Bethlehem and the sacrifices were over.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
1Sa 20:10 Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? or what [if] thy father answer thee roughly?
Ver. 10. Who shall tell me? ] Since thou canst neither come, nor send to me with any safety.
If thy father answer thee roughly.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
answer thee: 1Sa 20:30-34, 1Sa 25:10, 1Sa 25:14, 1Sa 25:17, Gen 42:7, Gen 42:30, 1Ki 12:13, Pro 18:23
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
20:10 Then said David to Jonathan, Who {f} shall tell me? or what [if] thy father answer thee roughly?
(f) If your father favours me.