1 Samuel 20

This chapter was originally written in the Hebrew language. It is divided into 42 verses.

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Codex Cairensis (895), Aleppo Codex (10th century), and Codex Leningradensis (1008).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=35-37}} Fragments containing parts of this chapter in Hebrew were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls including 4Q51 (4QSam{{sup|a}}; 100–50 BCE) with extant verses 37–40{{sfn|Ulrich|2010|pp=278–281}}[https://thewaytoyahuweh.com/dead-sea-scrolls/general-info/#1_samuel Dead sea scrolls - 1 Samuel]{{sfn|Fitzmyer|2008|p=35}}[https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/explore-the-archive/manuscript/4Q51-1 4Q51 at the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library] and 4Q52 (4QSam{{sup|b}}; 250 BCE) with extant verses 26–42.{{sfn|Ulrich|2010|pp=281–282}}{{sfn|Fitzmyer|2008|p=35}}[https://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/explore-the-archive/manuscript/4Q52-1 4Q52 at the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library]

Extant ancient manuscripts of a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint (originally was made in the last few centuries BCE) include Codex Vaticanus (B; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^B; 4th century) and Codex Alexandrinus (A; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^A; 5th century).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=73-74}}{{efn|The whole book of 1 Samuel is missing from the extant Codex Sinaiticus.{{Catholic Encyclopedia|wstitle=Codex Sinaiticus}}}}

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• Bethlehem
• Naioth in Ramah

A continuing major theme in this chapter is how Saul's family acted against Saul and sided with David, especially Jonathan, who had previously managed to reconcile both of them, now was forced to take sides.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=209}} Initially he stood by his father and his father's oath not to harm David (19:6) that he refused to believe that David was close to death, nonetheless he was willing to find out Saul's true intention during the Feast of the New Moon and to inform David using their agreed coded message about the outcome.{{sfn|Jones|2007|pp=209–210}} At this time Saul explicitly told Jonathan that their dynasty of kingship could not be realized as long as David was alive.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=210}} However, Saul's blind ambition had enlarged the extent of the rift between him and his family, to the point that his enmity towards David had 'isolated him from his own kin'.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=209}}

After escaping from Saul's pursuit in Naioth, David once again sought Jonathan to find out why Saul wanted to kill him. They agreed on a method whereby Jonathan, after establishing Saul's intention, would, unknown to anyone else, inform David.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=209}}

:And David said to Jonathan, Indeed, tomorrow is the New Moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king to eat. But let me go, that I may hide in the field until the third day at evening.{{bibleverse|1 Samuel|20:5|NKJV}} NKJV

• "New Moon": a festival that consists of sacrificial offerings (Numbers 28:11–15) and celebratory feasts, which was also observed in other parts of ancient world, including Mesopotamia and Babylon.{{sfn|Evans|2018|p=212}} The feast may require the entire clan to be present and this was used as an excuse for David to be absent before the king.{{sfn|Evans|2018|p=213}} The eldest son was likely to gather all members, so David requested to be let go to "see my brothers" (1 Samuel 20:29).{{sfn|Evans|2018|p=213}} According to this chapter, the feast lasted for three days.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=210}}

:And when you have stayed three days, go down quickly and come to the place where you hid on the day of the deed; and remain by the stone Ezel.{{bibleref2|1 Samuel|19:13|NKJV}} NKJV

• "Have stayed three days": from Hebrew: {{lang|he|שִׁלַּשְׁתָּ}}, shillashta, “to do a third time”, which could be emended into {{lang|he|שִׁלִּישִׁית}}, shillishit, “[on the] third [day]”.Note [a] on 1 Samuel 20:19 in NET Bible

Jonathan opened the conversation with Saul by providing an excuse for David's absence, then with a defense of David (verse 32) echoing David's own words in verse 1, which moved from being a position of conciliator between David and Saul to be of David's defender under threat from his father (verses 30–33).{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=209}} Saul's fierce reply and attempt to kill Jonathan shows that David had little choice but to leave Saul's court and run away, not out of disloyalty nor for his own ambition, but due to events beyond his control.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=210}} A promise is made by David to extend his covenant with Jonathan to include Jonatan's 'house' (verse 15) and his 'descendants' (verse 42), anticipating David's kindness to Jonathan's son, Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 9) and the survival of the house of Saul.{{sfn|Jones|2007|p=210}}

:When the boy got there, David emerged from his concealment at the Negeb. He flung himself face down on the ground and bowed low three times. They kissed each other and wept together; David wept the longer.

• "at the Negeb": translated from the Masoretic Text {{langx|he|מֵאֵ֣צֶל הַנֶּ֔גֶב|mēʾēṣel hanneg̲eb̲}}.[https://biblehub.com/text/1_samuel/20-41.htm 1 Samuel 20:41 Hebrew Text Analysis]. Biblehub Septuagint in Codex Vaticanus renders it "from the Argab" (argab = "a heap of stones") or "from beside the mound",Note [a] on 1 Samuel 20:41 in NET Bible whereas Septuagint in Codex Alexandrinus has “from sleep.” The Targum Jonathan translates this to as {{langx|jpa|מֵאֵ֣צֶל הַנֶּ֔גֶב|meʿezel nag̲eb̲}} "the ʿezel of the south", where Nagev is a loanword from Hebrew "Negev, desert". The different versions (Arabic, Syriac) have here the repetition of the statement in 1 Samuel 20:19.Ellicott, C. J. (Ed.) (1905). [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/1_samuel/20.htm Ellicott's Bible Commentary for English Readers. 1 Samuel 20.] London : Cassell and Company, Limited, [1905-1906] Online version: (OCoLC) 929526708. Accessed 28 April 2019.Keil, Carl Friedrich; Delitzsch, Franz. [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/kad/1_samuel/20.htm Commentary on the Old Testament (1857-1878). 1 Samuel 20]. Accessed 24 Juni 2018.

{{columns-list|colwidth=22em|

• Abner
• Javelin
• Jesse
• Jonathan and David
• Oath

}}

{{Portal|Bible}}

• Related Bible parts: 1 Samuel 15, 1 Samuel 18, 1 Samuel 19

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

{{Refbegin}}

• {{Cite book|last=Auld|first=Graeme|chapter=1 & 2 Samuel|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Vo-11umIZQC&pg=PA213 |editor=James D. G. Dunn and John William Rogerson|title=Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible|publisher=Eerdmans|year=2003|isbn=9780802837110}}
• {{Cite book|last=Bergen|first=David T.|title=1, 2 Samuel|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eGT6fWsajqcC |publisher=B&H Publishing Group|year=1996|isbn=9780805401073}}
• {{Cite book| last=Chapman |first= Stephen B. |title= 1 Samuel as Christian Scripture: A Theological Commentary |publisher= Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company |year= 2016 |isbn= 978-1467445160 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=kS4XDAAAQBAJ }}
• {{Cite book| last=Evans |first= Paul |title= 1-2 Samuel | series = The Story of God Bible Commentary | editor-first= Tremper | editor-last= Longman |publisher= Zondervan Academic |year= 2018 |isbn= 978-0310490944 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Uy8-DwAAQBAJ }}
• {{Cite book|last=Gordon|first=Robert|title=I & II Samuel, A Commentary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JMJ1ZAnswuUC&dq=I+%26+II+Samuel:+a+commentary+Gordon&pg=PA338|publisher=Paternoster Press |year=1986 |isbn=9780310230229}}
• {{Cite book|last=Hertzberg|first=Hans Wilhelm|title=I & II Samuel, A Commentary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=friNN7IdjOIC&q=Saul+appointed+anointed+instituted&pg=PA19|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|year=1964|edition=trans. from German 2nd edition 1960|isbn=978-0664223182|page=19}}
• {{Cite book|last=Tsumura|first=David Toshio|title=The First Book of Samuel|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iLKAlhLDkMwC |publisher=Eerdmans|year=2007|isbn=9780802823595}}

{{Refend}}

{{Refbegin}}

• {{Cite book|last=Breytenbach|first=Andries|title=Past, Present, Future: the Deuteronomistic History and the Prophets |publisher= Brill| year=2000|chapter=Who Is Behind The Samuel Narrative? |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=uP22QHpnKq8C&dq=Breytenbach+Who+is+behind+the+Samuel+narrative&pg=PA50|editor=Johannes Cornelis de Moor and H.F. Van Rooy|isbn=9789004118713}}
• {{cite book | last= Coogan| first = Michael David | author-link= Michael D. Coogan | title = The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books: New Revised Standard Version, Issue 48 | editor-last1 = Coogan | editor-first1= Michael David | editor-first2 = Marc Zvi | editor-last2 = Brettler | editor-first3 = Carol Ann | editor-last3 = Newsom | editor-first4= Pheme | editor-last4 = Perkins | edition= Augmented 3rd | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 2007 |isbn = 978-0195288810 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=HmpMPgAACAAJ}}
• {{cite book|last = Fitzmyer|first = Joseph A.|title = A Guide to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature|publisher = William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=TILXeWJ2eNAC | year = 2008|isbn = 9780802862419|location = Grand Rapids, MI }}
• {{cite book | last= Halley | first= Henry H. | author-link= Henry Hampton Halley | title= Halley's Bible Handbook: an abbreviated Bible commentary |edition=24th (revised)| publisher= Zondervan Publishing House | date= 1965 | url= https://archive.org/details/halleysbiblehand00henr | url-access= registration| isbn= 0-310-25720-4}}
• {{Cite book | last = Hayes | first = Christine | title = Introduction to the Bible |publisher = Yale University Press | year = 2015 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SKbkXYHxvlAC |isbn = 978-0300188271}}
• {{cite book|last= Jones | first= Gwilym H. | chapter = 12. 1 and 2 Samuel | title=The Oxford Bible Commentary | editor-first1=John | editor-last1 = Barton | editor1-link = John Barton (theologian) | editor-first2=John | editor-last2= Muddiman | editor2-link = John Muddiman | publisher = Oxford University Press | edition= first (paperback) | year = 2007 | pages = 196–232 | isbn = 978-0199277186 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ZJdVkgEACAAJ | access-date=February 6, 2019}}
• {{Cite book|last=Klein|first=R.W.|chapter=Samuel, books of|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6OJvO2jMCr8C |editor=Bromiley, Geoffrey W|title=The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia|publisher=Eerdmans|year=2003|isbn=9780802837844}}
• {{Cite book|last=Knight|first=Douglas A|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SNLN1nEEys0C&q=630+BCE&pg=PA62|editor=James Luther Mays, David L. Petersen and Kent Harold Richards|chapter=Chapter 4 Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomists|title=Old Testament Interpretation|publisher=T&T Clark|year=1995|isbn=9780567292896 }}
• {{Cite book | editor-last = Ulrich | editor-first = Eugene | title = The Biblical Qumran Scrolls: Transcriptions and Textual Variants | year = 2010 | publisher = Brill | url = https://archive.org/details/TheBiblicalQumranScrolls }}
• {{cite book | last = Würthwein | first = Ernst | author-link = Ernst Würthwein | title = The Text of the Old Testament | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans |location = Grand Rapids, MI | year= 1995 | translator-first1 = Erroll F.| translator-last1 = Rhodes | isbn = 0-8028-0788-7 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FSNKSBObCYwC | access-date= January 26, 2019}}

{{Refend}}

• Jewish translations:
• [https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/15849/showrashi/true Shmuel I - I Samuel - Chapter 20 (Judaica Press)]. Hebrew text and English translation [with Rashi's commentary] at Chabad.org
• Christian translations:
• [http://www.gospelhall.org/bible/bible.php?passage=1+Samuel+20 Online Bible at GospelHall.org] (ESV, KJV, Darby, American Standard Version, Bible in Basic English)
• [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=9&chapter=20&version=9 1 Samuel chapter 20. Bible Gateway]

{{First Book of Samuel}}

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20

Category:David

Category:Saul