Jonathan Befriends David 1 UST After David finished speaking with Saul{, he met Saul’ s son Jonathan.} Jonathan immediately felt a strong friendship for David. He loved him as much as he loved himself. BSB BSB: After David had finished speaking with Saul, the souls of Jonathan and David were knit together, and Jonathan loved him as himself.
2 UST Saul did not allow David to return home after he killed Goliath. Instead, Saul kept David with him to serve him. BSB BSB: And from that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return to his father’s house.
3 UST Because he loved David as much as he loved himself, Jonathan made a solemn agreement with David that they would always be friends. BSB BSB: Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.
4 UST Jonathan took off the outer robe he was wearing and gave it to David. He also gave David the special clothes he wore under his armor, his sword, his bow and arrows, and his belt. BSB BSB: And Jonathan removed the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt.
Saul Envies David 5 UST David then fought battles as Saul directed him. Whatever Saul told him to do, David did it very successfully. As a result, Saul appointed David as a commander in the army. The people of Israel, and especially the ones who served Saul directly, admired David greatly. BSB BSB: So David marched out and prospered in everything Saul sent him to do, and Saul set him over the men of war. And this was pleasing in the sight of all the people, and of Saul’s officers as well.
6 UST One time, David and the troops he was commanding defeated a Philistine army and killed many of its soldiers. Then he returned to Israel with the rest of the Israelite army. Women came out from many Israelite cities and towns to greet King Saul{ and all the soldiers}. They were singing and dancing very happily, and they were playing tambourines and lyres. BSB BSB: As the troops were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs, and with tambourines and other instruments.
7 UST To celebrate, the women sang this song:“Saul has killed thousands of enemy soldiers, And David has killed tens of thousands of them!” BSB BSB: And as the women danced, they sang out: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.”
8 UST When Saul heard the women singing that, he did not like it at all. He became very angry. He said to himself,“They are saying that David has killed tens of thousands of enemy soldiers. But they are only saying that I have killed thousands of them. The only greater honor they could give him would be to make him the king instead of me!” BSB BSB: And Saul was furious and resented this song. “They have ascribed tens of thousands to David,” he said, “but only thousands to me. What more can he have but the kingdom?”
9 UST From that time on, Saul watched David very closely{ because he was suspicious that David would try to become king}. BSB BSB: And from that day forward Saul kept a jealous eye on David.
10 UST The next day, a troubling spirit that God sent suddenly began to affect Saul. He began to act like a crazy person inside his house. David was playing the lyre for him, as he often did. Saul was holding his royal spear. BSB BSB: The next day a spirit of distress sent from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house while David played the harp as usual. Now Saul was holding a spear,
11 UST Saul thought,“I can throw my spear so hard at David that it will go through him into the wall behind him and pin him there!” Saul threw his spear at David twice, but David jumped aside both times. BSB BSB: and he hurled it, thinking, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.
12 UST Saul realized that Yahweh was no longer helping him. He realized that Yahweh was now helping David. This made Saul afraid of David. BSB BSB: So Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had departed from Saul.
13 UST So Saul tried to make sure that David would not be near him. He made David the commander of a thousand of his soldiers. Then David had to lead those soldiers out on military campaigns. BSB BSB: Therefore Saul sent David away and gave him command of a thousand men. David led the troops out to battle and back,
14 UST But Yahweh helped David, so David won all of the battles that he fought. BSB BSB: and he continued to prosper in all his ways, because the LORD was with him.
15 UST When Saul heard how successful David and his soldiers were, he became very afraid even to be in the same place as David. BSB BSB: When Saul saw that David was very successful, he was afraid of him.
16 UST But because David was leading their soldiers very successfully in battles, all the people of Israel and of Judah loved David. BSB BSB: But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he was leading them out to battle and back.
David Marries Michal 17 UST One day Saul said to David,“I want to talk to you about my older daughter Merab. I will allow you to marry her if you serve me bravely by fighting battles for Yahweh{ against the Philistines}.” Saul said that because he thought,“I will not try to kill David myself. I will have the Philistines kill him.” BSB BSB: Then Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage. Only be valiant for me and fight the LORD’s battles.” But Saul was thinking, “I need not raise my hand against him; let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”
18 UST But David said to Saul,“I do not have the standing to become your son- in- law. I am not a very important person, and I come from a family that does not belong to an important Israelite clan.” BSB BSB: And David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my family or my father’s clan in Israel, that I should become the son-in-law of the king?”
19 UST So at the time when Saul would have allowed David to marry his daughter Merab, instead he allowed a different man to marry her. This man was from the town of Meholah and his name was Adriel. BSB BSB: So when it was time to give Saul’s daughter Merab to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah.
20 UST However, Saul’ s other daughter, Michal, fell in love with David. When someone told Saul about that, he was pleased. BSB BSB: Now Saul’s daughter Michal loved David, and when this was reported to Saul, it pleased him.
21 UST Saul thought,“I will promise to give Michal to him as his wife, but I will do that in order to trap him.{ I will make him fight dangerously against the Philistines in order to marry her,} and this will enable the Philistines to kill him.” So Saul told David once again that he could become his son- in- law right away. BSB BSB: “I will give her to David,” Saul thought, “so that she may be a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “For a second time now you can be my son-in-law.”
22 UST Saul told his servants,“Talk to David privately and tell him,‘Listen, the king is pleased with you. All of us who serve him love you. So we think that you should marry Michal and become the king’ s son- in- law.’” BSB BSB: Then Saul ordered his servants, “Speak to David privately and tell him, ‘Behold, the king is pleased with you, and all his servants love you. Now therefore, become his son-in-law.’”
23 UST So they said those things to David. But David replied,“It would be a great honor for anyone to become the king’ s son- in- law. But{ I do not think that I should do that, because} I am only a poor and insignificant man.” BSB BSB: But when Saul’s servants relayed these words to David, he replied, “Does it seem trivial in your sight to be the son-in-law of the king? I am a poor man and lightly esteemed.”
24 UST Saul’ s servants came back and told him what David had said. BSB BSB: And the servants told Saul what David had said.
25 UST Saul replied,“Go and tell David,‘The king does not want you to pay him a large amount of money in order to marry Michal. All he wants you to do is kill a hundred Philistine soldiers and bring back their foreskins. In that way, he will get revenge on his enemies.’” But what Saul really wanted was for the Philistines to kill David while he was trying to kill them. BSB BSB: Saul replied, “Say to David, ‘The king desires no other dowry but a hundred Philistine foreskins as revenge on his enemies.’” But Saul intended to cause David’s death at the hands of the Philistines.
26 UST When the servants told that to David, he was very pleased that he could become the king’ s son- in- law by doing that. Saul gave David a time limit. Within that time, BSB BSB: When the servants reported these terms to David, he was pleased to become the king’s son-in-law. Before the wedding day arrived,
27 UST David and his men went into battle and killed two hundred Philistine soldiers. He brought back their foreskins. Saul’ s officials counted them all while Saul was watching. This proved that David had done what Saul had required for him to become his son- in- law. So Saul allowed David to marry his daughter Michal. BSB BSB: David and his men went out and killed two hundred Philistines. He brought their foreskins and presented them as payment in full to become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave his daughter Michal to David in marriage.
28 UST But when Saul realized that Yahweh was helping David and that his own daughter Michal truly loved David, BSB BSB: When Saul realized that the LORD was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David,
29 UST he became even more afraid of David. After this, for as long as he lived, Saul was David’ s enemy. BSB BSB: he grew even more afraid of David. So from then on Saul was David’s enemy.
30 UST The Philistine commanders kept leading their armies to fight against the Israelites, but every time they fought, David and his soldiers were more successful than any of Saul’ s other army commanders. As a result, David earned an excellent reputation. BSB BSB: Every time the Philistine commanders came out for battle, David was more successful than all of Saul’s officers, so that his name was highly esteemed.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.