Scripture Daily

Context No. 4023 of 4322 · 1 Samuel

Context · Reflection

1 Samuel 20:17-23: in context

17Jonathan caused David to swear again, for the love that he had for him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul. 18Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty. 19When you have stayed three days, go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself when this started, and remain by the stone Ezel. 20I will shoot three arrows on its side, as though I shot at a mark. 21Behold, I will send the boy, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows!’ If I tell the boy, ‘Behold, the arrows are on this side of you. Take them;’ then come, for there is peace to you and no danger, as the LORD lives. 22But if I say this to the boy, ‘Behold, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go your way, for the LORD has sent you away. 23Concerning the matter which you and I have spoken of, behold, the LORD is between you and me forever.”

This passage shows the depth of Jonathan's love for David. Jonathan, the king's son and natural heir to the throne, has bound himself to David in a covenant of friendship, loving him as he loved his own soul. Knowing that David, not himself, is the one God has chosen to be king, Jonathan does not cling to his own claim or see David as a rival; instead he protects David from his father Saul's murderous jealousy.

There is a rare and beautiful love here. Jonathan had every worldly reason to see David as a threat to his own future as king, and yet he loved David selflessly, seeking David's good even at the cost of his own throne. His loyalty was not self-serving; he wanted what was best for his friend and for God's purposes, even when it meant setting aside his own advantage. There is a challenge here to the quality of our own love and friendship. Jonathan loved without rivalry or self-interest, putting his friend's good and God's will above his own ambition. Such love, that seeks another's good even at cost to ourselves, that rejoices in a friend's blessing rather than envying it, is rare and precious, and it reflects the self-giving love of God.

Do I love others with the selfless loyalty of Jonathan, seeking their good even at cost to myself and rejoicing in their blessing rather than seeing them as rivals, or is my love tangled with self-interest and ambition?

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