1 Samuel 20:17
in 1 Samuel 20And Jonathan had David reaffirm his vow out of love for him, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jonathan caused David to swear again, for the love that he had to him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
KJV
And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 20
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David
on 1 Samuel 20:16-17
The covenant sworn person to person at 18:3 is now made "with the house of David." Verse 17 has Jonathan make David "reaffirm his vow out of love for him," for the reason given at 18:1 and 18:3. The repeated swearing marks how many times this bond is restated.
This site's exposition
Jonathan had David reaffirm his vow out of love for him
The phrase loved David as he loved himself matches the measure of Leviticus 19:18, where Israel is told to love a neighbor as oneself. Jonathan keeps it toward the man who will take his throne. Matthew Henry adds that true friends want their love to pass to their children.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
) why Jonathan was so earnest to have the friendship entailed is purely generous, and has nothing of self in it; it was because he loved him as he loved his own soul, and therefore desired that he and his might be beloved by him.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And Jonathan caused David to swear again,....
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיּ֤וֹסֶף | vaiyosef | and he repeated | H3254 → | 212 times |
| יְהֽוֹנָתָן֙ | yehonatan | Jonathan | H3083 → | 81 times |
| לְהַשְׁבִּ֣יעַ | lehashbia' | to make swear an oath | H7650 → | 186 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| דָּוִ֔ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| בְּאַהֲבָת֖וֹ | beahavato | in love his | H160 → | 38 times |
| אֹת֑וֹ | ʾoto | <obj.> him | H853 → | 10935 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אַהֲבַ֥ת | ʾahavat | [the] love of | H160 → | 38 times |
| נַפְשׁ֖וֹ | nafsho | own self his | H5315 → | 754 times |
| אֲהֵבֽוֹ׃ ס | ʾahevo | he loved him | H157 → | 211 times |
וַיּ֤וֹסֶףand he repeated
vaiyosefH3254 →212 times
יְהֽוֹנָתָן֙Jonathan
yehonatanH3083 →81 times
לְהַשְׁבִּ֣יעַto make swear an oath
lehashbia'H7650 →186 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
דָּוִ֔דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
בְּאַהֲבָת֖וֹin love his
beahavatoH160 →38 times
אֹת֑וֹ<obj.> him
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
אַהֲבַ֥ת[the] love of
ʾahavatH160 →38 times
נַפְשׁ֖וֹown self his
nafshoH5315 →754 times
אֲהֵבֽוֹ׃ סhe loved him
ʾahevoH157 →211 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 18:24A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother.
it leads to
- Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
- John 15:13–15
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
- Proverbs 27:9
Oil and incense bring joy to the heart, and the sweetness of a friend is counsel to the soul.
- 2 Samuel 1:26
I grieve for you, Jonathan, my brother. You were delightful to me; your love to me was extraordinary, surpassing the love of women.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 19:4–5
Then Jonathan spoke well of David to his father Saul and said to him, “The king should not sin against his servant David; he has not sinned against you. In fact, his actions have…
- Proverbs 17:17
Through
1 Samuel 18:1After David had finished speaking with Saul, the souls of Jonathan and David were knit together, and Jonathan loved him as himself.
it leads to
- Proverbs 18:24
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 18:3
Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.
- Colossians 2:2
that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ,
- Proverbs 18:24
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies5
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonUnited MonarchyDavidSecond king of united Israel, shepherd-turned-monarch, ancestor of the Messiah, and traditional author of many Psalms.
- PersonEarly monarchyJonathanSon of King Saul who climbed a cliff to rout a garrison on the conviction that nothing restrains Jehovah; cut a covenant of steadf…
This page draws on John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.