1 Samuel 23:18
in 1 Samuel 23So the two of them made a covenant before the LORD. And David remained in Horesh, while Jonathan went home.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they two made a covenant before Jehovah: and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.
KJV
And they two made a covenant before the Lord: and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 23
Commentary
5 notes on this verseOur covenant with God should be often renewed, and therein our communion with him kept up. David and Jonathan now parted, and never came together again, that we find, in this world; for Jonathan said what he wished, not what he had ground to expect, when he promised himself that he should be next to David in his kingdom.
This site's exposition
strengthened his hand in God
on 1 Samuel 23:16-18
Their covenant renews what they swore at 18:3 and 20:16 to 17. Jonathan's word that David will be king and he second-in-command shows that the king's son accepted where the throne was going. Henry reads it as what Jonathan wished rather than could expect, since the two never meet again.
This site's exposition
made a covenant before the LORD
Gill takes before the LORD to mean that God was called as witness to the oath. David stays at Horesh. Jonathan goes home to his father's house, and he dies with Saul and his brothers in the battle of 31:2.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
Therefore, each struck a covenant before the Lord, etc. The Lord and the faithful strike a covenant with each other, that they should follow Him, and He should give them eternal life; and this before His divine presence, in whose faith He commands us to …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And they two made a covenant before the Lord,.... Renewed the covenant they had before made in the name and fear of God, and before him as a witness of it.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּכְרְת֧וּ | vaiyikhretu | and they made | H3772 → | 288 times |
| שְׁנֵיהֶ֛ם | sheneihem | [the] two of them | H8147 → | 768 times |
| בְּרִ֖ית | berit | a covenant | H1285 → | 284 times |
| לִפְנֵ֣י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| יְהוָ֑ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וַיֵּ֤שֶׁב | vaiyeshev | and he remained | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| דָּוִד֙ | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| בַּחֹ֔רְשָׁה | bachoreshah | at <the> Horesh | H2793 → | 7 times |
| וִיהוֹנָתָ֖ן | vihonatan | and Jonathan | H3083 → | 81 times |
| הָלַ֥ךְ | halakh | he went | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| לְבֵיתֽוֹ׃ ס | leveito | to house his | H1004 → | 2046 times |
וַיִּכְרְת֧וּand they made
vaiyikhretuH3772 →288 times
שְׁנֵיהֶ֛ם[the] two of them
sheneihemH8147 →768 times
בְּרִ֖יתa covenant
beritH1285 →284 times
לִפְנֵ֣י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
יְהוָ֑הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
וַיֵּ֤שֶׁבand he remained
vaiyeshevH3427 →1079 times
דָּוִד֙David
davidH1732 →999 times
בַּחֹ֔רְשָׁהat <the> Horesh
bachoreshahH2793 →7 times
וִיהוֹנָתָ֖ןand Jonathan
vihonatanH3083 →81 times
הָלַ֥ךְhe went
halakhH1980 →1546 times
לְבֵיתֽוֹ׃ סto house his
leveitoH1004 →2046 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
2 Samuel 9:1Then David asked, “Is there anyone left from the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for the sake of Jonathan?”
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 20:42
And Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, for the two of us have sworn in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘May the LORD be a witness between you and me, and between…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Mark 9:41
Indeed, if anyone gives you even a cup of water because you bear the name of Christ, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.
- Matthew 25:40
And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’
- 1 Peter 3:8
Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble.
- 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.
- 1 Samuel 20:42
Through
2 Samuel 21:7Now the king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the LORD between David and Jonathan son of Saul.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 20:15
and do not ever cut off your loving devotion from my household—not even when the LORD cuts off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth.”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 18:3
Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.
- 1 Samuel 20:15
Through
1 Samuel 18:3Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 20:8–17
Therefore deal faithfully with your servant, for you have brought me into a covenant with you before the LORD. If there is iniquity in me, then kill me yourself; why should you bring me…
- 1 Samuel 20:8–17
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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 Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.