12. Then Jonathan said to David, "The Lord, the God of Israel, be witness! When I have sounded out my father about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if there is good feeling toward David, shall I not then send to you and make it known to you?
13. If it please my father to do you harm, may the Lord do so to Jonathan and more also, if I do not make it known to you and send you away, that you may go in safety. And may the Lord be with you as He has been with my father.
14. If I am still alive, will you not show me the lovingkindness of the Lord, that I may not die?
15. You shall not cut off your lovingkindness from my house forever, not even when the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth."
16. So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the Lord require it at the hands of David's enemies."
17. Jonathan made David vow again because of his love for him, because he loved him as he loved his own life.
18. Then Jonathan said to him, "Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed because your seat will be empty.
19. When you have stayed for three days, you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you hid yourself on that eventful day, and you shall remain by the stone Ezel.
20. I will shoot three arrows to the side, as though I shot at a target.
21. And behold, I will send the lad, saying, 'Go, find the arrows.' If I specifically say to the lad, 'Behold, the arrows are on this side of you, get them,' then come; for there is safety for you and no harm, as the Lord lives.
22. But if I say to the youth, 'Behold, the arrows are beyond you,' go, for the Lord has sent you away.
23. As for the agreement of which you and I have spoken, behold, the Lord is between you and me forever."
24. So David hid in the field; and when the new moon came, the king sat down to eat food.
25. The king sat on his seat as usual, the seat by the wall; then Jonathan rose up and Abner sat down by Saul's side, but David's place was empty.
26. Nevertheless Saul did not speak anything that day, for he thought, "It is an accident, he is not clean, surely he is not clean."
27. It came about the next day, the second day of the new moon, that David's place was empty; so Saul said to Jonathan his son, "Why has the son of Jesse not come to the meal, either yesterday or today?"