Articles
The King Who Wasn't: The Story of Jonathan
The relationship between father and son is an incredibly important one in Scripture, and many characters are presented in connection to either their father or their sons. Abraham’s promise is bound in Isaac, numerous characters are introduced to point the way towards their descendent David/Jesus, and in some tragic occasions sons suffer the consequences of a father’s poor decision. Perhaps the most sorrowful example of this is the young prince Jonathan, whose promising life is cut short by Saul’s utter failure as king. Jonathan is portrayed in 1 Samuel as the man that Saul should have been, and his continued faithfulness and courage is an indictment on his father’s utter lack of it. In studying Jonathan, we see how a son defines himself beyond his father’s failure and rises above an upbringing that could have dragged him down.
We are first introduced to Jonathan in 1 Samuel 13, where he smites a garrison of Philistines in Geba. To understand what’s fully happening here, however, we must jump back to 1 Samuel 10:1-12 when Saul is anointed by Samuel. Samuel tells Saul that the affirmation of his kingship will come from a series of signs: Saul would receive these signs, and then he was to “do for yourself what the occasion requires, for God is with you. And you shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice peace offerings. You shall wait seven days until I come to you and show you what you should do,” (1 Samuel 10:6-7). All the signs come to pass, and Saul is filled with the Spirit of God, but then Saul unexpectedly goes “to the high place” to worship. This would be an easy detail to overlook, but as soon as Samuel has told Saul what to do, he disobeys him! Samuel had made a point particularly that there was a Philistine garrison near the hill: given the fact that Saul was to be a military leader of Israel, and that the Spirit of God is often linked with military actions (particularly Samson in Judges 14:6, 19; 15:14), it seems as if Samuel intended Saul to destroy the garrison and then meet Samuel at Gilgal. Instead, Saul does neither of these things. In fact, Saul then fails to tell his uncle anything of what Samuel has mentioned about him being king! This is a very concerning introduction to Saul. While he is successful in defeating the Ammonites in the following chapters, we’re reintroduced to this concern at the beginning of 1 Samuel 13. The garrison of the Philistines is indeed destroyed, but it is by Jonathan rather than Saul! While Jonathan is fighting under Saul’s command, it is telling that the narrative gives Jonathan specifically the credit; it’s setting the reader up to distinguish between faithful Jonathan and faithless Saul. This point is only underscored by what happens next. Saul does indeed go to Gilgal (as Samuel had ordered), but he makes a disastrous mistake. Impatient after waiting seven days with no sign of Samuel and fearing the people will desert before the great battle with the Philistines, Saul makes the burnt offerings himself and usurps the role of Samuel as God’s spokesmen. Ironically, Samuel appears right as the burnt offering is concluded. Samuel tells Saul that his kingdom will not endure, and that his throne will fall to another more righteous man.
In a bitter twist of irony, the text then shifts to showing us how incredible a king Jonathan would have been. In fact, the author of Samuel has a flair for the dramatic: Jonathan is not identified as Saul’s son until 1 Samuel 14:1, and we only learn that he is the would-be king after Samuel confirms that he will never be king. While Saul is fearful and faithless, Jonathan has complete trust in the Lord. While Saul is waiting with the priest Ahijah for an oracle from God (an ephod, noted as being with Ahijah in vs. 3, was a tool for consulting with God), Jonathan has total faith that God will bring the victory. Jonathan is clearly itching to fight the Philistines, but notice that he still submits his desires to the Lord by leaving open the possibility that he will not fight if the Lord indicates otherwise. In a remarkable display of bravery, Jonathan and his armor-bearer reveal themselves to the Philistines, climb up the cliffside to meet them, and then fight singlehandedly against far superior numbers of Philistines. So terrible is Jonathan’s slaughter that the entire Philistine camp begins to tremble in fear; this trembling is matched by an earthquake sent by God that completely uproots the Philistines and sends them into a panic.
Incredibly, while Jonathan is fighting bravely for Yahweh, Saul is still seeking ritualistic answers about what he’s supposed to do! Despite the sign of God clearly being displayed in the earthquake, Saul still is consulting with Ahijah and seeking his oracle. Finally, the disruption becomes so obvious that even Saul cannot ignore it, and he and the army finally join the two brave young men in slaughtering the Philistines. The Lord delivers Israel from their oppressors, but notice Saul’s response to this victory: in vs. 24 he makes a foolish oath that “Cursed be the man who eats food before evening, and until I have avenged myself on my enemies.” The Philistines are not God’s enemies to Saul’s, but his own. The victory is not God’s but Saul’s, and no man can enjoy food until Saul has completed his own desires. The contrast between Saul and Jonathan is so sharp as to almost be comedic, and it continues here. While Saul makes a foolish vow, Jonathan recognizes that his father has “troubled the land” and even prevented the Lord’s will from being done: because the people are so weary from not eating they slaughter animals and eat them with blood (a violation of the Mosaic Law), and the victory against the Philistines is hampered because the men are too tired to pursue (1 Samuel 14:27-25). Saul does not see this military failure as due to his own poor decisions, but instead believes it is due to his son Jonathan’s violation of the oath by eating honey. Saul prepares to kill his son over this violation (which, notice, was not even the punishment of the original oath!). Jonathan, far more righteous than his father, is willing to submit to this unjust punishment, yet the people will not stand by it and rescue Jonathan from his father’s hand. Thus we see Saul, obsessed with religious rituals and foolish oaths yet failing to follow through on God’s already stated commands, is shown to be a terrible leader and king compared to his son, who is decisive, faithful, and brave in following the Lord’s will. Saul’s poor command of the situation means that Jonathan’s victory is essentially wasted: while the Lord has delivered Israel from the Philistines, they rise quickly in Chapter 17 to once again fight the Israelites.
Jonathan then disappears from the narrative for a few chapters, although the removal of Saul as the Lord’s anointed in favor of David surely affects the young prince. In chapter 18 and 19, however, we see Jonathan reappear in connection with David. Now, remember, Jonathan’s position as prince and heir to the throne is directly threatened by David. David has been promised a throne by God that should (according to the laws of most monarchies) go to Jonathan. Instead of bitterly plotting with his father to keep his own throne, however, Jonathan recognizes David’s great character and “loves” him. This has unfortunately led to some critical scholars reading homosexual undertones into this story, but that’s a misunderstanding of the Hebrew word here. This love is not a romantic one, but instead related to the ideas of fealty, loyalty, allegiance and devotion – Jonathan loves David as a soldier loves his king, and indeed Jonathan completely accepts the idea that David will be king! Tragically, Jonathan’s final words in the Biblical story are in 1 Samuel 23:17 when he tells David “Do not be afraid, because the hand of Saul my father will not find you, and you will be king over Israel and I will be next to you; and Saul my father knows that also.” What a loyalty not only to David, but to God as well! David spends most of the latter half of 1 Samuel fleeing from Saul’s wrath, yet Jonathan remains loyal to David! Even Saul remarks at the seeming oddity of this when he tells Jonathan that “as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established,” (1 Samuel 20:31). Saul and Jonathan are both well aware that David’s ascension necessarily means that Jonathan will not be king. The difference, however, is that Saul is desperately plotting and trying to maintain his hold on the throne by killing David, while Jonathan accepts this outcome just as he accepted whatever outcome God held in store for him in the battles against the Philistines! In fact Jonathan draws comparison in 1 Samuel 19:5 between his own victory at God’s hands and David’s slaying of Goliath; both were great victories that were given by the Lord to His servants, so how could Saul and Jonathan oppose God’s servant David? So much does Jonathan trust in David (and, by extension, God) that he requests David to not “cut off your lovingkindness” from his descendants, and instead let Jonathan and David’s sons be allied just as their fathers are (1 Samuel 20:15). Jonathan’s loyalty and defense of David, even under threat of his own life from Saul’s insanity, is one of the greatest examples of covenant loyalty in the Old Testament.
Tragically, the story of Jonathan ends with his death at the hands of the Philistines; despite his father’s failures, Jonathan loyally fights with his father to the bitter end against God’s enemies. The bitter lament of David in 2 Samuel 1 shows how deeply the death of his friend impacts him; not even the romantic love of his wives surpassed the importance of Jonathan’s loyalty and brotherhood to David. It is telling of David’s character that he prioritizes the protection of Jonathan’s crippled son, Mephibosheth, and ensures his safety throughout the remainder of his reign, thus keeping his covenant with Jonathan despite his friend’s death.
What can we learn from Jonathan? The most important lesson seems to be the call to put aside our own selfish interests and instead pursue the will of God. Jonathan would have fully expected to be king after Saul, yet willingly and happily puts aside his own future to ensure the safety of God’s anointed. He is willing to sacrifice his future prosperity and power for the sake of God’s will being performed. We can also take courage from Jonathan’s example of bravery and trust in the Lord: just as David faced an impossible task in fighting Goliath, so too did Jonathan overcome grave odds in fighting the Philistines with no help but his armorbearer. Both men gained the victory through their trust in God’s divine power, and both men remind us that God can bring victory in any circumstance. Lastly, Jonathan teaches us that the sins of our forebearers does not have to result in our own unfaithfulness. While Saul was a terrible example and role model, Jonathan did not succumb to his father’s greed, arrogance, and lack of faith. He stood up to his father (even under threat of death!) and ensured that he stood with God rather than the king. Many of us may have had regrettable childhoods and parent figures, but that does not mean we are doomed to failure ourselves. We can rise above our heritage and choose for ourselves a life of faithfulness and obedience to God, and He will bring us to victory even over our own pasts.
