Jonathan was expected to be heir apparent to the throne of Israel by his father Saul. But because of Saul’s compromise and sin God’s prophet, Samuel, declared that his reign would be terminated. God chose David to be the next king and Samuel anointed him. Jonathan was privy to all of this and accepted it as God’s prerogative and plan.
After God used David to confront and kill Goliath he was brought into the palace to serve Saul. Jonathan became a “one in spirit” friend with David, and loved him as himself. They became very close and trusted each other to a point where they entered into a covenantal commitment to each other. As a token of his understanding and commitment Jonathan “took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt” (1st Samuel 18:1-4).
This friendship became even closer with time. Jonathan shared candidly his father’s intention to have David killed. He also spoke well of David to his father and tried persuading him to restore David as his servant. He argued, “He has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly. He took his life in his hands when he killed Goliath.”
His father tentatively agreed, but when he later reverted to his previous intentions, Jonathan warned and protected David. He said to David, “Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it” (1st Samuel 20:4). Together they devised a scheme and implemented it behind Saul’s back, so David was spared.
