Jonathan

Jonathan

After David had finished talking with Saul, he met Jonathan, the king’s son. There was an immediate bond between them, for Jonathan loved David. From that day on Saul kept David with him and wouldn’t let him return home. And Jonathan made a solemn pact with David, because he loved him as he loved himself. Jonathan sealed the pact by taking off his robe and giving it to David, together with his tunic, sword, bow, and belt. (1 Samuel 18:1-4)

Sharon checks her rearview mirror . . . again. She studies the many faces of the other drivers . . .  again. She keeps an eye out, because she knows he’ll come after her . . . again. “Nothing will keep me from you,” was the message Tony had left on her voicemail. “I’m your husband.” Her ex-husband’s fits of anger and flying fists and her black eyes had led to their divorce. Still, he neglected warnings, ignored restraining orders and scoffed at the law. So Sharon checks the rearview mirror . . . again.

Down the road, around the corner, an attorney named Adam does some checking of his own. He peeks in the door of his boss’ office, sees the empty chair, and sighs with relief. With any luck, he’ll have an hour, maybe two, before the managing partner appears in his doorway, likely hung over, angry and disoriented. Mouthpiece, Jr. inherited the firm from Mouthpiece, Sr. But managing the firm frustrates Junior. So, he reroutes his stress toward the employees he needs the most. Like Adam. Junior rants and raves, gives tongue-lashings daily, and compliments with the frequency of Halley’s comet.

Sharon ducks her ex, Adam avoids his boss, and you? What ogres roam your world? Coaches from the school of Stalin? The pit-bull math teacher? The self-appointed cubicle commandant? The king who resolves to spear the shepherd boy to the wall?

That last one – the one about the king and the murder weapon – comes after David. Poor David. The Valley of Elah proved to be his boot camp for the king’s court. When Goliath lost his head, the Hebrews made David their hero. People threw him a ticker-tape parade and sang, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.” (1 Sam. 18:7) The result? Saul explodes like the Vesuvius he is, and Saul eyes David “from that day forward.” (18:9) The king is already a troubled soul, prone to angry eruptions and crazy enough to eat bees. So, David’s popularity splashes gasoline on Saul’s temper. “I will pin David to the wall!” (18:11)

Saul tries to kill Bethlehem’s golden boy on six different occasions. First, he invites David to marry his daughter Michal. Seems like a nice gesture, until you read the crude dowry that Saul required. One hundred Philistine foreskins. “Surely one of the Philistines will kill David,” Saul hopes. They don’t. David doubles the demand and returns with the proof. (18:25–27)

Saul doesn’t give up though. He orders his servants and his son, Jonathan, to kill David, but they refuse. (19:1) He tries with the spear another time but misses. (19:10) Saul then sends messengers to David’s house to kill him, but his wife, Michal (Saul’s own daughter), lowers him through a window. David the Roadrunner stays one step ahead of Saul the Coyote.

Saul’s anger puzzles David. What has he done? He’s brought musical healing to Saul’s tortured spirit, and hope to an enfeebled nation. He’s the Abraham Lincoln of the Hebrew calamity, saving the republic and doing it with modesty and honesty. He behaves “wisely in all his ways.” (18:14) “All Israel and Judah loved David.” (18:16) David behaves “more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so that his name became highly esteemed.” (18:30)

Yet, Mount Saul keeps erupting, rewarding David’s deeds with flying spears and murderous plots. So, it’s not hard to understand David’s question to Jonathan: “What have I done? What is my crime? How have I offended your father that he is so determined to kill me?” (20:1) But Jonathan doesn’t have an answer. No answer exists. Who can justify the rage of a Saul?

Who knows why a father torments a child, a husband abuses his wife, or a boss pits employees against each other? But they do. Sauls still rage on our planet. Dictators torture, employers seduce, ministers abuse, priests molest, the strong and mighty control and cajole the vulnerable and the innocent. Sauls still stalk Davids in this world.

So how does God respond in these cases? Nuke the nemesis? We’d like him to since he’s been known to extract a few Herods and Pharaohs from the world. But how will he treat yours? I don’t know. But how he will treat you, I can. He will send you a Jonathan.

God counters Saul’s cruelty with Jonathan’s loyalty. Jonathan could have been as jealous as Saul. As Saul’s son, he stood to inherit the throne. A noble soldier himself, he was fighting Philistines while David was still feeding sheep. Jonathan had every reason to despise David, but he didn’t. He was gracious. Gracious because the hand of the Master Weaver took Jonathan’s and David’s hearts and stitched a seam between them. “The soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.” (18:1) It’s as if the two hearts were two fabrics that God needle-and-threaded together. So interwoven were they that when one moved, the other felt it. When one was stretched, the other knew it.

On the very day David defeats Goliath, Jonathan pledges his loyalty to David. Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because Jonathan loved David as his own soul. So, as part of the pledge, Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, including his armor, even his sword and his bow and his belt. (18:3 – 4) Jonathan replaces David’s rancher’s overalls with his own purple robe: the robe of a prince. He presents his own sword to David. He effectively crowns young David. The heir to the throne surrenders his throne.

And then he protects David. When Jonathan hears the plots of Saul, he informs his new friend. When Saul comes after David, Jonathan hides him. He commonly issues warnings like, “My father Saul seeks to kill you. Therefore please be on your guard until morning, and stay in a secret place and hide.” (19:2) Jonathan gives David a promise, a wardrobe and protection. Perhaps that’s why David’s son, Solomon, writes much later, “There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Prov. 18:24) David had found such a friend in the son of Saul.

Wouldn’t you like to have a friend like Jonathan? A soul mate who protects you, who seeks nothing but your interests, wants nothing but your happiness. An ally who lets you be you. You feel safe with that person. No need to weigh thoughts or measure words. You know his or her faithful hand will sift the chaff from the grain – keep what matters, and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away. God gave David such a friend.

He gave you one as well. David found a companion in a prince of Israel, but you can find a friend in the King of Israel, Jesus Christ. And hasn’t he made a promise to you? Among his final words were these: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matt. 28:20) And, like Jonathan, hasn’t he clothed you? He offers you “white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed.” (Rev. 3:18) Christ fits you with clothing suitable for heaven.

In fact, he outdoes Jonathan. He not only gives you his robe; he puts on your rags. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor. 5:21) Jesus dresses you. And, like Jonathan, he equips you. You are invited to “put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.” (Eph. 6:11) From his armory he hands you the belt of truth, the body armor of righteousness, the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (vv. 13– 17). And just as Jonathan protected David, Jesus vows to protect you. “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them away from me.” ( John 10:28)

Do you long for one true friend? You have one. And because you do, you have a choice. You can focus on your Saul, or you can focus on your Jonathan; you can ponder the malice of your monster, or the kindness of your Christ.

“Beverly” chose the latter, but it wasn’t easy. How can you shift your focus away from the man who raped you? He entered Beverly’s home under the guise of official business. She had every reason to trust him because he was a personal acquaintance and professional associate. He worked for the state and asked to meet with Beverly. But when he arrived, he took more than her time. But when confronted, he denied and successfully covered up the deed. And as he continued to move up the political ladder, Beverly would spot him on the evening news. And while he feigned innocence, she churned within. But not like she used to.

Two years after the rape she met her Jonathan. A friend told her about Christ — his protection, his provision and his invitation. She accepted it. And although memories of the rape are unavoidable, they don’t control her. She isn’t left alone with her Saul anymore. She seeks Christ rather than revenge; she measures choices against his mercy, not her violator’s cruelty. Beverly ponders and praises the living presence of Jesus. And doing so heals her soul.

So, major in your evil emperor if you wish. Paint horns on his picture. Throw darts at her portrait. Make and memorize a list of everything the Spam-brain took: your childhood, career, marriage, health. Live a Saul-saturated life. Wallow in the sludge of pain. You’ll feel better, won’t you? Or will you? Because if you linger too long in the stench of your hurt, you’ll smell like the toxin you despise. The better option? Hang out with your Jonathan.

Bemoan your Sauls less, and worship Christ more. Join with David as he announces: “The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! . . . It is God who avenges me, and subdues the peoples under me; He delivers me from my enemies. . . . You have delivered me from the violent man. Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and sing praises to Your name. (Ps. 18:46–49)

Wander freely and daily through the gallery of God’s goodness. Catalog his kindnesses. Everything from sunsets to salvation — look at what you have. Your Saul took a lot, but Christ gave you more. Let Jesus be the friend you need. Talk to him. Spare no detail. Disclose your fear and describe your dread.

Will your Saul disappear? I don’t know. But, in a sense, does it really matter? You just found a friend for life. What could be better than that?

Grace,

Randy