1 Samuel 20:22

22 But if I say to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then you must go, for the LORD has sent you away.

1 Samuel 20:22 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 20:22

But if I say thus unto the young man, behold, the arrows [are]
beyond thee
Being shot to a greater distance than where the young man was:

go thy way, for the Lord hath sent thee away;
then he was to depart directly, without staying to have any conversation with Jonathan, which would not be safe for either of them, and so make the best of his way into the country, and escape for his life; for so it was ordered by the providence of God, that he must not stay, but be gone immediately: the signals were these, that if things were favourable, then he would shoot his arrows on one side of the lad, and David might come out and show himself at once; but if not, he would shoot them beyond him, by which he might know that he must flee for his life.

1 Samuel 20:22 In-Context

20 I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as if I were aiming at a target.
21 Then I will send a boy and say, ‘Go, find the arrows!’ Now, if I expressly say to him, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; bring them,’ then come, because as surely as the LORD lives, it is safe for you, and there is no danger.
22 But if I say to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then you must go, for the LORD has sent you away.
23 And as for the matter you and I have discussed, the LORD is a witness between you and me forever.”
24 So David hid in the field, and when the New Moon had come, the king sat down to eat.
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