1 Samuel 20:21

21 And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee; take them, then come thou, for there is peace unto thee and no hurt, as the LORD lives.

1 Samuel 20:21 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 20:21

And, behold, I will send a lad
That attended on him, and carried his bow and arrows, and fetched his arrows when he had shot them:

[saying], go, find out the arrows;
where they are fallen, and return them:

if I expressly say unto the lad, behold, the arrows [are] on this side
of thee, take them;
on one side of him, whether the one or the other, which he would bid him take up, and bring them to him:

then come thou;
David, out of the place where he hid himself:

for [there is] peace to thee, and no hurt, [as] the Lord liveth;
he might appear, and not be afraid of being seen by any, since by this sign he might be assured that Saul was well affected to him, and would show him favour, and do him no injury; and that he might promise himself prosperity and safety, and be assured of it for the present.

1 Samuel 20:21 In-Context

19 And when thou hast stayed three days, then thou shalt go down quickly and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself on the day of the work and shalt remain by the stone Ezel;
20 and I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof as though I shot at a mark.
21 And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee; take them, then come thou, for there is peace unto thee and no hurt, as the LORD lives.
22 But if I say thus unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee, then go away, for the LORD has sent thee away.
23 And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, let the LORD be between thee and me for ever.
The Jubilee Bible (from the Scriptures of the Reformation), edited by Russell M. Stendal, Copyright © 2000, 2001, 2010