Covenantal Dependence - 1 Samuel 20

We live in an age of broken promises.

Politicians make grand declarations, only to backtrack when the polls shift. Business contracts are filled with loopholes and fine print. Even marriage vows—once spoken with conviction—are increasingly treated as temporary or conditional. And friendships?

They are often shallow, based more on convenience than commitment. In this cultural climate, the idea of a covenant feels outdated, even strange. It’s a word we might associate with ancient rituals or theological textbooks, but rarely with real life. Yet throughout Scripture, covenant is not just a religious term—it is the very fabric of God’s relationship with His people.

To understand God’s love, we must understand His covenant. It is His chosen way of binding Himself to His people with unwavering commitment. It’s not a contract to be negotiated, but a sacred promise, initiated by God and sealed with His faithfulness. In a world where people say, “I’m committed to you as long as you’re committed to me,” God says with unwavering certainty “I will be your God and you will be my people.”

This morning, as we turn our attention 1 Samuel 20, the covenant between David and Jonathan takes center stage. Their story isn’t just about friendship—it’s about a covenant that is stronger than fear, deeper than politics, and more enduring than family pressure. When David was at his wit’s end, he relied on their covenant.

We see this in several ways this morning: First, we’ll see that David was dependent on their covenant (vv. 1-8), second, we’ll see his trust in their covenant (vv. 9–17), and lastly we see his peace is in their covenant (vv. 18-42).

And as we consider the covenant between Jonathan and David, pay attention to how it reflects the greatest covenant of all: the one that God makes with his people through his Son, Jesus Christ.

Last week, we looked at 1 Samuel 19, and if you remember, Saul made multiple attempts on David’s life. First he threw spears at David, then some of his henchmen waited to ambush him, then he escaped and went to Naioth in Ramah to be with the prophet Samuel.

And eventually, Saul and his men figured out where David was hiding and went to get him but then the Lord miraculously intervened and caused everyone to prophesy. Remember that? Even Saul himself went to get David and began to prophesy too! And because of the Lord’s miraculous intervention, David escaped once again.

I. Covenantal Dependence (vv. 1-8)

And so we meet David in chapter 20 still on the run from Saul. David had nearly exhausted all of his options for help and support with one exception: Jonathan.

In fact, it seems that as soon as the Lord intervened in Naioth in Ramah, David made a beeline for Jonathan.

We’re told in verse 1 that “David fled from Naioth in Ramah [went] to Jonathan…”

David went to Jonathan for a very specific reason: Does Saul have a legitimate grievance against him which is why he wants him dead or are all the attempts on his life just the result of Saul’s consistent psychotic breaks?

And so they hatch a plan to get to the bottom of why Saul wants to kill David. David is going to miss a few important dinners, and Jonathan will be there to study Saul’s reaction. If Saul is indifferent towards David’s absence perhaps he could return, but if Saul is outraged over David’s absence then it would be clear that Saul wanted David dead.

The whole plan was an attempt to figure out the level of David’s level of danger. Was there a realistic possibility that David could return to Saul’s court or will David need to remain permanently on the run?

Isn’t it amazing that David turns to Jonathan for help? After all, Jonathan was Saul’s son! And yet, David had confidence he could rely on Jonathan – and there should be absolutely no doubt in our minds that the reason David turned to Jonathan in his moment of greatest need was because of the covenant they made to one another in 1 Samuel 18.

Jonathan and David covenanted their loyalty to one another with Jonathan making the deeply symbolic gesture of handing David his royal robe and weapons – ultimately pointing to the fact that David would one day sit on the throne in Israel.

But this was how covenants worked in the ancient world.

Dr. Belcher from Reformed Theological Seminary defines a covenant as, “...a legal agreement between two parties that is ratified by certain rituals that emphasize the binding nature of the agreement.”

Maybe an overly simplistic way to think about a covenant is that it’s a very serious ceremonial promise - which is exactly what Jonathan and David did. They covenanted their loyalty to one another and then there were ceremonial gestures or signs that emphasized the significance of their agreement.

It’s why we often refer to marriage as a covenant. There’s a ceremony where serious vows and promises are made between a husband and a wife.

It’s tough for us to really appreciate the significance and in our modern context, because outside of marriage, there really aren’t very many agreements we’ve made that are dependable.

Here in America we believe in fulfilling our civic duties. We have responsibilities to our society, until we get called for jury duty. Then we’re pulling out all the stops, what do I have to say, I know I have a conflict, I just need to figure out what it is, you’re doing whatever it takes to get out of it.

That’s the typical approach to responsibilities and agreements – there is nothing that has been done that cannot be undone!

But of course, that was not the way things worked in the ancient world. Your word was your bond. And well, a covenant was even more serious, which is why David sought out Jonathan in his moment of desperation.

David was dependent on his covenant with Jonathan, he absolutely needed it because he had nowhere else to go. It was all he had.

What are you dependent on when you feel desperate and helpless?

The reality is we’re all going to be there at some point. We’re all going to feel desperate and helpless in our lives, whether it’s an unexpected diagnosis, the loss of a loved one, or perhaps we come face to face with the reality of our own sinfulness. Whatever the case may be, at some point, we’re all going to find ourselves in the valley of the shadow of death.

And it’s in those moments, you’re going to find yourself desperately clinging to the covenantal promises God has made to his children.

You’ll be dependent on passages like:

Acts 4:11-12 – “This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Romans 10:9 – “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Ephesians 2:8 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing…”

Titus 3:5 – “He saved us, not because of works… but according to his own mercy…”

No one likes to think of himself or herself as needy or dependent, but the truth is, when you’re lying on your death bed, God’s covenantal promises will be all that you have.

Whether you realize it or not, each of us are like David, utterly dependent upon a covenant too.

II. Covenantal Trust (vv. 9-17)

I’ve shared this story with a few of you before, but a number of years ago, I went rock climbing, and I got all harnessed in, pulled on the rope a few times, and then took off to the top of this rock wall. I got to the top and was feeling pretty good about myself and looked down at some of my friends below and said, “who’s my belayer? Who’s holding onto my rope to make sure I don’t go crashing into the ground?”

They shot back up, “no one is your belayer. “You’re on an autobelay. A machine is going to catch you and lower you to the ground.” If you’re a regular rock climber, you’re probably familiar with an auto belay, as someone who had basically never seriously climbed up to that point, I knew nothing about it. I was learning all about this at the top of a massive rock wall.

I was like, “are you kidding me? A machine is going to catch me? Are we sure this machine works?” They were like, “the machine will catch you, all you have to do is jump!” I thought the hardest part was climbing to the top, but the toughest part was jumping off and hoping this machine was going to catch me and lower me to the ground. Right after that happened, I thought to myself this experience is going to make an outstanding sermon illustration some day. I’m just kidding!

I had to jump in order to trust the autobelay machine.

And I think that’s a helpful illustration for what’s going on in our passage, because, at a certain point, David had to jump. He had to fully trust the covenant he had made with Jonathan.

Jonathan tells David in verse 9, “If I knew that it was determined by my father that harm should come to you, would I not tell you?”

He promised to relay Saul’s intentions to David. In fact, David was going to have to wait two or three days as Jonathan figured out what was going on with Saul! And over those 48-72 hours David was going to remain hidden… by himself!

Can you even imagine the psychological torment sitting there waiting on Jonathan? How could he know for certain that Jonathan wasn’t going to betray him? Blood is thicker than water, right?

The answer is David trusted in the covenant.

David jumped off the rock wall with complete confidence that his covenant with Jonathan would catch him.

Undoubtedly, Jonathan was a man of his word, but that was the reason David trusted the covenant they made. Their covenant was ultimately rooted in their mutual love for the Lord. Thirteen times in their conversation, David and Jonathan mention the Lord.

Earlier in verse 8 David said, “Deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the Lord with you.”

Verse 12, Jonathan called on the Lord to be a witness between them.

They trusted the covenant because they trusted in the Lord. Which should be the same for every Christian.

The covenant that God has made with his people is more than nice words that make you feel good during difficult times. It should be our source of strength and confidence knowing the moment we jump he’s going to catch us.

Remember what the writer of Hebrews said?

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus… let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…”

Christians should have a certain level of boldness, strength, confidence, not in themselves or in their own abilities, but in what has been promised – that you can enter the holy places by the blood of Christ.

Like David, we must wholeheartedly, without reservation, trust in God’s covenant to us.

III. Covenantal Peace (vv. 18-42)

Of course, we know what happens in the course of our passage. Jonathan discovers that Saul has every intention to kill David. It’s not because he’s crazy, it’s because he sees David as a legitmate threat to his power.

Saul even makes this point to Jonathan in verse 31, “For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom shall be established. Therefore send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die.”

In other words, Jonathan, if David lives, you’ll never sit on the throne in Israel. David’s not only a threat to me, but he’s a threat to you. But of course Saul knew that Jonathan supported David and he became so angry with him that he threw a spear at him as well. Someone needs to get the spears away from Saul don’t they?

But of course, Jonathan was going to do everything in his power to make sure David survived. As he promised, he went back and shot an arrow beyond the boy which was the signal to David that Saul had every intention of killing him.

And because the coast was clear, David came out from hiding and they wept together. It was a tremendously sad situation because David was going to have to live as a fugitive, while Jonathan was expected to continue to live in the King’s court.

In many ways it reminds me of James Longstreet and Ulysses S. Grant. The two were great friends at West Point, served together in the Mexican-American War, and Longstreet was even a groomsman in Grant’s wedding.

And yet, they famously ended up on opposite sides of the Civil War, Grant, a famous Northern general and Longstreet, a famous Southern general. They even fought against one another at the battle of Vicksburg.

It’s basically what’s going on here with Jonathan and David: their lives were being pulled in opposite directions. Which of course, explains the outpouring of emotion. Jonathan would remain with his father while David would have to go on the run.

And yet, as they part ways, Jonathan tells David in verse 42, “to go in peace.” It’s rather ironic isn’t it? David would be on the run for years, while Saul chased after him and tried to kill him. Peace wasn’t anywhere on the horizon.

But notice what Jonathan says in verse 42: “Go in peace, because we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord shall be between me and you, and between my offspring and your offspring, forever.’”

The peace that Jonathan was referring to wasn’t peace from hardship, rather he was referring to peace between the two of them. Which of course was true! There was always peace between the two of them because of the covenant that they had made.

The reality is we experience something incredibly similar. The Christian life is one of warfare. Paul tells Timothy to “fight the good fight.”

Paul also told the Ephesians that, “...we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

John Calvin famously said that “The whole life of the Christian is a continual warfare.” (Institutes 3.10.1)

The Christian life is one of warfare and yet, in the midst of the war Christians have peace. There is security and comfort even in the midst of the battle because of God’s glorious covenant of grace. “...we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Just as David and Jonathan were at peace even in the midst of conflict, Christians too can know peace even in the midst of life's conflicts.

David trusted in the covenant made with Jonathan, but more than that, he trusted in the God who stood behind that covenant. Like David, our strength, hope, dependence, trust, and peace is not in ourselves but in our unchanging, ever-faithful and loving covenant-keeping God.

God’s covenant of grace is not a contract full of caveats and loopholes. His covenant is not just for Abraham or David—it’s for you, sealed by the blood of Christ, guaranteed by the Spirit, and secured forever.

It reminds me of the famous hymn Great is Thy Faithfulness. It was written by a man named Thomas Chisholm. Chisholm wasn’t a well-known pastor or overseas missionary. He was a schoolteacher and insurance agent who struggled most of his life with poor health. His life, by the world’s standards, wasn’t extraordinary. But he knew something extraordinary: the faithfulness of God.

He wrote Great is Thy Faithfulness as a reflection of Lamentations 3 where it says, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”

Listen to the lyrics:

“Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father,

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;

Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not—

As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.”

That is covenant language. That is anchor-in-the-storm assurance.

Which should be a reflection of the way every Christian lives! In the Lord there is always strength for the weary. There is always peace in the midst of chaos, because we stand on a foundation that cannot be shaken.

While the world may treat commitment as conditional, God’s covenant love is unchanging. He has bound Himself to His people—not because we’re always faithful, but because He is.

Amen. Let’s pray together.