After David defeated the giant Goliath, he was brought before King Saul, who wanted to meet the brave young man who had saved Israel. Jonathan, the king's son, was there. When Jonathan saw David, something very beautiful happened: the Bible says that Jonathan's soul was knit to David's soul, and that Jonathan came to love him as his own soul.

It was not romantic love, but the love of a brother — a deep and true friendship. Jonathan saw in David a heart like his own: brave, faithful to God, honest. And he made a covenant with him. He took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his weapons — his sword, his bow, and his belt.

David succeeded in everything Saul asked him to do. The king put him in charge of the men of war, and this pleased all the people and Saul's servants as well. But when they returned from battle against the Philistines, the women of Israel came out singing and dancing:

Those words wounded Saul's pride, and he grew furious.

"They credit David with tens of thousands, and me with only thousands," he said. "The only thing left is to hand him the kingdom."

From that day on, Saul watched David with suspicion, and envy began to grow in his heart like a weed.

The next day, an evil spirit tormented Saul, and he raved inside his house. David was playing the harp, as he often did to calm the king, and Saul had a spear in his hand. Suddenly the king hurled the spear, meaning to pin David to the wall. David dodged it — not once, but twice.

Saul began to be afraid of David, because the Lord was with David and had departed from him. The king tried to kill him other times, in different ways, but God always protected his chosen one. And David went on serving the king faithfully, never striking back, because he respected Saul as the Lord's anointed.

Things kept getting worse. Saul spoke to Jonathan and to all his servants about killing David. But Jonathan loved his friend dearly, and he found himself in a hard place: on one side, his father, the king; on the other, his best friend. Jonathan chose to do what was right.

"My father is looking for a way to kill you," he warned David. "Tomorrow morning, stay in a hidden place and wait."

Then Jonathan went to speak to his father on David's behalf:

"Let the king not sin against his servant David, for he has not sinned against you. On the contrary, everything he has done has been for your good. He risked his own life and defeated the Philistine, and the Lord gave a great victory to all Israel. You saw it and rejoiced. Why would you harm an innocent man, killing David for no reason?"

Saul listened to Jonathan's voice and swore:

"As the Lord lives, David shall not die."

Jonathan called David, told him everything, and brought him back to Saul, and David stayed in the king's presence as before. But the peace did not last. Soon Saul tried to kill him again, the spear flew once more, and this time David truly had to flee.

David went to find Jonathan and asked:

"What have I done? What is my guilt? What is my sin before your father, that he wants to take my life?"

"Never — you are not going to die," Jonathan answered. "My father does nothing, great or small, without telling me. Why would he hide this from me?"

But David knew the truth:

"Your father knows about our friendship, and he thought, 'Jonathan must not know this, or it will grieve him.' I swear, as the Lord lives and as you live: there is only one step between me and death."

"Whatever you ask, I will do," said Jonathan.

The two of them worked out a plan. On the day of the new moon feast, when David was expected at the king's table, he would hide in the field, and Jonathan would watch Saul's reaction. If the king grew angry, it would be a sign that he truly meant to kill David.

It happened exactly as David had feared. When Saul asked about David, Jonathan gave the excuse they had agreed on, and the king filled with rage. He called his son a rebel and shouted:

"As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be safe! Send for him and bring him to me, for he must die!"

"Why should he die?" Jonathan asked. "What has he done?"

Then Saul hurled his spear at his own son, meaning to strike him. And Jonathan understood that his father was truly determined to kill David.

In the morning, Jonathan went out to the field, to the place he had agreed on with David. He took a young boy with him and used the signal of the arrows, as they had planned, to warn David that he had to flee. After the boy left, David came out of his hiding place, bowed with his face to the ground, and knelt three times. The two friends embraced and wept together, and David wept the most.

It was a painful farewell: two friends who loved each other like brothers, separated by Saul's envy. Jonathan said to David:

Then David rose and went on his way, and Jonathan returned to the city. They did not know it, but that would be almost the last time they ever saw each other.

David spent years fleeing from Saul, living in caves and in the desert, always in danger. But Jonathan never forgot the covenant they had made. Once, while David was in hiding, Jonathan went out to meet him and strengthened him in God:

"Do not be afraid, for my father's hand will not reach you. You will reign over Israel, and I will be second after you. Even my father knows it."

And the two renewed their covenant before the Lord. Jonathan, the heir to the throne, went on acknowledging that David would be king — and he accepted it without envy, with a love greater than any ambition.

Some time later, Jonathan died in battle beside his father, fighting the Philistines on Mount Gilboa. When David heard the news, he wept for a long time. He made a lament for Saul and for Jonathan, and taught it to the sons of Judah:

Even after Jonathan's death, David never forgot the covenant. When he became king, he sought out his friend's descendants to show them kindness, for Jonathan's sake. The friendship between David and Jonathan is one of the most beautiful examples of brotherly love in the Bible. Jonathan chose friendship and what was right, even at the cost of a throne, and he protected David at the risk of his own life. And David honored that friendship to the very end.