Bible/1 Samuel/20

1 Samuel 20:4

20:3 And David sware moreover, and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved: but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death.
Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee. Whatsoever: or, Say what is thy mind and I will do, etc desireth: Heb. speaketh, or, thinketh

KJV

Save image

Then Jonathan said to David, “Whatever your soul desires, I will even do it for you.”

Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee.

Then said Jonathan to David, Whatever your soul desires, I will even do it for you.

20:5 And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to morrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even.

What does 1 Samuel 20:4 mean?

1 Samuel 20:4 is a verse in the book of 1 Samuel, in the Old Testament. In the original Hebrew, key words include אָמַר (ʼâmar), יְהוֹנָתָן (Yᵉhôwnâthân), דָּוִד (Dâvid). It connects to 6 cross-referenced passages elsewhere in Scripture.

Hebrew interlinear

Full chapter interlinear →
Then
saidאָמַרʼâmar/aw-mar'/H559to say (used with great latitude)
JonathanיְהוֹנָתָןYᵉhôwnâthân/yeh-ho-naw-thawn'/H3083Jehonathan, the name of four Israelites
unto
David,דָּוִדDâvid/daw-veed'/H1732David, the youngest son of Jesse
Whatsoever
thy
soulנֶפֶשׁnephesh/neh'-fesh/H5315properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)
desireth,אָמַרʼâmar/aw-mar'/H559to say (used with great latitude)
I
will
even
doעָשָׂהʻâsâh/aw-saw'/H6213to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest application
it
for
thee.
Whatsoever:
or,
Say
what
is
thy
mind
and
I
will
do,
etc
desireth:
Heb.
speaketh,
or,
thinketh

Commentary on 1 Samuel 20:4

HENRY_FULL · 1 Samuel 20:4
In this chapter we have the final rejection of Saul from being king, for his disobedience to God's command in not utterly destroying the Amalekites. By his wars and victories he hoped to magnify and perpetuate his own name and honour, but, by his mismanagement of them, he ruined himself, and laid his honour in the dust. Here is, I. The commission God gave him to destroy the Amalekites, with a command to do it utterly, ver. 1-3 . II. Saul's preparation for this expedition, ver. 4-6 . III. His success, and partial execution of this commission, ver. 7-9 . IV. His examination before Samuel, and sentence passed upon him, notwithstanding the many frivolous pleas he made to excuse himself, ver. 10-31 . V. The slaying of Agag, ver. 32, 33 . VI. Samuel's final farewell to Saul, ver. 34, 35 .

Cross-references

Related passages from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

Exodus 17:8

Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

Numbers 24:20

And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his parable, and said, Amalek was the first of the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever. the nations: the nations that warred against Israel that: or, even to destruction

Deuteronomy 25:17

Remember what Amalek did unto thee by the way, when ye were come forth out of Egypt;

Jeremiah 31:34

And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Hosea 7:2

And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness: now their own doings have beset them about; they are before my face. consider: Heb. say not to

Amos 8:7

The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works.

People & places in this verse

People

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with 1 Samuel 20:4.

1 Samuel 18:1

And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

1 Samuel 18:3

Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.

Genesis 1:11

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. grass: Heb. tender grass

Genesis 1:20

And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. moving: or, creeping life: Heb. soul fowl: Heb. let fowl fly open: Heb. face of the firmament of heaven

Genesis 1:24

And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.

Genesis 1:26

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Genesis 12:5

And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.

Genesis 2:18

And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. meet: Heb. as before him

Frequently asked questions

What does 1 Samuel 20:4 say?

1 Samuel 20:4 (King James Version) reads: "Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee. Whatsoever: or, Say what is thy mind and I will do, etc desireth: Heb. speaketh, or, thinketh"

Is 1 Samuel 20:4 in the Old or New Testament?

1 Samuel 20:4 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of 1 Samuel.

Reflect

As you read 1 Samuel 20:4, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

Plan a sermon or study on 1 Samuel 20:4
20:3Read all of 1 Samuel 2020:5