What Does 1 Samuel 20:13 Mean in the King James?
The LORD do so and much more to Jonathan: but if it please my father to do thee evil, then I will shew it thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace: and the LORD be with thee, as he hath been with my father.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The warning is love’s form of release: Jonathan protects David by sending him beyond danger toward wholeness.
THE MEANING
The verse holds love and danger together: Jonathan warns David when harm may come and sends him away so he can go in wholeness. Separation does not mean abandonment; the LORD’s presence is spoken over the departure.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
Love must keep someone close even when danger is coming.
THE ROOT
שִׁלַּחְתִּיךָ
shillachticha
GROWS FROM
שלח
send forth, release, let go
“send thee away” in this verse is shillachticha. English “send away” can sound like expulsion, but the root holds sending forth and release together. Jonathan’s warning opens a way for David to leave the immediate threat.
ALSO GROWS
shilluaḥ: sending away, dismissal
שִׁלּוּחַ
This branch makes the practical force of Jonathan’s words clear: David is given room to depart.
shaliaḥ: one sent, an emissary
שָׁלִיחַ
The same root describes purposeful sending, giving David’s departure a direction rather than making it mere rejection.
שָׁלוֹם
shalom
GROWS FROM
שלם
be whole, complete
“peace” in this verse is shalom. Shalom carries the sense of wholeness, so David’s safe departure is more than escaping harm: it is movement toward being whole. The verse pairs release with the wholeness that can follow it.
ALSO GROWS
shalem: whole, complete
שָׁלֵם
This branch shows the condition Jonathan wishes for David as he leaves.
shillem: make good, repay, restore
שִׁלֵּם
The same root’s restorative sense deepens “go in peace” into a movement toward what is made whole.
THE PATTERN
Care can protect life by releasing someone from danger and sending them toward wholeness.
And the LORD spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me.For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.THE THREAD
And the LORD spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me.“Let my people go” and “send thee away” share the Hebrew root שלח (shalach, send forth, release). In both verses, release is the movement that opens a way forward.
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