Character Studies - ElectronicGospel

Character Study of Jonathana character study by Jeff S. SmithIntroductionSome Bible characters are larger than life heroes or villains, dramatic actors on the Bible stage, andfrequently are a little of both hero and villain. The same cannot be said for the Old Testament character,Jonathan, son of a king and friend of his rival. Jonathan appears to be a purely good man, more concernedwith doing right than gaining his own power.DiscussionI. His Character 53A. His Father’s Lieutenant1. Jonathan takes the Bible stage along with his father as the latter becomes the first king of Israel2. the nation was struggling to subdue the Ammonites, but once Saul enjoyed his first majorvictory, the people began to rally around him (First Samuel 13:1-2)a. Jonathan and his father were divided by about five miles of dangerous terrain, with the soncommanding the base as the father led the forward troops into battleb. Weir writes, “This position of comparative inactivity does not appear to have been much tothe taste of Jonathan.” 541. this defeat only provokes the Philistines more, causing the Hebrews to lose confidenceat the sight of 30,000 chariots and six thousand horsemen2. Saul himself worried enough that he offered a burnt offering in Samuel’s absence–anact which directly led to God’s rejection of him as king3. Jonathan, however, remained clean and confident (First Samuel 14:1-23)a. the Philistines no doubt thought that Jonathan and his armor bearer were deserters and weretaken by surprise when they fell upon them and slew themb. a timely earthquake also aided in their victory4. Saul, however, acted superstitiously and forbade his soldiers to eat that day, causing the victoryto be less than it might have been, and nearly costing his son his life (First Samuel 14:24-31, 43-45)a. it is already becoming clear that God’s spirit is departing from Saul and that his reason isdeserting him as wellb it is also clear that Jonathan is a better man alreadyB. David’s Friend1. Jonathan is best known as the unrelenting friend of David, in spite of his own father’sdispleasure with the handsome slayer of Goliath (First Samuel 18:1-5)2. Jonathan went to great lengths even to protect David from his father’s murderous designs bytrying to reconcile them (First Samuel 19:1-7)3. that good feeling, however, did not last long (First Samuel 19:8-10, 20:1-3)4. when Jonathan again tried to sound out his father about David, he found himself under censure(First Samuel 20:30-34)5. they meet for the last time in the desert of Ziph while David is but a fugitive from Saul’s wrath(First Samuel 23:15-18)C. Divided Loyalties1. Jonathan strived to remain passive in his father’s pursuit of David, although it was ultimatelyhis throne as well that Saul was protecting2. it isn’t until Saul was distracted again by the Philistines that Jonathan briefly reappears (FirstSamuel 31:1-2)3. “The men of Jabesh-gilead, out of gratitude for Saul's rescue of their town at the beginning ofhis reign, crossed over to Beth-shan, on the walls of which town the Philistines had hung in chains thebodies of Saul and Jonathan, and took them down under cover of darkness and carried them to Jabesh.There they burned the bodies after the manner of the primitive inhabitants of the land, and buried thebones.” 55 4. David reacted with predictable grief (Second Samuel 1:11-12, 17-19, 25-27)217