1 Samuel 20:26
Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean. Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean.
The verse belongs to the period after David slew Goliath, when Saul kept David with him and would not permit him to return to his father's house. At that time the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, loving him as his own soul, and they made a covenant to be united as brethren in a most sacred bond of union that remained unbroken until the deaths of Saul and Jonathan, with Jonathan giving David his robe and garments, even his sword and his bow and his girdle. David was entrusted with important responsibilities, yet he preserved his modesty and won the affection of both the people and the royal household.
The immediate setting is the first day of the new-moon sacred festival in Israel, when David's place at the king's table was vacant, though both David and Jonathan had been expected at the feast on the day after their interview. Saul said nothing that day about the vacant place because he supposed something had befallen David so that he was ceremonially unclean. Fearing to be present, David had arranged to visit his brothers in Bethlehem for his father's household sacrifice and then to hide for three days in a field not far from the banqueting hall while Jonathan noted Saul's reaction. Saul's silence left the matter undecided until the second day, when David's continued absence forced inquiry and revealed Saul's anger.
Jonathan's friendship was the Lord's doing, so that Jonathan might be the means of preserving David's life when Saul would try to kill him. God's providence connected David with Saul so that by wise behavior David might obtain the confidence of the people, and by a long course of hardships and vicissitudes might be led to put entire trust in God while being prepared to become ruler of his people.