20 On the third day I will shoot three arrows to the side of the rock as if I am shooting at a target.
21 Then I will send a boy to find the arrows. If I say to him, ‘The arrows are near you; bring them here,’ you may come out of hiding. You are safe. As the Lord lives, there is no danger.
22 But if I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ you must go, because the Lord is sending you away.
23 Remember what we talked about. The Lord is a witness between you and me forever.”
24 So David hid in the field. When the New Moon festival came, the king sat down to eat.
25 He sat where he always sat, near the wall. Jonathan sat across from him, and Abner sat next to Saul, but David’s place was empty.
26 That day Saul said nothing. He thought, “Maybe something has happened to David so that he is unclean.”