David went out wherever Saul sent him, [and] behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and it was good in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants.
Some homosexuals have tried to use the writer’s statements of Jonathan’s love for David as support that their lifestyle has good biblical precedent. [Note: E.g., Tom Horner, Jonathan Loved David: Homosexuality in Biblical Times, pp. 20, 26-28, 31-39.] However the Hebrew word ’aheb, translated "love" here, nowhere else describes homosexual desire or activity. Rather, when homosexual relations are in view, the Holy Spirit used the word yada, translated "know" in the sense of "have sex with" (cf. Genesis 19:5; Judges 19:22).