Editing David and Jonathan (section)

{{Short description|Biblical heroic figures of the Kingdom of Israel}}
{{Other uses}}
[[File:073A.David and Jonathan.jpg|270px|thumbnail|right|"David and Jonathan", one of [[Gustave Doré's illustrations for La Grande Bible de Tours|Gustave Doré's illustrations for ''La Grande Bible de Tours'']]]]
'''David and Jonathan''' were, according to the [[Hebrew Bible]]'s [[Books of Samuel]], heroic figures of the [[Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)|Kingdom of Israel]], who formed a [[Covenant (historical)|covenant]], taking a mutual oath.

[[Jonathan (1 Samuel)|Jonathan]] was the son of [[Saul]], king of [[Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)|Israel]], of the [[tribe of Benjamin]], and [[David]] was the son of [[Jesse (biblical figure)|Jesse]] of [[Bethlehem]], of the [[tribe of Judah]], and Jonathan's presumed rival for the crown. David became king. The covenant the two men had formed eventually led to David, after Jonathan's death, graciously seating Jonathan's son [[Mephibosheth]] at his own royal table instead of eradicating the former king Saul's line.

The biblical text does not explicitly depict the nature of the relationship between David and Jonathan. The traditional and mainstream religious interpretation of the relationship has been one of [[platonic love]] and an example of [[homosociality]]. Some scholars and writers—late [[Middle Ages]] and onwards—have emphasized what they see as elements of [[homoeroticism]] in the story.