Saul therefore said, "Come here, all you who are leaders of the army, and let us find out what sin has been committed today. As surely as the LORD who rescues Israel lives, even if it lies with my son Jonathan, he must die." But not one of the men said a word.  Saul then said to all the Israelites, "You stand over there; I and Jonathan my son will stand over here." "Do what seems best to you," the men replied.  Then Saul prayed to the LORD, the God of Israel, "Give me the right answer." And Jonathan and Saul were taken by lot, and the men were cleared. Saul said, "Cast the lot between me and Jonathan my son." And Jonathan was taken.  Then Saul said to Jonathan, "Tell me what you have done." So Jonathan told him, "I merely tasted a little honey with the end of my staff.  And now must I die?" 
1 Samuel 14:38-43

Saul wanted to pursue the Philistines and make sure that they have been totally eliminated. He was surprised that there was no affirmation from the Lord for this particular adventure. He surmised correctly that there was sin in the camp of Israel. The King was ready to do everything to eliminate whatever the root problem was. He made another oath that he was prepared to destroy anyone who was guilty even if it happened to be his son Jonathan.

He started by putting the whole nation on one side and his family on the other. The lot fell on his family. He pressed the issue until the lot fell on Jonathan. This was something that the men who were in battle with Jonathan had known because they were there when Jonathan put his staff in the honey and ate some, not knowing the order that his father had given. Nobody was supposed to eat that day until the evening. The men were not able to speak up as Saul pushed forward with his attempt to find the guilty person among the fighting men of Israel.

One can imagine the surprise on the face of King Saul when his son was selected as the culprit. After all, it was Jonathan who had led the army to the recent victory over the Philistines. Saul passionately wanted to know what his son had done. Little did he know that it was his rash oath on not eating anything that was the cause of the problem. He said: “tell me my son what you have done.”  It must have hurt Saul to talk to his son about this because he knew the consequences of the predicament that they both found themselves in.

So Jonathan told him, "I merely tasted a little honey with the end of my staff. And now must I die?" Saul was one of the few people who were surprised by the answer to his question. The men had confronted Jonathan and had agreed with that answer that was given by Jonathan. They agreed that if they had eaten some food, they would have had the needed energy to finish the fight. In other words the oath of the King had been a hindrance to the battle. Jonathan had eaten the honey in ignorance because he was not with the army when the order was given.

Jonathan assertively confronted the King with the facts of the case, and now it was left to the King to make the judgment call. We have to be wise in our pronouncements and our actions.

Blessings,

Brother Seth