The Septuagint contains a longer text of this verse. La Bible Pléiade follows the Septuagint, placing the additional words within brackets:

• Then Saul said, “Cast the lot between me and Jonathan my son: [the one that Yahweh will designate, he will die.” The people said to Saul: “This cannot happen!” But Saul prevailed over the people and the lot was cast between him and Jonathan his son,] and Jonathan was indicated.

Klein and Anchor Bible also follow the text of the Septuagint, assuming that a scribe accidentally skipped from the first occurrence of “Jonathan my son” to the second occurrence and omitted the words in between. The Septuagint may well contain the original reading, but since nearly all translations follow the Masoretic Text, the shorter text should be followed.

The verb rendered Cast the lot is literally “cause to fall,” although the word “lot” is clearly implied. The purpose of this action was to determine whether it was Saul or Jonathan who was guilty of sin. In some languages it may be better to concentrate on this meaning rather than on the form of the decision-making process. New Century Version, for example, says simply “now let us discover if it is I or Jonathan my son [who is guilty].”

If indirect speech is preferred, translators may say:

• Then Saul told the people to do what was necessary to determine whether it was him or Jonathan who had done wrong. And it was Jonathan.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .