II. THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH REVEALS WHAT SERIOUS INJURY HAS BEEN CAUSED TO RELIGION BY THE IMPERFECT LIVES OF ITS PROFESSED FRIENDS, The "uncircumcised" did know of Saul's disaster, and it made them strong in hostility to the chosen race, and at the same time weakened the hearts of the men of Israel. Saul damaged the cause of righteousness and mercy as well as his own personal reputation. Too often has Christ been wounded in the house of his friends (Zechariah 13:6). Considering the many miscarriages of those who were professedly engaged in the furtherance of the kingdom of God on earth, it is a marvel that the progress of Christianity has been what it has. They little think how much they retard the final supremacy of Christ who, by a Saul-like unfaithfulness and degeneracy, encourage antagonism among his foes, and produce paralysis among his friends.
III. MOMENTOUS EVENTS BRING OUT THE FACT THAT CULTURE IS OF SECONDARY IMPORTANCE TO RELIGION. David, as is seen from his varied compositions in the Psalms, and also from this elegy, was a man of fine aesthetic taste. He rejoiced in the exquisite beauties of nature. The dewy slopes of Gilboa, and the fat pastures of its valleys, teemed with objects of delight to his cultured taste; but now that his spiritual yearnings were unsatisfied, now that the holy Name of God was being dishonoured, all considerations of beauty in nature, and joy in the higher culture of life, must be utterly set aside. Let Gilbea become a waste, let the joy of local associations perish, since the religious side of life is languishing! The scenes amidst which our loved ones die are often cherished in the memory with mournful pleasure, and we seem to invest them with a more tender loneliness because there the joy of our life fell asleep. But when the smitten heart bleeds over a shipwrecked character—a life failing in its noblest purpose—then the local associations have no charm; blight and desolation are felt to be the most appropriate accompaniments of an unrelieved sorrow. So truly do great tragic events in life bring out the fact that our religious nature will assert itself as above all mere culture and aesthetic refinement.
IV. A WISE AND TENDER HEART CAN, while overwhelmed with sorrow because of spiritual disaster, APPRECIATE THE VALUE OF HUMANLY RELATED VIRTUES, We have made a distinction between virtues that have simply a human aspect, and those qualities which enter into the essence of religion and are Godward in aspect. David's great grief was that, so far as his religious life and work were concerned, Saul was degenerate and practically ruined. But, as a relief to his anguish on this account, he turns toward the manly virtues of the deceased king, and with exquisite tenderness dwells on them. His courage, his love for Jonathan, and his benefactions to his subjects (verses 22-24), afford some solace for a heart that can find none in contemplating the spiritual mission of the king. Nil mortuis nisi bonum. He could not, from very sorrow and reverence for the most sacred things, speak of the sad miscarriage of his life's work; and this reference to the good of his life was really an expression of deep affection, and at the same time an indication of a sorrow secret and unutterable. Christians who, with the light that Christ gives, see spiritual ruin where others see only, and rejoice in, humanly related virtues, are not blind to the manifest virtues of men; and often, in their silent sorrow for the absence of spiritual saving qualities, they can speak with subdued emotion of the charms and attractions of personal character.
V. THERE IS A WONDERFUL CHARM IN FILIAL PIETY MAINTAINED UNDER MOST ADVERSE CIRCUMSTANCES. "Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided" (verse 23). Yes; every heart says "yes." We feel the charm of Jonathan's fidelity to his poor erring father even to the bitter end. David's appreciation of this is, under the circumstances (1 Samuel 20:1-42:l 4), most beautiful. Jonathan knew that David was a holy man, vilely treated by his own father, and destined to ascend the throne; he loved him with a tenderness passing the love of women, and was under provocation again and again to revolt from his father's rule; but with patience, tenderness, and faithfulness, he stood by him to the end, lamenting his sins, restraining his evil propensities, and variously striving to lessen the evils of his government. The filial instinct prevailed. Piety purified and strengthened it. A lesson here for sons—the more valuable in proportion as parents may be irreligious or imperfect. It is a noble thing for a son to watch over, care for, and tenderly restrain the tendencies of an erring father. To some it is given to have that for their special work. Remember Jonathan.
VI. IT IS POSSIBLE TO CHERISH VERY TENDER AND HELPFUL FRIENDSHIPS EVEN AMIDST THE PRESSURE OF LIFE. The friendship of David and Jonathan, begun in days of peace, ceased not during all the subsequent seasons of toil and separation. Doubtless David had often been comforted in his solitude and wanderings by the remembrance of that true heart which beat in sympathy with his own, and Jonathan would be upheld in his delicate and painful task of helping and restraining an errant parent by the assurance that David was not unmindful of him before the mercy seat. The tendency of the hurry and pressure of daily business is to crush out the finer and more tender susceptibilities of the heart, and rob men of the consolations and elevating influence of wise and holy personal friendships. For self-culture, for solace, for spiritual fellowship, and for the acquisition of moral strength, it is well for all men to cherish a few well-selected friendships.
VII. THERE IS A BLESSED INFLUENCE ATTENDING THE CHERISHING OF HALLOWED MEMORIES. David's hallowed memories of Jonathan were to him for years to come a means of blessing. His life was more sober and tender and spiritual for the sweet memory of one so lovable and dear. The language of verses 25, 26 was the indication of a permanent element in David's subsequent life. We suffer loss when beautiful characters are taken away, and we find a gain. For though visible communion is no more, the tender memories are more constant, and touch more closely the deeper springs of life.
HOMILIES BY B. DALE
The Hebrew monarchy.
(Introductory.) The Hebrew monarchy holds a prominent place in the development of the purpose of God to establish his kingdom upon earth. In accordance with this purpose Abraham became the father of a family, distinguished beyond others by the knowledge of the true God and the hope of his promised salvation; the family grew into a nation, and its government was constituted, by the agency of Moses, a theocracy (a word first used by Josephus, 'Contra Apion' 2 Samuel 2:17); and the theocracy (impaired in its practical influence during the period of the judges) was united with a monarchy, which commenced with Saul, acquired strength and splendour under David, culminated in the glory of Solomon, and soon afterwards declined to its fall; leaving behind it, when it fell, the undying hope of its restoration under "the King Messiah" (1 Samuel 2:10). Consider—
I. ITS THEOCRATIC FOUNDATION. Although a king was sought in a wrong spirit, his appointment was not incompatible with the principles of the theocracy. What were these principles?
1. Its supreme Head, Lawgiver, and Judge was JEHOVAH; its subjects were his chosen people Israel. Having revealed himself to them as the one living and true God, and redeemed them out of bondage, he made a covenant with them, and became to them all, and more than all, that a human king was to other nations (Exodus 15:18; 1 Samuel 12:12; Zephaniah 3:15). "He raised and consolidated his universal rule into one of a special nature" (Kurtz, 'Hist. of the Old Covenant,' 3:107). The personal relation thus formed between him and his people was designed to maintain among them his exclusive worship, to keep them separate from the idolatrous and corrupt nations around them, and to make them "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."
2. Its laws were his revealed will, pertaining to the entire circle of civil and religious life. "The commonwealth of the Jews, different in that from all others, was an absolute theocracy; nor was there, nor could there be, any difference between the commonwealth and the Church" (Locke).
3. Its sanctions were his favour and displeasure, blessing and curse; reward or punishment of a temporal nature following obedience or disobedience, and administered by properly constituted authorities or a special and extraordinary providence.
4. Its officers were his appointed servants, whose part it was to declare his will and administer his laws, and who (whether priests, prophets, judges, elders, or princes) were themselves subject to them (Michaelis, 'Laws of Moses,' 1:190; Warburton, 'Div. Leg.,' 2 Samuel 5:3; Fairbairn, 'Typology,' 2:443). In harmony with these principles a human king was appointed (as already provided for, Deuteronomy 17:15-20); not, indeed, to reign independently of the Divine King, or according to his own will and pleasure, but as his viceroy and minister. "To the theocracy was added the monarchy, not to subvert or gradually supersede it, but to fulfil the wants of the age by its side. The pure theocracy became a Basileo-theocracy" (Ewald). "The Hebrews under the reign of David clearly recognized the theocratic nature of their constitution" (Jahn).
II. ITS PRACTICAL EFFICIENCY. The condition of the people rendered the regal office necessary; and it served (especially during the reign of David) to:
1. Gather them into closer union, and so consolidate and increase their strength. Nothing was more urgently needed. Their common faith (or rather unbelief) and the previously existing officers of the theocracy were insufficient to maintain the practical union and cooperation of the tribes.
2. Defend them against their adversaries, by whose attacks their very existence was imperilled. It secured their safety and independence, and it extended their dominion "from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates," as it had been promised of old (Genesis 15:18).
3. Establish order and the more regular and impartial administration of justice. In the days of the judges "every man did that which was right in his own eyes," being subject to no proper restraint by a king, as responsible "minister of God and avenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil" (Romans 13:4).
4. Promote the main purpose of their national calling, viz. to receive and conserve "the oracles of God" (Romans 3:2) for the ultimate benefit of mankind. "By the constitution of the Hebrew government the civil and municipal statutes of the nation were not only founded upon their religious belief, but they were also so framed as to have the support of that belief for their main object" (Russell, 'Connection,' bk. 18.). And this object was more effectually accomplished under the circumstances by means of the monarchy than it would otherwise have been.
III. ITS MANIFEST IMPERFECTION. Like other institutions dependent for their worth upon the conduct of weak and sinful men, it was marked, in its actual working, by numerous defects; being:
1. Administered in a manner that did not fully accord with its nature and design. "Whate'er is best administered is best." The authority and power entrusted to the king were frequently used in self-will and for self-exaltation. Hence the misery in which the reign of Saul (really an autocracy) terminated. And even the administration of David, although distinguished by surpassing ability and fidelity, was by no means faultless.
2. Weakened and marred by the personal crimes of the monarch. David's transgressions exerted an injurious influence, not only upon himself and his family, but also upon his government. They sowed the seeds of insubordination and rebellion.
3. Often employed for the oppression and corruption of the people. "Its tendency was to absolutism." The magnificence of Solomon was largely based upon oppressive taxation and forced labour; and, instead of opposing and excluding, he suffered and indulged idolatrous practices—most fatal of all things to the throne and nation.
4. Liable to frequent changes and gradual deterioration. Even a good monarch could not hold his office long "by reason of death;" and the hereditary principle did not insure a successor of like character. With the secession of the ten tribes the early splendour of the monarchy became dim; and its course, with intervals of glorious revival, was downward. It virtually terminated with the Captivity (Hosea 3:4, Hosea 3:5); after which the civil government was subject to a foreign heathen power, and the theocracy survived chiefly as a political hierarchy; at length "the Romans came and took away their place and nation."
IV. ITS TYPICAL SIGNIFICANCE. It was not only a stage of preparation for the kingdom of the Messiah, but also a type or divinely ordained foreshadowing of it.
1. It rendered the conception thereof more definite and vivid. "With the establishment of the kingly power, a new class of ideas was brought into view and developed, which for want of the requisite material groundwork could not be previously illustrated; and it now became possible to descry from a distance and to announce in appropriate and intelligible terms the coming kingdom of the Messiah."
2. It was associated with express promises and predictions (2 Samuel 7:12-16; 2 Samuel 23:3-5). "When mankind was limited to a single family, the Hope of the future had lain in the seed of the woman; the patriarchal age had looked forward to a descendant of Abraham; the Mosaic to a Prophet and a Legislator. In like manner the age of the Jewish monarchy in its bloom of youth and prowess was bidden to fix its eye upon an ideal David, who was to be the King of the future of the world". "The establishment of the kingdom was in the truest sense a defection from God, and yet, humanly speaking, it was a necessary defection. An earthly king fell infinitely short of the type of Divine government represented by Moses, or Joshua, or Samuel; but he was at once a definite centre, and a clear sign of something greater than himself. If he presented the spiritual idea in a fixed and limited form, he also gave distinctness to the conception of the present moral sovereignty of God, and furnished imagery under which the prophets could construct a more glorious picture of the future".
3. Even its defeats and failure intensified and exalted the expectation. With every disappointment hope sprang up afresh, and found its purest expression in the utterances of the prophets (Isaiah 9:6, Isaiah 9:7; Isaiah 53:1-12.; Micah 5:2). "What was earthly and carnal in the theocracy was made to fall into comparative abeyance, that the glory of its spiritual excellence might be brought more prominently into view" (Fairbairn). Whilst the general expectation immediately before the advent of Christ was of a temporal kingdom, many "waited" with lofty, spiritual hope "for the Consolation of Israel."
4. It was (as a type)fulfilled in a higher and more spiritual manner in the kingdom of Christ. In this kingdom the principles of the theocracy are preserved and exhibited in perfection. It is the real theocracy. Its supreme Head (Ephesians 1:22) is at once Divine and human. Its subjects consist of those who are inwardly renewed, and serve him from the heart. It is spiritual, righteous, peaceful, and blessed. Although in the world, it is not of the world. It can coexist in time and place (as the ancient theocracy could not) with every form of civil government; and, without any formal connection or concordat therewith, it can exert a sovereign influence over it. It claims the submission of every individual and every nation, and it is destined to fill the earth and endure forever.
REMARKS.
1. The purpose of God to set up on earth a kingdom of heaven is the key of history. "The grand idea of a kingdom of God is the connecting thread that runs through the entire course of Divine revelation."
2. The methods which God adopts in his dealings with men are adapted to their actual condition, and the accomplishment of immediate and beneficent ends; his revelations of himself are accommodated to their capacity for apprehending and profiting by them.
3. He allows men a large liberty of choice; and, when they Use it wrongly, patiently bears with their imperfections and sins, and overrules them for their correction and improvement.
4. His procedure is marked by a progressive development; and the facts and truths involved therein contain the promise and prefigurement of later and greater realities. "The Old Testament, when rightly understood, is one great prophecy of the New". "Christianity lay in Judaism, as leaves and fruit do in the seed; although it certainly required the Divine sun to bring them forth" (De Wette).
5. What is expedient in one age may not be so in another, which has received a higher revelation of the Divine will. The relative worth of institutions and men must be judged of according to their circumstances and the measure of light possessed, their absolute worth according to the highest conceptions of truth and righteousness.
6. God selects and exalts one nation, not for its own good merely, but for the good of others and the fulfilment of his benevolent purposes toward mankind.
7. As the people of God in ancient time were taught to look forward to the coming of the Messiah, so we are now taught to look forward to his coming again, and the complete establishment of his kingdom.—D.
David's reign
B.C. 1051-1011. (References: 1 Chronicles 10-29.; 1 Kings 1:1-53; 1 Kings 2:1-46.; Psalms. For his earlier life, as shepherd at Bethlehem, servant of Saul at Gibeah, outlaw in the wilderness of Judah and elsewhere, see 1 Samuel 16:1-23 -34.) When Saul fell on Gilboa, David was about thirty years old; the age at which Joseph stood before Pharaoh, the Levites entered on their official duties, and Jesus began his public ministry. The Second Book of Samuel describes the steps by which he became king ever Judah, and (after seven years and a half) king over all Israel, the consolidation and victorious expansion of his kingdom (ch. 1-10.); his deplorable fall (when about fifty years of age), his repentance, the consequences of his transgression, and the restoration of his impaired authority (ch. 11-20.); and (in an appendix, ch. 21-24.) among other things some events and utterances of his last days (his life ending at three score years and ten). "He most happily combined all the qualifications for becoming the true support of the extraordinary efforts of this period; and he thus succeeded in winning, not only a name unequalled in glory by any other king of Israel, but also a halo of kingly fame as ruler of the community of the true God, unattainable by a king of any other nation of antiquity" (Ewald). "The reign of David is the great critical era in the history of the Hebrews." In it we see—
I. THE PURPOSE OF THE DIVINE KING OF ISRAEL FULFILLED. That purpose (subordinate to the larger purpose mentioned in the preceding homily), to make David ruler instead of Saul, was:
1. Previously indicated. It was first announced by Samuel, in indefinite terms (1 Samuel 13:14; 1 Samuel 15:28), symbolized in the anointing of David (when about sixteen years old), afterwards doubtless plainly declared to him by the prophet, and clearly manifested by the course of events. It was also more and more generally recognized (1 Samuel 24:20; 1 Samuel 25:30; 2 Samuel 3:17, 2 Samuel 3:18).
2. Vainly opposed, at first by Saul, and, after he had been made King of Judah, by Abner and "the house of Saul." It was impossible for them to succeed. "There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the Lord" (Proverbs 21:30).
3. Gradually, surely, and fully wrought out. There were times in which it seemed to fail, but only to become more apparent and effectual; like a stream disappearing beneath the surface of the earth, and after a short distance bursting forth with renewed strength.
4. Its fulfilment shows the power and faithfulness of God, and should confirm our faith in the fulfilment of all his promises. "Wait on the Lord." "There hath not failed one word of all his good promise," etc. (1 Kings 8:56). "The Davidic age, with those that lie immediately around it, towers by its special glory like a giant mountain above a wide tract of more level periods. It was, moreover, soon afterwards recognized by the nation itself as a period of unique glory in the fortunes of the monarchy; and its memory has therefore been preserved in the historical narrative with the most exuberant fulness of detail" (Ewald).
II. THE CHARACTER OF THE HUMAN KING OF HIS CHOICE PORTRAYED. The interest of David's reign centres in David himself; his activities, achievements, experiences, utterances, so fully recorded, not only in the history, but also in his psalms. His character (more completely revealed than that of any other man) was the growth of a noble and gifted nature under the influence of Divine grace.
1. It was matured by long and varied discipline. While keeping his father's flock, in the court and camp of Saul, as an exile at the head of his heroic band, by persecution, calumny, hardship, meditation, temptation, prayer, and during his "apprenticeship to monarchy" in Hebron, his natural endowments and moral qualities were strengthened, developed, and perfected.
2. It was marked by a many-sided excellence. His insight, skill, prescient sagacity, tender sensibility, sympathy, imagination, fervour, versatility, courage, magnanimity, power of leadership, and of winning the passionate attachment of others, were never surpassed. He was "one of the greatest men in the world" (Bayle). "The most daring courage was combined in him with tender susceptibility; even after he had ascended the throne he continued to retain the charm of a pre-eminent and at the same time childlike personality" (Wellhausen).
"Great, valiant, pious, good, and clean,
Sublime, contemplative, serene,
Strong, constant, pleasant, wise!
Bright effluence of exceeding grace;
Best man I the swiftness and the race:
The peril and the prize!"
(Christopher Smart.)
"There never was a specimen of manhood so rich and ennobled as David, the son of Jesse, whom other saints haply may have equalled in single features of his character; but such a combination of manly, heroic qualities, such a flush of generous, godlike excellences, hath never yet been seen embodied in a single man" (Edward Irving). "The most thoroughly human figure, as it seems to me, which had appeared upon the earth before the coming of that perfect Son of man, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen" (Charles Kingsley).
3. It was marred by grave defects and aggravated transgressions. Although these were in great measure due to the spirit of his age, the effect of temptation incident to his position, contrary to the general course of his life, and deeply repented of, yet they incurred heavy guilt, and were followed by severe chastisements.
4. It thus affords a warning as well as an example. "In this history we have the pattern of a pious and prudent prince. Its utility and profit for example of life appears in the prudence, piety, zeal, humility, equity, and good government of David, and all other his heroic and godly virtues worthy of imitation. As also are set down David's infirmities and falls, as examples of the weakness of the best when they watch not over themselves, or are left to themselves, proponed to be eschewed, ut majorum ruina sit minorum cautela, as likewise his repentance to be imitated, and the sharp corrections notwithstanding, as medicinal corrasives wherewith he was chastised; as we see in the Lord's dealing with his dearest sons and servants (Hebrews 12:6, Hebrews 12:7)".
III. THE MAJESTY OF THE DIVINE-HUMAN KING MESSIAH FORESHADOWED. David is to be regarded, not simply as an individual, but as a noble, though imperfect, representation of the idea of a theocratic king, and therefore also as an adumbration of One in whom that idea would be perfectly realized (Luke 1:32). "His relation to the history of redemption is most peculiar and remarkable. The aim and import of the Old Testament history to prefigure, prophesy, and testify of Christ concentrated in him as in a focus" (Kurtz). "As we have a great increase of the prophetic light breaking forth, and encompassing the family and kingdom of David so subsequent prophecy reverts often to the same subjects, insomuch that there is no individual, king or other person, one only excepted, of whom more is said by the prophets than of this king and his throne" (Davison, 'On Prophecy'). "It is David who, without intending it, supplies the personal foundation of all the Messianic hopes, which from this time contribute with increasing power to determine Israel's career; and so he stands at the turning-point in the history of two thousand years and separates it into two great halves" (Ewald). High above him, in the dim and distant future, rose the majestic form of "the King of kings, and Lord of lords." "A person, as such, can never be a symbol. It was not David, or Manasseh, or Ahab, that was the type of Christ as King of Zion; it was the royal office with which these were invested, symbolical as that was of the theocracy, which was typical of the kingly dignity of the Redeemer". The kingly dignity of the Messiah appears in:
1. His Divine appointment (Psalms 2:6,.7) founded on the Incarnation. "In Jesus the Christ, Jehovah and the Son of David become one. Heaven and earth interpenetrate, that they may unite in him and be united by him" (Delitzsch).
2. His glorious exaltation after deep humiliation and patient endurance.
3. His righteous administration (Psalms 72:1, Psalms 72:2).
4. His advancing triumph over the enemies of his kingdom and our salvation—"the devil with all his retinue, the world, the flesh, sin, death, and hell; whatever doth oppose his glory, his truth, his service; whatever consequently by open violence or fraudulent practice doth hinder our salvation" (Barrow).
5. His munificent gifts and the blessings of his reign; refuge, refreshment, repose (Isaiah 32:1, Isaiah 32:2); "righteousness, peaces and joy in the Holy Ghost." As a King he gathers, governs, protects, and perfects his people.
6. His wide dominion.
7. His endless continuance. "His Name shall endure forever."
EXHORTATION.
1. Submit to his rule. "Kiss the Son," etc. (Psalms 2:12).
2. Rejoice in his salvation.
3. Cooperate with his purposes.
4. Look forward to his final triumph.—D.
2 Samuel 1:1, 2 Samuel 1:2
(ZIKLAG.)
A change of dynasty.
"When he came to David he fell to the earth, and did obeisance" (2 Samuel 1:2). The title of David to the throne was primarily conferred upon him by the will of God, as declared by Samuel. But it remained in abeyance while Saul lived, and began to take effect only at his decease. On returning to Ziklag from his pursuit of the Amalekites, David occupied himself in repairing its ruins, and awaited tidings from the field of battle. On the morning of the third day there came a young man, "the son of a stranger, an Amalekite," bringing news of the defeat of Israel and the death of Saul and Jonathan. In proof of his statement he brought the king's diadem, "a small metallic cap or wreath which encircled the temples, serving the purpose of a helmet, with a very small horn projecting in front, as an emblem of power" (Jamieson), and bracelet (or armlet worn above the elbow), and laid them at the feet of David, as the future king (2 Samuel 1:10). His conduct reminds us of a well-known custom, according to which, whenever a French monarch departed this life, an official of the royal household appeared at the window, broke his staff, and cried, Le roi est mort! ("The king is dead!"); then took a new staff and shouted, Vive le roi! ("Long live the king!"). The change that occurred was—
I. OCCASIONED BY THE FALL OF AN UNFAITHFUL RULER. "After the death of Saul" (2 Samuel 1:1).
1. Men are entrusted with power by God that they may employ it, not according to their own will and for their own honour, but according to his will and for his glory. This Saul failed to recognize.
2. Whenever a man misuses his trust he is sooner or later deprived thereof, and suffers the penalty of his sin (1 Samuel 15:23).
3. No man can fall into sin and destruction without involving others in his ruin. How often has a monarch's unfaithfulness caused the downfall of his dynasty!
4. The place from which he falls is thereby prepared for a more faithful man, and such a man is seldom wanting for the place. "Take therefore the talent," etc. (Matthew 25:28). "Saul's elevation was a first experiment in monarchy doomed to failure from the beginning; it was only when the people had been trampled down by his tyranny and involved in his fatal defeat that a lasting monarch was set according to the Divine will in the person and family of David, who was in this sense the man after God's own heart" (P. Smith, ' Ancient History,' 1:168).
II. AWAITED WITH PATIENCE BY A RIGHTFUL SUCCESSOR. "David abode in Ziklag." He was long ago assured of his royal destination. But:
1. The purpose of God is often slow in its accomplishment; which requires to be waited for in faith and patience.
2. Its slow accomplishment presents a strong temptation to impatience, and the. adoption of rash and unworthy expedients that hinder rather than promote the desired end. David was subject to such a temptation, and for the most part overcame it. In so far as he yielded to it he suffered the consequences of his imprudence (1 Samuel 27:1).
3. By patient continuance in well-doing men are best prepared for what God has prepared for them. David did not deem the crown "a thing to be grasped at." "What God has destined for him, he would not have until God gave it to him (Hengstenberg). "Endurance is the crowning quality." Qui dura vince ("He conquers who endures').
4. To those who await the accomplishment of the Divine purpose in a right spirit, it comes surely and at the right time, often suddenly and by unexpected means. "By degrees doth the Lord perform, his works to exercise the faith, the hope, the patience, and constancy of his chosen, but at last to the full he accomplisheth whatsoever he promiseth" (Guild).
III. RECOGNIZED AS INEVITABLE BY A SELF-SEEKING OBSERVER. It is remarkable that one of an alien and hostile race should be the first to perceive and acknowledge the speedy and certain transfer of the crown. He was a watchful observer of the course of events; acquainted, probably, with the general opinion concerning David, and with his present position; and, although possessing little love for his character and expecting little good to the Amalekites from his accession, he was desirous of using the occasion for the furtherance of his personal ends.
1. The tendency of human affairs is often so apparent that its result may be easily anticipated by a]l hut the most obtuse.
2. A stranger or an enemy frequently perceives the destination of a man of ability more clearly than those who are intimately connected with him.
3. One who is supremely concerned about his own interest is quick to see anything that may be made conducive to it, however blind and unfeeling he may be in other respects.
4. His attempt to turn it to his own advantage sometimes turns only to the advantage of another, and to his own disappointment and ruin. "David had been long waiting for the crown, and now it is brought to him by an Amalekite. See how God can serve his own purpose of kindness to his people, even by designing men who aim at nothing but to set up themselves" (Matthew Henry).
IV. EFFECTED BY THE OPERATION OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE. "The Lord slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse' (1 Chronicles 10:14). "God is the Judge; he putteth down one and setteth up another" (Psalms 75:7; 1 Samuel 2:1-10). By his providential working:
1. His purposes are fulfilled and the truth of his Word is confirmed. "By a series of events following in the ordinary course of Providence, without any miracle interposed, this prediction (given by Samuel and exhibited in the act of anointing) was brought to pass. David was raised to his divinely appointed station, when his shepherd's staff became a sceptre, and his flock a great people; none contributing more to the preparation of this event than Saul himself …. The complicated narrative is the exposition of the prophetic prescience' (Davison).
2. Those who oppose his purposes are overthrown.
3. He who humbly waits their fulfilment in the way of obedience is promoted.
4. Individuals and nations are constrained to turn from their own way, and submit to his plans as the wisest and best (2 Samuel 2:4; 2 Samuel 3:9; 2 Samuel 5:2). "The secret springs of revolutions are unaccountable, and must be resolved into that Providence which turns all hearts as the rivers of water" (Matthew Henry). "Notwithstanding those appearances which obscure the providence of God, it often makes itself conspicuous in the midst of them all. When we have allowed to human agency, to human wisdom and human power, a large circle of events imputed to nothing else, we see the Divine wisdom frequently disencumber itself from all communication with second causes, and stretch itself out in the face of all men, in defeating and confounding the plans of human wisdom, in the failure of the deepest schemes" (R. Hall).—D.
2 Samuel 1:2-10
(ZIKLAG.)
Selfish craft.
Beyond the assertion of the Amalekite that Israel was defeated and Saul and Jonathan were dead, of which the diadem and bracelet afforded proof, it is uncertain how far his story was true. His statement concerning his own conduct cannot be satisfactorily reconciled with that of 1 Samuel 31:1-13.; and, although credited by David, it was probably a fabrication, his motive therein being the desire of reward, as David himself clearly perceived (2 Samuel 4:1-12:16). In him we have a picture of what sometimes appears in others under higher moral influences, viz.:
1. Dominant selfishness. He is supremely concerned about his own interest. Self-love is an original principle of our nature, and, when properly regulated, points in the direction of virtue and happiness. But it easily degenerates into selfishness, "the source of all the sins of omission and commission which are found in the world." And when a man comes under the dominion of the latter, he may sink into any depth of meanness.