"I gave them a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath."--_Hosea_ xiii. 11. The Israelites seem to have asked for a king from an unthankful caprice and waywardness. The ill conduct, indeed, of Samuel's sons was the occasion of the sin, but "an evil heart of unbelief," to use Scripture language, was the real cause 5 of it. They had ever been restless and dissatisfied, asking for flesh when they had manna, fretful for water, impatient of the wilderness, bent on returning to Egypt, fearing their enemies, murmuring against Moses. They had miracles 10 even to satiety; and then, for a change, they wished a king like the nations. This was the chief reason of their sinful demand. And further, they were dazzled with the pomp and splendor of the heathen monarchs around them, and they 15 desired some one to fight their battles, some visible succor to depend on, instead of having to wait for an invisible Providence, which came in its own way and time, by little and little, being dispensed silently, or tardily, or (as they might 20 consider) unsuitably. Their carnal hearts did not love the neighborhood of heaven; and, like the inhabitants of Gadara afterwards, they prayed that Almighty God would depart from their coasts. 5 Such were some of the feelings under which they desired a king like the nations; and God at length granted their request. To punish them, He gave them a king _after their own heart_, Saul, the son of Kish, a Benjamite; of whom the text speaks in 10 these terms, "I gave them a king in Mine anger, and took him away in My wrath." There is, in true religion, a sameness, an absence of hue and brilliancy, in the eyes of the natural man; a plainness, austereness, and (what he 15 considers) sadness. It is like the heavenly manna of which the Israelites complained, insipid, and at length wearisome, "like wafers made with honey." They complained that "their soul was dried away." "There is nothing at all," they said, 20 "beside this manna, before our eyes.... We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick."[1] Such were the dainty meats in which their soul 25 delighted; and for the same reason they desired a king. Samuel had too much of primitive simplicity about him to please them, they felt they were behind the world, and clamored to be put on a level with the heathen. 30 [1] Exod. xvi.; Numb. xi. 5. Saul, the king whom God gave them, had much to recommend him to minds thus greedy of the dust of the earth. He was brave, daring, resolute; gifted, too, with strength of body as well as of mind--a circumstance which seems to 5 have attracted their admiration. He is described in person as if one of those sons of Anak, before whose giant-forms the spies of the Israelites in the wilderness were as grasshoppers--"a choice young man, and a goodly; there was not among 10 the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people."[2] Both his virtues and his faults were such as became an eastern monarch, and were adapted to secure the fear and 15 submission of his subjects. Pride, haughtiness, obstinacy, reserve, jealousy, caprice--these, in their way, were not unbecoming qualities in the king after whom their imaginations roved. On the other hand, the better parts of his character 20 were of an excellence sufficient to engage the affection of Samuel himself. [2] 1 Sam. ix. 2--_vide ibid._ x. 23. As to Samuel, his conduct is far above human praise. Though injuriously treated by his countrymen, who cast him off after he had served them 25 faithfully till he was "old and gray-headed,"[3] and who resolved on setting over themselves a king against his earnest entreaties, still we find no trace of coldness or jealousy in his behavior towards Saul. On his first meeting with him, he addressed 30 him in the words of loyalty--"On whom is all the desire of Israel? is it not on thee, and on all thy father's house?" Afterwards, when he anointed him king, he "kissed him, and said, Is it not because the Lord hath anointed thee to be 5 captain over His inheritance?" When he announced him to the people as their king, he said, "See ye him whom the Lord hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people?" And, some time after, when Saul had irrecoverably 10 lost God's favor, we are told, "Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: _nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul_." In the next chapter he is even rebuked for immoderate grief--"How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, 15 seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel?"[4] Such sorrow speaks favorably for Saul as well as for Samuel; it is not only the grief of a loyal subject and a zealous prophet, but, moreover, of an attached friend; and, indeed, 20 instances are recorded, in the first years of his reign, of forbearance, generosity, and neglect of self, which sufficiently account for the feelings with which Samuel regarded him. David, under very different circumstances, seems to have felt 25 for him a similar affection. [3] _Ibid._ xii. 2. [4] 1 Sam. ix. 20; x. 1, 24; xv. 35; xvi. 1. The higher points of his character are brought out in instances such as the following: The first announcement of his elevation came upon him suddenly, but apparently without unsettling 30 him. He kept it secret, leaving it to Samuel, who had made it to him, to publish it. "Saul said unto his uncle, He" (that is, Samuel) "told us plainly that the asses were found. But of the matter of the kingdom, whereof Samuel spake, 5 _he told him not_." Nay, it would even seem he was averse to the dignity intended for him; for when the Divine lot fell upon him, he hid himself, and was not discovered by the people, without recourse to Divine assistance. The appointment 10 was at first unpopular. "The children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? They despised him, and brought him no presents, _but he held his peace_." Soon the Ammonites invaded the country beyond Jordan, with the avowed intention of 15 subjugating it. The people sent to Saul for relief almost in despair; and the panic spread in the interior as well as among those whose country was immediately threatened. The history proceeds: "_Behold, Saul came after the herd out of 20 the field_; and Saul said, What aileth the people that they weep? and they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh. And the Spirit of God came upon Saul, and his anger was kindled greatly." His order for an immediate gathering 25 throughout Israel was obeyed with the alacrity with which the multitude serve the strong-minded in times of danger. A decisive victory over the enemy followed; then the popular cry became, "Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over us? 30 bring the men, that we may put them to death. And Saul said, _There shall not a man be put to death this day_, for to-day the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel."[5] [5] 1 Sam. xi. 12, 13. Thus personally qualified, Saul was, moreover, a prosperous king. He had been appointed to 5 subdue the enemies of Israel, and success attended his arms. At the end of the fourteenth chapter, we read: "So Saul took the kingdom over Israel and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the children of 10 Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines; and whithersoever he turned himself, he vexed them. And he gathered an host, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that 15 spoiled them." Such was Saul's character and success; his character faulty, yet not without promise; his success in arms as great as his carnal subjects could have desired. Yet, in spite of Samuel's 20 private liking for him, and in spite of the good fortune which actually attended him, we find that from the beginning the prophet's voice is raised both against people and king in warnings and rebukes, which are omens of his destined 25 destruction, according to the text, "I gave them a king in Mine anger, and took him away in My wrath." At the very time that Saul is publicly received as king, Samuel protests, "Ye have this day rejected your God, who Himself saved you out of all your 30 adversities and your tribulations."[6] In a subsequent assembly of the people, in which he testified his uprightness, he says, "Is it not wheat harvest to-day? I will call unto the Lord, and He shall send thunder and rain; _that ye may 5 perceive and see that your wickedness is great_, in asking you a king." Again, "If ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king."[7] And after this, on the first instance of disobedience and at first sight no very heinous sin, the sentence 10 of rejection is passed upon him: "Thy kingdom shall not continue; the Lord hath sought Him a man after His own heart."[8] [6] 1 Sam. x. 19. [7] _Ibid._ xii. 17, 25. [8] _Ibid._ xiii. 14. Here, then, a question may be raised--Why was Saul thus marked for vengeance from the 15 beginning? Why these presages of misfortune, which from the first hung over him, gathered, fell in storm and tempest, and at length overwhelmed him? Is his character so essentially faulty that it must be thus distinguished for reprobation 20 above all the anointed kings after him? Why, while David is called a man after God's own heart, should Saul be put aside as worthless? This question leads us to a deeper inspection of, his character. Now, we know, the first duty of 25 every man is the fear of God--a reverence for His word, a love of Him, and a desire to obey Him; and, besides, it was peculiarly incumbent on the king of Israel, as God's vicegerent, by virtue of his office, to promote His glory whom his subjects had rejected. 30 Now Saul "lacked this one thing." His character, indeed, is obscure, and we must be cautious while considering it; still, as Scripture is given us for our instruction, it is surely right to make the most of what we find there, and to form our 5 judgment by such lights as we possess. It would appear, then, that Saul was never under the abiding influence of religion, or, in Scripture language, "the fear of God," however he might be at times moved and softened. Some men are inconsistent 10 in their conduct, as Samson; or as Eli, in a different way; and yet may have lived by faith, though a weak faith. Others have sudden falls, as David had. Others are corrupted by prosperity, as Solomon. But as to Saul, there is no 15 proof that he had any deep-seated religious principle at all; rather, it is to be feared, that his history is a lesson to us, that the "heart of unbelief" may exist in the very sight of God, may rule a man in spite of many natural advantages of character, 20 in the midst of much that is virtuous, amiable, and commendable. Saul, it would seem, was naturally brave, active, generous, and patient; and what nature made him, such he remained, that is, without 25 improvement; with virtues which had no value, because they required no effort, and implied the influence of no principle. On the other hand, when we look for evidence of his faith, that is, his practical sense of things unseen, we discover 30 instead a deadness to all considerations not connected with the present world. It is his habit to treat prophet and priest with a coldness, to say the least, which seems to argue some great internal defect. It would not be inconsistent with the Scripture account of him, even should the real 5 fact be, that (with some general notions concerning the being and providence of God) he doubted of the divinity of the Dispensation of which he was an instrument. The circumstance which first introduces him to the inspired history is not in his 10 favor. While in search of his father's asses, which were lost, he came to the city where Samuel was; and though Samuel was now an old man, and from childhood known as the especial minister and prophet of the God of Israel, Saul 15 seems to have considered him as a mere diviner, such as might be found among the heathen, who, for "the fourth part of a shekel of silver," would tell him his way. The narrative goes on to mention, that after his 20 leaving Samuel "God gave him another heart," and on meeting a company of prophets, "the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them." Upon this, "all that knew him beforetime" said, "What is this that is come unto 25 the son of Kish: is Saul also among the prophets? ... therefore it became a proverb." From this narrative we gather, that his carelessness and coldness in religious matters were so notorious, that, in the eyes of his acquaintance, there was 30 a certain strangeness and incongruity, which at once struck the mind, in his being associated with a school of the prophets. Nor have we any reason to believe, from the after history, that the Divine gift, then first imparted, left any religious effect upon his mind. 5 At a later period of his life we find him suddenly brought under the same sacred influence on his entering the school where Samuel taught; but, instead of softening him, its effect upon his outward conduct did but testify the fruitlessness of 10 Divine grace when acting upon a will obstinately set upon evil. The immediate occasion of his rejection was his failing under a specific trial of his obedience, as set before him at the very time he was anointed. 15 He had collected with difficulty an army against the Philistines; while waiting for Samuel to offer the sacrifice, his people became dispirited, and began to fall off and return home. Here he was doubtless exposed to the temptation of taking 20 unlawful measures to put a stop to their defection. But when we consider that the act to which he was persuaded was no less than that of his offering sacrifice--he being neither priest nor prophet, nor having any commission thus to interfere 25 with the Mosaic ritual--it is plain "his _forcing himself_" to do so (as he tenderly described his sin) was a direct profaneness--a profaneness which implied that he was careless about forms, which in this world will ever be essential to 30 things supernatural, and thought it mattered little whether he acted in God's way or in his own. After this, he seems to have separated himself from Samuel, whom he found unwilling to become his instrument, and to have had recourse to the 5 priesthood instead. Ahijah or Ahimelech (as he is afterwards called), the high priest, followed his camp; and the ark, too, in spite of the warning conveyed by the disasters which attended the presumptuous use of it in the time of Eli. "And 10 Saul said unto Ahijah, Bring hither the ark of God;" while it was brought, a tumult which was heard in the camp of the Philistines increased. On this interruption Saul irreverently put the ark aside, and went out to the battle. 15 It will be observed, that there was no professed or intentional irreverence in Saul's conduct; he was still on the whole the same he had ever been. He outwardly respected the Mosaic ritual--about this time he built his first altar to the Lord,[9] 20 and in a certain sense seemed to acknowledge God's authority. But nothing shows he considered that there was any vast distinction between Israel and the nations around them. He was _indifferent_, and cared for none of these things. The chosen people 25 desired a king like the nations, and such a one they received. [9] 1 Sam. xiv. 35. After this he was commanded to "go and smite the sinners, the Amalekites, and utterly destroy them and their cattle." This was a judgment on 30 them which God had long decreed, though He had delayed it; and He now made Saul the minister of His vengeance. But Saul performed it so far only as fell in with his own inclination and purposes. He smote, indeed, the Amalekites, and 5 "destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword"--this exploit had its glory; the best of the flocks and herds he spared, and why? to sacrifice therewith to the Lord. But since God had expressly told him to destroy them, what 10 was this but to imply, that Divine intimations had nothing to do with such matters? what was it but to consider that the established religion was but a useful institution, or a splendid pageant suitable to the dignity of monarchy, but resting on no 15 unseen supernatural sanction? Certainly he in no sense acted in the fear of God, with the wish to please Him, and the conviction that he was in His sight. One might consider it mere pride and willfulness in him, acting in his own way because 20 it was his own (which doubtless it was in great measure), except that he appears to have had an eye to the feelings and opinions of men as to his conduct, though not to God's judgment. He "feared the people and obeyed their voice." 25 Again, he spared Agag, the king of the Amalekites. Doubtless he considered Agag as "his brother," as Ahab afterwards called Ben-hadad. Agag was a king, and Saul observed towards him that courtesy and clemency which earthly 30 monarchs observe one towards another, and rightly when no Divine command comes in the way. But the God of Israel required a king after His own heart, jealous of idolatry; the people had desired a king like the nations around them. It is remarkable, moreover, that while he spared 5 Agag, he attempted to exterminate the Gibeonites with the sword, who were tolerated in Israel by virtue of an oath taken in their favor by Joshua and "the princes of the congregation." This he did "_in his zeal_ to the children of Israel and 10 Judah."[10] [10] Josh. ix. 2; 2 Sam. xxi. 1-5. From the time of his disobedience in the matter of Amalek, Samuel came no more to see Saul, whose season of probation was over. The evil spirit exerted a more visible influence upon him; 15 and God sent Samuel to anoint David privately, as the future king of Israel. I need not trace further the course of moral degradation which is exemplified in Saul's subsequent history. Mere natural virtue wears away, when men neglect to 20 deepen it into religious principle. Saul appears in his youth to be unassuming and forbearing; in advanced life he is not only proud and gloomy (as he ever was in a degree), but cruel, resentful, and hard-hearted, which he was not in his youth. 25 His injurious treatment of David is a long history; but his conduct to Ahimelech, the high priest, admits of being mentioned here. Ahimelech assisted David in his escape. Saul resolved on the death of Ahimelech and all his father's 30 house.[11] On his guards refusing to execute his command, Doeg, a man of Edom, one of the nations which Saul was raised up to withstand, undertook the atrocious deed. On that day, eighty-five priests were slain. Afterwards Nob, 5 the city of the priests, was smitten with the edge of the sword, and all destroyed, "men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen, and asses, and sheep." That is, Saul executed more complete vengeance on the descendants of Levi, the sacred 10 tribe, than on the sinners, the Amalekites, who laid wait for Israel in the way, on their going up from Egypt. [11] 1 Sam. xxii. 16. Last of all, he finishes his bad history by an open act of apostasy from the God of Israel. His last 15 act is like his first, but more significant. He began, as we saw, by consulting Samuel as a diviner; this showed the direction of his mind. It steadily persevered in its evil way--and he ends by consulting a professed sorceress at Endor. The 20 Philistines had assembled their hosts; Saul's heart trembled greatly--he had no advisers or comforters; Samuel was dead--the priests he had himself slain with the sword. He hoped, by magic rites, which he had formerly denounced, to 25 foresee the issue of the approaching battle. God meets him even in the cave of Satanic delusions--but as an Antagonist. The reprobate king receives, by the mouth of dead Samuel, who had once anointed him, the news that he is to be 30 "taken away in God's wrath"--that the Lord would deliver Israel, with him, into the hands of the Philistines, and that on the morrow he and his sons should be numbered with the dead.[12] [12] 1 Sam. xxviii. 19. The next day "the battle went sore against him, 5 the archers hit him; and he was sore wounded of the archers."[13] "Anguish came upon him,"[14] and he feared to fall into the hands of the uncircumcised. He desired his armor-bearer to draw his sword and thrust him through therewith. On his 10 refusing, he fell upon his own sword, and so came to his end. [13] _Ibid._ xxxi. 3. [14] 2 Sam. i. 9. EARLY YEARS OF DAVID "Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the Lord is with him."--1 _Samuel_ xvi. 18. Such is the account given to Saul of David, in many respects the most favored of the ancient Saints. David is to be accounted the most favored, first as being the principal type of Christ, next as being the author of a great part of the book 5 of Psalms, which have been used as the Church's form of devotion ever since his time. Besides, he was a chief instrument of God's providence, both in repressing idolatry and in preparing for the gospel; and he prophesied in an especial manner 10 of that Saviour whom he prefigured and preceded. Moreover, he was the chosen king of Israel, a man after God's own heart, and blessed, not only in himself, but in his seed after him. And, further, to the history of his life a greater share is given of 15 the inspired pages than to that of any other of God's favored servants. Lastly, he displays in his personal character that very temper of mind in which his nation, or rather human nature itself, is especially deficient. Pride and unbelief 20 disgrace the history of the chosen people; the deliberate love of this world, which was the sin of Balaam, and the presumptuous willfulness which is exhibited in Saul. But David is conspicuous for an affectionate, a thankful, a loyal heart 5 towards his God and defender, a zeal which was as fervent and as docile as Saul's was sullen, and as keen-sighted and as pure as Balaam's was selfish and double-minded. Such was the son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite; he stands midway 10 between Abraham and his predicted seed, Judah and the Shiloh, receiving and transmitting the promises; a figure of the Christ, and an inspired prophet, living in the Church even to the end of time, in his office, his history, and his sacred 15 writings. Some remarks on his early life, and on his character, as therein displayed, may profitably engage our attention at the present time. When Saul was finally rejected for not 20 destroying the Amalekites, Samuel was bid go to Bethlehem, and anoint, as future king of Israel, one of the sons of Jesse, who should be pointed out to him when he was come there. Samuel accordingly went thither and held a sacrifice; when, at 25 his command, Jesse's seven sons were brought by their father, one by one, before the prophet; but none of them proved to be the choice of Almighty God. David was the youngest and out of the way, and it seemed to Jesse as unlikely that God's 30 choice should fall upon him, as it appeared to Joseph's brethren and to his father, that he and his mother and brethren should, as his dreams foretold, bow down before him. On Samuel's inquiring, Jesse said, "There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep." 5 On Samuel's bidding, he was sent for. "Now he was ruddy," the sacred historian proceeds, "and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him, for this is he." After Samuel had 10 anointed him, "the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward." It is added, "But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul." David's anointing was followed by no other immediate mark of God's favor. He was tried 15 by being sent back again, in spite of the promise, to the care of his sheep, till an unexpected occasion introduced him to Saul's court. The withdrawing of the Spirit of the Lord from Saul was followed by frequent attacks from an evil spirit, as 20 a judgment upon him. His mind was depressed, and a "trouble," as it is called, came upon him, with symptoms very like those which we now refer to derangement. His servants thought that music, such, perhaps, as was used in the schools 25 of the prophets, might soothe and restore him; and David was recommended by one of them for that purpose, in the words of the text: "Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty valiant 30 man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the Lord is with him." David came in the power of that sacred influence whom Saul had grieved and rejected. The Spirit which inspired his tongue guided his 5 hand also, and his sacred songs became a medicine to Saul's diseased mind. "When the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, ... David took an harp, and played with his hand; so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed 10 from him." Thus he is first introduced to us in that character in which he still has praise in the Church, as "the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel."[15] [15] 2 Sam. xxiii. 1. Saul "loved David greatly, and he became his 15 armor-bearer;" but the first trial of his humility and patience was not over, while many other trials were in store. After a while he was a second time sent back to his sheep; and though there was war with the Philistines, and his three eldest brethren 20 were in the army with Saul, and he had already essayed his strength in defending his father's flocks from wild beasts, and was "a mighty valiant man," yet he contentedly stayed at home as a private person, keeping his promise of 25 greatness to himself, till his father bade him go to his brethren to take them a present from him, and report how they fared. An accident, as it appeared to the world, brought him forward. On his arrival at the army, he heard the challenge of 30 the Philistine champion, Goliath of Gath. I need not relate how he was divinely urged to engage the giant, how he killed him, and how he was, in consequence, again raised to Saul's favor; who, with an infirmity not inconsistent with the 5 deranged state of his mind, seems to have altogether forgotten him. From this time began David's public life; but not yet the fulfillment of the promise made to him by Samuel. He had a second and severer trial 10 of patience to endure for many years; the trial of "being still" and doing nothing before God's time, though he had (apparently) the means in his hands of accomplishing the promise for himself. It was to this trial that Jeroboam afterwards 15 showed himself unequal. He, too, was promised a kingdom, but he was tempted to seize upon it in his own way, and so forfeited God's protection. David's victory over Goliath so endeared him to Saul, that he would not let him go back to his 20 father's house. Jonathan, too, Saul's son, at once felt for him a warm affection, which deepened into a firm friendship. "Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants."[16] 25 This prosperous fortune, however, did not long continue. As Saul passed through the cities from his victory over his enemies, the women of Israel came out to meet him, singing and dancing, and they said, "Saul hath slain his thousands, and 30 David his ten thousands." Immediately the jealous king was "very wroth, and the saying displeased him;" his sullenness returned; he feared David as a rival; and "eyed him from that day and forward." On the morrow, as David 5 was playing before him, as at other times, Saul threw his javelin at him. After this, Saul displaced him from his situation at his court, and sent him to the war, hoping so to rid himself of him by his falling in battle; but, by God's 10 blessing, David returned victorious. [16] 1 Sam. xviii. 5. In a second war with the Philistines, David was successful as before; and Saul, overcome with gloomy and malevolent passions, again cast at him with his javelin, as he played before him, with the 15 hope of killing him. This repeated attempt on his life drove David from Saul's court; and for some years after, that is, till Saul's death, he was a wanderer upon the earth, persecuted in that country which was 20 afterwards to be his own kingdom. Here, as in his victory over Goliath, Almighty God purposed to show us, that it was _His_ hand which set David on the throne of Israel. David conquered his enemy by a sling and stone, in order, as he said at the 25 time, that all ... might know "that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's."[17] Now again, but in a different way, His guiding providence was displayed. As David slew Goliath without arms, so now he 30 refrained himself and used them not, though he possessed them. Like Abraham, he traversed the land of promise "as a strange land,"[18] waiting for God's good time. Nay, far more exactly, even than to Abraham, was it given to David to act and 5 suffer that life of faith which the Apostle describes, and by which "the elders obtained a good report." By faith he wandered about, "being destitute, afflicted, evil-entreated, in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens, and in caves of the earth." 10 On the other hand, through the same faith, he "subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens." [17] 1 Sam. xvii. 47. [18] Heb. xi. 9. On escaping from Saul, he first went to Samuel 15 to ask his advice. With him he dwelt some time. Driven thence by Saul he went to Bethlehem, his father's city, then to Ahimelech, the high priest, at Nob. Thence he fled, still through fear of Saul, to Achish, the Philistine king of Gath; and 20 finding his life in danger there, he escaped to Adullam, where he was joined by his kindred, and put himself at the head of an irregular band of men, such as, in the unsettled state of the country, might be usefully and lawfully employed against the 25 remnant of the heathen. After this he was driven to Hareth, to Keilah, which he rescued from the Philistines, to the wilderness of Ziph among the mountains, to the wilderness of Maon, to the strongholds of Engedi, to the wilderness of Paran. After 30 a time he again betook himself to Achish, king of Gath, who gave him a city; and there it was that the news was brought him of the death of Saul in battle, which was the occasion of his elevation first to the throne of Judah, afterwards to that of all 5 Israel, according to the promise of God made to him by Samuel. It need not be denied that, during these years of wandering, we find in David's conduct instances of infirmity and inconsistency, and some things 10 which, without being clearly wrong, are yet strange and startling in so favored a servant of God. With these we are not concerned, except so far as a lesson may be gained from them for ourselves. We are not at all concerned with them 15 as regards our estimate of David's character. That character is ascertained and sealed by the plain word of Scripture, by the praise of Almighty God, and is no subject for our criticism; and if we find in it traits which we cannot fully reconcile 20 with the approbation divinely given to him, we must take it in faith to be what it is said to be, and wait for the future revelations of Him who "overcomes when He is judged." Therefore I dismiss these matters now, when I am engaged 25 in exhibiting the eminent obedience and manifold virtues of David. On the whole his situation during these years of trial was certainly that of a witness for Almighty God, one who does good and suffers for it, nay, suffers on rather than rid 30 himself from suffering by any unlawful act. Now, then, let us consider what was, as far as we can understand, his especial grace, what is his gift; as faith was Abraham's distinguishing virtue, meekness the excellence of Moses, self-mastery the gift especially conspicuous in Joseph. 5 This question may best be answered by considering the purpose for which he was raised up. When Saul was disobedient, Samuel said to him, "Thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought Him _a man after His own heart_, and the 10 Lord hath commanded him to be captain over His people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee."[19] The office to which first Saul and then David were called was different from that with which other favored 15 men before them had been intrusted. From the time of Moses, when Israel became a nation, God had been the king of Israel, and His chosen servants, not delegates, but mere organs of His will. Moses did not direct the Israelites by his 20 own wisdom, but he spake to them, as God spake from the pillar of the cloud. Joshua, again, was merely a sword in the hand of God. Samuel was but His minister and interpreter. God acted, the Israelites "stood still and saw" His miracles, then 25 followed. But, when they had rejected Him from being king over them, then their chief ruler was no longer a mere organ of His power and will, but had a certain authority intrusted to him, more or less independent of supernatural direction; 30 and acted, not so much _from_ God, as _for_ God, and _in the place of_ God. David, when taken from the sheepfolds "to feed Jacob His people and Israel His inheritance," "fed them," in the words of the Psalm, "with a faithful and true heart; 5 and ruled them prudently with all his power."[20] From this account of his office, it is obvious that his very first duty was that of _fidelity to Almighty God_ in the trust committed to him. He had power put into his hands, in a sense in which 10 neither Moses had it nor Samuel. He was charged with a certain office, which he was bound to administer according to his ability, so as best to promote the interests of Him who appointed him. Saul had neglected his Master's honor; but 15 David, in this an eminent type of Christ, "came to do God's will" as a viceroy in Israel, and, as being tried and found faithful, he is especially called "a man after God's own heart." [19] 1 Sam. xiii. 14. [20] Ps. lxxviii. 71-73. David's peculiar excellence, then, is that of 20 _fidelity to the trust committed to him_; a firm, uncompromising, single-hearted devotion to the cause of his God, and a burning zeal for His honor. This characteristic virtue is especially 25 illustrated in the early years of his life which have engaged our attention. He was tried therein and found faithful; before he was put in power, it was proved whether he could obey. Till he came to the throne, he was like Moses or Samuel, an 30 instrument in God's hands, bid do what was told him and nothing more;--having borne this trial of obedience well, in which Saul had failed, then at length he was intrusted with a sort of discretionary power, to use in his Master's service. 5 Observe how David was tried, and what various high qualities of mind he displayed in the course of the trial. First, the promise of greatness was given him, and Samuel anointed him. Still he stayed in the sheepfolds; and 10 though called away by Saul for a time, yet returned contentedly when Saul released him from attendance. How difficult is it for such as know they have gifts suitable to the Church's need to refrain themselves, till God make a way for their 15 use! and the trial would be the more severe in David's case, in proportion to the ardor and energy of his mind; yet he fainted not under it. Afterwards for seven years, as the time appears to be, he withstood the strong temptation, ever 20 before his eyes, of acting without God's guidance, when he had the means of doing so. Though skillful in arms, popular with his countrymen, successful against the enemy, the king's son-in-law, and on the other hand grievously injured by 25 Saul, who not only continually sought his life, but even suggested to him a traitor's conduct by accusing him of treason, and whose life was several times in his hands, yet he kept his honor pure and unimpeachable. He feared God 30 and honored the king; and this at a time of life especially exposed to the temptations of ambition. There is a resemblance between the early history of David and that of Joseph. Both distinguished for piety in youth, the youngest and 5 the despised of their respective brethren, they are raised, after a long trial to a high station, as ministers of God's Providence. Joseph was tempted to a degrading adultery; David was tempted by ambition. Both were tempted to 10 be traitors to their masters and benefactors. Joseph's trial was brief; but his conduct under it evidenced settled habits of virtue which he could call to his aid at a moment's notice. A long imprisonment followed, the consequence of his 15 obedience, and borne with meekness and patience; but it was no part of his temptation, because, when once incurred, release was out of his power. David's trial, on the other hand, lasted for years, and grew stronger as time went on. His master, 20 too, far from "putting all that he had into his hand,"[21] sought his life. Continual opportunity of avenging himself incited his passions; self-defense, and the Divine promise, were specious arguments to seduce his reason. Yet he mastered 25 his heart--he was "still;" he kept his hands clean and his lips guileless--he was loyal throughout--and in due time inherited the promise. [21] Gen. xxxix. 4. Let us call to mind some of the circumstances of his steadfastness recorded in the history. 30 He was about twenty-three years old when he slew the Philistine; yet, when placed over Saul's men of war, in the first transport of his victory, we are told he "behaved himself wisely."[22] When fortune turned, and Saul became jealous 5 of him, still "David behaved himself wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him." How like is this to Joseph under different circumstances! "Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely he was afraid of him; and all 10 Israel and Judah loved David." Again, "And David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so that his name was much set by." Here, in shifting fortunes, is evidence of that staid, composed frame of mind in his youth, 15 which he himself describes in the one hundred and thirty-first Psalm. "My heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty.... Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother." 20 [22] 1 Sam. xviii. 5-30. The same modest deportment marks his subsequent conduct. He consistently seeks counsel of God. When he fled from Saul he went to Samuel; afterwards we find him following the directions of the prophet Gad, and afterwards of 25 Abiathar the high priest.[23] Here his character is in full contrast to the character of Saul. [23] _Ibid._ xxii. 5, 20; xxiii. 6. Further, consider his behavior towards Saul, when he had him in his power; it displays a most striking and admirable union of simple faith and 30 unblemished loyalty. Saul, while in pursuit of him, went into a cave in Engedi. David surprised him there, and his companions advised to seize him, if not to take 5 his life. They said, "Behold the day of which the Lord said unto thee."[24] David, in order to show Saul how entirely his life had been in his power, arose and cut off a part of his robe privately. After he had done it, his "heart smote him" even 10 for this slight freedom, as if it were a disrespect offered towards his king and father. "He said unto his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the Lord's anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he 15 is the anointed of the Lord." When Saul left the cave, David followed him and cried, "My Lord the king. And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth and bowed himself." He hoped that he could 20 now convince Saul of his integrity. "Wherefore hearest thou men's words," he asked, "saying, Behold, David seeketh thy hurt? Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the Lord had delivered thee to-day into mine hand in the cave: 25 and some bade me kill thee.... Moreover, my father, see, yea see the skirt of thy robe in my hand: for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see, that there is neither evil nor transgression in mine 30 hand, and I have not sinned against thee: yet thou huntest my soul to take it. The Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord avenge me of thee: but mine hand shall not be upon thee.... After whom is the king of Israel come out? 5 after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a flea. The Lord therefore judge ... and see, and plead my cause, and deliver me out of thine hand." Saul was for the time overcome; he said, "Is this thy voice, my son David? and 10 Saul lifted up his voice and wept." And he said, "Thou art more righteous than I; for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil." He added, "And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king." At another time 15 David surprised Saul in the midst of his camp, and his companion would have killed him; but he said, "Destroy him not, for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's anointed and be guiltless?"[25] Then, as he stood over him, he 20 meditated sorrowfully on his master's future fortunes, while he himself refrained from interfering with God's purposes. "Surely the Lord shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall descend into battle and perish." David 25 retired from the enemy's camp; and when at a safe distance, roused Saul's guards, and blamed them for their negligent watch, which had allowed a stranger to approach the person of their king. Saul was moved the second time; the miserable man, 30 as if waking from a dream which hung about him, said, "I have sinned; return, my son David ... behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly." He added, truth overcoming him, "Blessed be thou, my son David; thou shalt 5 both do great things, and also shalt still prevail." [24] 1 Sam. xxiv. 4. [25] 1 Sam. xxvi. 9. How beautiful are these passages in the history of the chosen king of Israel! How do they draw our hearts towards him, as one whom in his private character it must have been an extreme 10 privilege and a great delight to know! Surely, the blessings of the patriarchs descended in a united flood upon "the lion of the tribe of Judah," the type of the true Redeemer who was to come. He inherits the prompt faith and magnanimity 15 of Abraham; he is simple as Isaac; he is humble as Jacob; he has the youthful wisdom and self-possession, the tenderness, the affectionateness, and the firmness of Joseph. And, as his own especial gift, he has an overflowing thankfulness, 20 an ever-burning devotion, a zealous fidelity to his God, a high unshaken loyalty towards his king, an heroic bearing in all circumstances, such as the multitude of men see to be great, but cannot understand. Be it our blessedness, unless 25 the wish be presumptuous, so to acquit ourselves in troubled times; cheerful amid anxieties, collected in dangers, generous towards enemies, patient in pain and sorrow, subdued in good fortune! How manifold are the ways of the 30 Spirit, how various the graces which He imparts; what depth and width is there in that moral truth and virtue for which we are created! Contrast one with another the Scripture Saints; how different are they, yet how alike! how fitted for their respective circumstances, yet how unearthly, 5 how settled and composed in the faith and fear of God! As in the Services, so in the patterns of the Church, God has met all our needs, all our frames of mind. "Is any afflicted? let him pray; is any merry? let him sing Psalms."[26] 10 Is any in joy or in sorrow? there are Saints at hand to encourage and guide him. There is Abraham for nobles, Job for men of wealth and merchandise, Moses for patriots, Samuel for rulers, Elijah for reformers, Joseph for those who 15 rise into distinction; there is Daniel for the forlorn, Jeremiah for the persecuted, Hannah for the downcast, Ruth for the friendless, the Shunamite for the matron, Caleb for the soldier, Boaz for the farmer, Mephibosheth for the subject; 20 but none is vouchsafed to us in more varied lights, and with more abundant and more affecting lessons, whether in his history or in his writings, than he whose eulogy is contained in the words of the text, as cunning in playing, and a mighty 25 valiant man, and prudent in matters, and comely in person, and favored by Almighty God. May we be taught, as he was, to employ the gifts, in whatever measure given us, to God's honor and glory, and to the extension of that true and only 30 faith which is the salvation of the soul! [26] James v. 13. BASIL AND GREGORY "What are these discourses that you hold one with another, as you walk and are sad?" I The instruments raised up by Almighty God for the accomplishment of His purposes are of two kinds, equally gifted with faith and piety, but from natural temper and talent, education, or other circumstances, differing in the means by 5 which they promote their sacred cause. The first of these are men of acute and ready mind, with accurate knowledge of human nature, and large plans, and persuasive and attractive bearing, genial, sociable, and popular, endued with 10 prudence, patience, instinctive tact and decision in conducting matters, as well as boldness and zeal. Such in a measure we may imagine the single-minded, the intrepid, the much-enduring Hildebrand, who, at a time when society was 15 forming itself anew, was the saviour, humanly speaking, of the City of God. Such, in an earlier age, was the majestic Ambrose; such the never-wearied Athanasius. These last-named luminaries of the Church came into public life early, 20 and thus learned how to cope with the various tempers, views, and measures of the men they encountered there. Athanasius was but twenty-seven when he went with Alexander to the Nicene Council, and the year after he was Bishop of Alexandria. Ambrose was consecrated soon after 5 the age of thirty. Again, there is an instrument in the hand of Providence, of less elaborate and splendid workmanship, less rich in its political endowments, so to call them, yet not less beautiful in its 10 texture, nor less precious in its material. Such is the retired and thoughtful student, who remains years and years in the solitude of a college or a monastery, chastening his soul in secret, raising it to high thought and single-minded purpose, 15 and when at length called into active life, conducting himself with firmness, guilelessness, zeal like a flaming fire, and all the sweetness of purity and integrity. Such an one is often unsuccessful in his own day; he is too artless to persuade, too 20 severe to please; unskilled in the weaknesses of human nature, unfurnished in the resources of ready wit, negligent of men's applause, unsuspicious, open-hearted, he does his work, and so leaves it; and it seems to die; but in the 25 generation after him it lives again, and on the long run it is difficult to say which of the two classes of men has served the cause of truth the more effectually. Such, perhaps, was Basil, who issued from the solitudes of Pontus to rule like a king, 30 and minister like the lowest in the kingdom; yet to meet little but disappointment, and to quit life prematurely in pain and sorrow. Such was his friend, the accomplished Gregory, however different in other respects from him, who left his father's roof for an heretical city, raised a church 5 there, and was driven back into retirement by his own people, as soon as his triumph over the false creed was secured. Such, perhaps, St. Peter Damiani in the middle age; such St. Anselm, such St. Edmund. No comparison is, of course, 10 attempted here between the religious excellence of the two descriptions of men; each of them serves God according to the peculiar gifts given to him. If we might continue our instances by way of comparison, we should say that St. 15 Paul reminds us of the former, and Jeremiah of the latter.... It often happens that men of very dissimilar talents and tastes are attracted together by their very dissimilitude. They live in intimacy for a 20 time, perhaps a long time, till their circumstances alter, or some sudden event comes, to try them. Then the peculiarities of their respective minds are brought out into action; and quarrels ensue, which end in coolness or separation. It would 25 not be right or true to say that this is exemplified in the instance of the two blessed Apostles, whose "sharp contention" is related in the Book of Acts; for they had been united in spirit once for all by a Divine gift; and yet their strife reminds 30 us of what takes place in life continually. And it so far resembled the everyday quarrels of friends, in that it arose from difference of temper and character in those favored servants of God. The zealous heart of the Apostle of the Gentiles endured not the presence of one who had swerved 5 in his course; the indulgent spirit of Barnabas felt that a first fault ought not to be a last trial. Such are the two main characters which are found in the Church,--high energy, and sweetness of temper; far from incompatible, of course, united 10 in Apostles, though in different relative proportions, yet only partially combined in ordinary Christians, and often altogether parted from each other. This contrast of character, leading, first, to 15 intimacy, then to differences, is interestingly displayed, though painfully, in one passage of the history of Basil and Gregory: Gregory the affectionate, the tender-hearted, the man of quick feelings, the accomplished, the eloquent 20 preacher,--and Basil, the man of firm resolve and hard deeds, the high-minded ruler of Christ's flock, the diligent laborer in the field of ecclesiastical politics. Thus they differed; yet not as if they had not much in common still; both had the 25 blessing and the discomfort of a sensitive mind; both were devoted to an ascetic life; both were men of classical tastes; both were special champions of the Catholic creed; both were skilled in argument, and successful in their use of it; 30 both were in highest place in the Church, the one Exarch of Cæsarea, the other Patriarch of Constantinople. I will now attempt to sketch the history of their intimacy. II Basil and Gregory were both natives of Cappadocia, but here, again, under different 5 circumstances; Basil was born of a good family, and with Christian ancestors: Gregory was the son of the Bishop of Nazianzus, who had been brought up an idolater, or rather an Hypsistarian, a mongrel sort of religionist, part Jew, part Pagan. 10 He was brought over to Christianity by the efforts of his wife Nonna, and at Nazianzus admitted by baptism into the Church. In process of time he was made bishop of that city; but not having a very firm hold of the faith, he was betrayed in 15 360 into signing the Ariminian creed, which caused him much trouble, and from which at length his son recovered him. Cæsarea being at no unsurmountable distance from Nazianzus, the two friends had known each other in their own country; 20 but their intimacy began at Athens, whither they separately repaired for the purposes of education. This was about A.D. 350, when each of them was twenty-one years of age. Gregory came to the seat of learning shortly before Basil, 25 and thus was able to be his host and guide on his arrival; but fame had reported Basil's merits before he came, and he seems to have made his way, in a place of all others most difficult to a stranger, with a facility peculiar to himself. He soon found himself admired and respected by his fellow-students; but Gregory was his only friend, and shared with him the reputation of 5 talents and attainments. They remained at Athens four or five years; and, at the end of that time, made the acquaintance of Julian, since of evil name in history as the Apostate. Gregory thus describes in after life his early intimacy 10 with Basil: "Athens and letters followed on my stage; Others may tell how I encountered them;-- How in the fear of God, and foremost found Of those who knew a more than mortal lore;-- 15 And how, amid the venture and the rush Of maddened youth with youth in rivalry, My tranquil course ran like some fabled spring, Which bubbles fresh beneath the turbid brine; Not drawn away by those who lure to ill, 20 But drawing dear ones to the better part. There, too, I gained a further gift of God, Who made me friends with one of wisdom high, Without compeer in learning and in life. Ask ye his name?--in sooth, 'twas Basil, since 25 My life's great gain,--and then my fellow dear In home, and studious search, and knowledge earned. May I not boast how in our day we moved A truest pair, not without name in Greece; Had all things common, and one only soul 30 In lodgment of a double outward frame? Our special bond, the thought of God above, And the high longing after holy things. And each of us was bold to trust in each, Unto the emptying of our deepest hearts; And then we loved the more, for sympathy Pleaded in each, and knit the twain in one." The friends had been educated for rhetoricians, and their oratorical powers were such, that they 5 seemed to have every prize in prospect which a secular ambition could desire. Their names were known far and wide, their attainments acknowledged by enemies, and they themselves personally popular in their circle of acquaintance. It was 10 under these circumstances that they took the extraordinary resolution of quitting the world together,--extraordinary the world calls it, utterly perplexed to find that any conceivable objects can, by any sane person, be accounted 15 better than its own gifts and favors. They resolved to seek baptism of the Church, and to consecrate their gifts to the service of the Giver. With characters of mind very different--the one grave, the other lively; the one desponding, 20 the other sanguine; the one with deep feelings, the other with feelings acute and warm;--they agreed together in holding, that the things that are seen are not to be compared to the things that are not seen. They quitted the world, while it 25 entreated them to stay. What passed when they were about to leave Athens represents as in a figure the parting which they and the world took of each other. When the day of valediction arrived, their companions 30 and equals, nay, some of their tutors, came about them, and resisted their departure by entreaties, arguments, and even by violence. This occasion showed, also, their respective dispositions; for the firm Basil persevered, and went; the tender-hearted Gregory was softened, and stayed awhile 5 longer. Basil, indeed, in spite of the reputation which attended him, had, from the first, felt disappointment with the celebrated abode of philosophy and literature; and seems to have given up the world from a simple conviction of its emptiness. 10 "He," says Gregory, "according to the way of human nature, when, on suddenly falling in with what we hoped to be greater, we find it less than its fame, experienced some such feeling, began to be sad, grew impatient, and could not congratulate himself on his place of residence. 15 He sought an object which hope had drawn for him; and he called Athens 'hollow blessedness.'" Gregory himself, on the contrary, looked at things more cheerfully; as the succeeding sentences show. 20 "Thus Basil; but I removed the greater part of his sorrow, meeting it with reason, and smoothing it with reflections, and saying (what was most true) that character is not at once understood, nor except by long time and perfect intimacy; nor are studies estimated, by 25 those who are submitted to them, on a brief trial and by slight evidence. Thus I reassured him, and by continual trials of each other, I bound myself to him." --_Orat._ 43. III Yet Gregory had inducements of his own to 30 leave the world, not to insist on his love of Basil's company. His mother had devoted him to God, both before and after his birth; and when he was a child he had a remarkable dream, which made a great impression upon him. "While I was asleep," he says in one of his poems, 5 which runs thus in prose, "a dream came to me, which drew me readily to the desire of chastity. Two virgin forms, in white garments, seemed to shine close to me. Both were fair and of one age, and their ornament lay in their want of ornament, which is a woman's beauty. 10 No gold adorned their neck, nor jacinth; nor had they the delicate spinning of the silkworm. Their fair robe was bound with a girdle, and it reached down to their ankles. Their head and face