Ver. 1-7. David, AT Nob, Obtains OF Ahimblech HalI (continued)
Sard Pursues David. 1 SAMUEL XXIII, XXIV. David Spares SauFs Life.
mote lie with the edge of the sworrt—The barbarous atrocities perpetrated agaiut this city seem to have been designed to terrify all the subjects of Saul from altbrdiiig either aid or an asylum to David. But tliey proved ruinous to Saul's own interest, as they alienated the priesthood, and disgusted all good men in the kingdom.
athan have won, ere he could seek such an interview, and give utterance to such sentiments! To talk wiln calm and assured confidence of himself and family lu ing superseded by the man who was his friend by the bonds of a holy and solemn covenant, could only have been done by one who, superior to all views of worldly policy, looked at the course of things in the spirit and tiirougli the principles of that theocracy which acknowledged (Jod as the only and supreme Sovereign of Israel. Neither history nor fiction depicts the movements of a friemlsliip purer, nobler, and more self-denying than Jonathan's!
20-23. Akiathar Escapes and Fi.kes after David. no. one of the sons of Ahlmelech . . . escaped—This was Abiathar, who repaired to David in the forest of Hareth, rescuing, with his own life, the high priest's vestments {cli. 23.6, 9). On hearing his sad tale, David declared that he had dreaded such a fatal result from the malice and intriguing ambition of Doeg; and, accu.sing himself as having been the occasion of all the di.saster to Abiathar's family, invited him to remain, because, firmly trusting himself in the accomplisliment of the Divine promise, David could guarantee protection to him.
19-29. S.\rL PuilSUES Him. I'J-33. then came tJie Ziidiites to Saul, saying. Doth not David hide himself with nsl—From the tell of Ziph a panorama of the whole surrounding district is to be seen. No wonder, then, that the Ziphites saw David and his men passing to and fro in the mountains of the wilderness, and spying him at a distance, when he ventured to show himself on the hill of Haeliilah, "on the right hand of the wilderness," I. c, the south siile of Ziph, sent in haste to Saul, to
CHAPTER XXIII.
tell him of the lurking-place of his enemy. [Van de Vei.de.] /J'i. David came «lown into a rock, and aliode In the wilderness of Maon—Tell Main, the hillock on which was situated the ancient Maon (Joshua 15. 55), and from wiiich the adjoining wilderness took its name, is one mile nortli, ten east from Carmel. The mountain plateau seems here to end. It is true the summit ridge of the southern hills runs out a long way further towards the south-west; but towards the .south-east the ground sinks more and more down to a table-land of a lower level, which is called "the plain to tlie right hand (i. e., to the soutli)of the wilderness." [Van de Vei.de.] S9. David went up from tlienee, aitd dwelt in strongholdK nt En-p;e€lt— ('. p., "the spring of the wild goats or gaz<'lU'.i" —a name given to it from the vast number of ibexes or Syrian chamois wliich inhabit these clills on the western shore of the Dead Sea (Joshua 15. 62). It Is now called .Wn Jiddy. On all sides tlie country Is full of caverns, wlilcb might then serve as lurking-places for David and his men, as they do for outlaws at the present day. [Robinson.]
Ver. 1-6. David Rescues Keilah. 1. Then they told David—rather, "now they had told ;" for this information had reached him previous to his hearing (v. 6) of the Nob tragedy. Keilah—A city in the west of Judah (Joshua 1').
44), not far from the forest of Hareth. nnd theyrol> the threshing-floors—These were commonly situated on the fields, and were open to the wind (Judges 6. 11 ; Kutli 3. 2). 3. David inquired of the Lord—most probably tlirough Gad (2 .Samuel 24.; 1 Chronicles 21. 9), who was present in David's camp (ch. 22. 5), prol)al)ly by the recommendation of Samuel. To repel unprovoked assaults on unoffi-nding peo))le who were engaged in their harvest oi)erations, was a humane and benevolent service. But it was doul)tful how far it was David's duty to go against a public enemy without the royal commission; and on that account lie asked, and obtained, the Divine counsel. A demur on the part of his men led David to renew the consultation for their satisfaction ; after which, being fully assured of his duty, he encountered the aggressors, and, by a signal victory, delivered tlie people of Keilah from further molestation. G. an ephod—in which was the Urim and Tliummim (Exodus 2.S. 30). It had, prol)ai)ly, been committed to his care, while Ahlmelech and the other priests repaired to Gibeah, in obedience to tlie summons of Saul.
CHATTER XXIV.
Ver. 1-7. D.wiD iN A Cave at En-gedi cuts ovv Sau l'8 Skirt, bitt Spares his Life. 8. Saul went . . . <o seek Dnvid . . . upon the rocks of the wild goats Nothing but the blind infatuation of fiendish rage could have led the king to pursue his outlawed son-in-law among those craggy and periiendieular precipices, where were Inaccessible liiding-places. The large for<e he took with him seemed to give him every prospect of succeed-
7-13. Saul's Coming, and Theachkuy of the Keil-
ITES. 7. it was told Saul tliat David was come to Keilah—He imagined himself now certain of his victim, who would be hemmed within a fortified town. The wish was I'atlier to the thought. How wonderfully slow and unwilling to l)e convinced by all his experience, that the special protection of Providence shielded David from all his snares! 8. Saul called all the people togetlier to war—not the united tribes of Israel, l)ut (lie iulial)itants of the adjoining districts. This force was raised, probing. But the overruling providence of God frustrate<l all his vigilance. 3. he euine to the sheep-cotes— Most probably in the upper ridge of Wady Cliareitun. There Is a large cave— I am quile disposed to say Wic cave— lies hardly ably, on the ostensible pretext of opposing the I'hilistlnes, live minutes to the east of the village ruin, on the .south side of tlie wady. It is high upon the side of the calcareous rock, and it has uudergcine no change since David's time. The same narrow natural vaulting at tli(> entrance; the same huge natural cliamber in the rock, probably tli9 place where Saul lay down to rest in the heat of the day; the same side vaults, too, where David and his men concealed, when, accustomed to the obscurity of the cavern, they saw Saul enter, while, blinded by the glare of the light outside, he saw nothing of him whom he so bitterly persecuted. 4-7. tlie men of David said . . . Ileliold the day <if which ilie I>ord said uniolliee. Ifeliold, I will deliver ihine enemy Into thine hand— (iod bail never made any promise of delivering Saul into David's hiind; but, from the general and repeated in-omises of wliile, in reality, it was secretly to arouse mischief against David. O. he said to Abiathar the prie»it, lirliii; Iiiiher the epltod—The consultation was ntade, iiiid tl>e i)ray("r uttered, l)y means of the priest. The alternative comlltions here described have often been referred to as illustrating the doctrine of God's foreknowledge and preordination of events.
11-18. DAVti) Escapes to Ztph. 1*, 15. Dtivld al;ode in the wildemesH of Ziph—A mountainous and sequestered region was generally called a wilderness, and took its name from some large town in thedistrlct. Two tulles
Boutli-east of Hebron, and In the midst of a !(-vel plain, is
Tell-/ipb, an isolated and conical hillock, about UN) feet high, probably the acropolis [Van dk VkldeJ, or the ruins [UoHiNSON] of the ancient (rity of /,iph, from which tlii kingdom to him, they concluded that the king's death was to be eli'eeted by taking advantage of some sui h opporl unity as the present. David steadily opposed the lugcnt Inst Igal Ions of bis lo Uowers to put an end to liiii and their trouliles by the death of their pei-secutor (a revengeful heart would have followed their advice, but David rather wished to oven-ome evil with good, and the surrounding wilderness was called. It seems, anciently, to have been covered by an extensive wood. The country liiis for cent uries lost its woods and forests, owing to the deva Hlatlons caused liy man. Ki. .roiiailinn w<'iit to Dnvld ijito tlie wood, and streii Rtliencd his liand in God—by the recollection of the Divine promises, and of their mutual covenant. 'What a victory over niitural lu ap coals of tire upon his head); he, however, cut oil a feelings and lower considerations nnist the fnllli of Jon-
Death of Samuel. 1 SAMUEL XXV. AhigaiVs Diacreet Conduct.
stood anciftit ]^^.^on. tire man v.as very great— His property consisted in cattle, and he was considered weaUh3', according to the ideas of that age. 3. he wa» of the house of Caleb—of course, of the same tribe with David himself; but many versions consider Caleb (dog) not as a propei-, but a common noun, and render it, "he was snappish as a dog." 4-9. N.iltal <lisl shear his sheep, and David sent ten young men, &c.—David and his men lurked in these deserts, associating with the herdsmen and shepherds of Nabal and others, and doing them good offices, probably in return for information and supplies obtained tlirougli them. Hence wlieu Nabal held his annual sheep-shearing in Carmel, David felt himself entitled to share in the festival, and sent a message, recounting his own services, and asking for a present. " In all these particulars we were deeply st rui-k with the truth and strength of the biblical description of manners and customs almost identically tlie same as they exist at the present day. On such a festive occasion, near a town or village, even in our own time, an Arab sheick of the neighbouring desert weuld liardly fail to put in a word eitiier in person or by message ; and liis message, both iu form and substance, would be only a transcript of that of David." [Robinson.]
fragment from tlie skirt of the royal robe. It is easy to
Imajjiiie how tliis dialogue could be carried on, and David's approach to tlie king's person could have been ert'ected without arousing suspicion. Tlie ljustle and noise of Saul's military men and their beasts, the number of cells or divisions In these Immense caverns, and some of them far interior, being enveloped In darkness, while every movement could be seen at the cave's mouth—the probability that the garment David cut from might have been a loose or upper cloak lying on the ground, and tliat Saul might have been asleep—these facts and presumptions will be sufficient to account for the incidents detailed.
8-15. He Urges Thereby His Innocency. 8. Davia also arose . , . and went out of tlie cave, and cried after Saul—The closeness of the precipitous cliffs, though divided by deep wadys, and the transparent purity of tlie air enable a person standing on one rock to hear distinctly the words uttered by a speaker standing on another (Judges 9. 7). The expostulation of David, followed by the visible tokens he furnished of his cherishing no evil design against either the person or the government of the king, even when he had the monarch in his power, smote the heart of Savil in a moment, and disarmed him of his
10-13. The Churlish Answer Provokes Him. 10-13. Nabal answered David's servants . . . Who is DnvidT &c.—Nabal's answer seems to indicate that tlie country was at the time in a loose and disorderly state. David's own good conduct, however, as well as the important services rendered by him and his men, were readily attested by Nabal's servants. The prepai'ations of David to ciiastise his insolent language and ungrateful recpiital, are exactly what would be done iu the present day by Arab chiefs, who protect the cattle of the large and wealthy sheep-masters from the attacks of the marauding border tribes or wild beasts. Their protection creates a claim for some kind of tribute, in the sliajie of supplies of food and necessaries, which is usually given with great good-will and gratitude; but when withheld, is enforced as a right. Nabal's refusal, therefore, was a violation of liie established usages of the place. 13. two hundred men abode by the stutF—This addition to his followers was iiiade after his return into Judah (see on ch. 22. 2).
fell purpose of revenge. He owned the justice of what David said, acknowledged his own guilt, and begged kindness to his house. He seems to have been naturally susceptible of strong, and, as in this in.stance, of good and grateful impressions. The improvement on his temper, indeed, was but transient—his language that of a man overwhelmed by the force of impetuous emotions, and constrained to admire the conduct, and esteem the character, of one whom he hated and dreaded. But God overruled it for ensuring the present escape of David. Consider his language and behaviour. This language "a dead dog, a flea," terms by which, like Eastern people, he strongly expressed a sense of his lowliness, and the entire committal of his cause to Him who alone is the judge of human actions, and to whom vengeance belongeth—his steady repulse of the vindictive counsels of his followers, the relentings of heart which he felt even for the apparent indignity he had done to the person of the Lord's anointed, and the respectful homage he paid the jealous tyrant who had set a price on his head—evince the magnanimity of a great and good man, and strikingly illustrate the spirit and energy of his prayer " when he was in tlie cave" (Psalm 112).
14-3.5. Abigail Pacifies Him. It-18. Ti>eu Abigail made haste—The prudence and address of his wife were the means of saving himself and family from utter destruction. She acknowledged the demand of her formidable neighbours ; but Justly considering, that to atone for the insolence other husband, a greater degree of liberality had become necessary, she collected a huge amount of food, accompanying it with the most valued products of the country, bottles—goat skins, capable of holding a great quantity, parched corn—It was customary to eat parched corn when it was fully grown, but not rijic 19. She said unto her servants, Go on before mc; behold, I come after you—People in the East always try to produi-e an effect by their presents, loading on several beasts what niiglit be easily carried by one, and britiging them forward, article by article, in succession. Abigail not only sent her servants in this way, but resolved to go in person, fo Uou'ing her present, as is commonly done, to watch the impression which her munificence would produce. 23. slic hasted, and lighted off the ass, an<l fell before David on lier face—Dismounting in presence of a superior is the highest token of respect that can he given; and it is still an essential act of homage to the great. Accompanying this act of courtesy with llie lowest form of prostration, she not only by her attitude, but her language, made the fullest amends for the disrespect shown by her husband, as well as paid the fullest tribute of respect to the character and claims of David. 2.5. Nabal—signifying fool, gave pertinence to his wife's remark. 26. let tlilue enemies , . . I)e as Nnlml—bo as foolish and contemptible as he. 29. tlie soul of my lord shall l>e bound in the bundle of life wltli the Lord thy God—An Orientalism, expressing the perfect security of David's life from all the assaults of his enemies, under
CHAPTEE XXV.
Ver. 1-9. Sasiukl, Dies. 1. Samuel died—After a long life of piety and puljlic usefulness, having left behind him a re]Hitation wliich ranks him amongst the greatest of Scripture worthies. Iinried Iilm in Iiis own liouse at Kainali i. e., his own mausoleum. The Hebrews took as great care to provide sepulchres anciently as people do
In the East still, where every respectable family has its own house of the dead; and often this is in a little detached garden, consisting of a small stone building, where there is no rock, resembling a house, which is called the sepulchre of the family—it has neither door nor window. David arose and went down to tlie wilderness of Paran—This removal had, probably, no connection with the prophet's death ; but was, probably, occasioned by the necessity of seeking provision for his numerous followers, the wlldcmesg of Paran—stretching from Kinal to the borders of I'alestine in the southern territories of Judea. Like other wildernesseji, it presented large tracts of natural pa.sture, to which the people sent their cattle at the grazing season, but where they were liable to constant and heavy depredations by prowling Arabs. David and his men earned their subsistence by making reprisals on the cattle of these freebooting Ishmaelites; and, frequently for tln-ir useful services, they oldained voluntary tokens of acknowledgment from the peaceful Inhabitants. 2. in Cannel—now Kurmul. The district takes it8 name from this town, now a mass of ruins; and aboul a mile from it is Tell Main, the hillock on which ine protecting shield of Providence, who hath destinea
David Marrielh Abigail. 1 SAMUEL XXVI. ITe Spares Saul Again, him for high things. 33-35. David said to Abigail, Blessed be tlie Liord—Transported by passion, and blinded by revenge, lie was on the eve of perpetrating a great injury; and, doubtless, the timely appearance and prudent address of Abigail were greatly instrumental in changing his purpose. At all events, it was the means of opening his eyes to the moral character of the course on which he had been impetuously rushing; and in accepting her pre,sent, he speaks with lively satisfaction as well as gratitude to Abigail, for having relieved him from bloodshed.
the disposition of Saul's camp—In this hasty expedition he seems to have carried no tent, but to hav ; slept on the ground. The whole troop were sunk in sleej around him. S-Vi. Ablsliai said to David, . . . God hath delivered thine enemy into thine hand—This midnight stratagem shows the activity and heroic enterprise of David's mind, and it was in unison with the style of warfare in ancient times, let me smite him . . . even to the earth at once— The ferocious vehemence of the speaker is suflicienlly apparent from his language, but David's magnanimity soared far above the notions of his followers. Tliough Saul's cruelty and perfidy, and general want of right principle, liad sunk liim to a low pitch of degradation, yet tha t was no reason for David's imitating him in doing wrong
36-44. Nabal's Death. 30. he held a feast In his house like tlic feast of a king—The sheep-shearing season was always a very joyous occasion. Masters usually entertained their shepherds; and even Nabal, though of a most niggardly disposition, prepared festivities on a scale of sumptuous liberality. The modern Arabs celebrate the season with similar hilarity. 37, 38. in the morning Ills wife told him these things, and his heart died within liliii—He probably fainted from horror at the perilous situation in which he had unconsciously placed himself; and such a shock had been given him by the li'ight to his whole system, that he rapidly pined and died. 39-42. tlie Lord hath returned the wiclitedness of Nabal upon Ills own head—If this was an expression of pleasure, and David's vindictive feelings were gratified by the intelligence of Nabal's death, it was an instance of human infirmity which we may lament; but perhaps he referred to the unmerited reproach (v. 10, 11), and the contempt of God implied in it. David sent and communed wi<h Abigail, to take her to wife—This unceremonious proceeding was quite in the style of Eastoru monarchs, who no sooner take a fancy for a lady than they despatch a messenger to intimate their royal wishes that she should henceforth reside In the palace; and her duty is Implicitly to obey. David's conduct shows that the manner.s of the Eastern nations were already imitated by the great men in Israel; and that the morality of the times which God permitted, gave its sanction to the practice of polygam.v. His marriage with Abigail brought him a rich estate. **. Michal—By the unchallengeable will of her father, she who was David's wife was given to anothtr, but she returned, and sustained the character of his wife i^-lien he ascended the throne.
; besides, he was the sovereign, David was a subject; and though God had rejected him from the kingdom, it was every way the best and most dutiful course, instead of precipitating his fall by imbruing their hands in his blood, and thereby contracting the guilt of a great crime, to wait the awards of that retributive providence which sooner or later would take him otT by some sudden and mortal blow. He who, with impetuous haste, was going to exterminate Nabal, meekly spared Saul. But Nabal refused to give a tribute to which justice and gratitude no less than custom entitled David. Saul was under the judicial infatuation of heaven. Thus David withheld the hand of Abishai; but, at the same time, directed him to carry ofl' some things which would show where they had been, and wliat they had done. Thus he obtained the best of victories over him, by heaping coals of fire on his head. 11. the spear that is at his bolster, and the ci-use of water—the Oriental spear had, and still lias, a spike at the lower extremity, intended for the purpose of sticking the spear into the ground when the warrior is at rest. This-common custom of Arab sheicks was also the practice of tlie Hebrew chiefs, at lils bolster lit., "at his liead;" but, perhaps, Saul as a sovereign had the distinguished luxury of a bolster carried for him. A "cruse of water" is usually, in warm climates, kept near a person's couch, as a draught in the night-time is found very refi eshing. Saul's cruse would probably be of superior materials, or more richly ornamented than common ones, and therefore by its size or form be easily distinguished. 13-20. tlien David stood on the top of a hill afar oft, and cried to the people—(see on Judges 9. 7). The extraordinary purity and elasticity of the air in Palestine, enable words to be distinctly heard, that are addressed by a speaker from the top of one hill to people on that of another, from which it is separated by a deep intervening ravine. Hostile parties can thus speak to each other, while completely beyond the reach of each other's attack.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Ver. 1-4. Saul comes to the Hill of Hachilah AGAINST David. 1. the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah—This people seem to have thought it impossil)le for David to escap(>, and therefore recommended themselves to Saul, by giving liim secret information (see on ch. 2o. 19). The knowledge of their treachery makes it appear strange that David should return to his former haunt in their neighliourhood ; but, perhaps he did it to be near Abigail's poss(^ssi()ns, and under tlio impression that Saul had become mollified. But the king had relapsed into his old enmity. Though Gibeah, as its name imports, stood on an elevated position, and the desert of Ziph, which was In the hilly region of Judea, may have been higiier than Gibeah, It was still necessary to descend in leaving the latter place; tlience Saul (v. 2) " went down to the wilderness of Zijih." 4-. David . . . sent out spies . . . and David arove and came to the place where Saul had pitched—Having obtained certain information of the locality, he seems, accompanied by his nephew (v. 6), to have hid himself, perhaps disguised, In a nelgbl)ouring wood, or hill, on the skirts of the royal camp towards night, and waited to approach It under covert of the darkness.
It results from the peculiar features of the country in many of the mountain districts. 15. David said to Abner, Art not tliou a valiant man i . . . wherefore tlien hast tlkou not kept tliy lord the kingl—The circumstance of David having penetrated to the centre of the encampment, through the circular rows of the sleeping soldiers, constituted the point of this sarcastic taunt. This new evidence of David's moderation and magnanimous forbearance, together with his earnest and kindly expostulation, softened the obduracy of Saul's heart. 11), If the Lord have stirred thee up against me—By tlie evil spirit he hatli sent, or by any spiritual otlences by which we have mutually displeased Him. let him accept an oflcring-i. e., let us conjointly ofl Ter a sacrifice for appeasing Ills wrath against us. if they be the children of men—The prudence, meekness, and address of David in ascribing the king's enmity to the Instigations of some malicious traducers, and not to the Jealous.v of Saul himself. Is wortliy of notice, saying, Go, serve other gods This was tlip drift of their conduct. By driving him from the land and ordinances of the true worship. Into foreign and heathen countries, they were exposing him to all the seductions of Idolatry. 20. as when one doth hunt a partritlge—Poojjle In the East, In hunting the partridge and other game birds, pursue them, till observing them becoming languid and fatigued, after they have been put UP two or three times, they rush upon the birds stealthily
6-2.5. Da VI d Stays Abishai from Killing Ha ul, bitt TAKIOS Ills Si'ic Alt ANDCiiUSK. 5. Saul lay inthetrench, and the people pitched round about him—Among the nomad people of the I]ast, the encampmentH are usually made in a circular form, the circumference Is lined by the baggage and the men, while the chief's station is In the centre, whether he occupy a tent or not. His spear, stuck In the ground, Indicates his position. Similar was 192