Holy Bible

Now these be the last words of David. 2 Samuel 23:1-5 The "last words" of David C. Vince. According to a commonly received interpretation of this passage, David mourned over the ungodly state of his children, but exulted in the assurance of his, own personal salvation. He first repeated the description he had received from the Lord of the character which kings and rulers should maintain, and it is supposed that he next lamented the fact that his children did not answer to the Divine ideal. It is further supposed that his sorrow on account of their shortcomings instantly gave place to grateful joy in the hope that, through the mercy and faithfulness of God, he himself should be secure and blessed for ever. It might go ill with his children, but it would be well with him. His family troubles were great and many. Some of his children were anything but what his conscience could approve and his heart could desire. They were thorns in his side and arrows in his heart. Still, is it not incredible that David, as he contemplated the lost condition of his children, could instantly get comfort by thinking of his own safety? He was sometimes sadly unlike his true self, but assuredly he was never so unlike himself as to say in effect, "My children may perish, but, the Lord be praised, I shall get to heaven myself!" This must be deemed impossible to David, even by those who take the worst view of his conduct in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. There is another interpretation of the passage which makes it chiefly and almost exclusively a prophecy of Christ. It is supposed to regard Him as the King ordained of God, and to describe the perfection of His kingly character, the righteousness of His rule, the benignity of His sway over those who submit to it, and the destructive effects of His sovereignty upon those who are rebellious and disobedient. Those who adopt this interpretation make certain changes in the translation of the passage which remove from it everything like lamentation on David's part. There is a third interpretation according to which David here sets forth the Divine ideal of a ruler over men as he in early life received it from the Spirit of the Lord. Now that he has reached the close of his kingly career, he compares that career with the description of a good king which God had given to him, and he finds that he has fallen far short of it. When he speaks of his "house" not being "so with God," he does not mean his domestic circle, but the reigning dynasty, and he refers, not to the godless character of his children, but to the imperfections of his own kingship. That had not been altogether such as Gad had enjoined, and as he himself had desired and determined. When he speaks of the "covenant ordered in all things," he exults, not in the thought that he is personally safe despite the irreligion of his children, but in the assurance that he shall be saved despite his shortcomings and failures as a king. 1. These "last words" reveal to us the lofty standard of kingly character which was set before David in early life. Righteousness towards men and reverence towards God are named as the two great essentials in a good king. For lack of these, monarchs have been curses instead of blessings, and peoples have been oppressed, and kingdoms have been ruined. But where the authority of God has been recognised, and the rights of the people have been respected, nations have flourished, and kings have been a terror to evil-doers, and a praise to them that do well. Stress is laid upon justice rather than upon compassion, and history warrants the emphasis. The benignant influence of a God-fearing and righteous ruler is described in expressive figurative language. Gladness and growth shall characterise his reign, for "he shall be as the light of the morning," etc. Several years elapsed before the throne promised to David came into his possession; and it is probable that this vivid picture of kingly perfection was also placed before him some time prior to his accession. These last words reveal to us the sad consciousness which David had in his old age, that the lofty standard set before him in early life had not been reached. His kingship was anything but a great failure. It cannot be questioned that David's reign was a great blessing to the Jews, and that in the review of his career there was much to inspire him with joy and thankfulness. Earthly perfection is one of the pleasant dreams of inexperience. It is generally the honest determination of young beginners to do very great things, and they firmly believe that all their lofty aspirations will be fully realised This is one of the illusions of life by which every new generation is fascinated despite all the disappointments of preceding generations. Each fresh comer into the field is blissfully forgetful of human frailties and heroically defiant of difficulties, and nothing but his own personal experience will be able to shake his faith in the splendour of his future achievements. There never lived but One in this world whose review of His earthly life was free from all the sadness which sight of fault and failure brings. When Jesus hung upon the cross, He could think of such a work as had never been devolved upon man or angel, and of that matchless work He could say, "It is finished!" ( C. Vince. ) The last words of David W. G. Blaikie, D. D. The song falls into four parts. 1. In the introduction, we cannot but be struck with the formality and solemnity of the affirmation respecting the singer and the inspiration under which he sang. The first four clauses represent David as the speaker; the second four represent God's Spirit as inspiring his words. The introduction to Balaam's prophecies is the only passage where we find a similar structure, nor is this the only point of resemblance between the two songs. In both prophecies, the word translated "saith" is peculiar. While occurring between two and three hundred times in the formula, "Thus saith the Lord:" it is used by a human speaker only in these two places and in Proverbs 30:1 . The second part of the introduction stamps the prophecy with a fourfold mark of inspiration. 1. "The Spirit of the Lord spake by me." 2. "His word was in my tongue." 3. "The God of Israel said." 4. "The Rock of Israel spake to me."So remarkable an introduction must be followed by no ordinary prophecy. 2. We come, then, to the great subject of the prophecy — a Ruler over men. It is a vision of a remarkable Ruler, not a Ruler over the kingdom of Israel merely, but a Ruler "over men." The Ruler seen is One whose government knows no earthly limits, but prevails wherever there are men. It is worthy of very special remark that the first characteristic of this Ruler is "righteousness." There is no grander or more majestic word in the language of men. Not even love or mercy can be preferred to righteousness. And this is no casual expression, happening in David's vision, for it is common to the whole class of prophecies .that predict the Messiah. It is the grand characteristic of Christ's salvation in theory that it is through righteousness; it is not less its effect in practice to promote righteousness. To any who would dream, under colour of free grace, of breaking down the law of righteousness, the words of "the Holy One and the Just" stand out as an eternal rebuke, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law and the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." And as Christ's work was founded on righteousness, so it was constantly done "in the fear of God" — with the highest possible regard for His will, and reverence for His law. Having shown the character of the Ruler, the vision next pictures the effects of His rule. No imagery could be more delightful, or more fitly applied to Christ. The image of the morning sun presents Christ in His gladdening influences, bringing pardon to the guilty, health to the diseased, hope to the despairing. The chief idea under the other emblem, the grass shining clearly after rain, is that of renewed beauty and growth. The heavy rain batters the grass, as heavy trials batter the soul; but when the morning shines out clearly, the grass recovers, it sparkles with a fresher lustre, and grows with intenser activity. So when Christ shines on the heart after trial, a new beauty and a new growth and prosperity come to it. 3. Next comes David's allusion to his own house. In our translation, and in the text of the Revised Version, this comes in to indicate a sad contrast between the bright vision just described and the Psalmist's own family. The key to the passage will be found, if we mistake not, in the expression "my house." We are liable to think of this as the domestic circle, whereas it ought to be thought of as the reigning dynasty. What is denoted by the house of Hapsburg, the house of Hanover, the house of Savoy, is quite different from the personal family of any of the kings. So when David speaks of his house, he means his dynasty. In this sense his "house" had been made the subject of the most gracious promise. But take the marginal reading — "Is not my house so with God?" Is not my dynasty embraced in the scope of this promise? Hath He not made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure? And will He not make this promise, which is all my salvation and all my desire, to grow, to fructify? It is infinitely more natural to represent David on this joyous occasion congratulating himself on the promise of long continuance and prosperity made to his dynasty, than dwelling on the unhappy condition of the members of his family circle. And the facts of the future correspond to this explanation. Was not the government of David's house or dynasty in the main righteous, at least for many a reign, conducted in the fear of God, and followed by great prosperity and blessing? David himself, Solomon, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah — what other nation had ever so many Christlike kings? 4. The last part of the prophecy, in the way of contrast to the leading vision, is a prediction of the doom of the ungodly. While some would fain think of Christ's sceptre as one of mercy only, the uniform representation of the Bible is different. In this, as in most predictions of Christ's kingly office, there is an instructive combination of mercy and judgment. Nor could it be otherwise. The union of mercy and judgment is the inevitable result of the righteousness which is the foundation of His government. Sin is the abominable thing which He hates. To separate men from sin is the grand purpose of His government. Oh, let us not be satisfied with admiring beautiful images of Christi Let us not deem it enough to think with pleasure of Him as the light of the morning, a morning without clouds, brightening the earth, and making it sparkle with the lustre of the sunshine on the grass after rain! ( W. G. Blaikie, D. D. ) The dying king's last vision and psalm A. Maclaren, D. D. It was fitting that "the last words of David" should be a prophecy of the true King, whom his own failures and sins, no less than his consecration and victories, had taught him to expect. The dying eyes see on the horizon of the far-off future the form of Him who is to be a just and perfect ruler, before the brightness of whose presence and the refreshing of whose influence verdure and beauty shall clothe the world. As the shades gather round the dying monarch, the radiant glory to come brightens. He departs in peace, having seen the salvation from afar, and stretched out longing bands of greeting toward it. Then his harp is silent, as if the rapture which thrilled the trembling strings had snapped them. 1. We have first a prelude extending to the middle of verse 3. In it there is first a fourfold designation of the personality of the Psalmist-prophet, and then a fourfold designation of the Divine oracle spoken through him. Similarly, the fourfold designation of the Divine source has the same purpose, and corresponds with the four clauses of verse 1, "The spirit of the Lord spake in (or, 'into') me." That gives the Psalmist's consciousness that in his prophecy he was but the recipient of a message. It wonderfully describes the penetrating power of that inward voice which clearly came to him from without, and as clearly spoke to him within. Words could not more plainly declare the prophetic consciousness of the distinction between himself and the Voice which he heard in the depths of his spirit. It spoke in him before he spoke of his lyric prophecy. 2. The Divine oracle thus solemnly introduced and guaranteed must be worthy of such a prelude. Abruptly, and in clauses without verbs, the picture of the righteous Ruler is divinely flashed before the Seer's inward eye. The broken construction may perhaps indicate that he is describing what he beholds in vision. There is no need for any supplement such as "There shall be," which, however true in meaning, mars the vividness of the presentation of the Ruler to the prophet's sight. David sees him painted on the else blank wall of the future. When and where the realisation may be he knows not. What are the majestic outlines? A universal sovereign over collective humanity, righteous and God-fearing. In the same manner as he described the vision of the King, David goes on, as a man on some height telling what he saw to the people below, and paints the blessed issues of the King's coming. It had been night before he came — the night of ignorance, sorrow, and sin — but his coming is like one of these glorious Eastern sunrises without a cloud, when everything laughs in its early beams, and, with tropical swiftness, the tender herbage bursts from the ground, as born from the dazzling brightness and the fertilising rain. So all things shall rejoice in the reign of the King, and humanity be productive, under his glad and quickening influences, of growths of beauty and fruitfulness impossible to it without these. 3. The difficult verse 5, whether its first and last clauses be taken interrogatively or negatively, in its central part, bases the assurance of the coming of the king on God's covenant ( 2 Samuel 7 ), which is glorified as being everlasting, provided with all requisites for its realisation, and therefore "sure," or perhaps "preserved," as if guarded by God's inviolable sanctity and faithfulness. The fulfilment of the dying saint's hopes depends on God's truth. Whatever sense might say, or doubt whisper, he silences them by gazing on that great Word. So we have all to do. 4. But the oracle cannot end with painting only blessings as flowing from the king's reign. If he is to rule in righteousness and the fear of the Lord, then he must fight against evil. If his coming causes the tender grass to spring, it will quicken ugly growths too. The former representation is only half the truth; and the threatening of destruction for the evil is as much a part of the Divine oracle as the other. Strictly, it is "wickedness" — the abstract quality rather than the concrete persons who embody it — which is spoken of. May we recall the old distinction that God loves the sinner while He hates the sin? The picture is vivid. The wicked — and all the enemies of this king are wicked, in the prophet's view — are like some of these thorn-brakes, that cannot be laid hold of, even to root them out, but need to be attacked with sharp pruning-hooks on long shafts, or burned where they grow. There is a destructive side to the coming of the king, shadowed in every prophecy of him, and brought emphatically to prominence in his own descriptions of his reign and its final issues. It is a poor kindness to suppress that side of the truth. Thorns as well as tender grass spring up in the quickening beams; and the best commentary on the solemn words which close David's closing song is the saying of the King Himself: "In the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers," Gather up first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them." ( A. Maclaren, D. D. ) David's last words I. GOD'S WORDS BY DAVID. 1. David's words as king, "David, the man who was raised on high, saith" (ver. 1.) 2. David's words as Psalmist, "David saith, the sweet psalmist of Israel" (ver. 1.) 3. David's words from God, "The spirit of the Lord spake by me" (ver. 2.) 1. "These be the last words of David." (1) David's many words; (2) David's precious words; (3) David's last words. 2. "The man whom God raised on high." (1) The lowly origin; (2) The Divine uplift; (3) The exalted end. 3. "The spirit of the Lord spake by me." (1) David the voice; (2) God the speaker. (1) The source of revelation; (2) The mediums of revelation. II. GOD'S WORDS CONCERNING RULERS. 1. What good rulers must be: "One that ruleth righteously, in the fear of God" (ver. 3.) 2. What good rulers are like: "He shall be as the light of the morning" (ver. 4.) 3. How God treats good rulers: "He Hath made with me an everlasting covenant" (ver. 5.) 1. "He shall be as the light of the morning." (1) He illuminates; (2) He invigorates; (3) He comforts. 2. "He hath made with me an everlasting covenant," (1) The source of the covenant; (2) The recipient of the covenant; (3) The scope of the covenant; (4) The duration of the covenant. 3. "It is all my salvation, and all my desire." God's covenant (1) As a source of blessing; (2) As an object of desire. III. GOD'S WORDS CONCERNING ENEMIES. 1. Equipped for evil: "The ungodly shall be all of them as thorns" (ver. 6.) 2. Overcome by power: "The man that touched them must be armed with iron" (ver. 7.) 3. Doomed to destruction: "They shall be utterly burned with fire" (ver. 7.) 1. "The ungodly shall be all of them as thorns to be thrust away." The ungodly (1) Intrinsically harmful; (2) Universally doomed. (1) Full of virulence; (2) Appointed to destruction. 2. "Armed with iron and the staff of a spear." (1) Man's equipment for extirpating thorns; (2) God's equipment for extirpating rebels. 3. "They shall be utterly burned with fire in their place." The end of the wicked: (1) Its terribleness; (2) Its completeness. ( Sunday School Times. ) Broken ideals J. Thew. The history does not inform us at what period of David's chequered life "the God of Israel — the Rock of Israel," spake thus to him. We may not be presumptuous, however, in fixing on what in our judgment would appear to have been the most likely time. Voices of highest inspiration, visions of loftiest things, come, as a rule, to men in early life. By an irresistible sense of the fitness of the figure, we speak of the youth as the "Morning of life," when all within and without is at its brightest and its best, and heaven and earth smile with the promise of the coming day. It would seem but natural, then, that we should place this vision of the ideal man — the ideal ruler — at least in some period of David's earlier life. There are two or three purposes which ideals and visions serve, and though they are the mere commonplaces of all serious thinking, I may be permitted briefly to state them. I. IDEALS AND VISIONS ARE OUR ONLY POSSIBLE MEANS OF ENLARGEMENT AND ENRICHMENT. For the chances of true greatness everywhere never lie so much in what a man is as in what he sees, in perhaps rare moments, he may become. This is clear and obvious enough to all our minds; but in days when men are asking whether ideals do not stand in our way, it will bear enforcement. An ideal is the soul, the only soul, and the only soul in every conceivable direction of sustained effort and assured progress. Our Saviour knew this full well when He pitched the tune of our Christian lives in the highest key of all, and bade us "be perfect, as our Father who is in heaven is perfect." And the high ground which He took, all experience approves. A vision of our personal possibilities may be extravagant — it may even be misleading; but find a man who has ceased to see such visions, who has ceased to be allured by them, who has ceased to follow them, and you find a man who is growing from small to less, from mediocrity to insignificance. II. WE SHOULD FEEL THINGS AS WELL AS KNOW THEM, There is no chance of continuous and successful effort, apart from a strict fidelity to what, in our best moments, "the God of Israel — the Rock of Israel," has said to us, or has set before us. Moral precepts will help us on a long way, but they cannot kindle an abiding endeavour. Abstract injunctions and commands will help us on a long way, but I doubt if they ever yet carried a single struggling soul within sight of a very high goal. III. GOD SENDS US OUR IDEALS — our religious ideals — to break the binding arid blinding spell of religious custom. What stagnation, what paralysis sometimes comes over us! Then, happy is the man whom the memories of former days, of former visions, of former vows, disturb at such a time; who accepts, as from God, the reproachful looks of former ideals; who goes back in thought to the times of his youthful consecration, and who determines that henceforth Christ and not custom shall be his King. And when memory travels back to life as it shaped itself to our young imagination, and then reflect on the way and manner in which it has all turned out, it requires something like ah effort to talk about ideals. And yet consider — 1. Most of the deepest things m life we can only, learn from conscious, perhaps repeated failure. In a fine lecture on Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the late Principal Shairp tins the following: "Through the wounds made in his own spirit, through the brokenness of a heart humbled and made contrite by the experience of his own sin, he entered into the faith which gave rest, the peace which settles where the intellect is meek." Now wounds and failures, and even sin, remembered ideals that seem sometimes only to reproach us, sometimes almost to mock us, these things have a good account to give of themselves, if they accomplish for us anything like that 2. Patiently, too, do we come to look upon our brother's failures. Sons of consolation indeed do we become when we learn to look through the open windows of our own. The Voice of voices to this generation exclaims, "Oh! my brother, my brother, why cannot I fold thee to my breast?" That brother cannot be folded to this breast in any very effective way till I have come to know much more what is inside than I could know when "the God of Israel — the Rock of Israel," first spake to me. 3. Lastly, there are many great sights in this world. There are many great and noble things done under the sun. Heroes and heroines are only scarce to those who, often enough for good reason, cannot see them. ( J. Thew. ) David's swan song J. R. Macduff, D. D. And now comes the last "Lay of the Minstrel," with its flashes of heavenly fire — the true "Swan song." If we treasure with peculiar fondness the closing sayings of great men, with what devout interest may we not listen to the concluding strains of the Laureate of the universal church — the last cadences of that harp of a thousand strings! The grandeur of earthly empire is fast waning. He has heaven in view. But he would give to his people — to the world — this dying "Confession of faith" farewell ode of victory. The whole poetry of his nature seems summoned up for the expiring effort. ( J. R. Macduff, D. D. ) Last wards G. S. Bowes, M. A. Dr. Preston: "Blessed be God! though I change my place, I shall not change my company; for I have walked with God while living, and now I go to rest with God." Matthew Henry : "You have been used to take notice of the sayings of dying men, this is mine — that a life spent in the service of God, and communion with Him, is the most comfortable life that any one can lead in this present world." Rutherford: "If he should slay me ten thousand times ten thousand times, I'll trust." "I feel, I feel, I believe in joy, and rejoice; I feed on manna." "Oh, for arms to embrace Him. Oh, for a well-tuned harp!" Rev. James Hervey: "You tell me that I have but a few moments to live. Oh, let me spend them in adoring our great Reedeemer! Oh, welcome death! thou mayest well be reckoned among the treasures of the Christian." His last words, "The great conflict is over: all is done." President Edwards , after bidding goodbye to all his children, looked about, and said, "Now, where is Jesus of Nazareth, my never-failing Friend?" And so he fell asleep, and went to the Lord he loved. Rev. John Wesley : "The best of all is, God is with us." Rev. Charles Wesley: "I shall be satisfied with Thy likeness; satisfied — satisfied!" Dr. Payson: "The battle's fought — the battle's fought; and the victory is won — the victory is won, for ever! I am going to bathe in an ocean of purity, and benevolence, and happiness to all eternity." "Faith and patience, hold out." ( G. S. Bowes, M. A. ) The Spirit of the Lord spake by me. 2 Samuel 23:2 The inspiration of the Scriptures C. Clayton, M. A. I. THE INSPIRATION OF THE SCRIPTURES. This may be shown by the combined testimony of Moses, the Psalmist, the Prophets of our Lord, and also of the Apostles and Evangelists. Consider: 1. The language of Moses. Now what does Moses say of his own writings? "Thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep His statutes and His commandments, which are written in this book of the law." 2. The language of the Psalmist. David, the sweet Psalmist of Israel, claims inspiration for those psalms which are of his own composition. "The Spirit of the Lord," he says, "spake by me." And what are his other testimonies respecting the word of God at large? Very wonderful, he says, are its properties. It is the grand instrument, he tells us, in the sinner's conversion. "The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul." 3. The language of the prophets. What does Jeremiah say concerning his own writings? The Lord commanded Jeremiah to set down in a book certain prophecies. Those prophecies Baruch read in the audience of the king and the princes. And what is said respecting Baruch's reading? "Then read he in the book the words of the Lord in the house of the Lord." He read in the book "the words of the Lord." 4. The language of Christ. He met His adversaries with the Scripture. 5. The language of the Evangelists and Apostles. Our Lord, before His departure, promised to send to His disciples the Holy Ghost. "And when He is come, He will bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I have spoken unto you." The Evangelists and Apostles, therefore, wrote under the controlling power of the Holy Ghost. "All Scripture, wrote St. Peter," is given by inspiration of God," or, is "God-breathed." That Scripture Timothy had known from a child; arid that Scripture was able to make Timothy "wise unto salvation through faith in Christ Jesus." By that term "Scripture," which was able to make its readers savingly acquainted with Christ, was meant the Old Testament writings. Now, these Old Testament books are directly quoted or alluded to in the New Testament several hundreds of times. There are more than eighty such references in St. Matthew; more than thirty in St. Mark; more than fifty in St. Luke; forty in St. John; more than fifty in the Acts of the Apostles; more than seventy in the Romans. II. WORDS OF COUNSEL. 1. Beware of the sin of unbelief. God has given us-a revelation. The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken. That revelation contains difficulties and mysteries. Our Lord was satisfied with the Old Testament, and we, therefore, should surely be satisfied. But we have, in addition, a most clear commentary on the Old Testament. We have the New Testament. 2. Cultivate a childlike spirit. Our Lord has plainly told us that, except we be converted and become as little children, we shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. 3. Receive all that the Bible reveals. In the Bible, as St Peter tells us, there are many things "hard to be understood." This is no more than we ought to expect, when the infinite God reveals Himself to a finite being like man. Those things, however, which are necessary for our salvation — sin, death, hell, heaven, the general resurrection, the atonement of Christ, the work of the Spirit — are written so plainly "that he may run that reads." ( C. Clayton, M. A. ) God the Author of Scripture Who built St. Paul's Cathedral? So many masons, carpenters, iron-workers, carvers, painters — and then there was Wren. Yes, there was Christopher Wren. He was not a mason, nor a carpenter, nor an ironworker. He never laid a single stone, drove a nail, or forged a railing. What did he do? He did it all. He planned the splendid edifice: inspired with his thought and purpose all their toil, and wrought through every worker. They were his "hands," and people flock to-day in their thousands from all over the world to see Christopher Wren's masterpiece. Who wrote the Bible? Moses, David, Isaiah, John, Paul? Yes. But the Holy Spirit did it all. "Holy men of old spake as they were borne along by the Holy Ghost." Plenary inspiration of Scripture In an interesting little pamphlet, written by the late Dr. A. J. Gordon, and called "Three weeks with Joseph Rabinowitz," there are several striking expressions uttered by the Russian Jew. "What is your view of inspiration?" we asked him, in order to draw him out concerning certain much-mooted questions Of our time. "My view is," he said, holding up his Hebrew Bible, "that this is the Word of God; the Spirit of God dwells in it; when I read it, I know that God is speaking to me; and when I preach it, I say to the people, 'Be silent, and hear what Jehovah will say to you.' As for comparing the inspiration of Scripture with that of Homer or Shakespeare," he continued, "it is not a question of degree, but of kind.. Electricity will pass through an iron bar, but it will not go through a rod of glass, however beautiful and transparent, because it has no affinity for it. So the Spirit of God dwells in the Word of God, the Holy Scriptures, because these are His proper medium, but not in Homer or Shakespeare, because He has no affinity with these writings." The Rock of Israel spake to me. 2 Samuel 23:3 The voice of a rock C. S. Robinson, D. D. The phraseology is peculiarly dramatic and picturesque. I. THE ROCK HAS A VOICE; the Rock of Israel had been speaking to him ever since he had been in the kingly seat of power. David's wild and outlaw life had made him know what was the value of a stronghold, a shelter, a refuge. Rocks had been in his experience his best friends for many a year. Rocks were unchanging in their affection for him; they were immovable in their stability; they were impregnable for defence; often he had found rest under the "shadow of a great rock in a weary land." What had this Rock of Israel said to him during this wonderful career? 1. For one thing, it had told him, as a counsel of superior wisdom, that he ought to reign righteously all his life: "He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God." 2. For another thing, the Rock had spoken the terms and the conditions of a fine promise. A just ruler would be prospered in proportion to the purity and piety of his administration: "And he shall be as the light of the morning when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain." 3. And for the best thing of all, the Rock had assured him graciously of a permanent continuance of the Divine favour: "Although my house be not so with God, yet He hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow." II. MODERN RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE. What are the conditions of implicit trust in the Lord of our salvation, such trust ah will insure peace and comfort? 1. The main condition of resting in the Lord is found in looking outside of one's self. There is a habit of morbid self-examination which needs to be shunned. The more conscientious any believer is, the more apt he is to press unnecessary scrutiny of introspection. 2. The next condition of spiritual repose is found in the avoiding of unwise counsellors. Once a Christian friend wrote a letter to me, saying that she had just, after a long struggle, come to something like peace in believing, when along came a "so-called evangelist to torment her before her time," telling her that "all we have to do is to accept salvation as we would accept a book from Christ's hand." She could not do this so easily, and hence she was informed again that her faith had no foundation upon which to be "secure." It would break up two-thirds of the business firms in the United States if an evangelist were to keep going round among the counting-rooms, telling

Benson Commentary 2 Samuel 23:1 Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, 2 Samuel 23:1 . These be the last words of David — Not simply the last that he spoke, but the last which he spake by the Spirit of God, assisting and directing him in an extraordinary manner. When we find death approaching, we should endeavour both to honour God, and to profit others with our last words. Let those who have had experience of God’s goodness, and the pleasantness of the ways of wisdom, when they come to finish their course, leave a record of those experiences, and bear their testimony to the truth of God’s promises. The man who was raised up on high — Advanced from an obscure estate to the kingdom. Whom God singled out from all the families of Israel, and anointed to be king. The sweet psalmist — He who was eminent among the people of God, for composing sweet and holy songs to the praise of God, and for the use of his church in after ages. These seem not to be the words of David, but of the sacred penman of this book. 2 Samuel 23:2 The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue. 2 Samuel 23:2-3 . His word was in my tongue — The following words, and consequently the other words and psalms composed and uttered by me upon the like solemn occasions, are not to be looked upon as human inventions, but both the matter and the words of them were suggested by God’s Spirit, the great teacher of the church. The Rock of Israel — He who is the strength, and defence, and protector of his people; which he manifests by directing kings and rulers so to manage their power, as may most conduce to their comfort and benefit. He that ruleth over men — Here are the two principal parts of a king’s duty, answerable to the tables of God’s law, justice toward men, and piety toward God, both which he is to maintain and promote among his people. 2 Samuel 23:3 The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God. 2 Samuel 23:4 And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain. 2 Samuel 23:4 . He shall be as the light of the morning — These words are a further description of the king’s duty, which is not only to rule with justice and piety, but also with sweetness, and gentleness, and condescension to the infirmities of his people; to render his government as acceptable to them as is the sunshine in a clear morning, or the tender grass which springs out of the earth by the warm beams of the sun after the rain. 2 Samuel 23:5 Although my house be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things , and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow. 2 Samuel 23:5 . Although my house be not so with God — Although God knows that neither I nor my children have lived and ruled as we should have done, so justly, and in the fear of the Lord; and therefore have not enjoyed that uninterrupted prosperity which we might have enjoyed. Covenant — Notwithstanding all our transgressions whereby we have broken covenant with God, yet God, to whom all my sins were known, was graciously pleased to make a sure covenant, to continue the kingdom to me, and to my seed for ever, 2 Samuel 7:16 , until the coming of the Messiah, who is to be my son and successor, and whose kingdom shall have no end. Ordered in all things — Ordained in all points by God’s eternal counsel, and disposed by his wise and powerful providence, which will overrule all things, even the sins of my house so far, that although he punish them for their sins, yet he will not utterly root them out, nor break his covenant made with me and mine. Sure — Or, preserved, by God’s power and faithfulness in the midst of all oppositions. For this is all my salvation — That is, my salvation consists in, and depends on, this covenant; even both my own eternal salvation, and the preservation of the kingdom to me and mine. Although he make it not, &c. — Although God, as yet, hath not made my house or family to grow; that is, to increase, or to flourish with worldly glory as I expected; yet this is my comfort, that God will inviolably keep this covenant. But this refers also to the covenant of grace made with all believers. This is indeed an everlasting covenant, from everlasting, in the contrivance of it, and to everlasting, in the continuance and consequence of it. It is ordered, well ordered in all things; admirably well, to advance the glory of God, and the honour of the Mediator, together with the holiness and happiness of believers. It is sure, and therefore sure, because well ordered: the promised mercies are sure, on the performance of the conditions. It is all our salvation: nothing but this will save us, and this is sufficient. Therefore it should be all our desire. Let me have an interest in this covenant, and I have enough, I desire no more. 2 Samuel 23:6 But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, because they cannot be taken with hands: 2 Samuel 23:6-7 . But the sons of Belial — Having in the foregoing verses described the nature and stability of that kingdom which God had, by a sure covenant, settled upon him and his seed; and especially upon the Messiah, who was to be one of his posterity; he now describes the nature and miserable condition of all the enemies of this holy and blessed kingdom. Shall be all as thorns — Which men do not use to handle, but thrust them away. And so will God thrust away from himself, and from his people and kingdom, all those who shall either secretly or openly set themselves against it. That shall touch them must be fenced — He must arm himself with some iron weapon, whereby he may cut them down; or, with the staff of a spear, or some such thing, whereby he may thrust them away from himself, that they do him no hurt. They shall be utterly burned — Or, if men do not cut them down or thrust them away, they will burn and consume them. The place — Or, in their place, where they grow or stand. 2 Samuel 23:7 But the man that shall touch them must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear; and they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same place. 2 Samuel 23:8 These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time. 2 Samuel 23:8 . These be the names of the mighty men whom David had — Who helped to raise David to his dignity, and to preserve him in it, being continually with him in all his wars. There is a list of them also 1 Chronicles 11., different from this in several particulars. But Abarbinel thinks this creates no difficulty, if we do but observe that there he distinguishes them into three classes. Those that had always been with him; those that came to him at Ziklag, a little before he was made king of Judah; and those that came to him in Hebron, after he was made king of all Israel. It was proper that the memories of all these should be preserved. But here, in this book, the writer intended only to mention the most excellent of his heroes, who were always with him in his wars; and for whose sake he composed the preceding song of praise to God. Add to this, that this catalogue, though placed here, was taken long before many of the preceding events, as is manifest from hence, that Asahel and Uriah are named in it. It must be observed also, that it was very common for one person to have divers names, and that as some of the worthies died, and others arose in their stead, a great alteration must of course take place in the latter catalogue from the former. We may learn from hence, how much religion tends to inspire men with true courage. David, both by his writings and example, greatly promoted piety among the grandees of his kingdom. And when they became famous for piety, they became famous for bravery. The Tachmonite that sat in the seat — He sat in the counsel of war, next to Joab, being, it is thought, his lieutenant-general. Chief among the captains — The principal commander after Joab. The same was Adino — This was his proper name, and he probably was of the family of the Eznites. He lifted up his spear — These words are properly supplied out of 1 Chronicles 11:11 , where they are expressed. Against eight hundred — In the above-mentioned place of 1 Chronicles it is only three hundred. Whom he slew at one time — In one battle, which, though it be strange, cannot be incredible, supposing him to be a person of extraordinary strength and activity, and his enemies to be discouraged and fleeing away. 2 Samuel 23:9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away: 2 Samuel 23:9-10 . The men of Israel were gone away — Had fled from before the Philistines, as it is explained, 1 Chronicles 11:13 , being dismayed at the sight of them. And his hand clave unto the sword — Being all besmeared with blood. The Lord wrought a great victory that day — Like that of Shamgar and of Samson; God inspiring him with wonderful courage, and striking a terror into the Philistines. The people returned after him only to spoil — They that had fled, rallied again when they saw the wonders he did; and followed after him, not to fight, but only to partake of the spoil. 2 Samuel 23:10 He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil. 2 Samuel 23:11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines. 2 Samuel 23:11 . After him was Shammah — Who, although not expressly mentioned in the parallel place, 1 Chronicles 11:14 , yet is plainly implied to have been engaged in this great action. For it is said, that they set themselves, &c., that is, Shammah and Eleazar, who joined in this enterprise. But this place, in Samuel, teaches us that Shammah had the chief hand in it, and therefore it is ascribed to him. Ground full of lentils — In 1 Chronicles 11:13 it is, full of barley: in which there is no difficulty, one part of the field having probably been sown with lentils and the other with barley. The people fled from the Philistines — Fearing to defend the place. 2 Samuel 23:12 But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory. 2 Samuel 23:13 And three of the thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam: and the troop of the Philistines pitched in the valley of Rephaim. 2 Samuel 23:14 And David was then in an hold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem. 2 Samuel 23:15 And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! 2 Samuel 23:16 And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it , and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD. 2 Samuel 23:17 And he said, Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men. 2 Samuel 23:17 . He said, Far be it from me — He looked upon it no longer as water, but as the blood of those men who fetched it with the peril of their lives; and the blood of every thing belonged to the Lord, and therefore he poured it out before him. If the generosity of David’s worthies was great, David’s generosity was no less so. Such actions as these dignify human nature, and manifest an excellence and grandeur which one should not otherwise think it capable of. These things did these three — They all joined in this hazardous exploit. But now follows what they did singly. 2 Samuel 23:18 And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them , and had the name among three. 2 Samuel 23:18-19 . Abishai was chief among three — The chief of those three mighty men before mentioned. See 1 Chronicles 11:20 . Had the name among the three — That is, was most eminent and famous. Was he not most honourable? — Worthy to be the leader of them, for his superior valour and virtue? He attained not unto the first three — He fell short of them in strength and valour. 2 Samuel 23:19 Was he not most honourable of three? therefore he was their captain: howbeit he attained not unto the first three. 2 Samuel 23:20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow: 2 Samuel 23:20 . Who had done many acts — As Abishai also had done, who had succoured David, when a giant thought to have killed him. But their greatest acts only are here mentioned. He slew two lion-like men of Moab — The Hebrew word ???? , ariel, signifies a lion of God, that is, a great lion. And it was the name among the Moabites for a very valiant man. Such a one at this day is called assedollabi, a lion of God, among the Arabians. He slew a lion in the midst of a pit — By going down into which he had put himself under a necessity of killing or being killed. In time of snow — This is mentioned to magnify the action, because then lions are fiercer both for want of prey, and from the sharpness of their appetite in cold seasons. 2 Samuel 23:21 And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his own spear. 2 Samuel 21:21-22 . An Egyptian, a goodly man — A person of great stature, 1 Chronicles 11:23 . He plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand — This shows him to have been both fearless, and a person of great skill and dexterity in managing a combat, either with man or beast. And had the name among three mighty men — That is, among the three in the second rank, for it is said in the following verse that he did not attain or come up to the first three. Who the third was of this second rank of mighty men is not mentioned. 2 Samuel 23:22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among three mighty men. 2 Samuel 23:23 He was more honourable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three. And David set him over his guard. 2 Samuel 23:24 Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, 2 Samuel 23:25 Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite, 2 Samuel 23:25 . Shammah the Harodite — In 1 Chronicles 11:27 , he is called, Shammoth the Harorite, the same names of persons or places being differently pronounced according to the different dialects of divers places or ages. They that compare this catalogue with that in 1 Chronicles 11., will observe more names mentioned there than are found here. For the author of it reckons up and records the names of all the chief commanders in the army, though they were not in themselves heroical persons. But here the sacred writer only numbers those who were of themselves great heroes, not noticing the great commanders in the army who were not so. 2 Samuel 23:26 Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, 2 Samuel 23:26-39 . Helez the Paltite, &c. — None of the memorable acts of these or of the following worthies are recorded; therefore, all that can be said of them is, that when God determined to raise a king to a great height of power and glory, he raised up several great men to co-operate with and assist that king in his designs and undertakings. Thirty and seven in all — Here are only thirty-six named. Either therefore one must be supplied whose name is not expressed among the three worthies of the second rank, or Joab is comprehended in the number, as being the general and head of them all. 2 Samuel 23:27 Abiezer the Anethothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite, 2 Samuel 23:28 Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite, 2 Samuel 23:29 Heleb the son of Baanah, a Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin, 2 Samuel 23:30 Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash, 2 Samuel 23:31 Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite, 2 Samuel 23:32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan, 2 Samuel 23:33 Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite, 2 Samuel 23:34 Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite, 2 Samuel 23:35 Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite, 2 Samuel 23:36 Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite, 2 Samuel 23:37 Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armourbearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah, 2 Samuel 23:38 Ira an Ithrite, Gareb an Ithrite, 2 Samuel 23:39 Uriah the Hittite: thirty and seven in all. Benson Commentary on the Old and New Testaments Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com . Used by Permission.

Expositor's Bible Commentary 2 Samuel 23:1 Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, CHAPTER XXXI. THE LAST WORDS OF DAVID. 2 Samuel 23:1-7 . (See Revised Version and margin.) OF these "the last words of David," we need not understand that they were the last words he ever spoke, but his last song or psalm, his latest vision, and therefore the subject that was most in his mind in the last period of his life. The Psalm recorded in the preceding chapter was an earlier song, and its main drift was of the past. Of this latest Psalm the main drift is of the future. The colours of this vision are brighter than those of any other. Aged though the seer was, there is a glory in this his latest vision unsurpassed in any that went before. The setting sun spreads a luster around as he sinks under the horizon unequalled by any he diffused even when he rode in the height of the heavens. The song falls into four parts. First, there is an elaborate introduction, descriptive of the singer and the inspiration which gave birth to his song; secondly, the main subject of the prophecy, a Ruler among men, of wonderful brightness and glory; thirdly, a reference to the Psalmist's own house and the covenant God had made with him; and finally, in the way of contrast to the preceding, a prediction of the doom of the ungodly. I. In the introduction, we cannot but be struck with the formality and solemnity of the affirmation respecting the singer and the inspiration under which he sang. "David, the son of Jesse, saith, And the man who was raised on high saith, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel: The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, And His word was upon my tongue; The God of Israel said. The Rock of Israel spake to me" (R.V.). The first four clauses represent David as the speaker; the second four represent God's Spirit as inspiring his words. The introduction to Balaam's prophecies is the only passage where we find a similar structure, nor is this the only point of resemblance between the two songs. "Balaam, the son of Beor, saith, And the man whose eye was closed saith; He saith which heareth the words of God, And knoweth the knowledge of the Most High; Which seeth the vision of the Almighty, Falling down, and having his eyes open" ( Numbers 24:15-16 , R.V.). In both prophecies, the word translated "saith" is peculiar. While occurring between two and three hundred times in the formula "Thus saith the Lord," it is used by a human speaker only in these two places and in Proverbs 30:1 . Both Balaam and David begin by giving their own name and that of their father, thereby indicating their native insignificance, and disclaiming any right to speak on subjects so lofty through any wisdom or insight of their own. Immediately after, they claim to speak the words of God. All the grounds on which David should be listened to fall under this head. Was he not "raised up on high"? Was he not the anointed of the God of Jacob? Was he not the sweet Psalmist of Israel? Having been raised up on high, David had established the kingdom of Israel on a firm and lasting basis, he had destroyed all its enemies, and he had established a comely order and prosperity throughout all its borders; as the sweet singer of Israel, or, as it has been otherwise rendered, "the lovely one in Israel's songs of praise" - that is, the man who had been specially gifted to compose songs of praise in honour of Israel's God - it was fitting that he should be made the organ of this very remarkable and glorious communication. It is interesting to observe how David must have been attracted by Balaam's vision. The dark wall of the Moabite mountains was a familiar object to him, and must often have recalled the strange but unworthy prophet who spoke of the Star that was to shine so gloriously, and the Sceptre that was to have such a wonderful rule. Often during his life we may believe that David devoutly desired to know something more of that mysterious Star and Sceptre; and now that desire is fulfilled; the Star is as the light of the morning star; the Sceptre is that of a blessed ruler, "one that ruleth over men righteously, that ruleth in the fear of God." The second part of the introduction stamps the prophecy with a fourfold mark of inspiration, 1. "The Spirit of the Lord spake by me." For "the prophecy came not of old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." 2. "His word was in my tongue." For in high visions like this, of which no wisdom of man can create even a shadow, it is not enough that the Spirit should merely guide the writer; this is one of the utterances where verbal inspiration must have been enjoyed. 3. "The God of Israel said, "He who entered into covenant with Israel, and promised him great and peculiar mercies. 4. "The Rock of Israel spake to me," the faithful One, whose words are stable as a rock, and who provides for Israel a foundation- stone, elect and precious, immovable as the everlasting hills. So remarkable an introduction must be followed by no ordinary prophecy. If the prophecy should bear on nothing more remarkable than some earthly successor of David, all this preliminary glorification would be singularly out of place. It would be like a great procession of heralds and flourishing of trumpets in an earthly kingdom to announce some event of the most ordinary kind, the repeal of a tax or the appointment of an officer. II. We come then to the great subject of the prophecy - a Ruler over men. The rendering of the Authorized Version is somewhat lame and obscure, "He that ruleth over men must be just," there being nothing whatever in the original corresponding to "must be." The Revised Version is at once more literal and more expressive: "One that ruleth over men righteously, Ruling in the fear of God, He shall be as the light of the morning." It is a vision of a remarkable Ruler, not a Ruler over the kingdom of Israel merely, but a Ruler "over men." The Ruler seen is One whose government knows no earthly limits, but prevails wherever there are men. Solomon could not be the ruler seen, for, wide though his empire was, he was king of Israel only, not king of men. It was but a speck of the habitable globe, but a morsel of that part of it that was inhabited even then, over which Solomon reigned. If the term "One that ruleth over men" could have been appropriated by any monarch, it would have been Ahasuerus, with his hundred and twenty-seven provinces, or Alexander the Great, or some other universal monarch, that would have had the right to claim it. But every such application is out of the question. The "Ruler over men" of this vision must have been identified by David with Him "in whom all the nations of the earth were to be blessed." It is worthy of very special remark that the first characteristic of this Ruler is "righteousness." There is no grander or more majestic word in the language of men. Not even love or mercy can be preferred to righteousness. And this is no casual expression, happening in David's vision, for it is common to the whole class of prophecies that predict the Messiah. "Behold, a King shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment." "There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and the spirit of the fear of the Lord . . . shall rest on Him, . . . and righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins." There is no lack in the New Testament of passages to magnify the love and mercy of the Lord Jesus, yet it is made very plain that righteousness was the foundation of all His work. "Thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness," were the words with which He removed the objections of John to His baptism, and they were words that described the business of His whole life: to fulfill all righteousness for His people and in His people - for them, to satisfy the demands of the righteous law and bear the righteous penalty of transgression; in them to infuse His own righteous spirit and mould them into the likeness of His righteous example, to sum up the whole law of righteousness in the law of love, and by His grace instill that law into their hearts. Such essentially was the work of Christ. No man can say of the religious life that Christ expounded that it was a life of loose, feverish emotion or sentimental spirituality that left the Decalogue far out of view. Nothing could have been further from the mind of Him that said, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven." Nothing could have been more unlike the spirit of Him who was not content with maintaining the letter of the Decalogue, but with His "again, I say unto you," drove its precepts so much further as into the very joints and marrow of men's souls. It is the grand characteristic of Christ's salvation in theory that it is through righteousness; it is not less its effect in practice to promote righteousness. To any who would dream, under colour of free grace, of breaking down the law of righteousness, the words of "the Holy One and the Just "stand out as an eternal rebuke, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law and the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill." And as Christ's work was founded on righteousness, so it was constantly done "in the fear of God," - with the highest possible regard for His will, and reverence for His law. "Wist ye not that I must be about My Father's business?" is the first word we hear from Christ's lips; and among the last is, "Not My will, but Thine, be done." No motto could have been more appropriate for His whole life than this: "I delight to do Thy will, O My God." Having shown the character of the Ruler, the vision next pictures the effects of His rule: "He shall be as the light of the morning when the sun riseth, A morning without clouds, When the tender grass springeth out of the earth Through clear shining after rain." But why introduce the future "shall be" in the translation when it is not in the original? May we not conceive the Psalmist reading off a vision - a scene unfolding itself in all its beauty before his mind's eye? A beautiful influence seems to come over the earth as the Divine Ruler makes His appearance, like the rising of the sun on a cloudless morning, like the appearance of the grass when the sun shines out clearly after rain. No imagery could be more delightful, or more fitly applied to Christ. The image of the morning sun presents Christ in His gladdening influences, bringing pardon to the guilty, health to the diseased, hope to the despairing; He is indeed like the morning sun, lighting up the sky with splendour and the earth with beauty, giving brightness to the languid eye, and colour to the faded cheek, and health and hope to the sorrowing heart. The chief idea under the other emblem, the grass shining clearly after rain, is that of renewed beauty and growth. The heavy rain batters the grass, as heavy trials batter the soul, but when the morning sun shines out clearly, the grass recovers, it sparkles with a fresher luster, and grows with intenser activity. So when Christ shines on the heart after trial, a new beauty and a new growth and prosperity come to it. When this Sun of righteousness shines forth thus, in the case of individuals the understanding becomes more clear, the conscience more vigorous, the will more firm, the habits more holy, the temper more serene, the affections more pure, the desires more heavenly. In communities, conversions are multiplied, and souls advanced steadily in holy beauties; intelligence spreads, love triumphs over selfishness, and the spirit of Christ modifies the spirit of strife and the spirit of mammon. It is with the happiest skill that Solomon, appropriating part of his father's imagery, draws the picture of the bride, with the radiance of the bridegroom falling on her: "Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?" III. Next comes David's allusion to his own house. In our translation, and in the text of the Revised Version, this comes in to indicate a sad contrast between the bright vision just described and the Psalmist's own family. It indicates that his house or family did not correspond to the picture of the prophecy, and would not realize the emblems of the rising sun and the growing grass; but as God had made with himself an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure, that satisfied him; it was all his salvation and all his desire, although his house was not to grow. But in the margin of the Revised Version we have another translation, which reverses all this: - "For is not my house so with God? For He hath made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things and sure: For all my salvation and all my desire, Will He not make it to grow?" Corresponding as this does with the translation of many scholars ( e.g., Boothroyd, Hengstenberg, Fairbairn), it must be regarded as admissible on the strength of outward evidence. And if so, certainly it is very strongly recommended by internal evidence. For what reason could David have for introducing his family at all after the glorious vision if only to say that they were excluded from it? And can it be thought that David, whose nature was so intensely sympathetic, would be so pleased because he was personally provided for, though not his family? And still further, why should he go on in the next verses ( 1 Samuel 22:6-7 ) to describe the doom of the ungodly by way of contrast to what precedes if the doom of ungodly persons is the matter already introduced in the fifth verse? The passage becomes highly involved and unnatural in the light of the older translation. The key to the passage will be found, if we mistake not, in the expression "my house." We are liable to think of this as the domestic circle, whereas it ought to be thought of as the reigning dynasty. What is denoted by the house of Hapsburg, the house of Hanover, the house of Savoy, is quite different from the personal family of any of the kings. So when David speaks of his house, he means his dynasty. In this sense his "house" had been made the subject of the most gracious promise. "Moreover, the Lord telleth thee that He will make thee an house. . . . And thine house and thy kingdom shall be made sure for ever before thee. . . . Then David said, . . . What is my house, that Thou hast brought me thus far? . . . Thou hast spoken also of Thy servant's house for a great while to come." The king felt profoundly on that occasion that his house was even more prominently the subject of Divine promise than himself. What roused his gratitude to its utmost height was the gracious provision for his house. Surely the covenant referred to in the passage now before us, "ordered in all things and sure," was this very covenant announced to him by the prophet Nathan, the covenant that made this provision for his house. It is impossible to think of him recalling this covenant and yet saying, "Verily my house is not so with God" (R.V.). But take the marginal reading - "Is not my house so with God?" Is not my dynasty embraced in the scope of this promise? Hath He not made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure? And will He not make this promise, which is all my salvation and all my desire, to grow, to fructify? It is infinitely more natural to represent David on this joyous occasion congratulating himself on the promise of long continuance and prosperity made to his dynasty, than dwelling on the unhappy condition of the members of his family circle. And the facts of the future correspond to this explanation. Was not the government of David's house or dynasty in the main righteous, at least for many a reign, conducted in the fear of God, and followed by great prosperity and blessing? David himself, Solomon, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah - what other nation had ever so many Christ-like kings? What a contrast was presented to this in the main by the apostate kingdom of the ten tribes, idolatrous, God-dishonouring, throughout! And as to the growth or continued vitality of his house, its "clear shining after rain," had not God promised that He would bless it, and that it would continue forever before Him? He knew that, spiritually dormant at times, his house would survive, till a living root came from the stem of Jesse, till the Prince of life should be born from it, and once that plant of renown was raised up, there was no fear but the house would be preserved for ever. From this point it would start on a new career of glory; nay, this was the very Ruler of whom he had been prophesying, at once David's Son and David's Lord; this was the root and the offspring of David, the bright and the morning star. Conducted to this stage in the future experience of his house, he needed no further assurance, he cherished no further desire. The covenant that rested on Him and that promised Him was ordered in all things and sure. The glorious prospect exhausted his every wish. "This is all my salvation and all my desire." IV. The last part of the prophecy, in the way of contrast to the leading vision, is a prediction of the doom of the ungodly. The revised translation is much the clearer: "But the ungodly shall be all of them as thorns to be thrust away, For they cannot be taken with the hand, But the man that toucheth them Must be armed with iron and the staff and spear, And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place." While some would fain think of Christ's sceptre as one of mercy only, the uniform representation of the Bible is different. In this, as in most predictions of Christ's kingly office, there is an instructive combination of mercy and judgment. In the bosom of one of Isaiah's sweetest predictions, he introduces the Messiah as anointed by the Spirit of God to proclaim "the day of vengeance of our God." In a subsequent vision, Messiah appears marching triumphantly "with dyed garments from Bozrah, after treading the people in His anger and trampling them in His fury." Malachi proclaimed Him "the Sun of righteousness, with healing under His wings," while His day was to burn as an oven and consume the proud and the wicked like stubble. John the Baptist saw Him "with His fan in His hand, thoroughly purging His floor, gathering the wheat into His garner, while the chaff should be burnt with unquenchable fire." In His own words, "the Son of man shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them that do iniquity, and cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." And in the Apocalypse, when the King of kings and the Lord of lords is to be married to His bride, He appears "clothed with a garment dipped in blood, and out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that He should smite the nations, and He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." Nor could it be otherwise. The union of mercy and judgment is the inevitable result of the righteousness which is the foundation of His government. Sin is the abominable thing which He hates. To separate men from sin is the grand purpose of His government. For this end, He draws His people into union with Himself, thereby for ever removing their guilt, and providing for the ultimate removal of all sin from their hearts and the complete assimilation of their natures to His holy nature. Blessed are they who enter into this relation; but alas for those who, for all that He has done, prefer their sins to Him! "The ungodly shall be all of them as thorns to be thrust away." Oh, let us not be satisfied with admiring beautiful images of Christ! Let us not deem it enough to think with pleasure of Him as the light of the morning, a morning without clouds, brightening the earth, and making it sparkle with the luster of the sunshine on the grass after rain! Let us not satisfy ourselves with knowing that Jesus Christ came to earth on a beneficent mission, and with thinking that surely we shall one day share in the blessed effects of His work! Nothing of that kind can avail us if we are not personally united to Christ. We must come as sinners individually to Him, cast ourselves on His free, unmerited grace, and deliberately accept His righteousness as our clothing. Then, but only then, shall we be able to sing: "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels." 2 Samuel 23:8 These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time. 2CHAPTER XXIX. LAST BATTLES AND THE MIGHTY MEN. 2 Samuel 21:15-22 ; 2 Samuel 23:8-39 . IN entering on the consideration of these two portions of the history of David, we must first observe that the events recorded do not appear to belong to the concluding portion of his reign. It is impossible for us to assign a precise date to them, or at least to most of them, but the displays of physical activity and courage which they record would lead us to ascribe them to a much earlier period. Originally, they seem to have formed parts of a record of David's wars, and to have been transferred to the Books of Samuel and Chronicles in order to give a measure of completeness to the narrative. The narrative in Chronicles is substantially the same as that in Samuel, but the text is purer. From notes of time in Chronicles it is seen that some at least of the encounters took place after the war with the children of Ammon. Why have these passages been inserted in the history of the reign of David? Apparently for two chief purposes. In the first place, to give us some idea of the dangers to which he was exposed in his military life, dangers manifold and sometimes overwhelming, and all but fatal; and thus enable us to see how wonderful were the deliverances he experienced, and prepare us for entering into the song of thanksgiving which forms the twenty-second chapter, and of which these deliverances form the burden. In the second place, to enable us to understand the human instrumentality by which he achieved so brilliant a success, the kind of men by whom he was helped, the kind of spirit by which they were animated, and their intense personal devotion to David himself. The former purpose is that which is chiefly in view in the end of the twenty-first chapter, the latter in the twenty-third. The exploits themselves occur in encounters with the Philistines, and may therefore be referred partly to the time after the slaughter of Goliath, when he first distinguished himself in warfare, and the daughters of Israel began to sing, "Saul hath slain his thousands, but David his tens of thousands;" partly to the time in his early reign when he was engaged driving them out of Israel, and putting a bridle on them to restrain their inroads; and partly to a still later period. It is to be observed that nothing more is sought than to give a sample of David's military adventures, and for this purpose his wars with the Philistines alone are examined. If the like method had been taken with all his other campaigns, - against Edom, Moab, and Ammon; against the Syrians of Rehob, and Maacah, and Damascus, and the Syrians beyond the river, - we might borrow the language of the Evangelist, and say that the world itself would not have been able to contain the books that should be written. Four exploits are recorded in the closing verses of the twenty-first chapter, all with "sons of the giant," or, as it is in the margin, of Kapha. The first was with a man who is called Ishbi-benob, but there is reason to suspect that the text is corrupt here, and in Chronicles this incident is not mentioned. The language applied to David, " avid and his servants went down," would lead us to believe that the incident happened at an early period, when the Philistines were very powerful in Israel, and it was a mark of great courage to "go down" to their plains, and attack them in their own country. To do this implied a long journey, over steep and rough roads, and it is no wonder if between the journey and the fighting David "waxed faint." Then it was that the son of the giant, whose spear or spear- head weighed three hundred shekels of brass, or about eight pounds, fell upon him "with a new sword, and thought to have slain him." There is no noun in the original for sword; all that is said is, that the giant fell on David with something new, and our translators have made it a sword. The Revised Version in the margin gives "new armour." The point is evidently this, that the newness of the thing made it more formidable. This could hardly be said of a common sword, which would be really more formidable after it had ceased to be quite new, since, by having used it, the owner would know it better and wield it more perfectly. It seems better to take the marginal reading "new armour," that is, new defensive armour, against which the weary David would direct his blows in vain. Evidently he was in the utmost peril of his life, but was rescued by his nephew Abishai, who killed the giant. The risk to which he was exposed was such that his people vowed they would not let him go out with them to battle any more, lest the light of Israel should be quenched. During the rest of that campaign the vow seems to have been respected, for the other three giants were not slain by David personally, but by others. As to other campaigns, David usually took his old place as leader of the army, until the battle against Absalom, when his people prevailed on him to remain in the city. Three of the four duels recorded here took place at Gob, - a place not now known, but most probably in the neighbourhood of Gath. In fact, all the encounters probably took place near that city. One of the giants slain is said in Samuel, by a manifest error, to have been Goliath the Gittite; but the error is corrected in Chronicles, where he is called the brother of Goliath. The very same expression is used of his spear as in the case of Goliath: "the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam." Of the fourth giant it is said that he defied Israel, as Goliath had done. Of the whole four it is said that "they were born to the giant in Gath." This does not necessarily imply that they were all sons of the same father, "the giant" being used generically to denote the race rather than the individual. But the tenor of the narrative and many of its expressions carry us back to the early days of David. There seems to have been a nest at Gath of men of gigantic stature, brothers or near relations of Goliath. Against these he was sent, perhaps in one of the expeditions when Saul secretly desired that he should fall by the hand of the Philistines. If it was in this way that he came to encounter the first of the four, Saul had calculated well, and was very nearly carrying his point. But though man proposes, God disposes. The example of David in his encounter with Goliath, even at this early period, had inspired several young men of the Hebrews, and even when David was interdicted from going himself into battle, others were raised up to take his place. Every one of the giants found a match either in David or among his men. It was indeed highly perilous work; but David was encompassed by a Divine Protector, and being destined for high service in the kingdom of God, he was "immortal till his work was done." We have said that these were but samples of David's trials, and that they were probably repeated again and again in the course of the many wars in which he was engaged. One can see that the danger was often very imminent, making him feel that his only possible deliverance must come from God. Such dangers, therefore, were wonderfully fitted to exercise and discipline the spirit of trust. Not once or twice, but hundreds of times, in his early experience he would find himself constrained to cry to the Lord. And protected as he was, delivered as he was, the conviction would become stronger and stronger that God cared for him and would deliver him to the end. We see from all this how unnecessary it is to ascribe all the psalms where David is pressed by enemies either to the time of Saul or to the time of Absalom. There were hundreds of other times in his life when he had the same experience, when he was reduced to similar straits, and his appeal lay to the God of his life. And this was in truth the healthiest period of his spiritual life. It was amid these perilous but bracing experiences that his soul prospered most. The north wind of danger and difficulty braced him to spiritual self- denial and endurance; the south wind of prosperity and luxurious enjoyment was what nearly destroyed him. Let us not become impatient when anxieties multiply around us, and we are beset by troubles, and labours, and difficulties. Do not be tempted to contrast your miserable lot with that of others, who have health while you are sick, riches while you are poor, honour while you are despised, ease and enjoyment while you have care and sorrow. By all these things God desires to draw you to Himself, to discipline your soul, to lead you away from the broken cisterns that can hold no water to the fountain of living waters. Guard earnestly against the unbelief that at such times would make your hands hang down and your heart despond; rally your sinking spirit. "Why art thou cast down, O my soul, and why art thou disquieted within me?" Remember the promise, "I will never leave you nor forsake you;" and one day you shall have cause to look back on this as the most useful, the most profitable, the most healthful, period of your spiritual life. We pass to the twenty-third chapter, which tells us of David's mighty men. The narrative, at some points, is not very clear; but we gather from it that David had an order of thirty men distinguished for their valour; that besides these there were three of super-eminent merit, and another three, who were also eminent, but who did not attain to the distinction of the first three. Of the first three, the first was Jashobeam the Hachmonite (see 1 Chronicles 11:11 ), the second Eleazar, and the third Shammah. Of the second three, who were not quite equal to the first, only two are mentioned, Abishai and Benaiah; thereafter we have the names of the thirty. It is remarkable that Joab's name does not occur in the list, but as he was captain of the host, he probably held a higher position than any. Certainly Joab was not wanting in valour, and must have held the highest rank in a legion of honour. Of the three mighties of the first rank, and the two of the second, characteristic exploits of remarkable courage and success are recorded. The first of the first rank, whom the Chronicles call Jashobeam, lifted up his spear against three hundred slain at one time. (In Samuel the number is eight hundred.) The exploit was worthy to be ranked with the famous achievement of Jonathan and his armour-bearer at the pass of Michmash. The second, Eleazar, defied the Philistines when they were gathered to battle, and when the men of Israel had gone away he smote the Philistines till his hand was weary. The third, Shammah, kept the Philistines at bay on a piece of ground covered with lentils, after the people had fled, and slew the Philistines, gaining a great victory. Next we have a description of the exploit of three of the mighty men when the Philistines were in possession of Bethlehem, and David in a hold near the cave of Adullam (see 2 Samuel 5:15-21 ). The occasion of their exploit was an interesting one. Contemplating the situation, and grieved to think that his native town should be in the enemy's hands, David gave expression to a wish - "Oh that someone would give me water to drink of the well of Bethlehem which is before the gate!" It was probably meant for little more than the expression of an earnest wish that the enemy were dislodged from their position - that there were no obstruction between him and the well, that access to it were as free as in the days of his youth. But the three mighty men took him at his word, and breaking through the host of the Philistines, brought the water to David. It was a singular proof of his great personal influence; he was so loved and honoured that to gratify his