PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel
Robert Payne Smith [1818-1895] · 500,296 words · 562 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 421
enemies; "not in a spirit of revenge, hut rather in a spirit of zeal for the glory of God, desire for tlie vindication of right, n.nd regard for the peace and purity of society" ('Expositor,' iv. 56), as he does in Ps. LII., "The punishment of an evil tongue" (see inscription):- " Why boastest thou thyself in wickedne…
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their love to him, which mll not suffer them to lea'l"e him, or be unfaithful to him for the sake of gaining the favour of the world. 3. Decause it hae been thue, ordained. "Unto you it is gfren," &c. (Phil. i. 29). "With pereecutions" (lllnrk x. 30), which are an occasion of spiritual bleesing (lllatt. v. 10). II. ll…
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Ing and heavy-laden. He had powerful attraction for all who were distressed. And from the day when he took op & position apart from the rulers of the Jews, though he headed no movement of resistance, it became more and more obvious that those rulers had lost the favour of Jehovah, and had nothing before them but thicke…
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~\'1,i]e ,~-c expose its ei_-rors, let n_s always acknow.edge whatever of the truth of God' 11 contams, and be patient. Ultnnately that system must perish. As the Philistines and not the follo"·ers of DaYid, made an end of Saul, so the democratic infidelity' not tl!e reformed Chn_rch, is likely t~ make an end of the…
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transpa.rent truth and noble candour. When it became known through the land that Ahimelech and the priests had been killed by the king's order on a mere suspicion of disaffection which was false, a thrill of horror must have run through many bosoms, and those who feared the Lord must have had sore misgiving that he had…
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ilcring it of the produce of its harvest. This southern portion of the Shephelah (Josh. xv, fllace lay a few miles south of the strong- 44). Iiold of Adullarn, and itself occupied a de- Ver. 6. -When Abiathar . . . 11.ed to fensible position, being perched on a steep David to Xeilah, he came down with an hill overl…
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from tho popular language, e.nd no attempt logical order, but in accorrlance, with their should bo mnde to get rid of unusual expres- relativo importance in Davi,l's minrl, anrl no sions, e.s if they were fe.lse readings. By ground exists for altering the text. But entering into a town that hath gates and when the epho…
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into our act\1al ~ec?s and temper. T~1ere is abundant scope for this habitual defer- ence to Gods _will m !he dcman_ds winch co~ne upon us from all quarters. Dy reason uf tl1e strong rnteract10n of vanous tendencies within us. and the opposing claims of wlia! seem to b_e_ bene,·ol~n~e and prn~ence, we may, like Davi…
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inatances, 11a in the case of Abraham (Gen. xv. 1), the personal and genernl might -coincicle. Tho guidance granted to the patriarchs for the unfolding of the redemp- tive purposes was chiefly in form of vi~ible or audible manifestations, a methocl well ,suited to a primitive life without religious literature, precede…
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(1) Recogniti?n of a kigh v~cation in life, associa~ed with G~d 's merciful purpodes tu1Vard mankmd. No man 1s great whose energies do not rn their results nim &t ~orneth_ing_ beyond l~im~elf; ~or is that a h!gh style of character whieh is governed by asp1rat10ns termmatmg with the matenal and temporal wants of mank…
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Samuel; we, in our private or public sphere, have, as the business of our life, fre maintenance of a theocracy more blessed and wide in its influence than that for which David lived; the Divine truth for our instruction and admonition embraces more than he was wont to meditate on by day and night ; and it is our privil…
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I. That MISIXTERTRETATION AND MISCALCULATION ARE comrnN IN THE AFFAIRS oF· MEN. It is a truism that men make mistakes ; but making mistakes is not alway~ identical with misinterpretation of human conduct, and the false reckoning proceed- ing therefrom. There is a too prevalent opinion among certain classes of men tha…
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be]iev~ what.we wish, and to see evil where. we. cherish ill:will: A very pure, Jo,inl! soul will avoid errors where others of supenor intellect will fail ; for purity and Jorn will hold the will back from judgment on uncertain data, and will also, by a sort of moral-intuition, recognise goodness where less spiritual n…
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was to the l'ff!'ct thnt. should th<>y be brought to the test, they would develop tend- !'ll<'i<:'s which giwe no sign of present existence, and which if charged on them would prohnhly be emphati<'ally r<:'pudiatcd. Thu11 do we see how there mny dwell in men 11nconscio11sly to themselves, Intent tendencies which, th…
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will expnn<l nnd nssumo in our outward life permanent forms of 11Aefulness arnl ·lJenuty. 3. In our work/or Clirut. Both the kind and character of Christian work nre influenced by our recognition of the less manifest tendencies of human nature. It is noticeable how constontly Christ epake to the hidden thoughts and fe…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS A UTHOHS. \"ers. 1-6. (HARETH, KEILAH.)-Piiblic spirit. "So David saved the inhabitants- of Keilah" (nr. 5). Another step in advance was now made by David. Whilst Saul (in addition to alienating the prophets, and well-nigh exterminating the priests) failed to afford adequate protection to his su…
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Vere. 1-12. (HARETH, KEILAH.)-Answers to prayer. Inquiry of the Lord by Urim and Thummim really meant prayer in which Divine direction was sought in a particular manner (see eh. xiv. 19, 36). It was made by David soon after the arrival of Abiathar, on three several occasions (vers. 2, 4, 10),-on the last of them by …
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EXPOSITION. SAUL S PURSUIT OY DAVID IN THE WILDER· 0 a growing conviction, uot only in Jonathan's KESSOFZIPH (vers. 14-28). Vers.14, 15.- mind, but generally, that Jehovah had trans- Strong holds. Natural fortresses in the woods ferred the kingdom from Saul to David, and mountains are meant, and places diffi- and …
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first would have been n very trying lot, and Jixity he encourages them still to keep a it was better for Jonathan that he should close watch upon all David's movements, so dio a soldier's death, even granting that he as to know his place where his haunt is. would hnve felt a lively joy in David's suc- Literally, "his p…
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h,,,ls, bnt there is no other place near Maon where cliffs snch as are to be inferred from fts base," but ho went to it ns being nn impassable barrier between him nnd his the word sela' can be found. It seems to me pursuers. But "he hnstod anxiously to prctt~· safe, therefore, to look on this go~ge get away" (ver.…
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,shame, and death. In his rase we see how the higher the service, the wider its ran,U'e, and the more pure am! blissful its issue, the deeper were its sorrow~. To him th;ro was no contrariety between tl1e bitterness of the cup provided and the love unspectk- a ble and unmeasured. Not every one is fitted to enter fol…
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in ~l1_e spiritual ser:ice which unites us those who are_ ~n_Pposed to hold inferiw pos1t1~ns, and cer~.amly do not carry so heavy rospons1b1ht1es, are able to render, most nnportnnt aid to others ~hove them in these respects. David wns relatively the_ greater man, and yet David needed the spiritnRl encouragement and s…
883 wordsSECTION 443The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 443
D~vid with courage amidst his sorrows and cares. The narrative implieA tlat the friends conversed freely on the situation and prospects of David. Doubtless Jona- than, besides assuring David of his own belief in God's purposes and his personal allegiance, would also press upon him the fact of Israel's need, the past ca…
863 wordsSECTION 444The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 444
Da ,·id: tlH' moral causes of disregard for the_ si~ns of the times; the tendency to cove up_ d_c<'ds of wrong under the plea of patnotism and loyalty; the degree to whicl n'.hgions ~orms of speech and. professions of sanctity may survive tho utter decay 01 ntal_ godliness ; and the moral uses of protracted trouble …
1,712 wordsSECTION 445The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 445
Cl1rist makes the invariable condition of being his subjects, and this perverts the jndgrnent. lll. STRONU FAITH IN Goo IS THE PROPER COMPLEMENT OF THE MOST EARNEST F:XliRTION, AND IS A POWER IN DRINGING ADOUT THE DESIRED RESULT. Confining our attention to this narrative, we should conclude that David not only strove …
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God. m_adc hi_s wa_Y to him in the thic),ets of the forest (literally, IIoresh), anrl con- soled bun as if with w_ords and_ promises _from God himself" (Ewald). He did not nccon:pany the _force 1i:i _pursmt o~ J?av1d (ver. 15), but came from Gibeah. His peculiar and tr)•mg pos1t10n made 1t 11nposs1ble for him to do …
1,035 wordsSECTION 447The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 447
Vere. 19-23. (THE HILL Oli' HACHILAH.)-TreacheriJ. One of the most painfut of the afflictions of David (suspicion, hatred, calumny, ingratitude, &c.) was trea- chery, such a, he experienced at the hands of some of the people of_ Ziph. They were men of his own tribe, had witnessed his deliverance of Keilah from the comm…
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imd prayer. " What doth not prayer overcome and conquer? What doth not resist- ance drive back when accompanied by distrust of self and trust in God ? Ami in what battle can he be con~uered who stands in the presence of God with an earnest resolve to please him?' (Scupoli). 11 When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enem…
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simple period of the "·orld;" an<l they allege that these cannot be reproduced in the, Bophisticated society of modern times. There is something in this though it is not absol11tely true. The tone of "In Memoriam" may be too intens~ for most of u~ hut it is not incomprehensible. That is a rare and lofty friendship w…
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half a mile square. All around are the rums CHAPTER XXIV. of ancient gardens and thickets, among which DAVID SPARES SAUL'S LIFE IN A CAVE he saw the beautiful black grackles with (vers. 1-7). Ver. 1.-The wilderness of gold-tipped wings, bulbuls, and thrushes. En-gedi. Finding no safety on the western Solomon seems …
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,might, and the keenest ere cannot sec five bade me kill thee. He brow, "ho bade to kill ·paces inwai·d; but one who has been long thee." The literal rendering is "Jchov&b within, and is looking outwai·d toward the delivered theo to-day into my' hand and <'ll!rance, can observe with perfect distinct- bade kill thee."…
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liver me out of thy hand, the Hebrew is, momentarily by his generosity, prays that "will judge mo out of thy hand," i. e. will Jehovah will reward him for what he had judge mo, and by doing so justly will dt>- done. liver me from th;r power. Vers. 20-22.-I know well that thou Ver. 16.-This address of David pro- shalt …
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,d,ich ProYidcnce was working out great issues for Israel and all mankind but also 1rnggest seYeral topics of far wider range than the individual life of David'. Cm:es, from Machpelah, the centre o_f ~olemn and tender interests (Gen. xxiii. 1-9; xxv. 9; xxxY. 2~ ;_ I. 1~), on to the h1~mg-pla?e of a ~,eary-_hearted pro…
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upon the indications of Providence as then working out in favour of David's cause, we have the question of the proneness of men to view passing events in the light of their own tendencies, and, therefore, to make Providence mean what it was never -designed to suggest. Apart from controversy on the fore-mentioned poin…
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of sC'lf-w!l( shall gain ascendancy in his nature. They are wise who in a kind and tendrr spmt seek to bring men to a higher form of spiritual life. It is in love-tho pure lo,·e of God-that truth is to be seen. It should induce us to seek for ourselves and others more of the purifying grace of the Holy Spirit. Possi…
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Vera. 8-15.-Discrimination in relation to men, truth, and vocation. The facts are-1. David follows Saul out of the cave and pays him homage. 2. He remon- strates against Saul heeding the lies of slanderers, and declares to him how he had just spared his life. 3. Exhibiting the skirt of the robe in evidence of his words…
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conviction that his actions were now not responsible in the same degree as when he disobeyed the command of God through Samuel. In the Psalms we have other language-strong, se,-ere, withering-intended for " men set on fire, sons of men whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword" (Ps. !vii. 4). "D…
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of national resources were matters of deepest concern. The consciousness 0£ this drew him nearer to G:od, attached responsibility to his deeds, imparted dignity and grace to his bearing, put a restraint on the flow of private feelings, and, though uncrowned, made him royal in his magnanimity. David as a coming king was…
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all the better qualities of our humanity; but the fact comes before us in history, biographical confessions, and in the intercourse of daily life. \Vho has not seen a. hardened sinner subdued br a reminder of a mother's prayers 1 or the mention in gentle tones of the SaYiour s name, or the kindly gaze of a Chnstian …
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Vers. 1-7. (ENGEDI.)-David's forbearance toward Saul. "Would it not be ;nanly to resent it?" said one, on receiving an affront. "Yes,'' was the reply, " but it would be Godlike to forgive it." In the spirit of this answer David acted ,~hen he spared Saul in the cave at Engedi, and thereby proved that he was guiltless o…
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" Jehovah my God, in thee have I found refuge; Save me from my persecutors and deliver me I" How much he felt the wrong which they had done him, and how intensely hie zeal burned against their sin against God and man, appear!! in many of his psalms (Pe. xx.iv. 13; xxxv. 11; Iii. 2; Jvi. 5; !vii. 4; lix. 7, &c.). Good …
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Pro,.. xiii. 16). 3. An evil disposition is plainly proved by evil actions. It is so especially v.·hen they nre performed deliberately, hahituallr, and on occasions of decisive trial. "By their fruits ye shall know them." The p,:oof is perfectly reliable easily perceivable, and generally applicable. ' II. lTs A~PLI…
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morally perverted natures, in such wise that the Divine in thern is freed from the binding power of evil, and the religious moral element of the conscience, which is concealed deep under religious moral corruption, breaks freely forth, at leaRt in some bright and good moments, in order to point to the wo.y of salvat…
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-i!l icars. S~ eYil was for the time O\'ercomc by good. David was helped to this JH>hlc hchav10nr at Engcdi by his recent meeting with Jonathan in the forest of Z1ph. At and through that meeting he had been encouraged in God. So in the hour of temptation he abstained from revenge, confided to God the vindication of …
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petitions for pardon and for help to cease from this insidious vice. So in a little while the shame is gone, the good promises are forgotten, the friend who spoke so kindly is hated for his pains, and the perverse man succumbs to temptation, and goes on to n drunkard's diRgrace, goes down to a drunkard's grave. Ther…
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Chron. xxxiii. 20). So .Toab was buried in cultics in the way of this rending, and the. his own house (1 Kings ii. 34). At Re.mah. Kri is probably right in correcting calibbi, 8 . Thcnins thinks that the prophets shared Calcbite, a desrendant of Caleb, who had with the kings the right of intramural burial. large pos…
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who h11d run away from his master, Saul, Vera. 21, 22.-David justifies his fierce Ky bread, . . . · my water. These are the anger by referring to the services he had necessaries of life, while the flesh was the rendered Nabal, and which had been requited special luxury provided for the festival. so shabbily. For the ph…
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who h11d run away from his master, Saul, Vera. 21, 22.-David justifies his fierce Ky bread, . . . · my water. These are the anger by referring to the services he had necessaries of life, while the flesh was the rendered Nabal, and which had been requited special luxury provided for the festival. so shabbily. For the ph…
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perity (see on eh. ii. 35). Bees.use my lord acknowlcdgmcnt of Abigail's remonstrance fighteth. Hebrew, ",vill fight." David sees in it the han<l. of Jehovah the God ot· was not fighting these battles now because he Isre.el, who bad sent her, i. e. stirred her up to was not yet enthroneJ as the theocratic king. come…
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HO.MILETI CS. Vcrs. 1-12.-Honour to the dead and insult to the living. The facts are-l- Samuel rlies, and is buried at Ramah amidst the sorro\v of Israel. 2. David, ret11rn- ing to the wilderness, sends a greeting to Nabal, a wealthy man at Carmel, anrl asks for some favour to his young men on account of the friendly …
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personal influence of the greatest man of the age henceforth would cease. We cannot say whether a good man's activity of spirit no longer operates as a power on men after his death-probably it does if there be any truth in the conservation and per- sistence of spiritual forces; but so far as survivors are concerned …
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In Chri~t; the redempti".e purpose is wrought_ o_ut through the instrumentr.lity of chosen servants, succeeding one another by D1vme arrangement; events tonchin"' the lives of thes_e men nffected the performance of their part in the acc0mplishing of the _Purpose, m so far ,iQ they developed character or bro•1ght the…
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all arnund. The next is the c-11ltiYation of a kindly, generous spirit that looks ten- derly on the more needy, combinP,d with a sound judgment as to the best means of enabling many to enjoy the distribution of wealth as tho recompense of labour nnd skill. AboYe all, eYery man should, in a spirit of love and g·ratit…
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·than usually is found among men of ],is class when placed in personal peril. Regard- sing the two causes separately, we may express the teaching thus:- I. T1rnnu JS AT TIMES A SAD JllSPROP0RTION JlETWEEN THE BELIEFS AND THE PRACTICE OF EVEN THE BEST OF MEN. David was undoubtedly the most spiritnally enlightened, pa…
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Yers. 18--31.- lVise persuasiveness. The facts are-1. Abigail aware of the d~nger, prov\des an m:1pfe p_resent, and sec~tly sen~s on her servant~ to prepnre the mmd of David for an mterv1ew. 2. On seemg David she humbly seeks an audience and intimates tlrn_t ~ abal wa~ not to be. regarded. as of impo_rtance .. 3. Sh…
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our "nnmee written in heaven" (Luke x. 20), and to be objects of a love from which nothing can separate us (Rom. viii. 38, 39). A judicious use of such reflec- tions nnd considerations is extremely important in spiritual culture. Men are deeply touched hy the thought of what God has done for them. A little religious re…
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Vere. 36-44.-Contrasts,patience, and domestic ties. The facts are-1. Abigail,. finding Nabal in the midst of a drunken revel, refrains from speaking of her inter- view with David. 2. In the morning, on her relating what had transpired, he-- became insensible, and soon after dies. 3. On hearing of his death David rec…
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locality where truth is loved and rejected these opposite tendencies and issues nre found, and it would be instructive and impressive to develop with il111strations from , history the gradations of contrast. The clue to contrasts in taste, habit, and final condition is to be sought in .the state of the spirit in its …
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 1. (RAMAH.)-Samuel's death and burial. "And Samuel died." 1. The end of the great prophet's life is recorded in brief and simple words. This is accordino- to the manner in which the death of men is usually spoken of in the Scripture: Whilst their life is narrated at length, their de…
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,of the Lord, &c. And after his death he prophesied, and showed the king his end" (Eccles. xlvi. 13-20). He died-1. In a good old age. At what age we kno1'1 ·not; but long ago he spoke of himself as "old and grayheaded" (eh. xii. 2). Ili~ -protracted life was an evidence of his self-control and piety, a mark of Divine…
1,126 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.