frew old, and his sons did not walk in his steps, 'hfcu came the clamour lor a cliange— for a trial 5f » new system. Instead of the projjlict, we have the royal Saul— a king after the people's hearts, but yet not after God's heart. In all this, none the less, is to be distinguished an onward move- ment,— a step to the great goal God always had in view — the bringin'j in of His own anointed. When Saul's reign liaa ended in ruin und disaster to himself and to the land (1 S 31), the way was open for God to set ujion the throne His king — a man after His own heart, who should fuUil all His will (cf. Ac 13"). The Davidic era thus became, despite the deep later shadows in David's personal cliaracter and career, a typical one for the history of the kingdom of God. It introduced a new abiding element into the conception of the theocracy, for we have not now simply the single, invisible Kuler, J", but the visible representative of this unseen Sovereign reigning in His name on earth. The fundamental outlines of the theocratic kingdom in this new form are laid down in the promises to David (2 S 7), in whose house the kingdom is established (vv."- ", Ps 8'J. 132) ; and this yields the ideal ol the theocratic ruler as it henceforth appears in the history, and in the loftier strains of psalm and prophecy — one who would feel that his sole function was to be the instrument and visible reprusentative of the great invisible King, and would rule the kingdom in strict subordination to the will and law of God ; who would know tlial his authority was a deputed, delegated authority, and would seek at every step to 111! guiilcd by Goii's wishes; w ho would have unity of w ill with God — would be in symiiathy with G<h1 in His ends; a truly pious king, tnerefore, ruling the kingdom, not irom worldly motives, or in a worldly K]iirit, or for selfiiggrandizomcnt, but (or God's glory, to whom (ion wouUl be a 'Father,' and he would be God's 'son ' (OS 7. 23'-», I's 2. 2t). 46. 72. 89. lU.. 132, etc.. Is 32, ete.). Only approxi- mately, and with sad defections, wils this ideal realized even under David ; or amidst the external iplendours of the reign of Solomon ; or under the
most pious of Judah's princes after the division of the kingdom ; but the manifest failure of the visible theocracy only made the light of projiliocy burn brighter in the hope of a future day and a greater I'ersonage (cf. Is 7'*"" 9*-' etc.), in whom, under happier conditions, the ideal would be realized.
(rf) This brings us to the last stage in the OT development of the idea of the kingdom of God^ the /Jio/ihetic, with which must be conjoined the enlarged ideals and anticipations of the paitlms. All the germs of previous revelation now blossom into an incomparable fulness of conception of the future glorious triumph of Goil's kingdom in Isr. and over the earth, but with a i Icarcr apprehension, wrought by the unspeakably bitter disappointments and humiliations of the nation, of the conditions under which alone such a con- sum tuation could be wrought out. It is a mar- vellous fact that it was not because Isr. was suc- ceeding in fullilling its mission, but because it was failing in it, that the spirit of prophecy wrought so powerfully in the development of these germs, which lay hidden in the nation's life, to a universal form. Now at least, with unmistakable clearness, we have the full consciousness that J" is the God of the whole earth ; that His providence rules over all ; that His purpose has an asi)ect to the Gentiles as well as to the .Jews; that Isr. is His servant, with a mission to become a li'jht to the Gentiles and a blessing to the whole of mankind (Am 4" 5", Mic 4'"^, Is 40. 42. 60, etc.). The more evident it be- came that the existing form of the theocracy would not endure, the stronger became the con- viction that God's kingdom would not perish, but that there wouUl be a restoriilion of the theocracy on a grander and more spiritual biisis, accompanieii with the promulgation to the nations of the world of the worship of the living God, and the pouring out of the Spirit on all Uesh (Jer 3P'-", Ezk 17--=* 3lJ^"-'', Jl 2^'^'). A similar development of this consciousness of the universal mission of Isr. meets us in the Psalms — the highest point, perhaps, being reached in the 87th Psalm, which foretells the future inclusion of the most distant peoples, the greatest world-powers, even the most inveterate enemies of J", in the future city or kingdom of (!od (UV, cf. Ps 2. 67. 98, etc.). On no idea, accordingly, is the influence of the development in psalm and prophecy more marked than on that of the theo- cratic Iving — the coming Personage in whom the nopes of the spiritual part of Israel increasingly centred. The clearer it oecanie that the restoration and perfection of the theocracy were not to be looked for from pious kings like Hezekiah and Josiah, and the tiigher and more spiritual the conceptions became of the ' new covenant ' which God would have to make with His people, or the remnant of them, after judgment nad done its work (Is e"", Jerai^'-", Ezk 36^-^, Uos 14, etc.), the more imperative was it felt to be that the Deliverer and Kuler of the seed of David should stand in a relation of nearness and unity to J* transcending the limits of ordinary huiii:iMity — that the perfect union between Him and J" should be realized on the basis of an exceptional dignity of nature, raising Him to a sujierhuman level of character and authority (Ps 11(1, Is 9*"', Jer 3I-, Mic 5^ Dn 7"", Zee 3", Mai 3> etc.). Along another lino — though not without manifest rela- tion to the former (cf. Is 52" .'i3'^ 55' * etc.) — is the development of the conception of the ' Servant of J",' which, rising from the oasis of the national calling of Isr., narrowing itself after to the spiritual (lortion of the people (St. Paul's 'election of grace'), culminates in the majestic jiortrniture of the indi- vidual Sullering Servant (ch. f2"-53) whom the Church rightly identities wiih her Messiali. l'r»