2. His vindication of himself —
[Lovely was the spirit of David on this occasion. He did not " render evil for evil, and railing for railing;" but, vnth meekness and modesty, and yet with a firmness expressive of conscious innocence, he appealed to all around him : " What have I now done ? Is there not a cause ? " Have I manifested a grief of heart that my nation should be so insulted, and an indignation of mind that Jehovah himself should be thus defied ?
<= ver. 20, 22.
Have I expressed a willingness to expose my life in the ser- vice of my king, my country, and my God ; and is evil to be imputed to me for this ? Is there any thing in this deserving of blame? Besides, " Is there not a cause" for what I have said and done ? Does not the insolence of this haughty cham- pion call for it ? Does not the dispirited state of my own countrymen require it ? Does not, also, the honour of my God demand it ? And is there any time to be lost ? In the space of another hour this gigantic foe may be out of reach; or the battle may have begun ; and the time for honouring my God, and benefiting my country, may be for ever lost ? Why, then, am I to have all manner of evil imputed to me, for that which is in itself most commendable, and which the occasion so im- peratively demands ?]
David being undoubtedly an example to us in this matter, I shall,
II. Take occasion from it to vindicate those who stand forth as champions in the Christian cause —
They, in their place, must expect to incur censure from an ungodly world —
[Their conduct will be condemned, as unbecoming in per- sons of their age and station : it will be traced also to pride, and conceit, and vanity, as its real source : and it will be re- presented as an occasion and a plea for neglecting their pro- per business in life. The Christian that will serve his Lord and Master with fidelity, shall be sure to meet with some measure of the treatment to which the Saviour himself was subjected: " If they call the Master of the house Beelzebub," let not those of his household hope that they shall be suffered to escape reproach. Even the friends and relatives of a Chris- tian, and especially if he be young, will be among the first to vent their indignation against him : Why shovild he be singu- lar, and venture to adopt a conduct not sanctioned by his superiors ? Why should he, by his indiscreet forwardness, cast a reflection upon all his brethren as v/anting in zeal? Why does he not content himself with discharging his own proper duties, without interfering in matters that are too high for him? What can actuate him in all this, but a vain desire of distinction, or an hypocritical pretension to qualities which he does not possess? In this way shall not his actions only, but his motives also, be judged by those who have not the courage or the piety to follow his example.]
But the faithful Christian may adopt the very ap- peal which David made to those who censured him —
301. J David's vindication of himself. 203
[" What have I now done," that calls for this reproof? Am I to be condemned for manifesting a love to God, and a desire to wipe away the reproach that is cast on Israel? When I see the great adversary of God and man exulting in his might, and putting to flight all the armies of Israel, is it wrong in me to enter the lists against him, and to enrol myself as a soldier of Jesus Christ, to maintain his cause ? What, if I be weak and incompetent to the task, is it any evil to confide in God, and to believe that he will " perfect his strength in my weakness? " Methinks, in an undertaking Hke this, I should meet with encouragement rather than reproof: for in all that I do, in fighting the Lord's battles, I do only what is the duty of every hving man, whether he be old or young, and whether he be rich or poor.