that is in us, is greater than he that is in the world," and " we shall be made more than conquerors through Him that loved us." Gird yourselves then to the battle, expecting " God to perfect his own strength in your weakness." Who- ever, whether of friends or enemies, may attempt to divert you from your purpose, go forward : and remember, that as the eyes of both the hostile armies were fixed on David and Goliath, so is there " a cloud of witnesses" anxiously observing jo\i\ O, " quit yourselves Kke men," and soon you shall have cause to say, " Thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ !"]
' Heb. xii. 1.
Saul's envy of david.
1 Sam. xviii. 9. A?id Saul eyed David from that day and
forward.
THERE is not a baser principle in the human heart than envy. If we notice the connexion in which it is usually mentioned in the Scriptures, we shall see at once what an hateful disposition it is. St. Paul, speaking of the state of mankind by nature, says, they are " full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity*:" and again, shewing what may be the state even of the Christian world, when distracted by contentions and disputes, he says, " lest there be debates, envy'mgs, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whis- perings, swellings, tumults'"." In these two passages we behold it drawn to the very life ; in the one, as restrained within certain limits by the mounds of a religious profession ; and in the other, as breaking down every restraint, and inundating the whole man. For an illustration of it in all its most odious characters, we need look no further than to the passage before us ; where Saul is represented as giving himself up entirely to its dominion. In order to set it before you in its true colours, we shall consider,
I. Its grounds —
a Rom. i. 29. ^ 2 Cor. xii. 20.
30fi.] Saul's envy of david. 209
[Envy is a grudging to another the possession of some good, which we ourselves affect : I say, of some cjood ; for no man wishes evil to himself: the object therefore that excites the passion of envy must be good. It need not indeed be really and intrinsically good ; it is sufficient if it be good in the estima- tion of the person who beholds it. In Saul, envy was excited by the praises which were bestowed on David on account of his success against Goliath : the women, whose office it was to celebrate great actions with songs and music, ascribed to David the honour of slaying mji'iads of his enemies, whilst they spoke of Saul as slaying only thousands. This mark of distinc- tion was painful to the proud heart of Saul, v, iio could not endure that another should be honoured above himself. It is precisely in the same way that envy is called forth by distinc- tions of every kind. Any endowments, whether natural or acquired, are sufficient to provoke this passion in the breasts of men. Beauty, courage, genius, though they be the gifts of nature, and therefore not any grounds of glorying to the per- sons who possess them, are yet greatly envied by those who wish to be admired for those qualities. In like manner, the attainments acquired by skill and diligence, together with the wealth or honour consequent upon those attainments, are objects which universally inflame this malignant passion. It must be observed, however, that this passion is called forth only where some degree of rivalry exists. A physician does not envy the triumphs of a warrior, or the success of a great lawyer ; nor do they, on the other hand, envy his advancement to the summit of his profession : it is in their own line only, and towards those with whom there exists some kind of com- petition, that these feelings are excited : and it is by watching the motions of our hearts in reference to persons so cir- cumstanced, that we shall detect the workings of this passion within us.