he expii'ed, without any space given him for repentance ! Well then might Da\dd weep for him, even tears of blood. David well knew the misery of those who died in their sins, and had often wept for the inconsiderateness of those who overlooked their danger : well therefore might he weep as he did for the miserable end of Absalom.]
In other respects it certainly was wrong —
[The dispensation was indeed most afflictive ; but still it called for different feelings in the mind of David. In it there was a mixture of mercy and of judgment : and, if he had \dewed it aright, liis sorrows would have been tempered with resignation and gratitude. The death of Absalom was in part a 2^unish- ment of David's sin in the matter of Uriah ; and therefore when the judgment was inflicted, he should, like Aaron, have " held liis peace ^," or have said, Hke EH, " It is the Lord, let him do what seemeth liim good^." The death of Absalom was also a mercy both to David and to all Israel, masmuch as it put a speedy end to the calamities of civil war, and was the means of re-establishing David on the throne of Israel. Should not this then have called for thanksgiving on the part of David? Yet behold, there was but too much justice in the remark of Joab, that David was insensible of all these mercies ; and that he would have been better pleased with the loss of all his faith- ful adherents that had exposed their lives for him, than of this graceless wretch who had sought his destruction*^. Surely such grief could not be justified: after all the allowance that must be made for the affection of a parent, and the compassion of a saint, we are constrained to acknowledge, that the feehngs of David on this occasion were ill regulated and unchastised. He seems almost to have quarrelled with God, when he should rather have said, Hke Job, " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord*^!"]
Much instruction however may be gathered from this expression of David's grief. Let us proceed to consider,
II. The lessons it is calculated to teach us —
Much instruction does it impart,
1. To men in general —
[It teaches us loudly to moderate our affections toivards the creature. Whatever God bestow upon us, we are apt to fix our affections too strongly on it, and to forget that it is a loan rather than a gift : we forget that it still remains the Lord's,
a Lev. X. 3. b 1 Sam. iii. 18.
c 2 Sam. xix. 3—6. ^ job i. 21.
322.1 David's lamentation over absalom. 297
and that he has a right to call for it whenever he will. Hence if it be unexpectedly withdrawn from us, we are ready to grieve and murmur, as if every source of happiness were cut off from us: because a cistern is broken, we lament, as if the fountain itself also were dried up. This is especially the case in reference to near and dear relations : but such inordinate regard to the creature is idolatry ; and it will sooner or later biing its own punishment along with it.
It teaches us also to proportion our sorroios to the occasion. Sorrow is allowable, especially for the loss of our friends or relatives. So far was our Lord from condemning the grief of Martha and Mary for the death of their brother, that he him- self joined in it; " Jesus wept." Grief too on such occasions may sometimes be very deep. If, for instance, a minister be removed in the midst of all his usefulness, as Stephen was, there is good reason why " great lamentation should be made for him," because the loss of such an one to the Church of God is incalculable ^. If a man be not taken away in the midst of life, yet, if he have been eminently good and greatly distinguished, he may also be deeply lamented *^. Nor is this due to jmblic characters only : private individuals also, who have rendered themselves useful in their day and generation, may well be thus deplored. Dorcas had laid herself out for the comfort and support of the poor : she had assisted them in the way that best suited her ability and their wants : and therefore when she was withdrawn by death, the loss of her was much be- wailed, and a lively interest was excited to get her, if pos- sible, restored to lifes. Thus a concern for the general good may fitly increase the tide of our sorrows on the removal of any one by death : but there are occasions, as when any saint is released from a state of deep affliction and distress, when we may rather rejoice over them, as resting from their labours, and hajDpy in the fruition of their God^\ But in any case we must guard against that inordinate sorrow which renders us unmindful of God's mercies, or insensible of our own desert.]