n Iſrael for ever 6. | IT In that very thing wherein thou thinkeſt thou haſt done wiſe- ly and polirickly, in diſobeying my expreſs Command upon a pre- tended neceſſity, or reaſon of State. s Not only upon common grounds, as thou art his Creature, and one ef his people; but in a ſpecial manner, who hath conferred peculiar Favours and Honours upon thee : which is an Aggravation of thy ſin.' b Queff. How could this be true, when the Kingdom was promiſed to Judah, Gen. 49- 10: and conſequently muſt neceſfarily be taken away from Saul, and from his Tribe ? Anfw. Firſt, The Phraſe, for ever, in Scripture uſe, oft-times ſignifies only a long time, as Gene 43- 9. Exods 2I.6. 1 Sam. 28: 2- So this had been abundantly verifi:d, if the King- dom had been enjoyed by $Sa#l, and by his Son, and by his Sons Son ; after whom the Kingdom might have come to Judah. Se- condly, Though the Kingdom had been promifed to Sau, and to his Poſterity for ever un a larger ſenſe, yet that was upon condition
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of his Obedience. And therefore God might weſl promiſe the Kingdom to Judah, becauſe at that time, and before, he foreſaw that Saul would by his Diſobedience forfeit that promiſe, and that he would rake the forfeiture, and transfer theKingdom to Judah.
ver his people, becauſe thou haft not kept thar which the LORD commanded thee f. |
c (i. e- ) Hath found or diſcovered, as Men do by ſeeking» An Anthropopathy« @ ( i. e- ) Such a Man as he defires, one who will fulfill all the deſires of his Heart, and not oppoſe them, as thou doſt, e (i.e. } Hath appointed or decreed, as the word Command is ſometimes uſed : for it was nor yer aftually done. f DLueſt. Firſt, What was Sauls ſin ? Anſw. Either, Firſt, That Saul invaded the Prieſts Office, and offered the Sacrifice himſelf: which is nor Pro= bable, both becauſe he had Prieſts with him, and among others an eminent one, Afiah, chap. 14: 3: and therefore had no occaſion nor pretence for that preſumption. Or rather, Secondly, That Saul did not wait the full time for Samuels coming ; for that is the thing which God commanded, chap. 10: 8: and the breach of this Com. mand is the only thing for which Saw! makes an Apology, v. 11; 12. Quefi.Secondly, Why did God ſo ſeverely puniſh Saul for ſo ſmall an Offence, and that occaſioned by great neceſlity,and done with an ho- neſt Intention ? Avyſw. Firſt, Men are very incompetent Judges of Gods Judgments, becauſe they ſee bur very little, either of the Majeſty of the offended God, or of the hainous Nature and Ag- gravations of the Offence. For inſtance, Men ſee nothing but Sauls outward at&t, which ſeems ſmall ; but God ſaw with how wicked a Mind and Heart he did this, with what Rebellion againſt the Light|of his own Conſcience, as his own words imply ; with what groſs infidelity and diſtuſt of Gods providence ; with what con« tempt of Gods Authority, and Juſtice, and many other wicked Principles and Motions of his Heart, unknown ro Men. Beſides, God clearly ſaw all that wickedneſs that yet Jay hid in his Hearr, and foreſaw a)l his other Crimes ; and therefore had far more grounds for his Sentence againft him, than we can imagine. Se condly, God doth ſometimes puniſh ſmall fins ſeverely, and that for divers weighty reaſons, as that all men may ſee what the leaſt ſin deſerves, and how much they owe to Gods free and rich mercy, for paſſing by rheir great Offences ; and what need they have nor to indulge themſelves in any ſmall ſin, as Men are very prone to do, upon vain preſumptions of Gods mercy, whereby they are eaſily and commonly drawn on to hainous Crimes; and for many other Reaſons : ſo that ſome ſuch inſtances of Gods ſeverity, are neceſſary Diſcipline and Caution to all Markind in the preſent arid future Ages; and therefore there is far more of Merey and kind- neſs in ſuch ARtions, than of Rigour and Harſhneſs, fince this is but particular to one Perſon, and the other is an univerſal Good. Thirdly, It muſt be remembred, that the Kingdom of Saul, and of Iſrael, was now in its Infancy; and that this was the firſt Command which he received from God. And it hath been ever held a plece of Wiſdom in all Law-givers, ſeverely to punifh the firſt Violati< ons of their Laws, to ſecure their honour and Obedience, and to affright and caution Offenders for the future. And according] God dealt with Cain the firſt Murderer; with 1ſ-ael for their fir Icolatry with the Calf ; with the firſt miſcarriage of the Prieſts, Levi. 10. 1- with the firſt prophaner of the Sabbath, Numb. I5. 20. with the firſt groſs Hypocrites in the Chriſtian Church, 48s 5. Fa 10. And therefore it is neither ſtrange nor unjuſt, if he deal with Saul after the ſame manner, and upon the ſame grounds. Fourthly, Though God threaten Sau! with the loſs of his Kingdom for this fin; yet ir is not improbable, that there was a tacit condition im= plied, as 1s uſual 1n ſuch caſes, as Jonah 3. 4. to wit, if he did not heartily repent of this and of all his ſins; for the full, and final, and peremptory Sentence of Sauls reje&ion, Is plainly aſcribed to another Cauie, chap. 15+ 11, 23, 26, 28, 29. and till that ſecond OFf- fence, neither the Spirit of the Lord departed from him, nor was David anointed in his ſtead, chap. 16.1.3, 14:
15 AndSamuel aroſe, and gat him up from Gilgal, unto Gibeah of Benjamin g. And Saul numbred the people that were | dred men.
g Whither Saul alſo followed him; as appears from the next Verſe: either, becauſe it was better fortified than Gilgal : or, be. cauſe he expeQed a greater increaſe of his Army there, it being in his own Tribe, and nearer the heart of his Kingdom: or, becauſe he hoped for Samuels Aſſiſtance there.
16 And Saul, and Jonathan his ſon, and the people that ere preſent with them, abode in Gibeah of Ben- jamin : but the Philiſtines encamped in Michmaſh.
17 And the ſpoilers came out of the camp of the Philiſtines in three companies þ; one company turned vw way that leadeth te Ophrah 3, unto the land-of Shual.
h That they might march ſeveral ways, ofthe Country. 5 A City of Benjamin, Joſh. Michmafb.
18 And another company turned the way to Beth- horon & ; and another company turned to the way of the border that looketh to the valley. of Zeboim toward the wilderneſs /, _
k A City of Ephraim, Joſh, 16. 3. Northweſt from Michmaſh, I i & The Wilderneſs of Jordan, Eaſtward. -.
19 © Now there was no