true; and witchcraft wl1en we adore false gods, knowing them to he wicker! an<""r fnlse-the heiglit ,,f idolatry. And yet we see, though these be true degrees, S,11n11e! teucheth us that they arc nil of a nature, when there is once a receding from tlic word of God" (Bacon, 'Advancement of Learning'). "All conscious diRobedi1>ncc is actual idolatry, because it makes self-will, the human I, into a god" (Keil). "Little children, keep yourselves from idols" (1 John v. 21). III. THE JUST C0NDE}rNATION OF THE DISOBEDIENT (eh. xxviii. 18). 1. The punishment of the disobedient is the appropriate fruit of his disobedience. "Be- cause thou hast rejected me," &c. Saul wished to reign without God, and have his own way; what he sought as a blessing he obtains as a curse. Sinners say, "Depart from us," &c. (Job xxi. 14); and the most terrible sentence that can be pronounced upon them is, "Depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Ps. vi. 8 ; Matt. vii. 23). ~ God rejects no one unless he is before rejected by him." 2. It involves grievowJ loss and misery-the loss of power, honour, blessedness ; the experience of weakness, reproach, unhappiness, which cannot be wholly avoided, even though mercy be after- wards found. 3. J udgment is mingled with mercy. Although Saul was discrowned as theocratic king, he did not cease to live or to reign as "legal king." He was not personally and entirely abandoned. God sought his salvation to the last. " His rejection involved only this-(1) That God would henceforth leave him, and withdraw from him the (special) gifts of his Spirit, his counsel through the Urim and Thummim and by his servant Samuel ; and (2) that in a short time the real deposition would be followed by tangible consequences-the kingly ruins would be destroyed, and the kingdom would not pass to his descendants" (Hengstenberg, ' Kingdom of God,' ii. 89).-D. Vers. 24-31. (GILGAL. )-Insincere confession of sin. "I have sinned" (vers. 24, 30). On hearing the sentence of his rejection, Saul at length confesses his sin. The words of Samuel have some effect upon him, but not the fuil effect they should have had. For his confession does not proceed from a truly penitent heart (see eh. vii. 6), and it is not followed either by the reversal of his sentence or the forgiveness of his sin. It was like that of Pl1araoh (Exod. ix. 27), of Balaam (Num. xxii. 34), and of Judas (Matt. xxvii. 4)-springing from "the sorrow of the world, which worketh death" (2 Cor. vii. 10). Notice- I. ITS CHARACTERISTICS. It was made-1. Under the pressure of circumstances, rather than as the free expression of conviction. Confession comes too late when it is extorted by the demonstration of sin which can no longer be denied. Some men, like Saul, conceal their sin so long as they can, and confess it only when they are compelled. 2. From the fear of consequences (vers. 23, 26), and not from a sense of the essential evil of sin. This is the most common characteristic of insincerity. As Saul confessed his sin from the fear of losing his kingdom, so do multitudes from fear of death, and live to prove their insincerity by their return to disobedience. "Ther~ an, two views of sin: in one it is l_ooked upon as a wrong; in the other as producmg loss-loss, for example, of character. In such cases, if character could be preserved before the world, grief would not come ; but the paroxysms of misery fall upon our proud spirit when our guilt is made public. The most distinct instance we have of this is in the life of Saul. In the midst of his apparent grief, the thing $till uppermost was that he had forfeited his kingly character; almost the only longing was that Samuel should honour him before the people. And hence it comes to pass that often remorse and anguish only begin with exposure" (Robertson). 3. To tlie servant of God, and to gain his approval, and not to God, and to obtain his favour. "Thy words" (ver. 24). "Now therefore'' (os if on the ground of bis confession he could justly claim pardon), "I pray thee, pardon my sin" (ver. 25). Many confess their sin to men without confessing it to God, and attach to their confossion a worth flrnt does not belong to it. 4. With an extenuation of guilt, rather than with a full acknowledgment of its enormity. " I feared the people, and obeyed their voice" (vers. 24, 15). He returns to his first excuse, which he puts in a different form. It "Vhat he said waB true, what he had done was wrong (Exod. xxiii. 2). There is r, nigher law than the clamour of a multitude. True penitents do not seek to palliate . their ■in, but make mention of it~ grentness us a plea for Divine mercy (Ps. xxv. 11). 2AG THE FlHSl' BOOK 01<' SA:\IUI~L. [ell. xr. 1-35.
5. Trilli an entreaty for public honour, rathPr than in dePp humiliation before God and 111;'.11. ·' Honour me now, I pr.1y thee, before tl_,e elders of the people, and beforo lsraC'I ( wr. 30) "If Saul had been really pemtent, he would have prayed to be liumbl('.d rather ~han to be honoured" (Gregory). 6. With repeated promises of rendei"'l11g worslnp before the Lord, rather than a serious purpose to obey his voiC'e (,·ers. 25, 30). He does not seem e,·en yet to have laid to heart the truth which had been declared by the prophet; a1:d he probably looked upon public worship b\ sacrifice as something peculiarly praiseworthy, and sought, by urg-ino- Samuel to remain and o~er it, to ~romote his own honour in tlie sight of the people, and not as the e~press10n of pemtence and the means of forgiveness "The most prominent £e:iture m the character of Saul was his insincerity." And yet, in his repeated pro- mises to worship the Lord, and his nrgent entreaties of Samuel, there was doubtless an element of good that might not he despised (1 Kings :ui. 29).
"The blackest night that veils the ss:y, Of beauty hath a share; • The darkest heart hath signs to tell That God still lingers there."