liimself among the prophets in the very outset of his history; and although sadly deteriorated in character, he still retained his early sensibilities. Indeed, throuo-h the very disorder of hi~ faculties he had become more susceptible than ever of reliO'ious excitement; so when he reached Naioth he was quite beyonrl himself. The spirit- ual electricity of the pince was too much for him, and he fell into a very paroxysm of enthusiasm. At first when, on the way to Naioth, he lifted his voice in some 1Jacred chant, it was well, and the historian does not hesitate to say that "the Spirit of God.was upon him." But at Naioth he behaved like a fanatical devotee of some heathen god, .or a wild dervish of the East. He threw off his royal tunic, and after long and exhausting exercise of body and spirit lay in nothing but his under-dress, prone and probably motionless, on the ground for" all that day and all that night." But though ".among the prophets," he was not of them. It was a mere fi~ of fervour soon to. pass away. The heart of Saul was by. this time hopelessly "jangled and out of tune." The subject of temporary religious excitement needs to be carefully thought out and discreetly handled. But it can never be fully explained-at all events not till mor~ is known of the action of the nervous system, and till more light falls on the mysterious question of contagious emotion and imitative cerebral stimu- lation. One or two things, however, are plain enough, and deserve to be noted; e. g.- 1. There is a religious excitation which carries with it no moral influence whatever. It is not feigned or insincere. He who is the subject of it is really lifted up or carried along as with a rush of earnest feeling. He cries for mercy ; he prays with strong supplication ; or he sings of pardon and of unutterable joys. His emotions are all aglow, and his brain is stirred to unusual activity. This occurs the more easily if one who is constitutionally accessible to.such gusts of feeling falls among others who are much· in earnest. He finds .himself where prayers burst forth from importunate souls,,and •hymns are sung with a swing of enthusiasm. At once he feels as those around •him •do. Yet there is no ohange of his moral nature ; he is merely a person of susceptible or imitative constitution, who has caught the contagion of religion from others,· yet has not come, and may never come, to repentance. It is not for a moment to· 'be denied that in many cases a real moral and spiritual change is produced in the midst of much excitement; but the excitement is only an accompaniment of the change-perhaps necessary for some.minds, but always fraught with some degree of danger.-· The only thing of lasting value is the exercise of conscience, and the turning of the affections and will to God in Christ. 2. The degree in which new religious emotion overpowers the body is generally pro11.orfioned to the prP-vious ignorance of the mind, or its estrangement from God. David at Naioth fell into no frenzy, lay in no swoon, because he was a man of God, and devout feeling flowed through him unim- peded, found in him a cong·enial heart. But Saul had been in an evil mood; envy and murder were in his breast. So, when a pure and sacred impulse came upon him, it met resistance ; and there were bodily manifestations which, far frcnn being marks of grace, were signs of a moral state at variance with the Spirit of God. This case should teach caution in ascribing any religious value to prostrations, trances, and long fasts. These thi:ngs most frequently occur in cases of a morbid hysterical tempera- ment, or 'in very ignorant persons who are disturbed and terrified, or in instances where religious feeling, suddenly flowing in on unprepared minds, encounters obstin- at~ ohstruction. When the mind is thoughtful and refined, or when the heart is gentl_e anQ,, open to .any good influx, religious fervour seldom causes any disorder in the. nervous system or the physical constitution. We may be reminded here that David could show no small excitement, for he danced before the ark in the sight of all Israel (2 Sam. vi. 14). True ; but in all the enthusiasm of that great occasion King David was sober-minded and self-possessed. He had good reasons for leading the sacred processional dance, ns may afterwards be shown; but, far from giving way to excitement, or losing his senses like Saul, he went calmly through the duties of an eventful and fatiguing day. He offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Then he blessed the people, causing provisions to be distributed among them. And after all this II David returned to bless his house." Such is the enthusiasm we desire T.o. be full of joy before the Lord, but at the same time to be of o. healthy mind, re[\dy for -public or private duty hour by hour.. But we see no ~ood in ne_r\'Uus e:a;citement .or hysterical ecstasy. When we consider that the B1 ble 1s a collect1on of 876 THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL. [ea. xx. 1-23,
E11~tern books, and that ~he. East has ahrnJs been the home of strange rclig-ioue extraY_agances, we recogmse _m th? ~,·ell:bal~nce_d sobriety of mind which pervades the Dible a new proof of its Dznne mspzratlon. It takes notice of the varied phenom~-nal e:ffec_ts of strong religious feeling· 0;1 the human frame; it tells of long prostration~, excited movements, and prophetic trances;__but it always attaches moral s1gmficance and value not to such abnormal conditions but to the effects which appear and remain in character and life. The greatest of all, the Man Christ Jesus, the Lord whom we are to love and follow, is shown to us full of 11 sublime enthusiasm, but full at the same time of meekness and of wisdom. The Scripturc-s teach us to be calm and fervent, fervent and calm. If rushes of devout emotion come upon us, be it so. If men who have no faith call us fanatical and mad be it so Such mei:i said of our Master, "He rageth, and hath a demon;" and of Paul, "Thou art bes1?e thyself." But le! the evidenc~ of our Christian fnith and principle he found not m any moods of excitement, but m the moral excellence we exhibit the fruit of the Spirit we bring forth. So shall we find consolation and strength 'when others only expose their weakness; and every pause at Naioth, or the place of prayer and holy fellowship, will brace our spirits for the trials that must yet befall us before we are perfected.-F
EXPOSITION. JONATHAN ENDEAVOURS TO RECONCILE SAUL TO DAVID (en. xx.).