The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 410

pntience hns had her "perfect work," and discipline has brought us nearer t0 Go, 1, :t "more sum word of prophecy," which "shineth as a light in a dark place," will make clear to ns the perfect will of God. Like as Christ found an end to the " hour of darkness," BO nil who share in his sorrows will find darkness made light before them. The resurrection morn was un end to the gloom and uncertainty of the apostles_ Many an anxious soul, troubled with dark doubts and on the borders of despair, ha~ found at last a light which has turned doubt into confidence and made the path of aubmission•fo Christ the path of joy. "l will not leave you comfortless, but wiil come unto you." General lessons :-1. We .should not despise or discourage persons seeking to be- identified with it good cause on account of their inferiority to those who lead. 2. There may be many waiting for action if men of energy and attractiveness would afford them facility. 3. The experience of the Church in all ages justifies faith in the guidance of God when we have work to do for him. Vera. 6-16,...J...Resistance to God's purposes. The facts are-1. Saul, hearing at Gibeah of David's movements, makes an appeal to his Benjamite attendants. 2. He- insinuates the existence of secret designs against himself, connivance at David's supposed purpose, and lack of pity for his condition. 3. Thereupon Doeg the Edomite- relates what he saw at Nob, and makes the statement that the high priest inquired of the Lord for David. 4. Saul sends for Ahimelech and charges him with conspiracy. 5. Notwithstandingthe high priest's denial of the charge, and his conviction of David's innocence, Saul condemns him and his house to death. The conduct of Saul is increas- ingly devoid of reason, and this gradual failure of intelligence bas its root in moral decay. The key to his infatuation is to be found in the obstinate impenitence of his heart in relation to the sins of his probationary career, and the consequent fight of his entire nature against the settled purposes of God (eh. xi. 24, 25; xii. 24, 25; xiii. 11-14; xv. 26-29). The events recorded in the section before us reveal a more fatal advanc.i in this course of mental and moral degeneration. I. RESISTANCE TO GOD'S PURP08ES FORCES ON INCREASED DANGERS. Had Saul with penitent spirit bowed to the will of God, as expressed in eh. xv. 26-29, and at once- retired into private life, the rest of his days might have been at least devout and quiet. But, persisting in rebellion, he soon saw in the innocent son of Jesse a personal enemy. And the resistance to God's purposes which induced personal envy and ill- will prompted also to open deeds of violence, and these deeds, designed by the per- verted judgment to negative the Divine decree ( eh. xv. 26-29), had the triple effect of cementing the bond between David and Jonathan, of developing the sympathy of the prophets. and of all just men with the persecuted one, and of making David the leader of a band of 400 men, Thus the very devices of a guilty, hardened heart to prevent the .fulfilment of the purposes of God were conducive to a reverse issue. Saul's dangers multiplied just as he sought their removal. The only safe- course for guilty men, guilty Churches and nations, is to bow at once before God, and place themselves unreservedly at his mercy. The laws of providence are in incessant movement toward the realisation of God's purpose against sin. Every effort to set them aside, or to avoid their inevitable issue, only tends to .multiply the agencies by which they at last shall be vindicated. The man who, having committed secret sin, seeks, in the exercise of an impenitent spirit, to cover it up, or brave it out, creates by every thought of his mind a new cord by which he is hound fast to his fate. Nations that seek to ward off the judgments due to past sins by guilty acts for strengthening their position in the world, rather than by sincere repentance and newness of. life, are only heaping up wrath for the day of wrath. Penitence, sub- mission, righteousness, these are the "way everlasting." Practical godliness is the soundest philosophy for individuals and communities. ll. lT INDUCES A STATE OF MIND WHICH CREATES GREAT FEARS OUT OF SLIGHT CIR- CUMSTANCES,· Three circumstances were the occasion of much fear to Saul-the existence of David, his friendship with Jonathan, and his holding a cave with 400 men. External events are to us what the medium through which we view them makes them appear to be, and this medium is often the creation of our moral nature. With all his daring resistance to the purposes of God, Saul could not lose thft  416 THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL. [CH, XXII, 1-2/J,