liver me out of thy hand, the Hebrew is, momentarily by his generosity, prays that "will judge mo out of thy hand," i. e. will Jehovah will reward him for what he had judge mo, and by doing so justly will dt>- done. liver me from th;r power. Vers. 20-22.-I know well that thou Ver. 16.-This address of David pro- shalt surely be king. Jonathan had ex- duced a lively effect upon Saul. Philippson pressed a similar conviction (eh. xxiii. 17), says of it, " The speech of David ha.a so and frobably there was a growing popular much natural eloquence, such warmth and belie that David was the person in whom persuasiveness, that it can be read by no Samuel's prophetic words (eh. xv. 28) were one who has any feeling for the simple to he fulfilled. Something may even have beauties of the Bible without emotion. The been known of the selection of David and his- whole situation, moreover, has much of sub- anointing at Bethlehem ; not perhaps by the limity about it. We seo David, standing on king, but in an indfatinct way by the people the summit of some rock in the wilderness, As for Saul himself, he must long have felt that God's blessing had departed from raising on high the trophy of his ma.,,<rnani- mity, while addressing the melancholy Saul, him, and, brooding perpetually over Samuel's whom he loved as a father, obeyed as king, words, it required but little discernment on and honoured as the Lord's anointed, but his part to m~ke him see that the kingdom, who nevertheless hated him without reason, which he had forfeited was to be bestowed and followed him with unremitting energy upon one so wonhy of it, and so manifestly to put him to death ; using his opportunity protected and bles~d by God. He therefore of touching the heart of his enemy with makes David swear '.hat he will not cut off words hurried, but expressive of his inner- his seed after him (see 1n eh. xx. 15); and so most feelings, anu showing himself full of they part. Saul return:, to Gibeah, while humility, oppressed by unutterable sorrows, David and his men gat them up uuto the bowe<l down by the feeling of his powerless-hold. The word gat up, mounted, suggests that the hold, or fastness, was their previous ness, yet inspirited by the consciousness of a noble deed." So affected is Saul by David's haunt at Hachilah. They would go <lown to En-gedi, and the difficulty of obtaining food words that he breaks into tears, affectionately addresse~ David as bis son, and acknowledge8there for 600 men would be insurmountable, his innocence and the uprightness of his except for a very short period. On the other cause. side of the desert they were in a pastoral Ver. 19.-Will he let him go well away 1 country, and the large .flock-masters there Hebrew, " '\\ill he let him go on a good probably from time to time sent them sup- way 1 " i. e. will be let him go on his way plies. The position of David was thus in /eace, unhurt 1 As David, nevertheless, improved for the present by Saul's recon- ha let his enemy go unharmed, Saul, touched ciliation with him.
HO:\ULETICS.
Vera. 1-7.-Jnstruction in caves. The facts are--1. Saul, having repelled tha- incursion of the Philistines, returns to pursue David in the wilderness of Engedi. 2. Saul, entering prh-ately into a cave while David and his men lie concealed there, comes unwittingly within the ,power of David. 3. David's men, referripg to a Divine prediction, urge him to slay Saul. 4. Apparently to indicate how entirely Saul was within his power, David stealthily cuts off the skirt of his coat. 5. Re- proaching himself for the levity thus displayed in treating the Lord's anointed, he at once justifies his refus:il to touch Saul's life, and also restrains his men. It is observable how the sacred narrative of this period is entirely occupied with the con- flict between Saul and Da,id; not a word being said of the social and spiritual state of the nation, its commerce and agriculture, its hopes and fears, or even of the nature and degree of influence being exerted by Samuel and the prophetic schools. The specialty of sacred history lies in the concentrution of all thought in the develop- ment of the chain of events by which the original promise to Adam and Abraham is traceable to fulfilment in Christ. This principle will account for countless omis eions of fact which might reasonably be expected in a nation's unnals, and for th, prominence given to persons and circumstances otherwise of no pnblic significance. It is because men do not consider the spiritual principle on which the Old Testament• is evidently constructed that they mistake much of its meaning, fail to sec its exqui- site teaching, and regard as heterogeneous what is pervaded by a marvellous unity. ThB incidents of this stage in the liistory not only reveal the gradual process by- 432 THE FlHST llOOK OF SA:\iUEL. [CH. XXIV, 1-22.