the control of the pril!llt. Henoe, perhaps, it is that, as his oonfldence In his troops and in hie own warlike experience inoreased, he oee.sed aloogether to consult the sacred Urim, for we hear no more of it in his later wan" (F. W. Newmrm), IV. PRACTICAL OBEDIENOE TO 'l'Hl!: woRn OF 'l'RE LORD. "And David came," etc. When the path of duty is made plain, nothing remains but to walk therein with: I. Humility, simplicity, alacrity; u a l!Oldier at the word of oommand. The habit of lmmedi&te and absolute obedienoe to the will of God is essential to "a good soldier of Jesus Christ." 2. Dependence on Divine strength end confidence in Divine promises. 3. Courage, concentration of pnrpoee and energy in performance. "Do it witn thy might." David's attack WBB made with such impetuosity the.t it was like the breaking forth of water, a torrent or inundation which bursts through, disperses and sweeps away whatever opposes its course. V. PUBLIO TIIANKBGIVING AND PRAISIC. "Jehovah ha.th broken forth upon mine enemies •.. Therefore he called the name of that place Baal-Perazim," i.e. properly, lord, master, poe,essor, and, tropically, p'lace (which possesses or is distinguished by aomething) of breaches, inundations, dispersions, defeats (Gesenius). 1. The spirit in which success is really sought appears in the manner in which it is used. When sought by and for God it will be a.scribed to him. "Not unto us," etc. "His right hand and his holy &rill bath gotten him the vicoory" (Ps. :xcviii. 1). 2. The help which is graciously and openly vouchsafed by God should be gratefully and openly acknowledged by men (Ps. L 14, 15). 3. Of Divine benefits a record should be made by those who receive them, for the instruction of "the generation t,o come" (Ps. lxxviii. 4); and the place which is distinguished by them should become a permanent memorial of Divine power and goodne11S. This victory was long remembered. "For Jehovah will rise up as on the mountain of Perazim," etc. (Isa. mill. 21). ".The muitary stamp of the first part of David's reign is the preindication of the military character of the whole of it: In the Psalms of David we hear the echo of this warlike and victorious theocracy. They arc mostly songs of conflict and victory in praise of the God who saved 'his people from their enemies" (Erdmann).-D. Ver. 21 (1 Chron. :xiv. 12).-(B.ut-PERAZIIL) The destruction of images. The religion of the Canaanite people was "an apotheosis of the forces and laws of nature; an adoration of the objects in which those forces were seen and where they appeared most active" (Movers). The Philistines carried (probably on sacred carts) their images or gods (commonly regarded as identical) into battle, expecting victory by their aid; but so sudden was their defeat, and so hasty their flight, that they were compelled to leave them behind, and "David and his men t.ook them away;" and "David gave a commandment, and they were burned with :fire." "When the ark fell into the Phili~tines' hands it consumed them; but when these images fell into the hands of Israel they could not save themselves from being consumed" (Patrick). In their destruction we see : l. A proof of the vanity of idols. These images ( atsribim, equivalent to " things fashioned with labour") were only "the work of men's hands" (Ps. cxv. 4-8), and "profitable for nothing" (Isa. xl. 19; :xii 7; :xliv. 9-20; :xlvi. 6, 7), disappointing completely the confidence reposed in them. Who could henceforth regard them or others with fear or respect? 2. A tatimony to the power of Jeho'Jah, the living and true God, the Holy One of Israel. It was against him that the Philistines fought in attacking his people; and by him the,v and their idols were overthrown, as aforetime (1 Sam. v. 3; vii. 7; xvii. 38--54). Yet how persistent was their opposition (ver. 22) ! 3. An expression of abl.orrence of idolatry, and zeal for the worship of Goa alone; the personal fidelity of David to the fundamental principle of the theocracy (Ps. xvi. 4). During his reign idolatry found no place in Israel. .;,,. A fulfilment of the injunctions of the Law. "'l'hou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images" (Exod. xxiii. 24), "o.nd burn their graven images with fire" (Deut. vii 5). Idolatry was a direct crime against the state, high treason against the Divine King of Israel, and might not be tolerated in any form. 6. A precaution against exposure to temptation, by the influ- ence of their presence, forms, names, associations, on hearts always too prone to go astray. "Thou shalt not desire the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein," etc. (Deut. vii. 25, 26). No sacrifice was too great tv avoid such a ans.re (Acts xix. 19). "Here, perhaps, the admirer of ancient sculpture OH, V. 1-26.] THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMUEL. 135
will bo rendy to drop a tear of regret over the fine statues and other monument~ of antiquity th~t must have been destroyed in constiqnence of the Mosaic mandate; but he may safely dry it up, for the chef <£reuvres of this period were not worth sparing" (Michaelis). Even if they had been the finest specimens of art, their preservation from the flames would he.ve been an ill compensation for the moral evil which it would have induced. 6. A representation of the design of the true religion. "To destroy the works of tho devil" (1 John iii. 8), e.nd to maintain and extend the knowledge, love, and service of God; not, indeed, by force, but by the truth (2 Cor. x. 4; ~ee 1 Sam. v. 3). 7. A prophecy and an earnest of the complete demolition of idols (Isa. ii. lR-20), and the ee.rth being" filled with the glory of the Lord" (Numb. xiv. 21). "Thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen,'' etc. ( eh. xxii. 44, 60). "All nations wliom thou he.at made, She.11 come and bow themselves down before thee, 0 Lord; And ahe.11 give glory to thy Ne.me." (Pa. lxxxvi. 9; xxii. 27; xcvii. 7; xcvi. 3, 5, 10.) Conclusion. Those who are zealous in destroying the idols of others should not spare their own. What is an idol? That object (whatever it may be) which a man sets up before his face or in his heart, and which he thinks about, delights in, and relies upon, more than God. "Flee from idolatry I" (1 Cor. x. 14; Col. iii. 5; Phil. iii. 19; 1 John v. 21).-D.