The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Samuel — Section 492

from after David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri" (ver. 2) ; "Now will Sheba do us more berm than Absalom" (ver. 6). 'fhe insurrection: 1. Waa joined in by great numbers of the people. 2. Spread over the greater portion of the country. "He went thro~gh al_l ~he tribes of Israel," rousing them to action, and gaining possession of the for_t1fied c1t1eB. 3. Threatened to produce a permanent disruption of the kingdom. "It was, m fact., all but an anticipation of the revolt of Jeroboam. It we.s not, as in tho case of Absa.lom, a mere conflict between two factions in the court of Judah but ~ struggle arising out of that conflict, on the part of the tribe of Benjamin to re~over its lost ascendency" (Stanley). With what anxieties must it have filled the mind of the restored_ monarch I And how must it have led him to feel his dependence upon ~od I The 1_nfluence for evil which one bad man sometimes exerts is enormous (Eccles. 1x. 18). It 1s, nevertheless, limited; and, though it prevail for a season, it is at length •• brought to nought" (Ps. x.x:xvii. 12, 20, 35--40). IV. IT ENDED IN UTTER DIBOOMFITURE. The first act of David, on arriving at Jerusa_lem, attended by the men of Judah, who "clave unto the king" (after setting his house 1n order, ver. 3), was to adopt energetic measures to put down the insurrection; and these succeeded (though in a different manner from what he expected). 1. Many who at first followed Sheba deserted him when they had time for reflection and saw the approach of the king's army; so that he found it necessary to seek safety in the far north. 2. He was beheaded by those among whom he sought refuge; and "rewarded according to his wickedness " ( eh. iii -39). "Evil pursueth sinners" (Prov. xiii. 21 ; xi. l!i). 3. All the people returned to their allegiance. " While to men's eyes the co-operation of many evil powers seems to endanger the kingdom of God to the utmost, and its affairs appear to be confused and disturbed in the unhappiest fashion, the wonderful working of the living God reveals itself most gloriously in the unravelment of the worst entanglements, and in the introduction of new and UJ1.expected triumphs for his government" (Erdmann).-D. Vers. 4-13.-(GmEON.) The m:u.ram of .Amasa. "And. Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand" (ver. 10). Amasa (son of Abigail, David's sister, and Jether an Ishmaelite, and :first cousin of Joab, eh. xviL 25) joined Absalom in his rebellion; and must have been a man of great ability, courage, and influence, from. the fact that he was appointed by him " captain of the host instead of J oab," and afterwards promised by David the same post ( eh. xix. 13). This promise "involved no injustice to Joab himself, for he had long been notorious for too great severity in war, and.had just acted with such direct disobedience to the royal command in Absalom's case, that. it was impossible to overlook his offence without endangering the royal prerogative" (Ewald). Whilst it was adapted to conciliate the men of Judah, it was, nevertheless, certain to give offence to Joab and cause future trouble. It does not appear that he was formally replaced by Amasa; but the commission given to the latter (ver. 4) "'was intended as the commencement of the ful6lment of the promise" (Keil). And when he exhibited undue delay in its fulfilment (ver. 5), David, "wishing to have nothing to do with Joab," sent Abishai to pursue after Sheba (ver. 6). "And there went out after him Joab's men" (ver. 7) under Joab (who deemed himself still commander-in-chief). At "the great stone which is in Gibeon" (eh. ii. 13; xxi. 1 ; 1 Chron. xxi. 29) he met Amasa returning with his military levies, and on saluting him with the kiss of peace, dealt him his death-blow (vers. 8-10); passed on, followed (after a brief hesitation at the spect.acle of their murd~red cap1:&in) b! "all the people;" :finished the war, and returned to Jerusalem. In thlB tragedy notice: 1. The danger of holding a responsible position by one who is ill qualified for it through want of natural ability, i,roper antecedents, timely appointment, public confidence, adequate zeal and energy. "The cause of Amasa's delay is not stated. It may have been the unwillinuness of the men of Judah to place themselves under the orders of Amasa. (contrast vers. 13 and 14), or it may have been caused by a wavering or hesitation in the loyalty of Arnasa himself. This last is evidently insinuated in ver. 11, and no doubt this was the pretext, whether grounded in fact or not, by which Joab justified the murder of Amasa before David" (' Speaker's Commentary '). 2. The tendency of repeated crimes to i,i,d,u,c.e more daring criminality. This was Joab's third murder (eh. iii. 27; xviii. 14), in addition to his complicit,)' iu the death of Ul'iah; less excusable, more suileful,  THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMUEL, 605