favour possible) unto him?" In answer to this inquiry, Ziba told him that Jonathan "had yet a son living, who was lame in his feet." David immediately orders him to be brought to the court; and in the kindest manner addresses him, "Fear not, for I will surely show thee kindness, for Jonathan, thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul, thy father, and thou shalt eat bread continually at my table." Ziba was to farm the heritage, and bring in the fruits for his master's sustenance, or the maintenance of his household. Ziba undertook the charge, while Mephibosheth dwelt at court, "and eat at the king's table as one of the king's sons." This was princely kindness to the only heir of a fallen and rival house; but was such as became the true and unselfish friendship of Jonathan and David-as beautiful as it is rare in the history of our selfish world.

The peace which had now lasted for some years, was suddenly broken by the strangest and most unprovoked insult on the part of the Ammonites. Nahash, king of the Ammonites, a former friend of David, died; upon which David sent an embassy to comfort Hanun, the new king. The intention of David was strangely misinterpreted; his ambassadors were regarded as spies; and sent home with gross insult; contrary to all public faith, hospitality, or law. Instigated by his counsellors, Hanun took the servants of David, "and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle," and, thus disgraced, sent them away. When this was made known to David, he sent to meet his ambassadors, and ordered them to remain at Jericho until their beards were grown, and then return.

When the Ammonites saw that they had made themselves odious to David, they prepared immediately for war, "and hired aid from the Rehobites and Zobahites, twenty thousand footmen, from the king of Maacah one thousand, and from Ishtob twelve thousand men." Aware of this vast preparation, David saw that war was inevitable, and that there could be no delay; Joab and the whole host of mighty men were sent to meet the enemy. The Ammonites drew up their forces under the walls of the city, and the Syrians in the field by themselves. Joab however profited by this division. When he saw the plan of the enemy, he took the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians; and the rest of the army, under Abishai his brother, he arrayed against the Ammonites. And he said, "If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me; but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will come and help thee. Be of good courage, and let us play the men for our people and for

the cities of our God; and the Lord do that which seemeth him good."

The hired Syrians soon broke and fled from the attack of Joab; upon which the Ammonites fled also from before Abishai, and entered into the city. Joab returned with his victorious army to Jerusalem. The war, however, was not to end here. "When the Syrians saw that they were smitten before Israel, they sent messengers, and drew forth the Syrians that were beyond the river Euphrates; and they gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Helam. Affairs were now at such a crisis as to demand the presence of the king himself. Gathering a general levy of all his forces, "he crossed over Jordan, and came to Helam." In the battle which followed, David was again successful; the men of seven hundred chariots, and forty thousand footmen, perished in the fight, and Shobach their captain fell with them. The Syrian princes, who were subject to Hadarezer, made peace with David, and the Ammonites were left to carry on the war, which they had provoked, alone.* At the opening of the next campaign, Joab was sent against the Ammonites. "He wasted their country, and came and besieged Rabbah, its capital." After a long, but successful siege, Joab sent messengers to David, saying, "I have fought against Rabbah, and have taken the city of waters. Now, therefore, come with the rest of the people and encamp against the city and take it; lest I take the city and it be called after my name.' "And David gathered the people, and went and took Rabbah; and took the crown of their king, the weight whereof was a talent of gold, with the precious stones; and the spoil of the city in great abundance. And he brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through the brickkiln. So did he with all the cities of the Ammonites; and David and all the people returned to Jerusalem."

Internal evidence fixes the twentieth and twenty-first Psalms to this period of the history. The one to be sung probably as the king entered upon the war, and the other celebrating his return.

This is the rendering of our version. But the original may be rendered: And he put them to saws, and to harrows, or mines of iron, and to axes, &c., i. e. he reduced them to slavery. There is no necessity or justice in supposing David guilty of the cruelties which our translation seems to imply.

SECTION VIII.

DAVID'S SIN IN THE AFFAIR OF BATH-SHEBA AND URIAH-HIS DOMESTIC AFFLICTIONS ABSALOM'S REBELLION-DAVID'S RESTORATION TO THE KINGDOM-INSURRECTION OF SHEBA.

WHILE Joab was urging forward the siege of Rabbah, David remained at Jerusalem. Up to this point nothing had occurred to mar the character of David. He could claim with truth, "I have kept the ways of Jehovah, and have not wickedly departed from my God." In all the scenes of his eventful life, in his distress, and in his prosperity, he had been kept from the ruling power of temptation or sin. But, as if to show us that no human character was perfect, we now find him falling into grievous and shameful sins. The sacred historian in no way conceals or excuses this awful fall. While walking upon the roof of his palace, the king was smitten by the beauty of Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite, one of his bravest warriors. Hurried away by his guilty passion, he passed at once all the restraint of law and religion. Startled at the consequences of his sin, he sends for Uriah, to conceal, if possible, his guilt, and avoid the disgrace and punishment to which he was justly exposed. When Uriah appeared, David inquired "how the people did, and how the war prospered," and then dismissed Uriah to his home. But the brave soldier, inured to the hardships of the camp, refused to go to his house, and spent the night with the guards of the royal palace. When asked the reason of his conduct, he replied, That it was sufficient for him to share with his general and his fellow soldiers; while they were encamped in the field he would rest with them. On the following day, David renewed his attempt in a grosser manner, but without changing the purpose of this truehearted and gallant soldier.

Foiled in every attempt to conceal his sin from the injured. husband, the unhappy king found no resource in his extremity, but in a deeper crime. It was resolved that Uriah must die; but the crime was committed through the hand of another. "And David wrote to Joab, by the hand of Uriah, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him that he may be smitten and die." He found in Joab a fit instrument for his purpose. The command was no sooner received than it was executed. Uriah fell, the monarch was freed from present danger; and Joab succeeded in coiling another strand around the infatuated king. A messenger was despatched to the court with an account of the loss, and the readily satisfied king replied to his officer, "Let not this thing. displease thee, for the sword devoureth one as well as another:

make thy battle more strong against the city and overthrow it." After the usual time of mourning for her husband, the king publicly espoused Bath-sheba, and she became his wife, and bare him a son.

ner.

With the sins of adultery and murder, and constant hypocrisy, upon his conscience, we should not have expected that he could long remain at ease. David was no hardened and habitual sinA strong temptation had overtaken him, and buried him beneath its power. One sin had driven him on to another, until he had accumulated this fearful load of guilt. His conscience was quieted and stunned. For a length of time he appears to have felt no remorse. We hear from him no confession, no prayer for mercy. Sin has done, what it ever does, and ever will do. It has not only brought guilt upon his soul, but it has blinded, so that he shall not see its stains.

But there were other eyes that had beheld his conduct. The sleepless eye of God was upon him, "and the thing that David had done was evil in the eyes of the Lord;" and, though he was unmindful of his guilt, he was soon to feel its heavy weight. And Jehovah sent Nathan unto David. By an artful fable, the prophet brought the king to pronounce sentence upon himself, and then made the application. "There were two men in the same city; the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds: but the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had brought and nourished up and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drink of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock, and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come unto him.” David's anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said, "As the Lord liveth, the man that has done this thing shall surely die: and shall restore the lamb fourfold."

And Nathan said to David, "Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel; and delivered thee from the hand of Saul; and I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives, and the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given thee such and such things. Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah, and hast taken his wife for thy wife. Now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from thy house. Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee, out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine

eyes, and give them to thy neighbour: for thou didst it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel."

This fearful sentence roused the conscience of David from its slumbers. He was at once convicted of his sin; and like every true penitent, confessed without extenuation or excuse. His religious feelings claimed again their supremacy. And David said, "I have sinned against the Lord." The genuine nature of David's repentance may be clearly gathered from the 51st Psalm, which he penned upon this occasion. It has been the memorial of his sin, and of his repentance. It has been the language of every true Christian, in all his returns to God-the language of the church in all her confessions. It could have been breathed forth only from a broken and contrite heart. The terms of his confession tell us, how deep was the sense of guilt; and the earnest longings after God-the seeking of a pure heart-the prayer for the welfare of Zion, all proclaim that this was no feigned repentance, wrung from him by a desire to avert the punishment he feared; but a deep, sincere, and godly sorrow, springing from his sense of the odiousness of sin, and of the wrong which he had done. In no part of his life does the deep religious principle of David appear more conspicuous than in this. Ordinary piety might have resented so sudden and bold a reproof, especially when seated upon a throne. But David, the victorious monarch, bows himself at once, and submits to the just sentence of God. "I have sinned against the Lord." Upon this ingenuous confession, Nathan pronounces his pardon. "The Lord also hath put away thy sin: thou shalt not die. But since by this deed, thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child that is born unto thee shall surely die."*

However sincere his repentance, it did not stay the results and punishment of his sin. The child was suddenly taken ill. David "humbled himself, fasted, and besought God for the child." His prayer was not granted, and on the seventh day the child died, according to the sentence of the prophet. While the child was ill, the king refused all sustenance, and lay in deep distress; but when he perceived that the child was dead, "he rose from the earth, anointed himself, and went into the house of the Lord and worshipped, and came to his house and took the food offered him." Surprised at this, his servants asked the reason of his conduct. And David said, "while the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me."

It seems probable, that it was at this time also, the 32d and 33d Psalms were written.