DAVID
The Story of the Shepherd Boy Who Became King.
THE SHEPHERD LAD OF BETHLEHEM.
Samuel Secretly Anoints David as the Future King of Israel.
(After Samuel had said to Saul that God wanted no king who would not do exactly as he said, he himself became very sad, because he loved Saul.)
But the Lord said to Samuel, "How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from being king over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons."
And Samuel said, "How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me."
And the Lord said, "Take an heifer with thee, and say, 'I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.' And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint to me him whom I name to thee."
And Samuel did that which the Lord spoke, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, "earnest thou peaceably?"
And he said, "Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice." And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.
DAVID
This is the head of the great statue of David in Florence, carved by the most famous of all sculptors, Michael Angelo. The story is that the great sculptor took a piece of marble partly spoiled by another man, and carved this wonderful statue out of it. The statue shows the young shepherd with his sling, ready for the conflict with the giant.
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, "Surely the Lord's anointed is before him."
But the Lord said unto Samuel, "Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have rejected him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."
Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, "Neither hath the Lord chosen this."
Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, "Neither hath the Lord chosen this."
And Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, "The Lord hath not chosen these."
And Samuel said unto Jesse, "Are here all thy children?"
And he said, "There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep."
And Samuel said unto Jesse, "Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither."
And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look upon. And the Lord said, "Arise, anoint him; for this is he."
Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him [{386}] in the midst of his brethren: and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.
DAVID AND GOLIATH.
How a Giant Was Killed by a Stone from a Shepherd's Sling.
Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle. And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and camped in the vale of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.
And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass. And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a javelin of brass between his shoulders. And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and his shieldbearer went before him. And he stood and cried to the armies of Israel, and said to them, "Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us."
SCENE OF THE FIGHT BETWEEN DAVID AND GOLIATH IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH
Copyright by Underwood & Underwood and used by special permission.
"It is the very battlefield for those ancient foes. Israel in one of the gateways to her mountain land; the Philistines on the low hills they so often overran; and between them the great valley. The Philistines were probably on the hill of Sochoh.
"Sochoh is a strong position isolated from the rest of the ridge, and it keeps open the line of retreat down the valley. Saul's army was probably not immediately opposite, but a little way up on the slopes of the incoming Wady el Jindy, and so placed that the Philistines, in attacking it, must cross not only the level land and the main stream, but one of the two other streams as well, and must also climb the slopes for some distance. Both positions were thus very strong, and this fact perhaps explains the long hesitation of the armies in face of each other, even though the Philistines had the advantage of Goliath. The Israelite position certainly looks the stronger. It is interesting, too, that from its rear the narrow pass goes right up to the interior of the land near Bethlehem; so that the shepherd boy, whom the story represents as being sent by his father for news of the battle, would have almost twelve miles to cover between his father's house and the camp"
And the Philistine said, "I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together."
And when Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.
Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem-judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons: and the man was an old man in the days of Saul. And the three eldest sons of Jesse had gone after Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next unto him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. And David was the youngest: and the three eldest followed Saul.
And Jesse said to David his son, "Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to thy brethren; and bring these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand; and look how thy brethren fare, and bring back some token of their welfare."
Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the vale of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took the presents and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the barricade of wagons, as the host which was going forth to the fight shouted for the battle. And Israel and the Philistines put the battle in array, army against army. And David left the presents he had brought in the hand of the keeper of the baggage, and ran to the army, and came and saluted his brethren. And as he talked with them, behold, there [{390}] came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the ranks of the Philistines, and spoke as before: and David heard him. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid. And the men of Israel said, "Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel is he come up, and it shall be that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter in marriage, and make his father's house free in Israel."
And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying, "What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
And the people answered him after this manner, saying, "So shall it be done to the man that killeth him."
And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, "Why art thou come down? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle."
And David said, "What have I done now? I have only asked a question."
And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke after the same manner: and the people answered him again in the same way. And when the words were heard which David spoke, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for him. And David said to Saul, "Let no [{391}] man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine."
And Saul said to David, "Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth."
And David said to Saul, "Thy servant kept his father's sheep; and when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. Thy servant smote both the lion and the bear: and this Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God." And David said, "The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine."
And Saul said to David, "Go, and the Lord shall be with thee."
And Saul clad David with his own garments, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head, and he clad him with a coat of mail. And David girded on his sword. But David said to Saul, "I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them."
And David put them off him. And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the shepherd's bag which he had, and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine. And the Philistine came on and drew near to David; and the man that bore the shield went before him. And when [{392}] the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he despised him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. And the Philistine said to David, "Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?"
And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, "Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field."
Then said David to the Philistine, "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from off thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day to the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel: and that all this host may know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hand."
And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slung it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead; and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. Then [{393}] David ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way. And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armor in his tent.
And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, "Abner, whose son is this youth?"
And Abner said, "As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell."
And the king said, "Inquire thou whose son the stripling is."
And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, "Whose son art thou, young man?"
And David answered, "I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite."
And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.
And Saul took him that day, and would let him go no more home to his father's house. Then Jonathan and [{394}] David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his apparel, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle. And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and it was good in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants.
| SAUL AND DAVID |
Deep was the furrow in the royal brow, When David's hand, lightly as vernal gales Rippling the brook of Kedron, skimm'd the lyre: He sung of Jacob's youngest born,--the child Of his old age,--sold to the Ishmaelite; His exaltation to the second power In Pharaoh's realm; his brethren thither sent; Suppliant they stood before his face, well known, Unknowing,--till Joseph fell upon the neck Of Benjamin, his mother's son, and wept. Unconsciously the warlike shepherd paused; But when he saw, down the yet quivering string, The tear-drop trembling glide, abash'd, he check'd, Indignant at himself, the bursting flood, And, with a sweep impetuous, struck the chords: From side to side his hands transversely glance, Like lightning 'thwart a stormy sea; his voice Arises 'mid the clang, and straightway calms Th' harmonious tempest, to a solemn swell Majestical, triumphant; for he sings Of Arad's mighty host by Israel's arm Subdued; of Israel through the desert led He sings; of him who was their leader, call'd By God himself, from keeping Jethro's flock, To be a ruler o'er the chosen race. Kindles the eye of Saul; his arm is poised, Harmless the javelin quivers in the wall. |
THE JEALOUSY OF SAUL.
How Saul Was Jealous of David and Hated Him, and How Jonathan Loved Him.
And it came to pass as they came, when David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with timbrels, with joy, and with instruments of music. And the women sang one to another in their play, and said,--
| "Saul hath slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands." |
And Saul was very wroth, and this saying displeased him; and he said, "They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?"
And Saul eyed David jealously from that day and forward.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that an evil spirit from God came mightily upon Saul, and he raved in the midst of the house: and David played upon his harp, as he did day by day: and Saul had his spear in his hand. And Saul cast the spear; for he said, "I will smite David even to the wall."
And David escaped from his presence twice. And Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him, and was departed from Saul. Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people. And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him.
THE VALLEY OF THE KIDRON, IN THE WILDERNESS OF JUDEA.
The building on the left is the convent of Mar Saba.
Used by special permission of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
The "Wilderness of Judaea" is a wonderful place. Much of it is not a wilderness at all in our understanding of the term. It is, on its western edge at least, just a wild pasture land. But it was a very wild, desolate, and solitary place. The shepherd who kept his flocks there was in danger from the wild beasts and from raids of fierce robbers. Below the pasture land it is wilderness indeed. The land breaks off abruptly and falls in crag and precipice down to the very shores of the Dead Sea. "You cannot live in Judaea without being daily aware of the presence of the awful deep which bounds it on the east. From Beth-lehem and other points you look down into that deep, and you feel Judaea rising from it about you almost as a sailor feels his narrow deck."
And when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he stood in awe of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David; for he went out and came in before them.
And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should slay David. But Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David. And Jonathan told David, saying, "Saul my father seeketh to slay thee: now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself in the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself: and I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will talk with my father of thee; and if I see aught, I will tell thee."
And Jonathan spoke good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him, "Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been very good toward thee; for he put his life in his hand, and smote the Philistine, and the Lord wrought a great victory for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice: wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?"
And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul swore, "As the Lord liveth, he shall not be put to death."
And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as before.
And there was war again: and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great [{400}] slaughter; and they fled before him. And an evil spirit from the Lord was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David played upon his harp. And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the spear; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he struck the spear into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night.
And David came and said to Jonathan, "What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life?"
And he said, "God forbid; thou shalt not die: behold, my father doeth nothing either great or small, but that he discloseth it unto me: and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so."
And David swore moreover, and said, "Thy father knoweth well that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, 'Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved': but truly as the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death."
Then said Jonathan to David, "Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee."
And David said to Jonathan, "Behold, to-morrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field until the third day at even. If thy father miss me at all, then say, 'David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his city: for it is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family.' If he say thus, 'It is well'; thy servant shall have peace: but if he be wroth, then know [{401}] that evil is determined by him. Therefore deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of the Lord with thee: but if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?"
And Jonathan said, "Far be it from thee: for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee?"
Then said David to Jonathan, "Who shall tell me if perchance thy father answer thee roughly?"
And Jonathan said to David, "Come and let us go out into the field." And they went out both of them into the field.
And Jonathan said to David, "The Lord, the God of Israel, be witness; when I have sounded my father about this time to-morrow, or the third day, behold, if there be good toward David, shall I not then send unto thee, and disclose it unto thee? The Lord do so to Jonathan, and more also, should it please my father to do thee evil, if I disclose it not unto thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace: and the Lord be with thee, as he hath been with my father. And thou shalt not only while yet I live show me the kindness of the Lord, that I die not: but also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever: no, not when the Lord hath cut off the enemies of David everyone from the face of the earth."
So Jonathan made a covenant with David.
And Jonathan caused David to swear again, for the love that he had to him: for he loved him as he loved his [{402}] own soul. Then Jonathan said to him, "To-morrow is the feast of the new moon: and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty. And when thou hast stayed three days, thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself before. And I will shoot three arrows, as though I shot at a mark. And, behold, I will send the lad, saying, 'Go, find the arrows.' If I say to the lad, 'Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee: take them,' then come; for there is peace to thee and no hurt, as the Lord liveth. But if I say thus to the boy, 'Behold, the arrows are beyond thee': go thy way; for the Lord hath sent thee away. And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the Lord is between thee and me for ever."
So David hid himself in the field: and when the feast of the new moon was come, the king sat down to eat. And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon the seat by the wall; and Jonathan stood up, and Abner sat by Saul's side: but David's place was empty. Nevertheless Saul spoke not anything that day: for he thought, "Something hath befallen him." And it came to pass on the morrow after the new moon, which was the second day, that David's place was empty: and Saul said to Jonathan his son, "Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to-day?"
And Jonathan answered Saul, "David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem: and he said, 'Let me go, I pray thee; for our family hath a sacrifice in the city; and my brother, he hath commanded me to be there: and now, if I have found favor in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren.' Therefore he is not come unto the king's table."
RUINS OF THE FORTRESS OF MASSADA, WILDERNESS OF JUDAEA
This is another picture of a portion of the "Wilderness of Judaea." It is easy to see how David, who was thoroughly familiar with the country, could hide himself and his men safely from pursuit during the time in which he was an outlaw and a fugitive from the king.
This fortress was the scene of a terrible siege and massacre in 70 A. D., after the fall of Jerusalem. About a thousand men, women, and children fled to this place. The Romans followed and in spite of almost insurmountable difficulties besieged the place. Driven to the last extremity, the defenders killed the women and children and then themselves. Only two women and five children survived
Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said, "Do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own shame? For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be stablished, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die."
And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, "Wherefore should he be put to death? what hath he done?"
And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to put David to death. So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second day of the month: for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame.
And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him. And he said to his lad, "Run, find now the arrows which I shoot."
And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.
And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, "Is not the arrow beyond thee?"
And Jonathan cried after the lad, "Make speed, haste, stay not."
And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came [{406}] to his master. But the lad knew not anything: only Jonathan and David knew the matter. And Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad, and said unto him, "Go, carry them to the city."
And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of his hiding place, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times: and they kissed one another, and wept one with another. And Jonathan said to David, "Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying, 'The Lord shall be between me and thee, and between my family and thy family, for ever.'"
And he arose and departed: and Jonathan went into the city.
DAVID AN OUTLAW.
How He Showed Mercy to His Enemy.
(After this David became a fugitive from the king, who pursued him and tried to kill him. David gathered a band of followers and for a time lived as an outlaw, hiding in caves, plundering farms, living from hand to mouth. Several times he had the king in his power, but each time he allowed him to escape. This is the story of one of these adventures.)
And the Ziphites came to Saul to Gibeah, saying, "Doth not David hide himself in the hill of Hachilah, which is before the desert?"
Then Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul encamped in the hill of Hachilah, which is before the [{407}] desert. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness. David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was certainly come. And David arose, and came to the place where Saul had encamped: and David beheld the place where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host: and Saul lay within the barricade of the wagons, and the people were encamped round about him. Then said David, "Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp?"
And Abishai said, "I will go down with thee."
So David and Abishai came to the people by night: and, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the barricade of the wagons, with his spear stuck in the ground at his head: and Abner and the people lay round about him. Then said Abishai to David, "God hath delivered up thine enemy into thine hand this day: now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear to the earth at one stroke, and I will not need to smite him the second time."
And David said to Abishai, "Destroy him not: for who can put forth his hand against the Lord's anointed, and be guiltless?"
And David said, "As the Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall go down into the battle, and perish. The Lord forbid that I should put forth mine hand against the Lord's anointed: but now take, I pray thee, the spear that is at his head, and the jar of water, and let us go."
So David took the spear and the jar of water from Saul's [{408}] head; and they went away, and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither did any awake: for they were all asleep; because a deep sleep from the Lord was fallen upon them. Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of the mountain afar off; a great space being between them: and David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, "Answerest thou not, Abner?"
Then Abner answered and said, "Who art thou that criest to the king?"
And David said to Abner, "Art not thou a valiant man? and who is like to thee in Israel? wherefore then hast thou not kept watch over thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord. This thing is not good that thou hast done. As the Lord liveth, ye are worthy to die, because ye have not kept watch over your lord, the Lord's anointed. And now, see where the king's spear is, and the jar of water that was at his head."
And Saul knew David's voice, and said, "Is this thy voice, my son David?"
And David said, "It is my voice, my lord, O king." And he said, "Wherefore doth my lord pursue after his servant? for what have I done? or what evil is in mine hand? Now therefore, I pray thee, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it be the Lord that hath stirred thee up against me, let him accept an offering: but if it be the children of men, cursed be they before the Lord; for they have driven me out this day that I should not cleave to the inheritance of the Lord, saying, 'Go, serve other gods.'
A SHEPHERD NEAR DAVID'S HOUSE LEADING HIS FLOCK OVER THE JUDEAN HILLS.
Copyright by Underwood & Underwood and used by special permission.
The principal business and the greatest interest of the people in the hill country of Judea was connected with the flocks.
"If, as we have seen, the prevailing character of Judaea be pastoral, with husbandry only incidental to her life, it is not surprising that the forms which have impressed both her history and her religion upon the world should be those of the pastoral habit. Her origin; more than once her freedom and power of political recuperation; more than once her prophecy; her images of God, and her sweetest poetry of the spiritual life, have been derived from this source. It is the stateliest shepherds of all time whom the dawn of history reveals upon her fields--men not sprung from her own remote conditions, nor confined to them, but moving across the world in converse with great empires, and bringing down from heaven truths sublime and universal to wed with the simple habits of her life. These were the patriarchs of the nation. The founder of its one dynasty, and the first of its literary prophets, were also taken from following the flocks. The king and every true leader of men was called a shepherd. Jehovah was the Shepherd of His people, and they the sheep of His pasture. It was in Judaea that Christ called Himself the Good Shepherd, as it was in Judaea also that, taking the other great feature of her life, He said He was the True Vine."
Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth away from the presence of the Lord: for the king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains."
Then said Saul, "I have sinned: return, my son David: for I will no more do thee harm, because my life was precious in thine eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly."
And David answered and said, "Behold the spear, O king! let then one of the young men come over and fetch it. And the Lord shall render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness: because the Lord delivered thee into my hand to-day, and I would not put forth mine hand against the Lord's anointed. And, behold, as thy life was very precious this day in mine eyes, so let my life be precious in the eyes of the Lord, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation."
Then Saul said to David, "Blessed be thou, my son David: thou shalt both do mightily, and shalt surely prevail."
So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place.
SAUL'S PURSUIT OF DAVID.
How David a Second Time Spared the King's Life.
(Day after day Saul pursued David. First, some one would report David at a certain point, then he would be seen at another. But every time, by forced marches, hiding in caves by day, and stealing out by night, the bold outlaw escaped his foe. Once Saul entered the very cave where David and his faithful men were [{412}] hiding in the shadows. Again Saul was in David's power. Again his men wished him to kill the king, but David refused, and spared the king's life.)
And David abode in the wilderness in the strongholds, and remained in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand.
And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life: and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in the wood. And Jonathan Saul's son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. And he said unto him, "Fear not: for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee; and that also Saul my father knoweth."
And they two made a covenant before the Lord: and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.
Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying, "Doth not David hide himself with us in the strongholds in the wood, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of the desert? Now therefore, O king, come down, according to all the desire of thy soul to come down; and our part shall be to deliver him up into the king's hand."
And Saul said, "Blessed be ye of the Lord; for ye have had compassion on me. Go, I pray you, make yet more sure, and know and see his place where his haunt is, and who hath seen him there: for it is told me that he dealeth very subtilly. See therefore, and take knowledge of all the lurking places where he hideth himself, and come ye again to me of a certainty, and I will go with you: and it [{413}] shall come to pass, if he be in the land, that I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah."
And they arose, and went to Ziph before Saul: but David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon. And Saul and his men went to seek him. And they told David: wherefore he came down to the rock, and abode in the wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in the wilderness of Maon.
And Saul went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain: and David made haste to get away for fear of Saul; for Saul and his men compassed David and his men round about to take them. But there came a messenger to Saul, saying, "Haste thee, and come; for the Philistines have made a raid upon the land."
So Saul returned from pursuing after David.
And it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying, "Behold, David is in the wilderness of En-gedi."
Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats.
And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in.
Now David and his men were abiding in the innermost parts of the cave. And the men of David said unto him, "Behold, the day of which the Lord said unto thee, 'Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, and thou shalt do to him as it shall seem good unto thee.'"
Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe privily. And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul's skirt.
And he said unto his men, "The Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my lord, the Lord's anointed, to put forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the Lord's anointed."
So David checked his men with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. And Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way.
David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul, saying, "My lord the king!"
And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth, and did obeisance.
And David said to Saul, "Wherefore hearkenest thou to men's words, saying, 'Behold, David seeketh thy hurt'? Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the Lord had delivered thee to-day into mine hand in the cave: and some bade me kill thee: but mine eye spared thee; and I said, 'I will not put forth mine hand against my lord; for he is the Lord's anointed.'
"Moreover, my father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand: for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in mine hand, and I have not sinned against thee, though thou huntest after my soul to take it.
"The Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord avenge me of thee: but mine hand shall not be upon thee."
STREET OF JERUSALEM
"The Joppa Gate" in the center.
This is a characteristic scene in Jerusalem, the bazaars in the area outside, the camels and donkeys with their burdens, and the traffic going in and out of the city. "In an aperture of the western wall of Jerusalem hang the 'oaken valves' called the Beth-lehem or Joppa Gate. The area outside is one of the notable places of the city. Long before David coveted Zion there was a citadel there. When at last the son or Jesse ousted the Jebusites, and began to build, the site of the citadel became the northwest corner of the wall, defended by a tower much more imposing than the old one. The location of the gate, however, was not disturbed, for the reason, most likely, that the roads which met and merged in front of it could not well be transferred to another spot, while the area outside had become a recognized market place. In Solomon's day there was a great traffic at this locality, shared in by traders from Egypt and the rich dealers from Tyre and Sidon."
--Lew Wallace in "Ben-Hur"
And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, "Is this thy voice, my son David?" And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept.
And he said to David, "Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil.
"And thou hast showed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when the Lord had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not.
"For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? wherefore the Lord reward thee good for that thou hast done unto me this day.
"And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand.
"Swear now therefore unto me by the Lord, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house."
And David swore unto Saul. And Saul went home; but David and his men went up to the stronghold.
ONE OF DAVID'S ADVENTURES IN THE WILDERNESS.
How the Sheep Master of Maon Refused to Pay Tribute.
(While David was roaming about the country followed by a company of men as young and gallant as himself, much as Robin Hood roamed about the forests of England, he had many adventures, some of them chivalrous and some of which he was perhaps afterward, when he became king, just a little ashamed. This is the story of one of these adventures.)
There was a man in Maon whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very rich, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.
Now the name of the man was Nabal (the Fool); and the name of his wife Abigail: and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb.
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal sheared his sheep. And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men, "Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name: and thus shall ye say, 'All hail! Peace be both unto thee, and peace be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: thy shepherds have now been with us, and we did them no hurt, neither was there aught missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee: wherefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes, for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand, unto thy servants, and to thy son David.'"
And when David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased.
And Nabal answered David's servants, and said, "Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there are many servants nowadays that break away every man from his [{419}] master. Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they be?"
So David's young men turned on their way, and went back, and came and told him according to all these words.
And David said unto his men, "Gird ye on every man his sword." And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred remained in the camp.
But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, "Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he flew upon them. But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we anything, as long as we were with them, when we were in the fields: they were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. Now therefore consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house: for he is such a worthless fellow that one cannot speak to him."
Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses.
And she said unto her young men, "Go on before me; behold, I come after you."
But she told not her husband Nabal. And it was so, [{420}] as she rode on her ass, and came down by the covert of the mountain, that, behold, David and his men came down against her; and she met them.
Now David had said, "Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him: and he hath returned me evil for good. God do so unto the enemies of David, and more also, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light so much as one man child."
And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off her ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground. And she fell at his feet, and said, "Upon me, my lord, upon me be the iniquity: and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thine handmaid.' Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless fellow, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal [the Fool] is his name, and folly is with him: but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send.
"Now therefore, my lord, as the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the Lord hath withholden thee from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now therefore let thine enemies, and them that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. And now this present which thy servant hath brought unto my lord, let it be given unto the young men that follow my lord. "Forgive, I pray thee, the trespass of thine handmaid: for the Lord will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord fighteth the battles of the Lord; and evil shall not be found in thee all thy days.
JERUSALEM, LOOKING UP THROUGH THE VALLEY OF HINNOM.
It is said that continual fires were kept burning in the valley of Hinnom for the destruction of the refuse from the city. It was here, too, that the human sacrifices to the god Molech took place, where the victims were made "to pass through the fire."
And though man be risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as from the hollow of a sling.
"And it shall come to pass, when the Lord shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee prince over Israel; that this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offense of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself: and when the Lord shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid."
And David said to Abigail, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me: and blessed be thy wisdom, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. For in very deed, as the Lord, the God of Israel, liveth, which hath withholden me from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one man child."
So David received of her hand that which she had brought him: and he said unto her, "Go up in peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person."
And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken: [{424}] wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light.
And it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.
And it came to pass about ten days after, that the Lord smote Nabal, that he died.
And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Blessed be the Lord, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back his servant from evil: and the evil-doing of Nabal hath the Lord returned upon his own head."
And David sent and spoke concerning Abigail, to take her to him to wife. And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spoke unto her, saying, "David hath sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife."
And she arose, and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said, "Behold, thine handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord."
And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with five damsels of hers that followed her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife.
DAVID BECOMES KING.
The Lament for Saul and Jonathan. After Long Waiting the Throne is Gained.
(At last came that fatal battle with the Philistines in the hills and, when the sun set, Saul and his three sons lay dead upon the field.)
And it came to pass after the death of Saul, on the [{425}] third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head: and when he came to David, he fell to the earth, and did obeisance. And David said to him, "From whence comest thou?" And he said unto him, "Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped."
And David said to him, "How went the day? I pray thee, tell me."
And he answered, "The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also."
And David said to the young man that told him, "How knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?"
And the young man that told him said, "As I happened by chance upon Mount Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon his spear; and, lo, the chariots and the horsemen followed hard after him. And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called unto me. And I answered, 'Here am I.'
"And he said unto me, 'Who art thou?'
"And I answered him, 'I am an Amalekite.'
"And he said to me, 'Stand, I pray thee, beside me, and slay me, for anguish hath taken hold of me; because my life is yet whole in me.' So I stood beside him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after he was fallen: and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither unto my lord."
Then David took hold of his clothes, and rent them; [{426}] and likewise all the men that were with him: and they mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the Lord, and for the house of Israel; because they were fallen by the sword. And David said to the young man that told him, "Whence art thou?"
And he answered, "I am the son of a stranger, an Amalekite."
And David said to him, "Why wast thou not afraid to put forth thine hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?"
And David called one of the young men and said, "Go near, and fall upon him." And he smote him that he died.
And David said to him, "Thy blood be upon thy head; for thy mouth hath testified against thee, saying, 'I have slain the Lord's anointed.'"
And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son: and he bade them teach the children of Judah the song of the bow.
The Song of the Bow.
| Thy glory, O Israel, is slain upon thy high places! How are the mighty fallen! Tell it not in Gath, Publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon; Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, Lest the daughters of our enemies triumph. Ye mountains of Gilboa, Let there be no dew nor rain upon you, neither fields of offerings: For there the shield of the mighty was vilely cast away, The shield of Saul, not anointed with oil. From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, The bow of Jonathan turned not back, And the sword of Saul returned not empty. Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, And in their death they were not divided: They were swifter than eagles, They were stronger than lions. Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, Who clothed you in scarlet delicately, Who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel. How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! Jonathan is slain upon thy high places. I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: Very pleasant hast thou been unto me: Thy love to me was wonderful, Passing the love of women. How are the mighty fallen, And the weapons of war perished! |
"DAVID STREET" IN JERUSALEM
From a picture taken by Prof. Lyon and used by his kind permission.
This narrow, busy street in Jerusalem still bears the name of the great king who scaled the heights and took the citadel from the Jebusites so long ago
And they told David, saying, "The men of Jabesh-gilead were they that buried Saul." And David sent messengers unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said to them, "Blessed be ye of the Lord, that ye have showed this kindness to your lord, even to Saul, and have buried him. And now the Lord show kindness and truth unto you: and I also will requite you this kindness, because ye have done this thing. Now therefore let your hands be strong, and be ye valiant: for Saul your lord is dead, and also the house of Judah have anointed me king over them."
Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, [{430}] and spoke, saying, "Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. In times past, when Saul was king over us, it was thou that didst lead out and bring in Israel: and the Lord said to thee, 'Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be prince over Israel.'"
So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and King David made a covenant with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they anointed David king over Israel.
David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.
AN EVIL DEED.
How a Brave Prophet Rebuked a King.
(David once did a very evil deed. He wished to have as his wife the wife of another man, named Uriah, a very brave soldier in the royal army. David caused this soldier to be placed in a very dangerous place in the battle, where he knew he would be killed. The prophet told the king a story to show him how wicked he was. Then the eyes of the king were opened to his sin, and he repented, but the child which had been born to him died.)
And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. And he wrote in the letter, saying, "Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die."
And it came to pass, when Joab kept watch upon the city, that he assigned Uriah unto the place where he knew that valiant men were. And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the people, even of the servants of David; and Uriah the [{431}] Hittite died also. Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war; and he charged the messenger, saying, "When thou hast made an end of telling all the things concerning the war to the king, it shall be that, if the king's wrath arise, and he say unto thee, 'Wherefore went ye so nigh unto the city to fight? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall? why went ye so near the wall?' then shalt thou say, 'Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.'"
So the messenger went, and came and showed David all that Joab had sent him for. And the messenger said to David, "The men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even unto the entering of the gate. And the archers shot at thy servants from off the wall; and some of the king's servants are dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also."
Then David said to the messenger, "Thus shalt thou say unto Joab, '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': and encourage thou him."
And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she made lamentation for her husband. And when the mourning was past, David sent and took her home to his house, and she became his wife, and a child was born to them. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.
And the Lord sent Nathan to David. And he came [{432}] to him, and said to him, "There were two men in one 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 bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own morsel of food, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveler to 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 to him, but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him."
And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, "As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this is worthy to die: and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity."
And Nathan said to David,--
"Thou art the man!"
"Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; and if that had been too little, I would have added unto thee such and such things. Wherefore hast thou despised the word of the Lord, to do that which is evil in his sight? thou hast smitten Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife."
RUINS OF RABBATH AMMON
An important city in Moab, taken by David.
Used by special permission of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
It was during the long siege of this city that Uriah the Hittite, whose wife David wished as his own, was killed. The army of Joab, David's general, encamped about the city and finally by the capture of the springs which supplied water to the people the strong walled place fell. Joab sent for David, so that he was on the ground when the last assault was made and the city was taken. Very rich spoil fell into the hands of the victors
And David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord."
And Nathan said to David, "The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die."
And Nathan departed to his house.
And the child which had been born to David was very sick. David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth. And the elders of his house arose, and stood beside him, to raise him up from the earth: but he would not, neither did he eat with them. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died, And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, "Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spoke unto him, and he hearkened not to our voice: what will he then do if we tell him that the child is dead?"
But when David saw that his servants whispered together, David perceived that the child was dead: and David said to his servants, "Is the child dead?"
And they said, "He is dead."
Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel; and he came into the house of the Lord, and worshiped: then he came to his own house; and when he required they set food [{436}] before him, and he ate. Then said his servants to him, "What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat."
And he said, "While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said 'Who knoweth whether the Lord will not 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."
| CAVE OF ADULLAM |
David and his three captains bold Kept ambush once within a hold. It was in Adullam's cave, Nigh which no water they could have, Nor spring nor running brook was near To quench the thirst that parched them there. Then David, King of Israel, Straight bethought him of a well, Which stood beside the city gate At Bethlehem; where, before his state Of kingly dignity, he had Oft drunk his fill, a shepherd lad; But now his fierce Philistine foe Encamped before it he does know. Yet ne'er the less, with heat opprest, Those three bold captains he addrest; And wished that one to him would bring Some water from his native spring. His valiant captains instantly To execute his will did fly. The mighty three the ranks broke through Of armed foes, and water drew For David, their beloved king, At his own sweet native spring. Back through their armed foes they haste, With the hard-earned treasure graced. But when the good king David found What they had done, he on the ground The water poured. "Because," said he, "That it was at the jeopardy Of your three lives this thing ye did, That I should drink it, God forbid." |
| --Charles Lamb. |
A KNIGHTLY DEED.
David and His Three Brave Captains. How They Brought the Water for Which He Longed and How He Would Not Drink It.
There were three valiant captains in David's army. These three went down, and came to David in the harvest time to the cave of Adullam; and the troop of the Philistines were encamped in the valley of Rephaim.
And David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Beth-lehem. And David longed, and said, "Oh that one would give me water to drink of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the gate!"
And the three mighty men broke through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: but he would not drink thereof, but poured it out to the Lord.
And he said, "Be it far from me, O Lord, that I should do this: shall I drink the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?" therefore he would not drink it.
These things did the three mighty men.
HOW DAVID BOUGHT A THRESHING-FLOOR FOR AN ALTAR.
"Neither Will I Offer Burnt Offerings Unto the Lord My God of That Which Cost Me Nothing."
And David said unto the Lord, "I have sinned greatly in that I have done: but now, O Lord, put away, I beseech thee, the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly."
A PALESTINE THRESHING FLOOR, WITH CATTLE TREADING OUT THE GRAIN
From a photograph belonging to Dr. W. J. Moulton and used by his kind permission.
This was the method, still in use, whereby during all the times of the Bible the farmer in Palestine threshed out his grain. It was then thrown up by forks and the wind blew away the chaff. A level place for a threshing floor was much prized. It was such a floor that David bought of Araunah as a suitable place to build an altar.
And when David rose up in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying, "Go and speak to David, 'Thus saith the Lord: I offer thee three things; choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee.'"
So Gad came to David, and told him, and said unto him, "Shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? or wilt thou flee three months before thy foes while they pursue thee? or shall there be three days' pestilence in thy land? now advise thee, and consider what answer I shall return to him that sent me."
And David said unto Gad, "I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the Lord; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man."
So the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed: and there died of the people from Dan even to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men.
And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, "It is enough; now stay thine hand."
And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite. And David spoke unto the Lord when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, "Lo, I have sinned, and I have done perversely: but these sheep, my people, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father's house."
And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, "Go up, rear an altar unto the Lord in the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite."
And David went up according to the saying of Gad, as the Lord commanded. And Araunah looked forth, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him: and Araunah went out, and bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.
And Araunah said, "Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant?"
And David said, "To buy the threshing-floor of thee, to build an altar unto the Lord, that the plague may be stayed from the people."
And Araunah said unto David, "Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him: behold, the oxen for the burnt offering, and the threshing instruments and the furniture of the oxen for the wood: all this, O king, doth Araunah give unto the king."
And Araunah said unto the king, "The Lord thy God accept thee."
And the king said unto Araunah, "Nay; but I will verily buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the Lord my God which cost me nothing."
So David bought the threshing-floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
And David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord was intreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.
THE REBELLION OF ABSALOM.
How an Evil Son Met His Fate in the Branches of an Oak.
(David had much trouble and many wars during his reign, but the rebellion of his own son Absalom brought more grief to him than anything else. For a time the rebellion was successful, and David was driven from his own palace. Then the tide turned and Absalom was defeated and slain in a great battle. The strange way in which Absalom met his death, and how David mourned for his son, are told in the following story.)
And David numbered the people that were with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them. And David sent forth the people, a third part under the hand of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third part under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, "I will surely go forth with you myself also."
But the people said, "Thou shalt not go forth: for if we flee away, they will not care for us; neither if half of us die, will they care for us: but thou art worth ten thousand of us: therefore now it is better that thou be ready to succor us out of the city."
And the king said to them, "What seemeth to you best I will do."
And the king stood by the gate side, and all the people went out by hundreds and by thousands. And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom."
And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom. So the people went out into the field against Israel: and the battle was in the forest of Ephraim. And the people of Israel were smitten there before the servants of David, and there was a great slaughter there that day of twenty thousand men. For the battle was there spread over the face of all the country: and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured. And Absalom chanced to meet the servants of David. And Absalom rode upon his mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak, and his head caught hold of the oak, and he was taken up between the heaven and the earth; and the mule that was under him went on. And a certain man saw it and told Joab, and said, "Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak."
And Joab said to the man that told him, "And, behold, thou sawest it, and why didst thou not smite him there to the ground? and I would have given thee ten pieces of silver and a girdle."
And the man said to Joab, "Though I should receive a thousand pieces of silver in mine hand, yet would I not put forth mine hand against the king's son: for in our hearing the king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying, 'Beware that none touch the young man Absalom.' Otherwise if I had dealt falsely against his life (and there is no matter hid from the king), then thou thyself wouldest have stood aloof."
JERUSALEM, FROM THE WELL OF EN-ROGEL
"Leaving Jerusalem by St. Stephen's Gate and walking down the valley of Jehoshaphat, by the dry bed of the Kidron, you meet at length the deep rugged valley of Hinnom, skirting the city in a semi-circular form on the southern and western sides. At the junction of these two valleys stands a low, vaulted stone building--this is the well of En-Rogel."
Then said Joab, "I may not tarry thus with thee." And he took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak. And ten young men that bore Joab's armor came up and smote Absalom, and slew him. And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing after Israel: for Joab held back the people. And they took Absalom and cast him into the great pit in the forest, and raised over him a very great heap of stones: and all Israel fled everyone to his tent.
Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, "Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the Lord hath avenged him of his enemies."
And Joab said to him, "Thou shalt not be the bearer of tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another day: but this day thou shalt bear no tidings, because the king's son is dead."
Then said Joab to the Cushite, "Go tell the king what thou hast seen."
And the Cushite bowed himself unto Joab, and ran. Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab, "But come what may, let me, I pray thee, also run after the Cushite."
And Joab said, "Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou wilt have no reward for the tidings?"
"But come what may," said he, "I will run."
And he said unto him, "Run."
Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Plain, and outran the Cushite.
Now David sat between the two gates: and the watchman went up to the roof of the gate unto the wall, and [{448}] lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, a man running alone. And the watchman cried, and told the king. And the king said, "If he be alone, there is tidings in his mouth."
And he came apace, and drew near. And the watchman saw another man running: and the watchman called unto the porter, and said, "Behold, another man running alone."
And the king said, "He also bringeth tidings."
And the watchman said, "I think the running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok."
And the king said, "He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings."
And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king, "All is well."
And he bowed himself before the king with his face to the earth, and said, "Blessed be the Lord thy God, who hath delivered up the men that lifted up their hand against my lord the king."
And the king said, "Is it well with the young man Absalom?"
And Ahimaaz answered, "When Joab sent the king's servant, even me thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was."
And the king said, "Turn aside, and stand here."
And he turned aside, and stood still. And, behold, the Cushite came; and the Cushite said, "Tidings for my lord the king: for the Lord hath avenged thee this day of all them that rose up against thee."
ANCIENT TOMBS NEAR JERUSALEM.
From a photograph belonging to Dr. W. J. Moulton and used by his kind permission.
Many of the kings of Judah were buried in these rock tombs. "Every family who could afford it had their tomb hewn out of the rock, with niches for the reception of many bodies."
And the king said unto the Cushite, "Is it well with the young man Absalom?"
And the Cushite answered, "The enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise up against thee to do thee hurt, be as that young man is."
And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!"
THE PASSING OF DAVID.
"I Go the Way of All the Earth."
Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, "I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man; and keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, according to that which is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself: that the Lord may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, 'If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee a man on the throne of Israel.'"
And David died, and his son Solomon reigned in his stead.