Judah 7.

David over certainly was a wise, a just, a munificent and prosperous prince; but yet he had his faults, and those great ones, in his private character, and these faults were not inconsistent with his character of being a man according to God's heart; for if he was such a prince as God intended him to be, by faithfully executing his orders, and bringing to pass those great events which he was raised up by God to be the instrument of accomplishing, he thus far acted according to the heart, i. e. the purpose and will of God, and thereby in this respect rendered himself well pleasing and acceptable to him.

The particular purposes for which God advanced him to the throne were, that by his steady adherence to the one true God and the religion which he was pleased to establish by Moses, he might be an illustrious example to all his posterity that should reign after him: and here he was absolutely without blemish, and a man, in the strictest sense of the expression, after God's own heart, as he never departed from his God by introducing the deities of other nations, or permitting and encouraging the impious rites which they performed in 1 Kings xi. honour of them. On this account his heart is said to be perfect with the Lord his God, because his heart was never turned away after other gods; and it is spoken to the honour of the good princes of his house who reigned after him, that they did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, as did David their father; and of the idolatrous princes, it is mentioned as the greatest reproach to them, that their hearts were not perfect with the Lord their God, as the heart of David their father.

1 Chron.

xiii. 3.

During the reign of Saul little regard was shown by him to the institutions of religion, and he acted as though he was independent on the God of Israel, and therefore seldom or ever inquired of him how he was to act in the affairs of government at the ark, from whence God, as peculiarly present in it, had promised to give the proper answers to those who rightly consulted him. As the ark itself had no fixed residence, and some of the principal services of religion could not for that reason be regularly and statedly performed, David was raised up to be king over God's people that he might provide a rest for his ark, where it should perpetually continue, to which all the people might resort, where all the solemn

festivals might be celebrated, and the whole worship of God David over Judah 7. might be constantly performed, according to the prescriptions of the law of Moses. David fully answered this purpose by fixing the ark at Jerusalem, settling all the necessary ceremonies and forms of worship for perpetual observance, and composing sacred hymns and psalms that should be sung in honour of the true God, providing the expenses and many of the costly materials that were necessary to build and adorn the house of God, which he himself had proposed to erect, but which God reserved for his son and successor to raise up; and regulating the order that was to be observed amongst all the various persons that were to be employed in the daily services of the ark and temple, a full and ample account of which is transmitted to us in the first book of Chronicles.

18.

It must not be omitted also that there was yet another end of providence in David's appointment to be king over Israel, that, according to God's promise concerning him, he might save his people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and Sam. iii. out of the hand of all their enemies; and further, that by him he might accomplish the more ancient promises which God had made to Abraham in their full extent, of giving to his seed the whole country, from the river of Egypt unto the Gen. xv. 18. great river, the river Euphrates. Here also David answered the intentions of providence in his advancement, as he subdued the Philistines, and made them tributary to his crown, as he cleared his kingdom of all the remains of the nations that had formerly possessed it, or reduced them into entire subjection, or made them proselytes to his religion; and, as the consequence of just and necessary wars, conquered all the neighbouring nations, garrisoned them by his victorious troops, and put it out of their power to disturb his people for many years, and left to his son and successor a forty years' peace, and dominion over all the kingdoms, from the river Euphrates 1 Kings iv. unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of21. Egypt, who brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life.

And finally, God raised him up to exalt the glory of his people Israel, and render them a flourishing and happy people

by the wisdom and justice of his government. He chose Ps. lxxviii. David his servant.... to feed Jacob his people, and Israel 70-72.

R

David over his inheritance. So he fed them according to the integrity of Judah 7. his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands, i. e. he governed them with integrity, prudence, and courage; 1 Chron. for he reigned over all Israel, and executed judgment and justice among all his people.

xviii. 14.

See here, reader, the true portrait of the man after God's own heart, who fulfilled all his pleasure! A prince who, amidst all the idolatries of the nations around him, never wickedly apostatized from the worship of his God, and was an amiable example of a steady adherence to those forms of religion which God had prescribed to all the princes his successors; who, though king, subjected himself to God the supreme king of Israel, and faithfully executed the commands he received from him; who made his people triumph in the numerous victories he obtained by the directions and under the conduct of God himself; who enlarged their dominions, and put them into possession of all the territories God had promised to their forefathers; and who, amidst all the successes that were granted him, the immense riches he had gathered from the spoils of his conquered enemies, and the sovereign power with which he was invested, never degenerated into despotism and tyranny, never oppressed his people, but governed them with integrity, ruled over them with moderation and prudence, impartially distributed justice, left an established durable peace, and fixed the whole administration, both civil and religious, upon the most substantial and durable foundation. In these instances he was the true vicegerent of God, on whose throne he sat, and all whose pleasure in these great instances he faithfully performed. If therefore David's private moral character was worse than it will be ever proved to be, he might be still a man after God's own heart, in the proper original sense of the expression; and the attempt to prove that he was not possessed of the height of moral purity, is an impertinent attempt to prove David not to be what the sacred history never asserted him to be.

BOOK III.

CHAP. I.

David anointed king over all Israel.

Judah 8, all

THE behaviour of David upon the death of Abner, in the David over lamentation he made for him, accompanying his corpse to the Israel 1. funeral in so honourable a manner, and the exemplary punishment which he executed on the two assassins of Ish-bosheth, plainly convinced all the people of Israel that it was not by David's order that either of them was slain; gave them an high opinion of his moderation and integrity, and greatly disposed them to join unanimously in advancing him to the kingdom over them. Abner indeed was cut off before he had finished the revolution in David's favour, as he intended; but as Ish-bosheth also was dead, and there was no other of Saul's house to succeed to the throne but Mephibosheth, Jonathan's son, who had been lame of his feet from five years old, and had on that account been set aside by Abner, as unfit to be entrusted with the affairs of the kingdom, the whole nation at last unanimously resolved to fix on David to be king of Israel. And accordingly all the tribes of Israel came to him at Hebron ; and having been long prepossessed in his favour, and regarded him, during the reign of Saul, as one appointed by God to govern and lead them, said to him, " We are thy bone, and thy 2 Sam. v. 1, flesh, of the same blood and origin with thyself; and even formerly, when Saul was king over us, thou wast our general, who leddest us out to battle, and broughtest us back victorious. We further remember the assurance that God himself gave thee, Thou shalt feed and govern my people Israel, and thou shalt be captain over Israel." With these sentiments all the elders of Israel came to David at Hebron, presented to him the conditions on which they advanced him to the throne, which being mutually and solemnly agreed to, they anointed him king, according to the word of the Lord by Samuel, many 1 Chron. xi. years before; thus settling the government upon a solid founda-3.

&c.

David over tion, and effectually providing for the national security and

Judah 8, all
Israel 1.

24, &c.

peace.

Besides the elders of Israel, there were present at David's 1 Chron.xii. inauguration above three hundred and forty thousand men, deputed by the several tribes to assist at this solemnity; and it is observable, that among these there were three thousand of the children of Benjamin and kindred of Saul, who mixed with the rest of the tribes in the election of David, though they had hitherto, a very great part of them, been Saul's principal friends, and firmly attached to him, and the interest of his family. But being now convinced, by the manner of his death, and the destruction of his four sons, that God had set aside the succession in his house, they cordially united, with the rest of their brethren, in David's advancement and coronation. Of all these men of war it is remarked, that they came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel; determined unanimously to support his interest, and protect him against all opposition whatsoever. And as to all the rest of Israel, they were of one heart to advance him to the kingdom. After the solemnity of the inauguration was over, David and the people held a festival of three days' continuance; the people, to show how well pleased they were with the choice, bearing the expense of it, and generously preparing bread, meat, meal, cakes of figs, bunches of raisins, wine, oil, oxen, and sheep in the greatest abundance: for, as the sacred historian observes, There was joy in Israel.

Ver. 38.

Ver. 40.

It plainly appears from this transaction, that David had long been in high esteem with all the tribes of Israel, as a brave man, a good soldier, a fortunate commander, of great integrity, one in whom they thought they could confide, and under whose government they might expect full protection in their religion and liberties. What contributed further to their high esteem of him, and their unanimity in electing him to the throne, was the designation and appointment of him by God himself to be their king, by the ministry of Samuel the prophet, and the assurance they had from God, as Abner ex2 Sam. iii. presses it, that by David's hand he would save his people out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies. After the death of Saul, and the defeat of the Hebrew army, the Israelites forsook their cities, fled in great

18.

1 Sam.

xxxi. 7.