CHAP. VIII. How upon Saul's transgression of the prophet's commands, Samuel ordained another person to be king privately, whose name was David, as God commanded him. § 1. Now Saut being sensible of the miserable condition he had brought himself into, and that he had made God to be his enemy, he went up to his royal palace at Gibeah, which name denotes an hill, and after that day he came no more into the presence of the prophet. And when Samuel mourned for him, God bid him leave off his concern for him, and to take the holy oil, and go to Bethlehem to Jesse, the son of Obed, and to anoint such of his sons as he should shew him for their future king. But Samuel said, he was afraid. lest Saul, when he came to know of it, should kill him, either by some private method, or even openly. But upon God's suggesting to him a safe way of going thither, he came to the fore-mentioned city; and when they all saluted him, and asked, What was the occasion of his coming? he told them, he came to sacrifice to God. When therefore he had gotten the sacrifice ready, he called Jesse and his sons to partake of those sacrifices; and when he saw his eldest son to be a tall and handsome man, he guessed by his comeliness that he was the person who was to be their future king. But he was mistaken in judging about God's providence; for when Samuel inquired of God, whether he should anoint this youth, whom he so admired, and esteemed worthy of the kingdom? God said, " Men do not see as God seeth. Thou "indeed hast respect to the fine appearance of this youth, "and thence esteemest him worthy of the kingdom, while "I propose the kingdom as a reward, not of the beauty of "bodies, but of the virtue of souls, and I inquire after one "that is perfectly comely in that respect. I mean one who "is beautiful in piety, and righteousness, and fortitude, " and obedience, for in them consists the comeliness of the "soul." When God had said this, Samuel bid Jesse to shew him all his sons. So he made five others of his sons to come to him; of all which Eliab was the eldest, Aminadab the second, Shammah, the third, Nathaniel the fourth, Rael the fifth, and Asam the sixth. And when the prophet saw that these were no way inferior to the eldest in their countenances, he inquired of God, which of them it was whom he chose for their king? And when God said it was none of them, he asked Jesse, whether he had not some other sons besides these? and when he said that he had one more, named David, but that he was a shepherd, and took care of the flocks, Samuel bid them call him immediately, for that till he was come they could not possibly sit down to the feast. Now as soon as his father had sent for David, and he was come, he appeared to be of a yellow complexion, of a sharp sight, and a comely person in other respects also. This is he, said Samuel privately to himself, whom it pleases God to make our king. So he sat down to the feast, and placed the youth under him, and Jesse also, with his other sons; after which he took oil, in the presence of David, and anointed him, and whispered him in the ear, and acquainted him, that God chose him to be their king; and exhorted him to be righteous, and obedient to his commands, for that by this means his kingdom would continue for a long time, and that his house should be of great splendour, and celebrated in the world that he should overthrow the Philistines; and that against what nations soever he should make war, he should be the conqueror, and survive the fight: and that while he lived he should enjoy a glorious name, and leave such a name to his posterity also. 2. So Samuel, when he had given him these admonitions, went away: But the divine power departed from Saul, and removed to David; who, upon this removal of the divine spirit to him, began to prophecy. But as for Saul, some strange and demonical disorders came upon him, and brought upon him such suffocations as were ready to choke him; for which the physicians could find no other remedy but this, that if any person could charm those passions by singing, and playing upon the harp, they advised them to enquire for such an one, and to observe when these demons came upon him and disturbed him, and to take care that such a person might stand over him and play on the harp, and recite hymns to him. Accordingly Saul did not delay, but commanded them to seek out such a man. And when a certain stander-by said, that he had seen in the city of Bethlehem a son of Jesse, who was yet no more than a child in age, but comely and beautiful, and in other respects one that was deserving of great regard, who was skilful in playing on the harp, and in singing of hymns, and an excellent soldier in war, he sent to Jesse, and desired him to take David away from the flocks, and send him to him, for he had mind to see him, as having heard an advantageous character of his comeliness and his valour. So Jesse sent his son, and gave him presents to car * Spanheim takes notice here, that the Greeks had such singers of hymns, and that usually children or youth were picked out for that service; as also that those called singers to the harp, did the same that David did here, i. e. join their own vocal and instrumental music together. 3 ry to Saul. And when he was come, Saul was pleased with him, and made him his armour-bearer, and had him in very great esteem, for he charmed his passion, and was the only physician against the trouble he had from the demons whensoever it was that it came upon him, and this by reciting of hymns, and playing upon the harp, and bringing Saul to his right mind again. However, he sent to Jesse the father of the child, and desired him to permit David to stay with him, for that be was delighted with his sight and company; which stay, that he might not contradict Saul, he granted. CHA P. IX. How the Philistines made another expedition against the Hebrews under the reign of Saul; and how they were overcome by David's slaying Goliath in single combat. 1. Now the Philistines gathered themselves together again no very long time afterward, and having gotten toge ther a great army, they made war aginst the Israelites, and having seized a place between Shochoh and Azekah, they there pitched their camp. Saul also drew out his army to oppose them; and by pitching his own camp on a certain hill, he forced the Philistines to leave their former camp, and to encamp themselves upon such another hill, over against that on which Saul's army lay, so that a valley, which was between the two hills on which they lay, divided their camps asunder. Now there came down a man out of the camp of the Philistines, whose name was Goliath, of the city Gath, a man of vast bulk, for he was of four cubits and a span in tallness, and had about him weapons suitable to the largeness of his body, for he had a breast-plate on that weighed five thousand shekels: he had also an helmet, and greaves of brass as large as you would naturally suppose might cover the limbs of so vast a body. His spear was also such as was not carried like a light thing in his right hand, but he carried it as lying on his shoulders. He had also a lance of six hundred shekels; and many followed him to carry his armour. Wherefore this Goliath stood between the two armies, as they were in battle array, and sent out a loud voice, and said to Saul, and to the Hebrews, "I will free you from fighting "and from dangers; for what necessity is there that your "army should fall and be afflicted? Give, me a man of you "that will fight with me, and he that conquers shall have "the reward of the conqueror, and determine the war, for "these shall serve those others to whom the conqueror "shall belong: And certainly it is much better, and more "prudent, to gain what you desire by the hazard of one man, "than of all." When he had said this, he retired to his own camp; but the next day he came again, and used the same words, and did not leave off for forty days together, to challenge the enemy in the same words, till Saul and his army were therewith terrified, while they put themselves in array as if they would fight, but did not come to a close battle. 2. Now while this war between the Hebrews and the Philistines was going on, Saul sent away David to his father Jesse, and contented himself with those three sons of his whom he had sent to his assistance, and to be partners in the dangers of the war: And at first David returned to feed his sheep and his flocks; but after no long time he came to the camp of the Hebrews, as sent by his father to carry provisions to his brethren, and to know what they were doing. While Goliath came again, and challenged them, and reproached them, that they had no man of valour among them, that durst come down to fight him; and as David was talking with his brethren about the business for which his father had sent him, he heard the Philistine reproaching and abusing the army, and had indignation at it, and said to his brethren, I am ready to fight a single combat with this adversary. Whereupon Eliab, his eldest brother, reproved him, and said, that he spake too rashly and improperly for one of his age, and bid him go to his flocks, and to his father. So he was abashed at his brother's words, and went away, but still spake to some of the soldiers, that he was willing to fight with him that challenged them. And when they had informed Saul what was the resolution of the young man, the king sent for him to come to him: And when the king asked what he had to say, he replied,' "O king, be not cast down, nor afraid, for I will "depress the insolence of this adversary, and will go down "and fight with him, and will bring him under me, as tall "and as great as he is, till he shall be sufficiently laughed at, "and thy army shall get great glory, when he shall be slain "by one that is not yet of man's estate, neither fit for fighting, nor capable of being intrusted with the marshalling "an army, or ordering a battle, but by one that looks like a "child, and is really no elder in age than a child." 3. Now Saul wondered at the boldness and alacrity of David, but durst not presume on his ability, by reason of his age; but said, he must on that account be too weak to fight with one that was skilful in the art of war. "I undertake "this enterprise," said David, " in dependence on God's be"ing with me, for I have had experience already of his as "sistance; for I once pursued after and caught a lion that as"saulted my flocks, and took away a lamb from them, and I "snatched the lamb out of the wild beast's mouth, and when "he leaped upon me with violence, I took him by the tail, "and dashed him against the ground. In the same manner "did I avenge myself on a bear also; and let this adversary "of ours be esteemed like one of these wild beasts, since he "has a long while reproached our army, and blasphemed our "God, who yet will reduce him under my power." 4. However Saul prayed that the end might be, by God's assistance, not disagreeable to the alacrity and boldness of the child; and said, " Go thy way to the fight." So he put about him his breast-plate, and girded on his sword, and fitted the helmet to his head, and sent him away. But David was burdened with his armour, for he had not been exercised to it, nor had he learned to walk with it; so he said, "Let this ar"mour be thine, O king, who art able to bear it, but give "me leave to fight as thy servant, and as I myself desire." Accordingly he laid by the armour, and taking his staff with him, and putting five stones out of the brook into a shepherd's bag, and having a sling in his right hand, he went towards Goliath. But the adversary seeing him come in such a manner, disdained him, and jested upon him, as if he had not such weapons with him as are usual when one man fights against another, but such as are used in driving away, and avoiding of dogs; and said, "Dost thou take me not for a man, but a dog?" To which he replied, "No, not for a dog, but for a creature worse than a dog." This provoked Goliath to anger, who thereupon cursed him by the name of God, and threatened to give his flesh to the beasts of the earth, and to the fowls of the air, to be torn in pieces by them. To whom David answered, "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a breast-plate, but I have God for my ar"mour, in coming against thee, who will destroy thee, and "and all thy army by my hands, for I will this day cut off "thy head, and cast the other parts of thy body to the dogs, "and all men shall learn that God is the protector of the He"brews, and that our armour and our strength is in his pro"vidence, and that without God's assistance, all other war"like preparations and power is useless." So the Philistine being retarded by the weight of his armour, when he attempted to meet David in haste, came on but slowly, as despising him, and depending upon it that he should slay him, who was both unarmed, and a child also, without any trouble at all. 5. But the youth met his antagonist, being accompanied with an invisible assistant, who was no other than God him |