When thus to them, that, He had formerly dissuaded them from their own resolution, when they were ready to forsake Ishbosheth, and to join themselves to David: that, however, he now gave them leave so to do, if they had a mind to it; for they knew that God had appointed David to be king of all the Hebrews, by Samuel the prophet; and had foretold that he should punish the Philistines, and finally overcome them. Now when the elders and rulers heard this, and understood that Abner was come over to those sentiments about the public affairs which they were of before, they changed their measures, and came in to David. these men had agreed to Abner's proposal, he called together the tribe of Benjamin; (for all of that tribe were the guards of Ishbosheth's body ;) and spake to them to the same purpose. And when he saw that they did not in the least oppose what he said, but resigned themselves up to his opinion, he took about twenty of his friends, and came to David, in order to receive himself security upon oath from him. For we may justly esteem those things to be firmer which every one of us do by ourselves, than those which we do by another. He also gave him an account of what he had said to the rulers, and to the whole tribe of Benjamin. And when David had received him in a courteous manner, and had treated him with great hospitality for many days, Abner, when he was dismissed, desired permission to bring the multitude with him, that he might deliver up the government to him, when David himself was present, and a spectator of what was done. When David had sent Abner away, Joab, the general of his army, came immediately to Hebron ; and when he had understood that Abner had been with David, and had parted with him a little before under an agreement that the government should be delivered up to David; he feared lest David should place Abner, who had assisted him to gain the kingdom, in the first rank of dignity; especially since he was a shrewd man in other respects; in understanding affairs, and in managing them artfully, as proper seasons should require; and that he should himself be put lower, and be deprived of the command of the army; so he took a knavish and a wicked course. In the first place he endeavoured to calumniate Abner to the king, exhorting him to have a care of him, and not to give attention to what he had engaged to do for him; because all he did ten when they were come to the place where they had left the two hundred men, who were not able to follow them, but were left to take care of the stuff; the four hundred men did not think fit to divide among them any other parts of what they had gotten, or of the prey, since they did not accompany them; but pretended to be feeble, and did not follow them in the pursuit of the enemy; but said, they should be contented to have safely recovered their wives. Yet did David pronounce, that this opinion of theirs was evil and unjust, and that when God had granted them such a favour, that they had avenged themselves on their enemies, and had recovered all that belonged to themselves, they should make an equal distribution of what they had gotten to all, because the rest had tarried behind to guard their stuff. And from that time this law obtained among them; that those who guarded the stuff, should receive an equal share with those that fought in the battle. Now when David was come to Ziklag, he sent portions of the spoils to all that had been familiar with him, and to his friends, in the tribe of Judah. And thus ended the affairs of the plundering of Ziklag, and of the slaughter of the Amalekites. Now upon the Philistines joining battle, there followed a sharp engagement, and the Philistines became the conquerors, and slew a great number of their enemies. But Saul the king of Israel, and his sons fought courageously, and with the ut most alacrity; as knowing that their entire glory lay in nothing else but dying honourably; and exposing themselves to the utmost danger from the enemy; for they had nothing else to hope for. So they brought upon themselves the whole power of the enemy till they were encompassed round and slain, but not before they had killed many of the Philistines. Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan. Abinadab, and Malchishua. And when these were slain, the multitude of the Hebrews were put to flight; and all was disorder, confusion, and slaughter, upon the Philistines pressing in upon them.But Saul himself fled, having a strong body of soldiers about him; and upon the Philistines sending after them those that threw javelins and shot arrows, he lost all his * 1 Sam. xxx. 25. company, except a few. As for himself he fought with great bravery; and when he had received so many wounds, that he was unable to bear up, or to oppose any longer, and yet was not able to kill himself; he bade his armourbearer draw his sword, and run him through, before the enemy should take him alive. But his armour-bearer not daring to kill his master, he drew his own sword, and placing himself over against its point, he threw himself upon it; and when he could neither run it through him, nor, by leaning against it, make the sword pass through him; he turned round, and asked a certain young man that stood by, who he was? and when he understood that he was an Amalekite, he desired him to force the sword through him; because he was not able to do it with his own hands, and thereby to procure him such a death as he desired. This the young man did accordingly; and he took the golden bracelet that was on Saul's arm, and his royal crown that was on his head, and ran away. And when Saul's armour-bearer saw that he was slain, he killed himself. Nor did any of the king's guards escape; but they all fell upon the mountain Gilboa. But when those Hebrews that dwelt in the valley, beyond Jordan, and those who had their cities in the plain, heard that Saul and his sons were fallen, and that the multitude about them were destroyed; they left their own cities, and fled to such as were best fortified. And the Philistines finding those cities deserted, came and dwelt in them. On the next day, when the Philistines came to strip their enemies that were slain; they got the bodies of Saul, and of his sons, and stripped them, and cut off their heads. And they sent messengers all about their country, to acquaint them that their enemies were fallen. And they dedicated their armour in the temple of Astarte; but hung their bodies on crosses, at the walls of the city of Bethshan; which is now called Scythopolis. But when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard that they had dismembered the dead bodies of Saul, and of his sons, they deemed it so horrid a thing to overlook this barbarity, and to suffer them to be without funeral rights, that the most courageous and hardy among them; (and indeed that city had in it men that were very stout, both in body and mind,) journeyed all night, and came to Bethshan, and approached the enemies' wall, and taking down the bodies of Saul, and of his sons, they carried them to Jabesh; while the enemy were neither powerful, nor bold enough to hinder them, because of their great courage. So the people of Jabesh wept all in general, and buried their bodies in the best place in their country, which was named Aroura; and they observed a public mourning for them seven days, with their wives and children; beating their breasts, and lamenting the king and his sons without either tasting drink or meat, till the evening. To this end did Saul come, according to the prophecy of Samuel; because he disobeyed the commandments of God,t about the Amalekites, and on the account of his destroying the family of Ahimelech, the high-priest, with Ahimelech himself, and the city of the high-priests. Now Saul, when he had reigned eighteen years, while Samuel was alive, and after his death two, ended his life in this manner. *This way of speaking in Josephus, of fasting seven days, without meat or drink, is almost like that of St. Paul's, Acts xxvii. 33. "This day is the fourteenth day that ye have tarried, and continued fasting, having taken nothing;" and as the nature of the thing, and the impossibility of strictly fasting so long, require us here to understand both Josephus, and the sacred author of this history, 1 Sam. xxxi. 13, from whom he took it, of only fasting till the evening; so must we understand St. Paul, either that this was really the fourteenth day that they had taken nothing till the evening, or else that this was the fourteenth day of their tem pestuous weather in the Adriatic sea, as verse 27, and that on this fourteenth day alone they had continued fasting, and had taken nothing before the evening. The mention of their long abstinence, verse 21, inclines me to believe the former explication to be the truth, and that the case was then for a fortnight, what it was here for a week, that they kept all those days entirely as fasts till the evening, but not longer. See Judg. xx.26, xxi. 2, 1 Sam. xiv. 24, 2 Sam. i. 12, Antiq. VII. 7. +1 Chron. x. 13. From an. 1114 to 1096, B. C. BOOK VII. Containing an Interval of Forty Years. FROM THE DEATH OF SAUL TO THE DEATH OF DAVID, CHAP. I. OF DAVID'S CONDUCT ON RECEIVING THE NEWS OF SAUL'S DEATH, AND OF THE CIVIL WAR WHICH ENSUED BETWEEN THE ADHERENTS OF DAVID AND ISHBOSHETH, IN WHICH ASAHEL AND ABNER WERE SLAIN. THIS battle happened on the same day whereupon David was come back to Ziklag, after he had overcome the Amalekites. Now when he had been already two days at Ziklag, there came to him the man who slew Saul; he had escaped out of the battle which the Israelites had with the Philistines; and had his clothes rent, and ashes upon his head. And when he made his obeisance to David, he inquired of him whence he came? He replied, from the battle' of the Israelites; and informed him, that the result of it was unfortunate; many ten thousands of the Israelites having been cut off, and Saul, together with his sons, slain. He also said, that he could well give him this information, because he was present at the victory gained over the Hebrews; and was with the king when he fled. Nor did he deny that he had himself slain the king, when he was ready to be taken by the enemy, and himself exhorted him to that act; because when he was fallen on his sword his wounds had made him so weak, that he was not able to kill himself. He also produced demonstrations that the king was |