LXXXIV.]

THE PURSUIT.

117

And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins : and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him: for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights.

And David said unto him, To whom' belongest thou? and whence art thou? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick.

We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites, and upon the coast which belongeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb ; and we burned Ziklag with fire.

And David said to him, Canst thou bring me down to this company? And he said, Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to

this company.

And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad upon all the earth, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.

And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.

And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away: and David rescued his two wives.

And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to

them: David recovered all.

And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drave before those other cattle, and said, This is David's spoil.

And David came to the two hundred men, which were so faint that they could not follow David, whom they had made also to abide at the brook Besor and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him : and when David came near to the people, he saluted them.

:

Then answered all the wicked men and men of Belial, of those that went with David, and said, Because they went not with us, we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away and depart.

Then said David, Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the LORD hath given us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the company that came against us into our hand.

For who will hearken unto you in this matter? but as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff: they shall part alike.

And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day.

And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD.

LESSON LXXXV.

THE PROPHETICAL THANKSGIVING.

B.C. 1055.-PSALM xl.

I waited patiently for the LORD;

And he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: Many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.

Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust,

And respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

Many, Ỗ LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done,

And thy thoughts, which are to us-ward :

They cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee:

If I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire;

Mine ears hast thou opened:

Burnt-offering and sin-offering hast thou not required.

Then said I, Lo, I come :

In the volume of the book it is written of me,

I delight to do thy will, O my God:

Yea, thy law is within my heart.

I have preached righteousness in the great congregation:

Lo, I have not refrained my lips, O LORD, thou knowest.

I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart;

I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation:

*

I have not concealed thy loving-kindness and thy truth from the great congregation.

Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O LORD:

Let thy loving-kindness and thy truth continally preserve me.
For innumerable evils have compassed me about:

Mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to

look up;

They are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart

faileth me.

Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me :

* I have made it known.

LXXXVI.]

THE WITCH OF ENDOR.

O LORD, make haste to help me.

119

Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my
soul to destroy it;

Let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil.
Let them be desolate for a reward of their shame that say unto me,
Aha, Aha.

Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee:

Let such as love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be mag-
nified.

But I am poor and needy; yet the LORD thinketh upon me:
Thou art my help and my deliverer;
Make no tarrying, O my God.

LESSON LXXXVI.

• THE WITCH OF ENDOR.

B.C. 1055.-1 Sam. xxviii. 3-25.

Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land.

And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Shunem and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they pitched in Gilboa.

:

And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled.

And when Saul enquired of the LORD, the LORD answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.

Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to

him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at En-dor.

And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shail name unto thee.

And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die?

And Saul sware to her by the LORD, saying, As the LORD liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing.

Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.

And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.

And the king said unto her, Be not afraid : for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.

And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself.

And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do.

Then said Samuel, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the LORD is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy?

And the LORD hath done to him, as he spake by me: for the LORD hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy neighbour, even to David:

Because thou obeyedst not the voice of the LORD, nor executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the LORD done this thing unto thee this day.

Moreover the LORD will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines and to-morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the LORD also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.

Then Saul fell straightway all along on the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel: and there was no strength in him; for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all the night.

And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said unto him, Behold, thine handmaid hath obeyed thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me.

Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the voice of thine handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee; and eat, that thou mayest have strength when thou goest on thy way.

But he refused, and said, I will not eat. But his servants, together with the woman, compelled him; and he hearkened unto their voice. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed.

And the woman had a fat calf in the house; and she hasted, and killed it, and took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof: And she brought it before Saul, and before his servants; and they did Then they rose up, and went away that night.

eat.

LXXXVII.]

THE BATTLE OF MOUNT GILBOA.

121

LESSON LXXXVII.

THE BATTLE OF MOUNT GILBOA.

B.C. 1055.-1 Sam. xxxi. 1—12; 2 SAM. iv. 4; I CHRON. X. 10, II.

Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa.

And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Melchishua, Saul's sons.

And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers hit him; and he was sore wounded of the archers.

Then said Saul unto his armour-bearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armour-bearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.

And when his armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him.

So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armour-bearer, and all his men, that same day together.

And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were on the other side Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.

And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in mount Gilboa.

And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to publish it in the house of their idols, and among the people.

*

And they put his armour in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan, and his head in the temple of Dagon. And when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard of that which the Philistines had done to Saul;

All the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and came to Jabesh, and burnt them there.

And they took their bones, and buried them under a tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.

And Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son.

He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up and fled and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.

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So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord, From the Book of Chronicles.