Exposition of the Whole Bible

that the government would] or atempts being made wpon him by any of and with outward: fafety of body, no infulrs David’s which perhaps would not have been‘cared not to confer with -him whilft in his pate mh bejuntil it fubfided; or chofe not to provoke im concluded from what follows.. more, for it is plain he had great power overhim;

¥.22. And bebold the fervants of David and|which generals of armies at this time very much from purfuing a troop, &c.) A troop oflaffumed, fee ¥. 39. he sent meffengers after Abner, oab came rok that made an incurfion into the land, ta-Jin the name of the king, as Adarbinel rightly fup- Tfrael| poles, and fo Fofepbus ‘s for otherwife it can hard- king the advantage of a civil war between and ‘fudab; fach as the Edomites, Amalekites, and efpecially the Philiftines;

¥. 250 Thou knoweft Abner the fon of Ner, &c.] Thow canft not be ignorant what a cunning deceitful man he is, nor of his defigns; or doft thou not know? art thou ignorant? fo read the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic verfions, with an interrogation: tbat he came to deceive thee; with falfe hopes, or to lead into wrong meafares with an intention to involve and ruin him: and to know thy going out, and coming in, the affairs of his court, the fecrets of his government,’ ferve his condué and behaviour, and all his actions, and improve them againft him: and to know all that thou doeft; he faggefts that he came not as a fiiend, but asa fpy, and therefore ought to have been taken up, and detained, and not difmiffed.Jed This oad faid to fet David againft him, fearing ly be thought he would have returned ona t which Foab hearing of rom Yoab only, who he knew bore him ill-will: which brought him again from the well of Sirab; which might have its name from the thorns and briers that grew about it. Fofephus * calls it Bera, and fays it was 20 furlongs from Hebron’: but David knew it not, that Foab had fent mefienhe had juft difmifled)gers in his name after Abner to fetch him back; it was not done by his order, with his confent or knowledge; this is obferved, to clear David from any concern in the death of Adner, as follows. ~ went out in purfuit of them, and overtook them: and brought in a great Jpoil with them; which they took from them: but' Abner was not with David in Hebron; when Yoab and his army entered the| city with their booty: for 4e had fent bim away, and be was gone in peace;

him, and he was gone off fafely.

y. 23. When Foab and all the hoft that was with bim were come, &cc.| To Hebron, or rather to David’s court; for their coming tothe city is before mentioned; this niuft be underftood not of the]&c. whole army, of all the common foldiers, but of the chief officers, who with ‘foab came to court, to wait upon David, and report their fuccets: they told Foab, faying, Abner the fon of Ner came to the king; fome of the courtiers informed him of it, who knew it would not be very agreeable to him: and be hath fent him away, and he is gone in peace; inftead of feizing him, and laying him in a prifon as his enemy, he has let him go with all the marks of friendfhip and good-will.

y. 27. And when Abner was returned to Hebron; Alone, and not the 20 men with him; not to David’s court, but juft to the city, to the gate of it: Foab took him afide in the gate; where he was waiting for him, and met him; this was 2 public place, where people were continually. paf= fing and repaffing, and where courts of judicature ufed to be held; wherefore Admer might think himfelf fafe here with Yoab; and have no fufpicion at all of his defign, and fhews how fearlefs Fogb was of God or men: to {peak with bim uietly 5 peaceably, in a friendly manner, as all his’ geftures towards him fhewed; fo that Admer made no difficulty of turning afide with him, fuppofing he had fomething to communicate to him from the king, which he had forgot: and /mote him under th rib that he died; in the fame place that 4bner had {mote his brother, of which ‘fee ch. ii. 23° and this he did: for the blood of Afabel bis brother; for Abner’s fhedding his brother’s blood 5 but this’ was not the only reafon, and perhaps not the chief; but, as Fofepbus” obferves, becaufe he was’ fearful if Abner was received into the friendthip of the king, he would be preferred unto him, and away, take his place as general of the army, as being an’ is cleanjolder and more experienced officer 5 fo Procopius Gazeus and Theodoret. OO Ee Ree And afterward when David beard it, 8ec.]- That Joab had fent to fetch Abner back, and that — he had ftabbed him in the gate of the city, and he was dead; it was fome time after it was done that the news of it was brought to David, this cirs _ cumftance is obferved, the more toclearthe King from any concernin this affair: be /aid » ina public manner, in open court, before all _ his princes; he called God to witnefs, and, as Hh tron i: ftretching out his right hand to God, he ~ toob-Jaloud: I and my kingdom are guiltle[s before the — Lerd for ever from the blood of ‘ine ae, Ner’; he was fenfible it would be Sap hie Pe #er had been with him, and that Foab Us js. had killed him; and therefore it might be f aay; that he had an hand in it, and that it was do. by his order, with his: privy council; and there- ~ y.24. Then Foad came tothe king, &c.] To the apartment where he was; perhaps he was told the above at his firft entering into the king’s palace, by fome in waiting, before he came to the king, which filled him with wrath, fo that he came to him in alte fi paffion: and faid to him, what haft thou done? which was very infolent ina fubject to fay to his prince: bebold, Abner came unto thee; Lhave been credibly informed of it, and am affred it is a faét which cannot be denied; he reprefents it as if he had done a wrong thing to adinit him to come to him; but perhaps the great fault was that he had let him go: why is it that thou haft fent bim and be is quite gone, or going, is gone*; gone’off, when he ought to have been laid hold on as a traitor, and put in irons. y¥.28.

vid’s men 3) the cafe, if Joab had been at court, as may if he fhould be received into favour, he would bea rival of hiss and befides his breaft was full of revenge againft him for the death of his brother. y¥. 26, And when Fcab was come out from David, éc,} Which perhaps he did at once, as foon ever he had {poken his mind, and flew out of the room in-a great paffion, not waiting for the king’s anfwer, fince we read of none returned; though it may be the king difdained to give him one, orjthe e “yb T4 & abiit eundo,Pagninus, Montanus, £ fore to purge him and them from it, he made | public! declaration, that neither he nor his cou knew any thing of it, and that it was not do with their knowledge and confent, and by th asjorder, but through the refentment of 2 fon; and therefore hoped that no man pute the fhedding of this blood unto t that God would punifh them for it; an rather led to make this public de a Antiqu.1. 7.61. $5. © Ibid. * Ibid, Pes

Ch.iit.¥.29—33. I. SAMUEL, 54t caufe he knew that the death of Asner in thisway would be refented by the triends of Sau/’s family, and be anobftruction to the union of the two kingdoms, which it was known Adner was endeavouring to bring about. __|which fhows how great his dered ypindle; Prov. xxxi) 19. and to this fenfe it is rendered here in the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic verfions; and then-the meaning is, lét his pofttrity, or fome of them, be fo poor, that they fhall be obliged to: get their livelihood in fo way as by {pinning; or let them be of fuch aneffeminate dilpofition, as to be more’ fit to handle the fpindle, and do the work of women, than to ufe.the {word: or that falleth on the fword, not by it honourably in the field of battle, but deftroying themfelves with it: or that lacketh bread; and is obliged to beg it: all which David ‘might fay, not by a fpirit of prophecy, but in paffion; ~ and to fhew with what horror he refented the action, and how deteftable it was to him, how far it was from\him to have any concern in it; “but though it was a very wicked action in Foad murder Abner in this manner, and for the reafons he did; yet it was a jult vengeance from the Lord Abner for fighting againft God, and acting the dictates of his own conf{cience; againft David, and perfidy to Ibbofheth, and having been the caufe of much bloodfhed in J/- y¥. 31. 4nd David faid to Foab, and to all the people that were with him, &c.] To his whole court, ¥oab being prefent; for he did not flee, nor was he laid hold on in order to be brought to juttice; power was, and that he was too hard for Devid, as in y. 39. however this he did, he enjoined his whole court, and Foad alfo, to exprefs public mourning on this account: rent ‘your clothes, and gird you with Jackcloth; which wete expreffions of mourning uled on vaoffrious occafions, and on account of the dead, and which with the heathens were carried toa greater excefs, even to the tearing of their flefh, &c. and mourn before Abner 5 before his corpfe as carried to fol- the grave, when it was ufual to make great lamentations; fee Ais vili. 2. and king David bimpelf folowed the bier; or bed' on which his body was laid, and carried to the grave. ~ On thefe the rich and whofeinoble among the Greeks and ‘Romans were carried, andland thofe of the meaner fort on biers"; and fo with the Fews; fee the note on Luke vii. 14. fome being blind, as 4quilaiof which were gilded with gold, and were made of ivory, and had ivory feet °; that of Heroa’s was all of gold, inlaid with precious ftones, and the body covered with purple, and followed by: his J/aiab interprets itifons and kindred, the foldiers going before armed, the word for /raffis ren-jand their leaders following?; the bier or bed with the Romans was fometimes carried by fix perfons, fometimes by eight or more, Jt was not ufual for kings, as the Fews fay *, to attend a funeral, to go out of the doors of their palace after theit mean alown dead, and much lefs others; but David did this to fatisfy the people, and to root out of their mind all fufpicion of his having any hand in Adner's death; and to fhew that he was not flain by his will, and with his confent.;

¥. 29. Let it reff on the bead of Foab, &c.| That is, the blood of Abner, who was the fhedder of it; let the guilt of it be charged'to him, and let punifhment for it be inflicted on him: and on all bis father’s houfe, on Abifoai his brother, and other relations. that might be privy to the death Abner, and adviling to it, and ready to affiftin it if neceflary: and let there not fail from the houfe of Joab; let there be always in his family, and of his feed, one or other of the perfons defcribed as lows: one that bath an iffue, a gonorrhea, which was reckoned infamous, and very impure, accord: | ing to the Fewi/h law, and rendered perfons unfit for fociety; fee Lev. xv. or that isa leper; difeafe was. very loathfome and infectious, fhut him out of the company of men; fee Lev. xiii. or that leaneth ona fiaff;

renders the word; or through weaknels of ‘hody, not being able to walk without ones orthrough fome difeafe of the feet, as the Fewifh writers generally underftand it; and R.

of the gout particularly:

cowardly; y.32. And they buried Abner in -Hebron, &c.] According to the Fewi/b account of places of burial, *he was buried in the midft of the city, though al burying places were generally without; and fo Fuller * places this in his map; whether the cave andjof Machpelab, which was near Hebron, was now ufed for a burying place, is not certain: and the to) king lift up bis voice and wept at the grave of Abmer made a great outcry, a loud lamentation, fo on!as to be heard by all the people; and which no againft doubt was real and hearty, and not done merely for his rebellion) with political views: and all the people wept; thro’ forkeoncern for the death of Abner, efpecially on account of the manner in which it was, and in imi- rael. tation of the king, and being affected- with his

¥.30. So Foab and Abifoai bis brother flew Abner, &c.| For though it was only Foad that gave) him. the thruft of which he died, i/bai was in the fecret, and was confenting and advifing to his death, and fo an acceffary to it; and might be prefent, ready to affift in it, if occafion required and fo Jofephus* exprefly fays, that Abifbai his brother was with him when he drew his fword, and {mote him: decaufe be had flain their brother Afahel at Gibeon in the battle; which was no juft reafon at all; his blood was fhed in war, this injof peace, in cold blood, and under the guife of friendfhip; that was fhed with reluctance, and after fair warning, and in.defence of himfelf;

fully in oad, unawares to Abner, and in great de- ‘ceit and hypocrify; fee 1 Kings ii. 5. tears and cries.

y. 33. And the king lamented over Abner, &c.] Delivered an elegy, or funeral oration, which he had compofed on this occafion, as Fofepbus * fuggefts; for he had cried and wept before, but now;)he expreffed fomething as follows: and faid, died Abner as a fool dieth? the meaning of the interrogation is, he did not; the 7. argumis, ** did Abner die as wicked men die?” no, he did not; he did not die tor any wickednefs he had been guilty; he did not die. as a malefaGtor, whofe crime has been charged and proved in open court, and fentence of condemnation pronounced on him but this wil-jrighteoufly for it; but he died without any thing being laid to his charge, and much lefs proved, and without judge or jury; he was murdered ina

54.2 II. S A M ty E fie: Ch. Hi. Ve 34— +” clandeftine, infidious, and deceitful. manner; fo the word ‘foo/ is often taken in {cripture for a man, efpecially in the book of Proverbs; the Septuagint verfion leaves the word untranflated, “ died Abner according to the death of Naba/ 2” no; it can hardly be thought that David would mention the name of any particular perfon on fuch an done; they were highly approved of by thems» wicked jfuch an intereft had he in them. — sin oe Ls

Y. 37. For all the people and all Ijrael underftood that day, &c.] Not the people of Judah er by butlof Irae! alfo, to whom the knowledge of thefei jthings came; they knew and were fatisfied by his conduét and behaviour, by his words and aétions;)

occafion. hat it was not of the king to flay Abner the fon of -¥.34. Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters, &c.| As malefaétors are when they aretaken up for any crime, and efpecially when proved upon them, and condemned for it, andjwill; brought forth to be executed. This was not his cafe, and had he been aware of the defign againft him, as his hands and feet were at liberty, he might have defended himfelf; or if he found he had too many to deal with, might have made ufe of his feet and fled: asa man falleth before wicked men, fo felleft thou; as a man being before blood-thirfty and deceitful men, falls before them, through treachery and deceit, privately and unawares, fo Abuer before Foab and Abifbai, this David faid in the prefence of Yoab, and before all the people, to declare the plain fact how it was, to exprefs his deteftation of it, and to fhew he had no hand init; and Y¥oab muft be ‘an hardened creature to ftand at the grave of. Abner, and hear all this, and not be affected with it: and all the people wept again over him, over Abner, being laid in his grave; they had wept before, but hearing this funeral oration delivered by the king in fuch moving language, and in fuch a mournful tone, it drew tears afrefh |Ner; it was not by the counfe] or advice of the. king, as the Targum; it was without his know-» ledge and confent, was contrary to his mind and that he had no manner of concern in it, and that if it had been in his power he would have prevented it. |.

y¥.38. 4nd the king faid unto his fervants, 8c.} His courtiers, giving a reafon why he mourned as. he did; or had aid”, and fo is a reafon why the people concluded, and were fully fatisfied he had’ jno hand in his death; but the firlt is beft, becaufe what follows was faid not to the people at the felllgrave, but to his fervants at court: kwow ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Irael? a prince, being of the royal family, his father was Saul’s uncle; and he his own coufin; a greet man, being general of the army, @ very valiant and fkilful commander, a man of great wifdom and parts. David fays nothing of his grace and virtue, only of his grandeur, his high birth and civil excellencies; he praifes him in what he was commendable, and ‘proceeds no farther; and this was fufficient to fhew there was juft caufe of mourning on civil accounts » and this they from them. might eafily know and perceive, that the fall or

¥. 35. And when all the people came to caufe David to eat meat while it was yet day, &c.| The cuftom was to bury in the day-time, and after the funeral was over to provide and fend in food to relations of the deceafed, and come and eat them; as was alfo the ufage with the Greeks death of fuch a man, which had that day happened in I/rael, was a public lofs, and matter of lamen+ tation; and the rather as he was employing: all his thejexcellent talents in civil affairs, and all his intereft withjin the people of Jae/, to unite them to Fudab, andjand bring them under the government of Da-

Romans‘; fee the notes on Fer, xvi. 5, 7. andjvid.:: 3 kings themfelves ufed to attend thofe feafts; for the ‘Jews fay “, ‘* when they caufe him (the king) to eat, all the people fit upon the ground, and fits upon the bed;” but in this cafe David refufed toeat with them: David fware, faying, fo do to me, and more alfo; may the greateft evils, fuch as | care not to mention, befal me; and even more and worfe than I can think of and exprefs: if I tafte bread, or ought elfe, till the fun be down; perhaps the funeral was in the morning, as funerals with the Yews generally now are;

¥. 39. And I am this day weak, though anointed éimg, &c.] Which feems to be given as a reafon, hejor for an excufe why he did not infli& juft punithment upon the murderer, according to the law of GodjGod, becaufe he was weak; not in body or mind, andjbut with refpect to the kingdom, that was like a tender branch, or in its infant-ftate; and great care and caution were to be ufed that it wasnot overturned: he was a king by unétion, not by birth; a fon of the late king was fet up againit for otherwife ifjhim, and was pofleffed of the far greater part of the kingdom; he was indeed anointed by Samuel to be king over all J/rael; but as yet he was not put into the poffeffion of the kingdonr he was janointed to; he was anointed and made king over Fudah, and invefted with the office of king there, fu-jand fettled in it; and yet his power was not very great there, for as follows: and thefe men the fons of Zeruiab, be too hard for me; his fifter’s fons, oa and Abifbai, they were a check upon him; he could not do what he would, their influence was fo — great, both in the court and in the camp 5 the one was general of the army, and the other a Beer vi rable officer in it, and both valiant men, po refpectable among the people, for’ their =. ments in war, and the fuccefs they had; fo tha they were very much out of the rexthobte vid helto bring them to juftice, without fhaking his kine wellldom; and therefore in point of ppnianan al Ss King- it was now towards evening, his abftinence from food till that time would not have feemed fo much, nor required much notice, and {till lefsan oath.

¥. 36. And all the people took notice of it, 8&c. Not only of his oath, that he would noteat food till evening, but of his whole conduct at the neral of dbmer; the forrow he exprefled for his death, and the oration he made on account of it, in which he pretty feverely reflected on his murderer: and it pleafed them; that he fhewed fuch a concern for his death, and that it was aclear cafe he had no hand in it: as whatfoever the king did pleased all the people; what he did at this time, burying ddner with fo much pomp and ceremony; and indeed he had fo much the hearts of the people, and fuch a fhare in their affections, and they had fuch an high opinion of him, that all that did_in public and private affairs they reckoned nam dixerat, Junius & Tremellius. opis it beft to connive at this fact until he was more eftablifhed’ in the kingdom. Whatever may be faid for this conduét, it is certain he was too dilatory, and which did not fit eafy upon ‘his mind, and therefore gave it in charge to Solomon before his death, not to fuffer Foad to go to his grave in peace, 1 Kings ii. 5, 6, 31, 32, 33.34. Some take thefe words, weak and’ bard, in a different fenfe, that David was weak or tender*, as it may be rendered, tendér-hearted, of a merciful difpofition, and therefore fpared Abuer when he was in his hands, though he had done him fo much hurt, who. was the Lord’s anointed; but thefe men, his fifter’s fons, were of cruel tempers, more unmer- evil according to his wickedne/s; which may be confidered, either as an imprecation of evil on. Fea, or a prediction, that fooner or later righteous judgment would be rendered to him by the Lora; with whom he leaves it to. take vengeance.on him, fatisfying himfelf with this for the prefent,, that though it was not in'his power to do it, the Lord would in his own time and way: but after all. that can be faid in favour of David, he feems to have been too much in fear of men, and too diftruftful of the power and promife of God to eftablith him in his kingdom, and was too negligent. of public juftice; which, had it been exercifed, might have prevented other fins, as the murder of Lhdofbeth, eiful than he, and therefore flew him; bur the firft fenfe feems beft: the Lord fhall. reward the doer of to. which the authors of it might be encouraged by this lenity.

FAIS chapter relates the concern. the death er of Abner gave to Ihbofheth, andthe men of| name Jfrael, ¥. 1. the murder of Jbbgheth by two of his captains, ‘who cut off his head, and brought it to David, ¥. 2—8. by whom they were rewarded accordibe to their deferts, he putting them to death, and expofing their bodies tofhame and ig- Saul: the name of the, one was Baanah, and thé of the other Rechab, the fons of Rimmon a Beerotbite, of the children of Benjamin, {fo that thefe men were brethren in nature, as well as in iniquity; they had the fame father, who is defcribed by his name and city, and their names are exprefsly mentioned and ‘recorded to their infamy;

nominy, ¥.g—12. and they were not only. the fervants of Jhbo/beth, who had commiffiions under him, but were of the y¥. 1. Aad when Saul’s fon heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, &c.) By Saul’s fon is meant J/Pbofoetb, to whom tidings were foon brought of the death of Abner his general, and that he died in Hebron, where David his, rival reigned, and was there murdered by Foad the general of hisarmy: his hands were feeble; not only in-a natural fenfe, being quite difpirited at hearing fuch news; but in a civil fenfe, having loft his main fupport andj) ftrength, he being prefident of his council, and commander of his forces, and in whom: he placed all his confidence: and if he knew nothing of being at Hebron, it muft furprize him to hear of his dying there; from whence he might conclude, that fince he was there without his knowledge, it could not be in his-favour, fome plot was forming, and fchemes laying with his rival to dethrone him; or if he knew of it, and anderftood itin this light, dame ttibe with him; all which is obferved.as an aggravation of their crime: for Beeroth alfo was reckoned to Benjamin, the place from whom Rimmom their father is denominated, and where he dwelt, as well as Gittaim, where they had fojourned, as in the next verfe. This place, Beeroth, originally belonged to the Gideonites, and fell to the lot of Beajamin at the divifion of the land, fee o/h. ix..17, and xvili. 25._ y. 3. And the Beerothites fled to Gittaim, &c.} At the death of Sau/, when many of the J/raelites his, deferted their cities, and left them to the Philifines, 1 Sam, xxxi, 7. and {fo the inhabitants of Beeroth forfook their city, which was near the Philifines, and went to Gittaim, a ay in the fame tribe, tho’ a little farther off, fee Neb. xi. 33. ¥.. 4. dnd Fonathan, Saul’s fon, &c.] His eldeft fon, who died at the fame time with him: hada

‘that he was endeavouring to make peace between him and David, and upon advantageous terms to him, of which now he might entertain no hopes; he was difpirited, and might conclude’ that Joab was againft any terms of peace, and therefore had difpatched him: and all the Ifraelites were troubled; at the lofs of fo great a man in their kingdom, and of whofe defigns to unite them to) Fudab, and put them under the government of David, they were not ignorant; but now were in the utmoft confufion, not knowing what ftep to take, and whom to fend to carry on the treaty, in which Adser was concerned; and whether it would be fafe for any to go upon it; fince he who had the management of it was murdered, and no juf-

Jon that was lame of bis feet; of both feet, which were broken. or bruifed by a fall, as after related: and was jive years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Fezreel; that is,when the tidings of their death came from Fezree/, the place where the battle was fought in which they died, to Gibeah, and the royal palace there; fo that he was now 12 years of age: aud his nurfe took bim up, and fled; fearing the Philiftines would come thither and deftroy the family of Sau/; and this child being the-fon of ‘fonathan, the eldeft fon of Saul, was by birth heir to the crown, his father and grandfather being both dead, and which might make the nurfe the more folicitous to fave his life by flight: and it came to pafs as fhe made hafte to flee, tice done on the murderer, and therefore might| queftion Davia’s fincerity and uprightnefs in this affair; thefe things greatly diftrefied and embarafied them for the prefent, but Providence openeda way for their future eftablifhment and prohat he fell, and became lame; in her hurry and fright he dropt out of her arms, and had fome bone broken or diflocated, which was never rightly replaced, or had fome contufion, of which he was never cured; and his name was Mepbibofbeth, cal- y¥. 2. And Saul’s fon bad two men that were cap-| tains ‘of bands, &c.\ Of troops in the army, or _of guards about the perfon of Jbbofbeth fon of the change of fuch names fee the note on ch. ii. 8. This ftory of Mephibofheth, and of his nurfe’s flight with him, and what happened upon i is here liferted on occafion of the flight of the Bee in, and fo paffed undifcovered, to’ carry to Davia rothites, ¥. 3. but chiefly to obferve in what condition Saul’s family now was, and what encouraged the murderers of I/hbofbeth to be guilty of the crime they were, fince when he was taken off, there was none but this lame child of that family; and as the removal of J/bbofbeth would be of fo much fervice to David, they doubted not but it would be very acceptable to him, and they fhould be greatly rewarded and honoured; and which they might do with the greateft fafety, fince the neareft kinfman and‘avenger of blood was fo young, and lame of both his feet: or rather this is mentioned to fhew, thar-Jbbo/beth had no right to the throne, his eldeft brother’s fon being living; fo that thofe murderers might think they did a right thing, to take away the life of an ufurper.

y. 5. And the fons of Rimmen the Beerothite, Re chab and Baanah, went, &c.\ From Gittaim, where they were fojourners, y¥. 3. or from ‘the army, where they had commiffions, where-ever it was: and came about the heat of the day; the middle of the day, at noon, as follows: £0 rhe boufe of Ippbofheth; which was at Mabanaim: who lay ona bed at noon -as was ufual in hot countries, efpecially for great perfonages, as kings; fo the Targum, “and he was fleeping the fleep: of kings;” or at a time when kings ufually flept; though this is remarked by fome as an inftance and proof of the flugsifhnefs and inactivity of this prince, who left the management of all affairs to Abner his general, and gave himfelf to floth and: fenfuality; which, when indulged, bring ruin on princes and their kingdoms.

y. 6. And they came thither into the mid? of the boufe, 8c.) They not only came unto it, but entered into it, and went into the inmoft part of it; the guards being afleep alfo perhaps, or not on duty, fo that there were none to obftruct them; or if there were, they deceived them, fince they went in as though they would have fetched wheat; out of the king’s granaries, for the payment and fupport of the foldiers under them, who in thofe days were paid in corn, as were the Roman {oldiers ’ in after-times; and thefe granaries might not only be in the king’s houfe, but near his bedchamber; for in thofe ancient ages of fimplicity there was not fuch grandeur in the courts of princes as now; the Targum is, ‘* as fellers of wheat,” in the guife and habit of fuch perfons, pretending they came to fell wheat to the king’s purveyors, who were at the granaries; or, as others interpret it, they went in along with the wheat-merchants as if they belonged to them, and fo found their way to the king’s bed-chamber: and /mote him under the fifth rib; fee the note on ch. ii. 23. and Rechab and Baanah bis brother efcaped; they got out of the palace after they had committed the murder undifcovered and unfufpected.

¥. 7. For when they came into the houfe, he lay on bis bed in his bed-chamber, &c.| This is repeated to give a more particular account of the murder; though barbinel thinks they went in twice; when they went in firft they {mote him under the fifth rib, and-made their efcape; but fearing they bad not left him dead, they returned, and did as follows: and they {mote bim, and flew him; fo that it was out of all doubt with them that he was dead: and bebeaded him, to make fure work of it: and took his head; along with them, perhaps in one of the facks they had ‘to fetch wheat to curry favour with him: and gat them awa through the plain all night; through the’plain of Jordan; all the way from Mabanaim to Hebron, being for the’ moft part a plain country till they — came to Hebron, which was mountainous; from Mabanaim to Hebron was a {pace of 68 miles, according to Bunting *)» how aa oy. 8. And they brought the bead of Ibbofheth unto David to Hebron, &c.| Suppofing it would have been a'very acceptable prefent to him: and aid to the king, behold the bead of Ibbofbeth the fon of Saul, thine enemy, which fought thy life; all which, his relation to Sau/, his enmity to David, and his - defigns upon: his life, are artfully put together to raife the indignation of David againft him, and — make their prefent of his head to him the more agreeable: and the Lord hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of bis feed; for all the evils and injuries they had done him; this being the laft of the fons of Saal by a lawful wife, the two remaining were by aconcubine; and thefe men impioufly afcribe to the Lord what they ‘with wicked hands‘had done. 1 Oa ¥.9. And David anfwered Rechab and Baanab his brother, the fons of Rimmon the Beerothite, &c.

In ajmanner they did not expe: and fatd unto them, asthe Lord liveth, who hath redeemed my foul out of all adverfity; {piritual and temporal, efpecially the latter is meant, and particularly what he had been brought into by the perfecution of Sau/, whilft living, and by thole that adhered to his houfe fince his death;- which he afcribes to the Lord, and doubted: not that. he would {till deliver him, and complete what he-had defigned for him, and that he needed not the affiftance of fach wicked hands as theirs; the words contain the form of an oath made to teftify the truth of the following narrative, concerning the man that brought the tidings of Saul’s death to him, or for the certainty of what he would do to thofe perfons for the murder of [bbofheth. a ae" ¥. 10. When one told me, faying, behold, Saul és dead, &c.) No more is related, not that he killed him, or affifted in killing him, only that he was dead; by which it appears, as Adarbinel thinks, that the Amalekite did not flay Saul, and that David did not put him to death on that account, but for what follows: thinking to have brought good tidings; which would have been very acceptable to

David, that he would have rejoiced and exulted at’

it as he did; but he was miftaken; inftead of that, —

I took hold of him, and flew him at Ziklag that is, ordered one of his young men to lay hold on him, — and flay him, as he did, ch. i. 15. who thought that I would have given bim a reward for bis té- dings; a handfome prefent, as the Targum here; a gift, or raifed him to fome poft of honour and profit. See y.11. How much more, when wicked men have fain a righteous perfon, &c.] As Ipbofbeth was in comparifon of the wicked men that flew him; tho’

not with refpect to David, if he knew of his di- > vine defignation to the throne; nor with refpeét to Mephibofbeth, his eldeft brother’s fon, whofe rig!

to the throne was prior to his, which he muf know; though with refpeét to his conduct towards David, in afluming the throne of J/rae/, it might not be owing to any bad principles of malice a injuftice, but to his ignorance of David's havi a right to the throne upon his father’s d | bythe advice of his friends he took it: the fin of about him to fall on them, and put them to death;

thefe men in murdering him is aggravated, in that they flew him in his own palace, upon bis bed; in cold blood, and notin the field of battle, not being engaged in war with him; in his own palace, where he might juftly think himfelf in fafety; on his bed, afleep, and fo at an unawares, when infenfible of danger, and not in a pofture of defence: and now David argues from the leffer to’ the greater, that if the man that brought him the tidings of Sau/’s death, had no reward given him for bringing what he thought would be reckoned good tidings, then much lefs would any be given them who had actually flain their mafter, and that in fuch a bafe and barbarous way; and if the above perfon, who only was a bringer of tidings, was taken and flain, then how much more did they deferve to die, who had been guilty of fuch a cruel and barbarous murder: foall I not therefore now require his blood of your bands, and take you away from the earth? avenge his blood on them, by putting them to death, out of the world, and from the land of the living, as men that deferved to live no longer on it.

¥.12. And David commanded his young men, and they flew them, &c.| He ordered fome of his guards

N this chapter we have an account of all the tribes of J/rael coming to Hebron, and anointing David king over them, ¥. 1—5. of his expedition againft the Yebufites in Ferufalem, and taking from them the ftrong hold of Zion, ¥. 6—10. of his building an houie for himfelf, and of his building up his family, by taking more wives and and they accordingly did: and cut off their bands and their feet; their hands which had {mote J/- bofheth, and cut off his head; and their feet which had been fwift to fhed his blood, and made hafte to bring his head fo many miles to David; this was what the Yews call meafure for meafure: and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron; not their hands and their feet, but the trunks of their bodies, thus mutilated; fo Theodoret; though others think their hands and their feet were hung up, and not their bodies, becaufe dead bodies were not to hang upon the tree more than a day; they were hung up over the fifh-pool in Hebron, becaule a public place, and where they were the more expofed to their fhame, and the terror of others: but they took the head of Ilbbofheth, and buried it in the fepulchre of Abner in Hebron; by order of David no doubt, who it feems had made, or ordered to be made, a fepulchre for Abner, fee ch. iii. 32. all which David did to fhew his: regard to the family of Saul, his abhorrence of fuch execrable murders, and to remove all fufpicion of his being concerned in them, and to conciliate the minds of the J/raelites to him.