2 Samuel 8

2. S. 8 : 1** And after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them : and David took the bridle of the mother city Gath, and her towns out of the hand of the Philistines. And he smote Moab, and measured them with the line, making them to lie down on the ground ; and he measured two lines to put to death, and one full line to keep alive. And the Moabites became servants to David, and brought presents. David smote also Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his dominion at the River Euphrates. And David took from him a thousand and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen : and David houghed all the chariot horses, but reserved of them for an hundred chariots. And when the Syrians of Damascus came to succor Hadadezer king of Zobah, David smote of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men. Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus : and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought presents. And the LORD gave victory to David whithersoever he went. And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. And from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, king David took exceeding much brass. And when Toi king of Hamath heard that David had smitten all the host of Hadadezer, then Toi sent Joram his son unto king David, to salute him, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and smitten him : for Hadadezer had wars with Toi. And Joram brought with him all manner of vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of brass : these also did king David dedicate unto the LORD, with the silver and gold that he dedicated of all the nations which he subdued ; of Syria, of Edom, and of Moab, and of the children of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah. And David gat him a name when he returned from smiting of the Edomites in the Valley of Salt, even eighteen thousand men. And he put garrisons in Edom ; throughout all Edom put he garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. And the LORD gave victory to David whithersoever he went. And David reigned over all Israel ; and David executed judgment and justice unto all his people. And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host ; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder : and Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were priests ; and Seraiah was scribe ; and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites ; and David’s sons were chief about the king.

By a fitting arrangement, the record of God’s promise to establish the kingdom of David is followed by an account of all his wars, though here also the order is not strictly chronological. In fact, we have merely a summary of results, which is all that was necessary in a history of the kingdom of God—the only exception being in the case of the war with Ammon and their allies the Syrians, which is described in detail in 2 S. 10 and 11 because it is connected with David’s great sin. A. E.

2. S. 8 : 1-15.** His own throne, and the service of God’s sanctuary, being thus established, David advanced to the final subjugation of the enemies of Israel. 1. The Philistines were now, in their turn, invaded and subdued by David, who took the proud frontier city of Gath,

“The bridle of the mother-city,” with its “daughter towns.” Except one or two minor combats, we hear of no further trouble from the Philistines during David’s reign. This conquest secured to Israel its promised boundary on the southwest, the “river of Egypt.” 2. Turning to the eastern frontier, David exacted from Moab a signal vengeance for all her enmity against Israel down from the time of Balak. Two thirds of the people were put to death, and the other third reduced to tribute. David’s personal relations to this nation, whose blood he shared, had been so friendly that we have seen him committing his father and mother to the care of the King of Moab, but we may be quite sure that David’s vengeance was provoked by some treacherous insult, as in the later case of Ammon. Thus was Balaam’s prophecy fulfilled:—“Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of Ar” (the metropolis of Moab). 3-6. The eastern frontier being now secured, for Nahash the Ammonite was his friend, David advanced to the conquest of the promised boundary on the northeast, “the great river Euphrates.” Two Syrian kingdoms lay between him and his purpose. That of Zobah, which has been mentioned more than once before, was then governed by Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, whom David defeated, taking from him his force of 1000 chariots, 700 horse, and 20,000 infantry. The chariot-horses were hamstrung, according to the command of Moses, but David could not resist the temptation of reserving 100 chariots as an ornament for his royal state. The Syrians of Damascus, coming to the help of Hadadezer, were defeated with the loss of 22,000 men: and that fairest and oldest of the cities of the world was made tributary to David, and garrisoned by his troops. “Thus did Jehovah preserve David whithersoever he went.” 9-12. These victories led to an alliance with Toi, king of Hamath (the Cœle-Syria of the Greeks), who sent his son Joram to congratulate David on the defeat of Hadadezer, his own enemy. This, together with the old friendship of Hiram king of Tyre, secured the northern frontier; and David returned to Jerusalem, laden with the golden shields of Hadadezer’s body guard, the brass taken from his cities (verse 8) and the vessels of gold and silver and brass which Joram had brought as presents. All these, together with the spoils of Moab and the Philistines, the plunder formerly taken from Amalek, and that gained afterward from Edom and the sons of Ammon, he dedicated for the service of the future Temple. 13, 14. The long conflict of Edom with his brother Israel was now brought to its first decision by a great victory gained by Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, in “the valley of Salt” (on the south of the Dead Sea), in which the Edomites lost 18,000 men. David was probably in Syria at the time of this battle, which was followed up by a great army under Joab, who in six months almost exterminated the male population. David then visited the conquered land, and placed garrisons in all the cities. The young king, Hadad, however, escaped to Egypt, and became afterward a formidable enemy to Solomon. These victories, which David celebrates in the 60th and 110th Psalms, carried the southern frontier of Israel to the eastern head of the Red Sea; and from that point to the frontier of Egypt, the Arab tribes had felt enough of his power as an exile not to molest him in the hour of his triumph. The bounds of the promised land were now fully occupied, though not even now so completely as if Israel had been faithful from the first. For, besides the scattered remnants of the old inhabitants, several of whom (as Itai the Gittite, Uriah the Hittite, and others) were conspicuous among the king’s great men; besides that the Philistines and others, who had been devoted to extermination, were only reduced to tribute; there was one fair province unsubdued, the whole coast of Phoenicia, the great cities of which still flourished under their native kings, the chief of whom was David’s first ally. These extended limits were only preserved during the reigns of David and of Solomon, a period of about sixty years. For that time, however, the state formed no longer a petty monarchy barely holding its own among the surrounding nations, as under Saul; but it was truly one of the great Oriental monarchies; too truly, indeed, for the magnificence of Solomon sapped its strength, and prepared its speedy dissolution. Meanwhile David’s position is thus described by the Prophet Nathan:—“Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, to be ruler over my people, over Israel: and I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great men that are in the earth.” 15. Thus “David reigned over all Israel, and executed judgment and justice among all his people.” P. S.

2. In the first wars the conquerors gave no quarter at all, but destroyed all their enemies without distinction of age or sex. Prisoners were also destroyed in the same manner. This was the ancient war law. We are fully persuaded that it is for the very purpose of marking his humane consideration for the Moabites, contrary to all the rules of warfare in that age, the fact is mentioned, which has been fastened upon by thoughtless persons as a proof of his harshness. There can be no doubt, we think, that every man among the Moabitish prisoners fully expected to be put to death; and that the exemption of a large third was received as an act of unparalleled grace on the part of David. Kit.

6. This war is mentioned not only by Eupolemus, who appears to have been well acquainted with the Jewish Scriptures, but also by Nicolas of Damascus, the friend of Augustus Cæsar, who clearly draws his history from the records of his native place. “After this,” says Nicolas, “there was a certain Hadad, a native Syrian, who had great power: he ruled over Damascus, and all Syria, except Phoenicia. He likewise undertook a war with David, the king of Judea, and contended against him in a number of battles; in the last of them all—which was by the river Euphrates, and in which he suffered defeat—showing himself a prince of the greatest courage and prowess.” This is a testimony of the same nature with those already adduced from Berosus and Manetho; it is a separate and independent notice of an event in Jewish history, which has come down to us from the other party in the transaction, with particulars not contained in the Jewish account, yet compatible with all that is so contained, and strictly corroborative of the main circumstances of the Hebrew narrative. G. R.

7-12. The troops of Hadadezer seem to have brought something like Assyrian magnificence from beyond the Euphrates. There were not only the chariots and horses, but some of the troops had golden shields, which of course came into the hands of David. He found also valuable spoils of brass in some of the captured cities. All this, as well as the metallic spoils of his other wars, David appropriated, not to his own enrichment, but to the object he had most at heart,—the future temple of the Lord. He was forbidden to build it himself, but there was nothing to prevent him from gathering materials for it; and this he did to such an extent—not only by the treasure he accumulated, but by leaving a plan of the building, and by organizing the sacred ministrations—that a careful consideration of the matter may leave it doubtful, whether much more of the credit of the undertaking is not due to him than to Solomon. Kit.—David aimed at the glory of God. All the precious things he was master of were dedicated things; they were designed for the building of the temple; and a good omen it was of kindness to the Gentiles in the fulness of time, and of the making of God’s house a house of prayer for all people, that the temple was built of the spoils and presents of Gentile nations. In allusion to which, we find the kings of the earth bringing their glory and honor into the new Jerusalem (Rev. 21: 24). H.

13,14. The superscription of Psalm 60 indicates that the main army of David was still occupied in the Syrian war, when Abishai was detached to oppose the Edomites. At such a time nothing but the most urgent necessity of resisting their aggressions could have constrained the king to weaken an army engaged in the most important campaign of all his wars. The Edomites, therefore, by their aggression brought down upon their heads the ancient doom of eventual subjection to the house of Jacob. On the approach of Abishai into the valley of Salt, at the southern extremity of the Dead Sea, a most bloody battle was fought between the two armies, and the desperateness with which the Edomites contested the victory may be judged from the fact that they left eighteen thousand of their number slain upon the battle-field. From 1 K. 11: 14-17, it appears that as soon as Joab was released from the Syrian campaign, he marched to this new scene of action, in order to settle the conquered country. He remained there six months, with the bulk of the Hebrew army. Joab’s mode of settling the country was after the Oriental fashion—of making a desolation, and calling it peace. Exasperated at the attempt of the Edomites, which might have endangered the large operations in the north, he caused the male Edomites to be hunted out and put to death, wherever they were found; and established Hebrew garrisons in the strongholds and principal towns of Edom. Thus Edom became subject to David. Kit.

Since the days of Moses, Edom had never come into a collision with Israel. But in an evil hour, Edom had joined the great Ammonite confederacy. Brief as are the Scripture references, it is evident that this confederacy was one of supreme peril for the Israelite monarchy, and had been planned with consummate political skill by Hanun and Hadadezer. Humanly speaking, the battles of Helam and Betah were, as those of Bethhoron and Kadesh had been, four hundred and fifty years before, the decisive battles of the crisis of Israel’s history. David, like all successful leaders, was prompt to strike, and never too late. While Joab and the bulk of his army was detained after his victories before the fortress of Ammon, he detached Abishai to inflict speedy vengeance on Edom. At the south end of the Dead Sea he won a signal victory, which left the pass of Akrabbim open. He ascended it, took the strong city (Ps. 60: 9)—that is, Petra, and penetrated every ravine and defile of the rugged mountains. Joab, when the eastern campaign was over, followed up his brother’s success, gave no quarter to the male population, and completely subdued and garrisoned the whole country. Thus the frontiers of Egypt and Israel became conterminous. H. B. T.

15. God gives men power, not that they may look great with it, but that they may do good with it. When David reigned over all Israel, he executed judgment and justice among all his people, and so answered the end of his elevation. He was not so intent on his conquests abroad as to neglect the administration of justice at home. Herein he served the purposes of the kingdom of providence, and of that God who sits in the throne judging right; and was an eminent type of the Messiah, the sceptre of whose kingdom is a right sceptre. H.—This idea of equal justice to all, and especially to those who had no helper, was a very beautiful one in David’s eyes. It gathered round it those bright and happy features which in the seventy-second Psalm are associated with the administration of another King. The thought is one on which the Psalmist dwells with great delight. “He shall deliver the needy when he crieth, the poor also, and him that hath no helper. He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence, and precious shall their blood be in his sight.” So far from need and poverty repelling him, they attract him. His interest and his sympathy are moved by the cry of the destitute. And in this we find the features of that higher government of David’s Son which shows so richly His most gracious nature. The cry of sorrow and need, as it rose from this dark world, did not repel, but rather attracted, Him. Though the woes of man sprang from his own misdeeds, He gave Himself to bear them and carry their guilt away. All were in the lowest depths of spiritual poverty, but for that reason His hand was the more freely offered for their help. W. G. B.

16-18. A summary notice of the internal administration of the kingdom, with a list of David’s chief officers of state, is appended to the account of his wars. Another list of these officers is given in ch. 20 : 23-26. A similar list of Solomon’s officers is to be found in 1 K. 4 : 1-6. The principal civil officers of the king’s court were the Counsellor, the Recorder or Remembrancer, the Scribe or Secretary of State, the King’s Companion or Friend, and, in the later years of his reign, the Superintendent of the Levy. These, together with the king’s sons, who had the title of “Ministers,” the two High-priests, the Commander-in-chief of the army, and the Captain of the body-guard, formed the king’s privy council. A. F. K.

The systematic administration of his kingdom by King David was the fruit of a remarkable faculty of orderly arrangement that belonged to most of the great men of Israel. We see it in Abraham, in his prompt and successful marshalling of his servants to pursue and attack the kings of the East when they carried off Lot; we see it in Joseph, first collecting and then distributing the stores of food in Egypt; in Moses, conducting that marvellous host in order and safety through the wilderness; and, in later times, in Ezra and Nehemiah, reducing the chaos which they found at Jerusalem to a state of order and prosperity which seemed to verify the vision of the dry bones. We see it in the Son of David, in the orderly way in which all His arrangements were made: the sending forth of the twelve Apostles and the seventy disciples, the arranging of the multitude when He fed the five thousand, and the careful gathering up of the fragments “that nothing be lost.” In the spiritual kingdom, a corresponding order is demanded, and times of peace and rest in the Church are times when this development is specially to be studied. W. G. B.

David’s conquests must have been considerable. The methods by which he subjected the immense territory between the frontiers of Egypt and the Euphrates must have given proof of uncommon military skill and prowess. Yet the sacred historian merely refers to them. His sufferings under Saul’s persecutions, on the contrary, of which an ordinary historian would have made cursory mention, are in the Bible fully and graphically reported, because they formed the school in which the heart of that “man of God” was trained so as to make him truly a “man after God’s heart.” It is only from some incidental scraps of the sacred record that we know of David’s extraordinary talents as a politician, a general, and a poet; but often-times it is from the most elaborate pictures that we obtain knowledge of his confidence in God in times of trouble, and of his deep contrition in times of sin and guilt. De Liefde.

Thus began the powerful reign of David, during which, by a series of successful wars, he rendered the kingdom of Israel not only independent of foreign domination, but even extended its northern and eastern boundary to the Euphrates, and raised himself to a position of power which inspired other nations with fear. Thus the kingship of David becomes the type of the kingdom of God which overcomes the world. David was himself filled with the idea of a theocratic ruler: his life and acts were founded on the one thought of being found as the servant of Jehovah, the God who had chosen him and taken him from the sheepfolds to feed His chosen people (Ps. 78 : 70-72). This is evident in several of his psalms,—in that mirror of kings (Ps. 101), in which he portrays a sovereign as a righteous judge, and in the song of thanksgiving (Ps. 18). O.

1. Chron. Chs. 23 and 24: Courses and Office of Priests and Levites.

Ch. 25: Courses and Service of Singers and Players in the Praise-Ministry of the House of God.

Ch. 26: Courses of the Doorkeepers and the Treasure-Keepers of the House of God.

Ch. 27: Monthly Courses of Chief Captains of the King’s Host. Rulers over the Several Tribes. Receivers and Trustees of the Royal Revenue, as Annually Contributed from the Industries and Produce of the whole People.

Established upon the throne in the full maturity of his powers, his wisdom and capacity of organization are illustrated in the great work of his life, for which God had anointed and prepared him—the consolidation of the long disunited tribes into an imperial nation. With a statesman’s constructive genius he centralized the national power, and buttressed it with well-organized institutions of religion, education, justice, civil order, and even of industry. Many years passed ere the completion of this work, years of unbroken prosperity because years of trust and devotion, of pure aspiration and faithful toil. B.

The ordinances of David are mentioned as of a parallel validity with those of Moses in 2 Chron. 23:18. The worship of Israel was perfected by David, by the addition that he made to the ceremonial law, which we have an account of in the 23d, 24th, 25th, and 26th chapters of the First Book of Chronicles, consisting in the several orders and courses into which David divided the Levites, and the work and business to which he appointed them, different from what Moses had appointed them to; and also in the divisions of the priests the sons of Aaron into four-and-twenty courses, assigning to every course their business in the house of the Lord, and their particular stated times of attendance there; appointing some of the Levites to a new office, that of singers, and others to the several services of porters, treasurers, officers, and judges: and these ordinances of David were kept up henceforth in the church of Israel, as long as the Jewish Church lasted. Thus we find the several orders of priests, and the Levites, the porters, and singers, after the captivity. So we find the courses of the priests appointed by David still continuing in the New Testament; so Zacharias the father of John the Baptist was a priest of the course of Abia; which is the same with the course of Abijah appointed by David, that we here read of (24:10). Edwards.

It moves our veneration,—the majestic continuity of this holy office, the order of its courses reaching from the reign of King David, unbroken save by the short interruptions of captivity, and scarcely even then, for four of the courses returned to Jerusalem to take their places when the exile was over;—the priesthood itself, dating back to the wilderness, reaching over a tract of centuries that saw the rising and falling of many empires,—its ranks very commonly embracing thousands of men. The sublimity of it is only heightened when we recall the nature of that ministry committed to them by God himself. Constant as the morning and evening that daily open and shut their gates on the eyes of men, they waited around that altar which steadfastly prefigured and prophesied the Redeemer; they kept a sleepless watch over the fire on the altar of burnt-offerings, which typified Christ’s eternal sacrifice, never letting it go out, day or night; they “fed the golden lamps outside the veil with sacred oil;” they offered the daily sacrifices, morning and evening, at the door of the tabernacle; they were always ready at hand to do the cleansing and comforting offices commanded in the law. F. D. H.

The great improvement in the organization effected by David related to the Levites. He made their former duties more definite; divided them into classes, assigning to each its service; and he very considerably enlarged the field of their labors. They were still employed as before to wait on the priests and perform multitudinous services in purifying, cleansing, etc.; also in preparing the shew-bread and the materials for meat-offerings, etc., as we see in 23:28-32. They were also employed as porters, having charge of the gates; as scribes and recorders; and, not least, as treasurers—an important function after the large accession of consecrated wealth which came in from the spoils of war (26 : 20-28). The directions in which their service was greatly enlarged were chiefly these three : the service of instruction ; the service of civil officers and judges ; and the service of song. Very distinct reference to their service as teachers among the people appears in the history of the reformation under Jehoshaphat (2 Chron. 17 : 9) ; also under Hezekiah (2 Chron. 30 : 22) ; and under Josiah (2 Chron. 35 : 3). Very probably this branch of their duties was a growth, advancing from the time of David onward. Much the same may be said of their functions as civil judges, this service, like that of public instruction, resulting from the fact that they were by profession devoted largely to the study of the Hebrew law. We read here (26 : 29) that David assigned “Chenaiah and his sons for the outward business over Israel, for officers and judges.” Jehoshaphat made them prominent in the capacity of judges (2 Chron. 19 : 8-11). But by far the most important change made by David in the service of the Levites lay in the direction of sacred song. This was chiefly if not entirely a new service—a new appendage to the religious worship at the tabernacle. The provisions made for it were at once systematic and ample. As “the sweet Psalmist of Israel,” who said of himself, “The Spirit of Jehovah spoke by me, and His word was in my tongue,” it was David’s peculiar honor, not only for the Jewish Church, but for the Church Universal to the end of time, to direct that part of God’s worship which is the best utterance of the heart, the tuneful notes of praise, inseparably blended with prayer and with the utterance of Divine truth. A great truth is expressed by the common title which names the whole book “The Psalms of David ;” for he founded psalmody as an institution, taught it to Asaph and his other immediate successors, and gave the model which all later psalmists followed. While he thus furnished the matter of psalmody, he regulated its manner, by arranging for the first time a full choral service. To this office David, in conjunction with the chiefs of the Levites, set apart three families, one from each of the three houses of the tribe, the Gershonites, Kohathites, and Merarites. They were prophets as well as singers, “to prophesy with harps, with psalteries, and with cymbals ;” and they handed down their art from generation to generation by a systematic course of instruction, “the teacher as well as the scholar.” These families were those of Asaph, the son of Berechiah the Gershonite, the chief singer, and also distinguished as a seer ; of Heman the Kohathite, son of Joel, and grandson of the Prophet Samuel, and himself “the king’s seer in the words of God ;” and of Jeduthun (or Ethan), a Merarite, who is also called “the king’s seer.” The names of each of these leaders are found in the titles of particular Psalms ; and the tripartite division was observed till the Captivity, and probably restored after the return. At first they were divided between the ark at Jerusalem and the tabernacle at Gibeon, the family of Asaph being assigned to the former, and those of Heman and Jeduthun to the latter. The three families numbered 288 principal singers, divided by lot into twenty-four courses of twelve in each ; but the total of the Levites engaged in praising Jehovah “with the instruments which David made” was 4000. P. S.

On this whole subject the passage (25 : 1-7) is classic, showing that those men were not mere performers—professional yet heartless singers and players on instruments ; but they poured their souls forth in sacred song ; “prophesied” the phrase is—“prophesied with a harp to give thanks and to praise the Lord.” Due training in music was not neglected, for we read that they were instructed in the songs of the Lord, even all that were skilful—in number, 288. It is noticeable that this service of song was not merely occasional (as seems to have been the case before David) but was constant, for after locating the ark in its sacred tent, they “left there before the ark, Asaph and his brethren, to minister before the ark continually as every day’s work required” (1 Chron. 16 : 37). Another allusion (1 Chron. 23 : 30) speaks of the office of these Levite singers “to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise at even.” In the standard passages in 1 Chronicles which describe David’s reorganization of the tabernacle worship and the introduction of music, we are not informed definitely at what stage in the course of sacrificial worship music and song were introduced—whether they preceded the offering of sacrifice, followed, or accompanied simultaneously. But in the historical account of the great passover under Hezekiah, the desired information appears in full. Having put the Levite choir in position with the orchestra also (instruments) “Hezekiah commanded to proceed with the burnt-offering ; and, when the burnt-offering began, the song of the Lord began also with the trumpets and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded ; and all this continued until the burnt-offering was finished. And when they had made an end of offering, the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves and worshipped” (2 Chron. 29 : 25-30). Thus sacred song strictly accompanied the service of the burnt-offering till it was ended; after which, all, king and people, reverently oowed themselves and worshipped.

Whether the music of that age would be pronounced “classic” in our own, we have absolutely no means of deciding. Yet of this we may be certain, it was music, the harmony of sweet sounds. It had the power to lift up human souls to a true devotional enthusiasm. It bore on high the outgoings of devout thanksgiving, praise, and adoration; it stirred pious souls to their depths of love and grateful trust; and, best of all, was well pleasing to God. Of the poetry of those songs, we fortunately have ample means of judging. If the music was worthy of the poetry—equal to it in beauty and in power, we can afford to wish it had come down to our age in all its glory. That it made the tabernacle worship attractive, inspiring, impressive—a most effective means of reviving true piety in Israel, there can be no manner of doubt. Such hallowed songs, embodying and impressing such lofty sentiments, bringing God so near to men and lifting men so near to God; and all this backed up by the earnest example and the noble enthusiasm of a king whom to know was to esteem and to honor—these influences and impulses must have wrought a great reviving in the piety of the Hebrew people. H. C.

It would be taking a very narrow view of the duties of the Levites if we regarded them as limited to their services at the sanctuary. They were to read the volume of the Law publicly every seventh year at the Feast of Tabernacles. This public and solemn periodical instruction, though eminently useful, was not the entire of their duty; they were bound from the spirit of this ordinance to take care that at all times the aged should be improved, and the children be instructed in the knowledge and fear of God, the adoration of His majesty, and the observance of His Law. They acquired such influence and reverence among the people as were necessary to secure attention to their instructions; and they were led to study the rules of moral conduct, the principles of equity, and, above all, the Mosaic code, with unceasing attention; but they were not laid under any vows of celibacy, or monastic austerity and retirement, and thus abstracted from the intercourse and feelings of social life. Thus circumstanced, they were assuredly well calculated to answer the purpose of their institution, to preserve and consolidate the union of all the other tribes, and to instruct and forward the poor in knowledge, virtue, and piety. Dean Graves.

27 : 1-15. The general military arrangements of the kingdom were made on the same principle as the distribution of the priests and Levites. The men who bore arms were divided into twelve courses of twenty-four thousand each; these were regularly officered; and for one month of each year the officers, and probably the men of one of the twelve courses, attended in succession. W. G. B.—David’s plan for maintaining the discipline of his army was the calling out of a part of the Hebrew militia for a month’s duty every year. Twenty-four thousand soldiers were gathered into a camp of exercise at Jerusalem, as we would term it, for a month’s training at a time. The chiefs of these twelve brigades were almost all men who had been trained along with David in the hardships of desert warfare. Sime.

27 : 16-22. Whatever changes David introduced in the central government, he did not supersede the local government of the tribes. Each tribe had still its prince or ruler, and continued, under a general superintendence from the king, to conduct its local affairs. The supreme council of the nation continued to assemble on occasions of great national importance; and though its influence could not have been so great as it was before the institution of royalty, it remained an integral element in the constitution; and in the time of Rehoboam, through its influence and organization, the kingdom of the ten tribes was set up almost without a struggle.

27 : 25-31. In developing the material resources of the country, King David seems, with rigorous conscientiousness, to have applied the rule of Christ—“let nothing be lost.” He had storehouses in the fields, in the cities, in the villages, and in the castles; there were vineyards and wine-cellars, and cellars of oil, superintended each by appointed officers; in different valleys, herds and flocks grazed under the care of royal herdsmen and shepherds; an officer, skilled in agriculture, presided over the tillage of the fields; the sycamore and olive trees were under the eye of skilful foresters; nothing was wasted; nothing done lazily; all was regularity, order, and care. W. G. B.—While the management of the crown estates and revenues was thus intrusted to a number of officers stationed in different parts of the kingdom, the maintenance of law and order was committed to a numerous body of magistrates and judges (verses 16-22): each tribe was placed under the government of a prince or ruler. Thus far the scanty notices preserved in Chronicles indicate the existence of a thorough system of internal administration, though they do not enable us to determine its details.

David’s reign was always looked back to as the golden age of the nation, the type of a still more glorious age to which the national hope looked forward as the crown and consummation of its destiny. Himself a warrior, he led the nation to victory; himself a prophet, and the pupil of one of the greatest of the prophets, he sympathized with the prophetic work, and yielded himself, without losing his royal dignity, to prophetic guidance; himself, though not by descent a priest, performing priestly functions, he was the patron of the hierarchy; and thus for a brief space, all the strongest and noblest powers of the nation were brought into harmony, and full scope given to their influences. A. F. K.

The age of David seems to have been recognized almost at once by the Jews themselves as the grandest epoch that the nation has as yet known; as we can now see that it has never since been surpassed. Hence the record of it has been preserved with a fulness of detail found nowhere else in the historical books of the Bible. Everything is of interest that belongs to that glorious time; every one is of importance whose fortunes are entwined with the career of that glorious king. Hence we have a full account, not merely (as in the case of Saul) of the opening and close of his reign, but of the whole of it. Hence also we have a very vivid account of a great deal of David’s life previous to his ascending the throne. And in the Psalms of David we have the outpourings of his spirit and the secret workings of his soul, the key not only to that age and that reign, but to the human heart throughout all ages. We have the rare privilege of comparing the picture unconsciously drawn by himself in his songs with that which the native historians give us of him. Thus we are able to penetrate to the springs of the actions which they record, and also to judge how the events in which he shared told on that noble and tender spirit. Plummer.

The glorious days of King David, which afterward became the national ideal of a polity, were days of the most faithful adherence to the Mosaic forms of worship. No Jew could thoughtfully ponder upon those prosperous days, and not remember that the son of Jesse inaugurated his reign by burning the Philistine images at Baalperizim, sanctified his capture of the stronghold of Zion by making it the central sanctuary, brought the ark to its resting-place with songs and sacrifices, coveted beyond conquest the honor of transforming the Tent into the Temple of witness, completed the organization of the priestly service which Samuel had begun, and laid his genius under contribution to provide psalms, which perpetually testified to his joyful recognition of the spiritual advantages of the tabernacle service. Cave.