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A.C. 1060.

* Or, grove a high place.

vereth mine

in

SECTION X.

David at Mizpeh.

1 SAMUEL XXII. VER. 3-20.

3 ¶ And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab and he said unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I know what God will do for me.

4 And he brought them before the king of Moab and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the hold.

5 And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the hold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hareth.

6 When Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him, (now Saul abode in Gibeah under a * tree in Ramah, having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him ;)

7 Then Saul said unto his servants that stood about him, Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, and make you all captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds;

8 That all of you have conspired against me, and there is + Heb. unco- none that sheweth me that my son hath made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or sheweth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?

ear.

↑ Heb. Behold me.

9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which was set over the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub.

10 And he enquired of the LORD for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.

11 Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob: and they came all of them to the king.

12 And Saul said, Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. And he answered, Here I am, my lord.

13 And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast enquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?

14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faithful among all thy servants as David, which is the king's son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thine house?

15 Did I then begin to enquire of God for him? be it far A.C. 1060. from me: let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father: for thy servant knew nothing of all this, * less or more.

16 And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house.

* Heb. little or great.

+ Heb. run

17 ¶ And the king said unto the footmen that stood or guard. about him, Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD; because hers. their hand also is with David, and because they knew when he fled, and did not shew it to me. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD.

18 And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen ephod 37.

19 And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen, and asses, and sheep, with the edge of the sword.

PSALM LII 38.

6 The

1 David, condemning the spitefulness of Doeg, prophesieth his destruction. righteous shall rejoice at it. 8 David, upon his confidence in God's mercy, giveth thanks.

9.

To the chief Musician, Maschil, A Psalm of David, § when Doeg the Edomite 1 Sam. xxii. came and told Saul, and said unto him, David is come to the house of Ahimelech.

1 Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, O mighty man? the goodness of God endureth continually.

37 In the second and third chapters of the 1st of Samuel, we read the prediction of the total ruin of Eli's house. Saul, in the blindness of his fury, orders eighty-five priests of the house of Eli with their families, and Ahimelech the high priest with his family, to be slain. This is another specimen of the way in which men pursue their own schemes, whether of good or evil, and of the manner in which they are overruled to the accomplishment of the prophecies and purposes of God. The reflecting part of the Jewish nation must have observed this fulfilment of one part of the prophecies, and inferred from it the eventual accomplishment of the rest. The same observation will apply to many events in the subsequent history. Vide a large collection of the prophecies, with their fulfilment, in Allix's Reflections on the Books of Scripture.

38 Psalm lii. is here inserted on the joint authorities of its title-Lightfoot, Calmet, and Travel.

Psalm cix. On the authority of Archdeacon Randolph, who observes, that it was probable that Doeg the Edomite was particularly alluded to in this Psalm; as he had slain the priests and endeavoured to destroy him whom God had apU u VOL. I.

A.C. 1060.

* Or, and the deceitful Longue.

+ Heb. beat thee down.

+ Or, substance.

2 Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

3 Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.

4 Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

5 God shall likewise + destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.

6 The righteous also shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him:

7 Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.

8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.

9 I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it: and I will wait on thy name; for it is good before thy saints.

PSALM CIX.

Heb. mouth of deceit.

1 David, complaining of his slanderous enemies, under the person of Judas devoteth them. 16 He sheweth their sin. 21 Complaining of his own misery, ke

prayeth for help.

29 He promiseth thankfulness.

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.

1 Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise;

2 For the mouth of the wicked and the § mouth of the Heb. have deceitful || are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

opened themselves.

3 They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.

4 For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.

5 And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

pointed to be king over Israel.—It is prophetic: and is applied by St. Paul to Judas.

Psalm xvii. Was composed, as Calmet remarks, during Saul's bitterest persecution of David; which was certainly when the inhuman murder of the priests was committed. Vide Horne's Crit. Int. vol. ii. p. 159.

Psalm cxl. is referred to this period by Dr. Hammond.

Psalm xxxv. This Psalm, from its contents, seems to have been composed by David when he was persecuted by Saul; and falsely accused by Doeg, and others.-Edwards.

Psalm lxiv. This Psalm was most probably composed by David, when he was persecuted by Saul, and his associates.-Edwards.

6 Set thou a wicked man over him: and let * Satan stand A.C. 1060. at his right hand.

7 When he shall be judged, let him †be condemned: versary. and let his prayer become sin.

a

8 Let his days be few; and let another take his office. 9 Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. 10 Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.

11 Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.

12 Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.

13 Let his posterity be cut off; and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.

14 Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out. 15 Let them be before the LORD continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.

16 Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.

17 As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.

* Or, an ad+ Heb. go out guilty, or, wicked. a Acts i. 20. Or, charge.

18 As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come § into his bowels like water, and like Heb. within oil into his bones.

19 Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.

20 Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the LORD, and of them that speak evil against my soul.

21 But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.

22 For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

23 I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust.

24 My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.

25 I became also a reproach unto them: when they looked upon me they shaked their heads.

26 Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy :

27 That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.

28 Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.

29 Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame, and let

him.

A.C. 1060. them cover themselves with their own confusion, as with a

*Heb. from the judges of his soul.

+ Heb. justice.

mantle.

30 I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.

31 For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.

PSALM XVII.

A Prayer of David.

1 Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give Heb. with ear unto my prayer, that goethnot out of feigned lips.

out lips of deceit.

Heb. be not moved.

|| Or, that savest them

which trust in those that rise

thee from

up against thy right hand.

* Heb. that waste me.

+ Heb. my enemies against the soul.

+ Heb. The likeness of

2 Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; let thine eyes behold the things that are equal.

3 Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.

4 Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.

5 Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps § slip

not.

6 I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.

7 Shew thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou || that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee from those that rise up against them.

8 Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings,

9 From the wicked that oppress me, from + my deadly enemies, who compass me about.

10 They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.

Il They have now compassed us in our steps: they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth;

12 Like as a lion that is greedy of his prey, and as it

him (that is, were a young lion § lurking in secret places.

of every one of them) is

as a lion that desireth to ravin.

Heb. sitting.

Heh, prevent
Or, by thy

his face.

sword.
+ Or, From

men by thine

hand.

+ Or, their

children are

full.

13 Arise, O LORD, || disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:

14+ From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

15 As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.

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