David is introduced into the sacred narrative for the first time in connection with his anointing by Samuel (r Sam. xvi. 1-13). There is no small difficulty in reconciling this and what follows in this chapter with the account in the following chap ter of David's appearance in the camp of Saul, and his introduction to that monarch in consequence of his victory over Goliath. Both narratives appa rently give the account of David's first introduction to Saul ; and yet it is not possible to combine them into one. Some would transpose the latter part of the i6th chapter so as to follow after xviii. 9 (Ilorsely, Bib. Crit. i. 332); but it is not easy to see what is gained by this ; for if David was known to Saul, and accepted into Saul's ser vice as there narrated, how could Saul send for him to his father's house, and receive him as a per fect stranger, as narrated in xvi. 14-20? On the other hand, if David came before the notice of Saul under the circumstances mentioned in this 16th chapter, and was received into his favour and service as there narrated (21-23), how could the scenes recorded in the 17th chapter, especially those in verses 31-37, and 55-58, have occurred ? The Vatican MS of the LXX. rejects xvii. 12-31, 55-58, and xviii. i-5, as spurious ; and this Kenni cott approves as the true solution of the difficulty. What gives some plausibility to this is, that ver. 32 naturally connects with ver. 11, and all between has very much the aspect of an interpolation. At the same time, it can hardly be permitted on such grounds to reject a portion of Scripture which has all other evidence, external and internal, in its favour. The old solution of the difficulty, that, as David after his first introduction to Saul did not abide constantly with him, but went and came be tween Saul and his father's house (xvii. 15), he may have been at home when the war with the Philis tines broke out ; and as Saul's distemper was of the nature of mania, he very probably retained no recol lection of David's visits to him while tinder it, but at each new interview regarded and spoke of him as a stranger, is, after all, the best that has been suggested, though it still leaves unexplained the fact of Abner's ignorance of David's person, which ap pears to have been as complete as that of the king, and the fact of David's professing ignorance of war like weapons, though he had been for some time Saul's armour-bearer. This last difficulty may be alleviated by the consideration, that the statement in xvi. 21 may be proleptical ; or David, though Saul's armour-bearer, may have had so little prac tice in the use of armour, as to prefer, in such a crisis, trusting to the weapons with which he was familiar.
IL David's lift as the Servant of Saul. —David had no sooner returned from his memorable con flict with the gigantic Philistine, than he was re ceived into the family of Saul, and placed in a situation of trust and authority in the kingdom. The dark and uneasy mind of the king, however, speedily was filled with jealousy and dislike when he found how high David stood in popular estima tion ; and under a paroxysm of his insanity he made an attempt on David's life, by casting a javelin at him as he was playing the harp for his solace or pleasure. He also broke his word with David by giving his eldest daughter in marriage to another ; he set spies upon him to entrap him into some ambitious utterance that might give the king a handle against him ; and he sent him on perilous exploits in the hope of his life being for feited thereby. But David behaved himself with exemplary prudence in the difficult position in which he was placed, and God providentially pre served him from the perils to which the bad passions of the king exposed him. He found a fast and true friend also in the king's son Jona than, who ' loved him as his own soul ; ' and he drew to him the affections of Michal, Saul's second daughter, whom the king was at length constrained to give him to wife. Through their connivance and aid, David made his escape from the palace, after Saul had again made an attempt on his life ; and as this only augmented king's fury, who now gave orders for his assassination, David was doomed to the condition of a fugitive and exile. He first took refuge with the priest Ahimelecla at Nob, by whom he was kindly received, supplied with provisions, and furnished with the sword of Goliath, which had been entrusted as a trophy to the safe keeping of the priest. For this Saul
visited Ahimelech and the town of Nob with sum mary and terrible vengeance, causing the massacre of eighty-five priests, and giving up the town to be sacked, and its inhabitants put to the sword. After this, David fled across the Philistian fron tier to Achish, king of Gath ; but being detected by the servants of Achish as the conqueror of Go liath, he was obliged to feign madness in order to escape the penalty to which that discovery exposed him (I Sam. xviii.-xxi). Tradition assigns Psalms 34th, 56th, 59th to this period of David's history ; to which some add the 6th, 7th, 35th, 36th, 14oth, I41st, and 143d.
Having made his escape from Gath, David re turned to Juda, there to lead the life of an out law and freebooter. His first retreat was to the cave Adullam ; and here he was joined by some of his own relations, among whom was his nephew Abishai (i Sam. xxvi. 6), and by a multitude of persons who were in distress or in debt, or who were discontented with their condition. Hav ing conveyed his father and mother for security into the land of Moab, David returned and esta blished himself in the forest of Hareth,' where he received some valuable reinforcements (1 Chron. xii. 16). While here he sallied forth to the de fence of Keilah, on which the Philistines had made an assault ; and having routed them and delivered the city, he and his band, now amounting to nearly 600 men, shut themselves up within its walls. Saul, hearing this, mustered his forces, intending to go to Keilah, where he expected to make an easy prey of David ; but the latter receiving intel ligence of his intention, made his escape. His next retreat was the wilderness of Ziph, where, attended by a few friends, he sought safety in caves and woods, he having, as it would seem, been constrained to disband his troops, and let each go whithersoever they could go.' Now, in his own graphic words, he was hunted as a part ridge on the mountains ;' Saul's hatred of him in creasing in intensity as his attempts to lay hold of him were baffled. Once David was nearly caught ; he was in the wilderness of Maon, occupying a hill, which Saul, guided by the information of the Ziphites, surrounded, so that David and his small band must have been taken, had not the announce ment of an invasion of the Philistines suddenly withdrawn Saul from his leaguer. In memory of this occurrence the hill received the name of The Rock of Divisions' (f11prinn 3hz), probably be cause by it Saul and David were parted from each other. David, after this, went and dwelt in a stronghold at Engedi (I Sam. xxii.-xxiii.) The Philistines being dispersed, Saul returned to the pursuit of David, and shortly after ensued the first of two interviews between the pursuer and the pursued. This took place in one of the caves at Engedi, into which Saul had entered in to the calls of nature, ignorant that it hid in its recesses David and his band (t Sam. xxiv. 1-22). David, though urged by his followers to seize the opportunity of destroying his pursuer, generously forbore, contenting himself with merely cutting off the skirt of his robe, to shew how completely he had had him in his power. Having followed Saul out of the cave, he chewed him this, and appealed to the evidence it afforded of the falsity of the suspicions against him with which the mind of the monarch had been poisoned. Saul was moved by this ap peal, and a touching scene of reconciliation and mutual forgiveness ensued. That Saul was sin cere in the feelings he expressed on this occasion there can be no doubt ; but it was the sincerity of a man who was not master of himself, but the slave of dark and savage passions, which were apt to sweep across his soul. Hence the truce he made with David was speedily broken, and he was again in full pursuit of him among the fastnesses of the wilderness. Once again he came into David's power, and was treated with the same generosity as before, and with the same results. The king, for the moment swayed by his better feelings, acknowledged his iniquity, and promised to refrain from the pursuit of David, his maligned and generous servant ; and he and David parted with mutual expressions of regard, never again to meet on earth. David, knowing how little such promises were to be trusted, takes the opportunity to escape into the territory of the Philistines (I Sam. xxiv.–xxvi.) To this period tradition assigns Pss. liv., lxiii., and cxlii.