It is not easy for us exactly to realise the condi tion of David whilst hiding in the wilderness for fear of Saul. He did not lead the life of a mere bandit or freebooter, as is evident from his conduct to Nabal, as attested by one of Nabal's servants, and affirmed by himself, when reproaching Nabal for his churlishness (xxv. 14-16 ; 34) ; rather did he use his power for the protection of the lives and property of the occupants of the fields. Nor was he a mere helpless fugitive and exile, for had he been so we should hardly have heard of his marrying two wives, one of them a person of wealth and consideration like Abigail, Nabal's widow, and both of whom seem to have accom panied him in his retreats (xxv. 39-43). Perhaps, if we think of him as the chief of a force usually employed as a sort of armed police, sustained by those whose property they protected, and only occasionally scattered and pursued by the fitful wrath of Saul, we shall arrive at a somewhat just view of his position and course of life.
When David passed the second time into the territory of Achish, it was no longer as a solitary fugitive, but as a military leader, with a well trained band of followers, and with something of the wealth and consequence of an eastern chief. Achish (whether the same who had received him formerly, or his son, as Jewish tradition asserts, is uncertain), gave him for himself and his followers the town of Ziklag, which from that time became an appanage of the Judtean crown. Here David resided for a year and four months, during which time he enjoyed the full confidence of Achish, though the means which he took to secure that confidence were hardly such as strict regard to in tegrity can justify. He never, however, was able to overcome the prejudices of the Philistian nobles; and these prevailed, so that Achish was compelled to ask him to withdraw from the army which was mustering on the frontier to attack Saul. David, doubtless, not sorry that he had thus been de livered from the perplexing dilemma in which his ambiguous position placed him, returned to Zik lag. Here he found that during his absence the Amalekites had made an inroad and plundered the city, and carried off all the women and chil dren ; a discovery which almost overwhelmed his followers with grief and vexation, and had nearly led to their rising against him. Recovering from the first shock of the trial, however, they hastened after the invaders, overtook them unexpectedly whilst engaged in revelry, inflicted on them a terrible retaliation, and rescued all the booty and prisoners they had taken from Ziklag, as well as took from them much booty of their own. From this David sent presents to his friends in different parts, and so was enabled to repay the services rendered to him in the days of his distress. Whilst he was thus employed, the battle of Gilboa was fought, in which Saul and Jonathan lost their lives ; whereby the way was opened for David's occupation of the throne of Israel. Intelligence of this event having been brought to him, his first feeling was one of poignant grief for the fall of his sovereign, and the loss of his true and unfailing friend ; and he bewailed their death in a chant, the pathos and solemn beauty of which has never been surpassed (t Sam. xxvii. xxix.-xxxi.) III. David's Reign in Hebron.—` Immediately upon the death of Saul the tribe of Judah invited David to become their prince. Internal probabili ties lead us to believe that this was acceptable to the Philistines, who, it would seem, must have had the means of hindering it, if they had been disposed. We are not informed why they neglected to im prove the decisive victory which they had gained in Mount Gilboa. They vanish from the scene, and Abner quietly hands over the kingdom of the eleven tribes to Ishbosheth, son of Saul. Among many conjectures which may be made, one is that they despaired of keeping the whole land under subjection, since their numbers were too few to keep up all their garrisons ; and their superiority must have been that of weapons and discipline only. They may, therefore, have gladly acquiesced in a partition of the monarchy, foreseeing that the fame and popularity of David would soon bring on a civil war between him and the house of Saul ; and as he was on excellent terms with Achish, and had long been ostensibly an adherent of the Philis tine cause, it is not wonderful that during his early reign David was able to maintain peace with his most dangerous neighbours.
His first step, after his election, was to fix on Hebron as the centre of his administration—an ancient city, honourable by its association with the name of Abraham, and in the middle of his own tribe. [Here David was anointed king, but appa
rently over the tribe of Judah only (2 Sam. ii. 4). To this period is referred Ps. xxvii. in the LXX.] He then strengthened himself by a marriage with Maacah, daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur (2 Sam. iii. 3) ; a petty monarch whose dominions were near the sources of the Jordan, and whose influence at the opposite end of the land must have added a great weight into David's scale. From Abigail, widow of the churlish Nabal, David seems to have received a large private fortune. Con cerning his other wives we know nothing in parti cular; only it is mentioned that he had six sons by six different mothers in Hebron. The chief jealousy was between the two tribes of Benjamin and Judah, as Saul had belonged to the former ; and a tournament was turned by mutual ill-will into a battle, in which Abner unwillingly slew young Asahel, brother of Joab. (On the synchron ism of Abner and Asahel, see SAUL.) ' Long war,' after this, was carried on between the house of Saul and the house of David.' We may infer that the rest of Israel took little part in the contest ; and although the nominal possession of the king dom enabled the little tribe of Benjamin to strug gle for some time against Judah, the skill and age of Abner could not prevail against the vigour and popular fame of David. A quarrel between Ab ner and Ishbosheth decided the former to bring the kingdom over to David. The latter refused to treat unless, at a preliminary proof of Abner's sin cerity, Michal, daughter of Saul, was restored to David. The possession of such a wife was valu able to one who was aspiring to the kingdom ; and although David had now other wives, there is no reason to question the remembrance of his first love was still very dear to him, and that affection no less than policy dictated this demand. He had certainly the best right to the woman whose hand he had won by toils and dangers ; and the laws of man still refuse to recognise any right in a second husband while the first lives. Michal was there fore taken away from the man on whom her father had tyrannously bestowed her, and restored, we suppose not unwillingly, to her real husband. After giving her back, Abner proceeded to win the elders of Israel over to David ; but Joab discerned that if this should be so brought about, Abner of necessity would displace him from his post of chief captain. He, therefore, seized the oppor tunity of murdering him when he was come on a peaceful embassy, and covered the atrocity by pleading the duty of revenging his brother's blood. This deed was perhaps David's first taste of the miseries of royal power. He dared not proceed actively against his ruthless nephew, but he vented his abhorrence in a solemn curse on Joab and his posterity, and followed Abner to the grave with weeping. Anxious to purge himself of the guilt, he ordered a public wearing of sackcloth, and re fused to touch food all the day. The obvious sin cerity of his grief won the heart of all Israel. The feeble Ishbosheth, left alone, was unequal to the government, and shortly suffered the same fate of assassination. David took vengeance on the mur derers, and buried Ishbosheth in Abner's tomb at Hebron. During this period, it is not stated against what people his warlike excursions were directed ; but it is distinctly alleged (2 Sam. iii. 22) that his men brought in a great spoil at the very time at which he had a truce with Abner ; possi bly it may have been won from his old enemies the Amalekites (I Sam. xxx.)' IV. David's Reign over all Israel.—` The death of Ishbosheth gave to David supremacy over all Israel. [His elevation was celebrated at Hebron with a great festival of three days (1 Chron. xii. 39).] The kingdom was not at first a despotic, but a constitutional one ; for it is stated, ' David made a league with the elders of Israel in Hebron before Jehovah ; and they anointed David king over Israel' (2 Sam. v. 3). This is marked out as the era which determined the Philistines to hostility (ver. 57), and may confirm our idea that their policy was to hinder Israel from becoming united under a single king. Two victories of David over them follow, both near the valley of Rephaim : and these were probably the first battles fought by David after becoming king of all Israel.