I CHRONICLES 10 COMMENTARYEDITED BY GLENN PEASE

Saul Takes His Life

1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel; the Israelites fled before them, and many fell dead on Mount Gilboa.

BARNES, The present chapter contains two facts not found in 1Sa_31:1-13 - the fastening of Sauls head in the temple of Dagon 1Ch_10:10, and the burial of his bones, and those of his sons, under an oak 1Ch_10:12. Otherwise the narrative differs from 1Sa_31:1-13 only by being abbreviated (see especially 1Ch_10:6-7, 1Ch_10:11-12), and by having some moral reflections attached to it 1Ch_10:13-14.

CLARKE, Now the Philistines fought against Israel - The reader will find the same history in almost the same words, in 1Sa_31:1-13, to the notes on which he is referred for every thing important in this.

HENRY 1-7, This account of Saul's death is the same with that which we had, 1Sa_31:1, etc. We need not repeat the exposition of it. Only let us observe, 1. Princes sin and the people suffer for it. It was a bad time with Israel when they fled before the Philistines and fell down slain (1Ch_10:1), when they quitted their cities, and the Philistines came and dwelt in them,

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1Ch_10:7. We do not find that they were at this time guilty of idolatry, as they had been before, in the days of the judges, and were afterwards, in the days of the kings. Samuel had reformed them, and they were reformed: and yet they are thus given to the spoil and to the robbers. No doubt there was enough in them to deserve this judgment; but that which divine Justice had chiefly an eye to was the sin of Saul. Note, Princes and great men should in a special manner take heed of provoking God's wrath; for, if they kindle that fire, they know not how many may be consumed by it for their sakes. 2. Parents sin and the children suffer for it. When the measure of Saul's iniquity was full, and his day came to fall (which David foresaw, 1Sa_26:10), he not only descended into battle and perished himself, but his sons (all but Ishbosheth) perished with him, and Jonathan among the rest, that gracious, generous man; for all things come alike to all. Thus was the iniquity of the fathers visited upon the children, and they fell as parts of the condemned father. Note, Those that love their seed must leave their sins, lest they perish not alone in their iniquity, but bring ruin on their families with themselves, or entail a curse upon them when they are gone. 3. Sinners sin and at length suffer for it themselves, though they be long reprieved; for, although sentence be not executed speedily, it will be executed. It was so upon Saul; and the manner of his fall was such as, in various particulars, answered to his sin. (1.) He had thrown a javelin more than once at David, and missed him; but the archers hit him, and he was wounded of the archers. (2.) He had commanded Doeg to slay the priests of the Lord; and now, in despair, he commands his armour-bearer to draw his sword and thrust him through. (3.) He had disobeyed the command of God in not destroying the Amalekites, and his armour-bearer disobeys him in not destroying him. (4.) He that was the murderer of the priests is justly left to himself to be his own murderer; and his family is cut off who cut off the city of the priests. See, and say, The Lord is righteous.

JAMISON, 1Ch_10:1-7. Sauls overthrow and death.Now the Philistines fought against Israel The details of this chapter have no relation to the preceding genealogies and seem to be inserted solely to introduce the narrative of Davids elevation to the throne of the whole kingdom. The parallel between the books of Samuel and Chronicles commences with this chapter, which relates the issue of the fatal battle of Gilboa almost in the very same words as 1Sa_31:1-13.

K&D 1-7, In 1 Sam this narrative forms the conclusion of Saul's last war with the Philistines. The battle was fought on the plain of Jezreel; and when the Israelites were compelled to retire, they fell back upon Mount Gilboa, but were hard pressed by the Philistines, so that many fell upon the mountain. The Philistines pressed furiously after Saul and his sons, and slew the latter (as to Saul's sons, see on 1Ch_8:33); and when the archers

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came upon Saul he trembled before them ( from ), and ordered his armour-bearer to thrust him through. Between and the superfluous is introduced in Samuel, and in the last clause is omitted; and instead of we have the unusual form (cf. 2Ch_35:23). In Saul's request to his armour-bearer that he would thrust him through with the sword, (1Sa_31:4) is omitted in the phrase which gives the reason for his request; and Bertheau thinks it did not originally stand in the text, and has been repeated merely by an oversight, since the only motive for the command, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith, was that the Philistines might not insult Saul when alive, and consequently the words, that they may not thrust me through, cannot express the reason. But that is scarcely a conclusive reason for this belief; for although the Philistines might seek out Saul after he had been slain by his armour-bearer, and dishonour his dead body, yet the anxiety lest they should seek out his corpse to wreak their vengeance upon it could not press so heavily upon him as the fear that they would take vengeance upon him if he fell alive into their hands. It is therefore a more probable supposition that the author of the Chronicle has omitted the word only as not being necessary to the sense of the passage, just as is omitted at the end of 1Ch_10:5. In 1Ch_10:6 we have instead of the of Samuel, and in 1Ch_10:7 is omitted after the words (Samuel). From this Bertheau concludes that the author of the Chronicle has designedly avoided speaking of the men of Saul's army or of the Israelites who took part in the battle, because it was not his purpose to describe the whole course of the conflict, but only to narrate the death of Saul and of his sons, in order to point out how the supreme power came to David. Thenius, on the contrary, deduces the variation between the sixth verse of the Chronicles and the corresponding verse in Samuel from a text which had become illegible. Both are incorrect; for are not all the men of war who went with him into the battle (Then.), or all the Israelites who took part in the battle (Berth.), but only all those who were about the king, i.e., the whole of the king's attendants who had followed him to the war. is only another expression for , in which the is included. The author of the Chronicle has merely abridged the account, confining himself to a statement of the main points, and has consequently both omitted in 1Ch_10:7, because he had already spoken of the flight of the warriors of Israel in 1Ch_10:1, and it was here sufficient to mention only the flight and death of Saul and of his sons, and has also shortened the more exact statement as to the inhabitants of that district, those on the other side of the valley and on the other side of Jordan (Samuel), into In this abridgement also Thenius scents a .defective text. As the inhabitants of the district around Gilboa abandoned their cities, they were taken possession of by the Philistines.

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BENSON, 1 Chronicles 10:1. The men of Israel fled Thus princes sin, and the people suffer for it. No doubt there was enough in them to deserve it. But that which divine justice had chiefly an eye to, was the sin of Saul. Great men should, in an especial manner, take heed of provoking Gods wrath. For if they kindle that fire, they know not how many may be consumed by it for their sakes. See notes on 1 Samuel 31.

ELLICOTT, A BRIEF NARRATIVE OF THE OVERTHROW AND DEATH OF SAUL, BY WAY OF PRELUDE TO THE REIGN OF DAVID.

1 Chronicles 10:1-12 are parallel to 1 Samuel 31:1-13. The general coincidence of the two texts is so exact as to preclude the supposition of independence. We know that the chronicler has drawn much in his earlier chapters from the Pentateuch; and as he must have been acquainted with the Books of Samuel, it is priori likely that he made a similar use of them. At the same time, a number of small variationson an average, three at least in each versesome of which can neither be referred to the freaks or mistakes of copyists nor to the supposed caprice of the compiler, may be taken to indicate the use of an additional source, or perhaps of a text of Samuel differing in some respects from that which we possess. (See Introduction.)

(1) Now the Philistines fought against Israel.For a similarly abrupt beginning, comp. Isaiah 2:1. The battle was fought in the plain of Jezreel, or Esdraelon, the scene of so many of the struggles of ancient history. (Comp. Hosea 2:10 : I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.)

The men of Israel.Heb., mana collective expression, which gives a more vivid image of the rout. They fled as one man, or in a body. Samuel has the plural.

Fell down slain in mount Gilboa.The Jebel Fakua rises out of the plain of Jezreel to a height of one thousand seven hundred feet. The defeated army of Saul fell back upon this mountain, which had been their first position (1 Samuel 28:4), but were

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pursued thither. Slain is right, as in 1 Chronicles 10:8.

COFFMAN, Verse 1

II. HISTORY OF DAVID'S REIGN (1 Chronicles 10-29)

This chapter begins the record of the reign of David over all Israel, prefacing it with a brief account of Saul's death. (1000-960 B.C.)

The balance of 1Chronicles is devoted to a review of the history of David, which falls into two parts. "1 Chronicles 10-20 have an account of his reign; and 1 Chronicles 21-29 give preparations for the building of the Temple and the orders and arrangements of those who would serve in it."[1]

"Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa. And the Philistines followed hard after Saul and after his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers overtook him; and he was distressed by reason of the archers. Then said Saul unto his armor-bearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith, lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me. But his armor-bearer would not, for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took his sword, and fell upon it. And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell upon his sword, and died. So Saul died, and his three sons; and all his house died together.

"And when all the men of Israel that were in the valley saw that they fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook their cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his sons fallen in Mount Gilboa. And they stripped him, and took his head, and his armor, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry the tidings unto their idols, and to the people. And they put his armor in the house of their gods, and fastened his head in the

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house of Dagon. And when all Jabesh-gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men arose, and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Jabesh, and buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh, and fasted seven days.

"So Saul died for his trespass which he committed against Jehovah, because of the word of Jehovah, which he kept not; and also for that he asked counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire thereby, and inquired not of Jehovah: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse."

"And all his house died together" (1 Chronicles 10:6). The picayune objection of some scholars that this is not strictly the truth, because Eshbaal (Ishbosheth), another son of Saul was left alive, and for awhile was made king over North Israel by Abner, is typical of the nit-picking hatred of the Word of God by some writers. The reference is not to every single one of Saul's posterity, but merely to those just named. This is the same kind of hyperbole one uses when he says, "We gave a party, and everybody came."

"They buried him under the oak in Jabesh" (1 Chronicles 10:12). This tree was called "a tamarisk tree" in 1 Samuel 31:13; and the marginal reference here gives "terebinth" as an alternative. If the trees were growing side by side, which is by no means impossible, the Biblical accounts may both be absolutely accurate. No one has the right to deny what is here stated as a fact.

We shall not make line by line comments on this chapter, for we have already discussed it in the closing chapter of 1Samuel and the opening chapter of 2Samuel. As Curtis (and Madsen) noted: "This account of the death of Saul is taken from 1 Samuel 31:1-13 with a few slight variations."[2]

PARKER, Life a Battlefield

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1 Chronicles 10

WE now come to a portion of the history which is so clearly a repetition that we need not follow it in all its well-known detail. Having already treated nearly the whole of the matter at some length, it will be sufficient now to rest at a point here and there which will enable us to fill in some practical and suggestive instruction. Let it be understood however that what we are about to do is rather of the nature of indication than of exposition. The peculiarity of the Bible is that many of its separate sentences admit of being taken out of their proper setting and used as mottoes or maxims bearing upon immediate questions of spiritual interest or actual conduct. When portions of the Bible are so used it must be distinctly remembered that there is an infinite difference between the accommodation of a text and its critical exposition. It is important to keep this vividly in mind, lest the Bible be charged with unnatural and intolerable responsibilities. With this general caution let us proceed.

"Now the Philistines fought against Israel "( 1 Chronicles 10:1).

Yet Israel was chosen of God. Is it possible for men who are specially favoured of heaven to be brought into controversy or war? Will not everything be made plain and clear before them, and will not the enemy flee away in order to let the hosts of God pass through without fear of delay? We find the exact contrary to be the case in practical life. The holier the man the severer the conflict. The way of Jesus Christ was hedged up on every side by direct temptation of the devil, by unbelief, by contempt, by suspicion, and by all manner of hostility. In the most reverent sense of the term God himself has to maintain his own sovereignty by daily controversy. Providence is denied, beneficent purpose in life is not credited. Special inspiration is derided, and ultimate judgment is the subject of stubborn doubt. We must not think we are wrong simply because opposition is energetic and persistent. The battle of the Philistines against Israel was fought in the plain of Jezreel or Esdraelon, the scene of so many of the struggles of ancient history. It would appear as though many of the controversies of the Church were localised in as distinct a manner. What battles have been fought at Rome! What conflicts have there been at Constantinople! What furious assaults have taken place at Westminster! Luther, Calvin, Knox, Wesley, are names which are distinctly associated with battlefields. Then there are questions around which the great controversies of the Church have raged; as, for example,

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Inspiration, Authority, Miracles, Atonement, Immortality, and many others. The historical ground of the Church in this very matter will one day be the most precious possession of the Church. The battlefield should become a fruitful orchard, and the desert of strife should blossom as the rose. Our remembered battlefields should be amongst our wisest teachers. In conducting the conflict we saw much of human nature; we measured our own strength; we felt our need of supernatural ministry; we uttered our boldest and tenderest prayers; we dispossessed ourselves of many misleading and dangerous illusions. What a battlefield is life! There are more wars in human history than are public to the world. What room for heroism even within the narrowest family circle! But the most desperate of all wars are fought within the heart itself. Many a man can conquer Philistines who cannot subdue his own passions. Moreover there is help in the conduct of public or open war arising from the knowledge and sympathy of observing friends; but in the wars of the soul even sympathy can take no part because of the very secrecy of the tremendous battle. No man can tell all his thoughts. The hesitation of the tongue may sometimes betray the reality of the inward struggle, but never can the most confiding heart tell all the detail of its conflict and sorrow. But is life all battle, are not many quiet victories won, is there not a ministry of the Spirit as well as a temptation of the devil? Justice demands that we look at both aspects of life"s tragedy and so learn that the ways of the Lord are equal.

"The battle went sore against Saul"( 1 Chronicles 10:3).

Literally, the battle was heavy upon Saul, like a burden crushing him to the earth. They that shot with the bow came upon him; and he shuddered greatly before the shooters. Why was the battle sore against the king of Israel? Saul believed himself to be forsaken of God, and therefore to have become the sport of man. Indeed it was this idea of "sport" that embittered Saul"s last moments. He prayed his armour-bearer to draw a sword, and thrust him through therewith, giving as a reason, "lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me," literally "make a toy of" or "sport with." We notice the word in the tenth chapter of Exodus" Now I have made a toy of Egypt." The battle will go heavily against the Church, just in proportion as the Church is conscious of the departure of God. Here we are reminded of the analogy of the vine and the branches. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can the Church make vital and fruitful progress, except by continual fellowship with God. Saul was as muscular as ever, as ambitious as ever, and as energetic as ever, but he had lost the consciousness of the nearness of

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the Almighty. What are all church buildings, formularies, ceremonies, pecuniary resources, literary achievements, when the Spirit of God has been grieved or quenched? Hence the need for continual praying for the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Every day should now be a day of Pentecost. Not even the most trivial act should be done except in the spirit of prayer and trust. So long as we think that some things in the Church are spiritual, and other things are temporal, we shall bring a divided mind to bear upon our work. Communion with God will help a man to do every part of his duty with a joyful heart. It is joy of heart that turns labour into delight, and that banishes from the spirit all the calculations and devices of a hireling. Although the battle went sore against Saul, we must not suppose that Saul represented an unblest cause. The reason may be in Saul himself, rather than in the cause for which he fought. The situation does not lie between the sunrise and the sunset of one little day. By-and-by we shall come upon the spiritual explanation of all things. It is popular to contemn metaphysical study as unpractical and tedious; but we have had history enough to show that the commonest incidents go back into metaphysical reasons, and that not until the metaphysical has been purified, will practical life as it is sometimes too narrowly described, be really virtuous and beneficent. The Philistines who came up from Egypt, and shot their arrows against Saul, might boast themselves of their superior strength and skill, little knowing that in congratulating themselves, they were operating in total ignorance of the reality of the case. The enemy sometimes laughs too soon. Many who suppose themselves to be fighting against God, may in very deed be used by the Almighty for the infliction of his judgments. Many a Philistine has laughed at the perplexities and failures of the Church, imagining that by his own wit he had brought contempt upon the people of God; but events have shown that the very people whom he had momentarily discomfited had brought themselves within his malign power, by unfaithfulness to their sacred trusts. We know in common life how unfaithfulness disables the firmest strength. When conscience gives way, all outward fortresses crumble into dust. It is only when we know that we are spiritually right, that we can conduct every battle fearlessly, and in assured hope of success. Sometimes leaders, captains, and commanders, have to be overborne or displaced, in order that the great cause which they fail to grasp, and adequately to represent, may vindicate its own claim to a position of confidence and honour. It does not follow that because a man has been once a leader, that he must always be at the head of the army. Sometimes by sin, sometimes by obvious incapacity, sometimes by the infirmity of old age, the very princes of the Church are displaced and put behind. There are some trusts which we only keep as long as we keep our character. Alas! poor Saul had fallen from his moral elevation, and when he went out to war he went out to die.

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"And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his sons fallen in mount Gilboa. And when they had stripped him, they took his head, and his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry tidings unto their idols, and to the people. And they put his armour in the house of their gods, and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon"( 1 Chronicles 10:8-10).

Samuel refers to Saul"s three sons. The Philistines stripped Saul and carried off his head,in Samuel we read "and they cut off his head, and stripped his armour off." A kindred expression occurs in Genesis. "Pharaoh will lift thy head from off thee" ( Genesis 40:19). This verse shows how strictly local was the conception of deities implied in this act of the Philistines; their idea was that their idols could neither see nor hear beyond their own temples. We have seen this illustrated with some detail in 1 Kings 20:23. In the tenth verse our text literally reads,"and his skull was fastened in the house of Dagon." In the First Book of Samuel ( 1 Samuel 31:10) the expression is varied, viz, "and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan."

This passage abounds in mournful monition. Consider the beginning of Saul"s history and compare with it this melancholy close. Who could have anticipated a catastrophe so pitiful? Here is not only overthrow in battle but an infliction of the most withering contempt. At the beginning we found the divine vocation, holy anointing, royal felicitation, and every sign of influence and fame. Saul seemed to begin his royal career on the very top of the mountain, now look at the close of the day which opened so brightly. "Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall." Many men begin with influential parentage, social station, ample education, pecuniary competence, yet they travel a downhill road, falling first into neglect and then into oblivion. The whole lesson is cautionary. "I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found." How few are the men who have had a more favourable beginning than Saul! If Saul fell, what guarantee is there that the strongest may not be thrown down? "Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe." Physical greatness, social security, public applause, are being continually rebuked, yea, humiliated and put to shame. Yet men covet them, pay a heavy price for them, boast of them with exceeding pride. How difficult it is to teach men Wisdom of Solomon , even by the sternest facts, and the bitterest experience! The

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proverb wisely says, "Call no man happy until he is dead." The meaning is that at the very last a man may make a slip which will bring his whole life into degradation, in every sense of the term. As we have often had occasion to say, there is but a step between man and deathnot physical death only, but the death of character, reputation, and influence. What a gloating time for the Philistines when the dead giant was absolutely in their hands! How they laughed over the fallen king, how they tried his muscle and measured his girth and commented upon his stature, and then struck a blow of contempt upon his royal head! Who respects a man when he is no longer able to defend himself? Who does not throw a contemptuous word at the man whose fortunes have been blighted? Under such circumstances the quality of character is tested. Consider how David lamented the overthrow of Saul, how bitter was his grief, how eloquent his pathos! David had been misunderstood by Saul and subjected to all manner of degradation by the king, yet when Saul died David"s voice was deepest and loudest in lamentation. It remains with each man to say whether a good beginning shall have a good ending. This is a question of personal discipline, holy fellowship with God, and an acceptance of all processes which have been divinely established for the training and sanctification of man. The word comes with special urgency to young persons, to men of influence, to successful men, and to all who are plied by the temptations incident to high station and wide influence.

"So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord" ( 1 Chronicles 10:13).

Now we touch the real reason of things. The story was incomplete until this explanation was added. The lesson comes up again and again in history that behind all disorder there is to be found either a moral reason for penalty, or a moral reason for chastening. "The wages of sin is death." There is no escape from this inexorable law. Who can fight against the Almighty and prevail? Put a tombstone near the oak in Jabesh and write for an epitaph"So Saul died for his transgression." Is not this an epitaph appropriate to the whole human race? What need have we for more epitaphs than one? "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." The sin of Saul is particularly indicated"even against the word of the Lord which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit." Saul"s unfaithfulness was thus twofold, viz, first, neglect of the divine word, and secondly the consultation of a necromancer. Saul broke the general law of his people,"Turn ye not to the necromancers" ( Leviticus 19:31). And beside this he violated the special command which was addressed to himself. It

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is true that Saul had inquired of Jehovah before consulting the witch of Endor, "but the Lord answered him not, neither by the dreams, nor by the vision, nor by the prophets." Saul was impatient, obstinate, and ambitious, and having deprived himself of intercourse with heaven, he sought to create a new altar and a new deity. The historian does not scruple to say that God slew the first king of Israel. God works through instrumentality, and what he empowers he is said to have done himself. This holds good alike in punishment and in restoration; hence the Assyrian conquerors were the servants of God in scourging guilty people, and Cyrus was also his servant when he fulfilled all the pleasure of God. The frankness of Scripture in all its explanations is not the least worthy of its characteristics. At the very first, God charged sin upon Adam saying, "Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded that thou shouldest not eat?" and in this moral reason he found the explanation of Adam"s absence from the usual place of meeting. All through the line of history the same standard is set up. When the world was drowned, it was because man had sinned; when fire and brimstone fell upon the cities of the plain, it was because ten righteous men could not be found within all their borders. And now Saul dies because he has committed transgression against the Lord. There is only one way of life, and that is the way of obedience, trust, and love. Why should we attempt to escape the arrangements of God? Why should the tree tear itself up by the roots and try to bring forth blossom and fruit without connecting itself with the great currents of sustenance? All that man can do by his own hand is to commit suicide. From the beginning until now man has been engaged in the awful tragedy of self-slaughter. The Lord exclaims through the prophet, "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself, but in me is thy hope." We must all turn to the Living One if we ourselves would live. Nor need we hesitate about doing Song of Solomon , for God loves us and yearns for us and continually cries, "Turn ye, turn ye, why will ye die?" There is nothing along the road of sin, how many soever may be the flowers which grow by the wayside, but failure, disappointment, shame, and death. Here the great gospel of Jesus Christ breathes its instruction, its welcome, its benediction. Come, let us return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon us; and remember that it is said of him that he will abundantly pardon.

POOLE, Sauls overthrow and death, 1 Chronicles 10:1-7. The Philistines triumph over Saul, 1 Chronicles 10:8-10. The kindness of Jabesh-gilead towards Saul and his sons: his sin, 1 Chronicles 10:11-14.Of this and the following verses till 1 Chronicles 10:13, see my notes on 1Sa 31, where we have the same thing expressed almost in thee same words.

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PULPIT, It is evident that the compiler of the Chronicles intended its history proper to begin substantially with the reign of David. Strictly, however, it opens with the last mournful chapter of the career of Saul and his sons, or of three out of the four (1 Chronicles 9:39) of them. The mention of Saul had been prepared for by the short preamble of his pedigree and family; and, in like manner, the way is paved for the introduction of the reign add deeds of David by the brief and affecting narration of the end of his predecessor on the throne. The last chapter of the First Book of Samuel occupies itself with the same subject and covers the same ground. Our present chapter compared with that is sufficient to convince us that both were drawn from some common source or sources. It is not possible to suppose that the writer of Chronicles merely copied from the Book of Samuel. The differences are very slight, but they are such as produce a different conviction, and are not consistent with the assumption of being mere alterations and additions upon what is read in the other work. The last two verses of this chapter form the distinctive feature of it, compared with the parallel of 1 Samuel 31:1-13. The appropriateness of these two verses, as bridging over the history from Saul to David, is evident, and is but another incidental indication of the thorough unity of purpose of the compiler. They may even be viewed as tacitly compensating for the abrupt introduction, at the commencement of the chapter, of the battle with the Philistines, and the slaughter on Mount Gilboa.

1 Chronicles 10:1No abruptness marks this narration in 1 Samuel 31:1-13. On the contrary, it is there the natural conclusion of the wars between the Philistines and Saul. This engagement took place (1 Samuel 28:4; 1 Samuel 29:1, 1 Samuel 29:11) on the plains of Jezreel. The name Jezreel marks either the city (Joshua 19:18; 1 Kings 21:1, 1 Kings 21:11), or the celebrated valley or plain called in later times Esdraelon, the Greek form of the word. The plain in its largest proportions may be said to have been bounded by the Mediterranean (although it is called the plain of Accho, where it abuts on that sea) and the Jordan, and by the Samaria and Carmel ranges on the south and south-west, and those of Galilee on the north and northeast. While called a "plain" and "the great plain" in 1:8, its name in the Old Testament is "valley." It lay like a scalene triangle, with its apex in the direction of the Mediterranean, opening into the above-mentioned plain of Accho, and its sides going from right to left, about fifteen, twelve, and eighteen miles long respectively. The allusions to it in Old Testament history are frequent. Its exceeding richness is now turned into

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desolation unexceeded. Megiddo (Joshua 12:21; 1:27), the city, centre of a smaller valley called by the same name (1 Chronicles 7:29; 5:19), was situated within it, in the direction of Carmel. Mount Gilboa identifies for us the exact battle-field of the text. It is the same with that on which Gideon triumphed ( 7:1, 7:8). It is in the lot of Issachar, flanked by the Little Hermon ridge on the north-east, and by Gilboa on the south-east, a mountain range of ten miles long, about six hundred feet high, and mentioned only in the melancholy connection of this history. The flight of the men of Israel and of Saul was from the plain back to their position on Mount Gilboa, where they were pursued, overtaken, and slain. The modern name of the town Jezreel is Zerin, the depraved aliases of which appear as Gerin and Zazzin (Robinson's 'Bibl. Res.,' 3:162-165, 3rd edit.), and Jezreel, Shunem, and Beth-shean are the three most conspicuous places in this part of the whole plain of Esdraelon.

GUZIK, Having established Israels historical setting and ethnic bounds in the preceding genealogies, the Chronicler now enters on his main subject, the history of the Hebrew kingdom, with its theological conclusions. (Payne)A. The death of King Saul.

1. (1Ch_10:1-2) The battle on Mount Gilboa.Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. Then the Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons. And the Philistines killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, Sauls sons.

a. Now the Philistines fought against Israel: The Philistines were an immigrant people from the military aristocracy of the island of Crete (Amo_9:7). Small numbers of Philistines were in the land at the time of Abraham; but they only came in force soon after Israel came to Canaan from Egypt. They were organized into five city-states. Archaeologists tell us two other things about the Philistines: they were hard drinkers, and they were the first in the region to effectively use iron, and they made the most of it.i. The Philistines were a sea-faring people, and traded with distant lands. Therefore they imported newer and better military technology from the Greeks and became a powerful enemy of the people of Israel. At that time, Israel could compete on more equal terms with Moab and Ammon, but Greek military equipment (helmets, shields, coats of mail, swords and spears) made the Philistines much more formidable opponents.

b. The men of Israel fled from before the Philistines: The Philistines had attacked deep into Israeli territory (1Sa_28:4), and Sauls army assembled and prepared for battle at Mount Gilboa (1Sa_28:4). Because of his deep rebellion against the LORD, Saul was not ready 14

for battle: When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly (1Sa_28:5). It doesnt surprise us that with such a leader the soldiers of Israel could not stand before the Philistines. i. Wonder not that Saul fell by the hands of the Philistines, who were armed against him by his own sin and by Gods vengeance for it. (Poole)

c. And the Philistines killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, Sauls sons: Tragically, Sauls sons were affected in the judgment of God against their father Saul. The brave and worthy Jonathan died as he had lived - loyally fighting unto the very end for his God, his country, and his father the king.

2 The Philistines were in hot pursuit of Saul and his sons, and they killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab and Malki-Shua.

ELLICOTT, (2) The Philistines followed hard after Saul.Literally, clave to Saul, that is, hotly pursued him. (Comp. 1 Kings 22, 31.) The destruction of the king and his sons would make their triumph complete.

The sons of Saul.Omit the. Eshbaal, Sauls fourth son, was not in the battle (2 Samuel 2:8. Comp. 1 Chronicles 8:33). Like Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, Saul may have witnessed the death of his sons (2 Kings 25:7). Jonathan, at least, would not be far from him in the last struggle. In their deaths they were not divided.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:2 And the Philistines followed hard after Saul, and after his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul.

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Ver. 2. And the Philistines slew Jonathan.] Though a pious and valiant prince.

Non te tua plurima, Pentheu,

Labentem texit pietas. - Ovid.

Cadit et Ripheus iustissimus unus,

Qui fuit in Teucris, et servantissimus aequi. - Virg.

PULPIT, 1 Chronicles 10:2Followed hard after. The Hebrew verb implies all this and rather more, viz. that they made the pursuit of Saul and his sons their one special object. Luther's "Hingen sich au Saul" expresses this forcibly. Abinadab; or Ishui (see 1 Chronicles 8:33; 1 Samuel 14:49). The sons of Saul. Omit the article, which is not present in the Hebrew text. The fourth son, not withstanding our 1 Chronicles 10:6, survived (2 Samuel 2:8-15).

3 The fighting grew fierce around Saul, and when the archers overtook him, they wounded him.

JAMISON, the battle went sore against Saul; and the archers hit him, and 16

he was wounded The Hebrew words may be thus rendered: The archers found (attacked) him, and he feared the archers. He was not wounded, at least not dangerously, when he resolved on committing suicide. The deed was the effect of sudden terror and overwhelming depression of spirits [Calmet].

ELLICOTT, (3) The battle went sore against Saul.Literally, was heavy upon (Samuel, unto) him, like a burden weighing him to the earth.

And the archers hit him.Literally, And they that shoot with the bow came upon him; and he shuddered (Sam., greatly) before the shooters. He shuddered or trembled (Deuteronomy 2:25). The verb is properly to writhe, travail (Isaiah 23:4). Sauls deadly terror was natural. He believed himself forsaken of God, and stood now, after a lost battle, beset by murderous foes, whom he could not reach. There was no chance of a fair hand to hand encounter. The Heb. word for archers is the same in both places in Sam. (mrm); here a rarer form (yrm, 2 Chronicles 35:23) fills the second place. The Philistines were from Egypt, and the bow was a favourite Egyptian arm. The hieroglyph for soldier (menfat) is a man with bow and quiver.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:3 And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers hit him, and he was wounded of the archers.Ver. 3. And the battle went sore against Saul.] The weight of the war was turned against him. See the like policy used, 1 Kings 22:31. This is the right bird, said that officer of the cuirassiers, (a) who shot the king of Sweden through the body at the battle of Lutzen.And he was wounded of the archers.] Heb., He was grieved, or frighted: he, who by his tyranny had been terrible and grievous to others, &c., his sin hath found him out, being worse than any archers.

PULPIT, 1 Chronicles 10:3The archers hit him. The literal translation would be, the shooters, men with the bow, found him. The context makes it plain that the meaning is that the arrows of the pursuers rather than the pursuers themselves "found" him, and these made him argue all the rest. To this our Authorized Version has jumped by the one word "hit"

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him. It is evident from 1 Chronicles 10:8 that the Philistines did not find the body of Saul to recognize it till next day. And he was wounded of the archers. The radical meaning of the verb ( ) is rather "to twist" (torquere) or "be twisted," "writhe" (torqueri). And the meaning here is in harmony with it, that Saul trembled from fear or writhed with the pain already inflicted of the arrows. Hence the parallel passage couples with this same verb, the adverb .

BI, And the battle went sore against Saul.The death of SaulLearnI. That a splendid beginning may have an awful ending.II. That Divine judgments overtake mens sins.III. That in national calamities the godly suffer with the ungodly. (J. Wolfendale.)

4 Saul said to his armor-bearer, Draw your sword and run me through, or these uncircumcised fellows will come and abuse me.But his armor-bearer was terrified and would not do it; so Saul took his own sword and fell on it.

JAMISON, his armour-bearer would not; for he was sore afraid He was, of course, placed in the same perilous condition as Saul. But it is probable that the feelings that restrained him from complying with Sauls wish were a profound respect for royalty, mingled with apprehension of the shock which such a catastrophe would give to the national feelings and

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interests.

ELLICOTT, (4) And Saul said.So Abimelech (Judges 9:54).Lest these uncircumcised come.Sam. Adds and thrust me through. An inadvertent repetition there, or omission here, is possible. Or, we might say, Saul preferred death by a friendly stroke to the thrusts of insulting foemen.And abuse me.The Hebrew means, strictly, to make a toy of, sport with. How I have made a toy of Egypt (Exodus 10:2); and is used (Jeremiah 38:19) of insulting a fallen foe, as here.Took a sword.Literally, the swordi.e., his sword.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:4 Then said Saul to his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. So Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.Ver. 4. Lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me.] Heb., Mock me. He was more solicitous about his own glory than the glory of God and salvation of his poor soul.But his armourbearer would not.] The like unhappiness befell Nero, who hearing that the senate had proclaimed him a public enemy to mankind, and condemned him to be whipped to death, entreated that some one of those that were with him would kill him; which when they refused to do, he cried out, Itaque nec amicum habeo nec inimicure: What I have I neither friend nor foe to do me this last good office? and so struck himself through with his own sword, and was a horrible spectacle to all beholders. (a)So Saul took a sword.] A just hand of God upon him for his cruelty at Nob and other places. Per quod quis peccat, per idem punitur.

PULPIT, And abuse me. The main idea of the Hithp. of the verb here used is to satisfy the thirst of lust or cruelty. Saul probably feared not the abuse of mocking only, but that of torture. In the corresponding passage this verb is preceded by the clause, and thrust me through. His armour-bearer would not. He refused the request or bidding of Saul, no doubt mainly in respect of the fact that Saul was still "the anointed." We have a full description of both the loose arms and of the armour

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of the body in the case of the Philistine Goliath (1 Samuel 17:4-7). It is one of the world's surprising facts that the making of arms and armour, and the acquiring of skill in the using of them, should, as in fact all history attests, date from so early a period (Genesis 31:26; Genesis 34:25). As compared with the history and the fragmentary re. mains of classical antiquity, those of Scripture are remarkably scanty on this subject. The sword is the earliest mentioned in Scripture, carried in a sheath (1 Samuel 17:51; 2 Samuel 20:8; 1 Chronicles 21:27); though the Hebrew word is here different from that used in Samuel. It was slung by a girdle (1 Samuel 25:13), rested on hips or thigh (2 Samuel 20:8; 3:16; Psalms 45:3), and was sometimes "two-edged" ( 3:16; Psalms 149:6). Then follows the spear in several varieties, as in 1 Samuel 17:7; 1 Chronicles 11:11; 1 Chronicles 20:5; 1 Chronicles 23:9. Again as a javelin (Joshua 8:14-25; Job 29:23; 1 Samuel 17:6, where in the Authorized Version it is called target, or gorget). Again as a lancet (1 Kings 18:28; 1 Chronicles 12:8, 1 Chronicles 12:24; 2 Chronicles 11:12; Nehemiah 4:13; Ezekiel 39:9). In addition to these three chief varieties of spearthe spear proper, the javelin, end the lancetthere is mention of two other weapons used at all events as the dart of a light kind would be used, in 2 Chronicles 23:10, and elsewhere, and in 2 Samuel 8:14, respectively. After sword and spear rank the bow and arrow (Genesis 21:20; 1 Samuel 31:3; 1 Chronicles 8:40; 1 Chronicles 12:2; Psalms 68:9; Psalms 120:4; Job 6:4) And lastly, the sling ( 20:16; 1 Samuel 25:29; 2 Kings 3:25), and a very strong weapon of the same kind mentioned in 2 Chronicles 26:15. The chief articles worn as bodily armour were the breastplate (1 Samuel 17:5, 1 Samuel 17:38); the somewhat obscure habergeon, mentioned only twice, in no connection then of battle (Exodus 28:32; Exodus 39:23), the original name of which, tacharah, is found on Egyptian papyri of the nineteenth dynasty,it seems to have been a species of doublet or corselet; the helmet (1 Samuel 17:5; 1 Samuel 26:14; Ezekiel 27:10); greaves (1 Samuel 17:6); two kinds of shield (1 Samuel 17:7, 1 Samuel 17:41, compared with 1 Kings 10:16; 2 Chronicles 9:15); and lastly the article mentioned in 2 Samuel 8:7; 1 Chronicles 18:7; 2 Kings 11:10; 2 Chronicles 23:9; So 2 Chronicles 4:4; Jeremiah 51:11; Ezekiel 27:11; and of which we can say nothing certainly bearing upon its nature or its use, except that it was made of gold. Armour-bearers, then, the first distinct mention of whom we find in 9:54, may well have been a necessity for kings and for the great. Joab had ten (2 Samuel 18:15). The word is not expressed as a compound in Hebrew, but as "one carrying ( ) arms."

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5 When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died.

ELLICOTT, (5) He fell likewise on the sword.Sam., his sword, i.e., the sword of the armour-bearer.

And died.Samuel adds with him, which seems to be omitted here for brevity, which may be the reason of other similar omissions. Loyalty to his chief, and perhaps dread of the foe, were the armour-bearers motives.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:5 And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise on the sword, and died.Ver. 5. He fell likewise on his sword, and died.] He had done better if he had died by the hand of the enemy, in his masters defence.

6 So Saul and his three sons died, and all his house died together.

BARNES, his armour-bearer would not; for he was sore afraid He was, 21

of course, placed in the same perilous condition as Saul. But it is probable that the feelings that restrained him from complying with Sauls wish were a profound respect for royalty, mingled with apprehension of the shock which such a catastrophe would give to the national feelings and interests.

CLARKE, So Saul died - and all his house - Every branch of his family that had followed him to the war was cut off; his three sons are mentioned as being the chief. No doubt all his officers were slain.

JAMISON, Saul died, and his three sons, and all his house his sons and courtiers who were there engaged in the battle. But it appears that Ish-bosheth and Mephibosheth were kept at Gibeah on account of their youth.

BENSON, 1 Chronicles 10:6. Saul died, and all his house All his children then present with him, namely, his three sons; for Ish-bosheth and Mephibosheth were not slain.

ELLICOTT, (6) And all his house died together.Instead of this Samuel reads and his armour-bearer; also all his men on that day together. The LXX. adds on that day here, while in Samuel it omits all his men, thus minimising the differences of text. It is mere pedantry to press the phrases all his men, all his house. The strength of these expressions indicates the completeness of the overthrow.

The chronicler was fully aware that some of Sauls house were not engaged in this battle (1 Chronicles 9:35). And in any case, the chief warriors of his household, and immediate followers, died with the king.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:6 So Saul died, and his three sons, and all his house died together.Ver. 6. And all his house died together.] His courtiers and evil counsellors, who had

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sinned with him, perished with him.

COKE, 1 Chronicles 10:6. All his house died together 1:e. All of his house or family who were with him that day. In 1 Samuel 31:6 it is all his men.

POOLE, All his house, i.e. all his children, to wit, then present with him, namely,his three sons, as it is expressed, 1 Samuel 31:6. For it is evident that Ish-bosheth and Mephibosheth were not slain. But nothing is more common in Scripture and all authors, than to understand all of a great and most considerable part.

WHEDON, 6. All his house died together Not every member of his family, for Ishbosheth, (2 Samuel 2:8,) and Ziba, and Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 9:1-6) survived him; but all his men that accompanied him to the war.

PULPIT, 1 Chronicles 10:6All his house. In place of these words, the parallel (1 Samuel 31:6) has, "And his armour-bearer, and all his men, that same day together." This reading avoids the ambiguity referred to already (1 Chronicles 10:2). In either passage the moral is plain, that the end and ruin of Saul's family as a whole had arrived, rather than literally that the whole, including every member, of that family had perished.

7 When all the Israelites in the valley saw that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their towns and fled. And the Philistines came and occupied them.

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ELLICOTT, (7) That were in the valley.Rather, the plain, in which the main battle was foughtthat of Jezreel. Samuel has that were on the other side of the plain, and on the other side of the Jordan. The curt phrase who (dwelt) in the plain, may be compared with 1 Chronicles 9:2. The people of the surrounding districts are meant; who, when they saw that they (viz., Sauls army, the men of Israel, Samuel) fled, or had been routed, deserted their (Samuel, the, perhaps a transposition of letters) cities which were then occupied by the Philistines.Dwelt in them.The pronoun here is masculine, in Samuel, feminine, which is correct.

TRAPP,1 Chronicles 10:7 And when all the men of Israel that [were] in the valley saw that they fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, then they forsook their cities, and fled: and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.Ver. 7. And the Philistines came and dwelt in them.] But before they were well warm in these their new nests, David unroosted and dislodged them "The triumphing of the wicked is but short." [Job 20:5]

PULPIT, 1 Chronicles 10:7In the valley. In place of these words, the parallel (1 Samuel 31:7) has, "On the other side of the valley, and.; on the other side Jordan." We have here a clear instance of the desire of the compiler of Chronicles to compress his narrative, while the fidelity of the parallel narrative is testi-fled in the naturalness of its statements, amounting to this, that, quick as the intelligence or report could reach all those Israelites who were at all within the range of the victorious Philistines, they hastened to vacate their abodes.

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8 The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.

HENRY 8-14, Here, I. From the triumph of the Philistines over the body of Saul we may learn, 1. That the greater dignity men are advanced to the greater disgrace they are in danger of falling into. Saul's dead body, because he was king, was abused more than any other of the slain. Advancement makes men a mark for malice. 2. That, if we give not to God the glory of our successes, even the Philistines will rise up in judgment against us and condemn us; for, when they had obtained a victory over Saul, they sent tidings to their idols - poor idols, that knew not what was done a few miles off till the tidings were brought to them, nor then either! They also put Saul's armour in the house of their gods, 1Ch_10:10. Shall Dagon have so honourable a share in their triumphs and the true and living God be forgotten in ours?

II. From the triumph of the men of Jabesh-Gilead in the rescue of the bodies of Saul and his sons we learn that there is a respect due to the remains of the deceased, especially of deceased princes. We are not to enquire concerning the eternal state; that must be left to God: but we must treat the dead body as those who remember it has been united to an immortal soul and must be so again.III. From the triumphs of divine Justice in the ruin of Saul we may learn, 1. That the sin of sinners will certainly find them out, sooner or later: Saul died for his transgression. 2. That no man's greatness can exempt him from the judgments of God. 3. Disobedience is a killing thing. Saul died for not keeping the word of the Lord, by which he was ordered to destroy the Amalekites. 4. Consulting with witches is a sin that fills the measure of iniquity as soon as any thing. Saul enquired of one that had a familiar spirit, and enquired not of the Lord, therefore he slew him, 1Ch_10:13, 1Ch_10:14. Saul slew himself, and yet it is said, God slew him. What is done by wicked hands is yet done by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. Those that abandon themselves to the devil shall be abandoned to him; so shall their doom be. It is said (1Sa_28:6) that Saul did enquire of the Lord and he answered him not: but here it is said, Saul did not enquire of God; for he did not till he was brought to the last extremity, and then it was too late.

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JAMISON, 1Ch_10:8-14. The Philistines triumph over him.

K&D 8-13, On the following day the Philistines, in their search among the fallen, found and plundered the bodies of Saul and of his sons, and sent the head and the armour of Saul round about the land of the Philistines, to proclaim the news of their victory to their people and their gods. That for this purpose they cut off Saul's head from the trunk, is, as being a matter of course, not specially mentioned. In regard to the other discrepancies between the two texts, both in 1Ch_10:8-10 and in the account of the burial of Saul and of his sons by valiant men of Jabesh, 1Ch_10:11, 1Ch_10:12, cf. the commentary on 1Sa_31:8-13. In the reflection on Saul's death, 1Ch_10:13and 1Ch_10:14, a double transgression against the Lord on Saul's part is mentioned: first, the (on the meaning of this word, vide on Lev_5:15) of not observing the word of Jahve, which refers to the transgression of the divine command made known to him by the prophet Samuel, 1Sa_13:8. (cf. with 1Ch_10:8), and 1Sa_15:2-3, 1Sa_15:11, cf. 1Sa_28:18; and second, his inquiring of the the summoner of the dead (vide , on Lev_19:31), ,i.e., to receive an oracle (cf. in reference to both word and thing, 1Sa_28:7).

ELLICOTT, (8) His sons.Samuel, his three sons. Otherwise the two verses are word for word the same.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:8 And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his sons fallen in mount Gilboa.Ver. 8. And it came to pass on the morrow.] They flew not on the spoil, till they had secured the victory: for Victorem a victo superari saepe videmus.

BI 8-10, And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul.A good beginning with a bad endingMany men begin with influential parentage, social station, ample education, pecuniary competence, yet they travel a downhill road, falling first into neglect and then into oblivion. Physical greatness, social security, public applause are being continually rebuked, humiliated, and put to shame. The proverb wisely says, Call no man happy until he is dead. The meaning is

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that at the very best a man may make a slip which will bring his whole life into degradation in every sense of the term. There is but a step between man and deathnot physical death only, but the death of character, reputation, and influence. It remains with each man to say whether a good beginning shall have a good ending. This is a question of personal discipline, holy fellowship with God, and an acceptance of all processes which have been divinely established for the training and sanctification of man. The word comes with special urgency to young persons, to men of influence, to successful men, and to all who are plied by the temptations incident to high station and wide influence. (J. Parker, D. D.)

9 They stripped him and took his head and his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news among their idols and their people.

ELLICOTT, (9) And when they had stripped him.Better, and they stripped him, and carried off his head, &c. Samuel, and they cut off his head, and stripped his armour off. With the phrase carried off his head, comp. Genesis 40:19, Pharaoh will lift thy head from off thee, where the same Hebrew verb is used (yiss).And sent (Sauls head and armour) to carry tidings unto their idols.The verb bassr is used of good and bad tidings, especially of the former, as in 2 Samuel 18:19-20.Unto their idols.Samuel, house of their idols. But the LXX. reading there is the same as here, . The expression of Samuel looks original, though it may have been copied by mistake from 1 Chronicles 10:10. Note the strictly local conception of deities implied in this act of the Philistines; as if their idols could neither see nor hear beyond their own temples. (Comp. 1 Kings 20:23; 1 Kings

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20:28; Psalms 94:9.)

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:9 And when they had stripped him, they took his head, and his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry tidings unto their idols, and to the people.Ver. 9. They took his head.] Heb., His brainpan; the seat of his understanding; wherein he had hammered so many evil devices against good David and others.To carry tidings.] Ad evangelizandum.

COKE, 1 Chronicles 10:9. To carry tidings unto their idols That the tidings might be told in the temples of their idols. Houbigant.

PULPIT. 1 Chronicles 10:9And when they had stripped him, they took his head, and his armour. Some comparing this with the parallel (1 Samuel 31:9), "They cut off his head, and stripped off his armour," say "our author" leaves the beheading unmentioned! It is certainly sufficiently implied. To carry tidings unto their idols. This sentence is more clearly explained, and brought into rather unexpected and perhaps unwished accord with the most modern of our ecclesiastical habits, when in the parallel as above, we find "to publish it in the house of their idols" as the form of expression.

10 They put his armor in the temple of their gods and hung up his head in the temple of Dagon.

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JAMISON, put his armour in the house of their gods It was common among the heathen to vow to a national or favorite deity, that, in the event of a victory, the armor of the enemys king, or of some eminent leader, should be dedicated to him as an offering of gratitude. Such trophies were usually suspended on the pillars of the temple.

fastened his head in the temple of Dagon while the trunk or headless corpse was affixed to the wall of Beth-shan (1Sa_31:10).

BENSON, 1 Chronicles 10:10. In the temple of Dagon If we give not God the glory of our successes, even Philistines will rise up in judgment with us, and condemn us. Shall Dagon have so great a place in their triumphs, and the true God be forgotten in ours?

ELLICOTT, (10) In the house of their gods.Or god, as LXX. Samuel, house of Ashtaroth, which the chronicler or his source paraphrases, perhaps from a repugnance to mentioning the idols name. Ashtoreth had a great temple at Ascalon, as Heavenly Aphrodite (Herod., Hist i. 108). The Queen of Heaven (Jeremiah 7:18) was worshipped by the Semitic races generally. Under the name of Ishtar, she was a chief goddess of the Assyrians, and had famous temples at Nineveh and Arbela. The Sabans worshipped her as Athtr; and the name Ashtr is coupled with Chemosh on the Moabite Stone.Fastened his head in the temple of Dagon.Literally, and his skull (gulglethcomp. Golgotha, Matthew 27:33) they fastened in the house of Dagon. Instead of this, we read in Samuel, and his corpse they fastened to the wall of Beth-shan. It is hardly likely that the one reading is a corruption of the other. The chronicler has omitted the statement about Sauls corpse, which is not mentioned in 1 Chronicles 10:9, and supplied one respecting his head, which has been already spoken of in that verse. He found the fact in his additional source, if the clause in question has not dropt out of the text of Samuel.The Accadians worshipped Dagon, as we learn from the cuneiform inscriptions: comp. the name Ismi-Dagan (Dagon hears).

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:10 And they put his armour in the house of their gods, and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon.Ver. 10. And fastened his head.] In way of abuse and mockage; so, that which Saul

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feared came upon him. [1 Chronicles 10:4]

WHEDON, 10. They fastened his head in the temple of Dagon In Samuel we are merely told that they cut off his head, but no account is there given of what they did with it. This act of the Philistines was, perhaps, a retaliation for the disposition made of the head of Goliath. 1 Samuel 17:54.

PULPIT, 1 Chronicles 10:10The house of their gods. In place of this general designation, the parallel (1 Samuel 31:10) designates the house more exactly as "the house of Ashtaroth" (Genesis 14:5; the Phoenician female deity, as Baal was their male deity. The Greek form of the name is Astarte. See also Cic; 'De. Nat. Deo.,' Deuteronomy 3:23). And fastened his head in the temple of Dagon. The parallel, as above, gives us, "And fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shah" (which account is corroborated in 2 Samuel 21:12-14), and does not say what further was done with the head. It is no doubt remarkable that one historian puts on record the one fact and the other the other; and it is one of the clearer indications that both took from some common sources. It is perhaps something to be remarked also that, while the historian in Samuel says nothing further about the head (though allusion to it is probably included in the "body" and the "bones," the further account of which is given in 1 Chronicles 10:12, 1 Chronicles 10:13, as well as in 2 Samuel 21:12-14), the compiler of Chronicles does revert to mention of "the body of Saul," 1 Chronicles 10:12, infra, though without any corresponding naming of Beth-shah. Bertheau finds little difficulty in the question, by simply supposing that the omission in Chronicles is another instance of the desire to compress; while others suppose corruption in our text, or, as Thenius and Ewald, the loss of a sentence to our text. After all said, the omission in Samuel of the fate of the head would seem to be fully as remarkable as the omission, so far as this verse is concerned, in Chronicles of the fate of the body. It is reasonable to suppose that the head and trunk of the body of Saul were brought together again, or it were likely some allusion to the contrary would have transpired in the following verses of this chapter or in 2 Samuel 21:12-14. With regard to the act of the Philistines in dedicating the armour of Saul, and fixing his head in the temple of Dagon, as though trophies, the custom was both ancient and not uncommon ( 16:21-30; 1 Samuel 5:1-5; 1 Samuel 21:9). The house of Dagon (Joshua 15:41; Joshua 19:27) here spoken of was that at Ashdod (Joshua 15:47), between Gaza and Joppa. Though belonging to Judah's lot, it was never subdued by Israel,

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and remained throughout their history one of their worst foes. It is the Azotus of Acts 8:40. There was another Dagon temple at Gaza ( 16:21-31). Dagon's representation was the figure of a man, as to head, hands, and bust, but for the rest that of a fish, which was a symbol of fruitfulness. As Ashdod was situate on the extreme west of Palestine, so Beth-shahgenerally written Beth-shean, a city of Manasseh (ch. 7:29), though within the borders of Issachar (Joshua 17:11), flora which the Canaanites were not expelled ( 1:27)was on the extreme east near the Jordan. It was afterwards called Scythopolis. Considering the distance these were apart, and their contrary directions, we may suppose that some suggestion was intended by the fixing the head in the one place and the body in the other.

11 When all the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,

CLARKE, When all Jabesh-gilead heard - For a general account of the principles of heroism and gratitude from which this action of the men of Jabesh-gilead proceeded, see the note on 1Sa_31:11, 1Sa_31:12.

By the kindness of a literary friend, I am enabled to lay a farther illustration of this noble act before the reader, which he will find at the conclusion of the chapter.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:11 And when all Jabeshgilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul,Ver. 11. And when all Jabeshgilead.] See 1 Samuel 31:11. Jabeshgilead had not many inhabitants; but being all of a mind, they did great matters.

GUZIK, 3. (1Ch_10:11-12) The courage and faithfulness of the men of Jabesh Gilead.And when all Jabesh Gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to

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Saul, all the valiant men arose and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons; and they brought them to Jabesh, and buried their bones under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.a. And when all Jabesh Gilead: These heroic men are recognized for their gratitude. Many years before, Saul delivered their city from the Ammonites (1Sa_11:1-11), and they repay the kindness God showed them from the hand of Saul. Upon taking the throne, David rightly thanked these valiant men for their kindness to the memory of Saul, Jonathan, and Sauls other sons (2Sa_2:4-7).b. All the valiant men arose: In a time of disgrace, loss, and tragedy like this, God still has His valiant men to do His work. The men of Jabesh Gilead took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from their place of humiliation and gave them a proper burial.

i. God always has His valiant men. When one servant passes the scene, another arises to take his place. If Saul is gone, God raises up a David. If the army of Israel is utterly routed, God still has His valiant men. Gods work is bigger than any man, or any group of people.

12 all their valiant men went and took the bodies of Saul and his sons and brought them to Jabesh. Then they buried their bones under the great tree in Jabesh, and they fasted seven days.

BENSON, 1 Chronicles 10:12. And fasted seven days Every day till evening, after the manner of the Jewish fasts.

ELLICOTT, (12) All the valiant men.Literally, every man of valour. Samuel adds, and marched all the night.

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Took away.Carried off. Samuel has took, (ceperunt).

The body.A common Aramaic word, gfh, only read here in the Old Testament, for which Samuel has the pure Hebrew synonym awyah. Samuel adds, from the wall of Beth-shan.

And brought them.Samuel, and came to Jabesh, and burnt them there. To burn a corpse was a further degradation of executed criminals (Joshua 7:25; Leviticus 20:14; Leviticus 21:9), and as the Jews did not ordinarily practise cremation, it is supposed that the phrase burnt them, in 1 Samuel 31 means made a burning for them of costly spices, as was done at the funerals of kings (Jeremiah 34:5; 2 Chronicles 16:14; 2 Chronicles 21:19). But perhaps the bodies were burnt in this exceptional case because they had been mutilated by the enemy.

Buried their bones.Samuel, took and buried. The phrase their bones, contrasted with their corpses, certainly seems to imply that the latter had been burnt.

The oak.Heb., terebinth, or turpentine tree. Samuel, tamarisk. The difference points to another source used by Chronicles.

And fasted seven days.In token of mourning. (Comp. the friends of Job, Job 2:11-13; and Ezekiel among the exiles at Tel-abib, Ezekiel 3:15.) For the behaviour of the men of Jabesh, comp. 1 Samuel 11

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:12 They arose, all the valiant men, and took away the body of Saul, and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Jabesh, and buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh, and fasted seven days.Ver. 12. And took away the body of Saul, and the bodies of his sons.] Which the Philistines, in disgrace of them, had fastened to the wall of Bethshan, afterwards

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called Scythopolis.And fasted seven days.] A tanto, but not a toto, as Daniel 10:2. In public calamities lugendum, scilicet non indulgendum genio, men must be deeply affected with the divine displeasure.

WHEDON, 12. Buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh Samuel has, under a tree, or rather, under the tree, ( ), that is, some well-known tree which this writer designates as , the oak, or terebinth.

PULPIT, 1 Chronicles 10:12Jabesh. This is the only place where "Jabesh" is used as an abbreviation for Jabesh-gilead, of which it was the chief city. Gilead comprised the lots of Reuben and Gad (Numbers 32:1-5, Numbers 32:25-32, Numbers 32:39-41) and of half Manasseh (1 Chronicles 27:21). Saul had on a celebrated occasion (1 Samuel 11:1-13) befriended the people of Jabesh-gilead, coming to their rescue against Nahath the Ammonite, of which kindness they are now mindful, show that rarest of virtues, gratitude to a fallen monarch, and are further on (2 Samuel 2:5) commended for it by David. This verse does not tell us, as the parallel (1 Samuel 31:12) does, of the first burning of the bodies, and then of the burying of the calcined bones. The silence is very remarkable. It does name the kind of tree, the "oak" or "terebinth." The word for the tree, however, in both passages is of doubtful and perhaps only generic signification. The several Hebrew words translated in various places as "oak," all share a common root, significant of the idea of strength. Dr. Thomson says that the country owns still to an abundance of oaks of very fine growth in some eases, and that these are exceedingly more plentiful and altogether a stronger tree than the "terebinth." The different names, though all connected with one root, referred to are probably owing to the large variety of oaks. With the statement of the burying of the bones under a tree, and the fasting of seven days on the part of these brave and grateful men of Jabesh-gilead, the parallel account comes to its end.

13 Saul died because he was unfaithful to the 34

Lord; he did not keep the word of the Lord and even consulted a medium for guidance,

BARNES, For his transgression - Compare 1Ch_9:1. The transgression intended is probably the disobedience with respect to Amalek, recorded in 1Sa_15:1-9 (compare 1Sa_28:17-18).

CLARKE, Saul died for his transgression - See the concluding observations on the first book of Samuel (1Sa_31:13 (note)).GILL, So Saul died for his transgression,.... See Gill on 1Sa_31:13 A violent and dishonourable death, which was suffered on account of the sins he was guilty of: one was, which he committed against the Lord, even against the word of the Lord, which he kept not; both in not staying for Samuel the time appointed, and by sparing the Amalekites whom he was bid to destroy, 1Sa_13:13. and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it; what he should do with respect to engaging in battle with the Philistines, 1Sa_28:8 which to do was contrary to an express command of God, Lev_19:31.

JAMISON, Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord in having spared the king of the Amalekites and taken the flocks of the people as spoils [1Sa_15:9], as well as in having consulted a pythoness [1Sa_28:7]. Both of these acts were great sins - the first as a violation of Gods express and positive command [1Sa_15:3], and the second as contrary to a well-known statute of the kingdom (Lev_19:31).

GUZIK, (1Ch_10:13-14) The spiritual reason for the tragedy of King Saul.So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance. But he did not inquire of the LORD; therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of

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Jesse.a. So Saul died for his unfaithfulness: The story of King Saul is one of the great tragedies of the Bible. He was humble at his beginning, yet seeming to lack any genuine spiritual connection with God, he was easily and quickly corrupted by pride and fear. Saul becomes a tragic example of wasted potential.

i. Saul was a man than whom no other had greater opportunities, but his failure was disastrous. Of good standing in the nation, distinctly called and commissioned by God, honored with the friendship of Samuel, surrounded by a band of men whose hearts God had touched, everything was in his favor. From the beginning he failed; step by step he declined in conduct and character, until he went out. (Morgan)b. But he did not inquire of the LORD: Saul did not have a genuine connection with God and did not seek God for the difficulties of his life. He consulted a medium for guidance, but not the LORD God.

i. When a human being is called of God to service, there is always given to an one the guidance of God, in direct spiritual communication. If there be disobedience, this guidance is necessarily withdrawn. Then, the forsaken man or woman, craving for supernatural aid, turns to sorcery, witchcraft, spiritism; and the issue is always destructive. (Morgan)ii. It does say in 1Sa_28:6 that Saul did inquire of the LORD. Such an inconsiderable and trifling inquiry as Saul made, is justly accounted to be no inquiry at all; as they are said not to eat the Lords supper, 1Co_11:20, who did eat it in a sinful and irregular manner. (Poole)

BENSON, 1 Chronicles 10:13. So Saul died for his transgression The sense is, wonder not that Saul fell by the hands of the Philistines, who were armed against him by his own sin, and by Gods vengeance for it. Against the word of the Lord Against Gods express, and plain, and positive command; which is a great aggravation of any sin. For asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit Which also was contrary to a manifest command,(Leviticus 19:31,) and moreover contrary to his own conscience, which was so fully convinced of the evil of such practices, that he had endeavoured the utter extirpation of all such persons, in pursuance of Gods law, 1 Samuel 28:9. To inquire of it Concerning the event of the approaching battle.

ELLICOTT, (13) Even against the word of the Lord.Sauls unfaithfulness was 36

twofold: (1) he did not observe the prophetic word of Jehovah (comp. 1 Samuel 13:13; 1 Samuel 15:11); and (2) he consulted a necromancer, to the neglect of consulting Jehovah (1 Samuel 28).And also for asking counsel.And also by consulting the necromancer in order to get a response. Turn ye not to the necromancers (Leviticus 19:31). (See also Isaiah 8:19.) Saul broke the general law of his people, as well as special commands addressed to himself. No allusion is made to his cruel slaughter of the priests (1 Samuel 22:18), nor to his implacable hatred of David.

Verse 13-14

(13, 14) A concluding reflection from the mind of the chronicler himself. He sums up his extract concerning the ruin of Saul by assigning the moral ground of it, viz., Sauls unfaithfulness whereby he showed himself unfaithful to Jehovah. The same charge was made against the Transjordan tribes in 1 Chronicles 5:25, and against the people of Judah in 1 Chronicles 9:1.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:13 So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, [even] against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking [counsel] of [one that had] a familiar spirit, to enquire [of it];Ver. 13. So Saul died, &c.] This and the subsequent verse we have here about the causes of Sauls death, more than that we read in 1 Samuel 31:3-6.; like as we meet with many remarkable passages in St Mark, that are not in Matthew or Luke.For his transgression which he committed.] "Adding rebellion to sin," [Job 34:37] for he was not so very bad at first, as neither is any wicked person. He first neglected the word of God, and then despised it, and then harboured in his heart hypocrisy, hatred, envy, cruelty, &c. Here he is taxed for three vices especially: (1.) For flat disobedience, which "is as the sin of witchcraft"; [1 Samuel 15:23] (2.) For consulting with a witch; (3.) For not inquiring of the Lord. He did not "draw nigh to God with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having his heart sprinkled from an evil conscience, and his body washed with pure water." [Hebrews 10:22]

COKE, 1 Chronicles 10:13. To enquire of it See the note on 1 Samuel 31:1. The 37

two great offences of Saul, which are recapitulated in this verse, were, his sparing the Amalekites, and consulting the witch of Endor.

POOLE, Saul died for his transgression: the sense is, Wonder not that Saul fell by the hands of the Philistines, who were armed against him by his own sin and by Gods vengeance for it.Against the word of the Lord; against Gods express, and plain, and positive command; which is a great aggravation of any sin.For asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit; which also was contrary to a manifest command, Leviticus 19:31, and moreover, contrary to his own conscience, which was so fully convinced hereof, that he had endeavoured the utter extirpation of all such persons, in pursuance of Gods law. See 1 Samuel 28:9.To inquire of it, concerning the event of the approaching battle.

WHEDON, 13. So Saul died for his transgression and also for asking counsel of a familiar spirit These reflections on the death of Saul, and the causes of his fall, show that the writer is merely preparing the way to the history of David. Sauls ruin is attributed particularly to two great sins: 1) in not observing Jehovahs word, which enjoined upon him the destruction of Amalek, (see 1 Samuel 15, and 1 Samuel 28:17-18, and notes there;) 2) in seeking for help and counsel of the witch of Endor. See 1 Samuel 28:3-20, notes.

PULPIT, So Saul died for his transgression. (For this transgression and the stress laid upon it and its predicted consequences, see 1 Samuel 15:1-9, 1 Samuel 15:11, 1 Samuel 15:14; 1 Samuel 28:18.) For asking of a familiar spirit (1 Samuel 28:7-24).

14 and did not inquire of the Lord. So the Lord 38

put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.

CLARKE, Inquired not of the Lord - On these two last verses the Targum speaks thus: And Saul died for the transgression by which he transgressed against the Word of the Lord, and because he did not keep the commandment of the Lord when he warred against the house of Amalek; and because he consulted Pythons, and sought oracular answers from them. Neither did he ask counsel from before the Lord by Urim and Thummim, for he had slain the priests that were in Nob; therefore the Lord slew him, and transferred the kingdom to David the son of Jesse.

A Literary friend furnishes the following remarks: -The sacred writer, in the first book of Samuel, 1Sa_31:11-13, and 1Ch_10:11, 1Ch_10:12, after relating the defeat and death of Saul, and the ignominious treatment of his remains, thus concludes: -And when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard of that which the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul, and the bodies of his sons, from the wall of Beth-shan, and came to Jabesh, and burnt them there; and they took the bones, and buried them under a tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.Often has this account been read with admiration of the bravery and devotedness of the men of Jabesh-gilead, but without considering that these men had any greater cause than others for honoring the remains of their sovereign; but, on reflection, it will be perceived that the strong impulse of gratitude prompted them to this honorable exertion. They remembered their preservation from destruction, and, which to brave men is more galling, from bearing marks of having been defeated, and being deprived of the honorable hope of wiping off disgrace, or defending their country at future seasons.Reading these verses in conjunction with the attack of Nahash, we perceive the natural feelings of humanity, of honorable respect, prompting the men of Jabesh to act as they

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did in rescuing the bones of Saul and his family.The father of Grecian poetry relates in how great a degree the warriors of ancient days honored the remains of their leaders; how severe were the contests for the body of the fallen chief, more determined oftentimes than the struggle for victory: this point of military honor was possibly excited or heightened by the religious idea so prevalent in his age, and after times, respecting the fate of the spirits of those who were unburied.Homer wrote of events passing at no distant period from those recorded in the first volume of Samuel; and these accounts mutually corroborate each other, being in unison, not only with the feelings of humanity, but with the customs of ancient nations. These may be farther illustrated by comparing the conduct of the Philistines with regard to Saul and his sons, with that of the hero of the Iliad towards Hector, the most finished character of the poem. Saul had been a severe scourge to the Philistines throughout a long series of years; the illustrious chief of Troy had long warded off the ruin of his country, and destroyed the flower of her foes, independently of his last victory over Patroclus, which drew on his remains that dishonor which, however, fell only on his destroyer.Should the siege of Troy be considered a fable, it may then be concluded that Homer introduced into his poems the customs and manners known to those for whose perusal he wrote, if these customs were not prevalent among his readers; but anxiety for the body of the illustrious dead, or regret for his death, has often caused success when all exertions prior to this powerful stimulus have not availed; and this even in our days.The Philistines had long been confined to the southwest angle of the promised land, and in the earlier part of Sauls reign had suffered many and severe losses; yet it appears by this chapter that, alone or in conjunction with allies, they had been able to penetrate nearly to the banks of the Jordan, to fight the battle on Mount Gilboa. This could only have been effected by a march through great part of the kingdom of Israel.Doubtless the attention of Saul in its defense might have been greatly distracted by his pursuit and fear of David, which appeared to have absorbed his whole mind; and it may account for the defenceless or weakened state of his forces.These circumstances appear to corroborate the authenticity of these books, independently of the many private transactions therein recorded; particularly the interesting and singular

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friendship of Jonathan and David, a transaction not likely to occur to a forger of a narrative. J.W.

GILL, And inquired not of the Lord,.... For though he did inquire in some sense in an external, careless, and hypocritical manner, yet not done seriously, sincerely, and heartily, nor with constancy; it was accounted as if he inquired not at all, 1Sa_28:6 the Targum adds another reason of his death, because he killed the priests of Nob; but that is not in the text: therefore he slew him; or suffered him to be slain: and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse; translated the kingdom of Israel out of Saul's family, upon his death, into Jesse's, even unto David; for the sake of which observation this short account is given of the last end of Saul.

JAMISON, And inquired not of the Lord He had done so in form (1Sa_28:6), but not in the spirit of a humble penitent, nor with the believing confidence of a sincere worshipper. His enquiry was, in fact, a mere mockery, and his total want of all right religious impressions was manifested by his rushing from God to a wretched impostor in the service of the devil [1Sa_28:7].

K&D, And because he inquired not of the Lord, therefore He slew him. According to 1Sa_28:6, Saul did indeed inquire of Jahve, but received no answer, because Jahve had departed from him (1Sa_28:15); but instead of seeking with all earnestness for the grace of Jahve, that he might receive an answer, Saul turned to the sorceress of Endor, and received his death-sentence through her from the mouth of Samuel, 1Sa_28:19.

BENSON, 1 Chronicles 10:14. Inquired not of the Lord He did in some sort, but not in a right manner; not humbly and penitently, not diligently and importunately, not patiently and perseveringly; nor till he was brought to the last extremity, and then it was too late.

ELLICOTT, (14) And enquired not of the Lord.Saul had, in fact, enquired of Jehovah before resorting to the witch of En-dor, but the Lord answered him not,

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neither by the dreams, nor by the Urim, nor by the prophets (1 Samuel 28:6). We shall not be reading a meaning of our own into the text if we say that Sauls natural impatience (1 Samuel 13:13) on this occasion betrayed him again; he at once despaired of help from his God, instead of seeking it with self-humiliation and penitence. His character is consistently drawn throughout the history. The sin that ruined the first king was essentially that which led to the final ruin of the nation, viz., unfaithfulness to the covenant-God. The same word characterises both. (Comp. 1 Chronicles 10:13 with 1 Chronicles 5:25; 1 Chronicles 9:1.)Therefore he slew him.God acts through the instrumentality of His creatures. In this case He employed the Philistines, and the suicidal hand of Saul himself; just as He employed the Assyrian conquerors of a later age to be the scourge of guilty peoples (Isaiah 10:5-15), and raised up Cyrus to be His servant, who should fulfil all His pleasure (Isaiah 44:28; Isaiah 45:1-13).Turned the kingdom unto David.By means of the warriors of Israel (1 Chronicles 12:23). This sentence shows that 1 Chronicles 10 is transitional to the history of David as king.

TRAPP, 1 Chronicles 10:14 And enquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.Ver. 14. And inquired not of the Lord.] He did, and yet he did not. {See Trapp on "1 Samuel 28:6"}Therefore he slew him.] He killed him with death, as Revelation 2:23.And turned the kingdom unto David.] Though it were long first, and after many trials and tribulations. Sic petitur caelum; heaven is not to be had, but after much pains and patience. Durate, et vosmet rebus servate secundis

COKE, 1 Chronicles 10:14. And enquired not of the Lord This seems to contradict what is said 1 Samuel 28:6. But the Jews and others reconcile the two passages by saying, that as he did not persevere to inquire of God, nor inquire at all with a truly religious and faithful spirit, but went to a witch, it was just the same as if he had not inquired at all. "He whose heart is perfect with God," says a learned Jew, "lifts up his eyes to him and fixes them on him, hoping in him, though he do

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not presently hear or grant his request; and perseveres in his hopes, setting a resolution to wait upon him. But so did not Saul, who was remiss and negligent, saying in the pride of his heart, If the Lord will not answer me, I will consult a familiar spirit." The Vulgate renders the words in this place, and put not his trust in the Lord.REFLECTIONS.1st, For the account of Saul's death, see 1 Samuel 31. It was a just judgment on Saul; and, no doubt, his bloody house, following his ill example, deserved to fall with him. Thus a way was made for David to the crown, most of his competitors being removed. We pity Jonathan, that lovely name, fallen among the slain; but all is wise and good which God doth, though we are short-sighted, and see not always the reasons of his procedure.2nd, The indignity offered to the bodies of Saul and his sons, and the bold attempt of the men of Jabesh-gilead, were before observed. Note; (1.) God will visit for sin, and the highest are not above h