that the affairs of the Hebrews had suffered great detriment by being deprived of him who was of so great abilities to preserve them by his excellent advice, and by strength of his hands in war. But he added, that god, who hath a regard to all men's actions, will not suffer this man to go off unrevenged; but know ye that I am not able to do any thing to these sons of Zeruiah, Joab, and Abishai, who have more power than I have; but god will requite their insolent attempts upon their own heads."

THE MURDER OF ESH-BAL.-The sovereignty of Esh-bal depended entirely upon the energy of Abner.

Two brothers Baanah and Rechab, captains or generals in the army of Esh-bal, perhaps implicated in the conspiracy of Abner and David, murdered their master and fled to David with the agreeable The news was doubtless welcome to the king of Hebron, they had achieved what Abner could not perform, but their example was dangerous to an anointed king, and their meet reward was death.

news.

By the piety of David the head of the betrayed sovereign was consigned to the traitor's grave.

In this story we have a description of the palace of an Israelite monarch. The assassins came into the midst of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat, while the king lay on his bed in the bed-chamber; and they smote him and slew him. The granary and the royal bed-chamber must have been close together.

Mephibal the son of Jonathan and heir to the vacant throne of Israel was only 7 years old, and lame. And there does not appear to have been any member of the family of Saul competent to establish him in the kingdom, or himself: and as yet David took little interest in the family of his brother Jonathan, who was so very pleasant to him, and for whom he had been so much distressed.

Story.-2 Samuel iv. 1. And when Saul's son heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands were feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled.

2. And Saul's son had 2 men that were captains of bands; the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon a Beerothite, of the Bene Yamin (for Beeroth also was reckoned to Benjamin: and the Beerothites fled to Gittim, and were sojourners there until this day).

4. And Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was 5 years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan

out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled; and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.

5. And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went and came about the heat of the day to the house of Ish-bosheth, who lay on a bed at noon. And they came thither into the midst of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat, and they smote him under the fifth rib: and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped. For when they came into the house, he lay on his bed in his bed-chamber, and they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and gat them away through the plain all night.

8. And they brought the head of Ish-bosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold, the head of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, thine enemy, which sought thy life; and Adoni hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul and of his seed.

9. And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As Adoni liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity, when one told me saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, who thought I would have given him a reward for his tidings. How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not now therefore require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth.

12. And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron. And they took the head of Ish-bosheth and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron.

THE GATHERING OF THE CLANS TO HEBRON.-As it is said that Ish-bosheth (Esh-bal) reigned over Israel 2 years, and that David reigned at Hebron 7 years and 6 months, there is a period unaccounted for of 5 years and 6 months. As it is said that Abner made Ish-bosheth king immediately after the death of Saul, this period must have elapsed after the murder of Ish-bosheth, during which the circumstances occurred which led to the union of Israel and Judah. Of these circumstances we have no account.

The interval in Israel was necessarily one of anarchy, perhaps of civil wars, and perhaps of conspiracies fomented by David and his agents.

There is no account of invasions by the Philistines, and most probably David was consolidating his power.

The account of the gathering to David in Hebron given in 1 Chronicles xii. 23-40 is as manifestly spurious as it is absurd.

According to verse 38, all Israel were of one heart to make David king, yet, according to the compiler of this collection of fictions, an army is collected; as if, instead of being about to be crowned with universal acclamation, he was preparing an armament to conquer the world. The following is the list of this imaginary array-Judah, 6,800; Simeon, 7,100; Levi, 4,600; Jehoiada with 3,700 priests led by young Zadok and 22 captains; Benjamin, 3,000 = 25,200. These numbers are comparatively moderate, but vast indeed are the legions swarming from the north and the east from Ephraim, 20,800; western Manasseh, 18,000; Issachar, 200 chieftains and all their brethren; Zebulun, 50,000; Naphtali, 1,000 captains and 37,000 men; Dan, the little city in the north, 28,600; Asher, 40,000; from the other side of Jordan, 120,000 = 315,600, and with the southerns, 340,800 warriors. The very mountains of southern Judah must have trembled under such a gathering with the asses, the camels, the mules, and the oxen, bearing the supplies for the three days' feast.

Dan sent, according to this, 28,600 fighting men. The southern tribe had become extinct, and was represented only by its little emigrant colony in the north, of which no more is heard, except as the shrine of Micah's image, and one of Jeroboam's bulls.

Story.-2 Samuel v. 1. Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel, and Adoni said to thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be a captain over Israel.

3. So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before Adoni: and they anointed David king over Israel.

4. And David was 30 years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 40 years.

5. In Hebron he reigned over Judah 7 years and 6 months. And in Jerusalem he reigned 33 years over all Israel and Judah.

1 Chronicles xi. 1, 2, 3, are almost a verbatim copy of 2 Samuel v, 1, 2, 3.

1 Chronicles xii. 23. And these are the numbers of the bands

that were ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of Adoni.

24. The Bene Judah that bare shield and spear were 6,800 ready armed to the war.

25. Of the Bene Simeon, mighty men of valour for the war, 7,100.

26. Of the Bene Levi, 4,600.

27. And Jehoiada was the leader of the Aaronites, and with him were 3,700; and Zadok, a young man mighty of valour, and of his father's house 22 captains.

29. And of the Bene Yamin, the kindred of Saul, 3,000; for hitherto the greatest part had kept the ward of the house of Saul.

30. Of the Bene Ephraim, 20,800 mighty men of valour, famous through the house of their fathers.

31. Of the half tribe of Manasseh, 18,000, which were expressed by name to come and make David king.

32. Of the Bene Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do: the heads of them were 200; and all their brethren at their commandment.

33. Of Zebulun, such as went forth to battle, expert in war, with all instruments of war, 50,000 which could keep rank; not of double heart.

34. Of Naphtali, 1,000 captains, and with them with shield and spear, 37,000.

35. Of the Danites expert in war, 28,600.

36. And of Asher, such as went forth to battle expert in war, 40,000.

37. And on the other side of Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for the battle, 120,000.

38. All these men of war, that could keep rank, came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel: and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.

39. And there they were with David three days, eating and drinking, for their brethren had prepared for them.

40. Moreover they that were nigh them, even unto Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels and on mules, and on oxen, and meat, meal, cakes of figs, and bunches of raisins, and wine, and oil, and oxen and sheep abundantly, for there was joy in Israel.

CHAPTER IX.

RETROSPECTIVE AND PROSPECTIVE VIEW.

WHAT has been laid before the reader exhibits some traces of history up to this epoch, though so faintly as to be hardly discernible through the obscuration in which they have been surrounded by myths, allegories, fables, and exaggerations, and the interpolations of later times. Yet they may prepare him, better than he otherwise might have been, for the consideration of the arts, institutions, religions, and state of learning and letters among the Hebrew and other Palestinians, who constituted the kingdom of David, and his successors as well in the south as the north.

One important result of the inquiry is the demonstration which it affords of the non-existence of the pentateuchal writings, and their accessories, such as Joshua, and the genealogies introduced into Chronicles, until long after David's reign. A demonstration afforded by due consideration of the scriptures themselves.

The books of Judges, Samuel, and Kings, and the prophets, notwithstanding their comparatively recent composition and manifest interpolations, exhibit a strong contrast of the history of the country, its arts, its civil and religious institutions, and observances with those mentioned in and prescribed by the pentateuch.

Endeavouring to explain this contrariety, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Nehemiah, assert that the people had forsaken Adoni (Yahaveh), forgotten him, disobeyed him, rebelled against him, gone a whoring after other gods, &c. Thus, in fact, instead of maintaining the pentateuch, they admit, or rather assert that the pretended statutes and judgments of Adoni and his alleged covenant had never been observed, had been from the beginning forgotten, or more simply had never been known, in Israel.