I
S A M U E L
CHAP. XI.
In
this chapter we have the first-fruits of Saul's government, in the glorious
rescue of Jabesh-Gilead out of the hands of the Ammonites. Let not Israel
thence infer that therefore they did well to ask a king (God could and would
have saved them without one); but let them admire God's goodness, that he did
not reject them when they rejected him, and acknowledge his wisdom in the
choice of the person whom, if he did not find fit, yet he made fit, for the
great trust he called him to, and enabled, in some measure, to merit the crown
by his public services, before it was fixed on his head by the public
approbation. Here is, I. The great extremity to which the city of
Jabesh-Gilead, on the other side
of
Jordan, was reduced by the
Ammonites, ver. 1-3. II. Saul's great readiness to come to their relief,
whereby he signalized himself, ver. 4-10. III. The good success of his
attempt, by which God signalized him, ver. 11. IV. Saul's tenderness,
notwithstanding this, towards those that had opposed him, ver. 12, 13. V. The
public confirmation and recognition of his election to the government, ver.
14, 15.
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Extremity
of Jabesh-Gilead.
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B.
C. 1069.
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1 Then Nahash the
Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabesh-gilead: and all the men of
Jabesh said unto Nahash, Make a covenant with us, and we will serve
thee. 2 And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, On this condition
will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right
eyes, and lay it for a reproach upon all Israel. 3 And the
elders of Jabesh said unto him, Give us seven days' respite, that we may send
messengers unto all the coasts of Israel: and then, if there be no man
to save us, we will come out to thee. 4 Then came the messengers
to Gibeah of Saul, and told the tidings in the ears of the people: and all the
people lifted up their voices, and wept.
The Ammonites were bad neighbours to those tribes of Israel that lay next
them, though descendants from just Lot, and, for that reason, dealt civilly
with by Israel. See Deut. ii. 19. Jephthah, in his time, had humbled them, but
now the sin of Israel had put them into a capacity to make head again, and
avenge that quarrel. The city of Jabesh-Gilead had been, some ages ago,
destroyed by Israel's sword of justice, for not appearing against the
wickedness of Gibeah (Judges xxi. 10); and now being replenished again,
probably by the posterity of those that then escaped the sword, it is in
danger of being destroyed by the Ammonites, as if some bad fate attended the
place. Nahash, king of Ammon (1 Chron. xix. 1) laid siege to it. Now here,
I. The besieged beat a parley (v. 1): "Make a covenant with us,
and we will surrender upon terms, and serve thee." They had
lost the virtue of Israelites, else they would not have thus lost the valour
of Israelites, nor tamely yielded to serve an Ammonite, without one bold
struggle for themselves. Had they not broken their covenant with God, and
forsaken his service, they needed not thus to have courted a covenant with a
Gentile nation, and offered themselves to serve them.
II. The besiegers offer them base and barbarous conditions; they will spare
their lives, and take them to be their servants, upon condition that they
shall put out their right eyes, v. 2. The Gileadites were
content to part with their liberty and estates for the ransom of their blood;
and, had the Ammonites taken them at their word, the matter would have been so
settled immediately, and the Gileadites would not have sent out for relief.
But their abject concessions make the Ammonites more insolent in their
demands, and they cannot be content to have them for their servants, but, 1.
They must torment them, and put them to pain, exquisite pain, for so the
thrusting out of an eye would do. 2. They must disable them for war, and
render them incapable, though not of labour (that would have been a loss to
their lords), yet of bearing arms; for in those times they fought with shields
in their left hands, which covered their left eye, so that a soldier without
his right eye was in effect blind. 3. They must put a reproach upon all
Israel, as weak and cowardly, that would suffer the inhabitants of one of
their chief cities to be thus miserably used, and not offer to rescue them.
III. The besieged desire, and obtain, seven days' time to consider of this
proposal, v. 3. If Nahash had not granted them this respite, we may
suppose the horror of the proposal would have made them desperate, and they
would rather have died with their swords in their hands than have surrendered
to such merciless enemies: therefore Nahash, not imagining it possible that,
in so short a time, they should have relief, and being very secure of the
advantages he thought he had against them, in a bravado gave them seven days,
that the reproach upon Israel, for not rescuing them, might be the greater,
and his triumphs the more illustrious. But there was a providence in it, that
his security might be his infatuation and ruin.
IV. Notice is sent of this to Gibeah. They said they would send messengers to
all the coasts of Israel (v. 3), which made Nahash the more secure,
for that, he thought, would be a work of time, and none would be forward to
appear if they had not one common head; and perhaps Nahash had not yet heard
of the new-elected king. But the messengers, either of their own accord or by
order from their masters, went straight to Gibeah, and, not finding Saul
within, told their news to the people, who fell a weeping upon hearing it, v.
4. They would sooner lament their brethren's misery and danger than think of
helping them, shed their tears for them than shed their blood. They wept, as
despairing to help the men of Jabesh-Gilead, and fearing lest, if that
frontier-city should be lost, the enemy would penetrate into the very bowels
of their country, which now appeared in great hazard.
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The
Distress of Jabesh-Gilead; Saul Succours Jabesh-Gilead.
B. C.
1069.
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5 And, behold, Saul came
after the herd out of the field; and Saul said, What aileth the people
that they weep? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh.
6 And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his
anger was kindled greatly. 7 And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed
them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by
the hands of messengers, saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and
after Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen. And the fear of the LORD
fell on the people, and they came out with one consent. 8 And when
he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand,
and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And they said unto the
messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, To
morrow, by that time the sun be hot, ye shall have help. And the
messengers came and shewed it to the men of Jabesh; and they were
glad. 10 Therefore the men of Jabesh said, To morrow we will come
out unto you, and ye shall do with us all that seemeth good unto you.
11 And it was so on the morrow, that Saul put the people in three
companies; and they came into the midst of the host in the morning watch, and
slew the Ammonites until the heat of the day: and it came to pass, that they
which remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together.
What is here related turns very much to the honour of Saul, and shows the
happy fruits of that other spirit with which he was endued. Observe here,
I. His humility. Though he was anointed king, and accepted by his people, yet
he did not think it below him to know the state of his own flocks, but went
himself to see them, and came in the evening, with his servants, after the
herd out of the field, v. 5. This was an evidence that he was not
puffed up with his advancement, as those are most apt to be that are raised
from a mean estate. Providence had not yet found him business as a king; he
left all to Samuel; and therefore, rather than be idle, he would, for the
present, apply himself to his country business again. Though the sons of
Belial would, perhaps, despise him the more for it, such as were virtuous and
wise, and loved business themselves, would think never the worse of him. He
had no revenues settled upon him for the support of his dignity, and he was
desirous not to be burdensome to the people, for which reason, like Paul, he
worked with his hands; for, if he neglect his domestic affairs, how must he
maintain himself and his family? Solomon gives it as a reason why men should
look well to their herds because the crown doth not endure to every
generation, Prov. xxvii. 23, 24. Saul's did not; he must therefore provide
something surer.
II. His concern for his neighbours. When he perceived them in tears, he asked,
"What ails the people that they weep? Let me know, that, if it be
a grievance which can be redressed, I may help them, and that, if not, I may
weep with them." Good magistrates are in pain if their subjects are in
tears.
III. His zeal for the safety and honour of Israel. When he heard of the
insolence of the Ammonites, and the distress of a city, a mother in Israel, the
Spirit of God came upon him, and put great thoughts into his mind, and
his anger was kindled greatly, v. 6. He was angry at the insolence
of the Ammonites, angry at the mean and sneaking spirit of the men of Jabesh-Gilead,
angry that they had not sent him notice sooner of the Ammonites' descent and
the extremity they were likely to be reduced to. He was angry to see his
neighbours weeping, when it was fitter for them to be preparing for war. It
was a brave and generous fire that was now kindled in the breast of Saul, and
such as became his high station.
IV. The authority and power he exerted upon this important occasion. He soon
let Israel know that, though he had retired to his privacy, he had a care for
the public, and knew how to command men into the field, as well as how to
drive cattle out of the field, v. 5, 7. He sent a summons to all the
coasts of Israel, to show the extent of his power beyond his own tribe, even
to all the tribes, and ordered all the military men forthwith to appear in
arms at a general rendezvous in Bezek. Observe, 1. His modesty, in joining
Samuel in commission with himself. He would not execute the office of a king
without a due regard to that of a prophet. 2. His mildness in the penalty
threatened against those that should disobey his orders. He hews a yoke of
oxen in pieces, and sends the pieces to the several cities of Israel,
threatening, with respect to him who should decline the public service, not,
"Thus shall it be done to him," but, "Thus shall it be
done to his oxen." God had threatened it as a great judgment
(Deut. xxviii. 31), Thy ox shall be slain before thy eyes, and thou shalt
not eat thereof. It was necessary that the command should be enforced with
some penalty, but this was not nearly so severe as that which was affixed to a
similar order by the whole congregation, Judg. xxi. 5. Saul wished to show
that his government was more gentle than that which they had been under. The
effect of this summons was that the militia, or trained bands, of the nation, came
out as one man, and the reason given is, because the fear of the Lord
fell upon them. Saul did not affect to make them fear him, but they were
influenced to observe his orders by the fear of God and a regard to him who
had made Saul their king and them members one of another. Note, Religion and
the fear of God will make men good subjects, good soldiers, and good friends
to the public interests of the country. Those that fear God will make
conscience of their duty to all men, particularly to their rulers.
V. His prudent proceedings in this great affair, v. 8. He numbered
those that came in to him, that he might know his own strength, and how to
distribute his forces in the best manner their numbers would allow. It is the
honour of princes to know the number of their men, but it is the honour of the
King of kings that there is not any number of his armies, Job xxv. 3.
In this muster, it seems, Judah, though numbered by itself, made no great
figure; for, as it was one tribe of twelve, so it was but an eleventh part of
the whole number, 30,330, though the rendezvous was at Bezek, in that tribe.
They wanted the numbers, or the courage, or the zeal for which that tribe used
to be famous; so low was it, just before the sceptre was brought into it in
David.
VI. His faith and confidence, and (grounded thereon) his courage and
resolution, in this enterprise. It should seem that those very messengers who
brought the tidings from Jabesh-Gilead Saul sent into the country to raise the
militia, who would be sure to be faithful and careful in their own business,
and them he now sends back to their distressed countrymen, with this assurance
(in which, it is probable, Samuel encouraged him): "To-morrow, by
such an hour, before the enemy can pretend that the seven days have expired, you
shall have deliverance, v. 9. Be you ready to do your part, and we
will not fail to do ours. Do you sally out upon the besiegers, while we
surround them." Saul knew he had a just cause, a clear call, and God on
his side, and therefore doubted not of success. This was good news to the
besieged Gileadites, whose right eyes had wept themselves dry for their
calamities, and now began to fail with looking for relief and to ache in
expectation of the doom of the ensuing day, when they must look their last;
the greater the exigence the more welcome the deliverance. When they heard it
they were glad, relying on the assurances that were sent to them. And they
sent into the enemies' camp (v. 10) to tell them that next day they
would be ready to meet them, which the enemies understood as an intimation
that they despaired of relief, and so were made the more secure by it. If they
took not care, by sending out scouts, to rectify their own mistake, they must
thank themselves if they were surprised: the besieged were under no obligation
to give them notice of the help they were assured of.
VII. His industry and close application to this business. If he had been bred
up to war from his youth, and had led regiments as often as he had followed
droves, he could not have gone about an affair of this nature more dexterously
nor more diligently. When the Spirit of the Lord comes upon men it will make
them expert even without experience. A vast army (especially in comparison
with the present usage) Saul had now at his foot, and a long march before him,
nearly sixty miles, and over Jordan too. No cavalry in his army, but all
infantry, which he divides into three battalions, v. 11. And observe,
1. With what incredible swiftness he flew to the enemy. In a day and a night
he came to the place of action, where his own fate, and that of Israel, must
be determined. He had passed his word, and would not break it; nay, he was
better than his word, for he promised help next day, by that time the sun
was hot (v. 9), but brought it before day, in the morning-watch,
v. 11. Whom God helps he helps right early, Ps. xlvi. 5. 2. With
what incredible bravery he flew upon the enemy. Betimes in the morning, when
they lay dreaming of the triumphs they expected that day over the miserable
inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead, before they were aware he was in the midst of
their host; and his men, being marched against them in three columns,
surrounded them on every side, so that they could have neither heart nor time
to make head against them.
Lastly, To complete his honour, God crowned all these virtues with
success. Jabesh-Gilead was rescued, and the Ammonites were totally routed; he
had now the day before him to complete his victory in, and so complete a
victory it was that those who remained, after a great slaughter, were
scattered so that two of them were not left together to encourage or
help one another, v. 11. We may suppose that Saul was the more vigorous
in this matter, 1. Because there was some alliance between the tribe of
Benjamin and the city of Jabesh-Gilead. That city had declined joining with
the rest of the Israelites to destroy Gibeah, which was then punished as their
crime, but perhaps was now remembered as their kindness, when Saul of Gibeah
came with so much readiness and resolution to relieve Jabesh-Gilead. Yet that
was not all; two-thirds of the Benjamites that then remained were provided
with wives from that city (Judg. xxi. 14), so that most of the mothers of
Benjamin were daughters of Jabesh-Gilead, for which city Saul, being a
Benjamite, had therefore a particular kindness; and we find they returned his
kindness, ch. xxxi. 11, 12. 2. Because it was the Ammonites' invasion
that induced the people to desire a king (so Samuel says, ch. xii. 12),
so that if he had not done his part, in this expedition, he would have
disappointed their expectations, and for ever forfeited their respect.
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Sacrifices
Offered to God.
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B.
C. 1069.
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12 And the people said
unto Samuel, Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over us? bring the
men, that we may put them to death. 13 And Saul said, There shall
not a man be put to death this day: for to day the LORD
hath wrought salvation in Israel. 14 Then said Samuel to the
people, Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there.
15 And all the people went to Gilgal; and there they made Saul king before the
LORD
in Gilgal; and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace offerings before the
LORD;
and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
We have here the improvement of the glorious victory which Saul had obtained,
not the improvement of it abroad, though we take it for granted that the men
of Jabesh-Gilead, having so narrowly saved their right eyes, would with them
now discern the opportunity they had of avenging themselves upon these cruel
enemies and disabling them from ever straitening them in like manner again;
now shall they be avenged on the Ammonites for their right eyes condemned, as
Samson on the Philistines for his two eyes put out, Judg. xvi. 28. But the
account here given is of the improvement of this victory at home.
I. The people took this occasion to show their jealousy for the honour of
Saul, and their resentment of the indignities done him. Samuel, it seems, was
present, if not in the action (it was too far for him to march) yet to meet
them when they returned victorious; and to him, as judge, the motion was made
(for they knew Saul would not be judge in his own cause) that the sons of
Belial that would not have him to reign over them should be brought forth and
slain, v. 12. Saul's good fortune (as foolish men commonly call it)
went further with them to confirm his title than either his choice by lot or
Samuel's anointing him. They had not courage thus to move for the prosecution
of those that opposed him when he himself looked mean, but, now that his
victory made him look great, nothing would serve but they must be put to
death.
II. Saul took this occasion to give further proofs of his clemency, for,
without waiting for Samuel's answer, he himself quashed the motion (v.
13): There shall not a man be put to death this day, no, not those men,
those bad men, that had abused him, and therein reflected on God himself, 1.
Because it was a day of joy and triumph: "To day the Lord has wrought
salvation in Israel; and, since God has been so good to us all, let us not
be harsh one to another. Now that God has made the heart of Israel in general
so glad, let not us make sad the hearts of any particular Israelites." 2.
Because he hoped they were by this day's work brought to a better temper, were
now convinced that this man, under God, could save them, now honoured him whom
before they had despised; and, if they are but reclaimed, he is secured from
receiving any disturbance by them, and therefore his point is gained. If an
enemy be made a friend, that will be more to our advantage than to have him
slain. And all good princes consider that their power is for edification, not
for destruction.
III. Samuel took this occasion to call the people together before the Lord
in Gilgal, v. 14, 15. 1. That they might publicly give God thanks
for their late victory. There they rejoiced greatly, and, that God
might have the praise of that which they had the comfort of, they sacrificed
to him, as the giver of all their successes, sacrifices of
peace-offerings. 2. That they might confirm Saul in the government, more
solemnly than had been yet done, that he might not retire again to his
obscurity. Samuel would have the kingdom renewed; he would renew his
resignation, and the people should renew their approbation, and so in
concurrence with, or rather in attendance upon, the divine nomination, they
made Saul king, making it their own act and deed to submit to him.
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