The Story of the Bible
- Автор: Hurlbut Jesse Lyman
- Год: 1904
- Язык: английский
- Год: Heritage History
- Жанр: Культурология
Электронная книга - «The Story of the Bible». Краткое содержание книги:
But when they brought the water to David, he would not drink it. He said:
"This water was bought by the blood of three brave men. I will not drink it; but I will pour it out as an offering to the Lord, for it is sacred." So David poured out the water as a most precious gift to the Lord. Saul soon heard that David, with a band of men, was hiding among the mountains of Judah. One day while Saul was sitting in Gibeah, out of doors under a tree, with his nobles around him, he said, "You are men of my own tribe of Benjamin, yet none of you will help me to find this son of Jesse, who has made an agreement with my own son against me, and who has gathered an army, and is waiting to rise against me. Is no one of you with me and against mine enemy?"
THE WATER FROM THE WELL OF BETHLEHEM
One man, whose name was Doeg, an Edomite, sad, "I was at the city of the priests some time ago, and saw the sons of Jesse come to the chief priest, Ahimelech; and the priest gave him loaves of bread and a sword." "Send for Ahimelech and all the priests," commanded King Saul; and they took all the priests as prisoners, eighty-five men in all, and brought them before King Saul. And Saul said to them, "Why have you priests joined with David, the son of Jesse, to rebel against me, the king? You have given him bread, and a sword, and have shown yourselves his friends."
Then Ahimelech, the priest, answered the king, "There is no one among all the king's servants as faithful as David; and he is the king's son-in-law, living in the palace, and sitting in the king's council. What wrong have I done in giving him bread? I knew nothing of any evil that he had wrought against the king."
Then the king was very angry. He said, "You shall die, Ahimelech, and all your father's family, because you have helped this man, my enemy. You knew that he was hiding from me, and did not tell me of him."
And the king ordered his guards to kill all the priests. But they would not obey him, for they felt that it was a dreadful deed to lay hands upon the priests of the Lord. This made Saul all the more furious, and he turned to Doeg, the Edomite, the man who had told of David's visit to the priest, and Saul said to Doeg, "You are the only one among my servants who is true to me. Do you kill these priests who have been unfaithful to their king."
And Doeg, the Edomite, obeyed the king, and killed eighty-five men who wore the priestly garments. He went to the city of the priests, and killed all their wives and children, and burned the city.
One priest alone escaped, a young man named Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech. He came to David with the terrible news, that Saul had slain all the priests, and he brought the high-priest's breast-plate and his robes.
David said to him, "I saw this man Doeg, the Edomite, there on that day, and I knew that he would tell Saul. Without intending to do harm, I have caused the death of all your father's house. Stay with me, and fear not. I will care for your life with my own."
Abiathar was now the high-priest, and he was with David, and not with Saul. All through the land went the news of Saul's dreadful deed, and everywhere the people began to turn from Saul, and to look toward David as the only hope of the nation.
How David Spared Saul's Life
I Samuel xxiii: 1, to xxvii: 12.
After this David and his men hid in man places in the mountains of Judah, often hunted by Saul, but always escaping from him. At one time Jonathan, Saul's son came to meet David in a forest, and said to him, "Fear not, for the Lord is with you; and Saul, my father, shall not take you prisoner. You will yet be the king of Israel, and I shall stand next to you; and my father knows this."
And Jonathan and David made again the promise to be true to each other, and to each other's children always. Then they parted; and David never again saw his dear friend, Jonathan.
At one time David was hiding with a few men in a great cave near the Dead Sea, at a place called En-gedi. They were far back in the darkness of the cave, when they saw Saul come into the cave alone, and lie down to sleep. David's men whispered to him, "Now is the time of which the Lord said, 'I will give your enemy into your hand, and you may do to him whatever you please.'"
Then David went toward Saul very quietly with his sword in his hand. His men looked to see him kill Saul, but instead, he only cut off a part of Saul's long robe. His men were not pleased at this; but David said to them, "May the Lord forbid that I should do harm to the man whom the Lord has anointed as king."
And David would to allow his men to harm Saul. After a time Saul rose up from sleep and went out of the cave. David followed him at a distance, and called out to him, "My lord the king!"
Saul looked around, and there stood David, bowing to him and holding up the piece of his royal robe. David said to Saul, "My lord, O king, why do you listen to the words of men who tell you that David is trying to do you harm? This very day the Lord gave you into my hand in the cave, and some told me to kill you, but I said, 'I will not do harm to my lord, for he is the Lord's anointed king.' See, my father, see the skirt of your robe. I cut it off to show you that I would do you no harm, though you are hunting after me to kill me. May the Lord judge between you and me, and may the Lord do justice for me upon you; but my hand shall not touch you."
When Saul heard these words his old love for David came back to him, and he cried out, "Is that your voice, my son David?" And Saul wept, and said, "You are a better man than I am, for you have done good to me, while I have been doing harm to you. May the Lord reward you for your kindness to me this day! I know that it is God's will that you shall be king, and you will rule over this people. Now give to me your word, in the name of the Lord, that you will not destroy my family, but that you will spare their lives."
And David gave his promise to Saul in the name of the Lord; and Saul led his men away from hunting David to his palace at Gibeah; but David kept still in his hiding-place, for he could not trust Saul's promises to spare his life.
And it was not long before Saul was again seeking for David in the wilderness of Judah, with Abner, Saul's uncle, the commander of his army, and under him three thousand -men. From his hiding-place in the mountains David looked down on the plain, and saw Saul's camp almost at his feet. That night David and Abishai, one of David's men, came down quietly and walked into the middle of Saul's camp, while all his guards were asleep. Saul himself was sleeping, with his spear standing in the ground at his head, and a bottle of water tied to it.
Abishai, David's follower, knew that David would not kill King Saul, and he said to David, "God has given your enemy into your hand again. Let me strike him through to the ground at one stroke; only once; I will not need to strike twice."
But David said, "You shall not destroy him. Who can strike the anointed of the Lord without being guilty of a crime? Let the Lord strike him, or let him die when God wills it, or let him fall in battle; but he shall not die by my hand. Let us take his spear and his water-bottle, and let us go."
So David took Saul's spear and his bottle of water, and then David and Abishai walked out of the camp without awakening any on. In the morning David called out to Saul's men and to Abner, the chief of Saul's army, "Abner, where are you? Why do you not answer, Abner?"
And Abner answered, "Who are you, calling to the camp?"
Then David said, "Are you not a great man, Abner? Who is like you in all Israel? Why have you not kept your watch over the king? You deserve to be put to death for your neglect! See, here is the king's spear and his bottle of water!"
Saul knew David's voice, and he said, "Is that your voice, my son David?"
And David answered, "It is my voice, my lord, O king. Why do you pursue me? What evil have I done? May God deal with the men who have stirred you up against me. I am not worth all the trouble you are taking to hunt for me. The king of Israel is seeking for one who is as small as a flea or a little bird in the mountains!"