At the apex of Hebrew national history stands David, the King. He has been called "the Shepherd King;" but he might better, perhaps, be called "the Fighting King." Not only did his reign mark the height of Israel's military power among her neighbors, but his whole life was a battle.

He spent his boyhood defending his father's sheep from the attacks of lions and bears (I Samuel 17:34). His first public appearance was in the single combat with the giant Goliath (I Samuel 17). The character-setting years of early manhood were employed in leading the armies of King Saul, and when the quick but unappeasable jealousy of Saul made David an outlaw, in commanding a difficult band of fellow outlaws, who constituted themselves a sort of guerrilla police, where no other protection existed. When this Hebrew Robin Hood became king, his reign was crowded with campaigns. And even the peace of old age was disturbed by the heart-breaking armed rebellion of his beloved son, Absalom.

In all these struggles he was singularly successful.. Yet his greatest victories were the victories which he gained over himself. His self-restraint toward King Saul of itself makes him worthy to be regarded as a type of Him who taught that equality with God was not a thing to be snatched (Philippians 2:6), but chose instead to bear the Cross before he wore the Crown.

David had already been anointed to take Saul's place on the throne, and Saul was determined to hunt him down and kill him. Yet even on those two occasions when David had his enemy completely in his power, he refused to reach out his hand to grab a bloody crown. Surely here was a rare chivalry, and a rare confidence in the good faith of God to redeem His promises.

An even nobler instance of this self-restraint is seen many years later, when the heart-broken old king is fleeing from the rebellion of his son Absalom. Shimei, a man of the house of Saul, comes out and curses David and casts stones and dirt at him Abishai, the same ready-tongued and ready-handed tempter who in the old outlaw days had urged David to let him slay the sleeping Saul, is still at his elbow, and cries out, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head." But David replies, "Let him alone.... It may be that the Lord will look on mine affliction, and that the Lord will requite me good for his cursing this day (II Samuel 15:5).

Living in an age of unrestrained frightfulness in war, he is terrible in his onslaughts, but never vindictive in his triumphs: The oriental despot is the symbol of ruthless, tyrannical self indulgence. Yet, King David never but once uses his power for selfish purposes. They are poor blind moles, grubbing in dirt, with a nose only for nastiness, who see nothing in David's life-story but his sin with Bathsheba against, Uriah

No one would deny that this is a hideous and a hateful blot upon his name. But it is only fair to him to, remember, the humility with which the King accepts the rebuke of the prophet Nathan; and the genuineness of his repentance is evidenced by the sincerity of that pearl of penitential prayers the fifty-first Psalm.

And this brings us to that in David which has been the eternal inspiration of those who fight for righteousness ever since. It is the utter openness of his relations with God, and the sheer reality of his reliance upon Him. This was the substance and heart of that boyish boast against Goliath; and it, was the secret and strength of the long life that followed, as we see it in psalm and story:

Thou comest to me with a sword and with a spear and with a shield: but .1 come to thee in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; that all the earth may know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear, for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give you into our hands" (I Sa

¹ The Table of contents of Calvin's book can be found with letter W-MCP2-3b.035.

For chapter 1, see Box 04-028.

For chapter 3, see Box 04-030.

For chapter 4, see Box 04-031.

For chapter 5, see Box 04-031.

For chapter 6, see Box 04-033.