2 Samuel 5:23-25 And when David inquired of the LORD, he said, You shall not go up; but fetch a compass behind them… Our victory was not sufficient to establish the security of the newly-founded city; — the enemy returned and threatened a renewed attack. The devout king has not lost faith in God, and again inquires of the Lord. Before dismissing the history, it will be well for us to profit by the example of the godly monarch, and to adopt the rule of his life as the rule of our own. That no enterprises shall be commenced — no plans or projects carried into execution — no movements made — without first consulting the will of God: seeking His approval, and placing ourselves under His guidance. "Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." I. THE SIGN VOUCHSAFED. The motives by which David was influenced in seeking a sign were laudable in the highest degree. He sought information as to the best means of encountering his enemies. Perhaps we may be disposed to think that a mode of communication with heaven, which secured so distinct a declaration of God's will, was far superior to any means which we possess of obtaining a knowledge of the path of duty. But herein we err for each successive dispensation of God's dealing with man has been in advance of that which preceded it. And yet how often like Gideon we would lay the fleece upon the ground and ask that it may be both wet and dry; — we want to stand with Moses in the cleft of the rock while the Lord of Glory passes by and audibly proclaims His mercy; — with Elijah, on the solitudes of Horeb, we would have mighty winds and the terrors of earthquake and fire mingled with the still small voice; — with David, we could wish that the mysterious movement on the tops of the mulberry trees should remove our doubts and tell in bodily image, or visible sign, or audible voice, that God is with us. It will be profitable for us to inquire what advantages we possess under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, which are comparable with these Divine communications made to the ancient Church. "For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom" (1 Corinthians 1:22) They exalted the material above the spiritual. A morbid love of the wonderful as it appealed to their senses, so occupied them, that the wonder-words of Christ found no room within them. It was not evidence that they sought, but the gratification of mere idle curiosity. They were wrong at heart — and there can be no surer path to the perversion of the intellect in relation to sacred truth. The Bible deals very extensively with this tendency of men to amalgamate the spiritual and the material. In such instances as the teraphim, — which were the objects of so much solicitude on the part of Rachel, — and those kings of Judah who destroyed the idols, but did not cut down the high places and the groves, — we have indications of the cleaving of the human heart to a bodily image, — and the fear of men to commit themselves entirely to the spiritual and the unseen. The Church of God is now under the special direction of the Holy Spirit. 1. Special manifestations God makes by means of His written Word. No logic can argue away the force of impressions made upon the mind by the words of Divine truth. Only he who has experienced the surprise caused by the unexpected adaptation to his circumstances of the "word in season" can appreciate the moral power of such occurrences as these. They lift up the depressed, — strengthen the weak, — confirm those who were wavering in the path of duty, — and strengthen the foundations of trust in God and His mercy. It is no cabalistic use of Scripture of which we speak, but a calm, deliberate, faithful employment of one of the Divinely-appointed ends of the Word. Revelation is given to us to be our guide, — our light, — our food, — and to serve countless offices of mercy in our lives. 2. Conscience is another of the means of Divine communication with men. A faculty which rightly employed brings us very near to God. All its worth, however, is to be determined by the measure of its subordination to the truth of God. A conscientious man is not a man who is infallibly right, but one who acts faithfully in accordance with his views of that which is right. Those views may be utterly distorted by a false belief, or completely enfeebled by reason of ignorance. While, then, on the one hand we may not undervalue the great importance of this vicegerent of God in man, on the other hand let us not be led astray by, the pernicious belief — so popular in the present day — that conscientiousness is all that God requires of man. It is subjection to Divine truth that is the demand of the Eternal, and where this is found all the powers of the soul are brought into harmony with each other. "I must have a good conscience," said William Wilberforce. A necessity which every true Christian will value as above all earthly acquisitions. It is not indispensable to my happiness that I become rich or powerful. — much that is the object of human ambition I could surrender and feel little loss, — but a conscience void of offence is essential to my existence. A happy man is he, who knows the power of the blood of sprinkling to cleanse this mighty agency from all defilement. The astronomer should not be so solicitous to preserve his bright, clear lenses from dust, — nor the telegraphist so anxious to guard his delicate machinery from injury, as a godly man to enshrine his conscience securely from even the minutest disturbing influence. A little grit on the bearings of the locomotive will disturb the progress and safety of the hundreds of tons weight, which otherwise would be borne swiftly in the desired direction. Little causes often disturb the peace and arrest the progress of the godly. It is worthy of all the care a Christian can bestow on any object; — the cultivation of a tender conscience. A friend, the last to forsake us and the most valuable in the hour of need, — or a foe the hardest to propitiate and the most relentless in his assaults — deserves much consideration. In determining the path to be pursued, a conscience under the influence of Divine teaching will impart counsels quite as distinct as those which David gathered from "the sound of a going in the top of the mulberry trees." 3. But our Divine Lord and Master has indicated to us and promised us a source of instruction even more complete than that afforded by the Word of God or conscience, — it is the Holy Spirit. "He shall guide you into all truth." II. THE VIGILANCE ENJOINED. Perhaps like the zephyr which, oft at eventide without previous warning, seems to rise out of the thick serried ranks of ripening corn, and then taps their curled heads in its onward but gentle course, till the whole field bows gracefully, as if paying homage to the sweet breeze. Or, as when the lake, embosomed amidst the Alpine mountains, suddenly changes its glassy surface and ripple after ripple rises and spreads, — but none can tell of the wind that has ruffled its breast, whence it cometh, or whither it goeth. Thus unexpected opportunities steal over us, and say, "Bestir thyself." Whensoever the feeling of desire to draw near to God thus takes possession of the heart, — away to thy secret chamber and fan the flame till the soul is all aglow. To defer the exercise may be — probably will be — to confiscate a blessing. At what time soever an open door presents itself for usefulness to man, or for bringing glory to God — enter in, — pass on, — and do the thing to which the finger of God points, and reap the blessing He bestows. When some spiritual Philistine is in thy grasp, thou shouldest smite six or seven times: for a feeble opposition to evil only provokes its more severe hostility. No command was more frequently uttered by the Saviour than this, — "Watch." In every well-managed ship the men in the forepart are those of keenest vision and most experience; night and day they pace the deck, one face always looking ahead, the other abaft. All around we need to keep our guard — lest coming good be missed, and coming evil takes us unawares. III. THE PROMISE GIVEN. "Then shall the Lord go out before thee." In like manner He went before Israel in their wanderings through the desert. He gave them not only the assurance of His protection, but the blessing also of His guidance. They had but to follow the movements of the pillar of cloud, and the waste, howling wilderness yielded them a security greater than that of thick-walled cities. Each night saw the fiery defence lighted up which shot its friendly rays round all the tents of Jacob, — but only intensified the darkness beyond the sacred enclosure. Many a feeble heart became strong by a glance at the symbol of the Divine presence. This was the explanation of their surprising victories over superior armies, and of their defeat and expulsion of the Canaanitish kings. (W. G. Lewis.) Parallel Verses KJV: And when David inquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. |
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