Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1889-09-19

NoTEs.-Not0 the Philistines fought
against Isrdel.-ISrael was weakened by
internal dissensions founded upon a popu-
lar distrust of their king. Saul was sixty
years old or so, and through insanity and
passion had alienated a considerable par
ty. Their hereditary foe was not slow to
take advantage of these conditions and
and make more than usually successful
lncursion for plunder. .-SIGin IN Mount
GiIboa. margin of the Revised Yer
sion reads aDounded instead of slain. The
engagement took place at the foot of Mt.
Gilboa. The plain of Jezreel slopes down
to this from Shunem, where the Philis-
tines were encamped. This gave the
Philistines every advantage for attack
and the maneuvering of their chariots.
ind upon his SOnS.-Besides these
three that were slain Saul had another
son, IshbOseth, who was not in the battle
and who survived him.-Come and
thrust me through and abuse me.3Saul
had to face death any way. His savage
enemies, as was the custom of those days,
would not spare any indignity upon such
a distinguished captive. Death by slow
mutilatiOn was a common practice
For he aOGs sore QtrGtd.-The armor-
bearer was always held responsible for
the life of him whom he protected To
kill the king even at such an extremity
would be murder He would have been
killed for such treachery. Nor could he
survive his master whether from motives
of honor, fear or lOve.-And all his men,
All is an Oriental fgurative method of
speech. Verse 10.-It was a common
ancient custom to dedicate the armOr and
spOils of the slain to the victOrs GODS
Thus the idols were hOnOred as the author
of the victory. Bethshan was twelve
miles south of Lake Tiberius and four
west of Jordan, on the brow of the de-
scent of the plain of Esdraelon to the
jordan valley.-InhGbitGHts Of JdbeSh-
Gile0d.-In grateful memory of their de-
livs france from the AmmOniteS, which |
Saul accomplished years before in the
early part of his reign, these brave men
made sOrtie and recaptured the body of
their chief and paid it due burial honors. |
~
old story of a political rupture that was |
exceedingly apparent and that brought |
their enemies upon them. Character |
need not fear the outward shock unless it |
shelters the responsive traitor Within
Sin finds no lodgment in the soul unless |
it is welcomed. The Church rarely suf-
ferS serious defeat, and is seldom the |
object of astheistic contempt pteXcept when |
it becomes the arena for personal wrang-
lings.
Contrast the death of Jonathan and |
Saul The one died with a bold face to
the enemy. Itwas the way he lived He
was high minded and pure He died in a
manly way 1t is strange how the insidi-
Gus decomposition of character affects the
courage at the end of life Saul died a
coward. He did many magnificent things
in his early royal career As his mind be-
came perverted from God he lost the art
of manliness, and was finally tempted to
suicide
By the way, word on suicide. The
mass of intelligent people, the world over,
are agreed that there is hereafter. Some
think that each one shapes his eternity
for himself The miSer shall clutch in
vain for gold. The thief shall continue
to plot million schemes that shall never
w OlOuShb w Pteco. llO POiC III ICtil =
shall see God. Does any one think to es-
cape an i'll that presses awfully, it may
be for a moment, through self-destruc-
ton? Shall eternity be spenti in planning
fruitleSs suicides and a attained
escape? To kill ones self is not less ac-
cursed than to kill another. Who dare
say that the greatest amount of personal
piety can atone for the one great sin of
One effectual cause of the Philistines'
victory was that many Jews left their {
cities in fear, and these were occupied by
the idOlatrous enemy. The moral effect,
Dr. rather immoral result of a personal de-
feat is great propOrtionatelyt to ones intiu-
ence. When Cough fell a million saloon
keepers took inglOrious courage. When
you swear, tell low story, say mean I
hing of another, an immeasurable i'm {
Detus to evil has gone forth. The enemy {
5akes immediate possession of every :
Christian who fees his stronghold. =.
Saul's valiant deed brought forth
brave result. The man of Jabesh did not
forget their deliverer. One does not
perform kind act to have it returned; {
yet it is agreeable to think ones slight t
,St generous favor is never forgotten. AS $
/ matter of more than policy each Chris $
ian should be the quickest one in the :
world to do favors, be they great or in :
iignificent.