The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1908-08-19
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INTERNATIONAL LESSON COM
MENTS FOR AUGUST %.

Subject: Friendship Of David and Jon.
athan, 1 Sam. 20-Golden Text,
Prov. 17:17-Commit Verse a.
Read 1 Sam. 1915, 1917.
TIME.-1062 B. C. PLACE.
Gibeahs
EXPOSITION.-I. Saul's rage at
David and Jonathan, VS.. 30-35. There
is something s%ingularly beautiful in
the mutual love of David and iona.
than. The worldly interests of the
two were opposed ". 81. Jonathan
was heir-apparent to the throne, but
David was the divinely chosen king,
yet each quite lost sight of selfish am
bition in his love for the other. Jon.
athan loved David as his own soul ".
II; Oh. 1879 and at the peril of his
own life protected him from the
anger of Saul Tvs. 80, 33). In doing
this he voluntarily renounced his own
aspirations to the throne. David on
his part bitterly lamented the death
Of Jonathan, though that death clears
his own way to the throne e Sam.
1:17-2D. David had been perfectly
safe in Naioth. Saul had sent three
companies to take him, but the Spirit
Of God had come upon them and
hindered them from carrying out
Saul's awful designs. Then Saul him.
self had been humbled (ch. 1920
24). There seems to have been little
need for David's fleeing from such a
place of security as that ". /; CT. Ps.
GID. Jonathan, it is true, was a
true and mighty friend, but it was
better to lean upon the arm of God
than upon any arm Of flesh. Jona-
than covenanted to find out for David
just what his fathers attitude toward
him might be. He was to tell him
the exact facts, whether they were
good or evil. How often we see
moral or spiritual peril confronting
those to whom we profess to be
friends and yet do not warn them.
Jonathan had been very confident at
first that his father plotted no evil ".
q, but David had shown him that he
might be mistaken. Evidently his
confidence in his father was not very
deep. 1t is an appalling thing when a
fathers character is such that even
his own son, a son of so trustful a
nature as Jonathan, is forced to dis
trust him. Jonathan soon discovered
how deep his fathers hatred of David
was ". 30). Saul, in his wrath at
Jonathan because of his friendship
to David, insults J%onathan's mother.
He no longer regards Jonathan as his
W son ". 800. His wrath at David
will be satisfied with nothing short
of David's death. At any cost David
N.,,& Az TDnafhnn cN,,oht 70 orNYcn
his father to the baselessness of his
wrath at David ". 32). This only
intensifes Saul's anger. He will even
murder his own son who seeks to de-
fend the one he so intensely hates ".
33). There bad Deen a time when
Jehovah had been with Saul ". 49,.
But He was with him no longer (cf.
Oh. 1879. The change in Saul's
experience was apparent to all who
knew him at all intimately. So much
of the Bible record of Saul's history
is taken up with the dark picture of
his last days, the days of his disobedi-
ence and apostacy, that we forget
there was a better time In his history
when God was with him (ch. 10:7),
when the Spirit of God was upon him
(ch. '11:6), when he went out to do
battle for Jehovah, when he was
humble, brave, generous, la~rge-heart.
ed and obedient to God. 1t is this
bright beginning of his public life
that makes the dark ending so I'm.
speakably sad. This awful change all
came because he rejected the Word
Of the Lord (ch. 1898. The saddest
men on earth are those who are
forced to say, Il once knew what II
meant to have the Lord with me,
but He is not with me now" There
are many of whom this is true. Jon.
athan gave up at last his attempt to
reconcile Saul to David ". 34). His
anger and grief were not so much for
his fathers treatment Of himself as
for his treatment Of David whom he
loved.
II. The Parting Of David and Jon.
athan, VS.. 35-42. 1t would not do for
anyone to sec Jonathan with David,
for that would imperil his wv life;
so they had arranged a very simple
plan so that Jonathan could let David
know whether~it was safe for him to
come out Of hiding and at the same
time not let anyone else know there
had been any communication between
David and Jonathan Tvs. 1920.
Whatever the perils might be, they
must meet at least once more. David
did not for a moment distrust Jona-
than's fidelity. Jonathan might have
good reason to play him false, but he
knew he would not do it. Jonathan
ought to have gone a step further and
have come out of the camp of David's
enemies and cast in his lot with him
he knew was Gods chosen man (cf.
CHI. 2~3:16-1Sl. There are many to-
day who are willing to help David
but who are not willing to go to Him
without the camp bearing His re-
proach (Heb. 1919. The parting CT
David and Jonathan was exceedingly
touching. There were demonstrations
of affection on the side of each such
as was rarely seen. David seems to
have been the n who was most oVer-
come ". AZ. Though they went diff
ferent ways they were to be united by
an everlasting covenant ". AZ; CT. VS..
1910. David remembered the COW
enant when he came into power u
Sam. 9:3). AS it was an everlasting
covenant that Jonathan wished David
to make with him, so it is an evarlist-
inc covenant that our David makes
with us, and our David also makes a
covenant, not with us alone, but with
our seed as we'll (Acts 1871: 2'29l.