Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-08-07


David's administration of the united
klngdom of Israel and Judah entities
MIN to rank with the worlds greatest
rulers. Men have thought of him as
singer and soldier. without stopping to
consider him as a statesman. David's
record as king entities him to rank with
ttnariemagne, Alfred and Washington.
the secret OF his greatness was pre-
rented in last weeks lesson that por-
trayed David as a man of God. eagerly
anxious to know the Divine will and to
90 1t. He made religion the foundation
81 the unity of the nation. By plac-
ing God first in the thought and life of
his people he secured for them a place
among the nations that gave them peace,
prosperity and power. He considered
his position as king to be a trust given
him to execute for the welfare of the
people and the glory of Jehovah.
While he placed his hopes for the ma
TONS security and stability in the moral
excellence of the people and their faith
10 God. David recognized the value OF
a trained militia His military organi-
Zation was divided into three branches
The regular standing army the king s
bodyguard, and the military knights of
his court. His regular army of two
hundred and lightweight thousand men
were enrolled and maintained SO that
they did not prove a heavy drain upon
the resources of the country either in
the expense of supporting such a large
standing army or the loss that would be
incurred by withdrawing so many able
bodied men from the agricultural pur-
suits which was the principle business
of the nation. He did not call them all
out at one time to a central mobiiza-
ton camp for military instruction and
leave the boundaries Undetermined He
iii lad hi itat1 vEelN
and assigned to each its own month OF
service. He thoroughly organized each
division and placed them all under Joab,
as commander-in-chief
His military genius resulted in the
defeat of his enemies upon many a
battlefield, and the expansion OF his
kingdom from a territory of 5000
square miles to an empire embracing
$4,000 square miles. His army never
met defeat. Although he ranks as
one of the greatest generals of an
tiQuity, his record as an administra-
tor gives him a higher rank than
that which he earned on the battle
field He was not only upright per-
sonally. but he saw to it that justice
and a square deal to all were inter-
woven in the administration of the
affairs of the nation Ancient mon
arches were not democratic in spirit,
any more than they were in organi-
zatson, so that David's was way be-
yond his day and generation in CIV
ing to all the people of his kingdom
Justice and Righteousness.
His devotion to the welfare of his
people is seen in the earnest efforts
he made to improve their courts of
Justice, educational institutions. So
cial and economic interests of the ma
tion. He gave new vitality to their
old tribal system of Jurisprudence
by appointing thirteen princes to ex-
ercise judicial authority in their vari-
ous districts. Six thousand Levites
were assigned to act as officers and
Judges over these princes. They
were authorized to act on every mat
ter pertaining to God and the king"
This made them the health officers,
WHOSE duty called for them to see
that the excellent sanitary require
fnents of the Mosaic law were OBJ
served. Thew were the medical ad-
Eisers as well as spiritual instructors
pr the people. They supervised not
bnly the religious, but also were re-
Eponsible for the public instruction
Their work warrants DR.. Blaikie's
claim that Infinitely more was done
nent of the people than was ever at
tempted or dreamed of in any eastern
David gave considerable attention
to the agricultural development of
/ the nation and to the promotion of
had reclamation service that
brought the waste land under cult
Walton. He had a system of store
houses in the fields. in the cities and
i'm the villages and in the castles"
and a regular agricultural depart
work of the field for the ullage of
the ground" the vineyards and wine
cellars, and a forestry service that
promoted the cultivation of the olive
and sycamore trees, together with
the oil which they produced His
bver the herds in the valleys OF
Shaphat and in Sharon, and also over
the camels and asses. He provided
by his treaties with Hiram OF Tyre
for the immigration of skilled men
pf the building trade, who construct.
ed their temples and fine homes, and
through the importation of lumber
from Lebanon he opened up a foreign
commerce that provided market
for the surplus agricultural products
his obligations to God,
he planned for templt, and. recall
ing his friendship with Jonathan, he
bministered unto Mephibosheth.
When David had been firmly es-
tabiished on his throne as king OF
Fhe united kingdom for about eight
concerning the descendants of Sauls
house. SO that he could do them kind
hess for Jonathan's sake. Dean Stan
ley su&Eests that it was probably fol-
lowing the wholesale slaughter of
fhe two surviving sons of Saul and
his i've grandsons by the Gibeonites,
|who secured their revenge upon
Eaurs family because of the failure
bf Saul to Keep his word with their
ribe. 1t came after a three-month
famine had compelled the nation to
eeek a reason for the calamity. Saufs
ook advantage of the decision 70
obtain permission to punish the Of
Tenders descendants, who were two
ions of Saul and of Rizpah and five
of Saul, who were the
Eons of Merab. Relief from the perlls
bustify the claims made by the GID
Eonites that had been accepted by
khe people and David
IL is quite natural that David should
tecaIl his promises to Jonathan and
Eesire to show to some of the royal
FAMILY friendship. Oriental prece-
kents would have justified David in
Having all OF the family of Saul so as
To- remove any claimant for the throne
Ftarting revolution. He had sworn
hat he would not cut off SauPs fam
|Iy completely, and he had promised
Ondtndn tNdl iiIchuShiP ohNutN -
|st between them and their children
II is possible that David had not
thought or known that Mephibosheth
lived, as he was born after David
bad been compelled to live as an out
law Remembering his word meant
ction on part of the king. who re-
uired strict search to be made until
kibA, a servant of Saul, was brought
before the king. who informed him
hat a son of his friend Jonathan
lived beyond Jordan with Ammeirs
on Machir. in Lodebar. where he had
been taken by his nurse when his
father died. In her flight she had