DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING

[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
PREFACE
F. B. MEYER

IT has been supposed that the incident we are now to consider belongs to a subsequent page in David's history, following the narrative of the slaying of Goliath, so as to make that the occasion of the young shepherd's first introduction to Saul. This transposition seems to be called for by Saul's slowness to recognize his former minstrel in the young warrior that stood before him with the head of the Philistines' champion in his hand.

But, after all, this may be accounted for by David's manly growth between the period of his minstrelsy and his first great exploit in the battlefield. How long that interval lasted we cannot tell; but during its course David had grown from youth to manhood, his figure becoming stalwart and robust, his face moulded by the growing soul within. If we reject this explanation, and do not allow the incident to remain where we find it, we have to face the further difficulty of how Saul's courtiers could dare to introduce to their master one whose successes had already stirred his jealousy (1 Samuel 18:9); or why it was necessary to employ so much circumlocution to describe the personality of the young singer (1 Samuel 16:18 ). Surely it would have been sufficient to recall what David ,had done in the vale of Elah to identify him at once. We hold, therefore, that this story should stand in the place it has held ever since this narrative was penned.

After his anointing, David returned to his sheep. When Saul, advised by his courtiers, sent for him to charm away his melancholy, this was the specific indication he gave to Jesse, his father, "Send me David, thy son, which is with the sheep." It says much for the simplicity and ingenuousness of the boy's character.
 
THE character and life of DAVID are supremely fascinating, not only to holy souls, whose deepest thoughts have been expressed in his unrivalled Psalms, but to all men: because of their humanness; their variety; their sharply contrasted experiences; their exhibition of traits of generosity and courage which always elicit admiration.

Whilst sketching every period of David's life, I have concentrated myself on those passages which trace the steps by which the shepherd became the king. It was in these that his character was formed, his sweetest psalms composed, and those manifold experiences encountered which enabled him to interpret and utter the universal heart of man.

Sweet Singer of the World; Ancestor of Christ; Founder of a Dynasty of Kings; a Prophet, inspired and taught, as the Apostle Peter tells us, by the Holy Ghost; the type and precursor of Him, who, though his Son, was also his Lord; the man after God's own heart, who "did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, and turned not aside from any thing that He commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite." So long as time lasts, DAVID must always enlist affection and command respect.

F. B. MEYER
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
I.  TAKEN FROM THE SHEEP-COTES
F. B. MEYER

(1 Samuel 16:1)

"We stride the river daily at its spring,
Nor in our childish thoughtlessness foresee
What myriad vassal streams shall tribute bring,
How like an equal it shall greet the sea.

"O small beginnings! Ye are great and strong,
Based on a faithful heart and weariless brain;
Ye build the future fair, ye conquer wrong,
Ye earn the crown, and wear it not in vain."
J. R. LOWELL.

THE story of David opens with a dramatic contrast between the fresh hope of his young life and the rejection of the self-willed king Saul, whose course was rapidly descending towards the fatal field of Gilboa.

Few have had a fairer chance than Saul. Choice in gifts, goodly in appearance, favoured by nature and opportunity, he might have made one of the greatest names in history. His first exploit, the relief of Jabesh-gilead, justified the wildest anticipations of his friends. But the fair dawn was soon overcast. The hot impatience that persisted in offering the sacrifice before Samuel came; his needless oath and ruthless proposal to take Jonathan's life; his flagrant disobedience to the distinct charge respecting Amalek -- all proved that he was not fit to act as God's vicegerent, and that he must be set aside.

The final announcement of his deposition was made at Gilgal. At that spot, on entering Canaan, Israel, at Joshua's bidding, had rolled away the reproach of uncircumcision. The place suggested the only condition on which God can use human instruments; but in Saul's case there had been no humbling of pride, no submission of self-will, no putting away of the wild energy of the flesh. He was called whilst seeking his father's straying asses, as David was whilst watching his father's sheep; and there was a good deal of the wild-ass nature about Saul, as about Ishmael, which neither of them sought to subdue. Saul, it is said, rejected the word of the Lord; and the Lord rejected him from being king.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
I.  TAKEN FROM THE SHEEP-COTES
F. B. MEYER

From Gilgal Saul went up to his house at Gibeah, in the heights of Benjamin: while Samuel went to Ramah, a little to the south -- there was his house; there he had judged Israel for twenty years; and there he dwelt as father and priest among the people, known far and near as the man of God (Joshua 7:17; Joshua 9:6, Joshua 9:10, Joshua 9:12). There, too, he mourned for Saul. No bad man drifts down the rapids unwarned, unwept; but the Divine purpose cannot stay till such pitying tears are dried. Nor must we cling to the grave of the dead past, whence the Spirit of God has fled; but arise to follow, as He transfers the focus of his operation from the rocky heights of Benjamin to the breezy uplands of Bethlehem, and conducts us to the house of Jesse.

In the selection of every man for high office in the service of God and man, there are two sides -- the Divine and the human: the election of God, and its elaboration in history; the heavenly summons, and the earthly answer to its ringing notes. We must consider, therefore,

(1) The Root of David in God;

(2) The Stem of Jesse, that is, the local circumstances that might account for what the boy was; and

(3) The White Bud of a Noble Life.


1. THE ROOT OF DAVID

Once in the prophecy by Isaiah, and twice in the Book of Revelation, our Lord is called the "Root of David." "The Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the Book and to loose the seven seals thereof." And still more emphatically, among the last words spoken by the Saviour, before the curtain of the Ages fell, "I, Jesus, am the Root and the Offspring of David; the Bright, the Morning Star."

The idea suggested is of an old root, deep hidden in the earth, which sends up its green scions and sturdy stems. David's character may be considered as an emanation from the life of the Son of God before He took on Himself the nature of man, and an anticipation of what He was to be and do in the fulness of time. Jesus was the Son of David, yet in another sense He was his progenitor. Thus we return to the ancient puzzle, that Jesus of Nazareth is at once David's Lord and Son (Mark 12:35-37).
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
I.  TAKEN FROM THE SHEEP-COTES
F. B. MEYER

There are four great words about the choice of David, the last of which strikes deeply into the heart of that great mystery.

The Lord hath sought Him a man (1 Samuel 13:14). -- No one can know the day or hour when God passes by, seeking for chosen vessels and goodly pearls. When least expecting it, we are being scrutinized, watched, tested, in daily commonplaces, to see if we shall be faithful in more momentous issues. Let us be always on the alert, our loins girt, our lamps burning, our nets mended and cleansed.

I have found David my servant (Psalms 89:20). -- There is ecstasy in the voice, like the thrice repeated found of Luke 15. David was found long before Samuel sent for him. Which was the moment of that blessed discovery? Was it one dawn, when in the first flicker of daylight the young shepherd led his flock from fold to pasture; or one morning, when, in an outburst of heroic faith, he rescued a trembling lamb from lion or bear; or one afternoon, when, as he sat and watched his charge, the first conception of the Shepherd Psalm stirred in his heart; or one night, when he heard the silent speech of the heavens declaring the glory of God? And was there not some secret glad response to the Master's call, like that which the disciples gave, when Jesus found them at their nets, and said, "Follow Me"?

He chose David to be his servant (Psalms 78:70). -- The people chose Saul; but God chose David. This made him strong. He was conscious that the purpose of God lay behind and beneath him; and when in after years Saul lay in its power, or Michael taunted him with his extravagant gestures, the thought that he was Divinely commissioned was his stand-by (2 Samuel 7:21). We are immovable when we touch the bed-rock of God's choice, and hear Him say, "He is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear my name."

The Lord hath appointed him to be Prince (1 Samuel 13:14).-Appointments are not solely due to human patronage, nor won by human industry; they are of God. He bringeth low and lifteth up. Saul might chafe and fret; but from amid the ruins of his waning power the authority of David emerged as a sun from a wrack of clouds, because God willed it. Fit yourself for God's service; be faithful: He will presently appoint thee; promotion comes neither from the east nor west, but from above.

I have provided Me a King (1 Samuel 16:1). -- That answers everything. The Divine provision meets every need, silences every anxiety. Let us not yield to anxious forebodings for the future of the Church, or of our land. God has provided against all contingencies. In some unlikely quarter, in a shepherd's hut, or in an artisan's cottage, God has his prepared and appointed instrument. As yet the shaft is hidden in his quiver, in the shadow of his hand; but at the precise moment at which it will tell with the greatest effect, it will be produced and launched on the air.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
I.  TAKEN FROM THE SHEEP-COTES
F. B. MEYER

2. THE STEM OF JESSE.

We turn for a moment to consider the formative influences of David's young life. The family dwelt on the ancestral property to which Boaz, that mighty man of wealth, had brought the Rose of Moab. Perhaps it was somewhat decayed, through the exactions of the Philistine garrison, which seems to have been posted in the little town. We read of the few sheep in the wilderness that composed the flock, and the present sent by Jesse to his soldier sons was meagre in the extreme. The conditions under which he brought up his large family of eight sons and two daughters were probably hard enough to severely tax the endurance and industry of them all.

David says nothing of his father, but twice speaks of his mother as "the handmaid of the Lord." From her he derived his poetic gift, his sensitive nature, his deeply religious character. To the father he was the lad that kept the sheep, whom it was not worth while to summon to the religious feast; to his mother he was David the beloved, and probably she first heard the psalms which have charmed and soothed the world. He honoured them both with dutiful care; and when it seemed possible that they might suffer serious hurt, on account of their relationship to himself, amid the pelting storm of Saul's persecution, he removed them to the safe keeping of the king of Moab, the land of his ancestress.

The lad may have owed something to the schools of the prophets, established by Samuel's wise prescience to maintain the knowledge of the law in Israel. They appear to have been richly endued with the gracious power of the Holy Ghost, and to have been to Israel what Iona was to the wild tribes of the North in later times. The sons of these institutions would doubtless visit Bethlehem, and find an eager response in the guileless nature of the young shepherd. From them he would learn to reduce his melodies to metrical order, and accompany them with the harp; from them, too, he learnt to know and prize the Divine Word.

But Nature was his nurse, his companion, his teacher. Bethlehem is situated six miles to the south of Jerusalem, by the main road leading to Hebron. Its site is two thousand feet above the level of the Mediterranean, on the north-east slope of a long grey ridge, with a deep valley on either side; these unite at some little distance to the east, and run down toward the Dead Sea. On the gentle slopes of the hills the fig, olive, and vine grow luxuriantly; and in the valleys are the rich cornfields, where Ruth once gleaned, and which gave the place its name, the House of Bread. The moorlands around Bethlehem, forming the greater part of the Judaean plateau, do not, however, present features of soft beauty; but are wild, gaunt, strong -- character-breeding. There shepherds have always led and watched their flocks; and there David first imbibed that knowledge of natural scenery and of pastoral pursuits which coloured all his after life and poetry, as the contents of the vat the dyer's hand.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
I.  TAKEN FROM THE SHEEP-COTES
F. B. MEYER

Such were the schools and schoolmasters of his youth. But preeminently his spirit lay open to the Spirit of God, which brooded over his young life, teaching, quickening, and ennobling him, opening to him the books of nature and revelation, and pervading his heart with such ingenious trust as the dumb animals of his charge reposed in him. In the spiritual as in the physical realm he had every reason to say long after,

"My substance was not hid from Thee
When I was made in secret,
And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Day by day were all my members fashioned."

3. THE WHITE BUD OF A NOBLE LIFE.

He had not the splendid physique of his brother Eliab, who so impressed the aged prophet. But he was strong and athletic. His feet were nimble as a gazelle's; he could leap a wall or outstrip a troop; a bow of steel could be easily broken by his young arms; and a stone sent from his sling would hit the mark with unerring precision. Too slight to wear a man's armour, and yet able to rend a lion or bear. His face glowing with health. The blue of his eyes and beauty of his fair complexion in strong contrast to the darker visages of his companions. The sensitiveness of the poet's soul, combined with daring, resource, and power to command. His dress, a coarse and simple tunic; his accoutrements, the wallet sling, the rod and staff.

His soul is reflected in the Psalms that must be attributed to this period of his life, because so free from the pressure of sorrow and anxiety, and the strife of tongues. Amongst them are the eighth, nineteenth, twenty-third, and twenty-ninth. So full of wonder that Jehovah should care for man, and yet so sure that He was his shepherd; so deeply stirred by the aspect of the heavens, and yet convinced that the words of God were equally Divine; so afraid of secret faults and presumptuous sins; so anxious to join in the universal chorus of praise, ascending from the orchestra of nature, but yet so certain that there were yearnings and faculties within his soul, in which it could not participate, and which made him its high-priest and chorister. To these we will come again -- they are too radiant with a light that never shone on sea or shore, for us to pass them so lightly by.

Ah, guileless, blessed boy! thou little knowest that thou shalt die amid the blare of trumpets announcing the accession to the throne of thy son, the splendid Solomon; still less thou dreamest that thy unsullied nature shall one day be befouled by so sad a stain! Yet thy God loves thee, and thou shalt teach us many a lesson as we turn again the pages of thy wonderful career -- poet, minstrel, soldier, exile, king -- and read them in the light that streams from the face of thy greatest Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, but was declared to be the Son of God by the resurrection of the dead!
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
II.  "FROM THAT DAY FORWARD"
F. B. MEYER

(1 Samuel 16:13)

"Once for the least of children of Manasses
God had a message and a deed to do,
Wherefore the welcome that all speech surpasses
Called him and hailed him greater than he knew."
F. W. H. MYERS.

FROM whatever side we view the life of David, it is remarkable. It may be that Abraham excelled him in faith; and Moses in the power of concentrated fellowship with God; and Elijah in the fiery force of his enthusiasm. But none of these was so many-sided as the richly-gifted son of Jesse.

Few have had so varied a career as he: shepherd and monarch; poet and soldier; champion of his people, and outlaw in the caves of Judaea, beloved of Jonathan, and persecuted by Saul; vanquishing the Philistines one day, and accompanying them into battle on another. But in all he seemed possessed of a special power with God and man, which could not be accounted for by the fascination of his manner, the beauty of his features, the rare gifts with which his nature was dowered, or the spiritual power which was so remarkable an attribute of his heart. We touch these many chords, but the secret still eludes us, until we read the momentous words that sum up the result of a memorable day that lay as a jewel in the obscure years of opening youth. "The Spirit of the Lord came mightily on David from that day forward."


1. IT BEGAN LIKE ANY ORDINARY DAY.

No angel-trumpet heralded it; no faces looked out of heaven; the sun arose that morning according to his wont over the purple walls of the hills of Moab, making the cloud-curtains saffron and gold. With the first glimmer of light the boy was on his way to lead his flock to pasture-lands heavy with dew. As the morning hours sped onwards, many duties would engross his watchful soul -- strengthening the weak, healing that which was sick, binding up that which was broken, and seeking that which was lost; or the music of his song may have filled the listening air. "A cunning player on the harp was he."
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
II.  "FROM THAT DAY FORWARD"
F. B. MEYER

A breathless messenger suddenly broke upon this pastoral scene, with the tidings of Samuel's arrival at the little town, and that the prophet had refused to eat of the hastily-prepared banquet until the shepherd-boy had joined the bidden guests. His father had therefore sent to summon him with all speed. How the young eyes must have flashed with pleasure! Never before had he been wanted and sent for thus. Till now he had been only "the lad that kept the sheep." The family life had been complete without him. His father and brothers had followed their pursuits and pleasures in almost total disregard of the young son and brother who was destined to make their names immortal. He had borne it all in patience. His heart was not haughty, neither his eyes lofty; neither did he exercise himself in great matters, or in things too high for him; but quieted himself as a child that is weaned from its mother. Still, it was a genuine pleasure to feel that the family circle in great Samuel's eyes was not complete till he had come. He therefore left his sheep with the messenger, and started at full speed for home.

Samuel on his coming had sanctified Jesse and his sons, passing them through a series of ceremonial ablutions to fit them for the festival in which the social and sacred elements combined. But David needed none of these. His pure and guiltless soul was right with God, and clad in the spotless robe of purity. No soil needed punctilious removal. Let us so live as to be prepared for whatever the next hour may bring forth. The spirit in fellowship with God, the robe stainlessly pure, the loins girt, the lamp trimmed. The faithful fulfilment of the commonplaces of daily life is the best preparation for any great demand that may suddenly break in upon our lives.


2. IT WAS THE CONSUMMATION OF PREVIOUS TRAINING.

We must not suppose that now, for the first time, the Spirit of God wrought in David's heart. To think this would indicate complete misconception of the special teaching of this incident; for Scripture always distinguishes between the regenerating and the anointing grace of the Holy Spirit. From his earliest days, David had probably been the subject of his quickening and renewing work; but he had probably never experienced, before the day of which we treat, that special unction of the Holy One symbolized in the anointing oil, and indispensable for all successful spiritual work.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
II.  "FROM THAT DAY FORWARD"
F. B. MEYER

Our Lord was born of the Spirit; but his anointing for service did not take place till at the age of thirty, when on the threshold of his public work, He emerged from the waters of baptism. It was to this He referred in the opening words of his earliest sermon, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, and He hath anointed Me." The Apostles were certainly regenerate before the day of Pentecost; but they had to wait within closed doors until they were endued with power for the conversion of men. Full often have we met with those who were unmistakably the children of God, but who had no special power in witness-bearing, nor freedom in speech, nor ability to grapple with the hearts and consciences of men. They needed what would be to them as electricity to the wire, or the spark to gun-powder. In other words, the Spirit of God has been in but not on them. We have seen such awake and claim the Divine anointing; and suddenly they have begun to speak with new tongues, and men have not been able to resist their reasonings of sin, righteousness, and judgment to come.

This blessed anointing for service cannot be ours, except there has been a previous gracious work on the heart. -There must be the new life -- the life of God. There must be docility, humility, fidelity to duty, cleansing from known sin, and a close walk with God. The descending flame must fall upon the whole burnt-offering of a consecrated life. And it was because all these had been wrought in David by the previous work of the Holy Spirit, that he was prepared for this special unction. It may be, reader, that in the obscurity of your life, shut away from the presence of great interests, you are being prepared for a similar experience. Be careful to obey God's least prompting, whether to do or suffer; that you be prepared for the golden moment when your meek head shall be suddenly bathed in the descending chrism.


3. IT WAS MINISTERED THROUGH SAMUEL.

The old prophet had conferred many benefits on his native land; but none could compare in importance with his eager care for its youth. The creation of the schools of the prophets was due to him. Saul, in the earlier years of his manhood, felt the charm and spell of the old man's character. The stalwart sons of Jesse's house were, therefore, probably well known to him when he received the Divine command to anoint one of them as Saul's successor.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
II.  "FROM THAT DAY FORWARD"
F. B. MEYER

Driving a heifer before him, he entered the one long street of Bethlehem, and summoned the elders to a feast, so as not to arouse the suspicions of the jealous, moody king, who would not have scrupled to take his life if he had suspected the real object of his visit.

When David reached the village, a strange scene met his eye. There was his father Jesse, and his seven brothers, probably waiting for him in the ancestral home, preparatory to their all going together to the public banquet to which the leading men of the village had been invited. An unusual restraint lay upon the rough tongues and harsh behaviour with which Eliab and the rest were wont to treat him. At other times they would not have hesitated to express their impatience and contempt; but now the very air seemed heavy with a sacred spell that held them. No sooner had he entered, flushed with exertion, health glowing on his face, genius flashing from his eye, royalty in his mein, than the Lord said to Samuel, "Arise, anoint him; for this is he!" Then Samuel took the horn of oil which he had brought with him from Nob, and poured its contents on the head of the astonished lad.

It is likely that the bystanders did not realize the significance of that act; or on the eve of the fight with Goliath Jesse would hardly have treated him so unceremoniously, and Eliab would have addressed him with more courtesy. But David probably understood. Josephus indeed tells us that the prophet whispered in his ear the meaning of the sacred symbol. Did the aged lips approach the young head, and as the trembling hand pushed back the clustering locks, did they whisper in the lad's ear the thrilling words, "Thou shalt be king"? If so, in after days how they would return to him; and how vast an inspiration they would be! -- a formative influence, a preparation for the great destiny that awaited him.

The descent of the oil was symbolical; in other words, it had no spiritual efficacy, but was the outward and visible sign that the Spirit of God had come mightily on the shepherd-lad. For Jesus there was no oil; but instead, the appearance of a dove flitting gently to its nest. For the disciples, on the day of Pentecost, there was no oil; but a flame of lambent fire alighting on each bowed head. In the process of the age these outward symbols have become mechanical and have passed from general use. We must believe that we have received when we have fulfilled the conditions of humility and the faith that claims (Galatians 3:14).
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
II.  "FROM THAT DAY FORWARD"
F. B. MEYER

From that memorable day David returned to his sheep; and as the months went slowly by, he must sometimes have greatly wondered when the hour of achievement would arrive. When would he have an opportunity of displaying and using his newfound force? He had to learn that we are sometimes strengthened with all might to patience and long-suffering as the prelude to heroic deeds; we have to wrestle with the lion and the bear on the hills of Bethlehem, that we may be prepared to meet Goliath in the valley of Elah.


4. IT WAS A DAY OF REJECTION.

Seven of Jesse's sons were passed over. Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, were called; but God chose then, as ever -- the weak, the base, the things that were despised. Seven is the perfect number: the seven sons of Jesse stand for the perfection of the flesh. This must be cut down to the ground, lest it should glory in God's presence. The lesson is hard to learn; but its acquisition is imperative. You cannot bear it? Well, be it so; then, like Eliab, you may become one of the princes of Judah, but you shall never be God's beloved (1 Chronicles 27:18 ).

In this secret anointing of David, the first of three, we have a type of the setting apart of our Lord in the Divine counsels. Rejected of men, despised of his brethren, without form or comeliness, He has been set apart as the King of the Ages. As yet many a barrier lies between Him and the acknowledgement which the Father has promised; but to Him every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess that He is Lord. In the meanwhile He waits -- waits till the hour of universal triumph strikes; waits till the many crowns of the destined empire meet on the head which was once encircled by the crown of thorns.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
III.  SUMMONED TO THE PALACE
F. B. MEYER

(1 Samuel 16:18-19)

"He bowed himself
With all obedience to the king, and wrought
All kind of service with a noble ease,
That graced the lowliest act in doing of it."
TENNYSON.

IT has been supposed that the incident we are now to consider belongs to a subsequent page in David's history, following the narrative of the slaying of Goliath, so as to make that the occasion of the young shepherd's first introduction to Saul. This transposition seems to be called for by Saul's slowness to recognize his former minstrel in the young warrior that stood before him with the head of the Philistines' champion in his hand.

But, after all, this may be accounted for by David's manly growth between the period of his minstrelsy and his first great exploit in the battlefield. How long that interval lasted we cannot tell; but during its course David had grown from youth to manhood, his figure becoming stalwart and robust, his face moulded by the growing soul within. If we reject this explanation, and do not allow the incident to remain where we find it, we have to face the further difficulty of how Saul's courtiers could dare to introduce to their master one whose successes had already stirred his jealousy (1 Samuel 18:9); or why it was necessary to employ so much circumlocution to describe the personality of the young singer (1 Samuel 16:18 ). Surely it would have been sufficient to recall what David ,had done in the vale of Elah to identify him at once. We hold, therefore, that this story should stand in the place it has held ever since this narrative was penned.

After his anointing, David returned to his sheep. When Saul, advised by his courtiers, sent for him to charm away his melancholy, this was the specific indication he gave to Jesse, his father, "Send me David, thy son, which is with the sheep." It says much for the simplicity and ingenuousness of the boy's character that he should have returned to the fold, to lead and guard his helpless charge, faithfully fulfilling the routine of daily duty, and waiting for God to do what Samuel had spoken to him of. So Jesus left the temple, where to his boyish eyes a radiant glimpse had been afforded of doing his Father's business, to be subject to his parents, and engage in the humble toils of the carpenter's shop.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
III.  SUMMONED TO THE PALACE
F. B. MEYER

A contemporary hand has given a brief portraiture of his character as it presented itself at this period to casual observers. One of Saul's young men said, "Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty man of valour, and a man of war, and prudent in speech, and a comely person, and the Lord is with him." These five characteristics enable us to form a graphic conception of the young hero who was making the countryside ring with his renown.


1. THE MINSTREL

He had the poetic temperament, sensitive to nature, open to every impression from mountain and vale, from dawn and eve; and he had beside the power of translating his impressions into speech and song. His psalms commemorate to the present day, and will as long as man shall live, the story of the green strips of meadow-land where his flocks grazed at noon; the little stream somewhere near Bethlehem of whose limpid waters they drank; the smooth paths which he selected for their feet; the rocky defiles where they were in danger of lion and bear.

A great modern poet imagines him reciting, as he sang to his harp, his call to his sheep, the song of the autumn vintage, the joyous marriage lay, the solemn funeral dirge, the chant of the Levites, as they performed their sacred duties, the marching music of the men of Bethlehem when they repelled some border foray. And we might add to these his marvellous power in depicting the sacred hush of dawn, where there is neither speech nor language, just before the sun leaps up as a bridegroom to run his race, and the solemn pomp of night, where worlds beyond worlds open to the wondering gaze. And to these we might add the marvellous description of the thunderstorms that broke over Palestine, rolling peal after peal, from the great waters of the Mediterranean, over the cedars of Lebanon to the far-distant wilderness of Kadesh, until the sevenfold thunders are followed by torrents of rain, and these by the clear shining in which Jehovah blesses his people with peace (Psalms 23:1-6, Psalms 19:1-14, Psalms 8:1-9, Psalms 29:1-11).
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
III.  SUMMONED TO THE PALACE
F. B. MEYER

The Psalm began with David. Its lyric beauty and tender grace; its rhythmic measure; its exuberant hallelujahs and plaintive lamentations; its inimitable expression of the changeful play of light and shade over the soul; its blending of nature and godliness, its references to the life of men and the world, as regarded from the standpoint of God -- these elements in the Psalter which have endeared it to holy souls in every age owe their origin to the poetic, heaven-touched soul of the sweet singer of Israel. What wonder that Saul's young man said that he was cunning in playing! The psalms which he composed in those early days -- and which are so delightfully free from the darker elements which persecution, and unkindness, and consciousness of sin introduced into the later creation of his genius -- were destined to go singing through the world, working on men effects like those wrought on the king, of whom it is said that when David took the harp and played with his hand, Saul was refreshed.


2. THE YOUNG WARRIOR.

There was abundant opportunity for the education of his prowess. The Philistines' frontier was not far away from his native town; and probably there were many repetitions of the incident of after years, when the sons of the alien held it, and placed a guard demanding toll of the water of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate. Many a skirmish had the men of Bethlehem with the border warriors, who would sweep down upon the produce of their vineyards and cornfields when the harvest was ripe. In these David acquired the character of being a man of valour and a mighty man of war. It may be that sometimes he had to stand alone against a handful of sheep-stealers intent on plundering the fold.

He tells us how he needed to be on the alert against the wild beasts that prowled amongst the hills of Judah -- the lion with his hungry teeth, the bear with his deadly hug. For these he had no fear. He smote them, and delivered the trembling lambs from their mouth. He caught them by their beard and slew them. He could break a bow of steel with those strong young arms, and wield Goliath's sword with ease; or club a wild beast with his staff, and hurl a stone with unerring aim. A proud young Samson, laughing in the fulness of his manly strength.
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[nChrist]

DAVID SHEPHERD, PSALMIST, KING
III.  SUMMONED TO THE PALACE
F. B. MEYER

But he would have been the last to attribute his exploits to his sinewy strength. By faith he had learnt to avail himself of the might of God. Was he not His servant, designated for a great mission, summoned to wage uncompromising war with the uncircumcised? He might be a babe; yet out of his mouth God had established strength, in order to still the enemy and the avenger! He might be a suckling; yet he was made to have dominion over the works of God's hands! Listen to his buoyant challenge:

"For by Thee have I run through a troop,
And by my God have I leaped over a wall ....
It is God that girdeth me with strength.
He maketh my feet like hind's feet ....
He teacheth my hands to war ....
Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me."

Through faith he subdued kingdoms, stopped the mouths of lions, escaped the edge of the sword, waxed mighty in war, turned to flight armies of aliens.


3. PRUDENT IN SPEECH.

The sagacity of David will appear as our story proceeds. He was as prudent to advise and scheme as he was swift to execute. He had understanding of the times, of human hearts, of wise policy; and he knew just how and when to act. Frank to his friends, generous to his foes, constant in his attachments, calm in danger, patient in trouble, chivalrous and knightly, he had every element of a born leader of men, and was equally at home in the counsels of the state and the decisions of the battlefield. Whatever emergency threatened, he seemed to know just how to meet it. And this was no doubt due to the repose of his spirit in God. The sad mistakes he made may be traced to his yielding to the sway of impulse and passion, to his forgetfulness of his habit of drawing near unto God, and inquiring of Him before taking any important step. The attitude of his soul is sweetly mirrored in one of his earliest psalms:
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