tables; those touching Religion, and those touching Justice ; that with one arm he might stay Religion, and with the other stay Justice, and so uphold both.

1, 2, &c.

And, where such support hath wanted, both have lain on the ground. For, both of Micah's idolatry, that is corrupt Jud. 17. religion, and of the villany offered at Gibeah, and of the out- 19. 25, &c. rage committed by them of Dan, both in rifling houses, and sacking whole towns, that is, of open injustice, God rendereth no cause but this, non erat Rex; the pillars went down, ego wanted. Without which, that is, an established government, we should have no commonwealth, but a wild forest, where Nimrod and his crew would hunt and chase all others; no Gen. 10. 8. commonwealth, but a pond where the great fish would Hab. 1. 14. devour the small; nothing but a sort of "sheep scattered Num.27.17. without a shepherd," saith Moses. No more oves pascuæ, Ps. 95. 7. "sheep of the pasture," when their governor is gone, but oves occisionis, "sheep for the slaughter." Non populus, sed Ps. 44. 22. turba, 'no people, but a rout;' no building, nor pillars, but a heap of stones. Therefore a joyful noise " is the shout of a Nu. 23. 21. king" among them.

Joyful indeed every way, but joyful especially if this ego be not Saul, but David. David, which giveth strength unto the pillars, and not Saul, an impairer or weakener of them. It is David's complaint in the forepart, he found the land weak when he came to it. So Saul had left it. It is his promise that as Saul by his slackness had brought the estate low, so he by his vigilance would raise it up again. And this is the last point, how Saul decayed, and David restored the pillar again.

13. 3.

The Wise Man saith, that "evil looking to will decay the Iv. principals of any building;" and that was Saul's defect, as the Ecc.10.18. Scripture recordeth. Religion first: instead of Celebrabimus, Negligimus Jehovam. King David, in his oration to the states of his realm before his first Parliament, testifieth, "the ark 1 Chron. was not sought to in the days of Saul;" that pillar was not looked to. Sought to it was, after a sort, religion; but nothing so as it should. "Come let us have the ark," saith 1 Sam. 14. he; and then, "Go to, it skills not greatly, carry it back 18,19. again;" which, what was it but to play fast and loose with

religion? To intend Paul, as Felix saith, at our idle time; Acts 24.25.

I.

Eph. 5. 16.

SERM. and not to "redeem time," to that end? Judge of Religion's case by the reverence of the Ephod. A daughter of his own bringing up, Michal, saw David for honour of the ark wear it, 2Sam.6.16. and "despised him in her heart." Judge of it by the regard of the Priest, the keeper of the ark: for very love to it, that calling was kept so low and bare that they were tied to the 1Sam. 21.4. allowance of their shew-bread; the High-Priest had not a loaf in his house besides. This was the first root of his kingdom : the ark not sought to, the Ephod in contempt, the priestActs 1817. hood impoverished; et Saulo nihil horum curæ, 'and Saul regarded not any of these things.'

1 Kings 14. 15.

Such another indifferency for Church matters we find in Hos. 13. 2. Jeroboam. "Tush," said he, jestingly, "let them kiss the calves and spare not." Let it go which way it will. But therefore God sends him word by Ahijah, "that Israel should be as a reed in the water," bowing to and fro, at the devotion of every wave and every wind, without any steadiness. And was it not so? Search the Chronicles. So, God saw this mind in Saul to His ark and was wroth; withdrew from him His religious and good Spirit, and sent upon him a profane and furious spirit, which carried him on first to a sinful life, and never left him till it had brought him to a shameful death. Deu.33.27. And God was even saying His disperdas to the kingdom, but David here entreated for a ne perdas, and promised a better care of celebrabimus Jehovam.

Now, where Religion thrives not, the other of Justice will Zach. 11.4. not hold long; when one staff is broken, the other holdeth not whole long after. And surely his justice was suitable to the former, to his weak regard of religion; that also was weak too.

22.

1 Sam. 13. 1. Weak towards the enemy. It is said, there was want of necessary furniture of armour and munition in his days. 2 Sam.1.18. And there had been defect in teaching them to shoot, which David supplied at his entrance. 2. Weak at home too, where he did not justitias, but injurias judicare.

The parts of Justice are two, as we find in the tenth verse. 1. To exalt the horns of the righteous, 2. and to break the horns of the wicked.

1. For the first. Reason was, and so was promise too, 1 Sam. 18. that David should have been rewarded with Merab his

eldest daughter's marriage. I know not how, one Adriel, an obscure fellow, never to have been named but to shew such an one put David by, had his horn exalted above him. This for reward.

2. And his punishment was no better. Merciful to Agag, 1Sam.15.9. whose horns should have been broken, and in Ahimelech's 1 Sam. 22. case too rigorous, putting him, and eighty-four more, to the sword for a dozen of bread.

17.

11.

And whereas, in kindly justice, the rigour of frangam cornua cometh not at first, but clemency giveth gracious warning, with Dicam imprudentibus. So, without regard thereof, Ps. 75. 4. as upon any displeasure, without any word at all, his javelin 1 Sam. 18. went straight to nail men to the wall, they knew not wherefore. Thus did justice decay after religion, and one pillar fall upon 10. another, whereof ensued his overthrow, and the land dan- 33. gerously sick of the palsy. Whereof David complaineth, and Ps. 60. 2. prayeth, "Heal the sores thereof, for it shaketh."

1 Sam. 19.

1 Sam. 20.

2 Sam. 11.

Now David, as, when he read Abimelech's mishap in the [Jud. 9. Book of Judges, he made his use of it, as appeareth 2 Sam. 53.1 11. 21; so here when he saw what had turned Saul to 21. damage, took warning by it (ruina præcedentium, admonitio sequentium), and, to make the land strong, falleth to underset the pillars.

And first, of the first, that is, the stone which Saul and his builders cast aside. For, coming to the kingdom, he consecrates all his laws with his act de Arcâ reducendá; whereat he 1 Chron. would needs be present in his own person, because it touched 13. 2, 3. Celebrabimus Jehovam, and that with some disgrace, as Michal imagined; but he was resolute in that point, he could receive no dishonour by doing honour to God's ark. And, when it was brought back, set such an order for the service of it by the 1Chron.26. Levites, for maintenance so bountiful, so reverend for regard, passim. so decent for order, so every way sufficient, as the care of the Temple might seem to reign in his heart. As indeed it did, and as he professeth, "he could not sleep" till he had set Ps. 132. 3. a full order for God's matters, and brought this pillar to perfection. Which his care was secundum cor Dei, and God would signify so much by the ceremony in the Coronation of the kings of Judah. Wherein, putting not only the diadem imperial, but the Book of the Law also, upon the king's head, 2Kings 11.

1.

SERM. it was intended that Book should be as dear to them as their crown, and they equally study to advance it. And in putting Isa. 22. 22. the sceptre of justice in their hands, and in laying the key of the House of David on their shoulders, what else was required, but as they executed the one with their hand, so they should put to the other, arm and shoulder and all? that is, as David here expresseth it, two celebrabimuses to one judicabo.

Thus was strengthened the first pillar, and for the second the Holy Ghost giveth him an honourable testimony; I speak not of his military justice, I need not-therein he was trained 2Sam.815. up, but that in peace, "he executed judgment and justice to Ps. 99. 4. all his people." "The king's power," saith he, "loveth judg

ment," not power in injury, but power in judgment, saith 2Cor.13.10. David; "power to edification," saith St. Paul, "not to destruction;" that is, to build up, not to decay the building. Therefore, virtue and valour wanted not their reward in his Ps. 75. 6. time. He professeth after in this Psalm, the wind should blow no man to preferment, out of what quarter soever it came, but God by His graces should point them to it. And 1 Chr. 11. sure, the diligent description the Holy Ghost useth of his worthies and men of place, sheweth him to have been most exact in this point: first, his three; and then after, his thirty 2 Sam. 23. in their order; and that those "thirty attained not unto the first three," but every one esteemed and regarded, in his worthiness.

10, &c.

8, &c.

And for depressing the wicked, it was his morning work, Ps. 101. 8. as he testifieth, and that, as himself here sets down, in a most heavenly order, with dicam first, as being set over men, and Hos. 11. 4. therefore willing to "lead them with the cords of men," that is, fair and gentle, yet effectual persuasions. And never did Pro. 19.12. the dew of Heaven more sweetly refresh the grass, than doth a favourable saying pierce the inferior from the mouth of a prince. Therefore, there was no estate in the land, but in

this book, I will not say he mildly said, but he even sweetly, Ps.101.1-8. sung their several duties unto them. To his court, his Ps. 45. pas. Church, his Judges; his commons, all in one. I will add this, Ps. 82. 1-8. that if David offended in ought, herein it was, in that he used

Ps. 144. passim.

dicam too much, and frangam not oft enough. Absalom 2Sam. 15.3. could object it, when it served his turn; and when David was to leave the world, it lay on his conscience, his clemency

Ps. 72. 14.

used in Joab's and Shimei's case. "A dear and precious 1 Kings 2 thing is the meanest blood in the eyes of David"-so he saith. And that made his people more afraid for him than of him, and to value his life at "ten thousand" of their own; and that, 2Sam.18.3. so many subjects, so many of his guard; not, so many subjects, so many conspirators, as Saul complained.

1 Sam.22.8.

Yet, because clemency is but one foot of the throne, and Pro. 20.28. severity at some other time (for, cum accepero tempus, time Ps. 75. 2. must be kept in this music) doth no less support it; therefore, where saying will not serve, nor singing, frangam must sometimes be used; where the rod contemned, let the sword be Ez.21.9,10. drawn. It is God's own course. If he, for all dicam, lift up his horn against God or good orders, saw off his horn; if he do still mutila fronte minitari, caput ejus mittetur ad te, was 2 Sam. 20. David's justice;- Take off his head. For dicam is the charm he 21. speaketh of, which, if the viper stop not his ear, will do him Ps. 58. 5. good; if it do not, contunde in theriacam, he must be bruised and made into mithridate, that others may be amended by ["One of him, seeing he would not be amended by others.

the capital medicines of the

great num

from its

Mithri

Thus did David repair Saul's ruins; these are his steps, shops,conthus did he shew himself as good as his promise here, a skilful sisting of a upholder of these two main pillars, which bear up and give ber of instrength to every land. And by this means he changed both gredients, the nature and name of his country; finding it Jebus, that is, its name conculcata, and so indeed it was, a city contemned and trodden inventor down with every foot; and leaving it a new name, Jerusalem, dates, and so it was, Salem Jeru, a city to be feared and envied of all King of round about it. So the land grew strong, and the pillars Quincy, fast; and David, for his fastening, in favour with God and man. Todd's God, Whom he praised, graciously assisting him; and men, whom he preserved, willingly serving him.

The Lord Who hath sent forth the like strength for our land, stablish the good things which He hath wrought in us! The Lord so fasten the pillars of our earth, that they never be shaken! The Lord mightily uphold the upholder of them long, and many years; that we may go forth rejoicing in His strength, and make our boast of His praise, all our life long! Which our gracious God, &c.

Pontus."

cited

Johnson.]