Oldalképek
PDF
ePub

should desire him." David appeared unexpectedly. Samuel expected a man of great stature, and appearing outwardly like a man of valour; and therefore when he saw Eliab, David's elder brother, that had such an appearance, he said, surely the Lord's anointed is before him. His appearance was astonishing to Goliath and to Saul. So the prophecies represent the Messiah's appearance as unexpected and astonishing, being so mean. Isai. xlii. 14. "Many were astonished at thee. His visage was so marred more than any man." But yet David was ruddy and of a fair countenance, and goodly to look to. 1 Sam. xvi. 12, xvii. 42, agreeable to Psalm xlv. 2. "Thou art fairer than the children of men." Cant. v. 10. "My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousands." He was anointed king after of fering sacrifice. 1 Sam. xvi. So the prophecies represent the Messiah's exaltation to his kingdom, after he had by his sufferings offered up a sacrifice to atone for the sins of men. David says of himself, 1 Chron. xxviii. 14, "The Lord God of Israel chose me to be king over Israel for ever.” And God says to him, 2 Sam. vii. 16, "And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee. Thy throne shall be established for ever." This is agreeable to the prophecies of the Messiah. David, by occupation was a shepherd, and afterwards was made a shepherd to God's Israel. Ps. lxxviii. 70-72. "He chose David his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds, from following the ewes great with young. He brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance." This is agreeable to many prophecies of the Messiah, who is often spoken of in them as the shepherd of God's people, and therein is expressly compared to David. Isaiah xl. 11. " He shall feed his flock like a shepherd." Isaiah xlix. 9, 10. " They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places. They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor sun smite them. For he that hath mercy on them shall lead them; by the springs of water shall he guide them." Jer. xxiii. 4, 5. "And I will set up shepherds over them, which shall feed them-I will raise up unto David a righteous branch," &c. Ezek. xxxiv. 23. "And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them; even my servant David: he shall feed them, and shall be their shepherd.' Ezekiel xxxvii. 24. "And David my servant shall be king over them, and they shall have one shepherd." Canticles i. 7. "Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon." David was of an humble, meek, and merciful spirit. 1 Samuel xviii. 23. 2 Samuel vi. 21, 22. vii. 18. 1 Samuel xxiv. throughout, and xxvi. throughout; 2 Sam. ii. 5. 21, and iv. 9, &c. vii. 18. 2 Sam. xxii. 26, and many places in the Psalms show the same spirit, too

[ocr errors]

many to be mentioned. This is agreeable to what is said of the Messiah, Zech. ix. 9. "He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass." Isaiah xlii. 3. “A bruised reed shall he not break," &c. Isaiah xl. 11. He shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young." Isaiah liii. 7. "He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, as a sheep before his shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth." David was a person that was eminent for wisdom and prudence. 1 Samuel. xvi. 18. "Behold I have seen a son of Jesse-prudent in matters." And xviii. 5. "And David behaved himself wisely." Verse 14. "And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways," Ver. 30. "David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul." Ps. lxxviii. 72. "He guided them by the skilfulness of his hands." This is agreeable to what is said of the Messiah, Isaiah ix.'6. Chap. xi. 2, 3; xli. two last verses, with xlii. 1, lii. 13. Zech. iii. 9. David is said to be "a mighty valiant man." 1 Sam. xvi. 18. "Behold I have seen'a son of Jesse, a mighty valiant man." This is agreeable to Psalm xlv. 3. "Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, withthy glory, and thy majesty." Isaiah lxiii. 1. "Who is this travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save." And in this very thing the Messiah is compared to David. Psalm lxxxix. 19, 20. "I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people; I have found David my servant." David was a sweet musician; was preferred as such to all that were to be found in Israel, to relieve Saul in his melancholy. He is called "the sweet Psalmist of Israel." 2 Sam xxiii. 1. He led the whole church of Israel in their praises. He instituted the order of singers and musicians in the house of God. He delivered to the church the book of songs they were to use in their ordinary public worship. This is most agreeable to the prophecies of the Messiah, which do every where represent, that he should introduce the most pleasant, joyful, glorious state of the church, wherein they should abound in the praises of God, and the world be filled with sweet and joyful songs after sorrow and weeping; wherein songs should be heard from the uttermost ends of the earth, and all nations should sing, and the mountains and trees of the field, and all creatures, sun, moon and stars, heaven and earth should break forth into singing, and even the dead should awake and sing, and the lower parts of the earth should shout, and the tongue of the dumb should sing, and the dragons and all deeps; the barren, the prisoners, the desolate and mourners should sing; and all nations should come and sing in the height of Zion; they should sing a loud, and sing a new song, or in a new manner, with music and praises exalting all that had been before. The particular texts are too many to enumerate.

The patriarch from whom Christ descended, for this reason is called Judah, i. e. Praise: and the Messiah is represented as leading the church of God in their sweet and joyful songs. Ps. xxii. 22. "I will declare thy name unto my brethren. In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee." Ver. 25. "My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation." Ps. Ixix. 30-32. "I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving. The humble shall see this and be glad." Ver. 34. "Let the heaven and the earth praise him, the seas and every thing that moveth therein." See also Ps. cxxxviii. 1-5. We read in Ps. lxxxix. 15, of the joyful sound that shall be at that time; and the day of the Messiah's kingdom is compared to the spring, the time of the singing of birds. Cant. ii. David slew a lion and a bear, and delivered a lamb out of their mouths. So the enemies of the Messiah and of his people are in the prophecies compared to a lion, as was observed before. So the prophetical representations made of God's people that are delivered by the Messiah, well agree with the symbol of a lamb. The prophecies represent them as feeble, poor, and defenceless in themselves, and as meek and harmless. Ps. xlv. 4, and xxii. 26, lxix. 32, cxlvii. 6, and cxlix. 4. Isai. xi. 4, xxix. 19, and Ixi. 1. David comes to the camp of Israel, to save them from Goliath and the Philistines, just at a time when they were in special and immediate danger; when the host were going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle. So the Messiah in the prophecies is represented as appearing to save his people at the time of their extremity. So God appeared for the redemption of his people out of Egypt. But Balaam prophecying of the redemption of the Messiah, Num. xxiii. 23, says, according to this time shall it be said of Jacob and of Israel, what hath God wrought? This is also agreeable to that prophecy of the deliverance of God's people in the Messiah's times; Deut. xxxii. 36. "The Lord shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up or left." So Ps. xiv., and liii., and xxi. 11, 12, and xlvi., and Iviii. 7, to the end; and lx. and cxviii. 10, to the end; and xxviii. 21, 22; and xxix. 5-8, and xxx. 27--30; xxxi. 4-5, xl. the latter end, and xli. throughout, xlii. at the beginning, li. 7, to the end, and many other places. David was hated and envied by his brethren, and misused by them, when he came to them on a kind errand from his father, to bring them provision. Herein he resembled the Messiah as Joseph did. David kills Goliath, who, in his huge stature, great strength, mighty army, and exceeding pride, much resembled the devil, according to the representations of the devil in the prophecies of the Messiah's conquest and destruction of him; who is called Leviathan, (Isaiah xxvii. 1,) which in the Old Testa

ment, is represented as an huge and terrible creature of vast strength and impenetrable armour, disdaining the weapons and strength of his enemies, and the king over all the children of pride; Job xli. David went against Goliath without carnal weapons. David prevailed against Goliath with a sling and a stone, which is agreeable to Zech. ix. 15. "The Lord of hosts shall defend them, and they shall devour and subdue with sling stones." David, when going against Goliath, took strength out of the brook in the way, agreeable to that concerning the Messiah, Ps. cx. 6, 7. “He shall fill the places with the dead bodies: he shall wound the heads over many countries: he shall drink of the brook in the way; therefore shall he lift up the head." David cut off the head of the Philistine with his own sword. So it may be clearly gathered from what the prophecies say of the Messiah's sufferings, and that from the cruelty of his enemies, and the consequences of them with respect to his exaltation and victory over his enemies, that the Messiah shall destroy Satan with his own weapons. David carried the head of Goliath to Jerusalem which is agreeable to what is foretold of the Messiah, Ps. lxviii. 18. "Thou hast ascended on high; thou hast led captivity captive;" together with the context. David put Goliath's armour in his tent: which is agreeable to Ps. lxxvi. 2, 3. "In Salem is his tabernacle, (or tent,) and his dwelling-place in Zion. There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, the sword, and the battle." When Saul saw David returning from his victory, he says repeatedly with great admiration concerning him, "whose son is this youth?" 1 Sam. xvii. 55. "Inquire whose son this stripling is;" ver. 56. "Whose son art thou?" ver. 58, agreeably to Psalm xxviii. 8. "Who is this king of glory?" Again, ver. 10, and Isai. Ixiii. 1. "Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bosrah? This that is glorious in his apparel," &c. The daughters of Israel went forth to meet king David, and sang praises to him when he returned from the slaughter of the Philistine; agreeably to Ps. xxiv. and lxviii., and many other places. David obtained his wife by exposing his life in battle with the Philistines, and in destroying them: agreeably to what is prophecied of the Messiah's sufferings and death, his conflict with and victory over his enemies, and his redemption of his church by this means, and the consequent joy of his espousals with the church.

David was a great saviour. He saved Israel from Goliath, and the Philistines, and from all their enemies round about. 2 Sam. iii. 18. "The Lord hath spoken of David, saying, By the hand of my servant David will I save my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies; agreeably to the prophecies of the Messiah. David

was greatly persecuted, and his life sought unjustly; agreeably to prophecies of the Messiah. David's marriage with Abigail, the wife of a son of Belial, a virtuous woman, and of a beautiful countenance, is agreeable to the innumerable prophecies that represent the church of the Messiah, that the prophecies speak of as his spouse, as brought into that happy state from a state of guilt and bondage to sin. David was resorted to by every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was bitter of soul, and he became their captain ; which is agreeable to innumerable prophecies that represent the Messiah as the Captain and Saviour of the poor, afflicted, distressed sinners and prisoners, &c. David's host is compared to the host of God, 1 Chron. xii. 22, which is agreeable to what the prophecies represent of the divinity of the Messiah, and God's people in his times, and under him becoming as an host of mighty valiant men, that shall thresh the mountains, and tread down their enemies, &c. David, as it were raised from the dead, was wonderfully delivered from death, when from great danger he was brought back from the wilderness, and from banishment, and from caves of the earth that resembled the grave; (Psa. xxx. 3. "O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave;") which is agreeable to the prophecies of the Messiah's restoration from his low and suffering state and resurrection from death. David was made king over the strong city Hebron, that had been taken from the Anakims, the gigantic enemies of God's people: which is agreeable to the prophecies of the Messiah's conquering the strong city, bringing low the lofty city, conquering the devil, and taking possession of the mightiest and strongest kingdoms of the world. David's followers that came to him to make him king, were men of understanding, mighty men of valour, and men of a perfect heart: 1 Chron. xii.: which is agreeable to what the prophecies represent of the followers of the Messiah. David was made king by the act and choice both of God and his people. 1 Chron. xi. 1-3, and xii. 2 Sam. ii. 4. v. 1, &c. This is agreeable to the prophecies of the Messiah. Hos. i. 11. "Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head." David was made king with great feasting and rejoicing, 1 Chron. xii. 39, 40, which is agreeable to what the prophecies do abundantly represent of the joy of the introduction of the Messiah's kingdom. David was the first king of Jerusalem, that city so often spoken of in the prophecies as a type of the church of the Messiah. David insulted the idols as lame and blind, and destroyed them. 2 Sam. v. 21. Agreeable to § 132–135. 153. David conquered the strongest hold of the Jebusites, and reigned there. See what was said before concerning his reigning in Hebron. He res

VOL. IX.

9

« ElőzőTovább »