iniquity be; and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thy audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid. Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal, for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him ; but thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. Now, therefore, my lord, as the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing that the Lord has withholden thee from coming to shed innocent blood, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel which sent thee this day to meet me; and blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand.'”

Sacred history holds up many bright examples of an holy and heavenly feeling. The acts of Deborah, and her song of praise, will ever be admired. Hannah stands out as a conspicuous character for maternal care, and the dedication of her son Samuel to the Lord. The history of Esther, as regards fortitude and trust in God for the delivery of her people from extermination, may be viewed as an episode which has no parallel. Ruth's affection and servitude to her mother-in-law Naomi, was abundantly rewarded by the superintending providence of the Lord, in her union with Boaz. The New Testament has its Mary, who was honoured in being the mother of the Saviour; as well as the Mary who sat at the Saviour's feet and feasted on the word of life ; and her sister Martha, who served joyfully on the Lord; its Elizabeth, who walked in all the ordinances of God blameless; its Anna, who departed not from the temple, but served God day and night; its Dorcas, who was full of good works and alms-deeds ; its Lydia, who cheerfully entertained the Apostles; its Priscilla, who expounded to Apollos the way of God more fully; and its Eunice, who enjoyed unfeigned faith in God: these, shining with Christian effulgence, may be said to eclipse the stars of the heavenly galaxy. The perusal of history, particularly sacred history, is therefore most important.

The life of king David, the father of Solomon, was a chequered life, full of strifes, contentions, jealousies, wars, and rebellions, which seem to have left him little time for either reflection or devotion. But oh! how has the Church of God been blessed, notwithstanding his many engagements, by his devoted piety and heavenly poetry, often invoking not only man, but all nature, animate and inanimate, cherubim and seraphim, yea, the whole host of heaven, to unite with him in praising and magnifying the name of the Lord. The chords of his harp constantly sounded forth the praises of Jehovah, to the joy and delight of Israel and the universal Church.

This servant of the Most High had six sons born to him in Hebron ; namely, Amnon, Chileab, Absalom, Adonijah, Shephatiah, and Ithream; and four sons in Jerusalem, Shammuah, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon; and after reigning forty years, appointed Solomon, his son, as his successor, to reign over Israel; when, on that most impressive occasion, addressing Solomon, he said, “I

judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersover thou turnest thyself.” (1 Kings ii. 3.) Thus died that great prince, blessing the God of Israel, “in a good old age, full of days, crowned with riches and honour.”

The following historical account of king Solomon cannot be uninteresting to the young Christian, as the scattered accounts of his life and reign, given by the several prophets, are brought together; and, for the first time, appear as a connected history, every page of which, while he retained his piety towards God, is rich with instruction to the humble believer, and fraught with wisdom for the consideration of the wisest states

man.

This history, independently of king Solomon, is by no means uninteresting, for as it relates many minor events of his reign, we are made acquainted with the customs, manners, and prosperity of the Israelites, who lived 1015 years B. C., as well as with their zeal and munificent liberality for God's honour, the nature and order of the government, its ecclesiastical and civil establishments, as well as with the extent of the foreign commerce that was then carried on.

CHAPTER I.

ADONIJAH'S PLOT DEFEATED—SOLOMON PROCLAIMED

KING.

THRONES, dominion, and power have, in every age, awakened ambitious principles in man. No sooner did king David draw nigh the time of his dissolution, than Adonijah, the son by his wife Haggith, conceived ambitious projects, and exclaimed, “I will now be king!” Adonijah was David's fourth son-a pet boy. It is recorded of him, “ that his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, “Why hast thou done so ? and he also was a very goodly man.” (1 Kings i. 6.) One might have supposed that the judgments passed on the house of Eli, on account of the vile conduct of his sons, would have guarded David from undue fondness towards his children. What is here said of his affection for Adonijah, may not be unjustly applied to his conduct towards his son Absalom, who some years previously conspired against so good a father, and perished ignominiously. (2 Sam. xviii. 9-15.) Whilst David grieved not his son Adonijalı, there is no reason to doubt but that he, no less than Amnon and Absalom, occasioned extreme grief to David. Had David maintained parental authority, it is more than probable that Adonijah would not have aspired to the throne, and that in violation of the settled succession in favour of Solomon, which was by God's appointment, and which Adonijah must have known, for it is clearly stated in the 22d