CHAPTER II.

SECOND THOUGHTS-THE LOST ASSES.

"And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice,

and make them a king. And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his city. Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power. And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people. And the asses of Kish, Saul's father, were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses."-1 Sam. viii. 22; ix. 1-3.

IN advancing from the circumstances under which the people of Israel asked for a king, to the actual history of the man in whose elevation their desire was granted, we are reminded at once by the former portion of the passage placed at the head of this chapter, that when God has in His wisdom and mercy withheld anything from us, because He knows it would be no real blessing, because He sees that the feelings which it would gratify are mistaken and mischievous, because in every point of view we should be better without it—

WISHES GRANTED IN DISPLEASURE.

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when God has done this, and we nevertheless will persist in desiring it, and make up our minds not to be happy without it, He may at length allow us to have our own way; but the very answer to our wishes will come as a proof of His displeasure, and we shall really be receiving a punishment and not an approval. The Lord said, "Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king." "So He gave them up to their own heart's ways.". "I gave them a king in mine anger." Far better is it to be made to feel that our desires are wrong, far better is it to have our prayers denied in mercy, to have our wishes disappointed by heavenly wisdom, than to have them granted in divine displeasure. We see this in the case of Israel; let us receive the admonition ourselves. Let our first concern be to scrutinize our desires, to see if they do correspond with God's revealed. will; and, if they do not, let us not venture a moment's entertainment of them, lest God should take us at our word, and cause us, in the very possession of that for which it was wrong to ask, to read our sin and folly. In this respect, what thanks we owe to God for denying us many of our most urgent requests, what mercy have we lived to discover in some of our heaviest disappointments; and now, as we review the past, we can lift the voice of

praise at the thought of how much kinder a part God has acted towards us in not giving what we asked, than if He had hearkened to our voice, and satisfied our importunity.

And yet, though God gave the Israelites their own way, when they would not be convinced of their error, but would covet that which would make them "like other nations," it was not till the very last not until He had allowed them a further opportunity of reviewing their course. Sometimes arguments which have failed to convince amidst the excitement and warmth of a public assembly, will recur with power and impressiveness in the quietude and retirement of home. Sometimes a course of conduct, which has been determined upon under the influence of misdirected thoughts, will look very differently when it has been thought over in that sober light which solitude and reflection cause to fall on matters brought within their reach. We have felt, many a time, that we could not give our friends a better piece of advice than to think again before they acted; and we ourselves, probably, are no strangers to the advantages of acting upon "second thoughts," rather than upon first impressions. Thus it is that, when men are going wrong, and are about to bring upon themselves the tokens of the divine displeasure, we often observe that God allows them a little

space for

SPACE FOR REPENTANCE.

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second thoughts" and for maturer consideration. The Israelites accordingly were dismissed to their homes: "Go ye every man unto his city."

In the command that they should retire—in the not proceeding to the actual election of a king at the moment we seem to hear divine mercy appealing once more to their better feelings, and whispering, "Go and think." "Go and consider your ways. "Ask yourselves

once more whether it will indeed be better to set aside God as your sovereign, and to have a king like the other nations?" We discover here the same kindness which had been shown to Pharaoh, when, as the heavy stroke of divine displeasure was about to fall upon that rebel and his land, a time for second thoughts was given him; and, as it is recorded, Exod. ix. 5, "The Lord appointed a set time, saying, Tomorrow the Lord shall do this thing in the land." To-morrow-not to-day: to-morrowby that time he will have bethought himself: to-morrow-by that time he can weigh the consequences of further obstinacy: to-morrow-and in the meantime I give him space for repentance. The point here singled out for observation is one which often comes before our notice now, if we will carefully watch God's providential dispensations. How frequently does it happen,

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UNLOOKED-FOR DELAYS.

that when men are bent upon some evil act, some wicked course, which, if followed out, must bring with it the displeasure of Heaven, there occurs an unlooked-for circumstance which delays the execution of their purpose for a few hours or days; which necessitates a pause; which renders it impossible to proceed further just then. They are annoyed at the interruption— mortified at the impediment; but if conscience were awake and faithful, it would hear God saying, "Sinner, I stand between thee and thy ruin a few days longer; I give thee the mercy of a few hours' delay. Go home; go and consider. Go to thy bible; go to thy closet; go to the mercy-seat: go, ere it be too late; and pause ere thou dost resolve on persistence in thy unholy desire-in thy ungodly plan." Would that advantage had been more often taken of such a mercy that the delay had been employed for reflection and repentance! how many a victory might have been gained over temptation-how many a wretched dying bed might have been prevented-how many a soul might have been recovered-how many a broken heart saved! But it has been too often in such cases as it was in Israel's conduct. They did not heed; they did not feel; they did not profit by the voice which said, "Go ye every man unto his city."