THE SON OF JESSE ON THE THRONE. 2038

ever he reached the place; he must wait until he heard
the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees,—
that was to be the signal.

Johnnie. What is the meaning of a going in the tops
of the trees ?

Grandfather. It was a sound like the march of an
army on the tops of the trees, and it was to be a signal
to David that the Lord was there, and that the hosts of
heaven were fighting for him. So assisted, David could
not fail to obtain a complete victory over the Philistines.

We hear of many more of David’s victories, but they
are shortly told. He went out against the Philistines,
and took possession of their capital, and the towns be-
longing to it. He smote the Moabites, and brought
them under tribute. He then went against the Syrians
of Zobah and defeated them, taking from them their
chariots and laming their horses. The Syrians of Dam-
ascus went to assist their brethren, which gave David
an opportunity of conquering them too, and bringing
them under tribute. The king of Israel also put garri-
sons in Edom, and made the Edomites his tributaries.
By the conquests of David, the Israelites were brought
into full possession of all the territory which God had
promised to the seed of Abraham, but which was pos-
sessed by only two of their kings, David and his son
Solomon. Many gifts of very precious things were
brought to David by the neighbouring princes, who
respected him for his greatness and his power. These
gifts he dedicated to the Lord; teaching us that we