2 Samuel 21:10

If the love of a woman for her slain sons could make her prolong her mournful vigil for so long a period, should we weary of considering the sufferings of our blessed Lord? She drove away the birds of prey, and should we not also chase from our meditations those worldly and sinful thoughts which defile both our minds and the sacred themes with which we are occupied?

Away, you birds of evil wing! Leave the sacrifice alone! She bore the heat of summer, the night dews, and the rains, unsheltered and alone. Sleep was chased from her weeping eyes; her heart was too full for slumber. Behold how she loved her children! Should Rizpah endure thus, and should we recoil at the first little inconvenience or trial?

Are we such cowards that we cannot bear to suffer with our Lord? She chased away even the wild beasts, with a courage unusual for a woman, and will we not be ready to encounter every foe for Jesus’ sake? Her children were slain by other hands than hers, and yet she wept and watched: what ought we to do, who by our sins have crucified our Lord?

Our obligations are boundless, our love should be fervent, and our repentance thorough. To watch with Jesus should be our business, to protect his honor our occupation, to abide by his cross our solace. Those ghastly corpses might well have frightened Rizpah, especially by night, but in our Lord, at the foot of whose cross we are sitting, there is nothing revolting, but everything attractive.

Never was living beauty so enchanting as a dying Saviour. Jesus, we will watch with you yet awhile. Graciously unveil yourself to us; then we will not sit beneath sackcloth, but in a royal pavilion.