THE GIFT OF CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 3 1924 092 354 996 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924092354996 MESSRS. MACMILLAN & CO.'S PUBLICATIONS. Hspects of 3ubai8in : BEING EIGHTEEN SERMONS BY ISRAEL ABRAHAMS AND CLAUDE MONTEFIORE. SECOND EDITION, INCLUDING TWO ADDITIONAL SERMONS. Fcap. 8vo, 3S. 6d. net. TIMES. — ' There is a great deal in them that does not appeal to Jews alone, for, especially in Mr. Montefiore's addresses, the doctrines advocated, with much charm of style, are often not by any means exclusively Jewish, but such as are shared and honoured by all who care for religion and morality as those terms are commonly understood in the western world.' JEWISH CHRONICLE— ^Th^ study of a work by these two authors Is like an intimate acquaintance with a charming and cultured person— it is a liberal education in itself^ a study fertile in interest, and fruitful of good. . . . There are not many books published in the present day of which it can he said that they will do no harm, and unlimited good. £ut of this book it is possible to say so^ and higher praise cannot be given.' SPECTATOR.—' Interesting and suggestive.* jfestival StuMes: BEING THOUGHTS ON THE JEWISH YEAR. BY ISRAEL ABRAHAMS. Crown 8vo, 2S, 6d. fH^aimonibea BY DAVID YELLIN AND ISRAEL ABRAHAMS. Globe 8vo, 3S. 6d, net. ^be Jewish (Sluacterl^ IReview- EDITED BY /. ABRAHAMS AND C. G. MONTEFIORE. Numbers, 3s. 6d. each. Yearly Volumes, 15s. Annual Subscription, Post Free, iis. >^-< ' MACMILLAN & CO., Ltd., LONDON. ^be Bible fov 1bome IReabing, EDITED, WITH COMMENTS AND REFLECTIONS FOR THE USE OF JEWISH PARENTS AND CHILDREN^ C. G. MONTEFIORE. Pari II, Containing Selections from the Wisdom Literature, the Prophets^ and the Psalter^ together with Extracts from the Apocrypha. Crown 8vo, 5s, 6d. net. JEWISH CHRONICLE.— "V\\e, scliolarsliip, the spiritual hisifflit, the attractive style which distinguished the first part of Mr. Montefiore's Bibh for Home Read hte are dis- played in their fullest development in the second part, now happily published. But, good as the older book was, the new is even better. Mr. Montefiore had indeed a great responsibility. How wonderfully he has risen to the occasion, how splendid a use he has made of the opportunity, we shall endeavour to show. But we cannot refrain from saying; that this book is the despair of a reviewer. One cannot Iiope to do justice to such a work when its 800 pages are full to overflowing of learning simply utilized, of moral truths reverently enunciated, of spiritual possibilities forcibly realized, while over all there hovers a charm indefinable, yet easily and inevitably felt by any reader of the book. We will, however, try to indicate some of the excellencies of Mr. Montefiore's book, the publication of which is the most important literary event of recent years, so far as the English-speaking Jews are concerned. ... As masterly as it is spiritual, as scholarly as it is attractive.' BRITISH WEEKLY.—^ h\\\\o\!L^ primarily intended for the use of Jewish homes, Mr. Montefiore's edition of the Bible cannot fail to find its way into the hands of Christian parents. These will find in it much to instruct and much to edify. ... If in some respects readers are likely to differ from his judgments, they will certainly recognize that this is a felicitous and instructive method of dealing with the Bible.' CHRISTIAN WORLD.— > Like its predecessor, full of deep interest for a wider than the Jewish circle to which it is immediately addressed.' tTbe Booft Of psalms. Edited for the use of Jewisli Parents and Children. By C. G. Montefiore. Crown 8vo. is. net. Xiberal Subaism. An Essay. By C. G. Montefiore. Crown 8vo. 3^. net. ^vutb in IReligion, anb otber Sermons. By C. G. Montefiore. Crown 8vo. is. 6d, net. > *- < MACMILLAN & CO., Ltd., LONDON. THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING MONTEFIORE THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING EDITED WITH COMMENTS AND REFLECTIONS FOR THE USE OF JEWISH PARENTS AND CHILDREN BY C a MONTEFIORE FIRST PART TO THE SECOND VISIT OF NEHEMIAH TO JERUSALEM MACMILLAN AND CO, Limited NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 1907 ^^All rights reserved] 3, [(oQ,l First Edition, i8g6 Reprinted, 1897, 1S99, 1902, 1905, ^907 OXFOKD : HORACE HART PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY i DEDICATE THIS BOOK TO MY SON LEONARD NATHANIEL GOLDSMID-MONTEFIORE IN HOPE AND LOVE Love is strong as death ; The passion thereof is hard as Sheoh Its heat is the heat of fire, A very flame of the Lord! Many waters cannot quench love^ Neither can the floods drown it: If a man would give all the substance of his house for love, He would utterly be despised. PREFACE The present volume^ as its name implies^ is intended for use in Jewish homes. There are many parents who are unwilling to place the entire Bible in the hands of their children. Moreover, mere extracts from the Bible without comment will hardly suit them any better. They want some help towards its explanation. It is not difficult to see why. These people no longer believe that every word in the Bible is historically accurate, nor are they unaware that there are many varieties or degrees in its ethical and re- ligious teaching. Some things in the Bible seem morally and religiously on a far higher level than other things. Some laws of the Pentateuch seem to them temporary and obsolescent^ others jgei'manent and abiding. Though they may not have The Preface can easily be detached from the body of the book by cutting the yellow thread between pages iv and v. prophecies were not an3~never can be fuTfiHed. It is for people such as these and for their children that b Love is strong as death ; The passion thereof is hard as Sheoh Its heat is the heat of fire, A very flame of the Lord! Many waters cannot quench hve^ Neither can the floods drown it : If a man would give all the substance of his house for love, He would utterly be despised. PREFACE The present volume^ as its name implies^ is intended for use in Jewish homes. There are many parents who are unwilling to place the entire Bible in the hands of their children. Moreover^ mere extracts from the Bible without comment will hardly suit them any better. They want some help towards its explanation. It is not difficult to see why. These people no longer believe that every word in the Bible is historically accurate^ nor are they unaware that there are many varieties or degrees in its ethical and re- ligious teaching. Some things in the Bible seem morally and religiously on a far higher level than other things. Some laws of the Pentateuch seem to them temporary and obsolescent, others permanent and abiding. Though they may not have read a single book on Biblical criticism or theology, they know that the great scholars of to-day think very differently about the age and authorship of the books of the Bible from what was thought about them by their own teachers or parents. They are well aware that it is now widely main- tained by the best authorities that Moses did not write the entire Pentateuch, and that it is not the work of one author or of one age, but of many authors and many ages. They have heard that few scholars now believe that David or Solomon wrote many, and that many scholars believe that they wrote none, of the Psalms or Proverbs which bear their name. It is not an unfamiliar fact to them that many of the prophecies were not and never can be fulfilled. It is for people such as these and for their children that b 11 PREFACE this volume has been composed. It was primarily begun from the necessity of doing something for the Biblical instruction of my own boy, but when I was once at work, my imaginary audience became wider, though hardly less definite. For the persons I have described seem quite familiar to me. They are naturally in great difficulties a^ to what they shall (or shall not) say to their children about the Bible. Perhaps the simplest (though not the noblest) plan which will suggest itself may be to say nothing. Their children will pick up their knowledge of the Bible as they go along ; from their professional teachers, or from their companions, or from occasional attendances at a synagogue. Perhaps they will be allowed (at a certain age) to read the Bible, or an 'expurgated^ edition of it, by themselves. Perhaps they will be fed on ' Bible stories.^ The parents themselves will keep aloof from the whole subject as much as possible. If they read the Bible with their children at all, they will seek to ignore all those critical and ethical difficulties which did not perplex and were not visible to their own parents, but which do perplex and are visible to themselves. They will argue. Let the child, as he grows up, hear or learn about these high matters for himself, and draw his own conclusions. They may therefore be even willing to imply that every statement in the Bible is historically accurate, and every sentiment of equal religious value. But even those who employ this method of silence or evasion will probably feel that it is not free from grave objection. For that the Bible should be emphatically a book, if not the Book, of Home Reading will scarcely be denied. That parents should let their children drift with regard to this book of books is surely reprehensible. They should not surrender a high responsibility as well as a great privilege. On the other hand, apart from the great danger involved in allowing the child to ^find out about criticism and all that ' for himself, and apart from the religious recoil which PREFACE lU such a procedure may nowadays involve^ it is both morally and educationally very doubtful how far it is advisable for a parent to teach something which he does not himself believe. Even if he imply what he does not believe rather than assert it^ nevertheless his teaching will lack the genuine ring of sincere interest and whole-hearted conviction. It will carry with it little weight and inspiration ; though it be believed for a time^ the subsequent rebound and revolt may. be dangerous and hurtful. And here it is well to make at once an impoi'tant dis- tinction. It matters comparatively little if it be implied that a given statement is historically ^ true^^ when it is believed to be historically * false ^ ; but if it be implied that it is morally and religiously true^ when it is believed to be morally and religiously false^ the injury done is educationally far greater. For example. It does not much matter if we suffer our children to believe that a certain man called Elisha made ^ iron swim,^ but it does matter very seriously if we allow it to be believed that God deliberately sent two she-bears out of a wood to destroy forty-two children because they had hap- pened to say a rude word to a passing stranger. It does matter very seriously if we allow the approving verdict which the compiler of the Books of Kings puts into God^s mouth upon the series of murders committed by Jehu to pass unquestioned and undenied, Plato's ' outlines of theology ^ (in the second book of the Bepuhlic) have not yet lost their validity or power. ^ God is good and God is true ' : from these canons or standards of moral and religious assessment we must never consciously swerve. In the spirit of Plato we too might say that many stories in the Bible are probably ' untrue/ ^ not because they necessarily misrepresent facts^ but because the lapse of time prevents us from knowing whether any facts underlie them ' (Theory of Education in the Republic of Plato by R, L, Nettleship, in Hellenicay p. 93). This kind of untruth is IV PREFACE educationally of small nioment or concern to us. But they may also, like the story of Elisha and the she-bears, ^be untrue in another and more serious sense; they may not only veil our want of historical knowledge, they may also contradict our fundamental ideas about the subjects of which they treat ; they may be not only unhistorical, but morally or metaphysically inconsistent and illogical/ If, for example, ^ the subject-matter is the divine nature,^ then since * of this nature we must have a more or less definite conception,^ wherever any story ' contradicts that conception, we must pronounce it false ^ in the second and more serious sense. Such stories, then, in a Bible for Home Reading must either be omitted altogether (as the ^ bear ^ story is omitted in the present book), or their ^ falsity ^ must be clearly pointed out (as e. g. in the present volume in the case of the historian^s estimate of King Jehu). The plan which I have adopted will familiarize children from the first with the actual words of the English Bible. My own remarks and comments, printed in smaller type, are partly explanatory and partly homiletical. The passages in larger type are direct quotations from the Bible. Whether it be history, legislation, or prophecy, in each case I have let the Bible speak for itself without paraphrase of my own. So far as the large type passages are concerned, my work in them is limited to omissions and, occasionally, to rearrangement. The Authorized Version is the basis of the translation, but I have frequently corrected it, either where its rendering of the Hebrew is almost certainly erroneous, or where the Hebrew text, on which the Authorized Version depends, is in all probability corrupt, or where, at any rate, a better sense can be obtained by following the Septuagint or the conjectural emendation of a modern scholar. But of such emendations unsupported by the Septuagint or any other of the Versions very few have been introduced into the present volume. PREFACE ' V I do not, however, see why parents and children should not have the advantage of a good translation of the Bible made from a tolerably good text. Occasionally I have modernized the phraseology of the Authorized Version, but I have by no means been consistent on this head. The division into chapters and verses is neither indicated nor followed, but the two copious indexes at the end will make it perfectly easy for any one to see at a glance, first, in what chapter and verses of the Bible any large type passage in my book may be found, and, secondly, whether any particular verse or chapter in the Bible has been included, and if so, on what page it occurs. In so large a work, for the compilation of which I have not had a great deal of leisure, I have naturally borrowed heavily from the labours of others. My chief authorities and guides in my departures from the Authorized Version have been our own wonderful English Variorum Bible, edited (in the Old Testament portions) by Professor Cheyne and Professor Driver, and the no less admirable German Bible, called Die heiUge Schrift des alien Testaments ilhersetzt und herausgegehen von Prof, E, Kautzsch. In quotations from Isaiah and the Psalms I have been specially aided by the .translations of Professor Cheyne. The present volume begins with Abraham and goes down to Nehemiah. Why I begin with Abraham, and not with the creation and the story of Paradise, is sufficiently explained in my last chapter, in which excerpts from the first eleven chapters of Genesis, with the requisite remarks and ex- planations, will be found. It is enough to say here that I consider these early chapters too full of grave moral and religious difficulties to form a suitable beginning. A collection of Laws from the Pentateuch is given in my sixth chapter. Joshua and Judges (except the story of Samson) are entirely omitted; tales of bloodshed and slaughter, unredeemed by moral teaching, yet set too often VI PREFACE in a pseudo-religious framework^ are very unsuitable in a Bible for Home Reading. In tbe history from Samuel onward I have inserted many extracts from the Prophets in their proper or chronological order. A glance at the second index will show how much of the prophetical literature is included in the present volume. Many other passages wiil be found in its successor^ which will also contain selections from the Psalter, the Proverbs, and from other books the date of which falls after Nehemiah. In that second volume I trust to carry the history down to the Maccabean period, and to insert select portions from the Apocrypha. I have said that the book is intended for parents. But it is also intended to be put directly into the hands of children. As regards my own comments^ they are of varying difficulty, like the different portions of the Bible itself. Some of them could be understood by an intelligent child of nine or ten ; others could be only understood by an intelligent child of thirteen or fourteen. But from my own point of view, and therefore, ex hypothesis from the point of view of the parents for whom my book has been prepared, there is nothing in it which would do a young child any harm. He would simply find that certain passages (both in the large type and the small) were neither interesting nor intelligible to him. If, however, any child should read the last chapter of the book before he can fully understand the comments upon it, I hope that the parent or teacher may be able so to simplify those comments as to reach the intelligence of the child. If the child should happen to feel no ethical or religious diffi- cultieSj no harm will be done. If he does feel them, he will certainly mention them (unless he has been improperly checked), and if he does mention them, I hope that my explanations may provide the questioned authority with an adequate reply. It should be added that this preface can easily be detached from the body of the book by cutting the yellow string between pages iv and v. PREFACE vn Whether I have attempted an hnpossible combination^ time must decide. My aim has been to combine criticism with reverence^ truthfulness with affection. There is no reason to my mind why one cannot say as reverently that the Pentateuch was written by many people as that it was written by Moses, A child will accept the one state- ment as readily as the other. And if it knows the truth from the first, it will have nothing to unlearn ; it will be liable to no shock or revelation from which we may fear recoil. The command, ^Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself/ is not less great because there are many things in the Bible on lower ethical levels. I have not scrupled to point out that we do the Bible an ill turn by refusing to indicate to the child what is less good in it and what is more. The noblest and grandest passages shine out all the more resplendently if differences of worth are freely recognized. The inspiration of the letter of Scripture is not a dogma which commends itself to the growing thought of the world or of Judaism. Yet I trust that a child whose religious training is based on my ^ Bible for Home Reading' will learn to love the Bible with a love at once emotional and intelligent. The growth of religious ideas will prove as interesting to him as the history of the people among whom these ideas ripened and developed. Throughout the narrative his attention will be directed to the great moral and religious truths, the sum of which constitute alike the essence of the Bible and the creed of Judaism. He will learn how readily they detach themselves from any dross or alloy by which they may be surrounded, or from the temporary or obsolete setting in which at the first they may have been presented to the world. He will be taught to recognize them easily, to hold them fast and to hold them dear. Such a presentation of the Bible is, I take it, a reasonable tribute in the service of Him who is not only the God of Goodness, but also the God of Truth. via PREFACE Most persons who write in a hortatory way about re- ligion or morality must feel constantly humiliated by the painful difference between advocated practice and personal performance. One man writes about forgiveness^ and is conscious of resentment. Another may speak in cadenced periods of the power of love^ but at the hour of peril he may have failed to cast the die for lovers sake believingly. A third may sing the praises of fidelity and self-sacrifice, but there may be those who could read and say, ^ Art thou the man to utter words like these ? ^ In reply it can only be said that the written word becomes impersonal. Even as in one direction it cannot be charged with the experience which gives to it its seal of realized truth in the mind of the writer, so in the other direction it must not be allowed to remain unsaid, or, being said, be held as valueless, because the indi- vidual life may have violated the bidding which it contains or fallen short of the ideal which it advocates. In conclusion, it is my pleasant duty to acknowledge very gratefully the valuable help which I have received from four friends in the course of my work. These four friends are Mrs, Nathaniel Cohen, Mrs. Morris Joseph, Miss Esther Lawrence, and Mr, Israel Abrahams. Each of these read through the whole book in proof, and made numerous excellent suggestions, many of which I have been able to adopt. Occasionally I have mentioned my debt, but far more often I have used their advice without special acknow- ledgement. It has been a great stimulus and encouragement to carry on my work with the sympathy and counsel of critics so wise and discerning. I now tender to all four very hearty and grateful thanks. They would, perhaps, like me to add that they are in no sense responsible for my work, nor must it be assumed that they approve of every part of it. CONTENTS CHAPTER I WHAT THE BIBLE IS AND WHO WROTE IT * FAOa 1 . The greatness of the Bible, and when it >Yas written . i 2. The two great subjects of the Bible .... 3 3. The Jews and the Bible ...... 4 4. How the Jews learnt about Goodness and God , . 5 5. A recapitulation 8 CHAPTER II THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM § I. The Hebrews and their history . 2. The stories of tradition 3. Abraham and his call 4. Abraham's journey to Canaan , 5. Abraham and Lot 6. Abraham's faith in God , 7. Hagar the Egyptian . 8. The birth of Isaac . 9. Hagar and Ishmael . 10. * For ten's sake ' . . . 11. The great trial of Abraham's faith 12. The death and bui'ial of Sarah , 13. Eliezer and Rebekah . , 9 10 10 II 12 14 15 16 16 17 19 21 22 CONTENTS CHAPTER III ISAAC AND HIS TWO SONS 1. Isaac and Abimelech 2. The red pottage 3. The stolen blessing 4. Jacob sent to Laban 5. Jacob's dream . 6. Leah and Rachel 7. Eaau forgives Jacob 8. Jacob's sons • CHAPTER IV * THE STORY OF JOSEPH 1. Joseph and his brethren . 2. Joseph in Egypt . , . , 3. Dreams and their interpretation 4. The great famine and Joseph's brothers 5. Recognition and reconcilement . 6. Jacob in Egypt .... 7. The death of Jacob .... CHAPTER V THE EXODUS FROM EGYPT AND THE LTEE OF MOSES § I . The Hebrews in Egypt increase and multiply 2. Oppression of the Hebrews: the birth of Moses 3. Moses and the priest of Midian , 4. God reveals himself to Moses . 5. Moses, and Aaron before Pharaoh 6. The Exodus . . • . 7. A song of triumph • 8. The Passover and its meaning . 9. The journeyiugs of the Hebrews 10, Uncertainties of the route . - 1 1 , Tbe visit of Jetliro . CONTENTS XI j 12. Mount Sinai and the Hebrew laws 13. A few words about Idolatry 14. The giving of the Ten Words . 15. ' A kingdom of priests ' 16. Cardinal or fundamental laws . 17. The first and second Words x8. The third Word : fear and reverence . 19. The Sabbath, and how to spend it 20. The fifth Word 21. The sixth, eighth and ninth Words 22. The tenth Word 23. Different ways of counting up the Ten Words 24. A second version of the Ten Words 25. Moses on Mount Sinai 26. The story of the golden calf 27. The glory of God 28. Bread from heaven . 29. The seventy elders . 30. Caleb and the spies . 31. Moses and the waters of Meribah 32. Aaron's death .... 33. Edom, Moab and Ammon . 34. Balak and Balaam , 35. Settlements east of Jordan 36. The exhortations of the ' Retrospect' 37. The death of Moses .... PAQE 79 80 83 83 84 84 86 91 92 93 94 94 96 97 99 100 103 106 III 113 113 121 123 ^33 CHAPTER VI THE LAWS OF THE HEBREWS 1. Various laws of various values 137 2. Obsolete and living laws . . . . . * ^31 3. Laws about religious festivals : Passover and Pentecost 138 4. The feast of Tabernacles ...... 141 5. Some remarks on Pentecost and Tabernacles . -143 6. The Day of Memorial ...... 145 7. The Day of Atonement . , . . . .146 c 2 xu CONTENTS § 8. Laws about goodness 9. Justice and honesty . 10. Servants and pledges 11. The widow and the orphan 12. Strangers and foreigners . 13. Brotherly helpfulness and charity 14. Kindness to animals . 15. ' Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself CHAPTER VII SAMSON, EUTH, SAMUEL AND SAUL § I. Joshua and the conquest of Canaan 2. The judges and their age , 3. The Philistine supremacy . 4. The story of Samson 5. The story of Euth . 6. Foundation of the monarchy 7. Samuel's birth and childhood . 8. Samuel and Eli 9. The death of Eli . . . 10. Samuel and Saul . ... 1 1. Saul's victory over the Ammonites 12. King Saul and his son Jonathan 13. A later version of the establishment of the monarcliy 14. SamueFs speech ...... CHAPTER VIII THE REIGN OF SAUL AND THE ACCESSION OF DAVID 1. Quarrel between Saul and Samuel 2. The melancholy of Saul 3. The story of David and Goliath. 4. Samuel and David . 5. David fights against the Philistines 6. Saul's jealousy of David and Jonathan's love CONTENTS Xlll § 7. Saul kills the priests of Nob 8. David the outlaw 9. David spares Saul's life 10. Nabal and Abigail . 11. David flees to Achish, King of Gath 12. David and the Philistine lords . 13. Saul and the woman at En-dor . 14. Death of Saul and Jonathan 15. The burning of Ziklag 16. David hears of the death of "Saul and Jonathan PAGE 210 212 215 217 220 221 223 225 225 227 CHAPTER IX THE BEIGN OF DAVID I. The rival kings : Eshbaal and David . 231 2. The death of Abner • 233 3- The murder of Eshbaal .... . 235 4- David's campaigns against the Philistines . . 236 5. The capture of Jerusalem .... . 237 6. David and Meribbaal .... • 239 7- The Ammonites and the Syrians . 240 8. The story of Bathsheba .... . 242 9- Joab captures Kabbah .... . 244 10. Amnon and Absalom .... . 245 II. Absalom's rebellion . 248 12. Shimei and Sheba CHAPTER X THE IDEALIZING OP DAVID . 257 I. The historical David and the ideal king . . 263 2. David the ideal poet and psalmist . 264 3- Psalms ascribed to David .... . 264 4- The idealization of David in the Book of Chroni cles . 272 5- David's preparations for the building of the Ten iple . 274 XiV CONTENTS CHAPTER XI THE REIGN OF SOLOMON PAGE i. The character of Solomon .... . 279 2. Solomon's wisdom . -279 3- His wealth and splendour .... . 282 4- The building of the Temple . 285 5- Solomon's dedication prayer . 287 6. Comments upon this prayer . 292 1- Jeroboam's rebellion . . . . . . 296 CHAPTER XH FROM JEROBOAM TO OMRI : PROM REHOBOAM TO ASA 1. The reign of Rehoboam . . . . . • 299 2. The compiler of the Book of Kings and liis religion . 301 3. Sixty years of Judaean history . .... 303 4. A similar period in the history of Israel , . . 305 CHAPTER XIII ETGHTT YEARS OF ISRAELITE AND JUDAl I. The prophet Elijah .... ]AN I ITSTO RY 2. Elijah and Ahab .... 312 3. Elijah and the prophets of Baal 315 4. Naboth's vineyard .... 320 5. The Syrian wars .... 322 6. Elijah and the messengers of Ahaziah 327 7. The passing of Elijah ' 329 8. A campaign against Moab 330 9. Elisha and his miracles . . : 332 10. Elisha and the Syrians 339 II. Elisha and Hazael .... . 340 12. A famine and its horror . 341 13. Jehu's rebellion and bloodshed . 343' 1 4.' The reign of Jehoahaz of Israel . 348 15. Jehoshaphat, Jehoram and Ahaziah , 349 1 6. Athaliah and Jehoiada 351 CONTENTS XV CHAPTER XIV THE THREE GREAT PROPHETS OF THE EIGHTH CENTURY PAGE § r. The death of Elisha • 355 2. Amos and the new departure . . 357 3. Zechariah, Shallum and Menahem . 361 4. The prophet Hosea ..... . 362 5. The fall of Samaria . 366 6. From Amaziah to Ahaz .... . 369 7. The prophet Isaiah •...., . 373 CHAPTER XV FROM THE PALL OF SAMARIA TO THE FALL OF JERUSALEM § I. Hezekiah's piety • . 2. King Sennacherib of Assyria 3. The invasion of Judah 4. Hezekiah's sickness and recovery 5. The embassy of Merodach-baladan 6. The pool of Siloam . 7. Manasseh and his wickedness . 8. Josiah and the book of the Law 9. The Retrospect and the Temple of Jerusalem 10. The death of Josiah . 1 1 . Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim . 12. Jeremiah the prophet 13. Jeremiah's call 14. Jeremiah denounces Jehoiakim . 15.- Sacrifices and goodness 16. Jeremiah and the Rechabites 17. The burning of the roll . 18. Jeremiah in the stocks 19. The parable of the potter , 20. The sinfulness of Judah , 21. Jeremiah's lonely misery . 22. The first exile under Jehoiachin 377 378 379 385 386 388 388 392 395 397 399 401 403 405 406 410 412 415 416 417 420 423 XVI CONTENTS PAGE J 23. Jeremiah's letter to the exiles 424 24. Zedekiah and the fall of the monarchy . . . 428 25. Jeremiah and the princes of Judah .... 43^ 26. The field of Hanamel . . , . . . . 435 27. Jeremiah and Gedaliah 43^ 28. The new covenant . . . . . . •447 29. The Lamentations ....... 45^ 30. From Moses to Jeremiah . ♦ . . • .461 CHAPTER XVI THE JEWISH EXILES IN BABYLONIA AND THE PROPHET EZEKIEL § I. Ezekiel's vision and call , . . , . '463 2. Ezekiel's teaching and its value , . . .468 3. The prophet's conception of the Golden Age to come . 475 CHAPTER XVII CYRUS AND THE SECOND ISAIAH § I. The career of Cyrus . 481 2 . The Second or Bahylonian Isaiah 483 3. * Comfort ye my people ' , 485 4. The Servant of the Lord . 489 5. Idol manufacture 491 6. Cyrus the deliverer . 492 7. Mission of the Servant 494 8. The Servant's longsuffering 495 9. His martyrdom and resurrection 497 10. The new Jerusalem . 499 II. Who is the Servant? . 501 CHAPTER XVIII FROM ZERUBBABEL TO NEHEMIAH 1. The return of the exiles .... 2. The building of the Temple 506 510 CONTENTS xvn § 3. Haggai and Zecliariah . 4. Ezra at Jerusalem . g. * A house of prayer for all peoples ' 6. Ezra's discomfiture , 7. Nehemiah's mission to Judaea 8. The building of the walls . 9. A bitter^ cry against usurers 10. Plots against Nehemiah 11. Dedication of the walls 12. The reading of the Law . 13. Protests against ritualism . 14. Second visit of Nehemiah to Jerusalem 15. Prophetic fragments of the Nehemian age 16. The glory to come .... PAGB 524 524 526 534 535 541 543 546 548 CHAPTER XIX TRADITIONS OF THE PAST: VISIONS OF THE FUTURE § I . The first chapter of the Bible . 2. The composition of the Pentateuch , 3. Deuteronomy, Numbers, Leviticus and Exodus 4. Genesis and its first eleven chapters , 5. Traditions about creation and primaeval times 6. Eeligious character of the ' first eleven chapters ' 7. The 'later law-book's' story of creation 8. Some comments upon this story 9. The second, or earlier, story of creation 10. Comments and reflections . 11. The lost paradise 12. The blessing of labour 13. Cain and Abel . 14. From Adam to Noah 15. The Flood and the Ark . 16. Eeflections on the narrative 17. The earlier story of the Flood and the Ark 18. The Assyrian story of the Flood 19. The Tower of Babel . 554 554 554 556 556 557 558 560 565 566 570 571 573 575 577 580 582 585 587 XVlll CONTENTS § 20. A psalm about the greatness of man , 21. God and Nature in the Psalter . 2 2. Nature's praise of Nature's Lord 23. A later song of praise .... 24. A spring-tide hymn ..... 25. The wisdom and goodness of God 26. An old Egyptian hymn .... 27. Prophetic visions of the future , 28. Three great prophecies in the Book of Isaiah 29. Lyric parallels to prophetic universalism , 30. The last word 589 589 592 595 597 598 602 603 604 607 608 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING CHAPTER I WHAT THE BIBLE IS AND WHO WROTE IT § I. This first chapter is introductory. In it I shall say some- thing of the Hehrew Bible generally, what it is about, when it was written, and by whom. First of all, what does the word Bible mean? It is a Greek word, and it simply means book. The books of the Greeks were written on material made from a plant called *Bublos/ and hence books were called 'Bibloi* or Biblia. * Bible' then means book; the * Bible' is the *book.' But we must put the accent on the little word *the.' The Bible is the book. If you know French, you will understand that we should . rightly call the Bible, the book ^ar excellence. And why 1 Because the Bible is the best and most important book in the world. The Bible was all written in Asia, but its influence has been greatest and widest in Europe and in all European settle- ments, such as the great and ever-growing ' settlement * of the United States of America. For Europe, America, Australia, the Bible is, as I have said, the most important book that has ever been written. In days to be it will perhaps become so for Asia and Africa as well. I cannot fully explain to you here and now in what ways it has been the most important book. Still I can say this. It has taught people more and helped people more ; it has made them better, gentler, nobler than any other book has done. It has taught them more about the most important things. Is it not wonderful 1 The Bible was written, as you will hear, very long ago by people who, in all sorts of ways, were very different not only from ourselves to-day but from most of the races and men who have heard and read it. And yet, notwithstanding these differences, they have all been helped by it. The reason is that B 2 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the Bible speaks of things which are common to all, and speaks of them in a gi-and, simple, and truthful way, which has appealed to men of all races and times. In danger and difficulty, in trouble and sorrow, there is no book which has been a greater comfort and strength than the Bible. Now I have spoken of the Bible as a book. But though it is a book in one sense, it is not a book in another. It is not one book, but many books collected together and bound up in a single volume. But as they have been collected together just as they now are for about 2,000 years, we speak of them not improperly as one book. Just as the Bible contains, and is made up of, many books, so these books are not all of one kind. We have history, poefry, proverbs, stories, hymns, and speeches in that wonderful and many-sided whole we call the Bible. All these books were not written at one and the same time. Indeed sometimes the parts of a single book were written at different times, inde- pendently of each other, and then pieced together by somebody else later on. People's idea of a book then was something very different from people's idea of a book now. There was no printing then : a book was written on scrolls, which were not cheap to buy like paper to-day. One man wrote something and somebody else added to it, and so a book grew up gradually, like some old castle in England of which part belongs to one period, and part to another, and a third to another still. The Hebrew Bible has been what it is now for about 2,000 years. 800 years before that there was probably no part of it in existence. That is to say, it took about 800 years for- the Bible to grow up. Some (but not much) was written about 2,800 years ago, some (but not much) was written not more than 2,000 years ago, so that between its oldest and newest parts there is a difference of 800 years. Think what a long time this is ! In 1066 the Battle of Hastings was fought, and William the Conqueror became King of England. In 1866 Victoria was England's Queen, Imagine a book begun while "William the Conqueror was King of England and finished while Victoria was Queen, and you have an idea how long it took before the Bible was finished. We must expect to find, and we do find, great differences of style and opinion in a book of which the oldest bits were written 800 years before the latest bits, and parts of which were written in each set of hundred years between the beginning and the end. How differently people think and feel now from what they thought and felt in the reign of William the Conqueror ! But we shall find that on some very important things the oldest and newest and in-between parts of the Bible think the same. In THE FORMATION OF THE BIBLE 3 William the Conqueror's time people thought courage a virtue and falsehood a vice, and people think the same under Victoria. Did you notice the words ' between the beginning and the end ' with which a sentence a few lines above finished up 1 This did not mean that, if you were to open a Hebrew Bible now, the oldest bit is on the first page, and the latest bit is on the last. By no means. The ages are jumbled together, and most of the many books which make up the one book, the Bible, are themselves growths, with old bits in them and new bits and in-between bits as well. In its language the Hebrew Bible presents no great varieties. The Hebrew of the oldest pieces is not quite the same as the Hebrew of the latest pieces, but the language changed more slowly than English. Even Chaucer, who lived only 500 years ago, wrote English which differs more from the English of Queen Victoria than the Hebrew of the oldest part of the Bible differs fi'om the Hebrew of the latest part. The Hebrew Bible has been translated into every civilized language, but it is much the best thing to read it in the language in which it was originally written. Our English translation is a very noble one, but the Hebrew is nobler still. The Germans have a very fine translation of the great English poet Shakespeare, but most Germans who are very fond of poetx^y and like Shakespeare learn to read him in English. And I hope that you, in the same way, will learn to I'ead the Bible in Hebrew. § 2. Now though the Bible is made up of many books, there are several other reasons why we may nevertheless speak of it as one book, besides the reason that these many books have been collected and bound up together for some 2,000 years. Let us now see what these reasons are. First of all, the Bible was all written by men of the same nation and people. Secondly, a great portion of it has to do with the history of that one nation, and it does not deal, except quite incidentally, with the history of any other. Thirdly, in spite of much variety, there is in the Bible a certain unity too. The poetry, for instance, is mainly of one kind ; it is religious poetry. The proverbs are mainly of one sort too. The history is not told for history's sake, but for a particular object. It is not so mucli told to tell people certain facts as to teach them the moral which to the writers seemed to underlie those facts. The Bible has to do with two great subjects, which, taken together, and in con- nexion with each other, make up what we call Keligion. (Hence the poetry of the Bible is, as I said just now, religious poetry.) These two great subjects are Goodness and God. The Bible tells us about God and Goodness ; this is what gives B % 4 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING to it its unity. This is what gives to it its unique value. No other book has told men so well and so truly of goodness and God as the Bible. All that it says about God and all that it says about goodness is not indeed of equal value and of equal truth : there are degrees of excellence and of worth. But, taken as a whole, no other book has spoken and still speaks of God and goodness as this book, the Bible. And this is what has made the Bible precious and beloved through so many ages and to so many very different peoples. For God and Goodness can never grow old. Men and women always want to know about them, and in this respect one age is the same as another. The poetry of the Bible is often very beautiful, but men have not loved it for its beauty. Its stories are often very interesting, but men have not read them again and again for their interestingness. Its proverbs are often very wise, but men have not learnb them for their wisdom. Its history records many facts, but men have not greatly cared for the facts. Just as the writers cared for the ' moral ' more than for the facts (and the later the historians the less they cared for the facts and the more for the moral), so its readers have always cared for the history of the Bible because they found in it something which told them about God and goodness, about virtue and vice, holiness and sin, about God's rule in the world and how he governs it for the best. § 3. The subject of the Bible, then, is Goodness and God. It was written in Hebrew by Hebrews and primarily for Hebrews. Hebrew was the name of a people (as English is the name of a people), who were afterwards called Jews. 1 who write this book and you who read it are Jews. Perhaps some of our great great great (and so on) fathers wrote a bit of the Bible itself. But we do not now sjpeak Hebrew. We talk and speak English, and we are English people. Later on you will come to understand better how we are both Englishmen and Jews. There are people who are both Italians and Jews, others who are both Germans and Jews, and so on. At present, then, I will merely say this : that you and I are Jews, and that the Bible was written by Jews and for Jews, and tells us about Jews. Therefore the Bible specially appeals, and is most specially interesting, to Jews. Shakespeare is a world-poet (all who care for poetry love Shakespeare), but he is perhaps quite especially adored by English people. The Bible is a world-book (all who care for goodness and God love the Bible), but it is perhaps quite especially adored by Jews. You now see why. It tells about their early history and doings. It was written by them, and, in the first place, for them. THE BIBLE AND THE JEWS 5 But as we Englishmen are rightly proud of Shakespeare, whom lovers of poetry in all countries think to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest poet who ever lived, so Jews are rightly proud of the Bible, which lovers of goodness and God think to be the greatest religion-book in all the world. The Bible, I say, tells us something of the early history of the Jews, or Hebrews as they were then called. It was wi'itten long ago and it tells of long ago, for the very latest words of the Bible were written some one hundred years before Julius Caesar landed in Britain, and he landed, as you know, about eleven hundred years before the battle of Hastings. Now let me bring together two main things which I have said. (i) The Bible tells us of God and Goodness. (2) The Bible was written by Jews, about Jews, and for Jews. Hence you see that, as the Bible has told the men of Europe and America and Australia the most of what they believe about God, and much which they believe about goodness, it is the Jews who have been the great world-teachers about goodness and God. And this is really so. Most, and the very best, of what men believe about God, and a very great deal of the very best of what they know and believe about goodness, was written by Jews and is found in the Bible. It is the Bible, and through the Bible it is the Jews, who have taught men not only to love God and to love goodness, but to see that the love of goodness is part and parcel of the love of God. § 4. You may perhaps ask: How did tlie Hebrews — the men who wrote the Bible — get to know so much and so well about God and goodness 1 That sounds an easy question, but it is really a difficult one. I cannot answer it fiilly because I do not fully know. The best answer I can give is this, that it was God who told them what they have told us. It was by God*s help and will that they wi'ote about him and about goodness the noble words which we read in the Bible. Let me explain what I mean a little more clearly. If there were no God, we should not know anything about him. If there were no God there would be no goodness. I believe that this is perhaps the most important sentence, telling the most important truth, in all the world. But when I say * it was God who told them,' I do not mean that he told them in the same way that I might tell you about a strange fish on the south coast of Africa which you had never seen or heard or thought of. God did not tell them, and does not tell us, things 6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING in that way. He does not pour knowledge into us as we pour water into an empty bottle. He has given us the power and the desire to know him and to be good, and if we use our power, he helps us to become good and to love him (for to know God and to love God are veiy near relations to each other). But over and above the help which he gives to every man, he gave a special help to the Jews, or perhaps I should say to the best men among the Jews, and to the men who wrote the Bible. He needed the Jews for his own good purpose to be the interpreters of his will to other nations and peoples. Through the Bible the Jews have taught the world about goodness and God, and so God told them more and let them know more about himself and how to serve him than he told to any other people. How exactly he told them I cannot tell you. That he told them, that he let them know a special and peculiar amount about himself and his service, that is a fact of history which everybody must accept. We shall soon hear various stories from the Bible itself how God told the Jews about himself and of his service and of righteousness and mercy; but the important thing is not exactly how the Jews were told, for their greatest men could hardly have explained it to you quite clearly themselves, but that they were told, that they someJiow received this higher and better knowledge of goodness and God, and that through them Europe and America and Australia have received it too. There was one particular way by which God led them and helped them to think and know gradually more and more of God and goodness. It was by their own lives and by their history. The past seemed to them full of religious lessons. And that was one reason why they wrote down the story of their past, and why one writer took up the work of another and added to it his reflections, and the moral which, as he thought, shone out from the whole. Have you and I not often learnt a little from our own past 1 We think to ourselves : If I had not done this, or if I had done that, how much better it would have been, and eo we learn from our mistakes and perhaps do better in the future. That is one way in which we learn from the past, and perhaps if you think of it you will find out other ways as well. Sometimes it may be our faults, sometimes it may be some good little act of another or of our own, sometimes it may be a joyful, and sometimes it may be a sad event which has befallen us — but in all these different ways we may learn a little more about goodness, and perchance too about God. So too the Jews learnt about goodness and God and the service of God by their history and their own lives. Actual life and practice, doing and being, these are often the best teachers. Not that the Jews were by any means perfect ; they made many and DIFFICULTIES OF THE BIBLE 7 sad luistakeSj and truth and error, goodness and imperfection, were often mixed up together in their words and thoughts and acts. Ood leads men gradually from the worse to the better, and we must humbly accept the ways in which he has taught mankind and teaches us still as the wisest and the best. He knows everything : we know mere tiny fragments here and there. But by the grace of God, the Jews in the long 800 years during which the Bible was written, got to know certain things about God and goodness whicli are very profoundly true, and have been, as I said before, immensely helpful and precious to millions of different people from age to age. It is these true and precious and helpful things which I want to tell you of as simply and clearly as I can. But you must not expect to know all about the Bible while you are still young. The Bible was written by grown-up men for grown-up people. Some of it was written by men in sore trouble, some of it by men struggling with thoughts that were new to them and to the world, and for which they could hardly find the proper and adequate words. Some of it was written by men in great excitement and under keen emotion. Some of it contains allusions to events which we do not clearly know, or to things which are difficult to explain. So the Bible is not by any means an easy book. Some of it we can understand well, but many parts of it are very hard indeed. Heaps of books have been written to explain it, and the explanations of one age have not always been the same as the explanations of another. As there was no printing in those far-off days, and the scrolls, when they got old and crumpled, had to be copied out again and again, mistakes crept in, so that we are sometimes quite unable to say what the Hebrew meaus, and can only be sure that there is a mistake, but cannot find out what the mistake is. Sometimes, no doubt, the original writers referred to things and circumstances which everybody who lived at the time knew perfectly well, but which we do not know at all, and we cannot therefore fully understand the meaning. Fancy if you wrote a letter to your father or mother about all sorts of things which they and you knew quite well, and if this letter were preserved and read again in 2,000 years. I dare say that your simple letter would seem very difficult indeed to the people who read it then ! Much of the Bible, then, is very difficult, and parts of it are only suited for grown-up people. My book is only an Introduction to the Bible, although there will be very many words of the Bible in it. I hope that it will make you understand and care for the Bible the better and the more when you read it for yourselves later on. My book will have then done its work and you can lay it aside. 8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING § 5. Now let me repeat once more very briefly the most important points in what I have hitherto said. The Bible tells us about three things, all three of which, as they are presented to W5 in the Bible, are closely connected with each other, (i) It tells us about God, and how we best can know him and serve him. (2) It tells us of Goodness, what we ought to be and do. (3) It tells us of the Hebrews, of their history and of its lessons, of their place and office in the world, of their hopes for the future, of their duty to themselves, to man- kind, and to God. There are not three separate sections of the Bible which tell us separately of these three things. For the most part they are closely mixed up together. I now propose to go through the history of the Hebrews in Bible times, and in doing so we shall hear a great deal of our first and second division as well as of our third. THE HEBREWS AND THEIR HOME CHAPTER II THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM § I. Who were the Helarews of whom I have already spoken so often ] The Hebrews did not live in Europe. They lived in Asia in a countiy sometimes called Palestine and sometimes the Holy Land, because it is the land of the Bible. Palestine now belongs to Turkey. It is part of ' Turkey in Asia,* that is, of that portion of the Sultan of Turkey's dominions which is situated in Asia. You will remember that a small piece of Europe also belongs to Turkey, and that its capital is the famous city of Constantinople, where the Sultan lives. Palestine, or rather that part of Palestine where the Jews lived, for they did not occupy the whole, is not a big country, and the Hebrews were never a very big people, according to our modern notions of bigness. The chief town of their country was the city of Jerusalem, a city still more famous even than Constantinople, though in a different way and for different reasons. But before going further let me ask everybody who reads this chapter of my book to have a good atlas by his side and to look at the maps of Asia, Turkey, and Palestine. The Hebrews had not always lived in Palestine. They had come, so the tradition ran, from far away, we do not exactly know from where, but it was somewhere in the distant East. Most pf them entered Palestine by crossing the river Jordan, which, as you see on the map, flows pretty straight from north to south. Their old homes, then, were somewhere in the eastern portions of Turkey in Asia. They were not at that time a people in our sense of the word. They were made up of wandering tribes or clans who stuck to each other more or less closely, but were not as united as the English or the French to-day. They were mostly shepherds, and had not yet learnt to stay in one spot and till the ground and build cities to live in. They moved from place to place, seeking pasture for their flocks and herds, and they lived a very simple and not very culti- vated life. Now before they settled in Palestine, though some of 10 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING them had roamed about in it already, they lived for a time, still as shepherds, in the north-eastern corner of Egypt. This stay in Egypt wasj as you will hear, the turning-point in their history. They always believed that it was the most important event which had ever befallen them : it was after they left Egypt that they permanently settled in Palestine. It was then too that they changed their way of life and learnt to till the soil and live in cities, and this change had a very great influence upon them both for good and for evil. To. Palestine, then, they came, and in Palestine they lived for many hundred years. § 2. Now you may readily understand that all these things, their wanderings from the East and their life in Egypt and their gradual settling down in Palestine, did not happen all in a moment 1 It took many hundred years. There were no books in our sense of tlie word among the Hebrews in those days, and it is possible that they did not even learn to write before they settled in Palestine. One generation could learn of past generations by tradition only. (Tradition means a handing down.) Stories were repeated from mouth to mouth, and as they were repeated they were changed and added to. It was not till long after the Hebrews had settled in Palestine that the stories about their early and earliest days were written down. Only parts of what was then written down, and these pieced together and modified by the compilers, have been preserved to us in the Bible. The Hebrews always dated the true beginning of their history as a people, of their national life, from the time when they left Egypt. But they had stories about mighty and famous heroes of old, their ancestors and progenitors, long before their leaving, or, as it is often called, their Exodus from Egypt. (Exodus means going out.) These stories went back to the time when they first began to move definitely from the East to the West. For some of them had been in Palestine before they wandered down to Egypt. § 3. The first great Hebrew hero of whom the stories told was a man called Abraham. Abraham, according to the Bible, was the first Hebrew who knew about the one true God, You and I have always been taught that there is one God and that God is one. * Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One ' was the first prayer we ever learnt to say. It seems to us a matter of course. But it has not always seemed a matter of course, and not everybody knows that there is only one God and that God is one even to-day. And in old 'days people used to THE CALL OF ABRAHAM ii think there were many gods, and some of them worshipped images, and made idols of wood and stone, and silver and gold, to represent or to imitate the various gods they believed in and adored. The Biblical writers held (though they were not all quite agreed as to this) that the father and family of Abraham were ' idolators/ worshippers of * other gods,' that is of moi'e gods than one, and therefore not of the one God who is really God. So it says in the Bible : * Your fathers (that is the ancestors of the Jews) dwelt of old time beyond the River (that is the river Euphrates), even Terah, the father of Abraham ; and they served other gods.* Then to Abraham the voice of the one and true God came and bade him leave his tribe and his family and his birthplace and go off almost alone, far away from friends and home, to live a purer life elsewhere with a fuller knowledge of God. What was the object of this great summons ] Why was Abraham bidden to leave his home 1 Some most religious Jews of later times believed that it was for the benefit of the world that he was told to go. They connected the very beginnings of their history with God's purposes for the world at large. Abraham, as it seemed to them, left his home that through him all the nations of the world should receive a blessing. And what was this blessing to be 1 It was that an ever-increasing number of men should get to know more and more, and better and better, about goodness and God. ' The voice of God came to Abraham.' Perhaps you ask, does the voice of God ever come to us? Surely, yes. When, for instance, we are inclined to do wrong, to be disobedient, to tell a lie from cowardice, or to be selfish and unkind, we know that a small voice within us, which we call our conscience, bids us resist that inclination and get the better of it. That is God's voice bidding us be good. And sometimes it urges us not only not to do something wrong, but to do something right. It seems to say, ' Do the right even if it is hard.' Surely that is the voice of God, The ancient Hebrews did not say, as we perhaps should say now, Abraham learnt by God's help and will to know God, and Abraham felt that he ought to leave his home and his family ; but they said more simply, God said unto Abraham, Do this and do that. But there is no very important difierence between our way of talking and theirs. If there were no God, there would be no goodness ; and not only so, but everything good is the will of God and done by God's help. § 4, The first part of Abraham's story, which, I suppose, told 12 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING how he got to feel and know that there were not many gods but one God, all good and all wise, has not been preserved for us. As we have it now the story begins thus : And God said unto Abraham, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will shew thee : and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing, and through thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abraham departed as God had spoken unto him, and his wife Sarah and his nephew Lot went with him. They set forth to go to the land that God would show them, that is, to the land of Canaan, as Palestine in those days was called. And at last 'unto the land of Canaan they came. And God said unto Abraham, Unto thy seed (that is, thy descendants) will I give this land. And Abraham worshipped God.* It is very little indeed that we hear about this great change in Abraham's life. Somebody may be inclined to ask why was it right for Abraham to leave his country and his home and his father's house 1 Well, we can notice that the circumstances were very strange and unusual, so strange and so unusual that what would not be right, for you and me may have been right for Abraham. It was necessary to make a clean break with the old ways, the false worship of the false gods. The new religion could not have prospered in the old surroundings. So Abraham must leave his home and go among strangers. He must make a great sacrifice for the sake of God, or rather for the sake of man, that through him and through the Jews, his descendants, men might get to know more and more about goodness and about God. Even at the present time men have often to leave their homes and their countries to find and do useful work in foreign lands. The foreign country becomes their home. As the Jews looked back upon their past history, and thought about Abraham and how he left his kindred and came to Palestine, they felt convinced that all this must have been done by and according to the will of God. In that divine call of Abraham from the far East there lay also the promise which was and is still being fulfilled, that the Jews, Abraham's descendants, should not only possess the land of Canaan, but should become the teachers of mankind about goodness and God. § g. One of the next things we hear about Abraham is how his nephew Lot separated from him. ABRAHAM AND LOT 13 Abraham was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. And Lot also, who went with Abraham, had flocks, and herds, and tents. And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together : for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together. And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abraham^s cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle. And Abraham said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen ; for we are brethren. Is not the whole land before thee ? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me : if thou wilt take the left hand, then I wiU go to the right ; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left. And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the Plain of Jordan, that it was weU watered every where. So Lot chose him all the Plain of Jordan ; and Lot journeyed east : and they separated themselves the one from the other. Abraham dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the Plain. And God said unto Abraham, after that Lot was separated from him. Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art, northward and southward and eastward and westward: for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth : so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. And Abraham moved his tent, and came and dwelt by the oaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and built there an altar unto God. Abraham built an altar unto God. You must ask your father or your mother, or whomsoever you read this book with, to show you a picture of an altar and to tell you clearly what it is. In old days people not only prayed to God and praised him by speech and song, but they also made sacrifices and offerings to him. Sometimes these offerings and sacrifices were animals, sometimes they were vegetable, as flour, barley, or oil. This custom was not peculiar to the Jews. On the contrary. They merely adopted it from their neighbours, for almost all peoples in ancient times ' sacrificed ' and made offerings to their respective gods. In time the greatest and best men among the Jews came to see that prayer and praise are a much better and purer way of worshipping God 14 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING than offerings and sacrifices. But it took a very long while before everybody thought so too. "What seems simple to us now was not always simple. Every child knows now that the earth goes round the sun, but for ages and ages everybody believed that the sun went round the earth, and it needed a very wise and learned man, called Galileo, to prove the truth. And at first hardly anybody believed him. So for generations the Jews honestly believed that the proper way of worshipping God was by sacrifices. After a time some wise and good men among them made them agree to a law by which no one was allowed to sacrifice except in the capital, at the great temple of Jerusalem. (The temple was in those days what a great synagogue or cathedral would be in ours.) So if any one wanted to worship God elsewhere, he had to praise and pray to him without any sacrifices. Thus the people were gradually taught how this, the more excellent way, could be sufficient by itself. And at last the temple of Jerusalem was destroyed and the Jews gave up sacrifices altogether. And though the Jews were very sorry at first that the grand temple was destroyed, they gradually came to see that its destruction was the will of God, who in this way helped them to give up sacrifices and to realize fully that the only sacrifice God cares for is the sacrifice of oneself — self-sacrifice — and that the only worship which befits him is prayer or praise. § 6. For many years after they were married, and even after they had come to Palestine, Abraham and Sarah had no children. Now Abraham wondered (as indeed was only natural) how his descendants could become numerous if he had no child. But for all that he believed in God, and trusted that his long journey from the far East had not been taken in vain. But still no son came, and sometimes Abraham thought that his faithful servant, his steward Eliezer, would be his heir. The Bible tells us this beau- tiful story about Abraham, and how his faith in God got the better of his fear. After these things the word of God came unto Abraham in a vision^ sayings Fear not^ Abraham : I am thy shield^ and thy exceeding great reward. And Abraham said, O God, what wilt thou give me, seeing that I have no child, and he that shall be heir of my house is Eliezer? And, behold, the word of God came unto him, saying. This man shall not be thine heir ; but thine own son shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said. Look now toward heaven, and count the stars, if thou be able to count them ; HAGAR AND ISHMAEL 15 and he said unto him. So shall thy seed be. And he believed in God ; and he counted it to him for righteousness. 'And he believed in God ; and God counted it to him for righteous- ness/ Let us pause a moment here, for this is one of the very greatest sentences in all the Bible. * To believe in God ' : these are four short words, but they mean a very great deal. As you live and grow up, and even grow old, you will, I hope, find more and more meaning in them and be able to draw more and more meaning out of them. When people have been very unhappy, ihey have found * to believe in God ' their only comfort. When the future has seemed to them very dark, they have found *to believe in God ' their only hope. When their duty has seemed very hard, they have found ' to believe in God ' their only strength. But it is not very easy to believe in God wholly, without murmur, hesitation, or doubt. That is why a perfect faith may be counted as a good deed ; it is righteousness. The Bible goes on to say : And God said unto Abraham, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve the people of that land ; and they shall afflict them four hundred years ; and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge : and afterwards they shall come out with great substance. But thou shalt die in peace ; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. This passage refers to the settlement of the Hebrews in Egypt and to their ill-treatment there, which Abraham was permitted to foresee in this vision of the night. § 7. I have now to tell you an incident in Abraham's life which wiU seem to you very strange. In those far-off days (as unhappily in many Eastern countries to-day) it was often the custom for one man to have more than one wife. People had not yet got to see that there can be no true marriage and perfect companionship unless a man has only one wife. It has seemed right to God that mankind should learn some of its greatest lessons very slowly. Well, as the years rolled by, and no child came to Abraham and Sarah, Sarah herself, the Bible tells us, * took Hagar, her hand- maid, an Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abraham to be his wife.' And after a time a son was born to Abraham and Hagar. And Abraham called his name Ishmael. But Ishmael was not destined to be the son through whom the promises of God were to be fulfilled. Once more Abraham received the word of God in a vision. i6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And God said unto Abraham, I am God Almighty ; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee throughout their generation for an ever- lasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. And 1 will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession : and I will be their God. Then Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee ! And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed ; and thou shalt call his name Isaac : and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee : behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear unto thee, § 8. At last Abraham's faith in God was rewarded. He and Sarah had a son, and, as God had bidden, they called his name Isaac. This seemed to be the glad beginning of the realization of the promise that Abraham should become a great nation through whom all the nations of the earth should he blessed. For God, as the Bible tells us, chose Abraham ' that he might command his children and his house after him to keep the way of God in doing righteousness and justice, so that God might bring upon Abraham that which he had promised him/ Bighteousness and justice are two of the most important parts of goodness. Later on we shall hear of another part called Lovingkindness, or more simply and shortly Love. Righteousness and love make up goodness. § 9. "We are now told a touching story about Hagar and her son Ishmael, which does not represent Sarah in at all a favourable light. But God uses the faults of mankind for his own wise ends. And Isaac grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had born unto Abraham, laughing. Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son : for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because 'FOR TENS SAKE 17 of his son. And God said unto Abraham^ Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman ; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice ; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, and he put the child on her shoulder, and sent her away : and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beei'-sheba. And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs. And she went, and sat her down over against him a bowshot off ; for she said. Let me not see the death of the child. So she sat over against him. And the child lifted up its voice and wept. And God heard the voice of the lad ; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her. What aileth thee, Hagar ? fear not ; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is. Arise, lift up the lad, and take him by thine hand ; for I will make him a great nation. And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink. And God was with the lad ; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran : and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt. § 10. There was an old tradition among the Hebrews that over ground now covered by the waters of the Dead Sea there once had stood two cities called Sodom and Gomorrah. The inhabitants of these cities were exceedingly wicked, so wicked that God thought it right to destroy them all. The story ran that this dread decision was revealed by God to Abraham. Now in old days and in eastern nations, the inhabitants of one city were looked upon much more as a single individual than they are now. The guilt of some con- taminated all. For the sins of a few punishment might fall upon many without question; much more then for the sins of many might punishment justly also fall upon the heads of the few. The idea of each person being separately responsible to God was not as clear then as it is to-day. Even now we find Lord Cromer telling us of the Egyptian peasantry that * it is difficult to eradicate from the minds of the poorer classes in this country that if a crime is committed in any village, the whole of the population concerned, G i8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the innocent as well as the guilty, are alike liable to punishment.' The village, not the individual, is the moral unit, and it cannot be divided in punishment. Of course there is a truth in this view if we substitute suffering for jpunishmenU Ten knaves may work the ruin of a whole village, as one wicked member of a family may bring misery to every other. But suffering and punishment are two wholly different things, though it took the Jews a long while to learn their difference. First of all they began to see that the in- habitants of a city are in one sense indeed connected together and influence each other, but in another sense they are separate * units.' Hence they argued that if the ' wicked ' are ' punished,' surely the good should go free. And this led them further. How can the few good go free, if they live among the wicked, unless the wicked are spared for the sake of the good ? (One man prospers through another's goodness, as one man may suffer for another's sin. And at last some came to see the highest truth of all, that a good man may suffer — even of his own choice and of God's will — in order that the less good may be improved.) So in the tradition of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah they began to argue that there could have been no good men at all in these cities, because other- wise God would for their sakes never have ordered their general and entire destruction. And this thought is expressed dramatically in a dialogue between God and Abraham, in which Abraham is represented as pleading with God for the deliverance of Sodom and Gomorrah if even but a few righteous men should be found within their walls. And Abraham said, Wilt thou also sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also sweep away and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein ? That be far from thee to do after this manner^ to slay the righteous with the wicked : and that the righteous should be as the wicked^ that be far from thee : Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? And God said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes. And Abraham answered and said. Behold nowj I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, who am but dust and ashes : Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous : wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of ^iyq} And he said. If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it. And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake. And he said unto him, Oh let not tlie THE GREAT TRIAL OF ABRAHAM S FAITH 19 Lord be angry, and I will speak : Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there. And he said. Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty^s sake. And he said. Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once : Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten^s sake, §11. Abraham, as we know, had a perfect faith in God. And now, as the Bible tells us, his great faith, that whatever God does must somehow be right, was to receive a strange and terrible trial. The voice of God, to which he had been wont to render unques- tioning obedience, ordered him to do something which we cannot for a moment imagine God ordering us to do, even as a trial of our faith. The divine voice ordered him to take his son Isaac and to offer him up for a burnt offering. Now to Abraham and, what is still more important to remember, to the writer of the story, the command would not have appeared as impossible for God to order as it appears to us. For in those distant times many races fell under the terrible illusion that the most precious sacrifice they could offer to God was the sacrifice of their own children. The object of the order was, therefore, not merely to make trial of Abraham's faith in God (and it is good for faith to be tried, for it is strengthened in the trial), but to make him understand that God does not require or desire so terrible and unnatural a sacrifice. The purpose of the story is not merely to draw for us a vivid picture of Abraham's implicit faith in God, but to teach that the God of Israel, unlike the false gods of the surrounding nations and tribes, utterly rejects and forbids the sacrifice of man by man. Further than this the writer of the story could not see : further than this God in his wisdom did not desire him to see. A later teacher was permitted to realize that even the sacrifice of animals was indifferent to God. This is what that later teacher says : Wherewith shall I come before God, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old ? Will God be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil ? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul ? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good ; and what doth God require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercv, and to walk humbly with thy God? c 2 20 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING But now to come back to the trial of Abraham. This is what the Bible tells us : how vivid and touching is the tale ! And it came to pass after these things, that God did try Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham : and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said. Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah ; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. ^ And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the w-ood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men. Abide ye here with the ass ; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said. Here am I, my son. And he said. Behold the fire and the wood: but wKere is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said. My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering : so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God had told him of ; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of God called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham : and he said. Here am I, And he said. Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a ram caught in athicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son* And the angel of God called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time. And he said. By myself have I sworn, saith God, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son : that I will richly bless thee, and THE DEATH AND BURIAL OF SARAH 2i I will greatly multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven^ and as the sand which is upon the sea shore ; and through thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed ; because thou hast obeyed my voice. So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba, § 1 2. Some years after this, Sarah, Isaac's mother and Abraham's wife, died. The Bible tells us how Abraham bought for himself and his family a sepulchre in which Sarah was buried. In this story the people of the land are called the children of Heth. You will notice the stately manners of Abraham and his courtesy to Ephron the Hittite chief. And Sarah died in Kirjath-arba, in the land of Canaan : and Abraham mourned for Sarah, and wept for her. And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spake unto the children of Heth, saying, I am a stranger and a sojourner with you : give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him. Hear us, my lord : thou art a mighty prince among us : in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, that thou mayest bury thy dead. And Abraham rose up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth. And he communed with them, saying. If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and jntreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar, that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field ; for as much money as it is worth let him give it to me for a possession of a buryingplace amongst you. Now Ephron was sitting among the children of Heth : and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the audience of the children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of the city, saying. Nay, my lord, hear me: the field give I thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of my people give I it thee : bury thy dead. And Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land. And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt, I pray thee, hear me : I will give thee money for the field ; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there. And Ephron answered 22 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Abraham^ saying unto him. My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that betwixt me and thee ? bury therefore thy dead. And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron ; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the audience of the children of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant. Thus the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was east of Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the border round about, were made sure unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city. And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre (the same is Hebron), in the land of Canaan. And the field, and the cave that is therein, were made sure unto Abraham for a possession of a buryingplace by the sons of Heth. § 13. When you come to read the Bible for yourselves, you will find in it more stories about Abraham than I . shall tell you here. I shall only tell you one more story, but that one is very beautiful. It is, however, less about Abraham than about his son Isaac. It tells how Abraham became very old, and how he wanted to see his son Isaac, who was now grown up, happily married before he died. And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age : and God had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his servant that ruled over all that he had. Swear, I pray thee, by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that thou wilt not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell : but thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac, And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land : must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou earnest ? And Abraham said unto him. Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again. God, who took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and who spake unto me, and sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land ; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman be not willing to follow ELIEZER S JOURNEYING 23 thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath ; only bring not my son thither again. And the servant sware to Abraham concerning the matter. And the servant took ten camels, of the camels of his master, and departed ; for all the goods of his master were in his hand : and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of evening, the time that women go out to draw water. And he said, O God of my master Abraham, I pray thee send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham. Behold, I stand by the well of water ; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water : and let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say. Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink ; and she shall say. Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also : let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master. And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, the daughter of Bethuel the son of Nahor, Abraham^s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. And the damsel was very fair to look upon : and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up. And the servant ran to meet her, and said. Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. And she said. Drink, my lord : and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink. And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw for thy camels also, until they have done drinking. And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. And the man gazed at her in silent wonder, eager to know whether God had made his journey prosperous or not. And it came to pass, when the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden ring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold ; and said : Whose daughter art thou ? tell me, I pray thee. Is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in ? And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Nahor. She said moreover unto him. We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in. And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped 24 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING God. And he said, Blessed be God, who hath not left desti- tute my master of his mercy and his truth : as for me^ God hath led me straight to the house of my master's brethren. And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house all these things. Now Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban : and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well. And it came to pass, when he saw the ring, and the bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me; that he came unto the man ; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well. And he said. Come in, thou blessed of God ; wherefore standest thou without ? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels. And the man came into the house^ and he ungirded his camels; and gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet and the men's feet that were with him. And there was set food before him to eat : but he said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said. Speak on. And he said, I am Abraham's servant. And God hath blessed my master greatly ; and he is become great : and he hath given him flocks and herds, and silver and gold, and menservants and maidservants, and camels and asses. And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old : and unto him hath he given all that he hath. And my master made me swear, saying. Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell : but thou shalt go unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son. And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me. And he said unto me, God, before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house : then shalt thou be clear from my oath, when thou coniest to my kindred ; and if they give her not to thee, thou shalt be clear from my oath. And I came this day unto the well, and said, O God of my master Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go : behold, I stand by the well of water ; and let it come to pass, that when a maiden cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her. Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink ; and she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy THE COMING OF REBEKAH 25 camels : let the same be the woman whom God hath ap- pointed for my mastei^'s son. And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold^ Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew : and I said unto her. Let me drink, I pray thee. And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said. Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also : so I drank, and she made the camels drink also. And I asked her, and said. Whose daughter art thou ? And she said. The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son : and I put the ring, upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands. And I bowed down my head, and worshipped God, who had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter for his son. And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me : and if not, tell me ; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left. Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said. The thing proceedeth from God: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as God hath spoken. And it came to pass, that, when Abraham^s servant heard their words, he worshipped God, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah : he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things. And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night ; and they rose up in the morning, and he said. Send me away unto my mastei'. And her brother and her mother said. Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten ; after that she shall go. And he said unto them. Hinder me not, seeing God hath prospered my way ; send me away that I may go to my master. And they said. We will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth. And they called Rebekah, and said unto her. Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go. So they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men. And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, O sister, be thou the mother of thousands of ten thousands. And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man ; and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide : 26 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. And she said unto the servant. What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us ? And the servant said. It is my master ; then she took her veil, and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all that he had done. And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah^s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her : and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. Some time, we are not told how long, after this happy marriage between Isaac and his cousin Rebekah (she was what we now call his * first cousin once removed '), Abraham died, ' in a good old age, an old man and full of years. And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, which he had himself purchased from the children of Heth : there was Abraham buried and Sarah his wife.' He had believed in God unto the end, and his faith was counted to him as righteousness. ISAAC AND ABIMELECH 27 CHAPTER III ISAAC AND HIS TWO SONS § I, "We are not told much about Isaac. He was, it would seem, a good and just man, and God blessed him. In the district where he dwelt there was a famine, and Isaac, seeking food for his cattle, travelled into the land of the Philistines, to Gerar the capital. The king of the Philistines was called Abimelech. And there Isaac had a vision, such as Abraham his father had had before him. And the Word of God came to him and said, * I will be with thee, and will bless thee ; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, will I give the land of Canaan, and I will confirm the oath which I swear unto Abraham thy father ; and I will increase thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will give the land unto thy seed ; and through thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed ; because that Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.' If we ask what were the commandments of God which Abraham kept, the answer is what we already knbw : Abraham believed in God and did righteous- ness. For these things, faith, righteousness, and love, are the eternal laws of God, which shall never pass away. Isaac dwelt for a time at Gerar, and he was very prosperous. And Isaac sovi^ed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold : and God blessed him. And the man waxed great and greater until he became very great : and he had flocks and herds and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him. And all the vpells vrhich hia father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped them, and filled them with earth. And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we. And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of 28 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham : and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them. And Isaac^s servants digged in the valley^ and found there a well of springing water. And the herdmen of Gerar strove with Isaac^s herdmen^ saying. The water is ours : and he called the name of the well Esek, that is. Contention ; because they strove with him. And they digged another well, and they strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah, that is. Enmity. And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth, that is. Room ; and he^ said. For now God hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land. From Gerar he went to a place called Beer-sheba. And there lie had another vision in the night, and the divine voice said to him, ' Fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and mulfciply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake/ And Isaac built an altar there, and worshipped God ; and he pitched his tent there, and his servants digged a well. When Isaac prospered greatly, Abimelech the Philistine chieftain thought he would like to make up the quarrel between the herd- men of Gerar and the herdmen of Isaac. It was best to make friends with so prosperous a man. So Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath his friend, and Phicol the captain of his army. And Isaac said unto them. Wherefore come ye to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away- from you ? And they said. We saw certainly that God was with thee : and we said. Let there now be an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee; that thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now blessed of God. And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink. And they rose up betimes in the morning, and sware one to another : and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace. And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac^s servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him, We have found water. And Isaac called it Shibah, that is, Swearing,, ESAU AND JACOB 29 From this story of Isaac's wellj people supposed tliat the name of the city which was built in later days near the well was called Beer-sheba, that is, the ' well of the oath ' or ' well of sweanng/ but others connected its name with a similar story told about Abraham. § 2. Isaac and Rebekah bad two sons. The elder was called Esau, the younger Jacob, The Jews believed that their own ancestor was Jacob the younger son, while the ancestor of their neighbours and kinsmen the Edomites was Esau the elder son. As the boys grew up, Esau, the Bible tells us, became ' a clever hunter, a man of the plains, but Jacob was a quiet man, wlio stayed by the tents.' Unfortunately their parents did not love them equally, and from this division and favouritism sore troubles arose. Isaac, we are told, * loved Esau because he did eat of his venison: but Eebekah loved Jacob.' The two brothers did not live happily together, and a strange tale is told how Jacob once behaved very cruelly to his brother Esau. In ancient times and in eastern lands the eldest son had special rights and privileges, and even in England to this day these privileges have not quite been abolished. Here, then, is what we are told : Jacob sod pottage : and Esau came from the field, and he was faint : and Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage ; for I am faint : therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said. First sell me thy birthright. And Esau said. Behold, I am at the point to die : and what pi'ofit shall this birthriglit do to me ? And Jacob said. First swear to me ; and he sware unto him : and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles ; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright. The Biblical narrator is perhaps justified in saying that Esau ' despised his birthright.' He barters away his birthright for food. Could he not have restrained his desire ? But, on the other hand, Jacob's conduct is unbrotherly and immoral. His character needed the purification of suffering and sorrow. It is noticeable that Jacob never makes any use of this illegitimately acquired birthright. Nor does Isaac, as we shall see, make any reference to it. § 3. The Bible tells us another most striking and graphic story about Esau and Jacob, lu it, again, Jacob plays a mean part, and 30 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING yet the fault is not so much his as that of his mother, Rebekah. In ancient times mysterious weight was attached to a blessing and to a curse. More especially was the blessing of a father supposed in some inexplicable way to be likely to bring with it its own fulfilment. A blessing once uttered could not be revoked. These ideas have now quietly passed away. Here follows the story : And it came to pass that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim^ so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son^ and said unto him. My son : and he said unto him. Behold, here am I. And he said. Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death : now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison ; and make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die. And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it. And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying. Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before my death. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee. Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats ; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth : and thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death. And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother. Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man : My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a mocker; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing. And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son : only obey my voice, and go fetch me them. And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother ; and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved. And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son : and she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck : and she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepai'ed, into the hand of her son Jacob. And he came unto his father, and said. My father ; and THE STOLEN BLESSING 31 he said^ Here am I ; who art thou^ my son ? And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn ; I have done according as thou badest me : arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me. And Isaac said unto his son. How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son ? And he said. Because the Lord thy God brought it to me. And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not. And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said. The voice is Jacobus voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands : so he blessed him. And he said. Art thou my very son Esau ? And he said, I am. And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat : and he brought him wine, and he drank. And his father Isaac said unto him. Come near now, and kiss me, my son. And he came near, and kissed him : and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said. See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which God hath blessed : may God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine: let peoples serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee : cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee. And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father. Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me. And Isaac his father said unto him. Who art thou ? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau. And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said. Who then was he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him ? yea, and he shall be blessed. And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father. Bless me, even me also, O my father. And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, 32 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and hath taken away thy blessing. And he said. Is not he rightly named Jacob (that is, a supplanter) ? for he hath supplanted me these two times : he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said. Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me ? And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him : and what shall I do now unto thee, my son ? And Esau said unto his father. Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept. And Isaac his father answered and said unto him. Behold, thy dwelling shall be far from the fatness of the earth, and far from the dew of heaven above ; and by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; but it shall come to pass when thou shalt struggle, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck. And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him : and Esau said in his heart. The days of mourning for my father are at hand ; then will I slay my brother Jacob, And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah : and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him. Behold, thy brother Esau is plotting vengeance against thee and seeks to kill thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran ; and tarry with him a while, until thy brother^s fury turn away; until thy brothei^^s anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him : then I will send, and fetch thee from thence : why should I be deprived of you both in one day ? § 4. A later historian ignored or rejected this story of the stolen blessing entirely. According to him it was determined by God that Jacob should receive the blessing of Abraham. Esau, he tells us, had married two Hittite women, called Judith and Bashemath. They were two of the * daughters of the land/ that is, women belonging to one of the tribes among whom Isaac lived, and so, according to this writer's views, they had pot been brought up' to worship the one true God like Esau and Jacob, and perhaps they were not willing, like Bebekah, to adopt intelligently and lovingly the religion and worship of their husband. So Esau's Hittite wives were a sore trouble to Itaac and Eebekah. 'And Eebekah THE JOURNEYING OF JACOB 33 eaid to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth : if Jacob also take a wife of the daughters of Heth, one of the daughters of the lan3, what good shall my life do mer Then Isaac called Jacobs and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him^ Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. And God Almighty bless thee and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of peoples ; and give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojournings, which God gave unto Abraham, § 5. So Jacob, according to both narrators, has to travel far away from his old home. And as he journeyed, he came to a place Where he tarried all night, because the sun was set ; and he took a stone that was there, and put it for a pilloM', and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven : and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And Jacob heard a voice which said, I, the God of Abraham and of Isaac, will give thee the land whereon thou liest, to thee and to thy seed. And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south : and through thee and through thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land ; for I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. Then Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said. Surely God is in this place ; and I knew it not. Jacob is thus taught the lesson that God is not limited to one place. Even to distant and solitary places God's providence extends. For God is everywhere. * Behold,' said a wise king of the Hebrews, of whom we shall hear later on, * Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain him.' Jacob continued on his journey, going ever eastward, until he x> 34 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING came to the land where dwelt Laban his mother s brother. Then, as the Bible goes on to tell us : He looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, three flocks of sheep lying there by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well^s mouth. Now when all the flocks were gathered together, then they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well's mouth in its place. And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye ? And they said. Of Haran are we. And he said unto them. Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said. We know him. And he said unto them^ Is it well with him? And they said. It is well : and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep. And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, . neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the sheep, and go and feed them. And they said. We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered together; then we roll the stone from the well's mouth and water the sheep. While he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep; for she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mothei'^s brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth,, and watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept. And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father's nephew, and that he was Rebekah's son : and she ran and told her father. And it came to pass that when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Jacob is represented to us as a man of mighty strength, and so in his eagerness to water the sheep of his cousin Eachel, he moved the huge stone by himselfj which usually took the united strengtli of all the shepherds to move. When the stone was rolled off the mouthj they could lower their buckets into the well, and so give diink to the sheep, § 6. Now Laban had two daughters : the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah, we are told, was ' blear-eyed, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance/ Then the wish of Jacob*s father was fulfilled, for he fell in love LEAH AND RACHEL 35 with his fair cousin Rachel. ' And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my kinsman, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought 1 tell me, what shall thy wages be ] Now Jacob loved Bachel; and he said unto Labaii, I will serve thee seven years for Eachel thy younger daughter. And Laban said. It is better I give her to thee, than that I should give her to a stranger: abide with me. And Jacob served seven years for E-achel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her/ Work that is done for love's sake seems short and seems sweet. Let us remember the beautiful words : ' The seven years seemed to him but a few days, for the love he had to her,' Then at the end of the seven years, Laban practised a strange deceit upon Jacob. He told him that it was not the custom of his country to give the younger daughter in marriage before the firstborn. If, therefore, Jacob wanted to many Eachel, he must marry Leah likewise. Moreover, he was to serve Laban yet another seven years. So Jacob was married both to Leah and Eachel, and he served Laban 'yet seven other years. In later times the Jews were strictly forbidden to marry two sisters. We are a little surprised to find both Abraham and Isaac so anxious that their sons should not marry from the ' daughters of Canaan.' If the family of Terah served other gods, what was the difference between them and the Canaanites ? Both were idolators. It would seem as if there were a double tradition on this matter. According to the first, all Abraham's family and kinsmen wor- shipped * other gods ' : according to the other, at least his brother Nahor with their children did not. They worshipped the one true God, and therefore Abraham and Isaac desired that their sons should find wives from Nahor's family. For Nahor was the father of Bethuel, who was the father of Eebekah, and Eebekah was the sister of Laban, who was the father of Eachel. § 7. Jacob, we are told, remained with Laban many years, and he had many children. But at last the longing grew great within him to return to his own land, and to see his father and his mother again. So he set forth on his way, with Leah and Eachel and his children, and his servants, and his flocks, and his herds. But he remembered what he had done to Esau his brother, and he feared what Esau might now do to him. So he sent a message to him, and he bade the bearer of it speak very humbly, as if Esau were a great lord and Jacob were his servant. But things turned out far better than he expected, and better even than he deserved, This is what we are told, P % 36 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother. And he commanded them^ saying. Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau ; Thus saith thy servant Jacob, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now : and I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants and maidservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight. And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying. We came to thy brother Esau, and he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him. Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed : and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and the herds, and the camels, into two camps; and he said. If Esau come to the one camp and smite it, then the company which is left shall escape. And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant ; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan ; and now I am become two camps. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau : for I fear him, lest he come and smite me, the mother with the children. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude. And he lodged there that night; and took of that which came to his hand as a present for Esau his brother; two hundred she-goats and twenty he-goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, thirty milch camels and their colts, forty kine and ten bulls, twenty she-asses and ten foals. And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by itself; and said unto his servants. Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove and drove. And he commanded the foremost, saying. When Esau my brother meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest thou ? and whose are these before thee ? then thou shalt say. They be thy servant Jacob's ; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau : and, behold, he too is behind us. And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when ye find him ; and say ye, moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will | appease him with the present that goeth before me, and 1 afterward I will see his face ; peradventure he will accept THE RECONCILIATION OF ESAU WITH JACOB 37 me. So went the present over before him : and he himself lodged that night in the camp. The next morniug Jacob lifted up his eyes^ and looked^ and^, behold^ Esau came, and with him four hundred men. Then Jacob passed on in front of both his camps, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him : and they wept. And Esau lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children ; and said. Who are these with thee ? And he said. The children which God hath graciously given thy servant. And Esau said. What meanest thou by all these droves which I met ? And he said. To find grace in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have enough ; my brother, keep that thou hast unto thyself. And Jacob said. Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand. Take, I pray thee, my gift that is brought to thee ; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough. And he urged him, and he took it. So the two brothers were reconciled, Esau accepted Jacob's present to show that he forgave him. Then after this happy meeting, in which Esau behaved so generously, the two brothers once more separated. But we hear of them meeting and coming once more together, when Isaac their father died, ' old and full of days : and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.* § 8. Jacob dwelt also in the land of Canaan. And once more he had a vision, and he seemed to hear God speaking to him and saying, ' Thy name is Jacob ; thy name shall not he called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name/ So God called his name Israel. And God said unto him, ' Be fruitful and multiply, and the land which I promised unto Abraham and Isaac, to tliee will I give it and to thy seed/ It is not here said why the name Israel was given to Jacob, or what it means. In another chapter of the Bible, the change of name is told quite differently : it is there connected with a mys- terious story, which you will read one day for yourselves. Jacob is in future sometimes called by his new name Israel, and sometimes by his old name Jacob. Jacob had twelve sons, and these were their names : Reuben, 38 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulon, Joseph, and Benjamin. The last two were the sons of Rachel. Of Jacob's eleventh son, Joseph, the Bible has a great deal to tell us. You will remember how I said that before the Jews settled down in Palestine as tillers of the soil and dwellers in cities, they lived for many years in the north-east corner of Eg3q)t. It was through Joseph that their ancestors first came to and lived in Egypt. And in my next chapter you shall hear the stories that were told of Joseph, which are still preserved to ua in the Bible, JOSEPH AND HIS BROTHERS 59 CHAPTER IV THE STORY OF JOSEPH § I, Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age : and he made him a coat of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brethren : and they hated him yet the nioi'e. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed : for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us ? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us ? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said. Behold, I have dreamed another. dream; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren ; and his father rebuked him, and said unto him. What is this dream that thou hast dreamed ? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied him ; but his father remembered the saying. And it came to pass one day that his brethren went to feed their father's sheep in Shechem, And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him. Here am I. And he said to him. Go and see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flock ; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. 40 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And a certain man found him^ and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they are feeding their flocks. And the man said, They are departed hence: for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan. And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to another. Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say. An evil beast hath devoured him : and we shall see what will become of his dreams. And Judah heard it, and delivered him out of their hand; and said. Let us not kill him. And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph of his coat of many colours that was on him ; and they took him, and cast him into a pit : and the pit was empty, there was no water in it. And they sat down to eat bread : and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a travelling company of Ishmaelites came from Gilead, with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt, And Judah said unto his brethren. What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood ? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him ; for he is our brother. And his brethren were content. And they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they brought Joseph into Egypt. And they took Josephs coat, and killed a he-goat, and dipped the coat in the blood; and they took the coat of many colours, and brought it to their father; and said. This have we found : know now whether it be thy son^s coat or not. And he knew it, and said. It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him ; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces. And Jacob rent his garments, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him : but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down to the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him* JOSEPH IS SOLD INTO EGYPT 41 In this version of the story Judah is the only merciful one of the brothers, though even he is ready to sell his brother into slavery, and does not venture to tell the truth to his deceived father. There is, however, another version of the tradition, ac- cording to which E«uben comes out the best of the brothers. According to this version Reuben persuades his brothers not to kill Joseph, but merely to throw him into the empty pit. This they do, and Eeuben then leaves his brothers, intending to come back secretly after they have gone, and take Joseph out of the pit and restore him to his father. But meanwhile, after the brothers have gone, but before Reuben returns, some Midianite merchantmen pass by, and perceiving Joseph in the pit, they draw him out and take him to Egypt, where they too sell him for a slave. When Reuben comes back, it is only to find the pit empty. ' And he rent his clothes.' Then he retunis to his brothers and tells them the story, and he says, ' The child is not ; and I, whither shall I go*?' His grief is genuine and sincere. Eut he does not dare to tell what had happened to his bereaved and mourning father. The coat of many colours, by which the English translation of the Bible renders the Hebrew word, Passim^ probably means a long coat or mantle with wide sleeves. We hear of a daughter of King David wearing such a mantle, and the Bible says of it, ' with such robes were the king's daughters apparelled.' We can well understand how angry all the brothers must have been when Jacob gave Joseph so royal a coat. § 2. Now we shall hear what happened to Joseph in Egypt. So Joseph was brought down to Egypt 5 and an Egyptian bought him of the hands of the Ishmaelites, who had brought him down thither. And God was with Joseph^ and he was in the house of his mastei* the Egyptian. And his master saw that God was with himj and that God made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him : and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. And it came to pass from the time that he made him over- seer in his house, and over all that he had, that God blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake ; and the blessing of God was upon all that he had, in the house and in the field. And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand ; and he knew not aught he had, save the bread which he did eat. So Joseph, who, though he had been rather vain and boastful, was yet noble in heart, was preserved by the grace of God, and 42 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING though he was in a stranger s land and far away from those he loved at home, yet his life was peaceful and prosperous. But another heavy trial awaited him. The wife of his Egyptian master grew jealous of him, and made false accusations against him of dishonesty. And the Egyptian believed his wife's story, and threw Joseph into prison. But once more things turned out better than he could have dared to hope. Let us hear what happened. § 3. And Josephs master took him, and put him into the prison, where the king's prisoners were bound : and he was there in the prison. But God was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph^s hand all the prisoners that were in the prison ; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it. The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand, because God was with him ; and that which he did, God made it to prosper. And it came to pass after these things, that Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, was wroth against his two officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakei'S. And he cast them into the prison, where Joseph was. And they continued a season in prison. And one night they each dreamed a strange dream. And Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and saw them, and, behold, they were sad. And he asked them, saying. Wherefore look ye so sadly to-day ? And they said ' unto him. We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them. Do not interpretations belong to God ? tell me your dreams, I pray you. And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him. In my dream, behold, a vine was before me; and in the vine were three branches: and it was as though it budded, and its blossoms shot forth ; and the clusters thereof brought forth ripe grapes : and Pharaoh^s cup was in my hand ; and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh^s cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh^s hand. And Joseph said unto him. This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days ; within yet three days shall Pharaoh lift up thine head, and restore thee unto thy place : and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh's cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou wast his butler. But remember me when THE DREAM OF THE CHIEF BUTLER 43 it shall be well with thee^ and shew kindness^ I pray thee, unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house : for indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews : and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon. When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, three baskets of white bread were on my head : and in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of bakemeats for Pharaoh ; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head. And Joseph answered and said. This is the interpretation thereof: the three baskets are three days; within yet three days shall Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree ; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee. And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh^s birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants : and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and' the head of the chief baker among his servants. And he restored the chief butler unto his butlership again ; .and he gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand ; but he hanged the chief baker : as Joseph had interpreted to them. Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him. In those old days people thought a great deal more of dreams than they do now. They were constantly trying to find out the meaning of their dreams, and it seemed to them that all dreams were so strange and wonderful that the strangest and most wonderful of them must have been specially sent to them by God to tell or warn them what was going to happen in the future. And there were men who made it their business to interpret or explain dreams, or at least they tried to do so. But after the history of Joseph we do not hear much more about dreams in the Bible. And the Jews came to believe that it is better to under- stand and do the will of God when we are awake than to worry our heads by trying to find out the meaning of our dreams. The Jewish prophets and lawgivers discouraged the people from paying attention to dreams. But in the story of Joseph great results are made to come from dreams, for God shows to man by a dream what is going to happen to him in the future, so that, forewarned, he may be forearmed. Let us hear the continuation of the story. And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed : and, behold, he stood by the river. And, 44 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, well favoured and fatfleshed; and they fed in the sedge. And, behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and leanfleshedj and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river. And the ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke. And he slept and dreamed the second time : and, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, fat and good. And, behold, seven ears, thin and ^ blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them. And the seven thin ears swallowed up the seven fat and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and, behold, it was a dream. And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled ; and he sent and called for all the scribes of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof : and Pharaoh told them his dream ; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh. Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day : Pharaoh was wroth with his servants, and put me in prison, me and the chief baker: and we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he. And there was with us there a young man, an Hebrew; and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams ; to each man according to his dream he did interpret. And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was ; I was restored unto mine office, and he was hanged. Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon : and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that cun interpret it : and I have heard say of thee, that when thou hearest a dream thou canst interpret it. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying. It is not in me : God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the brink of the river : and, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured ; and they fed in the sedge : and, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and lean- fleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness : and the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine : and when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke. THE DREAMS OF PHARAOH 45 And I saw in my dream^ and, behold, seven ears came up on one stalk, full and good: and, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them : and the thin ears swallowed up the seven good ears : and I told it unto the scribes ; but there was none that could declare it to me. And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one : God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good kine are seven years ; and the seven good ears are seven years : the dream is one. And the seven lean and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years, and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine. This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh : what God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt : and there shall arise after them seven years of famine ; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt ; and the famine shall consume the land ; and the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following ; for it shall be very grievous. And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice, it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass. Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint overseers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years. And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities. And the food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt ; that the land perish not through the famine. And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants. And Pharaoh said unto his servants. Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom the spirit of God is ? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou : thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be gi-eater than thou. And Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand, and 46 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING put it upon Joseph^s liand^ and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck ; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had ; and they cried before him. Bow the knee : and he set him over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh called Joseph Zaphenath-paneah ; and he gave him to wife Asenath the* daughter of Poti-phera priest of On. And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. So Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt. And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. And Joseph gathered up all the food of the seven years which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities : the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering ; for it was without number. And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came. And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh, and the name of the second he called Ephraim. And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, came to an end. And the seven years of famine began to come, according as Joseph had said : 7nd the dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Kgypt, there was bread. And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread : and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph ; what he saith to you, do. And the famine was over all the face of the earth : and Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians ; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph to buy corn ; because the famine was so sore in all lands. § 4. We shall now hear how this great and severe famine was the means of bringing Joseph's brothers down into Egypt, and then of restoring him to his aged father. Quite ten years had passed since he had been sold to the Ishmaelites. Now Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, and he said imto his sons. Why do ye look upon one another ? And he JOSEPH S BROTHERS COME DOWN TO EGYPT 47 said. Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt : get you down thither, and buy for us from thence ; that we may live, and not die. And Joseph^s ten brethren went down to buy corn from Egypt, But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren ; for he said. Lest perad- venture mischief befall him. And Joseph was the governor over the land ; he it was that sold to all the people of the land : and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed themselves before him with their faces to the eartli. And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange unto them, and he said unto them. Whence come ye ? And they said. From the land of Canaan to buy food. And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him. And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and he spoke roughly with them,- and he said unto them, Ye are spies ; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come. And they said unto him. Nay, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come. We are all one man's sons ; we are true men, thy servants are no spies. And he said unto them. Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are come. And they said. Thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan ; and, behokl, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not. And Joseph said unto them. That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies : hereby ye shall be proved : by the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother come hither. Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother, and ye shall be bound, that your words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you : or else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are spies. And he put them all together into prison three days. And Joseph said unto them the third day. This do, and live ; for I fear God : if ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the prison ; but go ye, cany corn for the famine of your houses ; and bring your youngest brother unto me; so shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they said one to another. We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul when he besought us, and we would not hear ; therefore is this distress come upon us. And Reuben answered them, saying. Spake I not unto you, saying. Do not sin against the child I and ye would not hear ? therefore, behold, his blood 48 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING is required. And they knew not that Joseph understood them ; for he spake unto them by an interpreter. And he turned himself about from them, and wept ; and returned to them again, and spake to them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes. Then Joseph commanded to fill their vessels with corn, and to restore ever)' man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way. And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence. And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him all that befell them ; saying. The man who is the lord of the land spake roughly with us, and took us for spies of the country. And we said unto him. We are true men ; we are no spies ; we be twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan, And the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are true men ; leave one of your brethren here with me, and take food for the famine of your houses, and be gone; and bring your youngest brother unto me: then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are ttue men : so will I deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land. And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man's bundle of money was in his sack ; and when they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid. And Jacob their father said unto them. Me have ye bereaved of my children : Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away : all these things are come upon me. And he said. My son shall not go down with you ; for his brother is dead, and he only is left : if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. Joseph's brothers had behaved very badly to him, and he was justified in putting them to a severe trial. But the trial was for their own good. Joseph's heart was softened : any notion of mere punishment or vulgar revenge was quite absent from Lis mind. But he can hardly have realized what pain he would cause to his old father Jacob. (His mother Racliel was dead long before.) You will notice what Reuben says to his brotliers just before Simeon is bound. This part of the story is given JACOB AND BENJAMIN 49 according to that vei'sion of it in which Eeuben, and not Judah, was the merciful one of the ten. The other version told this part of the story too, and what we are now to hear comes from it, and Judah is once more prominent. How the brothers dis- coYered the money in their sacks was told rather differently in this version than in the version we have just listened to. In that version the brothers discovered it when they got home and emptied their sacks in the presence of their father. In this version they discovered it on their journey home in the * lodging place,' In this version too, as you will see from what we are now to hear, it was Joseph who at once asked his brothers whether their father was yet alive, and whether they had another brother. In the other version they told it of themselves to Joseph when he accused them of being spies. And the famine was sore in the land. And it came to pass^ when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egyptj their father said unto them. Go again^ buy us a little food. And Judah spake unto him^ saying. The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you. If thou wilt send our brother with us, Mve will go down and buy thee food : but if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down : for the man said unto us. Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you. And Israel said. Wherefore dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother ? And they said. The man asked us straitly of our state and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive ? have ye another brother ? and we told him according to his words: could we certainly know that he would say. Bring your brother down ? And Judah said imto Israel his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go ; that we may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones. I will be surety for him ; of my hand shalt thou require him : if I bring him not unto thecj and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever : for except we had lingered, surely we had now returned twice by this. And their father Israel said unto them, If it be so now, do this ; take of the best f^'uits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts and almonds : and take fresh money in your hand ; and the money that was put back in the mouth of your sacks 50 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING carry again in your hand ; peradventure it was an over- sight : take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man: and God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may release unto you your other brother and Benjamin. If I am to be bereaved of my children, I am to be bereaved. And the men took that present, and they took fresh money in their hand, and Benjamin ; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph. And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house. Bring the men home, and slay, and make ready; for these men shall dine with me at noon. And the man did as Joseph bade ; and the man brought the luen into Joseph's house. And the men were afraid, because they were brought into Joseph's house ; and they said. Because of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in ; that he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and our asses. And they came near to the steward of Joseph's house, and they communed with him at the door *of the house, and said. Oh my lord, we came indeed down at the first time to buy food : and it came to pass, when we came to the lodging place, that we opened our sacks, and, behold, every man's money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight: and we have brought it again in our hand. And other money have we brought down in our hand to buy food: we cannot tell who put our money in our sacks. And he said. Peace be to you, fear not : your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks ; I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto them. And the man brought the men into Joseph's house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet ; and he gave their asses provender. And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon : for they heard that they should eat bread there. And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. And he asked them of their welfare, and said. Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake ? Is he yet alive ? And they said. Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance. And he lifted up his eyes, and THE MISSING CUP 51 saw Benjamin his brother^ and said^ Is this your youngest brother^ of whom ye spake unto me ? * And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son. And Joseph made haste; for his heart burnt for his brother: and he sought where to weep ; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there. And he washed his face, and went out; and he refrained himself, and said. Set on bread. And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians, who did eat with him, by themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians. And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth : and the men marvelled one with another. And messes were taken unto them from before him : but Benjamin's mess was five times so much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with him. Joseph, as the grand ruler of all Egypt, eats by himself at his own table, and his Hebrew and Egyptian guests eat by themselves also at separate tables. The Egyptians were not friendly with foreigners ; they despised them, and thought them inferior to themselves. So they would not eat with them. § 5, We now come to what French people would call the denouement or crisis of the story. And he commanded the steward of his house, saying. Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses. And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward. Up, follow after the men ; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them. Where- fore have ye rewarded evil for good ? Is not this the cup which my lord drinketh ? ye have done evil in so doing. And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these words. And they said unto him. Wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants should do this thing. Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks' mouths, we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan : how 52 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold? With whomsoever o£ thy servants it be found, let him die, and we also will be my lord's bondmen. And he said, Now also let it be according unto your words : he with whom it is found shall be my bondman ; and ye shall be blameless. Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack. And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left at the youngest : and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. Then they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city. And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house; and he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground. And Joseph said unto them. What deed is this that ye have done? And Judah said. What shall we say unto my lord ? what shall we speak ? or how shall we clear ourselves ? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants : behold, we are my lord's bondmen, both we, and he also in whose hand the cup is found. And he said, God forbid that I should do so : the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my bondman ; as for you, get you up in peace unto your father. Then Judah came near unto him, and, said. Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a M^ord in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh, My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father or a brother ? And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and his father loveth him. And thou saidst unto thy servants. Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him. And we said unto my lord. The lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die. And thou saidst unto thy servants. Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more. And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. And our father said. Go again, buy us a little food. And we said. We cannot go down : if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down : for we may not see the man's face, except our youngest brother be with us. And thy servant my father said unto us. Ye know that my son went out from me, and I said. Surely he is torn in pieces ; and I saw him JOSEPH REVEALS HIMSELF 53 not since : and if ye take this one also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us ; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad^s life ; it shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die : and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave. For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then shall I bear the blame to my father for ever. Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord ; and let the lad go up with his brethren. For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me ? lest peradventure I see the evil that shall come on my father. Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him ; and he cried. Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. And he wept aloud : and the Egyptians heard, and the house of Pharaoh heard. And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph ; doth my father yet live ? And his brethren could not answer him ; for they were troubled at his presence. And Joseph said unto his brethren. Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not giieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither : for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and there are yet five years, in the which there shall be neither ploughing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God : and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler over all the land of Egypt. Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him. Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not : and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast : and there will I nourish thee ; for yet there are five years of famine ; lest thou, and thy household, and 54 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING all that thou hast^ come to poverty. And, behold^ your eyes see^ and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is^ my mouth that speaketh unto you. And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen ; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. And he fell upon his brother Benjamin^s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. And he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them : and after that his brethren talked with him. And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh^s house, saying, Joseph's brethren are come : and it pleased Pharaoh well, and his servants. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren. This do ye; lade your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan ; and take your father and your households, and come unto me : and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. Take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. And Joseph gave them wagons, according to the comi^iandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the way. To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. And to his father he sent after this manner ; ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she-asses laden with corn and bread and food for his father by the way. So he sent his brethren away, and they departed : and he said unto them. See that ye fall not out by the way. And they went up out of Egypt*, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father. And they told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob's heart f ainted, for he believed them not. And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them : and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob revived : and he said. It is enough ; Joseph my son is yet alive : I will go and see him before I die. So here in this most beautiful of Bible stories we are shown how good came out of evil, and how Joseph took a * noble revenge/ Forgiveness is written large in the story of Joseph as its motto JACOB S ARRIVAL IN EGYPT 55 and teacting. It may also be justly regarded as an object-lesson in the sin of selfishness. Jacob's love for Joseph was selfish : lie loved him at the expense of his other childrenj and he loved him in such a selfish way that Joseph's own character was harmed by it and he became his brothers' enemy. Joseph too was selfish, and thought more of himself than of any one else. And the brothers in their hatred of Joseph thought only of themselves and their desire to be rid of him. Selfishness ran through the family from first to last ; and every member of it needed suffering and sorrow for its cure. And if you and I are selfish, then may it please God to send us suffering and sorrow in order that we too perchance may be healed. § 6. We now shall hear bow Jacob came down with all his household to Egypt and settled in the * land of Goshen,' that is in a corner province of Egypt on the east side of the great river Nile. Tel-el-kebir, where the English under Lord Wolseley fought and won a famous battle in the year 1882, is, I believe, in the laud of Goshen. And Israel took his journey with all that he had^ and came to Beer-sheba. And God spake unto Israel in a vision of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said. Here am I. And God said. Fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation : I will go down with thee into Egypt : and I will surely bring thee up again : and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to cany him. And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed with him : his sons, and his sons^ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons^ daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt. And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen ; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, and thou art yet alive. And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father^s house, I will go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him. My brethren, and my fathei-^s house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me ; and the men are shepherds, and they have brought their flocks, and their 56 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING herds^ and all that they have. And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say^ What is your occupation ? that ye shall say^ Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and our fathers : that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen ; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians, The last words in this passage are not very clear. They seem to mean, ' if you tell the king that you are shepherds, he will allow you to dwell in Goshen/ Goshen was a thinly populated and border province. It seems at that time to have been mainly used as pasture land for flocks and herds. The native Egyptian herdmen formed a despised caste, and foreign shepherds and herdmen the Egyptians would despise the more. Then Joseph went and told Pharaoh, and said. My father and my brethren^ and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan ; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen. And he took five of his brethren, and presented them unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto his brethren. What is your occupation ? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants ai*e shepherds, both we, and our fathers. To sojourn in the land are we come ; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks ; for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan : now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Let them dwell in the land of Goshen, and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle. And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and introduced him to Pharaoh : and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How many are the days of the years of thy life ? And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty yeai*s : few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and they have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from the presence of Pharaoh. And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father's household, with bread, according to their families. And the children of Israel dwelt in the land of Goslien ; and they got them possessions therein, and were fruitful and multiplied exceedingly. THE DEATH OF JACOB 57 Jacob looks back upon the years of bis life and calls tbem few and evil. We sbould not now say that a man who was 130 years old bad lived few years! When these stories were written down, old age was thought to be a sign of God's grace. But afterwards the Jews came to think differently and more wisely. They saw tliat some good people — and God loves the good — die old and some die young, and both are in the bands of God whether in life or in death, *Tbe souls of the righteous are in the hands of God/ one of them said ; and as for those who are good and pure and yet die young, * they being made perfect in a short time have fulfilled a long time.' § 7. And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years ; so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred forty and seven years. And the- time drew near that Israel must die : and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him. Bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt : but when I go to my fathers, thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying- place. And he said, I will do as thou bast said. And be said. Swear unto me : and he sware unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed^s head. Then Josepb fetched his two sons, Manasseh and Epbraim, and be brought tbem before Jacob, and Jacob collected bis strength and sat up on the bed. Now the eyes of Jacob were dim for age, so that be could not see clearly. And be said unto Joseph, Who are these that are with thee ? And Josepb said unto his father. They are my sons whom God hatb given me here. And he brought them near to his father, and Jacob kissed and embraced them. And he said unto Joseph, I bad not thought to see thy face : and, lo, God has let me see thy sons also. And be blessed them. And he said unto Josepb, Behold, I die : but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. Then Jacob called all his sons unto him, and he blessed them ; every one according to his blessing he blessed them. And he charged them, and said unto them. Behold, I die : bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelahj which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace : there they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife 5 there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. But Rachel 58 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING died when I returned from Paddan-aram, when there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath : and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath. And Jacob made an end of charging his sons, and he died. Then Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept upon him, and kissed him. And Joseph com- manded his servants the physicians to embalm his father: and the physicians embalmed Israel: and the Egyptians mourned for him threescore and ten days. And when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spake unto the house of Pharaoh, saying. If now I have found grace in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh, saying. My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die : in my grave which I bought in the land of Canaan^ there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come again. And Pharaoh said. Go up, and bury thy father,, according as he made thee swear. And Joseph went up to bury his father : and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, and all the house of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house : only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen. And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen : and it was a very great company. And they came to the threshing-floor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they lamented with a great and very sore lamentation : and Joseph made a mourning for his father seven days. And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them : for his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and bui*ied him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field, for a possession of a buryingplace, of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre, And Joseph returned into Egypt, he, and his brethren, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father. And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will requite us all the evil which we did unto him. And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying. Thy father did command before he died, saying. So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the transgression of thy brethren, and their sin, for they did unto thee evil : and now, we pray thee, forgive the transgression of the servants JACOB S BURIAL AND JOSEPH S DEATH 59 of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said. Behold^ we be thy servants. And Joseph said unto them, Fear not : for am I in the place of God ? As for you, ye thought evil against me : but God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not : I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them. Thus once more Joseph returns good for evil. Joseph had been humbled by suffering, and his subsequent grandeur had not spoilt him. Let us remember his notable words. First, ' Am I in the place of God?' If we are wronged, or fancy ourselves wronged (it is very often only fancy), it is not for us to take revenge. If he who wronged us deserves punishment, which means, if he will be made better by punishment, nevertheless it is not for us to usurp the place of God. Secondly, ' As for you, ye thought evil against me : but God meant it for good/ The wrong done to us may really turn out for our good. Our patient endurance of it may make us better men, and women, and children. It may give us opportunity to do good as well as to be good, and yre may be able to make others happier by our own misfortune and sorrow. So God may direct and overrule what man 'meant for evil' towards his own good end and purpose. Now, finally, we are told how Joseph passed away in a ripe old age. And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he, and his father's house : and Joseph lived an hundred and ten years. And Joseph saw Ephraim^s children of the third generation : the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were put upon Joseph's knees. And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die : but God will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old ; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt. 6o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING CHAPTEE V THE EXODUS FROM EGYPT AND THE LIFE OP MOSES § I. Foe a long while the Hebrews lived in Goshen. How they fared and what befell them we do not exactly know, but we are told that * they were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty ; and the land was filled with them.' Gradually the Egyptians grew jealous and afraid of this large and increasing foreign settlement living in their midst. It seemed to them a national danger. Hitherto the Hebrews had apparently been well treated. The memory of the great service which Joseph had rendered to the kingdom remained fresh for many years. But at last the actual present — the visible and flourishing' colony of Hebrew strangers — made the past forgotten. In the words of the Bible, ' There arose a new king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.' He would not allow himself to be restrained by gratitude for services rendered long ago to one of his predecessors. King and people, stung by jealousy and fear, determined to oppress the Hebrews, and turn them, if possible, into harmless slaves, profitable and not dangerous to the Egyptian people. This op- pression and evil treatment continued for some while, till at last, in God's good time, the Hebrews, under their great leader Moses, made their escape from Egypt and became an independent people, living in their own land. It is not precisely known in what year the Hebrews left Egypt. But it probably happened not less than 3,150 years ago. The stories which tell of it (parts of which have been preserved to us in the Bible) were written down about 500 years after the event, and some of them even later. It is as if nothing had been written down about the battle of Hastings till the reign of Queen Elizabeth. We should not in that case know about that great battle as clearly and certainly as we do now. Or supposing nothing had been written down about the defeat of the Spanish Armada, and nothing were to be written for another 200 years, what different accounts of it would be in existence, and how many varyino* versions (none probably very clear or full) could be pieced together THE OPPRESSION OF THE HEBREWS IN EGYPT 6l about it wlien men came to make a written account on the basis of their oral traditions in the year 2088 ! But these uncertainties about the exodus from Egypt do not greatly matter. For the important thing to us about that coming forth from Egypt is not Imw exactly it all happened, but that it happened. It is the fact which concerns us, the fact for which we owe gratitude to God — ^not the manner or the details. For if the Jews had not escaped from the bondage of Egypt, they would never have learnt what they learnt, and would never have taught what they taught, about goodness and God. Therefore the exodus from Egypt is not only one of the greatest events and epochs in the history of the Jews, but one of the greatest events and epochs in the history of the world. To that successful escape Europe, America, and Australia are as much indebted as the Jews themselves. And the men of Europe, the men of America, and the men of Australia might join with us Jews in celebrating that feast of the Passover, of the foundation and meaning of which we are now to hear. § 2. Let us first go back to the beginning of the story as we have it in the Bible. Now there arose up a new king over Egypt^ who knew not Joseph. And he said unto his people. Behold^ the people of the children of Israel are becoming more and mightier than we ; come, let us deal wisely with them ; lest they multiply still further, and it come to pass, that, if there should fall out a war, they join themselves to our enemies, and fight against us, and get them up out of the land. So they set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh two cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew; so that the Egyptians were troubled because of the children of Israel. Ajid they made them to serve with rigour ; and they made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and in brick, and in all manner of service in the fields- But the king of Egypt was still unsatisfied. , His hatred of the Hebrews increased. His measures of oppression were unsuccessful, so at last he determined to make an end of them altogether. He issued a decree that every baby-boy born among the Hebrews should be drowned. Now there was a Hebrew called Amram, who had a wife called Jochebed. They had a sou, and Jochebed attempted to hide him away from the officers of Pharaoh. This she did .for three months. 62 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and painted it with bitumen and with pitch ; and she put the child therein, and laid it in the flags by the river's brink. And his sister stood afar o% to see what would be done to him. And the daughter of Phai-aoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river side ; and she saw the ark among the flags, and sent her maid to fetch it. And when she had opened it, she saw the child : and^ behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said. This is one of the Hebrews' children. Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter. Shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee? And Pharaoh's daughter said to her. Go. And the maid went and called the child's mother. And Pharaoh's daughter said unto her. Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it. And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses^ and said. Because I drew him out of the water. There is a Hebrew word Mashah which means to draw out, but the Egyptian word for * draw out ' is not Mashah. Moreover the Egyptian princess would have spoken Egyptian, not Hebrew. It is not known what the name Moses means. But it is possibly Egyptian, and not Hebrew. Moses is here said to have become the adopted son of Pharaoh's daughter. But he cannot have seen much or had much to do with his Egyptian mother. For we hear no more about her ; and Moses when grown up is no bit of an Egyptian, but a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and lives among them. § 3. The zeal of Moses for his oppressed fellow-countrymen was to show itself in an intemperate and violent fashion. The character of Moses was noble hut passionate. His devotion to his people, as in after-days his devotion to God, both on occasion impelled him to wrong-doing. He too was purified by suffering. And it came to pass when Moses was grown, that he "went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens : and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man^ he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the MOSES THE DELIVERER 63 sand. And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together : and he said to him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow? And he said. Who made thee a prince and a judge over us ? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian ? And Moses feared, and said. Surely this thing is known. Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian : and he sat down by a well. Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters : and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock. And the shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered .their flock. And when they came to Jethro their father, he said. How is it that ye are come so soon to day ? And they said. An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock. And he said unto his daughters. And where is he ? why is it that ye have left the man ? call him, that he may eat bread. And Moses was content to dwell with the man : and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter to wife. And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom, § 4. Meanwhile the oppression of the Hebrews continued. And the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry for deliverance from their bondage came up unto God, And God heard their groaning, and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, And he looked upon the children of Israel, and took knowledge of them. Moses was chosen by God to be the deliverer of the Hebrews from their cruel servitude. The Bible tells a strange story of how the will of God in this matter was first revealed to Moses. Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian : and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of Horeb, And the angel of God appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a thorn-bush : and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, but the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight. 64 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING why the bush is not burnt. And when he turned aside to see, God called unto hini out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said. Here am I. And he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face ; for he was afraid. And God said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters ; for I know their sorrows ; and I will deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians,, and I will bring them up out of that land unto a good ,land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt, And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them. The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you ; and they shall say to me. What is his name ? what shall I say unto them ? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM : and he said. Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel^ I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you : this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I will surely visit you for that which is done to you in Egypt :■ and I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of Canaan. And I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go, except by a mighty hand. And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. And Moses said unto God, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant; but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. And God said unto him. Who hath niade man's mouth ? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind ? Is it not I? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy M AM THAT I AM 65 mouthy and teach thee what thou shalt say. And he said^ O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send. And the anger of God was kindled against Moses, and he said. Is not Aaron thy brother ? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee : and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart. And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I mil be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. The passage about the name of God, which is here said to be * I am/ or more fully, ' I am that I am/ I shall speak about later on in another connexion. The narrator speaks about the * anger of God ' being kindled against Moses, but we must always remember that this is a human and inaccurate way of speaking, for God is not now angry and now appeased, but ever and always one and the same. § 5- Then Moses went and returned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him. Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egj^t, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt, And God said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him, and kissed him. And Moses told Aaron all the words of God wherewith he had sent him. So Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel, and Aaron spake unto them all the words which God had spoken unto Moses. And the people believed : and when they heard that God had looked upon their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshipped. Then afterward Moses and Aaron came, and said unto Pharaoh, Thus saith God, Let my people go. And Pharaoh said. Who is your God, that I should hearken unto his voice to let Israel go ? I know not your God, and I will not let Israel go. And the king of Egypt said unto them. Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, draw away the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. And Pharaoh said. Behold, the people of the land are now many, and ye make them rest from their burdens. And the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, Ye shall no more 66 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING give the people straw to make brick^ as heretofore : let them go and gather straw for themselves. And the number of the bricks^ which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them ; ye shall not diminish aught thereof : for they be idle. Let more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein ; and let them not regard deceitful words. And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their ofl&cers, and they spake to the people, saying. Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. Go yourselves, get you straw where ye can find it : yet not aught of your work shall be diminished. So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. And the taskmasters pressed them, saying. Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh^s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded. Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to-day, as heretofore ? Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying. Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants ? There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us. Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people. But he said. Ye are idle, ye are idle. Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you^ yet -shall ye deliver the number of bricks. And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, when it was said, Ye shall not minish aught from your bricks, your daily tasks. And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: and they said unto them, God look upon you, and judge; because ye have made us abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hands to slay us. And Moses cried unto God, and said. Wherefore hast thou evil entreated this people ? why is it that thou hast sent me ? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name^ he hath done evil to this people ; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all. And God said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh : for compelled by a strong hand shall he let them go, and compelled by a strong hand shall he urge them out of his land. BRICKS WITHOUT STRAW 67 What was this * strong hand/ compelled by which Pharaoh would let the Hebrews go 1 The Jews believed that heavy trouble and sore trials befell the Egyptians at this time, and they saw in these trials punishments sent by God upon the Egyptians for their ill-treatment and oppression of the Hebrews, and for the refusal of Pharaoh to let them depart from Egypt in peace as God had bidden him. ThesQ sore troubles are known as the Ten Plagues. But I do not mean to tell you about them here. Whenever one nation has a quarrel or goes to war with another nation, each side always thinks that it is in the right and its enemies in the wrong. Often too, so thinking, they believe also that their own enemies are the enemies of God. When they make peace with each other, they remember that God has no enemies, for all mankind are his children. He loves the good ; and as for the bad, though he does not love them hecmbse they are bad, he loves them although they are bad, as a father loves his children not because they do wrong, but although they do wrong, just because they are his children. And all men are the children of God. And even if God does not love the bad at the moment of their wickedness, yet he never ceases to pity them. He punishes them (for every sin brings its punishment in the end) not for the sake of anybody else, and not because they are his enemies, but for their own sake. For sometimes the worst thing that can happen to an evil doer is not to be punished at all. But it is not necessary for us to hear much of the punishments of the Egyptians. It is better and pleasanter to Bx our attention upon the deliverance of the Hebrews. § 6. When trouble upon trouble, punishment upon punishment, had befallen them, the Egyptians themselves made up their minds that the sooner the Hebrews left their country the better. When the king and his people had come to this resolution, they were urgent that the Israelites should not tarry. . They drove them forth in haste. So they went out from the land of Goshen, a great company of men and women and children and flocks and herds. And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders. And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened ; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual. 68 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And they journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, and from Succoth to Etham, and they encamped there on the edge of the wilderness. And Moses took the hones of Joseph with him : for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will sm-ely visit you ; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you. Then they journeyed forward safely as far as the head of the Gulf of Suez, which is the northern part of the Ked Sea. Meanwhile It was told the king of Egypt that the people had fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against the people, and they said. Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us ? And he made ready his chariots, and took his people with him : and he took six hundred chosen chariots, and captains over every one of them, and he pursued after the children of Israel, and he overtook them encamping by the sea. And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them ; and they were sore afraid : and the children of Israel cried out unto God. And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness ? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? Is not this the word that we said to thee in Egypt, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians ? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness. And Moses said unto the people. Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of God, which he will shew to you to-day : for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to-day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. God shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. And as Moses foretold to them, so it came to pass. At the moment of their greatest peril they were very wonderfully delivered. A strong wind drove the waters at the head of the Gulf south- wards, and the Israelites, instead of having to go round the shore of the Gulf, crossed over its bed in safety to the other side. When, however, the Egyptians made after them in hot pursuit, they too straight across the channel of the Gulf, the wind suddenly dropped, and the waters, returning to their natural limits, drowned the Egyptians amid their waves. So the Hebrews were delivered and set free from Egyptian servitude for good and all. THE EXODUS FROM EGYPT 69 § 7. In deep gratitude did the children of Israel give thanks to God for their marvellous deliverance. A song of triumph is put into their mouths which is very vivid and di-amatic, though it speaks of God in far too human a way to commend itself wholly to our present ideas. But we must remember that in ancient times the successful warrior was, for many warlike races, the highest type and ideal of human excellence and nobility. Therefore such races could represent God under no higher image. In the song God is often called ' the Lord,' a name for him which I shnll explain later, when I speak about the famous words, * I am that I am/ This is how the song is introduced to us. Thus God saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians ; and Israel saw that great work which God did upon the Egyptians : and the people feared God^ and believed in God, and in his servant Moses. Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto Godj and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song. And he is become my salvation : He is my God, and I will praise him ; My father's God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war : The Lord is his name. Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea : His chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea. The depths have covered them : They sank into the bottom as a stone. Thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power : Thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemy. And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast over- thrown them that rose up against thee : Thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble. And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together. The floods stood upright as an heap. And the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea. The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; 70 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING My lust shall be satisfied upon them ; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them. Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them : They sank as lead in the mighty waters. Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods ? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders ? Thou stretchedst out thy right hand. The earth swallowed them. Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed : Thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. The peoples heard and were afraid : Terror took hold on the inhabitants of Palestina. The princes of Edom were amazed ; The mighty men of Moab, trembling took hold upon them ; All the inhabitants of Canaan melted away. Fear and dread did fall upon them ; By the greatness of thine ai'm they became still as a stone; So thy people entered in, O Lord, so the people entered in, whom thou hast acquired for thine own. Thou didst bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance. In the place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in. In the sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have estab- lished. The Lord shall reign for ever and ever. And Miriam, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in lier hand ; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them. Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously ; The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. This song is put dramatically into the mouth of Moses by the Biblical narrator, but it must have been written after his time. The Israelites are already settled in Palestine, and even the sanctuary of Jerusalem has been erected. The writer too hastily adopted popular notions. God dwells in no human sanctuary. Of this we shall hear more hereafter. That the proof of God's THE SONG OF MOSES 71 goodness and greatness is seen in the destruction of tlie Egyptians may jar upon us to-day, but is true to human nature as it was and is. It was not indeed wonderful that in their hour of triumph and emancipation the Hebrews could feel little pity over their drowned oppressors. So when the wild winds of heaven scattered and wrecked the ships of the Invincible Armada, the English thanked God for their deliverance, and rejoiced at the discomfiture of their foes. In the hour of their escape from deadly peril, they could feel little pity over their drowned enemies. But it does not become us now as Englishmen to rejoice over the death of the Spaniards, or as Jews to rejoice over the death of the Egyptians. We may rejoice at our own deliverance and give thanks for it to God, but we must feel pity rather than triumph over our fallen foes. Some of you may remember in the Odyssey of the great Greek poet Homer how, after the hero Odysseus has slain the suitors of Penelope, the old nurse Eurycleia comes into the hall, and seeing all the bodies of her dead foes stretched lifeless on the ground, makes ready to cry aloud for joy. But Odysseus restrained her in her eagerness, and said, * Within thine own heart rejoice, O nurse, and be still, for it is an unholy thing to boast over slain men.' According to an old Kabbinical legend, when the Egyptians were overthrown and drowned, the augels of God were about to sing for joy. But God checked them, and said, * My creatures are lying drowned in the sea, and do ye desire to sing before me ?' -Is not this legend far more truly religious than the song 1 The good and the bad and all the races of men are one and all the children and the creatures of God. § 8. But though we may not triumph over the fallen enemy, we may rejoice over our own deliverance. And the exodus from Egypt, as I have already told you, was no common event. It was one of immense and world-wide importance. Reasonably and with justice did the Jefces always regard the coming out of Egypt as the true beginning of their national life. It was also the true beginning of their religion. A festival was instituted to celebrate the * coming out,' and this festival all Jews celebrate still. It is called the Pass- over, because God is described as having punished the Egyptians for their oppression, but as having * passed over ' and saved the Hebrews. This is the * ordinance * or rule of the Passover festival, as given in the Bible, and put, as all ordinances and law are there put, in the mouth of God. For in old times the laws of any country were always regarded as sacred. Often they were all ascribed to one particular lawgiver, although they may have grown up gradually, and he may only have established the oldest. And the 72 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING lawgiver is usually supposed to have got them from the Deity. So too the Jews regarded all their laws and customs (and not only their religious customs) as sacred, and as given them once for all by Moses, who had been given them, or inspired to ordain them, by God. And when at different times they began to write down their laws, they always ascribed them to Moses. Moses became for the Jews not only the great leader, but the great legislator. "What Lycurgus was for the Spartans, that was Moses for the Jews. This, then, is the description of the ordinance of the Passover which we still keep to-day. There were also special sacrifices arranged for the festival, and other ceremonies connected with it, which are now no longer observed. Throughout your generations ye shall keep the feast of the Passover by an ordinance for ever. Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread : even before the first day begins^ ye shall have put away leaven out of your houses. And on the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation to you ; no manner of work shall be done in them. And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread ; for on this day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt : therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever. In the first mouthy on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. Ye shall eat nothing leavened ; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread. And when your children ask you. What mean ye by this service ? ye shall say unto them. It is because of that which God did for us when we came forth out of Egypt. Remember therefore this day, in which ye came^ut from Egypt, out of the house of bondage : for by strength of hand God brought you out of this place : there shall no leavened bread be eaten. And it shall be when God shall have brought thee into the land of Canaan, which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service. And thou shalt tell thy son in that day, saying, This is done because of that which God did for me when I came forth out of Egypt, And the service shall be to you like a sign upon your hands, and like front- lets between your eyes, that the teaching of God may be in thy mouth ; for with a strong hand God brought you out of THE PASSOVER AND ITS ORDINANCE 73 jypt. Ye shall therefore keep this ordinance in its season Dm year to year. The 'first month' is the Hebrew month of Abib, which begins w&xda the middle of our March, so that the Passover takes place her in March oj: in the first half of April. The festival begins 'even/ just as the Sabbath begins on Friday evening at the tting of the sun, because the Hebrews, like other Eastern peoples, ckoned their day, not as we Western people do, from midnight midnight, but from sunset to sunset, so that, as we may say, e night was the beginning of the day. The unleavened bread is e symbol and the memorial of the hasty departure from Egypt, len, as we have just seen, the Hebrews baked unleavened cakes the dough which they had brouglit with them from Goshen, for was not leavened. In the Law of the Eetrospect, of which we shall hear more later I, the unleavened bread enjoined upon the Jews during the issover week is called the bread of affliction. That is to say, it the bread which is to recall the affliction and the oppression of e Israelites during the servitude of Egypt. The compilers of is code constantly use the bondage in Egypt as a motive for eir laws, and most specially do they make this use of it in ws enjoining justice and charity towards the helpless, the ranger, and the poor. The remembrance of the oppression of e Egyptians is to make the Jews act in the very contrary way others over whom they may be in a position of authority or [vantage. For example, the Sabbath rest is enjoined in order at * thy manservant and maidservant may rest as well as thou, ad thou shalt remember that thou wast a servant in the land of ^ypt, and God brought thee out thence by a mighty hand and by stretched-out arm : therefore God has commanded thee to keep e Sabbath day.' So again when the Jews are bidden to judge uly the cause of the fatherless and the widow, or to help them in leir hour of need, it is added, ' Thou shalt remember that thou wast bondman in Egypt, and God redeemed thee thence : therefore art lou commanded to do tliese things/ Most particularly is the membrance of Egypt to be before their minds in their dealings ith strangers. ' Love ye the stranger ; for ye were strangers in le land of Egypt/ So too elsewhere it' is said, ' Ye shall not )press the stranger ; for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing s were strangers in the land of Egypt.' And yet again, ' The ranger that sojourneth with you shall be unto you as the homeborn Qong you, and ye shall love liim as yourselves ; for ye were rangers in the land of Egypt/ Just because the Egyptians eated the Jews so badly when the Jews were strangers in Egypt, 74 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING must the Jews, returning good for evil, be gentle and loving and helpful to ' strangers ' for all time. Thus we may regard the Passover, first, as the festival of the public foundation of our religion, when it passed from its family- stage to its national stage, just as it was destined to pass from its national stage to one broader and more universal. For the Jews are no longer a nation, but only a religious brotherhood, and our faith knows no difference of race or nation any more. But, secondly, the Passover may be regarded as the great festival of freedom. Liberty or freedom has been abused, as other good things have been abused and put to ignoble uses, but it is none the less a good thing in itself. Whenever and wherever there is oppression of the weak by the strong, of the poor by the rich, or of one race by another, they who are knit together by the common celebration of the Passover ought to feel righteous indignation, and do all which lies in their power to remedy the wrong. The Jews should ever be foremost in the cause of freedom, of justice, and of charity. Otherwise they are false to the very foundations of their history and of their creed. Each coming Passover should remind us to ask ourselves, Have I done my best to help those whom I can help ] Have I cared my best for those for whom I ought to care 1 Have I been gentle and considerate and kind to those who serve me in my home, and who work for me and for my household, whether within doors or without ? Have I remembered the poor and sought to help them wisely, if sucb help be within my power, through my gifts, my time, and my thought 1 Have I made any sacrifice for their sakes 1 If we cannot say something of a ' yes * to questions such as these, are we fit to rejoice at and take our part in the celebration of the Passover ? Let, at any rate, the season of the festival not pass away without our doing something in it, during the very week while it lasts, to make somebody or other a little happier, and to lessen for a little while or in a small degree the load of care or sorrow which so many people around us have quietly and patiently to bear. The Passover is therefore a festival of hope and consecration, of thanksgiving and gladness, of freedom and of charity. It urges us to look forward and strive, to be grateful to God the giver and the saviour, to bear in mind the claims upon us of the ' stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.* Eemember the past, and work for the future: hope and help; think and thank; be strong and strengthen ; rejoice and make rejoice ; these and such as these are the watchwords of the Passover. § 9. The Jews were now free to pursue their journey, unmolested by the Egyptians, to Palestine. But a long while passed before FROM EGYPT TO SINAI 75 they came there, how long, and all that happened in between, we do not exactly know. Nor did they go straight as the crow flies from the Gulf of Suez to the laud of Canaan. They journeyed first of all southwards, keeping apparently not very far from the coast, till at last they came near to Mount Horeb or Sinai in the southern corner of Arabia, From there they crossed over to the other side of the Peninsula near to the coast line of the Gulf of Akaba : thence they turned northwards. For many years they seem to have made their headquarters at a place called Kadesh, which lies not very far from the extreme southern border of Canaan. They attempted to enter Canaan from there, advancing straight north- wards, but were beaten by the inhabitants in some skirmishes on the frontier, and discouraged from further movements in that direc- tion. After some years' delay they turned once more eastwards and then northwards, keeping on the east side of the Dead Sea. After some fighting in this district, the majoiity of them finally crossed the Jordan at some point or points above the Dead Sea, and began the settlement or conquest of Canaan itself. Jericho was one of the first places they captured. But some of them settled down on the east side of the Jordan and made their homes there. Some too seem to have entered Palestine from the south. Moses, the great captain and lawgiver, died before the Jordan was crossed, and the Hebrews made their entry into the promised land under the leadership of Joshua, the disciple of Moses, and his successor. § 10. You will be able to follow roughly these journeyings of the Hebrews, if you keep a good map of Egypt, Arabia, and Palestine open before you. But it is impossible to make out their line of march precisely, for the accounts given in the Bible are confused, and the names and situations of many of their halting-places are quite unknown. You will remember that the exodus from Egypt and the wanderings of the Hebrews and the settlement in Canaan happened ages before any account of them was written down. No wonder, then, that in those days, when there were no maps or globes, and people travelled little and had very vague ideas as to the exact shape and lie of distant countries, the traditions of this long journey became varying and uncertain. But there are three or four great incidents in the stories of the wanderings upon which we must now fix our attention, and hear something of what the Bible has to tell us about them, § 1 1, The first great incident is connected with Mount Horeb or Sinai, and has to do with all that happened to Moses and to the 76 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Hebrews when they were encamped at the foot of that mountain. The first thing which happened was the arrival of Jethro, Moses' father-in-law. For now that the Hebrews in their journeyings had come near to Jethro's country, he determined to pay his son- in-law, now the captain and leader of his people, a visit. For JethrOj the priest of Midian^ Moses' father in law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, how that God had brought Israel out of Egypt. And Jethro, Moses' father in law, came unto Moses into the wilderness where he encamped, at the mount of God, And Moses went out to meet his father in law, and did obeisance, and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare; and they came into the tent. And Moses told his father in law all that God had done unto Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israelis sake, all the travail that had come upon them by the way, and how God delivered them. And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which God had done to Israel, that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. And Jethro said, Blessed be God, who hath delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh. And Jethro, Moses' father in law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God : and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses' father in law before God. And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people : and the people stood before Moses from the morning unto the evening. And when Moses' father in law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What is this thing that thou doest to the people ? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand before thee from morning unto even ? And Moses said unto his father in law. The people come unto me to inquire of God : when they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I make known to them the statutes of God, and his laws. And Moses' father in law said unto him. The thing that thou doest is not good. Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee : for this thing is too heavy for thee ; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone. Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God be with thee : be thou for the people to Godward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God : and THE VISIT OF JETHRO 77 thou shalt teach them the statutes and the laws^ and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do. Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness ; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens : and let them judge the people at all seasons : and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge by themselves : so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee. If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people also shall go to their place in peace. So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father in law, and did all that he had said. And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. And they judged the people at all seasons : the hard causes they brought unto Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves. And Moses let his father in law depart 5 and he went his way into his own land. You will notice that justice and judgement are sacred. To go to law is to inquire of God, and the decisions which Moses gives as judge are regarded by himself and by his people as the statutes and the laws of God. In ancient times, as I have already told you, all laws, whatever their subject, were considered divine. To put the feeling of these old times in modern words, we might say that the court of justice is as holy as the synagogue, and the one might be called the house of God as truly as the other. Moreover, the identification was still closer. For the temple or sanctuary was also the law court : the very same place was used both for worship and for justice. There was something very fine and true in this way of looking at justice and law. For surely the judge who has to deal out justice between man and man is sitting in the seat of God, and the court of justice is, in a real sense, the house of God. For, as it says in the Psalms, * righteousness and justice are the foundation of the throne of God.* Elsewhere the appointment of judges is mentioned as the insti- tution of Moses himself. In the Eetiospect of their history since the Exodus, which Moses is recorded to have made to the Hebrews shortly before his death, the story is told thus. (We shall come across a third version of it later on.) 78* THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And I spake unto you, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone ; the Lord your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude. The Lord God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as he hath promised you ! How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife? Take you wise men, and understanding, and known in each of your tribes, and I will make them heads over you. And ye answered me, and said. The thing which thou hast spoken is good for us to do. So I took the heads of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers, in each of your tribes. And I charged your judges at that time, saying. Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him. Ye shall not respect persons in judgement ; ye shall hear the small as fairly as the great ; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man ; for the judgement is God^s : and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it. And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do. § 12. Far more important than the visit of Jethro was that which happened after it, I have already told you that when the Hebrews, long after their settlement in Canaan, began at different times to write down their laws and maxims, these were all put in the mouth of Moses, because it was believed that he was the author of them. The main or principal scene of the Mosaic legislation was placed at Mount Sinai, and the occasion was the time after the Exodus at which we have now arrived. The Bible speaks of this lawgiving in two separate places. The first account is the result of two or more narratives joined or pieced together by a later writer. The second account is put in the mouth of Moses himself, who relates to his people, at the end of his careei-, the events and memories of the past. Both these accounts divide the lawgiving into two unequal parts. They both speak of ten chief utterances or commands put at the front of the whole legislation and given in a peculiarly solemn way. These Ten * Words/ as the Hebrew calls them, stand by themselves, and then all the other laws follow after them. The full importance of the first Ten Words was not indeed realized all at once. The second account emphasizes them more than the first account. A FEW WORDS ABOUT IDOLATRY 79 and separates them more sliarply from all the other laws which follow. Now all laws in ancient times were regarded as God's laws, and we have seen that there was good reason for this, hecause justice and righteousness are attributes of God. When we think what God is, we think of him, first and foremost, as just and righteous. But the Ten Words were rightly considered so im- portant and so admirable that they were exalted still more. It is recorded that they were uttered by a divine voice so that all the Israelites could hear them. It was said that they were graven on two tables of stone, and as none knew who had written the words on the tables, it was believed that they were the work of God, and that God had created the tables with their writing, even as he had created the world and all that is in it. These wonderful tables, or tablets as we should say now, were, it was said, given to Moses by God, and put by Moses in a sacred chest, or ' ark/ which was specially made by Moses to receive them. § 13. Before I go farther and tell the story of the Ten Words (and I shall tell it chiefly from the second account), I want you to bear in mind that one of the great evils which existed at the time of the Exodus and for long, long afterwards was Idolatry, Idolatry is a very inclusive word : to the legislators of the Jews it meant different things at different times. It meant, first of all, the worship of the creation instead of the Creator, the worship of sun and moon and stars instead of God who made them ; it meant, secondly, the worship of more gods than one, whether with or without their idols or symbols ; and, thirdly, it meant the worship of the one true God under any material, form, shape, or symbol whatever. For instance, the Canaanites used to worship one of their gods in the form or under the symbol of a bull, and another god in the form or under the symbol of a man ; and the Jews, imitating the bad custom of their neighbours, began to worship the one true God in the form or under the symbol of a bull. That seems very ridiculous to us now, but it did not seem at all ridiculous then. It only seemed ridiculous, and it only seemed wicked, to a few who thought more wisely and truly of God. Therefore it is that the Hebrew legis- lators have so much to say against all forms of idolatry : it seems unnecessary to us now, but it was by no means unnecessary then. It was only after sore trouble and much teaching through many generations that the Jews entirely abandoned every phase and vestige of idolatry. But after they once gave it up, they have ever since remained its staunchest and firmest foes, the most uncom- promising and strenuous opponents of the slightest return to idolatry 8o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING under any pretence or pretext whatever, and in however seemingly innocent or beautiful a form, § 14. This, then, is the story of the Ten Words. Moses is repre- sented as speaking to the Hebrews not long before his own death, and before that entry into Canaan which he was not himself destined to see. Very earnest and solemn are his exhortations and his warnings. He harks back again and again with renewed emphasis to the chief points and moral of his wondrous tale. O Israel, hearken unto the statutes and unto the judge- mentSj which I teach you, for to do them ; that ye may live, and go in and possess the land vt^hich the Lord God or your fathers giveth you. Keep therefore and do them ; for this is your wisdom and understanding in the sight of the peoples, which shall hear all these statutes, and say. Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. And therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me out of all the peoples : for all the earth is mine : and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life ; but teach them thy sons and thy sons^ sons ; specially the day that thou stoodest before God in Horeb, when God said unto me. Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children. And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness. And God spake unto you out of the midst of the fire : ye heard the voice of words, but ye saw no form; only ye heard a voice. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even the ten words; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. And God commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgements, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it. Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of form on that day that God spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire : lest ye corrupt your- selves, and make you a graven image, the form of any figure THE TEN WORDS 8i the likeness of male or female^ the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air, the likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth: and lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun and the moon and the stars, even all the host of heaven, thou be led away to worship them, and serve them. For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it ? Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard ? Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God; there is none else beside him. Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee : and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire ; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire. And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee vnth his mighty power out of Egypt; to bring thee in, to give thee the land of Canaan for an inheritance, as at this day. Know therefoi'e this day, and take it to thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath : there is none else. Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Hear, therefore, O Israel, the statutes and judgements which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep and do them. The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. God spake vsith you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire, saying, I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods beside me. Thou shalt not make thee a graven image, the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters under the earth : thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in 83 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING vain : for God will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work : but the seventh day is a sabbath unto the Lord thy God : in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou. And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence by a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm : therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day. Honour thy father and thy mother. Thou shalt do no murder. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife ; neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, 'his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's. These words God spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice : and he added no more. § 15. There are many things in this fundamental passage which need notice and explanation. If the Jews obey God's voice, it is said that they shall be to him • a peculiar treasure out of all the peoples.' The Jews were sometimes inclined to exaggerate, not their own excellence and wisdom, hut the peculiar relation in which they stood to God. We could not accept the words * peculiar treasure,' if they meant that the * way of God' was not * equal,' that the 'judge of all the earth ' would not do right, or that the * God of the spirits of all flesh ' would show partiality. We must always seek for the very best and highest teaching to be found in the Bible, and lay all our stress on that, and make that our standard. Whatever we may there find which does not agree with the best, need not trouble us to-day. But these words, a * peculiar treasure,' sound more partial than they really are. If I have chosen an instrument for a peculiar purpose, that instrument may be to me a peculiar treasure, hut the purpose is greater than the instrument. So with A KINGDOM OF PRIESTS 83 the Jews. They are God's instrument, and as such a peculiar treasure, but the work is far greater than the instrument. The work which the Jews have got to do is indicated in the following words : * a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation/ A priest in old days had to do something of the same work that a clergyman has to do to-day. Now if the Jews are to be a kingdom of clergymen, it is clear that they are not to become so for themselves. Fancy a kingdom fiill of clergymen and nothing else I The whole object of a clergyman is his congregation, just as the whole object of a shepherd is his flock. A kingdom of shepherds with no sheep would be a very foolish and useless kingdom. The kingdom of priests is therefore not chosen and consecrated for itself, but for the world. So it was with the Jews. By their lives, their works, their faith, their words, they were to teach mankind about goodness and God. And this spiritual kingdom still exists. It lies with each one of us, under the grace and with the help of God, to become a member of it. It is a high office to which we are chosen : a great duty with which we are charged. It is not for all of us to go about the world preaching, to write a book, or to deliver sermons ; but it is for all of us to cleave to God in true faith and deep love, and to be good and pure and loving in our lives. To this priesthood we may all aspire, and every" Jew of this kind and type is doing something for the great cause. He is a witness for goodness and for God. § 16. Notice next the emphasis laid in the story of the Ten Words on the absence of any visible form. * Ye heard the voice of words, but ye saw no form.' Nothing happened to justify the least idolatry. In what sense we must interpret the words, * And God spake with you out of the midst of the fire,' is not clearly stated, and cannot be explained. Some Jewish philosophers (lover of wisdom is the meaning of the word philosopher) have thought that it was a special divine voice which God created for the occasion. I do not know. I can only repeat to you the story as I find it in the Bible, asking you always to remember that the more important thing is not how exactly these Ten Words were given, but that we have them at all, that the Jews were led to understand how very great and noble the Words are, and to lay gradually more and more stress and emphasis upon them as the cardinal laws or maxims for human society. (Cardinal laws are laws on which other laws depend or hingej for cardo in Latin means a hinge.) We may also call them fundamental laws, because they are the basis or foundation on which other maxims and principles of reli- gion and goodness, not less great than they, may be built up. The 84 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING house of religion is more or greater than its foundation, but without the foundation you cannot have the house. § 17. The first three Words deal with our belief in and our relation to God. The First Word, * I am the Lord thy God, who brought tliee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage,' implies that God remains for all time eternally the same. Now if God changed his character, we could have no faith in him. And if he changed his nature, he could not be One. Therefore this First Word is the foundation for whatever we may hear in other places of the Bible of God's unity and of his goodness. The unity of God is also, as it were, led up to and prepared for by the Second Word. For if the Jews are to 'have no other gods beside me,' this is only because there is but one God whom they or any other race or people can have. As we heard just now : ' Know therefore this day, and take it to thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath : there is none else/ For earth and for heaven, for this world and for all other worlds beside it and beyond, there is only one God, and that God is always the same. Again, if the Jews, in the second part of the Second Command- ment, are forbidden to make a graven image, this implies, first, that the Creator is other than and different from all created things ; secondly, it implies that his nature is not material, and that every material representation of him in the shape of man or beast or sun or star is an utterly false and unworthy emblem of the Divine — false and unworthy because it supposes that God must have a material shape and cannot be pure spirit ; false and unworthy too because it limits God to a particular place, and prevents us from trying to remember and to realize that God is everywhere ; nigh and far off at once, mysteriously omnipresent. § 18. The Third Word is also fundamental, for it teaches us to reverence God. If we take his name in vain ; if we use his name falsely ; if we say, ' As truly as God lives, I did so and so/ when we did not do it, or * I did not do so and so ' when we did do it, this is not only a tenible sin, but it implies a frame of mind which does not reverence God. We can therefore mal^e the negative form of the Third Commandment positive by saying, * Eeverence God.' For no one who does not revere or reverence God can also love him. For if we realize that God is all wise and all good, we must revere that great wisdom as well as love that great goodness. Eeverence implies honour, and what you do not wholly honour and yet know to be greater than yourself, you cannot wholly love. The love of man for God has Bome resemblance with the love of a child for FEAR AND REVERENCE 85 its father. That love, too, is not perfect of its kind if it does not rest upon the basis of honour and respect. The word E-everence comes from the Latin. The Latin noun reverentia and the Latin verb revereor mean the same as our English noun and verb, ' reverence ' and * revere/ But the Latin verb revereor is formed from the shorter verb vereor, just as we have in English the words ' collect ' and * recollect,' and so on. Vereor itself means to * revere/ but it also means (and this was its earlier meaning) ' to fear.' For instance, a Koman could say, Vereor periculimij ' I fear the danger.' He did not mean * I revere the danger.' So we see that the word * revere ' grew out of the word ' fear,' and the idea and feeling of reverence grew out of the idea and feeling of fear. But there is nowadays a very clear differ- ence between them. When I say, 'I revere God,' I do not mean I am afraid of God. I fear a lion, because he is very powerful and may harm and hurt me. But I do not revere him. God we call omnipotent, which means all powerful, but we do not revere him because he is all powerful. We revere him because he is wise and good. If we say we fear him, it is because we know that we are unworthy children of such a Father, because in the notion of infinite wisdom there is something awful, which even infinite goodness cannot and should not remove. There is something very beautiful in the sight of a field of pure white snow, which I see before me as I write these words. It seems so white and so pure that we are almost afraid to spoil its whiteness and its purity by walking over it. And if we have not this feeling, I am not sure that we can fully appreciate its beauty. Now we cannot spoil the lovingkindness of God, but his goodness and his wisdom are so beautiful that we have a feeling of awe before the inward vision or contemplation of them. And this feeling of awe is reverence, and reverence is therefore the highest form of fear. And just as we cannot fully appreciate the beauty of the snow without that feeling of awed admiration of which I spoke just now, so we cannot love God, as God should be loved by men, unless with our love there is combined the feeling of reverence and of awe. There is a form of fear which is lower than reverence, but is also right and even desirable. If a child has done wrong, he fears punishment. But he is not merely afraid of the punishment which his father may inflict upon him : he is also ashamed of the wrong- doing which makes that punishment necessary and right. Thus his fear is not mere fear, but it is also shame. Moreover he is sorry for the pain which he has given or will give to his father. So that his fear includes two other feelings as well : shame and sorrow. So 86 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING too with the fear of God. Even in this lower form of it, it will include not merely a fear of the punishment of sin, a punishment which God lias attached to the sins themselves as their inevitable and necessary consequence, but also shame of one*s own unworthi- ness, and sorrow because of God's displeasure. For we may believe that the sins of his human children cause sorrow unto their divine Father. The Hebrew language has only one word for reverence and fear. Man's fear of a lion and man's reverence of God can only be expressed by the same word. But in most cases it would be better for us to use the English word ' reverence ' as the translation of the Hebrew word ' yirah/ wherever that word is applied to God. We should then obtain for ourselves a better and a truer meaning. § 19. The Fourth Word or Commandment forms a kind of bridge between the first three and the last six. (To sanctify means to keep holy or make holy.) The first three Words deal with God, the last six deal with man ; the fourth deals, as it were, both with man and with God. It bids us rest one day out of every seven, and the reason which it gives for this ordinance is partly human and partly divine. The human reason is, * that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou.' People who have the full and unimpeded control of their own lives and actions might, if they please, make a day of rest for them- selves, but those who are the servants of others, employed by them in their houses or shops or ofiices or factories, whose lives and actions are not wholly under their own control and disposal, but to a greater or less degree under the disposal and control of others, could not, even if they wished it, make such an arrangement for themselves. So here the Sabbath law steps in and seeks to make the arrangement for them. No diviner enactment has ever been given than this rule of one day's rest in seven. In another place in the Bible the command appears thus : * Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest : that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and the son of thy handmaid and the stranger may be refreshed.' In this form the Sabbath rest is extended to those patient animals who labour for our well-being and not for their own, without whose strength and endurance and ability our civilization would never have come to be what now it is. Enormous is the debt we owe to the animals, and it is one of the glories of the Jewish religion that it has so fully recognized our duty to them, so that the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals should have no keener supporters than Jews. Notice that as the Hebrews (like the Swiss in their mountain villages) THE MEANING OF SABBATH REST 87 used the ox for drawing carts and pulling burdens instead of the horse, the Sabbath rest is here enjoined for the ox and the ass : in England it would be enjoined for the ass and the horse. There is also a divine reason for the Sabbath, by which I mean a reason which has to do with God. * The seventh day is a Sabbath unto the Lord thy God/ That is to say, the Sabbath is not merely intended for human rest, but for the glory of God. God indeed does not need our praise and our service, but man needs them. His life is richer and better for the praise and the worship and the prayer which he renders unto God. We may therefore say that the divine reason turns into a human reason once more. But though God does not need our service, he does (we may believe) take pleasure in it. The prayer and praise of his children are acceptable to their Father. And before God the simplest hymn of the youngest boy or girl and the adoration of the greatest philosopher are as one. We are all but little children in his eyes. The Sabbath, then, has a double object. First of all, rest from work ; secondly, leisure for the worship and eanctification of God. Kest implies labour. We cannot enjoy rest unless we have earned it by labour. So the command to rest on the seventh day seems to imply a command to labour on the six. ' Six days shalt thou labour,' and * on the seventh day shalt thou rest.' The one part of the sentence is worded like the other. Six-fold labour to one-fold rest is the bidding of God. What is meant by rest % In the first instance, cessation from labour. If my business is to till the ground, then on the seventh day I need not, and I must not, till it. If my business is to cast up accounts in an office, then on the seventh day I need not, and I must not, cast them up. If my business is to serve cus- tomers in a shop, on the seventh day I need not, and I must not, serve them. If I have a factory, on the seventh day I must close it, and let all my workmen have, a full and whole day's holiday. If my business is to Avrite books, on the seventh day I must stop my writing. That is the first meaning; in fact, that is the only meaning which is clearly and simply indicated by the words of the Com- mandment. How we are to spend our rest is quite another matter. There are two obvious rules for this. The Sabbath is called in the Bible a day of delight. Now pure inaction is not delight, except to some very hard-worked persons. So our rest must be so spent that it is delightful. Primarily whatever delights us, if it is innocent and pure, is a fit occupation for the Sabbath day. The 88 THE BIBLE FOR. HOME READING delights of a boy may not be the same as the delights of a man. A boy may like to use his Saturday afternoon to play cricket in : a man may like to read a book. Sometimes, on the other hand, a boy may like to read the book, and a man to play cricket. Reading a book and playing cricket may both under certain circumstances be fitting modes of rest in which to spend a portion of the Sabbath. There is only one class of persons who ought never to play cricket on the Sabbath, and that is the professional cricketer, the man whose business is cricket. Whatever then is not your work and gives you wholesome and innocent pleasui'e may be regarded as rest. But the second rule is no less important than the first. Your rest and your play must not (so far as possible) cause work to any- body else. For instance, a country drive might be a very delightful rest and enjoyment upon the Sabbath, if your business keeps you within doors all the other days in the week from ten in the morn- ing till six in the evening. But then driving is the coachman's worhy and pulling is the horse's work, and therefore this country drive must be given up, for though it would be your rest it would be another's worh. Notice, too, that just as one man's meat is another man's poison, so one man's rest may be another man's ^lay. For instance, if my business is that of a gardener, it may be most delightful rest for me to stay indoors on the Sabbath and read a book. If my work is to read books, it may be most delightful rest -for me to dig and plant in my garden on the Sabbath. We can lay down the general rule of rest for every one alike, but the application of the rule must vary for different persons. It is very foolish to fix the same forms of rest for every one. Again, if my work is to read and study Latin and Greek, I must not read them on the Sabbaih : even if I am keen to get on with my work and enjoy my work, I must nevertheless not read them ; but, on the other hand, when I have finished my time at school or college, and have become a lawyer or a merchant or a clerk, then to read a fine Latin or Greek book will be one very good way of enjoying myself upon the Sabbath. Suppose, however, a boy at school or college is very fond of his work, and very eager to do well in his examinations, why must he nevertheless not do it upon the Sabbath ? Well, first of all I would say that the Sabbath law is greater than the boy. It has proved its excellence through the ages, and it must not be left to the caprice of the individual to violate or keep it at his pleasure. He who violates it for one reason will violate it for another. Again, there are higher objects in life than success. The Sabbath, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY 89 with its exhortation to the worship of God and the doing of kindly deedsj reminds us week by week of these higher objects. It prevents us reducing our life to the level of a machine. The gathered experience of mankind that the break in the routine of work one day in seven will heighten the value of the very work itself, is not lightly to be put aside. The Sabbath is one of the glories of our humanity. For if to labour is noble, of our OAvn free will to pause in that labour which may lead to success, to money, or to fame, may be nobler still. Ants and bees labour, but the ants and bees have no Sabbath. To dedicate one day a week to rest and to God, this is the prerogative and privilege of mau alone. It is an ordinance which we may rightly call divine. Let every boy and every young man, let every girl and every young woman, get out of the habit of ceasing from their work on the Sabbath day at their own peril. One day*s rest out of seven 1 He who breaks that rule injures himself, and by his example (however insignificant he may he) injures the community and the state. The dog eats when he is hungry, or when he gets the chance. Man can control his appetite, and eats at fixed periods of the day. And so in labour. A man can control his labour, honourable and pleasant as that labour may be. He can collect himself and pause ; he can give himself time to think of other and sometimes better things, to do other and (as we shall see) sometimes better things than his fixed daily round of toil ; he can prepare himself for better work by rest and thought and relaxation and enjoyment ; he can do good to others instead of doing good to himself ; above all, *he can worship God. "Why and how can he do all these things T Largely because he has the great and holy institution of the Sabbath day. Now once more let us go back to the motives of the Sabbath- day ordinance. The first was ' that thy manservant and maidservant may rest as well as thou.' You know that we Jews keep our Sabbath on Saturday ; our Christian fellow-citizens keep it on Sunday. Our servants are very rarely Jews, hut we must none the less do all we can to enable them to rest one day in seven, even as we. For instance, the work of a cook is to cook, and the work of a housemaid to sweep and light the fires. We cannot go without food and fire on either Saturday or Sunday, but we should try to make our servants' work on Sunday as light as possible, and to give them as much of the day as possible to themselves. Now you will notice that cabs ply on Sundays, though there are fewer of them, and that trains run on Sundays, though, happily in England, there are fewer of them. Jews ought always to be on the side of Sabbath observance. Some people, for instance, would like to have letters delivered on Sundays in London. I think it would 90 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING be very wrong. I wish they were not delivered on Sunday in the country. On the other hand, the work of certain people on Sun- days gives enormous enjoyment to thousands of others. For instance, if no trains ran on Sundays, many a hard-worked Londoner would get no glimpse of the country. Now he can go with his wife and children into the country and have a good long afternoon there. What are we to say to this*! The right thing, I think— the ideal to aim at — would be that every driver of engine or bus or cab on Sunday should have one of the other days in the week as a full holiday. The wages should be the same. That is, Jones, who works on Fridays but not on Sundays, should get the same wages as Smith, who works on Sundays and not on Fridays. And if everybody were Jews, I should like to see just the same arrangement, for in these matters we can well apply the proverb about the ^auce and the gander and the goose. I have said that we are entitled to our own rest and enjoyment, if these do not interfere with the rest and enjoyment of others. But the rest of the day which is a Sabbath unto God is not spent as well as it might be spent if cccasionally some part of it is not devoted to the doing of some kind and loving action to somebody else. The purely selfish Sabbath is. not the best. A visit to the sick or sorrowing or weary or dull has been, for example, a time- honoured method among the Jews for spending some portion of the Sabbath rest. To cause enjoyment is holier in God's eye than to enjoy ourselves. And as the service of God is best shown in the service of man, so we have here a bridge by which we may pass over to the other side or asj)ect of tlie Sabbath which has more closely to do with God. For the divine side of the Sabbath is to give man a weekly and regular opportunity for the worship and the praise and the sanctification of God. Therefore the worship of God, either at home or synagogue or both, should be as much, part and parcel of the Sabbath day as the cessation from toil. If we compare the Sabbath to a tree, then we should say that its two great and main branches are Eest and Worship. Public worship is the visible and outward symbol of our belief in God. It is one of the chief bonds which unite the members of a religious brotherhood together in one holy communion. Weekly worship in synagogue and in the home should become as regular and as habitual as the weekly cessation from toil. Tlie one dovetails into the other. And just as I said, Let every young man and woman violate the Sabbath Q*est at their peril — and that their violation of it will injure themselves, and by their example the community and the state— so I say too of the Sabbath worship}. The neglect of this worship will injure you, and by your example will injure the PRAYER AND PEACE 91 community and the state. But I would even go so far as to say this. There may come a time when the service in the synagogue may seem to you rather dull ; there may come a time when prayer may seem to you very difficult. If such a time should come, I counsel you, stick to public worship, and still more stick to prayer. If you give up the habit, it may be difficult to regain it, and you will in all probability be very sorry you gave it up. The thoughts of a boy are not quite the same as the thoughts of a man : the prayers of a man will not be quite the same as the prayers of a boy. As we pass from boy to man, or from girl to woman, our thoughts may become confused and our prayers may become difficult. But it would be very foolish to give up thinking because of this possible and temporary confusion : not much less foolish, because of this possible and temporary difficulty, would it be to give up praying. A wise and gentle friend who had read what I have just said about the Sabbath and its observance, told me that the one word which should be especially connected with and suggested by the Sabbath I had omitted to mention. That word is Peace. Peace, and all that peace implies, should be the Sabbath emblem. It is most true. If there has been any quarrel or misunderstanding between any members of a family in the work time, before the sun sets and the twilight comes on Friday evening, that misunderstand- ing should be explained away, that quarrel appeased. Sometimes brothers and sisters can see very little of each other or even of their parents on week-days. But the Sabbath brings them all together, and as it brings them together locally and physically under one roof and in one room, let each member of the family take heed that it brings them together morally and spiritually as well, knitting them together, as we may say, in the bonds of friendship and love, and causing them to feel within their hearts the spirit of that holy peace which links the high heavens and the lowliest human hearth to one another and to God, § 20. The last six Words deal altogether with our relations and duties to our fellow-men. Like the first three, they too are funda- mental and cardinal : the well-being of society and the state depends upon their observance, and many other maxims hinge upon them. The most sacred thing of all human things is the Home. The well-being and purity of the home depend upon the positive Fifth Commandment and upon the negative Seventh Command- ment. (A positive command is one which says, ' Do this or that.' A negative command says, * Do not do this or that/) About the 92 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Seventh Commandment I need not speak here, because you will understand its meaning better when you are older ; and about the Fifth Commandment I need not speak, because I hope and think that you understand it well enough already. Notice that we are bidden to honour our father and our mother.; elsewhere we are bidden to reverence our mother and our father. (Hebrew has no word for parents. It must either say father and mother or mother and father.) Let us suppose, then, that to show that both are to be reverenced equally, the father is put in one place before the mother, and in another place the mother is put before the father. ' Honour and reverence ' : with these to build upon, love will surely follow. What has been said before about the reverence of God applies, to a certain extent, to the reverence of parents. Love is higher than reverence and better than honour. But the peculiar kind of love which we, whether children or ' grown ups/ should feel for our parents must always include reverence and honour. § 21. The Sixth, Eighth, and Mnth Commandments comprise the most elementary and most necessary regulations for civilized life. If murder, robbery, and falsehood were i-ife and unchecked, how could men and women live together at all 1 Society and the state, kingdoms and republics, cannot get on at all if human life is not sacred, if dishonesty prevails, and if lying and injustice rule supreme. Nobody who reads this book will ever, I should hope, be in the least likely to feel the least temptation to break the Sixth Commandment. (So long as war, barbarous method though it be, is still used by nations as a means of settling their quarrels with each other, the soldier who shoots his nation's enemy on the battle- field has not broken the Sixth Commandment. That commandment refers to private murder only and not to war.) Nor would any one who reads this book allow that he would ever be likely to break the Eighth Commandment. But I am sorry to say that I cannot feel equally certain about this. For I do not only understand by stealing the mere carrying off of your neighbour's property. Any unfair advantage you take over him is stealing, and it would be well if people remembered this more vividly and gave to the word * stealing ' a wider range. We have to learn that it is not only wrong to rob or take an unfair advantage of Tom, Dick, or Harry, but that it is also wrong to rob or take an unfair advantage of that collection of all the Toms, Dicks, and Harrys which is called the slate. But I shall not try to explain this here and now. If, however, we could always remember that any unfair advantage over our fellow-men, either individually or in the lump, is stealing, FROM NEGATIVE TO POSITIVE 93 and if occasionally we would probe and examine our actions, lest haply we become guilty of such a violation of the Eighth Command- ment unawares (for this sometimes happens), we should, I think, be doing wisely and doing well. The Ninth Commandment refers, in the first instance, to evidence given in a court of justice. It is of all things most important that in this * house of God' nothing, shall be said which is not the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. You are a useless and wicked witness if you do not tell the truth, and if you tell a lie to injure somebody you are doubly wicked. But the prohibition of false witness may also be taken to include all slander and untruth against our neighbour, wherever uttered and of whatever kind. It forbids all ill-natured gossip and scandal, for not only is it bad taste and ill-natured to dwell on and to spread the faults and defects of others (we have quite enough to do to correct our own), but such unkind speaking is almost sure to lead, whether we are aware of it or not, to exaggeration and falsehood. A single idle and ill-natured word may cause great pain and harm. It may give rise to false rumours. Hence it says elsewhere in the Bible, * Thou shalt not utter a false report.' A man's good name is one of his dearest possessions. Let us beware how we do anything to injure or becloud it — whether our neighbour's good name or our own. Notice that the Sixth, Eighth, and Ninth Commandments, like Second and Third, are all negative in form. They are none the less — perhaps they are all the more — fundamental because of this. The many positive commands for true and kindly dealing between man and man which we shall find in the Hebrew laws, culminating in the great command, ' Thou shalt love thy neighbour ms thyself,' can all be built up upon the foundation of tbe Ten "Words. § 22. The last word, the Tenth Commandment, is very different from all the others. It is also fundamental, but fundamental in a different way. It touches the seat or root of evil, and seeks to prohibit sin at its source. For one of the great sources of evil is wrong and passionate desire. The Tenth Word, then, bids us keep this wrong desire in check, to prevent it coming into existence. It forbids jealousy in every shape and form. It prohibits envy. "We must not grudge to another his joy or his good fortune, or wish that we had it instead of him. From this negative command we can also make our way to positive well-doing. He who does not envy his neighbour's happiness will surely not be glad of his misfortune. So if we feel no envy and grudge no good, we shall be able to rejoice with others over their joys aud to grieve with 94 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING them over their sorrows. Out of the fulfilment of the negative Tenth Commandment, as a necessary root, there will spring up the fair plant of fellow-feeling or sympathy. And from the plant of sympathy there will blossom the flower of love. § 23. The Ten Words can be counted up in more ways than one. "What the Jews have for many years regarded as the First "Word, * I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage/ is unlike all the other Words in being an assertion, not a prohibition or a command. It is true that the Ten Commandments are not called in the Bible Mitzvotj commands ; but Beharim, words. Still, our First Word sounds very like an introduction to what follows. Many people therefore suppose that what we call the Second Commandment includes two commands in one, and comprises really both the First and Second Commandments. In that case the First Commandment would forbid the worship of any other god except the one and only true God ; "the Second Commandment would forbid the making of any material emblem or symbol of the one true God, or the making of any idol or image of any created thing for the purpose of worship. We have no clue from the Bible as to which way of counting the Words is the right way^ The earliest authorities we have (two Jews called Philo and Josephus) reckon the Words the second way, but gradually all the Jews seem to have adopted the first way, and they still count them so at the present day. § 24. I quoted the Ten "Words according to that version of them given in the Law of the Retrospect. Moreover, I quoted some of them in a rather shortened form. But befoie going on I think I had better quote them again, according to the first version of them, which is the version more commonly used by Jews and read out publicly in synagogue. And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods beside me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, nor the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth : thou shalt not bow down thyself to them^ nor serve them : for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that THE FIRST VERSION OF THE TEN WORDS 95 hate me; and shewing mercy unto the thousandth genera- tion of them that love me, and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain ; for God will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day^ to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work : but the seventh day is a sabbath unto the Lord thy God : in it thou shalt not do any workj thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man- servantj nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates : for in six days God made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is^ and rested the seventh day : wherefore God blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. Honour thy father and thy mother : that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maid- servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's. Now I would have you note first of all that the exj)lanations and additions to the commandments are nothing like so important as the commandments themselves. They are all later in time and inferior in substance. They are expansions which can be removed from the commandments without injury to the commandments themselves. Of the expansion to the second commandment I shall say nothing here. It is very difficult. I shall say something about it later on. In any ordinary sense of the word 'jealous ' it is quite mistaken to apply that word to God. You can only fitly apply the word to God by explaining it away. The basis for Sabbath observance is quite different in this version of the Ten "Words to the motive mentioned in the Law of the Reti'ospect. I shall tell you something of the old Hebrew tradi- tions about the creation of the world later on. But even though God did not create the world in six days, still he remains its Creator, and the Sabbath, looked at in this light, becomes a day on which, week by week, we give thanks and praise to the Author and Sustainer of all the Universe from the smallest thing in it to 96 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the greatest. And when I say smallest and greatest, I am not merely thinking of size. For greater than the sun himself or all the host of stars is the Soul of Man. The expansion of the Fifth "Word we could wish had never been added to it. We would fain believe that we need no bribe in order to do our duty ; still less do we want a reward for the honour and the love which we gladly show to our parents. But in olden times long life was regarded as a mark of prosperity and of the grace of God. Seeing then that the welfare of society depends upon the Home, it remains a truth that prosperity will depend upon the maintenance of its duties and sanctities, while adversity will follow upon their violation and neglect. § 25. After the Ten Commandments had been proclaimed by a divine voice from Mount Sinai, it is stated that Moses received from God a number of other laws which he subsequently com- municated to the people. Though no writing of Moses and no code drawn up by him survived, the Hebrews always regarded him as their one great legislator (for he was the first and fundamental legislator), and when at different epochs in their history they made collections of their current laws or devised new ones, they placed them all in the mouth of Hoses. Whatever good custom or law prevailed among them, or whatever good rule or law their wisest teachers considered ought to prevail among them, this they believed must be good Mosaic law. So though the laws found in the first great division of the Bible, which gives the history of the Hebrews from Abraham's call to the death of Moses — though these laws were compiled at different times, and for the most part long after Moses, and though they do not always agree with each other, they were all regarded as Mosaic. Hebrew law is Mosaic law. You will remember that there are two accounts of the Ten Words and of the giving of them in the Bible. In the first account, the people, frightened by what they hear and see, ' the thunderings and the lightnings, and the voice of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking,' say unto Moses : ' Speak thou with us, and we will hear ; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.' They then retire and stand afar off, and Moses by himself goes up the mountain and alone communes with God. In the second account, which, as you remember, is put in the mouth of Moses (he is the story-teller), much the same thing is said, but the Ten Commandments are far more sharply separated off from all the other laws by the direct intention and indication of God. I will repeat the few words which we have already heard, and then add what immediately follows. MOSES ON MOUNT SINAI 97 These words God spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice : and he added no more. And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, that ye came near unto me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders ; and ye said. Behold, God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire : we have seen this day that God doth speak with man, and he liveth. Now there- fore why should we die ? for this great fire will consume us : if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, then we shall die. For who is there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived ? Go thou near, and hear all that the Lord our God shall say : and speak thou unto us all that the Lord our God shall speak unto thee ; and we will hear it, and do it. And God heard *the voice of your words, when he spake unto me ; and God said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee : they have well said all that they have spoken. Would that they might always be of such a mind to fear me and keep all my commandments, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever ! Go say to them. Get you into your tents again. But as for thee, stand thou here by me, and I will speak unto thee all the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgements, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it. So MoseSj as he goes on to say, went up to Mount Sinai. And I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights ; I did neither eat bread nor drink water. And it came to pass, at the end of forty days and forty nights, that God gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant, and on them were written all the words which God spake to you in the mount, out of the midst of the fire^ in the day of the assembly. § 26. Meanwhile the Hebrews during these forty days had been wickedly mis-spending their time. Scarcely had they heard the Second Commandment, forbidding them to make any material 98 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING image of God, before they broke it. They made a golden calf, like the idolatrous Canaanites or Egyptians, to be a symbol or visible representation of God. This is how the first account begins the story. And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mounts the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us a god, which shall go before us; for as for.this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And Aaron said unto them. Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives^ of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf. Then they said. This is thy god^ O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And Aaron built an altar before it ; and he anade proclamation^ and said. To-morrow shall be a feast to God. And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings^ and brought peace offerings ; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play. The issue of their sin and Aaron's sin I will tell according to the second account. Moses, you remember, is on the mount, and has just received the two tables of stone. And God said unto me, Arise^ get thee down quickly from hence ; for thy people which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt have corrupted themselves ; they are quickly turned aside out of the way which I commanded them ; they have made them a molten image. Furthermore God spake unto me, saying, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiff- necked people : let me alone, that I may destroy them, and blot out their name from under heaven : and I will make of thee a nation mightier and greater than they. So I turned and came down from the mount, and the mount burned with fire: and the two tables of the covenant were in my two hands. And I looked, and, behold, ye had sinned against the Lord your God, and had made you a molten calf : ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which God had commanded you. And I took the two tables, and cast them THE GLORY OF GOD 99 out of my two hands^ and brake them before your eyes. And I fell down before God^ as at the first, forty days and forty nights ; I did neither eat bread nor drink water ; because of all your sin which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of God, to provoke him to anger. For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure, wherewith God was wroth against you to destroy you. But God hearkened unto me that time also. And God was very angry with Aaron to have destroyed him : and I prayed for Aaron also the same time. And I took your sin, the calf which ye had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamped it, and ground it very small, until it was as small as dust : and I cast the dust thereof into the brook that descended out of the mount. And I prayed unto God, and I said, O Lord God, destroy not thy people and thine inheritance, which thou hast re- deemed through thy greatness, which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Remember thy servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; look not unto the stubborn- ness of this people, nor to their wickedness, nor to their sin. And God hearkened unto me, and said, I have pardoned according to thy word. And moreover God said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up unto me in the mount, and make thee an ark of wood. And I will write upon the tables the words that were on the first tables, which thou brakest, and thou shalt put them in the ark. So I made an ark of acacia wood, and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the mount, having the two tables in my hand. And he wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the ten words, which God spake unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly : and God gave them unto me. And I turned and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made ; and there they are, as God commanded me. § 27. One more very strange and very beautiful story, tRe meaning of which lies below the surface, is told about the stay of the Hebrews at the foot of Mount Sinai, and part of it I will retell here. But it is not an easy story, and I cannot make it easy, Moses wants to know more about God. He is eager to know the divine nature in its fullness and totality ; he is eager to know the divine *way,' that is, God's principles of action as they are 100 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING founded in, and as they result from, the nature of the Supreme teeing, God replies to him that his request cannot be fully- granted. Man, the creature, cannot ever fully know God the creator. He can only know the * attributes ' of God, as they are called ; that is, his power, wisdom, goodness, righteousness, and mercy. What God is in himself, man can never know. The Bible expresses this by saying, God's face can never be seen ; only his back can be revealed. But the meaning is figurative ; that is, the Bible does not mean that God has really a face or a back : it means what I have just said. Therefore the story is not to be taken literally. It is a beautiful lesson put in the form of a story. Moses says to God : I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee. And again he says to God : Shew me, I pray thee, thy glory. And God said, I will make all my beauty pass before thee, and will proclaim the name of God before thee : and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. And God said. Thou canst not see my face : for man can not see me and live. Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon the rock : and it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by : and I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back : but my face shall not be seen. And God said unto Moses, Be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto Mount Sinai, and present thy- self there to me on the top of the mount. And no man shall come up with thee. And Moses rose up early in the morning, and went up unto Mount Sinai, as God had commanded him. And God passed by before him, and proclaimed. The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in lovingkindness and truth; who will by no nreans clear the guilty, but keeping lovingkindness for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin. And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped. § 28. In their journeyings betwepn Egypt and Canaan the Israelites lived for many years in wild and uncultivated lands, THE GIFT OF MANNA foi' The Hebrew word midharj which we translate * desert,* does not necessarily mean a waterless and sandy waste, such as the desert of Sahara. It means uncultivated laud as opposed to tilled and arable land. For instance, it says in one of the Psalms, ' The pastures of the midbar drop with fatness/ But during their stay in Egypt the Hebrews had got beyond the simple fare of the midbar ; they had become accustomed to fish and fruit and vegetables and bread. When they settled in Canaan, as tillers of the soil, bread was to them as to ourselves, 'the staff of life.' They wondered how their ancestors could have got on without it in the * wilderness/ or what substitute for it they possessed. The Biblical narratives say that God provided them out of heaven with a marvellous bread for their daily food. The first gift of this heavenly bread, which was called ' manna,' was supposed to have taken place in the neighbourhood of Mount Sinai. The Hebrews, not realizing the value of their newly acquired liberty, not realizing (as how could they yet ?) the greatness and the glory of the mission which was to be theirs, and ungratefully forgetful of the cruel servitude from which God had delivered them, contrasted the varied and plentiful food in Goshen with the hardships and privations of the wilder- ness. They complained aloud. And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilder- ness : and the children of Israel said unto them. Would that we had died by the hand of God in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, when we did eat bread to the full ; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger. Then said God unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you ; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my teaching or no. And it shall come to pass on the sixth day, that they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily. And it came to pass in the morning that the dew lay round about the camp. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness a small round thing, small as the hoar frost on the ground. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another. What is that? for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which God hath given you to eat. This is the thing which God hath 102 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING commanded^ Gather ye of it every man according to his eating. And the children of Israel did so^ and gathered sonie niore^ some less ; they gathered every man according to his eating. And Moses said unto them^ Let no man leave of it till the morning. Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses ; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred vrorms^ and stank : and Moses was wroth with them. And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating : and when the sun waxed hot, it melted. And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much : and all the chiefs of the congregation came and told Moses. And he said unto them. This is that which God hath said. To-morrow is a deep rest, the holy sabbath unto God : bake that which ye will bake, and seethe that which ye will seethe ; and all that remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade : and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. And Moses said, Eat that to-dayj for to-day is a sabbath unto God : to-day ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it ; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that there went out some of the people for to gather, and they found none. And God said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws ? See, for that God hath given 3'ou the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days ; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the seventh day. And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white ; and the taste of it was like cake made with honey. 'What is that ' is in Hebrew Man hu. The popular explanation or etymology of the word Manna was therefore * what is that/ It appears that in the Sinaitic peninsula there grows a kind of tamarisk tree, which in the warmer nights of summer gives out an oozy exudation from the bark of its trunk and branches. This sweet gummy sap forms itself into small white round seeds, which quickly melt in the sun. The Arabs collect these seeds and purify them ; they strain them through a cloth, and keep the pasty produce in jars, and use it like honey, which it also resembles in taste. The story of the manna, as we read it in the Bible, perhaps THE STORY OF THE SEVENTY ELDERS 103 grew up out of travellers* accounts of the tamarisk tree. The Hebrews ascribed the manna to God's direct gift from heaven ; the gift was probably less direct than that, but none the less a gift. For if God is the cause of the tamarisk tree, what is the difference 1 Do we not owe our milk to God as much as to the cow 1 Note that the observance of the Sabbath had at first to be very strictly enforced. The mistrust and disobedience of the people justified the order: 'Let no man go out of his place on the seventh day,' But it would be very silly to "think that we to-day are therefore, to keep indoors, or not to take a long country walk upon the Sabbath. § 29. The manna had been given in answer to the murmurings of the Hebrews, and after they had eaten it a long while, fresh murmurings were caused by it. The people got tired of the sameness of their fare. Into the story which tells of their fresh complaints and what befell in consequence, another story, telling of the bestowal of the divine spirit upon seventy Hebrew elders, seems to be interwoven. And the children of Israel began to murmur again^ and they weptj and said. Who shall give us flesh to eat ? We remember the fish, which we did eat* in Egypt ; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick : but now our soul is dried away : there is nothing at all except this manna to look to. And Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man at the door of his tent : and Moses was displeased. And Moses said unto God, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant ? and wherefore have I not found favom* in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me ? Am I the father of all this people, that thou shouldest say unto me. Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers ? Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people ? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat. I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. And God said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel without the camp, and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them ; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that I04 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thou bear it not thyself alone. And say thou unto the people, Because ye have wept in the ears of God, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt : therefore God will give you flesh, and ye shall eat. Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days ; but a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you : because that ye have rejected God, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt ? And Moses said. The people, among whom I am, are very many, and thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month. Shall the flocks and herds be slain for them, to suffice them ? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them ? And God said unto Moses, Is God's hand waxed short? now shalt thou see whether my word shall come to pass unto thee or not. And Moses went and told the people the words of God: and he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people, and God took of the spirit that was upon him, and put it upon the seventy elders, and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But there remained two of the men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad : and the spirit rested upon them ; and they were two of the seventy, but they had not gone out : and they prophesied in the camp. And there ran a young man, and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp. And Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of Moses from his youth, answered and said. My lord Moses, forbid them. And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake ? would God that all God's people were prophets, that God would put his spirit upon them ! And Moses gat him into the camp, he and the elders of Israel. And there arose a wind, and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by the camp, about a day's journey on this side, and a day's journey on the other side, round about the camp, and about two cubits above the face of the earth. And the people stood up all that day, and all the night, and all the next day, and gathered the quails : and they spread them all abroad for themselves round about the camp. 'ART THOU JEALOUS FOR MY SAKE?' 105 I do not know, the full meaning of everything in this story. We must not for a moment, whatever explanation we may offer, suppose that God's spirit is something material which can be put upon people in the same sense that we can put a cloak upon them, or an ornament. I do not know, moreover, what is meant by the prophesying of the sixty-eight elders without the camp and of Eldad and Medad within it. The putting of the spirit upon the seventy elders seems to be a pictorial way of saying that God gave sufficient wisdom to enable them to help Moses in his work of administration and rule. You will remember that another story, which we have already heard, represents Jethro, Moses' father-in- law, as advising Moses to institute officers and judges. The most interesting and beautiful part of this story for us is towards the end, where Moses rebukes Joshua for his well-meant but improper zeal on behalf of his master. Joshua thought that the prophesying of Eldad and Medad took from the honour and dignity of Moses. It was bad enough, perhaps, in his eyes, that the elders should have been distinguished at all, or put on a level with Moses by the gift of the divine spirit. But, at all events, Moses had been present when this gift took place, and it was clear that Moses was, after God, the source and type of their prophesying, God had said, ' I will take of the spirit which is wpmi thee, and put it upon them.' But in Eldad and Medad's case there seemed an independent outbreak of prophetic fire. By his reply to Joshua, Moses showed his true greatness of soul. He loves his people better than himself. The cause he has really at heait is the cause of Israel, not his own honour and dignity. And so he replies : ' Art thou jealous for my sake ? "Would God that all God's people were prophets, that God would put his spirit upon them.* These are notable words. In the ' kingdom of priests' the more kings the better. What Moses was, a man filled with God's holy spirit, though still a man and subject to depression and despondency, that he desired all his people might be. The less he was separated off from them by greater wisdom and goodness, the better he was pleased. The man of little mind works for his own advancement : he helps forward a cause, but it is partly that he may be known to have helped it, that he may become famous. He is envious of rivals, and wants to put a distance between himself and others. Not so Moses. He wants to draw up others to his own level. He would prefer to be one of many, rather than one aibove many. He is indifferent to his own renown, but only anxious for the well-being of his own people. He is willing to efface himself in his work. Hence his words contain a lesson to us all : a lesson to think of others more than of ourselves, to sink self in a common io6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING work, to strive for the success of the work rather than for pej^sonal fame. But the words are also notable in themselves, especially the second half of them : ' Would that God would put his spirit upon them.' In the gift of this spirit Moses perceives the highest well-being. "When may we say that a man has received the spirit of God 1 When he seems to us in all humility, and at however infinite a distance, to be like God ; that is, when he is good and loving and wise. They who have the divine spirit according to the highest Biblical teaching are righteous and faithful, pious and understanding. Therefore the prayer of Moses may be the prayer for us all : * Would God that God would put his spirit upon them.' Strive to gain the spirit, pray for the giving of it ; struggle to be good and pray that God may help you to become good : these are the only two ways within our power for reaching our goal. But they are ways of power, and in quietude and confidence we may leave the rest to God. § 30, When the Hebrews had arrived at Kadesh, on the southern border of Canaan, Moses sent out spies to bring him back a report on the condition of the country. For the Hebrews were now, as it seemed, about to enter on the occupation and the conquest of their promised home. But before I tell the story of the spies, I should like to make a small digression. The Hebrews invaded Canaan as the Saxons and Angles invaded Britain, or as the Franks invaded Gaul. They came and settled and conquered by the right of the stronger, and either thrust out the original inhabitants or absorbed them or lived in their midst. But as they had, or came to have, the vivid feeling that all that they had then done was done by the "will of God, they felt or came to feel that some justification was needed for this lawless dispossession of the original owners and inhabitants. This justification they found in the corrupt moral and religious condition of the Canaanites ; their expulsion was a punishment. The best Hebrew teachers were always at pains to point out that it was not as a reward for their own virtues that God had singled out the Hebrews and entrusted them with the great charge to become a ' kingdom of priests.' So Moses tells them : Speak not thou in thine hearty after that the Lord thy God hath cast out these nations from before tliee^ sayings For my righteousness hath God brouglit me in to possess this land : but for the wickedness of these nations God doth drive them out before thee. Not for thy righteousness, or CALEB AND THE SPIES 107 fox* the uprightness of thine hearty dost thou go to possess their land : but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee^ and that he may perform the word which he sware unto thy fathers^ to Abraham^ to Isaac, and to Jacob. Understand therefore, that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness ; for thou art a stiff- necked people. Elsewhere he says to them in the name of God : Ye shall keep all my statutes and all my judgements, and do them : that the land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, spue you not out. And ye shall not walk in the manners of the nations which I cast out before you: for they did all these wicked things, and therefore I abhorred them. Now let us go back to the story of the spies. We will hear it told twice over : the second account is from the Ketrospect which Moses gives to the Israelites of their past history as an intro- duction to the code of laws. Eshcol means in Hebrew 'a cluster of grapes.' And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way by the South country, and go up into the hiU country : and see the land, what it is ; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strocg.-oi?-weak, few or many; and what the land is that fliey dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in camps, or in strong holds ; and what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the first-ripe grapes. And they ascended by the South country, and came unto Hebron ; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. And they came unto the valley of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff ; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. The place was called the valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence. And they returned and came to Moses, and to the children of Israel, to Kadesh ; and brought back word unto them, and io8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING shewed them the fruit of the land. And they told Moses, and said. We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey ; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people are strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great : and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. And Caleb stilled the people "before Moses, and said. Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it» But the men that went up with him said^ We are not able to go up against the people ; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying. The land, through which we have gone to search it^ is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof ; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the sons of Anak : and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried ; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron : and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt ! or would God we had died in this wilderness ! And wherefore doth God bring us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey ? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another. Let tre— make, a captain, and let us return into Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the con- gregation of the children of Israel. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who was of them that spied out the land, rent his clothes : and he spake unto the children of Israel, saying. The land, which we passed through to search it, is an ex- ceeding good land. If God delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it unto us ; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not against God^ neither fear ye the people of the land ; for they are bread for us : their defence is departed from them, and God is with us : fear them not. And God said unto Moses, How long will this people reject me ? and how long will they not believe in me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them ? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make MISTRUST OF GOD AND ITS RESULTS 109 of thee a nation greater and mightier than they. And Moses said unto God,, I beseech thee, let thy power be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying. The Lord God is longsuffering and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression. Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and according as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now. And God said, I have pardoned according to thy word : but as truly as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of God ; because all those men who have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that rejected me see it : but my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went ; and his seed shall possess it. But as for you, to-morrow turn ye, and get you back into the wilderness, towards the Red Sea, And Moses told these words unto all the children of Israel : and the people mourned greatly. And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the hill top, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which God hath promised : for we have sinned. And Moses said. Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of God, seeing it shall not prosper ? Go not up, for God is not among you ; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. For the Amalekite and the Canaanite are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword : because ye are turned away from God, therefore God will not be with you. But they presumed to go up unto the hill top : nevertheless Moses departed not out of the camp. Then the Amalekite came down, and the Canaanite who dwelt in that mountain, and smote them and discomfited them, even unto Hormah. Now let us hear the same story as told in the Retrospect. And we departed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the Lord our God com- manded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea. And I said unto you. Ye are come unto the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us. Behold, the no THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Lord thy God hath set the land before thee : go up and possess it, as God hath said unto thee ; fear not, neither be dismayed. And ye came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall spy out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come. And the saying pleased me well : and I took twelve men of you, one man for each tribe : and they turned and went up into the hill country, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out. And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said. It is a good land which the Lord our God doth give us. Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God : and ye murmured in your tents, and said. Because God hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. Whither shall we go up ? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we ; the cities are great and walled up to heaven ; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim there. Then I said unto you. Dread not, neither be afraid of them. The Lord your God, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes ; and in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the Lord thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came unto this place. Yet for all this ye did not believe the Lord your God. And God heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying. Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, he shall see it ; and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children: because he hath wholly followed God. Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which, to-day have no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it. But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way towards the Red Sea. Then ye answered and said unto me. We have sinned against God, we will go up and fight, according to all THE SIN OF MOSES AND OF AARON -iii that the Lord our God commanded us. And ye girded on every man his weapons o£ war, and were ready to go up into the hill. And God said unto me. Say unto them. Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest ye be smitten before your enemies. So I spake unto you, but ye would not hear; but ye rebelled against the com- mandment of God, and went presumptuously up into the hill. And the Amorites, who dwelt in that hill, came out against you, and chased you, as bees do, and drove you down from Seir, even unto Hormah. And ye returned and wept before God ; but God would not hearken to your voice, nor give ear unto you. So ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that ye abode there. The grapes of Hebron are still famous in all Palestine for their excellence. Note the answer of Moses to God. The opportunity was given him of having all the promises of God concentrated upon himself and his descendants. But Moses sinks himself in his cause. He loves his people and prays for their pardon. The writer of the story would not have made God propose to destroy the Hebrews if he had not meant us to believe that God foreknew the answer which Moses would make. Mark, too, the words ; ' I pray thee, let thy power be great/ &c. In God's mercy is also revealed his power. He triumphs by his love and gentleness over the follies and frailties of men, and even in spite of themselves, they must at last fulfil the chosen and holy purpose of God. The end of the story is grim, but it contains a lesson. It is sometimes too late. Opportunities are sometimes lost through our own faults which can never be regained. Let us remember and give heed. § 31. One more important story is told of the time during which, the Hebrews were encamped in the neighbourhood of Kadesh, But we cannot clearly understand it now. It told how, at a moment of severe trial, the faith of Moses and of his brother Aaron in the power and wisdom and goodness of God proved unequal to. the strain, and how they were disobedient to the command of God and transgressed against him. But this story of the disobedience of Moses, the great hero, lawgiver, and prophet, came to seem incredible or unbearable, and so, when the various narratives of the life and work of Moses were pieced together and the composite narrative which we now possess was formed, the compilers, while leaving in the stated fact of his transgression and the record of his punishment, so softened or modified the story that the actual sin of Moses is scarcely perceptible at all. This 112 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING is what we are told as the story runs now. A water famine was driving the people to rebellion. And the children of Israel gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people chode with Moses^ and spake, saying. Why have ye brought us into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there ? And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place ? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates ; neither is there any water to drink. And God spake unto Moses, saying. Assemble the congregation, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes and it shall give forth its water; and thou shalt bring forth .to them water out of the rock : so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. So Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them. Hear now, ye rebels ; must we fetch you water out of this rock ? And Moses lifted up his hand, and smote the rock with his rod twice : and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. And God said unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them. These are the waters of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with God, and he shewed himself holy among them, Meribah in Hebrew means 'strife/ As the story now runs, Moses and Aaron cannot be fairly said to have disobeyed the command of God, The only fault that might perhaps be alleged against them would have to be drawn out of the words, * Must we fetch you water out of this rock?' Some people think that the sin is one of presumptuousness. Moses speaks as if it were he and Aaron rather than God by whom the water was made to gush forth from the rock. Others think that the question of Moses indicates a certain hesitation and doubt as to the omnipotence of God, Of course, from a great leader great demands are made. The greater your ofiice, the more difficult it is to fulfil your duty. From him who has shown himself good and worthy w€ expect more than from one who is less worthy and less good, and we judge him more severely. Moses could not be judged by a low standard. What would be pardonable in another was not pardonable in him. A small sin in him was equal to a far greater sin in another. th£ Death of aaron its Nevertheless there is nothing in his words or in his action that could fairly be called, as his action is called elsewhere, disobedience and rebellion. § 32. Not long after the disobedience there followed its result. Neither Aaron nor Moses is allowed to enter Canaan, and of the two, Aaron is the first to die. Aaron was the chief or high priest of the Hebrews, and he was succeeded in his office by Eleazar his son. And they journeyed from Kadesh : and the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, came unto Mount Hor. And God spake unto Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor, on the border of the land of Edom, saying, Aaron shall be gathered unto his people : for he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto the children of Israel, because ye rebelled against my word at the waters of Meribah, Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto Mount Hor : and strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son : and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there. And Moses did as God commanded : and they went up into Mount Hor in the sight of all the con- gregation. And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son ; and Aaron died there in the top of the mount : and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mount. And when all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, they wept for Aaron thirty days, even all the house of Israel. § 33. Instead of entering Canaan by pushing northwards from Kadesh, the Hebrews seem to have attempted to enter it from the east, and by keeping the Dead Sea on their left to cross the Jordan beyond it. To do this, their way led across the territory of Edoni. The Edomites, it will be remembered, were kinsmen of the Hebrews, for their respective ancestors, Esau and Jacob, had been brothers. The Edomites, however, would not allow the Hebrews to pass through their land. And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh unto the king of Edom, Thus saith thy brother Israel, Thou knowest all the travail that hath befallen us : how our fathers went down into Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians afflicted us, and our fathers: and when we cried unto God, he heard our voice, and brought us forth 114 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING out of Egypt : and, behold^ we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of thy border : let us pass, I pray thee, through thy country : we will not pass through the fields or through the vineyards, neither will we drink of the water of the wells : we wiU go by the king's high way, we will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed thy borders. And Edom said unto him. Thou shalt not pass through me, lest I come out against thee with the sword. And the children of Israel said unto him. We will go by the high way : and if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then will I pay for it : let me only, without doing any thing else, go through on my feet. And he said, Thou shalt not go through. And Edom came out against him with much people, and with a strong hand. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border: wherefore Israel turned away from him. The Ketrospect tells the story thus : So we turned from Kadesh, and took our journey into the wilderness towards the Red Sea, as God had bidden us, and we compassed Mount Seir many days. And God spake unto me, saying. Ye have compassed this mountain long enough : turn you northward. And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass by the border of your brethren the children of Esau, who dwell in Seir ; and they shall be afraid of you : take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore : meddle not with them ; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given Mount Seir unto Esau for a possession. Ye shall buy food of them for money, that ye may eat ; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye may drink. For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand : he hath known thy walking through this great wilderness : these forty years the Lord thy God hath been with thee ; thou hast lacked nothing. We, therefore, passed by from our brethren the children of Esau, who dwell in Seir, ofE the way of the Arabah, o£E Elath and off Ezion-geber. The same command of peaceful passage is repeated as regards the Moabites and Ammonites, by whose territories the Hebrews, in their journey northwards, had to pass. And we turned and passed by the way of the wilderness BLESSINGS AND CURSES IN ANTIQUITY 115 of Moab. And God said unto uSj Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle : for I will not give thee of their land for a possession : because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession. Now rise up and get you over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered. And God spake unto me, saying, Thou art this day to pass through Ar, the border of Moab : and when thou comest nigh over against the children of Ammon, distress them not, nor meddle with them : for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it unto the children of Lot for a possession. The Moabites and Ammonites were also kinsmen. For Moab and Ammon were the sons of Lot, and Lot was the nephew of Abraham. Northwards of the Moabites there lay the kingdom of Sihon, an Amorite or Canaanite prince. Of his territories the Hebrews took possession, and some settled in them permanently. This is the tale of conquest. And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, saying, Let me pass through thy land: we will not turn into the fields, or into the vineyards, we will not drink of the water of the wells : but we will go along the king^s high way, until we have passed thy borders. And Sihon would not suffer Israel to pass through his border: but Sihon gathered all his people togethei', and went out against Israel into the wilderness, and came to Jahaz, and fought against Israel. And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from Amon unto Jabok, even unto the children of Ammon. And Israel took aU these cities : and Israel dwelt in Heshbon and in all the cities of the Amorites. § 34. After the defeat of Sihon, we are told a very strange story, which you will read one day in the Bible for yourselves. I have already told you that in old days a peculiar power was supposed to lie in a blessing or a curse. It was supposed that a father's blessing, for example, was likely to bring about the very good for the son which was contained in the blessing, while a father's curse upon a wicked son was likely to bring about the very evil which was contained in the curse. If a man was considered very wise ii6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and holy, or if he was supposed to be inspired, his blessings and curses were regarded as of peculiar importance and power, and as all the more likely to cause the contents of them to come to pass. Nowadays, when a father blesses his child, ho is only praying to God on his child's behalf; he hopes that God will bring about his child's happiness, but he does not expect his words to have power to produce the result for which he prays. The former ideas have now disappeared, but in the age of Moses and for long, long after they were in full force, and they are the basis of the story we are now to hear. Sihon's land, you will remember, lay to the north of Moab, and the Moabites naturally soon heard of the extraordinary success of the Hebrews in their first campaign against the Amorites. And Balak king of Moab heard all that Israel had done to the Amorites. And he was sore afraid of the people, because they were many. And he said unto the elders of Moab, Now shall this people lick up all that is round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field. So he sent messengers unto Balaam the son of Beor, to Pethor, which is by the River, in the land of the children of Ammon, to call him, saying. Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me: come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people ; for they are too mighty for me : peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land : for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cui-sest is cursed. And the princes of Moab departed ; and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the words of Balak, And he said unto them. Lodge here this night, and I will bring you word again, as God shall speak unto me : and the princes of Moab abode with Balaam. And God said unto Balaam, What men are these with thee ? And Balaam said unto God, Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me, saying, Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt, which covereth the face of the earth : come curse me them ; peradventure I shall be able to overcome them, and drive them out. And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go with them ; thou shalt not curse the people : for they are blessed. And Balaam rose up in the morning, and said unto the pripces . of Balak, Get you into your land : for God BALAK AND BALAAM II7 refuseth to give me leave to go with you. And the princes of Moab rose up, and they went unto Balak, and said, Balaam refuseth to come with us. And Balak sent yet again princes, more, and more honour- able than the first. And they came to Balaam, and said to him, thus saith Balak the son of Zippor, Let nothing, I pray thee, hinder thee from coming unto me : for I will promote thee unto very great honour, and I will do whatsoever thou sayest unto me : come therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people. And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more. Now therefore, I pray you, tariy ye also here this night, that I may know what God will say unto me more. And God said unto Balaam, If the men come to call thee, rise up and go with them ; but only the word which I shall say unto thee, that shalt thou do. And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab. And when Balak heard that Balaam was come, he went out to meet him unto the city of Moab, which is on the border formed by the Amon, at the utmost part of the border. And Balak said unto Balaam, Did I not earnestly send unto thee to call thee? wherefore camest thou not unto me ? am I not able indeed to promote thee to honour ? And Balaam said unto Balak, Lo, I am come unto thee : have I now any power at all to say any thing ? the word that God putteth in my mouth, that shall I speak. And Balaam went with Balak, and they came unto Kiriath-huzoth, And Balak offered oxen and sheep, and sent portions to Balaam, and to the princes that were with him. And it came to pass in the morning, that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up to Bamoth-baal, that thence he might see the utmost part of the people. And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams. And Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered on every altar a bullock and a ram. And Balaam said unto Balak, Whatsoever God sheweth me I will tell thee. And God put a word in Balaam's mouth, and said. Thus thou shalt speak unto Balak. And Balaam took up his parable, and said. IXB THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Balak the king of Moab hath brought me from Aram, Out of the mountains of the East : Come, curse me Jacobs And come, defy Israel. How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed ? Or how shall I defy, whom God hath not defied ? For from the top of the rocks I see him, And from the hills I behold him : Lo, it is a people that dwelleth alone. And doth not reckon itself among the nations. Who can count the dust of Jacob, Or number the myriads of Israel ? Let me die the death of the righteous. And let my last end be like his ! And Balak said unto Balaam, What hast thou done unto me ? I took thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether. And he answered and said. Must I not take heed to speak that which God hath put in my mouth? And Balak said unto him. Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them; and curse me them from thence. And he brought him into the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a bullock and a ram on every altar. And God put a word in Balaam^s mouth, and said. Thus shalt thou speak. And Balak said unto him. What hath God spoken ? And he took up his parable, and said. Rise up, Balak, and hear ; Hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor : God is not a man, that he should lie ; Neither the son of man, that he should repent : Hath he said, and shall he not do it ? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good ? Behold, I have received commandment to bless : And I will bless and not reverse it. No calamity is beheld in Jacob, Or trouble seen in Israel. The Lord God is with him. And the rejoicing of kings is among them. For there is no divination in Jacob, Neither is there any sorcery in Israel : Now must it be said of Jacob and of Israel, BALAAM S ' PARABLES; - 119 What great things hath God wrought ! Beholdj the people riseth up as a lioness. And as a lion doth he lift himself up. And Balak said unto Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all. But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, Told not I thee, saying. All that God speaketh, that I must do? And Balak said unto Balaam, Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee unto another place ; peradventure it will please God that thou mayest curse me them from thence. And Balak brought Balaam unto the top of Peor, that looketh toward the desert. And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams. And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered up a bullock and a ram on every altar. And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding according to their tribes ; and the spirit of God came upon him. And he took up his parable, and saidj Balaam the son of Beor saith. And the man whose eye is closed saith: He saith, who heareth the words of God, Who seeth the vision of the Almighty, Fallen down, but having his eyes open : How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, Thy tabernacles, O Israel ! As valleys are they spread forth. As gardens by the river side. As trees of lign-aloes which God hath planted, As cedars beside the waters. Water floweth from his buckets. And his seed hath ample water. He hath couched, he hath laid him down as a lion. And as a lioness ; who shall rouse him up ? Blessed be he that blesseth thee. And cursed be he that curseth thee. And Balak^s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times. Therefore now flee thou to thy place : I thought to promote thee unto great honour; but, lo, God hath kept thee back from honour. And Balaam said unto Balak, Spake I not also to thy messengers whom thou sentest unto me^ saying. If Balak 120 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING would give me his house full of silver and gbld^ I cannot go beyond the word of God^ to do either good or bad of mine own mind ; but what God saith, that will I speak ? And now, behold, I go unto my people : come, and I will advertise thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days. And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor saith. And the man whose eye is closed saith : He saith, who heareth the words of God, And knoweth the knowledge of the Most High, Who seeth the vision of the Almighty, Fallen down, but having his eyes open : I see him, but not now : I behold him, but not nigh : There shall come a star out of Jacob, And a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, And shall smite the temples of Moab, And break the head of the sons of tumult. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession, who were his enemies 5 And Israel shall do valiantly. And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his dwelling place : and Balak also went his way. Now I am not writing a commentary to the Bible, and therefore I cannot explain all the hard things and words in this story. You may note first that Balaam is represented as a servant and worshipper of the true God. He makes use of sacrifices and offerings according to the custom of his time, but he is determined only to tell Balak what he is bidden to tell him by God, What he will have to tell him he does not exactly know. He speaks his speeches like a man in a dream : he becomes the instrument of a higher power. His outward eye is ' closed/ but his inward eye is 'open/ so that he sees *the vision of God.' The speeches which have been put into his mouth by the Hebrew story-teller were clearly written at a time of national confidence, prosperity, and strength. Israel has already learnt to feel its peculiar position among the nations of the world. It is not quite on the same line with Ihem: it has — though this was as yet scarcely realized — other hopes, aspirations, ideals. So it is described as *a people that dwells alone, and does not reckon itself among the nations.' From this pride of isolation and of difference, there will hereafter spring a true and purer humility, and. out of the sense of being THE TRIBES OF REUBEN AND GAD 121 a peculiar people, there will grow up the loftier and grander idea of not being a people at all, but a ' holy congregation,' a religious brotherhoodj the bond of which ia not the accident of race but a common worship and a common faith. The • rejoicing of kings' means the glad rejoicings and jubilation which is offered to kings. ' No sorcery in Israel/ &c. This probably means that no attempt at sorcery, such as Balak's, has any effect upon Israel, * Water from his buckets,* means that his land is well watered. Israel is represented as a man who carries a pail on either side of him. His 'seed' means his produce or crops. In the third speech the * he ' referred to in the lines * I see hira, but not iiow,' &c. is David, who conquered Moab and Edom and brought about that state of national pride, prosperity, and confidence reflected in the words of Balaam. Note finally that the speeches of Balaam are printed as if they were poetry. So indeed they are. The word 'parable' would perhaps be better rendered by 'rhythm.' There is rhythm in Hebrew poetry, though there are no fixed measures or rhyme. § 35. Although the main mass of the Hebrews lived west of the river Jordan, some of them lived on the east side of it in lands that had once belonged to Sihon and to other Amorite chieftains. How this happened is told in the following story. Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle^ and they came and spake unto Moses, saying. The land on this side of Jordan is a land foi' cattle, and thy servants have cattle. And they said, If we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a possession ; bring us not over Jordan. And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to the war, and shall ye sit here? And wherefore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which God hath given them ? Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land. For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land which God had given them. And God^s anger was kindled, and he sware, saying. Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have 122 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING not wholly followed me : save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite : because he has wholly followed God. And God^s anger was kmdled against Israel^ and he made them wander to and fro in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the sight of God, was consumed. And, behold, ye are risen up in your fathers' stead, an increase of sinful men. And they came near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones : but we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them unto their place : and our little ones shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the in- habitants of the land. We will not return unto our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on the other side Jordan ; because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side Jordan eastward. And Moses said unto them. If ye will do this thing ; if ye will arm yourselves, and pass over Jordan, until the land be subdued : then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless towards Israel 5 and this land shall be your possession. But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against God : and be sure your sin will find you out. Build you cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which hath proceeded out of your mouth. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben spake unto Moses, saying. Thy servants will do as my lord commandeth. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our cattle, shall be there in the cities of Gilead : but thy servants will pass over, every man armed for war, as my lord saith. So concerning them Moses commanded Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel. And Moses said unto them. If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, and the land shall be subdued before you ; then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession : but if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan. And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As thou hast said unto thy servants, so will we do. We will pass over armed into the land of Canaan, in order that our inheritance may remain for us beyond Jordan. THE SHEMA : THE UNITY OF GOD 123 § 36. "We Lave now come to the last great event before the entry into Canaan — the death of Moses. But before we hear the story of it, we must hear more from the long Eetrospect which Moses made to his people on the eve of his own death. You will remember that that Eetrospect ushers in a collection of laws, about which, when we have finished the history up to the death of Moses, I shall also have something to say. Parts of the Eetrospect we have heard already : other parts of it we are now to hear. These are the words which Moses spake unto all Israel. These are the commandments and the statutes and the judgements which the Lord your God commanded me to teach you that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it : that thou mightest fear the Lord thy God^ to keep all his statutes and his commandments which I command thee, thou and thy son and thy son's son, all the days of thy life ; and that thy days may be prolonged. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it ; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as God hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Hear, O Israel : the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be upon thine heart : and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy chUdren, and . shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thy house, and on thy gates. And it shall be, when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee ; great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not, and houses full of all good things, which thou fiUedst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not, and thou shalt eat and be full ; then beware lest thou forget God who brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him and shalt swear by his name. Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the peoples who are round about you. 124 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Ye shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes, which he hath commanded thee. And thou shalt do that which^ is right and good in the sight of God : that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest go in and possess the good land which God promised unto thy fathers. When thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying. What mean the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgements, which the Lord our God hath commanded you ? then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh^s bondmen in Egypt; and God brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand : and God shewed signs and wonders, great and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his household, before our eyes : and he brought us out from thence, that he might bring us in, to give us the land which he sware unto our fathers. And God commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. And it shall be righteousness unto us, if we observe to do all these commandments before the Lord our God, as he hath commanded us. Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God : the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto him- self from among all peoples that are upon the face of the earth, God did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all peoples : but because God loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath God brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God ; the faithful God, who keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments and the statutes and the judgements which I command thee this day to do them, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which God sware unto your fathers. And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, to prove thee, and to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or THE DANGER OF FORGETFULNESS 125 no. And he humbled thee^ and suffered thee to hunger^ and fed thee with manna^ which thou knewest not^ neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only^ but by every thing that pro- ceedeth out of the mouth of God doth man live. Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swells these foi'ty years. Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee. Therefore thou shalt keep the command- ments of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him. For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out in valley and hill ; a land of wheat and barley, and vines and ^g trees and pomegranates ; a land of oil olive and honey ; a land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. Beware lest thou forget the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgements, and his statutes, which I command thee this day : lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, arid dwelt therein ; and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and- all that thou hast is multiplied ; then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, who brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage ; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint; who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good in days to come : and thou say in thine heart. My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God, for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth; that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them,, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. As the nations which God destroyeth before you, so shall ye perish ; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God, 126 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Hear, O Israel : thou art to pass over Jordan this day, to go in to possess nations greater and mightier than thyself. Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying. For my righteousness hath God brought me in to possess this land : but for the wickedness of these nations God doth drive them out from before thee. Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land : but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which God sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Understand therefore, that the Lord thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness ; for thou art a stiffnecked people. Remember and forget not, how thou provokedst the Lord thy God to wrath in the wilderness : from the daj^" that thou didst depart out of the land of Egypt, until ye came unto this place, ye have been rebellious against God. And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep the commandments of God, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good ? Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord^s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. Only God had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you out of all peoples, as it is this day. Make you, therefore, a new heart, and be no more stiffnecked. For the Lord your God, he is Lord of lords, the great God, the mighty, and the terrible, who regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward. He doth execute the judgement of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment. Love ye there- fore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God ; him shalt thou serve ; and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name. He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen. Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons ; and now the Lord thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude. Therefore thou shalt love 'WHAT DOTH GOD REQUIRE OF THEE?' 127 the Lord thy God, and keep his charge^ and his statutes^ and his judgements, and his commandments, alway. And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, that I will give the rain of your land in its due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. And I will give grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them ; and then God^s wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit ; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which God giveth you. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul ; and ye shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, talking of them, when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates : that your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, upon the land which God sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of the heavens above the earth. This day the Lord thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgements: thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. Thou hast declared that thou wouldest walk in his ways, and keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judge- ments, and hearken unto his voice : and God hath declared thee to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee; and to make thee for a praise, and for a name, and for an honour ; and that thou maj^est be an holy people unto the Lord thy God, as he hath spoken. Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse ; a blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day ; and a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known. 128 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Moses then proceeds to give a detailed account of tlie blessings and the curses, in other words, the rewards and the punishments, which will befall the Hebrews according as they keep or as they forsake God's teaching and laws. Among the punishments is exile, the expulsion from Canaan by foreign enemies and the forced settlement in alien lands. But because God's mercy is greater and more lasting than his anger, though anger in God is only another woi'd for justice, Moses goes on to say : And it shall come to pass^ when all these things are come upon thee^ the blessing and the curse^ which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, and shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul ; that then the Lord thy God will have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the peoples, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee. If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee : and the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers. And the Lord thy God will give thee a new heart, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. And thou shalt return and obey the voice of God, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day. And the Lord thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, for good : for God will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers : if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law ; if thou turn unto the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul. For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not too hard for thee, neither is it far o&. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say. Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto THE LOVE OF GOD 129 us^ that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouthj and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it. See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; in that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgements, that thou mayest live and multiply, and that the Lord thy God may bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. But if thine heart turn away so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it» I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing : therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live, that thou mayest love the Lord thy God and obey his voice, and cleave unto him: for that is thy life, and the length of thy days : that thou mayest dwell in the land which God sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob,, to give them. The opening Biblical sentences of this long section are very well known to us and very famous. They have become the watchwords, of Judaism. * Hear, O Israel ; the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And thou shalt love the Lord thy G-od with all thy heart and with, all thy soul and with all thy might.* These words put in a nutshell our belief in God, and how, according to our faith, we should feel and act towards him. There is one God : that one God is one : him must we love with all our heart and soul and might : that, as i:egard3 God, is the religion of Judaism, Now as I am not writing either commentary or sermons, I shall not say more about these fundamental words on thig occasion. Gradually, as you probably already know, they became more and more important in the eyes of our ancestors, and the Shema (so called from the first Hebrew word of the paragraph, and extending from * Hear, O Israel' to 'upon thy gates ') has been for many ages the first bit of the Bible which Jewish children have learnt to say and to read, just as it has for many ages formed the confession of faith among all members of the religious brothei*hood of Judaism. 5y the Shema Jews learnt to live, and for the Shema they were prepared to die. If a man heartily accepts the opening words of I30 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the Shema, and gives to them the same interpretation which Judaism gives to them, hef is not far from the gates of Judaism, though he may call himself hy another name than Jew. 'And thou shalt love the Lord thy God.' Can love, it may be asked, be commanded? To be real or worthy, must it not be spontaneous? The answer is that the principles of religion are usually put in the Bible in the form of commands. We should now say the best and highest attitude of man to God is that of love. The Biblical writer said more simply * Thou shalt love God.' The principle is realizable, and therefore it can be put in the imperative mood. 'With all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy might.' Would not * with all thy heart ' be enough ? Perhaps it might have been, but the triple phrase increases the emphasis. We are to love God with every faculty and through all the many sides of life. Feeling alone will not suffice ; we need also will ; and will alone does not suffice ; it must be translated into deed. )So for heart and soul and might, we may substitute : with feeling, with will, and with deed. It must above all be a real, inward love ; not an outward love of words and symbols and professions and show. * And these words which I command thee this day shall be upon thy heart.' These words : namely the words from ' Hear, Israel ' down to * with all thy might.' 'Upon thine heart.' Not of course literally, any more than when it says later on *ye shall lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul/ or where it is elsewhere said of God, 'I will put my teaching in their inward parts and write it in their hearts/ The expression in each case is to be taken meta- phorically. The words must not be a mere outward formula, to be learned by heai-t, and if obeyed at all, obeyed mechanically. We must tiy to make them the very law of our being, part and parcel of our inmost selves. Next to trying to make the love of God the loadstar and guiding principle of our lives is put the duty of teaching our religion to our children. For clearly upon our doing this, to the best of our know- ledge and ability, the future of Judaism depends. One generation may worship God and love him, but if the next generation be not taught and trained to do so, God, humanly speaking, will be for- gotten and the love of him will disappear. • And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thy house, and upon thy gates.' These also are metaphorical expressions. You will remember in the law of the Passover how it said : * And it shall be to thee for EXILE AS A PUNISHMENT 131 a sign upon thine hand, and as frontlets (or tablets) between thine eyes.' The two passages, written if not Dy the same author, at all events about the same time, must be explained in one and the same way. They are a pictorial way of saying how constant should be our thought, how earnest our observance, of these fundamental commandments. The writer of the Shema is so emphatic and so insistent that he passes from the most inward metaphor he can think of to the most outward, as if he wished to include all the resources of language. The unity and the love of God ai*e to be as perpetually in our minds as if we saw them perpetually written up before our eyes. They are as constantly to determine our motives and our actions as if they had been * put ' or ' graven ' upon our hearts. You will remember how Queen Mary of England said of her own heart that the word Calais would be found graven upon it. So the Wise Teacher says to his disciples : * Keep my commandments and live, and my teaching as the apple of thine eye. Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the tablet of thine heart.' And again : ' My son, keep thy father's command- ment, and forsake not the teaching of thy mother. Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck.' And again : * Let not love and fidelity forsake thee : bind them about thy neck : write them upon the tablet of thy heart.' In later times the Jews took the words of the Shema literally, and many Jews to this day write not only the Shema but three other short passages from the Bible on small scrolls of paper, insert the scroll in little cylindrical capsules, and fix them upon all the doors of their houses. Others bind square capsules at certain times upon their hands and foreheads, but these quaint customs (whether rightly or wrongly is a matter of controversy) are now gradually dying out. You will have noticed that the Jews are threatened with exile as a mark of God's displeasure and as a method of punishment, whereas their return into their own country is to be a signal of God's grace and of his forgiveness. When these words were written, the Jews were really a nation, like the Dutch or the Danes to-day. During the existence of the great empires of Assyria and Babylon, it was the custom of the despotic rulers of these empires to transport peoples and tribes, which had rebelled against them, or which they had conquered, to distant provinces of the empire, far from their old homes. Could there be a more terrible punishment for a conquered people 1 Suppose the Emperor of Russia went to war with the tiny kingdom of Denmark. He could conquer it very easily. Fancy now if he transported the Danes to Central Asia. K 2 133 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING What an awful fate this would be for the unfortunate Danes. A restoration to their own beloved Denmark would seem to them the height of human bliss. If they believed that God had used the Emperor of Russia as an instrument of punishment for their sins, they would regard their restoration to Denmark as the surest mark of the Divine forgiveness. So too with the Jews. They also loved their country as the Danes love theirs, and exile seemed to them the most dreadful fate which could befall them. If that exile were a punishment, then the mark or signal of God*s pardon must be restoration. So when the Jews were taken captive to Babylon, they regarded their subsequent restoration to Palestine as the evidence of God's forgiveness. And so indeed it was. But since that restoration some 2,430 years have passed away and the condition of the Jews has wholly changed. The Jews are no longer a nation but a religious brotherhood : they form part of many nations, but themselves form none. And if their second exile was once regarded as a punishment, it is, for all Jews who live in Western Europe, America, and Australia, a punishment no more. For you and me to leave our homes in England would not be restoration but exile, not a sign of grace, but a mark of punish- ment. Moreover, we have now learnt, as you will understand better later on, to measure both God's favour and his displeasure less out- wardly than was either advisable or possible in ancient times. But though the form has changed, the spirit remains. Repentance of sin is still the only way (we may and must most firmly believe) to secure the pardon of God, and if we try to repent and try to be good, God will, as it were, meet us half way. Did you notice that in one place it said, * make you a new heart and be no more stiff- necked,' and in another place it said, ' God will give thee a new heart in order that thou mayest love God with all thine heart and with all thy soul ' % What is there ordered as a command is here promised as a gift. In the Shema it says : Thou shalt love the Lord thy God. Here it says that God will give a new heart in order thai such love may be possible. It is not a real contradiction, though we may not ever be able to solve the puzzle quite correctly, or to adjust to a nicety the respective parts of God and man in human goodness and achievement. We must pray to God to help us, and we may be sure he will, and yet we must also strive to be good and to love God with all our heart, as if both lay wholly within our power. * For this commandment is not too difficult for thee, neither is it far off,' * This commandment ' is not the whole collection of laws and statutes referred to in the preceding sentence, but the funda- THE CHARGE OF JOSHUA 133 mental bidding to love and reverence and obey God. This * word ' is neither too hard nor too far off. The love of God is, in one sense, as the crown and goal of religion, veiy hard, but on the other hand it is within the reach of the poorest and the humblest. Above all, no one need be learned or clever to know what it means, or still better to feel what it means. And if you cdi.11 feel it, yon may be said to hnow it. The veriest clodhopper can love God as deeply as the wisest philosopher. Therefore in this sense the love of God is not too hard. Nor is it far off. For when it has once been clearly put before us, or when we once have heard and read about it in the Bible, we realize that it answers to our own heart's need. It is no strange and conventional and wayward bidding, but one that is very near to us; that touches us close and quickens us keenly, and to which we respond in word and thought and deed. Therefore it may be truly said that the love of God is very nigh unto us, in our mouths and in our hearts, that we may do it. To * do the love of God ' seems a strange phrase, but if the phrase is ungrammatical, the meaning is good and real. For it means to live by it ,* in other words, to let all that we do be in accord witb it. § 37" ^<*w^ "we come at last to the beautiful story which tells how Moses, his life's work done, passed quietly away, breathing out his soul, as it were, into the care of God. And God spake unto Moses, saying. Get tbee up into this mountain of Abarim, unto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho ; and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession : and die in the mount whither thou goest up, and be gathered unto thy people ; as Aaron thy brother died in mount Hor, and was gathered unto his people: because ye trespassed against me among the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah of Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin : because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel. Thou shalt see the land before thee; but thou shalt not go thither unto the land which I give the children of Israel. And Moses spake unto God^ saying. Let the Lord God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congrega- tion, who may go out before them, and who may come in before them, and who may lead them out, and who may bring them in; that the congregation of God be not as sheep which have no shepherd. And God said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the 134 I'HE BIBLE FOR HOME READING spirit^ and lay thine hand upon him; and set him before Eleazar the priest^ and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that albthe congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient. And Moses did as God commanded him : and he took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation : and he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as God commanded by the hand of Moses. In the Eetrospecfc we hear that Moses besought God, but besought him in vain, to allow him to cross the Jordan, God's ways are not man's ways. It seemed to God .better, and thex-e- fore it was better, that Moses should die before the entry into Canaan. Nor did Moses complain. In resignation and obedience he reconciled himself to his sentence, and submitted wholly and without murmuring to the will of God. The seed which one man has sown, another will reap. Let it suffice him to possess the glad conviction that he has sown it. And I besought God, saying, O Lord God, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand : for who is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, those goodly mountains, and Lebanon. But God was wi'oth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me : and God said unto me. Let it suffice thee ; speak no more unto me of this matter. Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes : for thou shalt not go over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him : for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which thou shalt see. And Moses spake unto all Israel. And he said unto them, I am an hundred and twenty years old this day ; I can no more go out and come in : also God hath said unto me, Thou shalt not go over this Jordan. Joshua, he shall go over before thee, as God hath spoken. Be sti'ong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid: for the Lord thy God will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, THE DEATH OF MOSES 135 Be strong and of a good courage : for thou must go with this people into the land which God hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it. And God will be with thee, he will not fail thee^ neither forsake thee : fear not, neither be dismayed. And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And God shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan; and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the western sea; and the South, and the Plain of the valley of Jericho the city of palm trees, unto Zoar. And God said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed : I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither. So Moses the servant of God died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of God. And he was buried in a valley in the land of Moab over against Beth-peor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day. And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended. And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom : and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as God commanded Moses. But there hath never since arisen a prophet in Israel like unto Moses, whom God knew face to face. Several travellers in modern times have climbed the mountain chain which rises up from the plain of Moab, The whole chain is the * Abarim/ and of that chain one portion, now called the ridge of Neba, is in all probability the mountain from the top of which Moses surveyed the land beyond the Jordan. In the Bible it is sometimes called Mount Pisgah, and sometimes Mount Nebo. Dr. Tristram and Dr. George Smith both say that the view is magnificent and very extensive. You will see the site of the mountain on a good map. It lies due east of the northern end of the Dead Sea. ' No man knoweth his sepulchre.' The story is an indirect protest against that phase of idolatry which cousisted in the 136 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING worstip of the spirits of the dead. Such a worship was specially carried on at their tombs. Moses was to be honoured, it has well been said, not at his grave, but in his works. God knew him, the Bible says, face to face ; which we may take to mean that the Hebrew writers felt that the simple but yet fundamental truths about the nature of God, his oneness and his justice and his mercy, were first revealed to and realized by Moses. By the will and through the help of God Moses created the people of Israel, and he is therefore the Founder of Judaism. THE LAWS OF THE HEBREWS 137 CHAPTEE VI THE LAWS OF THE HEBREWS § I. I WILL now bring together and quote some of those com- mandments and statutes of which we have so often heard in the Retrospect. But I shall not only quote from the Retrospect, hut also from those other books of the Bible which deal with the life and the legislation of Moses. The laws attributed to Moses, and put into his mouth, were, as I have already told you, compiled at different periods. Many of them were framed to meet particular needs, and corresponded to, and grew out of, particular conditions of society, which have long since passed away. They are therefore not all of equal value. Some of them are merely social customs turned into laws, and of these legalized customs some again seem to us, who live in other and on the whole more civilized times, rather strange and rude. It is a remarkable fact that God chose to reveal some of the highest truths about himself and about goodness to a people which was neither very civilized nor very gentle. He chose that gold should be mingled with iron, pure metal with alloy, both in their laws and in their writings. I cannot explain why he did this. I can merely record the fact. God is called in the Bible the God of Truth as well as the God of Goodness. We must be as truthful and as discriminating in our judgement of the Bible as in our judgement of any other book. We must seek for the very best we can find in it, and cleaving to that, make the Bible its own touchstone and test. We must not put what is less good in it; on a level with the best. We do not exalt the less good by doing that ; we merely degrade the best. And we are not acting as those should act who worship the God of Truth. § 2. The Hebrew laws embrace a great variety of topics. To the ancient world all law is sacred law, and so a law about the punishment to be inflicted on a thief is as much a sacred law as a law whicli bids men * love the stranger' or ' observe the Sabbath.* We find, therefore, in the Hebrew codes, laws about land, about 138 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING property, about war, about slaves, about justice and so on. We have also laws about ceremonial customs wbich had become associated with religion, though many of them had been adopted from outside or were quite loosely connected with those funda- mental truths about goodness and God which make up Judaism. They have therefore in many cases easily dropped off, without harm to the religion itself. Many of the laws deal with sacrifices and with the regulation of the Temple at Jerusalem. Sacrifices have ceased to be offered since the destruction of this Temple, and we may be perfectly certain that people will no more go back to the rite of sacrifices than they will go back to the belief that the sun goes round the earth. These laws, like the others mentioned before, are therefore obsolete. They are of interest to those whose pleasure or business it is to study the history and development of religious ideas and customs, or to compare, e. g., the agrarian and penal code of one nation with that of another. They have no present religious worth for us to-day. Therefore, for my purpose in this book, there are only two kinds of laws which are of real importance. The first kind comprises the laws which speak of those religious insti- tutions which still remain in -force in our public worship to-day, though sometimes in modified forms and with a different intention. The second kind comprises those simple moral laws which are not merely laws, but maxims and principles of morality, § 3. I will deal with the first kind first : the public religious ceremonies that still constitute the outward worship of Judaism. Of these by far the most important has already been stated and discussed. I mean the Sabbath. Besides the weekly Sabbath there are, as you know, five yearly occasions on which we specially assemble in synagogue for the worship of God. These five yearly occasions are the Feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles, the Day of Memorial, and the Day of Atonement. The first of these feasts I have already dealt with. But for the sake of completeness I will add here part of the rule for its obser- vance as we find it in the Eetrospect. Observe the month of Abib^ and keep the passover unto the Lord thy God : for in the month of Abib the Lord thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night. Thou shalt eat no leavened bread ; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread, even the bread of affliction ; for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste : that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of Egypt all the days of thy life. And there shall be no leaven seen with thee in THE FEAST OF PENTECOST 139 all thy land seven days. Six days shalt thou eat unleavened bread : and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly to the Lord thy Godj thou shalt do no vi^ork therem. The Feast of Weeks, the second of the three festivals of rejoicing, has a very different form and object now from those which it had in ancient times. It is now regarded as a festival to commemorate the giving of the Ten Words. But originally, and all through the Biblical period, and for some time after it, the Feast of Weeks had nothing to do with the Ten Words. It was a purely agricultural festival and owed its origin to agricultural conditions of life. In fact all the three great festivals of rejoicing were connected with agriculture. They were festivals of rejoicing and of gratitude to God the Giver. Even the first of the three, the Passover, had its agricultural side, though this side was overshadowed by its historical connexion and reminiscence. The Passover was a festival of the beginning of summer, which in Palestine arrives much earlier than in England. It was celebrated at the time when ' thou beginnest to put the sickle to the standing corn.' The * standing corn' here spoken of is barley. The harvest began with barley and ended with wheat, and the beginning of the barley reaping fell, and falls still in some parts of Palestine, as early as April, which is the date of the Passover. There was an agricultural rite connected with or celebrated during the Passover, which in an old law, still preserved to us by a later writer, is thus described. It consists, yo» will observe, in the offering of a sheaf of barley, as the firstfruits of the coming harvest, in pious gratitude to God, the Giver of all. When ye be come into the land which God shall give unto you^ and shall reap the harvest thereof^ then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest : and he shall wave the sheaf to be accepted for you : on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it. And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor fresh ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought this offering unto God: it is a statute for ever throughout your genera- tions in all your dwellings. Thus a firstfruit sheaf of barley was brought to the Temple, and the priest swung it to and fro according to an old sacrificial rite. It was the firstfruit sheaf for the entire people. Till this sheaf was bi'ought, no produce of that year s harvest might be eaten. Similar customs prevailed among the Greeks and Eomans and 140 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING other peoples of antiquity. The ' morrow after the sabbath ' means the morrow of the first sabbath after the beginning of the harvest. Seven weeks after that Sunday came the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost. (The day of Pentecost means the fiftieth day. Pent^- konta is fifty in Greek and Fentecostos is fiftieth.) Thus originally the Feast of Weeks fell always on a Sunday. This is what we are told about it. And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering ; seven sabbaths shall be complete : even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days ; and ye shall offer an offering made of new meal unto God. Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves ; of two tenths of fine flour shall they be ; they shall be baken with leaven, as firstfruits unto God. And the priest shall wave the bread of the firstfruits as a wave offering unto God. And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein : it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. Thus the Passover begins the harvest ceremonies with a wave offering of fresh barley. Pentecost completes them with a wave offering of wheaten bread. Later on the Jews interpreted the word ' Sabbath ' in the phrase ' on the morrow after th« sabbath ' to mean the first day of the Passover festival, so that Pentecost comes now just fifty days after the beginning of Passover. But it did not mean this in the original law. In the Retrospect the Law of the Pentecost holiday is given thus : Seven weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from the time thou beginnest to put the sickle to the standing corn. And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the Lord thy God with the full freewill offering which thine hand can give, according to the measure of the blessing wherewith the Lord thy God hath blessed thee : and thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the Lord thy God shall choose THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES 141 to cause his name to dwell there. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt : and thou shalt observe and do these statutes. The Levite here is the priest above. In the code of the Retrospect not only is every priest a Levite, but every Levite is a priest. Later on the priests were separated off from the mass of Levites, who became the assistants of the priests, * The place which the Lord thy God shall choose ' is Jerusalem. It was the object of the code of the Retrospect to get the people to abandon all offerings and sacrifices at the smaller sanctuaries and to con- centrate them at the one central temple of Jerusalem. This was done to avoid the idolatrous customs which grew up at the smaller country sanctuaries. The worship at the central sanctuary was purer and more under supervision and control. § 4, The third festival we know as Tabernacles. It was origin- ally the feast of Ingathering. In the oldest code it is called * the feast of Ingathering, at the end of the year, when thou gatherest in thy labours out of the field.' It celebrated the final close of the agricultural year, and for many generations it was by far the most popular and well observed of the three festivals of rejoicing. It was especiaUy connected with the ingathering of the fruit and grape harvest, but also with the threshing out of the gathered corn and wheat. For us who live in northern lands, where all the harvest is late, and where Passover and Pentecost have lost their agricultural connexion, Tabernacles is essentially the harvest and nature festival of all the three. In the law of the Retrospect it is thus described : Thou shalt observe the feast of booths seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine : and thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy g^tes. Seven days shalt thou keep the feast unto thy God in the place which he shall choose: because the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands, and thou shalt wholly rejoice. The feast of 'Booths/ In Hebrew Succotk In Latin taher- nacula : hence our Tabernacles. Tahernaculv/m means a little hut, or tent, or booth. It is etymologically the diminutive of tabcrna^ which means a ' hut/ "What is called in the oldest code 142 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the feast of Ingathering is here called the feast of Booths. The name is best explained from the custom of camping out in the autumn among the vineyard hills in booths or huts of improvised and rustic material. We shall see how a custom is turned into a law in the next form of the Tabernacle festival, in which it is connected with the Exodus from Egypt and the wanderings in the Desert, and to live in booths is transformed from a national custom into a ceremonial law. But first let me mention another ceremony which is connected in the code of the Retrospect with the feast of Tabernacles. In that code there is a law about the firstfruits of each indi- vidual's land which are to be given to the priests, and brought to Jerusalem. This was in all probability done at the Feast of Tabernacles, and the following ceremony is enjoined for it : And it shall be, when thou art come in unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and possessest it, and dweUest therein ; that thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring in of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee ; and thou shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose- to place his name there. And thou shalt go unto the priest that shall be in those days, and say unto him, I profess this day unto the Lord thy God, that I am come unto the country which God sware unto our fathers to give us. And the priest shall take the basket out of thine hand, and set it down before the altar of the Lord thy God. And thou shalt answer and say before the Lord thy God, A wandering Aramaean was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with but a few; and he became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous : and the Egyptians evil entreated us, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage : and we cried unto the Lord God of our fathers, and he heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression: and God brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders : and he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, a land that floweth with milk and honey. And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land, which thou, O God, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the Lord thy God, and worship before the Lord thy God : and thou shalt rejoice in every THE UNION OF RELIGION AND MORALITY 143 good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto thee^ and unto thine house^ thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is among you. Now we come to the third and latest form of the Tabernacle Law. On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep the feast of booths seven days : on the first day shall be a rest, and on the eighth day shall be a rest. And ye shall take you on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook ; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days. And ye shall keep it a feast unto God seven days in the year : it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations : ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month. Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths : that your generations may know that God made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. Here you notice that the dwelling in booths, which to the writer of the Retrospect was merely a custom which gave the festival its name, has now been turned into an ordinance. Moreover the festival which ended before with the seventh day is now extended to eight days, and the first and eighth days are made days of rest, of which we hear nothing in the Ketrospect. We have continued to observe the festival in this, the latest form of it, but most of us no longer dwell in booths. There is still, however, a Booth or Tabernacle attached to every synagogue during the week of the Festival. § 5. I have already spoken about the Passover and its celebration. A few words may be added here about Pentecost and Tabernacles. The first of these is no longer for us an agricultural or nature festival : from early post-Biblical times it has commemorated the giving of the Ten Commandments. It is now the festival which year by year celebrates the promulgation and excellence of these ten fundamental words of religion and morality. It is the festival which celebrates a great cardinal dogma of Judaism, namely the necessary union of religion and morality with each other, that is, that God is for ever associated with goodness and that goodness must ever be associated with God. One God, and he the God of righteousness — that is the keynote of the Pentecost. Goodness for ever rooted in 144 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING God even as God is goodness. The love of God shown in the love of man, and the love of man based upon, and culminating in the love of God. Again the Pentecost is the festival of the family. For it declares that the basis of social "wellbeing is the honour of parents and the sanctity of the home. Then too, the Pentecost is the festival of law, and law is a great and noble element in human life which will always play its part and maintain its worth. Lastly the Pentecost is the festival which through law bids us in a sense transcend (or get beyond) law, for we call to mind not merely the legal sixth and the legal eighth and ninth words but also the super-legal tenth word. Quench the source of evil which is within, cut down desire and lust at their roots within the soul, and leaving the negative commands of prohibitory law, we advance to the culminating, positive commands of morality and religion, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy might. Pentecost is therefore a great festival of religion and morality, a day, moreover, be it well remembered, suited for the worship not of one people only, but of anybody of whatever race, who chooses to join us in its celebration. Last of the three comes the festival of Ingathering or Taber- nacles. Alone of the three, Tabernacles still maintains and preserves its original character as a festival of nature. It is the harvest festival of rejoicing and thankfulness. It is the festival of grati- tude to God, the giver of our daily bread. It bids us remember all that in the last resort we owe to the soil. Just as the essence of character is goodness and not wisdom, so the basis of our life is not the work of brain, but the work of muscle and hand. Life in cities depends upon life in the fields. It was once said that man made the town, but God made the country. The saying is not quite accurate, but there is some truth in it. Now that we have quite got over the danger of worshipping any part of creation instead of creation's Creator, we must not run into the opposite extreme of error, and forget to remember the divine creator him- self. We must not empty nature of God, because we no longer believe that any part of nature is itself divine. We run no risk of worshipping the stars any longer, but let us not forget to look at them, and to adore the one divine spirit — all wise and all good — who is through all, in all, and over all. More especially for the Jews who have been so long, and are many of them still, forced to live in cities and to gain their livelihood by barter and trade and commerce, the festival of Tabernacles is not the least important of the three. It should not only awaken in us gratitude to God the giver, not merely remind us that we owe our daily bread in THE GREATNESS OF AGRICULTURE 145 a hundred ways rather to God than to ourselves (for he is author and causej and we are mere instruments and receivers), not merely exhort us to those virtues of modest simplicity and cleanly strength which are associated with the tilling of the soil, but it should induce us to remember that the primal and fundamental daily labour of man is labour in the fields. Agriculture is the first and the greatest of the arts of man. No people is in a healthy state of which a certain proportion is not tillers of the soil. I am by no means sure that the same may not be said of a religious brotherhood or community. If, then, there are, at any rate in Western Europe, so few Jews who are agriculturists, it is the more necessary for us all to learn to love nature, and to teach our children to love nature, and to know a little, even if it be only a very little, about her ways and her laws and her creatures. An out-of-door life is a good foundation for goodness and religion. We must learn, if we can, to love nature religiously, looking upon her as the creation or as the raiment of God, and seeking from and finding in her all the comfort and the strength which we can. It is also incumbent upon us to do what we can that those children who are pent up in cities, and whose parents have not the means to give them a good holiday in the country, shall be enabled to enjoy happy country visits from time to time. The Children's Country Holiday Fund is a charity which should especially appeal to us, and at no more fitting time can we recall and remember its claims than at the great nature festival of Tabernacles. § 6. In addition to the three festivals of rejoicing, the latest code added two others to the yearly cycle of a totally different kind. The first of these is described and enjoined as follows : In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall be a solemn rest unto you, a day of memorial by the blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. Ye shall do no servile work therein. And elsewhere it says : And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation : ye shall do no servile work therein : it is a day of blowing of trumpets unto you. Of the meaning and object of this festival we are not further informed. Afterwards the Jews called it not merely the Day of Memorial but the New Tear. They dated the beginning of the 146 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING year from it. How could this be, you will ask, seeing that it is said to fall not in the first month but in the seventh month 1 The facts are these. In old times, before the Babylonian exile, of which we shall hear later (it took place some 2,500 years ago), the new year of the Hebrews fell in the autumn. The festival of Taber- nacles was the close of the year. The Day of Memorial and the Day of Atonement did not exist. The Babylonians, on the other hand, began their year in the spring, and the Jews adopted the same custom. Abib, or as it was afterwards called Nisan, became therefore the first month, and Ethanim, or as it was afterwards called Tishri, the month in which Tabernacles falls, became the seventh. But there arose a tendency, as regards the religious year, to revert to the older practice. Consequently the religious new year was made to begin in the seventh month, and naturally the first day of the new year was made to fall upon the first day of that seventh month, so that the Day of Memorial became the new year. But as we now reckon our New Year not according to the Jewish calendar, but according to the European calendar, and start the new year on January ist, we can no longer easily regard the Day of Memorial as our New Year. It has now gone back to its probable first meaning : a day of reflection and remem- brance; a day of summons and preparation for the holy Day of Atonement which is to follow. It ushers in, and bids us prepare ourselves for, that great day. Forewarning, preparation, ' collection ' in its beautiful religious sense {Sammlung the Germans call it) : these are the ideas which now cluster round the Day of Memorial. Between it and the Day of Atonement lie the so-called eight penitential days, during which we may fitly continue the trains of thought and meditation which we have begun in our worship ;upon the Day of Memorial, § 7. The^ second of the two festivals added in the latest code to the original three, and first observed after the return from the Babylonian exile, is the Day of Atonement. What we read about it in the law of its institution gives a very different idea of the day from what we know and think about it at the present time. Jt is not too much to say that the true Day of Atonement has come into being since its own foundation. This is practically all that we are told about it in the code, for the sacrificial customs and rites no longer concern us : On the tenth day of the seventh month is the day of atonement : it shall be an holy convocation unto yoii^ and ye THE DAY OF ATONEMENT 147 . shall afflict your souls. And ye shall do no manner of work in that same day : for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the Lord your God. Ye shall do no manner of work : it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls : in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath. And it shall be a statute for ever unto you : in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country or a stranger that sojourneth among you: for on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins shall ye be clean before God. It is a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls ; it is a statute for ever. In order to explain fully and clearly what the Day of Atonement meant to the writers of the short Biblical passages which I have just quoted, I should have to dwell on many matters which do not concern us now and are foreign to the purpose of this hook. Thus much only will I say. In the eyes of the ancients, a people or a community formed a more real and living unity than it does at present. The people as a whole was more thought of; the individual, as a separate unitj less. They thought, for example, more of Sparta, less of the individual Spartan. The English people to-day is made up of all the separate English men, women, and children who are to-day alive. But according to ancient ideas the English people would be something more and even something better than all the separate and individual men, women, and children who make it up. We still to some extent believe the same. Supposing that England as a nation has done some great and glorious deed, or suppose that she has done some ignoble and shameful deed. We say that glory attaches to England, or that shame attaches to her as the case may be. You and I may have had no part in either the deed of glory or the deed of shamcj but yet we feel and take over our share in the glory, and still more perhaps do we feel and take our share in the disgrace. We are proud of England's abolition of slavery : we feel, as a personal disgrace which attaches to every Englishman, the dilatory neglect of the heroic defender of Khartoum. England as a whole has a national honour, a national conscience, which can be tarnished or kept clean. So and still more strongly felt tho L 2 140 run: BIBLE FOK HUME KEAUlNCi Jews of old. Moreover, like other nations of antiquity, they ascribed a peculiar influence to a committed act quite apart from the act's intention. If I quite unwittingly did something which, had I done it intentionally, would have been a sin, the Hebrews felt that the act itself might in some semi-mysterious way (apart from natural causes) bring punishment or suffering in its train, unless I were released from its power by ,a higher power still, namely a sin-offering or atonement. And, then, over aild above my sin as it concerns me, the Jews believed that my sin had an effect upon the national purity. Every sin of mine, whether any other living soul knew it or not, left a spot upon the whiteness of the national shield. But now suppose that I sinned in ignorance. Well, that was all the better for me individually, but the dirty spot appeared none the less surely upon the national shield. Again the Jews, like other nations of antiquity, believed a good deal in cere- monial purity, and they had many ceremonial laws and usages on this subject which seem very strange to us to-day, (If you know or can get hold of an Indian Civil Servant, he will tell you about many laws and customs of Hinduism and of other religions preva- lent in India, which will bring the whole thing, as a still living force and reality, vividly before your minds.) If I violated one of the laws or usages connected with ceremonial purity, my offence added another blot to the national shield. Whether I committed the offence on purpose or unwittingly, the blot upon the national shield came none the less surely. Now let us bring what I have just said into connexion with the phrase : ^ On this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you : ye shall be clean from all your sins before God.' We may, on the basis of what has just been said, distinguish four kinds of ' sins.' (i) Moral sins committed wilfully and knowingly. (2) Moral sins committed unconsciously. (This- seems a contra- diction, but we are here considering the act and not its sinfulness, which is of course determined by the act's intention.) An example of these would be if I tell a falsehood from sheer forgetfulness, or let a heavy weight fall by accident out of my window and so crush and kill a passer-by. (3) Ceremonial * sins ' committed on purpose. (4) Ceremonial * sins' committed unwittingly. Now according to the notions of the men who instituted the Day of Atonement, the rites of the day would clear the nation and the individual of all sins committed in classes (2"^ and (4). As to sins in classes (i) and (3), we may take it for granted that the Day of Atonement was not supposed to obtain any magical pardon from God for those who had committed them, but it was probably believed that it would cleanee the nation as a whole from the REPENTANCE AND ITS MEANING 149 stain upon its shield with which the sins of private individuals had tarnished it. Lastly, let me just observe that to afflict one's soul meant to abstain from food, to fast. Such, then, was the Day of Atonement according to its original ordinance. It was a national ceremony to atone for national guilt, and had little to do with those ideas of inward repentance and inward reconciliation with God which are now inseparably associated with it. Yet it was not long before these ideas began to filter into it, and after the destruction of the Temple (some 500 years after the first institution of the new festival) the atonement day was almost entirely taken possession of by those higher ideas, so that under their influence the meaning and object of the day became completely changed. The Day of Atonement, then, gradually grew to be a day for the individual instead of a day for the community. It became a day, not of prescribed ceremonial (though the outward fast was, and is still, preserved), but of inward contrition and repentance and communion with God. The keynote of the atonement day is repentance. What is repentance ? It is an idea of many sides or aspects, and so the word for it means difi'erent things in different languages. The English repentance and the German Eeue mean practically ' sorriness ' or ' sorrow.' To repent of our errors and sins means first and foremost that Ave are genuinely sorry for having committed them. The remembrance of them — or the difference, it may be, between what we have done and are to what we might have done and been — inflicts upon us a sharp and painful pang of sorrow and of shame. That is one element in repentance, and a necessary and essential one. In Greek repentance is called Metanoiai which means change of mind or disposition. In Greek, therefore, the word indicates, as it were, that repentance to be worthy of its name must be successful. Unless it hits the mark it is naught. For change of mind means that the heart which was set sinwards is now set Godwards. The change may come slowly or it may come suddenly and at a bound. Here, then, we have another element or aspect of repentance : change of heart. The ugliness of our sinful life, the beauty of holiness, or the goodness of God may be revealed to the soul, and with the new and truer vision the whole man, as people say, is changed. The life of the soul is exceedingly mysterious, and we can hardly ever say for certain that what seems strange or incomprehensible to us may not be a full reality in the experience of another. The Hebrew word for repentance is Teshuhah^ which means return. It emphasizes the last aspect of repentance : its practical result. 150 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The issue of repentance must be a return from transgression, from the overstepping of right, from the straying aside out of the path of righteousness into the devious b3^ways of sin, back once more into the straight road of duty and unselfishness and love. True repentance is no mere momentary spasm of remorse : to be worthy the name it must influence and leave its mark upon character, and therefore upon action and upon life. Of course any day may be for us a special day of atonement. That is to say, on any day we may repent of our selfishness and our sin, and on any day we may resolve to make amends or to live a better, purer, and more useful life. And if that resolve is trans- lated into action, the day of resolve has been a true day of atonement. Whereas we were separated from God by our sin, we have now become at one with him by repentance and amend- ment. So on any day we may cast the burden of our heart upon God, and attempt by earnest prayer to secure that sense of peace and reconciliation with God, which on God's part is being offered to us continually. For God is always with us, and ever responsive to our cry. According to the measure of our sincerity, or I might also say, according to the measure of our faith, so is the answer. It is our fault if we cannot hear it. God's help is never wanting, but is always given according to the same merciful and changeless law. ' Take not thy holy spirit from me,' is our prayer, but in truth that spirit is never far removed. It is for us to become alive to its influence and obedient to its call. God is ever calling to us : it is for us to hear the call. God is ever ready to help us : it is for us to use that help to the utmost of our power. Prayer and resolve : the realization of God's help and of our own need ; the realization of our own power and of God's summons to put it forth, these two must go hand in hand. Our prayers must include and be followed by a striving and a struggle ; otherwise they cannot be answered. Nevertheless without the prayer we shall not realize and therefore appropriate (that is make our own) and use the divine help. All the experience of man goes to show that God has chosen to grant the realization and effect of his help to those who feel the need of it and pray for its bestowal. In this sense, then, based upon the first commandment that God is ever the same, not more inclined to help and to for"*ive upon one day in the year than upon another, any day may be to us a day of atonement. But though this is undoubtedly true the fixed annual and public day of atonement is admirably suited for our human needs. It is a common saying that everybody's business is nobody's business, and so it is also to some extent true 'FORGIVE US OUR SINS* 151 that what we can do on any day we are likely to do on no day. So it is a great comfort and blessing and a most useful and excellent ordinance to have one whole day in the year set apart for uninterrupted communion with our own souls and with God. The Day of Atonement does not for a moment interfere with such communion on any other day of the year. It does not for a moment suggest that we should not repent and resolve on any other day of the year. It merely gives us an opportunity for an honest and thorough review of our conduct in the past year. By its solemn surroundings, service, and associations it helps us to free ourselves from all self-delusion, all glozing and glossing over sin and folly and selfishness. It helps us to set the house of our soul in order ; to sti'ip it of its subterfuges and excuses and convention- alitiesj to set it naked before our own eyes as it is ever naked in the eyes of God. Eepentance and resolve are possible : the help of God is a real and constant force. Shall we take advantage of that force and of that possibility % The Day of Atonement is a day for ws, not for God. What God is for himself and for us he is always. Wq change : lit is changeless, We ask for God's forgiveness, but God is merciful and loving, because God is God. He is merciful and loving before we ask : he is merciful and loving after our request is made. He is merciful and loving whether we ask him or whether we ignore him. If, then, we ask for God's forgiveness, this properly means ' May I become worthy to obtain forgiveness.' It means, *I repent'; it means, ' I have resolved to be better, to do more worthily*; it; means, * Make me realize the help thou offerest, strengthen me with tlie conviction of its strength and peace.' If it does not mean this, it means nothing. Are we to ask GodL to change, while we remain the same % Perhaps, however, you will say that a prayer for God's forgiveness does not mean ' Forgive what I am going to do/ but ' Forgive what I have done.' And whether we repent to-day or not, and live a better life from to-day or not, the sins which we have committed wp tiU to-day need forgiveness just the same. But even * forgive my past sins ' may mean many things, and some of these meanings are meaningless. It cannot mean * cancel the effects of my sin/ for the effects of my sin cannot be cancelled. The injury I have done to my neighbour, the good I might have done and did not do, the opportunities I have lost or misspent — these things cannot be put right again. That is God's law. Perhaps you may think the prayer for forgiveness means, ' Do not jpunish me for the wrong which I have done.' Ought we to desire this ] I am not sure whether we ought. The punishment of sin lieg 152 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING partly in its effects, and this is a stern but very wholesome law. Are we to ask that we may not be sorry or miserable for the sins which we have committed 1 Surely, the sorrier we feel the better. Are we to ask that the sin which we have done may not recoil upon our own heads rather than upon another 1 Perhaps you say, ' May we not ask that it should not recoil either upon another's head or upon our own 1 ' Are you sure 1 Can we be so sure that it is not for our good to feel the consequence of sin — for our good and for the good of society at large 1 Does not God know better than we 1 Whether in this world or in another world, is he not good, and can he therefore inflict a grain of punishment that is not for our good 1 Suffering is not necessarily punishment at all. * Forgive us our sins ' is therefore a very doubtful prayer if it means ' Let us off their punishment ' ; an absurd prayer if it means * Cancel their effects.' * Forgive us our sins ' has no meaning if it is not at the same time a cry of repentance, an outburst of humble and yet determined resolve. The truth is, we tend to speak of God as if he were human like ourselves. We tend to ask Mm to forgive ws in the same sort of way that we might be asked to forgive somebody who had done us an injury. We forget the infinite differences between ourselves and God. Our mood changes. We are now angry, now appeased. We are now annoyed, now peaceful. But God is always the same. He is always what he is, what he was, and what he eternally will be. If we forgive a person, we mean by it ' I will no longer remember the offence. I will be as friendly to you as I was before. I will no longer feel annoyed or hurt.' But God is never hurt and never angry in this human sense of the word, and he never punishes for his sake, but only for ours. He is never unfriendly. It is we who create the discord or disunion between ourselves and' him. He never ceases to pity. The help and love which he offers are good, and therefore constant. We may be unable to realize them through the mists of sin, but they are none the less there. The prayer that God may no longer remember our sin is perhaps the least inappropriate of these human analogies, but it is not quite accurate. For the changeless God, in his perfect wisdom and goodness, can only vary in his relation to man accoi'ding to man s own changing condition. The moment it is for our good that the sin shall be no longer remembered, that moment it can be remembered no more. For God is God, yesterday, to-day, and for ever. I cannot of course trace for you here the steps by which out of the Day of Atonement, as iirst instituted some 2,300 years ago, THE TRUE FAST 153 there grew the Day of Atonement of to-day. It would take too long, and, if I had the time, I have not the knowledge. The transformation had already been largely effected some 500 years after the Atonement's institution. We may gather that from what is said about the Day of Atonement in the Mishnah, a code book of Jewish law drawn up about 1,700 years ago. It says there : ' He who says, "^I will sin and then repent," his repentance will not avail him. He who says, " I will sin, and the Day of Atonement will bring me pardon," for him the Day of Atonement will bring no pardon. The sins of a man against God are forgiven through the atonement day, but the sins of a man against his neighbour are not forgiven through the atonement day until he has been reconciled to his neighbour/ Moreover, it was not later than the date of the compilation of the Mishnah that that great lesson from the prophets was chosen for the synagogue service of the atonement day, which lays down in the strongest possible way the whole object of the Fast. Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily, and desire to know my ways : as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God, they ask of me righteous ordinances, they desire to draw near unto God. Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye clutch at business and exact all your labours. Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of vrickedness : ye do not so fast this day as to make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I have chosen ? the day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him ? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to God? Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the fetters of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke ? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house ? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him ; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh ? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thy health shall spring forth speedily : and thy righteousness shall go before thee ; the glory of God shall be thy rearward. 154 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING It had become necessary to show that the mere ceremonial of praying or fasting was not valuable or meritorious in the eyes of God. For though, as the Day of Atonement became more established, it acquired a closer connexion with the individual, yet partly through this very reason superstitions crept in. The original founders of the Day of Atonement had certainly not supposed that the guilt and responsibility of every individuaFs sin (which was not involuntary) could be washed away and nullified by ritual and sacrifice. They only believed that God would thereby wash away the stain of the individual's sin from the national shield. The individual must bear his guilt as before; his account with God must be settled between himself and God. God is merciful, and repentance and amendment are forces of power. The atonement day (in their estimation) had nothing to do with obtaining pardon for the individual for his own purposed and voluntary sin. Nevertheless, the words ' From all your sins ye shall be clean before God/ are dangerously vague. People accordingly began to suppose that God would give them on the Day of Atonement a clean bill of moral health year by year. It was to their minds an easy annual whitewashing. Even to this day such false and degraded ideas continue. There are many people who never come within the doors of the synagogue except on the Day of Atonement, There are some who live careless, sinful, and polluted lives, who yet never miss coming to synagogue on the Day of Atonement. Why do they do this 1 It is from the gross and superstitious idea that by this annual and mechanical observance they will wring pardon from God for their careless, sinful, or polluted living. Such people, through their observance, are but adding sin to sin. It is they of whom the Eabbis said, ' They who think in their hearts I will sin, for the Day of Atone- ment will bring me forgiveness — for them the Day of Atonement will bring no forgiveness.' The Eabbis drew a similar lesson from the beautiful story of Jonah, which they also appointed to be read in the synagogue service upon the atonement day. In that story (which I shall tell you in full elsewhere) the prophet Jonah is bidden by God to threaten the city of Nineveh with calamity and ruin, because of its exceeding sinfulness. Thereupon : The people of Nineveh proclaimed a fast, and put on sack- cloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. And the matter came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him M^ith sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he THE CONDITIONS OF ATONEMENT 155 caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles^ saying. Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing : let them not feed, nor drink water : but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God : yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. Who can tell whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not ? And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which he said he would do unto them j and he did it not. Now we know that ' anger ' and * repentance,* as applied to God, are merely conventional and incorrect (though sometimes hardly avoidable) ways of speaking about him, but the moral of the story was truly seized by the Eabbis of old. They point out that God is not said to have forgiven Nineveh because of their fast and sackcloth and the cry of their lips, but because God saw 'their worhsy that they turned from their evil way/ therefore he forgave them. Once more, therefore, repentance and amendment, prayer and resolve ; here are the keynotes and the catchwords of the atone- ment day. Such true repentance, which is incipient amendment, such true prayer, which is incipient resolve, will ' make for us atonement.' This atonement will not come purely from without by the sudden gift, ordinance and favour of God. It will rather come as a necessary and yet divine sequence from within. The sense of separation from God will be annulled. We shall feel that to our own repentance and resolve there have been added the grace and help of God, and upon our souls will fall that sense of at-one-ness with God, that assurance of healing and of peace which, even as God alone can grant them, God alone can make us realize. Such a day of atonement, in its meaning, its methods, and its issues, is broadly human. It is a solemn service in which all man- kind may join. It is not fitted for one race alone, for Jew rather than for him who is, as yet, not a Jew, but for all. The treasures of Judaism are for the world. § 8. I now come to the second kind of laws comprised in the Mosaic codes, namely, those simple moral precepts which are not merely laws, but maxims and principles of morality, justice, and goodness. By this I mean that the principles of these laws are true principles for ever and cannot change, but that they are capable of 156 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING various applications. For example, there is a law which declares that the punishment of a thief shall he to restore the theft and to add a fifth part of its value. This law depends upon the principle *Thou shalt not steal.' That principle is abiding, hut its applications change. Thus the addition of the fifth is arbitrary; that is to say, it might have been a sixth or a fourth, or the punishment might have been of a totally different kind. There is another law which says, ' When thou buildest a new house, thou shalt make a battlement for its roof, lest any man fall from it.' This, again, is a law which only holds good for the flat roofs of Palestine, on which people used to walk and sit. It depends upon a principle ; but it is only the application of the principle, not the principle itself. On the other hand, though the arbitrary laws (for example, the penal and agrarian code) do not concern us now (seeing that we live under different conditions and different laws), yet ethical prin- ciples are often involved in them of considerable importance. I shall therefore quote a few laws which are not maxims, but of which the ethical spirit and intention are both clear and good. It must be remembered at starting that the moral laws and maxims are not intended to form a system. We can make a sort of system out of them, but that is a very different thing. They are all occasional, that is, framed and laid down to meet the needs of the time when, and the men for whom, they were first compiled. Of course some of those needs remain needs to this day, human nature continuing in many things the same from age to age, and therefore some of the maxims are as valuable and as necessary now as they were at the beginning. On the other hand, some laws which we perhaps need now were not needed then, and so they find no place in any of the codes. The legislators were concerned to forbid the prominent vices of the time : they most frequently inculcate and enjoin those virtues which were most frequently neglected. Thus, for example, there is no commandment enjoining bravery. The Hebrews, on the whole, were a brave people ; cowardice was not one of the national faults. The great evil in the life of those days, as in the life of the East generally unto this day, was injustice ; the oppression of the weak by the strong. Hence the main burden of the laws is against all forms of oppres- sion and injustice. Poverty was a great social problem then as it is a great social problem now, and the laws reflect the tender regard and deep concern of the legislators for the cause of the poor, the helpless, and the afflicted. Let me now come to details. The laws about 'justice' in the JUSTICE AND JUDGEMENT 157 narrower sense of the word rest upon the fundamental Ninth Commandment. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Following or dependent upon this we have : Thou shalt not go up and down as a tale bearer among thy people. Thou shalt not utter a false report. Join not thyself with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness. Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil, neither shalt thou in a law suit, following a majority, give evidence so as to pervert justice. Thou shalt not favour a great man in his suit. Thou shalt not pervert the just cause of the poor in his suit. Keep thee far from a false cause, and help not to condemn the guiltless. Thou shalt not take a gift, for a gift maketh the seeing blind, and turneth the cause of justice aside. Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgement : thou shalt not respect the persons of the poor nor honour the persons of the mighty, but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour. Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, according to thy tribes ; and they shall judge the people with righteous judgement. Thou shalt not wrest judgement: thou shalt not respect persons : neither shalt thou take a gift ; for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise and pervert the cause of the righteous. Note the warning against following a multitude to do evil and of following the majority to give false evidence. It often needs much moral courage not to follow the majority, to stand up for an unpopular cause or person, although we honestly believe that the person or cause is wholly in the right. Note too the warning not to be influenced by the favour and power of the great, and at the same time not to be led astray by natural compassion or indignation to favour, against the weight of evidence, the ' cause ' of the poor. The witness box and the judgement seat are alike hallowed by the presence of God, § 9. Let us now pass on to laws enjoining fair and honest dealing between man and man. Ye shall do no unrighteousness in measures of length, of weight, or of capacity. Just scales, just weights, a just epbah and a just hin shall ye have. Thou shalt not have in thy bag 158 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING divers weights, a great and a small. Thou shalt not have in thine house divers measures^ a.gi'eat and a small. A perfect and a just weight shalt thou have; a perfect and a just measure shalt thou have. Such laws were necessary then, as they are unfortunately neces- sary still. The prophet Amos attacks the rich and unfair merchants who say, ' When will the new moon he gone, that we may sell corn ? and the sahhath, that we may set forth wheat f making the ephah small and the shekel great, and dealing falsely with balances of deceit,' No unrighteousness in buying and selling is the gist of these maxims. There are many modern transgressions of them besides false weights. Adulteration, * corners/ gambling in produce would all come under their lash. [£Jphah is a measure of capacity for dry goods, and Mn a measure of capacity for liquids.] In more general terms we have the maxims : Ye shall not steal, ye shall not defraud your neighbour, ye shall not lie one to another. Thou shalt not overreach thy neighbour, neither rob him. AH these laws go back (as this last does verbally) to the simple but far-reaching eighth commandment, *Tbou shalt not steal/ Justice and honesty and truth : these are the foundations of all right intercourse between man and man. When these are wanting, how can we advance to anything higher 1 What is the good (one is sometimes inclined to ask) of highflown words about universal love, when men have not reached the stage of probity, honesty, integrity, justice, and truth ? § 10. I pass now to some more special laws for special classes. First may come the following about hired servants. Thou shalt not defraud an hired servant, that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of the strangers that are in thy land within thy gates : at his day shalt thou give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it ; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it. On a line with this are the laws about pledges. Loans among themselves were not matters of business with the Hebrews as with us, for the Hebrews were forbidden to accept any interest for money lent. Nevertheless they were allowed to take a pledge for the due restoration of the loan. Yet even here, though no actual business THE WIDOW AND THE ORPHAN 159 was involved, there were enjoined various laws of delicacy and kindness with regard to the exaction of these pledges. No man shall take the handmill or even the upper mill- stone to pledge : for he would take a man^s life to pledge. When thou dost lend thy neighbour a loan^ thou shalt not go into his house to fetch his pledge. Thou shalt stand without^ and the tnan to whom thou dost lend shall bring forth the pledge without unto thee. And if he be a poor man, thou shalt not sleep with his pledge : thou shalt surely restore to him the pledge when the sun goeth down, that he may sleep in his mantle and bless thee. In an older code the law is worded thus : If thou at all take thy neighbour's mantle to pledge, thou shalt restore it unto him by that the sun goeth down : for that is his only covering, it is his mantle for his skin : wherein shall he sleep? The mantle or upper garment is still the customary night-shii*t for the poor oriental to this day. The man who received the loan was to have his own choice of the pledge which he would give. Hence the lender must ' stand outside.' § II. Those who are most exposed to oppression in eastern lands are they who cannot help themselves or are not protected by any citizen's strong right hand. The three classes specially singled out for men's compassion and care in the Mosaic codes are the widow, the orphan, and the stranger. There are accordingly many maxims enjoining justice and charity towards them. Quite generally we have : Ye shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child. And in the Retrospect : Thou shalt not pervert justice from the stranger or the fatherless; nor take the widow's raiment to pledge: but thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee thence : therefore God hath commanded thee to do these things. The Hebrew laws were given to a people which was mainly engaged in agriculture. From the land and its produce, and not from commerce or trade, men in general gained their livelihood and made their wealth. Therefore from the produce of the land i6o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING they must show their charity. Hence the laws of charity are at the same time agrarian laws. First we may take the law of gleaning. When ye reap the harvest of your land^ thou shalt not reap the very corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest. And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather the fallen fruit of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them unto the poor and to the stranger. Then in the code of the Retrospect we find the following : When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field^ and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not go again to fetch it : it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow : that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hands. When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not go over the boughs again ; it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward : it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt : therefore art thou commanded to do this thing. Then we have the law of the boundary. Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have set, in thine inheritance which thou shalt inhent, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it. Land hunger was strong then as it has been a strong passion with some ever since, and it was the * landmark ' of the poor or the weak which was ' removed ' or encroached upon by the rich and the strong. So it says in a collection of Hebrew sayings and maxims called ' the Book of Proverbs/ * Eemove not the land- mark of the widow : make no encroachment upon the field of the fatherless.' In the code of the Eetrospect we find a peculiar law relating to tithes which every third year were to be given to the poor. At the end of every three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase in the same year, and shalt lay it 'LOVE YE THE STRANGER i6i up within thy gates, and the Levite (that is, the priest), because he hath no portion nor inheritance with thee, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow, who are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied. Again, more generally, the code says : If there be among you a poor man among thy brethren, within any of thy gates in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother : but thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth. Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him. That which is given must be given gladly, as it says in the 'Proverbs/ * God loveth a cheerful giver.' § 12. The same justice and kindness which are to be shown to the *homeborn' Hebrew are to be shown to the 'stranger.' By this word we translate the Hebrew word G^r. Let us hear the laws respecting him. Love ye the stranger, for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. Thou shalt not oppress a stranger : for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. If a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not oppress him. The stranger that sojourneth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself 5 for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. We know that there are some Englishmen and some Frenchmen and some Germans who, not content with loving their own country best, are fond of running down foreigners generally, or some foreign country in particular. So, too, it is sad to think that there are people who, not content with cleaving to and loving their own religious brotherhood and community, are fond of depreciating and running down the religious brotherhood and community which others, as sincere as themselves, hold dear. A familiar proverb says, * Com- j)arisons are odious.' Yet there are some people who are always trying to compare their own religion with the religion of others, not merely for the sake of showing the excellence of their own, but still more for the sake of showing the weaknesses or inferiorities of M i62 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING their neighbours*. Why do I mention the churlish conduct of such people £ere 1 Because there are, unfortunately, a good many people, (I am glad to think there are very few, if any English people), who try to belittle and to depreciate the laws of the Jews, and who are glad to find out their defects and emphasize them to the utmost of their power. These persons are made somewhat uneasy by the beautiful laws about the stranger to which we have just listened. They are particularly anxious to show that the religion of Judaism is a very narrow one, which shows no care and teaches no love for all who are beyond its pale. (Pale means boundary.) Even if we Jews say to them : * You are wholly wrong : Judaism does bid its followers show justice and love to all, whatever their race and creed/ they refuse to believe us, as if the outsider knew better than lie who is within. Thus these people will tell you that in the Mosaic codes the word Ger or * stranger ' does not mean * foreigner/ and that though the ' stranger' was to be loved as if he were an Israelites a 'foreigner' was exposed to injustice and unkindness. They will tell you, which is true, that while the Hebrews were forbidden to take interest for money lent to an Israelite, they were allowed to do so if they lent to a foreigner. But in allowing interest to a foreigner, the law is not allowing oppression or usury. It is simply permitting a form of business, which the ' foreigner ' would see no hai-m in, but which the code-makers desired to suppress (whether rightly or wrongly) among the Hebrews themselves. It is true that the word Ger does not mean foreigner purely and simply. It means the man who has lost his citizenship in his own country and has become a suppliant or a settler on Hebrew soil. The foreigner who did not live in Israel, but had a home elsewhere, could hardly be oppressed by an Israelite money-lender. The accusation is absurd. It is practically certain that from the Ger no interest might be taken. Ought the code to have said * Love ye the foreigner as well as the stranger'? You must remember that the codes speak of actual life. They deal with the ordinary and recurrent affairs of every day. They do not attempt to lay down a system of universal morality. The foreigner whom it was important to care for and to cherish was not the casual visitor with a home of his own beyond Israel, but precisely tlie Ger. He was the foreigner who needed protection, and therefore it is he whom the Hebrews are bidden to protect. We do not j>recisely know, whom the legislators would have called a GSr and whom they would not have called so. But in all probability what I have just said is quite accurate. The Ger is the foreigner who has left or been expelled from his OAvn home. He is the suppliant who needs the protection of the citizen in THE STRAYING OX 163 whose land he has come to dwell. But it is just this homeless and landless foreigner who was most open and liable, through all antiquity, to injustice and unkindness. .Therefore it is that the Hebrew codes are so urgent to enjoin justice and love towards the stranger, and these laws must not and need not be depreciated, but should rather be honoured and obeyed. Where people do not even love the home-born citizen, simply because he is of another creed, it is not for them to hint at limitations in the Hebrew code. Let them first learn to love every neighbour and every settler in their own land I If there are stones to throw, those who dwell in houses of thinnest glass should be the last to throw them. It is quite true that the love of mankind as such had not yet been grasped as a realizable idea when the Hebrew laws were compiled. But the love of neighbour and of stranger was for all the practical purposes of everyday life an ample and adequate substitute. Those who love all who are around them and with whom they come into contact will certainly end by embracing within the circle of their love even those whom they have never seen and do not know. The later Jewish teachers found no difficulty in passing from the Biblical laws of loving neighbour and stranger to the wider formula, * Love all men.' § 13. Now I come, in conclusion, to some laws inculcating general kindness and brotherly helpfulness and love. Thou shalt not see thy brother's ox or His sheep go astray^ and hide thyself from them : thou shalt surely bring them again unto thy brother. And if thy brother be not nigh unto theCj or if thou know him not, then thou shalt bring it unto thine house, and it shall be with thee until thy brother seek after it, and thou shalt- restore it to him again. In like manner shalt thou do with his ass, and so shalt thou do with his garment ; arid with every lost thing of thy brothei-'s, which he has lost and thou hast found shalt thou do likewise; thou mayest not hide thyself. Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fallen down by the way, and hide thyself from them : thou shalt surely help him to lift them up again. In an older code we meet with the last law again, and here it is very strikingly worded, for the owner of the lost or fallen ass is not thy * brother ' but thine ' enemy.' If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee fallen under his burden, thou shalt l64 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING forbear to leave him in the lurch^ but thou shalt help him to release it. Now note here specially the synonym for enemy. The enemy is he that hateth thee. Not he whom thou hatest. No law in any of these codes orders or allows a man to liate another. Nor is it according to the spirit of any of them. The law before us simply takes facts as they are. There are those who hate their neighbour. Such persons are that neighbour's enemies. The law, then, takes a practical example, and in this form it teaches the great maxim that we are not to return evil for evil, but that we are to return good for evil. Because the Egyptians illtreated the Israelites and abhorred them, therefore the Jews must not abhor the Egyptians, and they must love the stranger. Because an opportunity is given of requiting our enemy with like for like, of paying him out in his own coin, therefore we are not to make use of it. The straying ox must be returned. Surely we are not meaut to suppose that only in this particular case are we to return good for evil. That indeed would be to show a grudging obedience to the law, and to deny and be false to the spirit which dictated it. Another law definitely says : Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart; openly shalt thou reprove thy neighbour, and not bring upon thee sin because of him. Certainly, then, if we do not hate him in heart, we can never show hatred to him in deed. If we have any fault to find, we are to reprove him openly, but we are not to carry in our hearts smouldering hatred and dislike. For such an attitude towards our neighbour will issue in sin. How. wise this recommendation is. How many a quarrel or hatred or misunderstanding might have been prevented if there had been open speech at the beginning. These laws sufficiently shoAV that it is quite false to allege that the codes ordered or allowed the Hebrews to hate anybody, and from * anybody' the *man who hateth thee' is not excluded. For to show kindness and friendship to the * enemy ' is precisely to show that he is not hated. Hatred is bound to express itself in un- kindly deeds. § 14. The law to help in releasing the enemy's ass which had fallen down under its burden was partly intended as a law of kind- ness towards the * enemy,' but also doubtless partly as a law of kindness towards the ass. There are two laws directly enjoining kindness to animals in the Retrospect code. 'LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR AS THYSELF* 165 Thou shalt not muzzle an ox when he treadeth out the corn. Thou shalt not plough with an ox and an ass together. Wc find, too, a curious and delicate little law about birdnesting. If a bird's nest chance to be before thee in the way^ in any tree or on the ground^ with young ones or eggs, and the mother sitting upon the young or upon the eggs, thou shalt not take the mother with the young : thou shalt surely let the mother go, but the young thou mayest take unto thyself. § 15. Eeturning to human Bociety, note the reverence — always a feature in the true Jewish character — for age. Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man. The two great and frequent physical infirmities of mankind are signalled out for special care and pity. Thou shalt not revile the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before the blind. Here, again, the law has always been regarded as wider than its letter. Its spirit is not merely negative, but positive. For pure passivity towards the helpless is equal to actual cruelty towards those who can help themselves. Now finally there come the two commandments or maxims which sum up and embrace the whole. Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy might. The love of man will lead us on to the love of God. The love of God will lead us back to the love of man. ' Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.' Only my neighbour ? "Who is my neighbour 1 They who want to belittle the Hebrew laws say that * neigh- bours ' in this law only means ' thy fellow-Hebrew.' Well, we know that the suppliant stranger was included too, for we liave the express command: *Thou shalt love the stranger as thyself/ The truth is that the code simply makes use of everyday expres- sions for the life of every day. An exact range and limitation of the word were certainly not in the mind of the legislator. But even as it stands, and even accepting, for the moment, i66 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the alleged limitation to fellow-citizen and resident or suppliant stranger, is the command so narrow 1 Do the cavillers observe it themselves 1 Do they love their fellow-citizens of every creed, and all suppliant and resident strangers in their midst 1 Let those only who fulfil the law, with all its supposed limitations, cry out for more. Will the criers be many 1 A wise English bishop of the last century has observed, that for most of us the love of mankind is an * object too general, and very much out of our view. Therefore persons more practical have, instead of mankind, put our country ; and this is what we call a public spirit ; which in men of public stations is the character of a patriot. But this is speaking to the upper part of the world. Kingdoms and governments are large ; and the sphere of action of far the greatest part of mankind is much narrower than the government they live under : or, however, common men do not consider their actions as affecting the whole community of Avhich tliey are members. There plainly is wanting a less general and nearer object of ben'evolence for the bulk of men, than that of their country. Therefore the scripture, not being a book of theory and speculation, but a plain rule of life for mankind, has with the utmost possible propriety put the principle of virtue upon the love of our neighbour ; which is that part of the universe, that part of mankind, that part of our country, which comes under our imme- diate notice, acquaintance, and influence, and with which we have to do.' Now I will not attempt to explain or define what love means, or should mean, in this famous law. Let each one find out that for himself. I will only ask this one more question about the law. Why does it say 'as thyself? Are we not capable of loving others more than we love ourselves 1 Should we not often sacrifice self for the sake of others 1 — sacrifice our pleasure, our time, our interest, our desires 1 Have there not been noble men and women in every age who have laid down or worn out their lives for the sake of those dear to them, or for the sake of their country or mankind? How much more have they loved others than themselves, seeing that they "have for their sakes been willing to die ? Self-love has an ugly sound, and at first sight it would seem incompatible with the love of others. To say love your neighbour as much as you love yourself would seem absurd, because it might be said 'If I love myself, I cannot love my neighbour.' But perhaps what the maxim really means is, ' That which you yourself desire to have, to do, or to be, seek that your neighbour may become, may do, and may possess.' THE GOOD AND EVIL OF SELF-LOVE 167 Love your neighbour as yourself would thus turn into a form of the golden rule : * Whatsoever ye desire should happen unto you, do ye even so unto your neighbour/ The truth is, love of self can be interpreted in one way to mean something wholly evil, but in another way to mean something natural and even good. It is wholly evil when it is taken to mean selfishness, that is, making the gratification of our own desires our constant effort and object. If self-love, on the other hand, means quite generally the desire or quest of one's happiness, it is natural and it may be desirable, A man may choose unhappiness in order that somebody else may be happy. But where this alternative is not involved, no man desires his own unhappiness. Every man desires his own well- being, and in that sense loves himself. The great question is, f "What is, and what does he think to be, his own well-being 1 ' If Smith's idea of well-being is constant pleasure, Smith's self-love is poor and probably selfish. If Jones's idea of well-being is to become as useful, as wise, and as good as he can, then Jones's self-love is rich and valuable. Now if Smith loves others as much as he loves him- self, he will try to help them to obtain those constant pleasures, which are his idea of well-being. If Jones loves others as much as he loves himself, he will try to help them to become useful, good, and wise, for that is his idea gf well-being. These differences between Jones and Smith are not hard and fast. Innocent and refined pleasures of body and soul will enter into Jones's idea of well-being as well as into Smith's, and if Jones loves his neighbour like himself, he will try to obtain such whole- some and refined pleasures for his neighbour as well as for himself. And so we can make this further point. Love for your neighbour is only then truly shown if it is in accordance with your idea of well-being. You do not love your neighbour as yourself if your notion of well-being for him stops short of your notion of well-being for your- self. If, for instance, your idea of well-being for yourself includes something more than having enough to eat and drink, and having decent rooms to live in and decent clothes to wear, then the love of your neighbour should not be limited to the desire to see him merely clothed, fed, and lodged. And so the law, * Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,' so far from being a selfish commandment, is really an extremely unselfish one, and so far from being limited, is in full accord with those higher ideas of charity and benevolence which are being worked out among us at the present time. There is also a third meaning of self-love which gives a further i68 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING very high value to the coinmand, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself/ According to this third meaning, self-love means self- res2)ect. Now of the self-respect which impels and constrains us to abstain from evil we cannot have enough. For the self which we so respect is worthy of respect' indeed. It is the human soul, God's most wonderful creation upon earth, and it is also the human body, which, as the casement and lodging of the soul, we must ever keep clean and undefiled. The soul, poised as it were between good and evil, capable alike of virtue and of sin, must be respected as the gift of God. And even as we must respect ourselves in our free unfettered relationship to God, the Father of all, so must we respect others. They too, whether rich or poor, ignorant or wise, have all of them God-given souls, related, each one of them, separately and individually, to their divine Father. Society is made up of many individuals, and we all work and must work for each other and for the whole. But yet in one sense, each one of us in his relation to God (and that is his greatest and final relation) is an end in himself, and before God, our Father, each soul stands out alone. All are equal before him, in this sense at least, that each human soul, we must believe, has a value in itself, is created for itself, and is an end to itself. Therefore it is that one of the very greatest philosophers who ever lived (his name was Kant) declared that the great law of universal morality might be thus expressed : ' Treat every man as an end and never as a means.' And what is this but another way of writing the maxim : * Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself' ? A wife says of her husband, a man says of his brother or his friend, he is my other self. He is a part of me. His joys are mine. His sorrows are mine. So too my sorrows and my joys are his. You may remember the beautiful song of Sir Philip Sidney : My true-love hath my heart, and I have has, By just exchange one for another given: I hold his dear, and mine he cannot misa, There never was a better bargain driven : My true-love hath my heart, and I have his. His heart in me keeps him and me in one, My heart in him his thoughts and senses guides ; He loves my heart, for once it was his own, I cherish his because in me it bides: My true-love hath my heart, and I have his. ^ This feeling, so prettily expressed in Sidney's song, seems the highest form or flower of our maxim, * Love thy neighbour as thy- self.' * Let his life be a part of thy life; ' and though we cannot SIR PHILIP SIDNEYS SONG 169 feel to our * neighbours ' or fellow-men as we feel to husband, brother, or friend, still we can, as it were, so far absorb their life in ours, that we can see their needs almost as clearly as we see our own. All that we do for them then, will be done for them in the spirit of the law, ' Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.' We sometimes speak of ' the poor ' in a lump. But * the poor ' are single and separate human beings, just like ourselves. So must we regard them. We must think of them not merely as a class, but as individuals like ourselves, and therefore to be loved like ourselves, as separate persons, each with his own wants and desires and capacities of well-being, even as we. These are mere hints and suggestions, but they will, I hope, serve to show that we can need no wider, no more far-reacbing and no more penetrating principle of morality and goodness than this royal command of Judaism, * Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself/ 170 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING CHAPTER VII SAMSON, RUTH, SAMUEL AND SAUL § I. "We come back now to the history of the Hebrews from the death of Moses. There is a part of the Bible called the book of Joshua, which describes how, under the leadership of Joshua, the successor of Moses, the Hebrews passed over the river Jordan, and began and completed the conquest and settlement of the land of Canaan. From this book I do not, however, propose to make any extracts here. It is a tale of battles and of war, and though tales of battles and of war have their value and their interest, they are out of place in a book of religion. They do not teach us directly about goodness and God. After the death of Joshua we know very little about the history of the Hebrews for a long while. Between Joshua and the first king who ruled over all Israel — his name was Saul — there lies a dark and uncertain period of growth on the one hand, of deterioration upon the other. The Hebrews began to settle down in their new country, and they largely adopted the habits and customs of its inhabitants. Many of these inhabitants were killed in the wars, but many more lived among the Hebrews and formed with them, as the English formed with the Normans, a single nation. The Hebrews and the Canaanites mingled together, and the Hebrews adopted the higher Canaanite culture, tilled the land, and lived in cities. This association or mingling of the two kindred races — for their languages were merely varieties of the same speech — must naturally have had a very deep effect upon the Hebrews in very many ways. It also affected their religion, and on the whole it affected it for the worse. For the Canaanites were idolaters, and the Hebrews both worshipped Canaanite gods and degraded their God to the level and character of a Canaanite god and worshipped him impurely. Yet later ages, looking back upon this chequered period, supposed and therefore painted it blacker than it really was. For in truth the Hebrews were not at that time the passionate adherents of the one true God that they afterwards became. They did not know THE AGE OF THE 'JUDGES 171 him then as they came to know him afterwards. Otherwise they could not have fallen away from him. The compilers and editors of the older records and tales imagined that the Hebrews during this period must have been either pure worshippers of God or deliberate apostates, whereas in fact they were, so far as we can judge, neither one nor the other. They both moved forward and fell back. But nevertheless the move forward was with wider steps than the fall back, so that upon the whole they gained ground. § 2. The Jews of later times knew, as I have said, very little about all that had happened in the 200 years or so between Joshua and Saul. The Hebrew tribes were only loosely connected with each other, and the sense of national unity was often weak and small. It became stronger and more vivid in times of danger and of war. There were many such times during these 200 years ; and the later writers saw in these calamities punishments of God for national apostasy. But. it is very dangerous for short- sighted mortals to interpret history in this manner. These troubled and stormy times often produced a warrior hero to cope with them. Of these Israelite £eroes many strange and warlike deeds were told, as they are told too of warrior chieftains in other lands. The compilers and editors called these men 'judges,' but they were not judges in our sense of the word at all, but chieftains and heroes, whose influence was mainly felt in war and was of a local and temporary character. Such leaders were Ehud, who fought successfully against the Moabites, and Barak, who fought successfully against Jabin, an independent Canaanite king, and Sisera, his general. In Barak's days there lived a famous woman called Deborah, who encouraged Barak and his army to the fight against Jabin and Sisera. There still survives a noble song which is put in the mouth of Deborah, and was written, if not by her, at all events by some poet of the time. But it is not religious in our sense of the word, and it is also very difficult, and therefore I do not copy it out here. Then there was Gideon, who fought successfully against the Midianites, and so great did he become that he established a little kingdom in his own tribe of Manasseh, in which his son Abimelech for a time succeeded him. Then there was Jephthah, who fought successfully against the Ammonites, and lastly there was Samson, who was a doughty champion of Israel against the Philistines. § 3. The Philistines were a people, not, like the Canaanites, kindred to the Hebrews, but of a totally different stock. They dwelt on the ■ coast line of the Mediterranean Sea, but their 172 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING eastern borders inarched with Israelite territory. Ashkelon, Ashdod, and Gath were their chief cities : be sure to look them up upon the map ! Towards the end of the period of the ' Judges ' they began to make hostile incursions into Hebrew land, and gradually they established a kind of supremacy or sovereignty over all Israel. Doubtless it was the southern and central portions of the countiy which suffered from them most severely. It was this sore oppression of the Hebrews by the Philistines which led to the establishment of the monarchy. § 4. But before we come to the story of its foundation, when we shall have real history to deal with, I must tell you some of the tales about the hero Samson, who in old Hebrew tradition occupies the same place as Hercules occupied among the Greeks. The tales about Samson would not nowadays form a part of a book on religion. Nor were they originally religious tales. But among the Hebrews the intense religious spirit of a later age laid its hold upon the national traditions and the popular tales, and converting them more or less successfully to its own uses, gave them more or less successfully a religious cast or surrounding. Those which were not so adopted and adapted faded out of memory and were unrecorded and uncopied. Religion became the one great moving force, and every other side of life was either transfused or swallowed up by it. This was in some respects a good thing and in some respects a bad thing. Ifc is, for instance, in some respects a good thing for patriotism to be associated with religion, but it is also in some resj)ects a dangerous and a bad thing, for it makes people identify the cause of their own nation with the cause of God, or believe that they are nearer and dearer to God than their neighbours. For us to appreciate the stories of Samson now we must, on the contrary, divest them of their religious wrapping, and look at them as popular tales of a popular hero. We must go back to their original form and character. And because these stories of Samson are famous and striking, I shall mention most of them in this place. The father of Samson was called Manoah, and he belonged to the tribe of Dan. Samson's feats of strength against the Philistines were brought about in the following way. Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines. And he came back, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have SAMSON AND THE PHILISTINES 173 seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines : now therefore get her for me to wife. Then his father and his mother said unto him. Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the Philistines ? And Samson said unto his father. Get her for me ; for she pleaseth me well. Now at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel. Then went Samson down to Timnah, and came to the vineyards of Timnah : and, behold, a young lion roared against him. And he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand : but he told not his father or his mother what he had done. And he went down, and talked with the woman ; and she pleased him well. And after a time he returned to marry her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion : and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the cai'case of the lion. And he took thereof into his hands, and went on, eating as he went, and he came to his father and mother, and gave unto them, and they did eat : but he told them not that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the hon. And his father went down unto the woman : and Samson made there a feast ; for so used the young men to do. But from fear of Samson the Philistines brought thirty com- panions to be with him. And Samson said unto them, I will now put forth a riddle unto you : if ye can declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen shirts and thirty changes of raiment : but if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty linen shirts and thirty changes of raiment. And they said unto him. Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it. And he said unto them. Out of the eater came forth meat. And out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not in three days find out the riddle. And it came to pass on the fourth day, that they said unto Samson's wife, Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire : have ye called us to impoverish us? And Samson's wife wept before him, and said. Thou dost but hate me, and lovest me not: thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of my people, and hast not told it me. And he said unto her. Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, and 174 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING shall I tell it thee? And she wept before him the seven daySj while their feast lasted: and it came to pass on the seventh day^ that he told her, because she urged him sore : and she told the riddle to the children of her people. And the men of the city said unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down, What is sweeter than honey ? and what is stronger than a lion ? And he said unto them. If ye had not plowed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle. And he went down to Ashkelon, and smote thirty men of them, and took their apparel, and gave the changes of gar- ments unto them that told the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up to his father's house. But it came to pass a while after, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid. But her father would not suffer him to see her. And her father said, I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her ; therefore I gave her to thy companion : is not her younger sister fairer than she ? take her, I pray thee, instead of her. And Samson said unto them. This time shall I be guiltless towards the Philistines, when I do them a hurt. And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches, and turned tail to tail, and put a torch in the midst between two tails. And when he had set the torches on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks and the standing corn and the oliveyards. Then the Philistines said. Who hath done this ? And they said, Sam- son, the son in law of the Timnite, because he took his wife^ and gave her to his companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire. And Samson said unto them^ If ye do thus, surely I will not rest until I am avenged of you. And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter : and he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the crag of Etam. Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi. And the men of Judah said. Why are ye come up against us ? And they said. To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us. Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the crag of Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us ? what then is this that thou hast done unto us ? And he said unto them. As they did unto me, so have I done THE CUNNING OF DELILAH 175 unto them. And they said unto him. We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand of the Philistines, And Samson said unto them. Swear unto me, that ye will not fall upon me yourselves. And they spake unto him, saying, No ; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hand : but surely we will not kill thee. And they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the crag. When he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted at him. But the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands. And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took itj and slew a thousand men thei^ewith. And Samson said. With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, With the jawbone of an ass have I slain a thousand men. And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand ; and the place was called Ramath-lehi, the hill of the jawbone. And Samson went to Gaza, And it was told the Gazites, saying, Samson is come hither. And they compassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying. In the morning, when it is day, we shall kill him. And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and grasped the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and tore them up, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the hill that is before Hebron. And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her. Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may conquer him, that we may bind him to prevail against him : and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver. And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to prevail against thee. And Samson said unto her, If they bind me with seven new cords that were never dried, then shall I become weak, and be as another man. Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to lier seven new cords which had not been dried, and she bound him with them. Now there 176 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING were men lying in wait abiding in the inner chamber. And she said unto him^ The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he brake the cords, as a thread of tow is broken when it toucheth the fire. So his strength was not known. And Delilah said unto Samson, Behold, thou hast mocked me, and told me lies : now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou mightest be bound. And he said unto her. If they bind me fast with new ropes wherewith work hath not been done, then shall I become weak, and be as another man. So Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him. The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And there were Hers in wait abiding in the inner chamber. And he brake them from off his arms like a thread.. And Delilah said unto Samson, Hitherto thou hast mocked me, and told me lies : tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound. And he said unto her. If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web and fastenest it with the pin, then shall I become weak and be as another man. So when he slept, Delilah wove his locks with the web and fastened it with the pin, and said unto him. The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awaked out of his sleep, and tore out the pin of the beam, and the web. And she said unto him. How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me ? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth. And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul was vexed unto death. And he told her all his heart, and said unto her. There hath not come a razor upon mine head from my birth : if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man. Ajid when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought the money in their hand. And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and he shaved off the seven locks of his head ; and he grew weaker and weaker, and his strength went from him. And she said. The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times, and shake myself. But he wist not that his strength was departed VENGEANCE IN DEATH 177 from him. And the Philistiness took him, and put out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass ; and he did grind in the prison house. Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven. And the lords of the Phihstines gathered them together to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice : for they said. Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And when the people saw him, they praised their god: for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hand our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, who slew so many of us. And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said. Call for Samson, that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison house ; and he made them sport : and they set him between the pillars. And Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand. Suffer me that I may feel the pillars whereupon the house standeth, that I may lean upon them. Now the house was full of men and women ; and all the lords of the Philistines were there ; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that beheld while Samson made sport. And Samson called unto God, and said, O Lord God, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and stayed himself upon them, the one with his right hand, and the other with his left. And Samson said. Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might ; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life. Then his brethren and all the house of his father came down, and took him, and brought him up, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the buryingplace of Manoah his father. If we want to see what can be made of the story of Samson from a religious point of view, we must read Milton's noble poem called Samson Agonistes. § 5. As a vivid and delightful contrast to the story of Samson, I shall here insert the story of Euth. Ruth is also a story dealing with the period of the Judges, but it was probably written many N 178 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING hundred years later. Instead of fighting and slaughter and deceit, we are introduced here to scenes of gentleness and fidelity and peace. I will try to explain certain difficulties of this beautiful tale when we have heard it all. And it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, And they came into the country of Moab, and continued there. And Elimelech Naomi^s husband died ; and she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab ; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth : and they dwelled there about ten years. And Mahlon and Chilion died both of them ; and the woman was left of her two sons and of her husband. Then she arose with her daughters in law, that she might return from the country of Moab : for she had heard in the country of Moab how that God had visited his people in giving them bread. So she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters in law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah. And Naomi said unto her two daughters in law. Go, return each to her mother's house : may God deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me. God grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them ; and they lifted up their voice, and wept. And they said unto her, Not so ; we will surely return with thee unto thy people. And Naomi said. Turn again, my daughters : why will ye go with me ? for it grieveth me much for your sakes, for the hand of God is gone out against me. And they lifted up their voice, and wept again : and Orpah kissed her mother in law ; but Ruth clave unto her. And she said. Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, return thou after thy sister in law. But Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, and to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I avUI go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God : where thou diest, RUTH S GLEANING 179 will I diej and there will I be buried : God do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me. And when she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her, she left speaking unto her. So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. And it came to pass, when they were come to Bethlehem, that all the city was moved about them, and the women said. Is this Naomi? And she said unto them. Call me not Naomi (Pleasant), call me Mara (Bitter) : for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and God hath brought nie home again empty : why call ye me Naomi, seeing the Almighty hath afflicted me ? So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter in law, with her, out of the country of Moab : and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest. And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband^s, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech ; and his name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace. And she said unto her. Go, my daughter. And she went, and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers ; and her hap was to light on the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers, God be with you. And they answered him, God bless thee. Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers. Whose damsel is this ? And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said. It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab : and she said, I pray you, let me glean, and gather after the reapers among the sheaves : so she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now ; she hath not rested even a little. Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter ? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens. Let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them : have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee ? and when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels, and drink of that which the young men draw. Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him. Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take know- N % i8o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING ledge of me, seeing I am a foreigner ? And Boaz answered and said unto her. It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of thine husband : and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore. God recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust. Then she said. Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord ; for that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken friendly unto thine handmaid, though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens. And at meal-time Boaz said unto her, Come hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers : and he put roasted corn before her, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left. And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying. Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not. And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, also pull and leave them, and let her glean, and rebuke her not. So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up, and went into the city : and her mother in law saw what she had gleaned : and she bi'ought forth and gave to her that she had reserved after she was sufficed. And her mother in law said unto her, Whei'e hast thou gleaned to-day ? and where didst thou work ? blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. And she shewed her mother in law with whom she had worked, and said, The man's name with whom I worked to-day is Boaz. And Naomi said unto her daughter in law. Blessed be he of God, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her. The man is nigh of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen. And Ruth the Moabitess said. He said unto me also. Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest. And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter in law. It is good, my daughter,, that thou go out with his maidens, so no one can vex thee in the field of another. So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest ; and she dwelt with her mother in law. BOAZ THE KINSMAN iSi And Naomi her mothei* in law said unto her. My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee ? And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor : but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down ; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do. And she said unto her. All that thou sayest unto me, I will do. And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn : and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down. And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was startled, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said. Who art thou ? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid 5 for thou art a near kinsman. And he said. Blessed be thou of God, my daughter ; thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou sayest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman. And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman : howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I. Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman^s part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then I will do the part of a kinsman to thee, as God liveth : lie down until the morning. And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. For he thought. Let it not be known that the woman came to the floor. And he said. Bring the cloak that is upon thee, and hold it : and when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her : and she went into the city. And when she came to her mother in law, she said. How hast thou fared, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her. And she said. These six measures i82 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of barley gave he me; for he said^ Go not empty unto thy mother in law. Then she said, Sit stilly my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall : for the man will not rest, until he have finished the thing this day. Now Boaz went up to the gate^ and sat him down there : and, behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he said. Ho, such a one ! turn aside, sit down here. And he turned aside, and sat down. And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said. Sit ye down here. And they sat down. And he said unto the near kinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, hath sold the parcel of land, which was our kinsman Elimelech^s : and I thought to tell it thee, saying, Buy it before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it : but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know : for there is none to redeem it beside thee ; and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeem it. Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi^ thou must buy also Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. And the near kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I ma.r mine own inheritance : do thou take over my right and redeem it ; for I cannot redeem it. Now this was the rite in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all things; a man drew off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbour : and this was the method of attestation in Israel. So the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thyself. And he drew off his shoe. And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was ElimelecVs, and all that was Chilion^s and Mahlon^s, of the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place : ye are witnesses this day. And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said. We are witnesses. God make the woman that is come into thine house like the house of Jacob who did build the house of Israel, and do thou worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous in Bethlehem. So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife ; and she bare a son. THE ANCESTRY OF DAVID 183 And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be God, who hath not left thee this day without a kinsman; may his name be famous in Israel. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and a nourisher of thine old age : for thy daughter in law, who loveth thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him. And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi ; and they called his name Obed : he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. 'God grant you that ye may find rest/ Naomi hopes that Orpah and Euth may marry again, and find_ rest and protection through the strong arm of their husbands. So later on when Naomi says to Kuth, * my daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee/ this means that Naomi hopes to be able to bring about a marriage between Boaz and Buth. Fn ancient times in Israel, just as at the present day in many eastern lands, everybody was keenly anxious to have a son. It seemed an awful thing to them if a family died out, or if a man's land passed away from his direct descendants. So if a man died and left a widow but no children, the custom apparently prevailed for the nearest relative who was willing and available to marry the widow. If they had a son, that son inherited the Mnd of his mother's first husband, so that his ' name ' and ' family ' were still preserved. We are less troubled to-day by cares like these. We know that families and names arise and die out, and that the really important thing is that a man while he is alive should do the best with his own life. Now the land of Elimelech, Naomi's husband, which would have been inherited by Mahlon and Chilion, had they lived, was sold by Naomi after their death. Sales of this kind were, however, subject to a compulsory power of repurchase. The original owner or his family could buy the land back again, Eoaz accordingly asks the 'nearest kinsman' (the exact degree of rela- tionship is not stated, neither is that of Boaz) to repurchase or redeem the land which Naomi had sold. The words are * to buy it back from Naomi,' but it is supposed that this means * buy it back from the man to whom Naomi had sold it.' The nearest kinsman is willing to buy the land, but he is unwilling to marry Euth as well. Yet the one was involved in the other. He is anxious to maintain his own * name,' and cares less for Elimelech's. So, as he cannot and will not marry Kuth, he cannot redeem the land, and he therefore formally relinquishes his right, and Boaz takes his place. He ' redeems ' the land and marries Ruth, i84 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Thus Euth, a foreigner and a Moabitess, was the great grand- mother of the famous king David. And in all probability the moral which the gentle and tender story was intended to teach was this. The Jews at one time became proudly and foolishly concerned about purity of blood, as if God looked to race and lineage rather than to piety and goodness, as if he cared for purity of blood rather than for purity of life. Instead of being anxious to spread their own higher knowledge of God and goodness among the nations around, they shut themselves up in a ring fence of isolation and contempt. They forgot their mission. They forgot that they can only then be a ' peculiar treasure ' if they seek to impart to others what they themselves possess. They forgot that if they have been given more, more is expected of them in return. There were, indeed, several circumstances which made their fault excusable, but it was none the less a fault and not a virtue. They should have said to themselves, *the more willing Jews there are in the world the better, be their race and lineage what it may.' Bat they wanted the word ' Jew ' to denote exclusively the members of a sifigle nation, instead of (what they had the chance of making it denote) the members of a religious brotherhood. Not long after one of the greatest teachers they ever possessed had shadowed forth an ideal so much richer and purer, they wanted to keep Judaism to the old ideas, one of which was that every race and people had quite naturally its own religion and its own God. And yet all the time they were well aware that there was only one true God, who in his oneness and purity was known and worshipped by themselves alone ! The book of Ruth teaches quietly and indirectly a noble and necessary lesson. It shows that fidelity is wider than race. Huth the foreigner can be as good a Jewess as the bluest-blooded in the land. It cannot be a dishonour to have foreign blood in one's veins, when David, the national hero, the greatest of the kings, was descended from a foreigner. Euth *leffc her own people,' and * reward was given her of the God of Israel under whose wings she took refuge/ The bond which binds Jews together is therefore not a bond of race, but a bond of religion. The ideal would be not that all the Jews should be of one race, but that men of many races should be Jews. It was well said by a wise Jew of long ago : * The most potent love-charm, and the indissoluble bond of good-will that makes for unity, is the common worship of the one God,' § 6. "We turn back now from the wild tales of Samson and the peaceful idyll of Euth to the history of the Hebrews. It was, as I have already told you, the Philistine oppression which brought about the monarchy. THE BIRTH OF SAMUEL 185 There are two views about the monarchyj which are represented in the Bible, one older and one later. The older view, which is also probably the more historical, regards the monarchy as a great step in advance. And so in truth it was. By its first three kings Israel was not only delivered from the Philistines, but raised to a height of glory and power which it had never known before. For a short period all the tribes felt themselves members of a single nation, and the king was the symbol of the national unity. More- over, in those days the idea was customary and prevalent that a king ruled by divine grace, that he was God's anointed. This idea, as expressed in the phrase ' the divine right of kings/ lingered on into modern times, and is not yet extinct in Russia and Germany, To the older view, tlien, the monarchy was a sign of divine favour, and established by the will of God. The later, less historic view regarded the monarchy as an act of rebellion against God. This idea grew up because of the wickedness of the later Israelite and Judaean kings, because, too, the Jews after the Babylonian exile had no more kings, and lastly because the Mosaic age became more and more regarded as the ideal age, during which the only king of Israel was God himself. § 7. The stories of the establishment of the monarchy centre I'ound two names, round that of Saul the king, and of Samuel the priest and seer. The birth and childhood of Samuel are thus described. That you may understand the Biblical narrative the better, I will just say that the central sanctuary of Israel, which possessed the ark, wherein, according to the Ketrospect, lay the two tables of the Ten Words, was situated at Shiloh. The head priest of that sanctuary was called Eli, and his two sons were called Hophni and Phinehas. Eli was a good old man, but his sons were worth- less and wicked. At that time it seems to have been the custom for those Israelites who did not live very far off to go to Shiloh once a year to worship and sacrifice to God. This yearly occasion was probably in the autumn, at the Feast of Ingathering. Now there was a certain man of Ramatbaim^ a Zuphite of the hill-country of Ephraim^ and his name was Elkanah. And he had two wives ; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. And Elkanah used to go up from his city year by year to worship and to sacrifice unto God in Shiloh, But when Hannah went up with him to Shiloh, she wept and did not eat, for her heart was sore. And Elkanah her husband said unto her, Hannah, why i86 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING weepest thou ? and why eatest thou not ? and why is thy heart grieved ? am not I better to thee than ten sons ? But Hannah rose up and returned to the sanctuary, and Eli the priest sat upon his seat by the door post of the temple. And she was in bitterness of soul, and she prayed unto God, and wept sore. And she vowed a vow, and said, O God, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto God all the days of his life. And it came to pass, as she continued praying before God, that Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard : therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. And Eli said unto her. How long wilt thou be drunken ? put away thy wine from thee. And Hannah answered and said. No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrow- ful spirit : I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before God. Count not thine handmaid for a wicked woman : for out of the abundance of my complaint have I spoken hitherto. Then Eli answered and said. Go in peace : and the God of Israel grant thy petition that thou hast asked of him. And she said. Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So Hannah went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad. And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before God, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah. And after a time Hannah had a son, and she called his name Samuel. And when Elkanah went up the next year to offer unto God the yearly sacrifice, and his vow, Hannah went not up 5 for she said unto her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned, and then I will bring him, that he may appear before God, and there abide for ever. And Elkanah her husband said unto her. Do what seemeth thee good ; tarry until thou have weaned him ; may God establish thy word. So the woman stayed until she weaned him. And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with a bullock of three years old, and one ephah of meal, and a skin of wine, and brought them unto the house of God in Shiloh. And they slew the bullock, and Hannah brought the child to Eli. And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto God, For this child SAMUEL AND ELI 187 I prayed ; and God hath given me my petition which I asked of him : therefore I also have lent him to God ; as long as he liveth he is lent to God. And she left the child there, and she worshipped and prayed, and retm^ned to Ramah. And Samuel grew up, and being still a child, ministered unto God before Eli the priest, and he was girt with a linen mantle- Moreover, his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him every year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. § 8. We next hear a strange story which tells how the calamity which was to befall the Israelites at the hands of the Philistines was foretold by God to Samuel, And the child Samuel ministered unto God before Eli. And the word of God was rare in those days ; there was no frequent vision. And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, (now his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see,) and ere the lamp of God went out in the temple, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep, that God called, Samuel, Samuel : and he said. Here am I. And he ran unto Eli, and said. Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down. And God called yet again, Samuel, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said. Here am I ; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son i lie down again. And God called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said. Here am I ; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that God had called the child. Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down : and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say. Speak, Lord ; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. And God called as before, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel said. Speak i for thy servant heareth. The defeat of Israel and the death of Eli's sons are then foretold to Samuel. But Samuel lay still unto the morning, and he arose and opened the doors of the temple. And Samuel feared to tell Eli the vision. Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered. Here am I. And he said. What j88 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING is the thing that God hath said unto thee ? I pray thee hide it not from me. Then Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And EH said, it is God : what seemeth good to him, that let him do, § 9. Up till now it would seem as if the Philistine supremacy over Israel had not been fully established. But now there took place two great battles, in both of which the Israelites were com- pletely defeated. In the second battle Eli's two sons were slain. This is how poor old Eli hears the news. And there ran a man of Benjamin from the battle, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head. And when he came, lo, Eli sat upon his seat beside the gate, watching the way. And when the man came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out. And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said. What meaneth the noise of this tumult ? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli. Now Eli was ninety and eight years old ; and his eyes were dim, that he coidd not see. And the man said unto Eli, I am he that came from the battle, and I fled to-day from the battle. And he said. What was done there, my son ? And the messenger answered and said, Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there hath been also a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead. And it came to pass, when Eli heard these things, that he fell from off his seat back- ward by the side of the gate, and his neck brake, and he died : for he was an old man, and very heavy. So the supremacy of the Philistines was established over Israel. §10. We will now hear the story of the deliverance from the ' Philistines and of the establishment of the monarchy according to the older account. The author of it is not the same man who wrote the story of Samuel's childhood. He wrote earlier, and his notion of Samuel is not quite the same. Now there was a man of Gibeah in Benjamin, whose name was Kish, a mighty man of substance. 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 SauPs father were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son. Take now THE LOST ASSES 189 one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses. And they passed through the hill country of Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalishah, but they found them not : then they passed through the land of Shaalim, and there they were not : and they passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they found them not. And when they were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant that was with him, Come and let us return ; lest my father leave caring for the asses, and take thought for us. And he said unto him. Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and held in honour ; all that he saith cometh surely to pass : now let us go thither ; peradventure he can shew us our way that we should go. Then said Saul to his servant. But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man ? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God : what have we ? And the servant answered Saul again, and said, Behold, I have the fourth part of a shekel of silver: that thou canst give to the man of God, to tell us our way. Then said Saul to his servant. Well said: come, let us go. So they went unto the city where the man of God was. And as they went up the hill to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said unto them. Is the seer here ? And they answered them, and said. He is ; behold he is before you ; now, just at this very time, he is come to the city ; for there is a sacrifice of the people to-day in the high place : as soon as ye be come into the city, ye shall straightway find him, before he go up to the high place to eat : for the people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless the sacrifice ; and afterwards they eat that be bidden. Now therefore get you up ; for about this time ye shall find him. And they went up into the city; and as they came within the gate of the city, behold, Samuel came out against them, to go up to the high place. Now God had told unto Samuel a day before Saul came, saying. To-morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be ruler over my people Israel, that he may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines : for I have looked upon the affliction of my people, because their cry is come unto me. And when Samuel saw Saul, God said unto him. Behold the man of whom I spake to thee ! this man shall rule over my 190 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING people. Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate^ and said^ Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's house is. And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer; go up before me unto the high place, for ye shall eat with me to-day ; and to-morrow in the morning I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thine heart. And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them ; for they are found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel ? Is it not for thee, and for all thy father's house ? And Saul answered and said. Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel ? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin ? wherefore then speakest thou so to me ? And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the parlour, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, who were about thirty persons. And Samuel said unto the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee. Set it by thee. And the cook took up the thigh, and the fat tail, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said. Behold that which hath been kept back is set before thee ; eat thereof ; because upon the ap- pointed time hath it been put by for thee. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day. And when they were come down from the high place into the city, they spread a couch for Saul upon the top of the house, and he lay down. And it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called to Saul on the top of the house, saying. Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad. As they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, but stand thou still a while, that I may tell the word of God, Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said. Therewith hath God anointed thee to be ruler over his people Israel. Thou shalt rule over his people, and shalt deliver them from the hand of their enemies. And this shall be a sign to thee that God hath anointed thee to be ruler over his inheritance: when thou art departed from me to-day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre, in the border of Benjamin ; and they will say unto thee. The asses which thou wentest to seek are found : and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and taketh thought for yoii^ THE ANOINTING OF SAUL 191 saying. What shall I do for my son ? Then shalt thou go on forward from thence^ and thou shalt come to the oak of Tabor^ and there shall meet thee there three men going up to Beth-el^ one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine : and they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread ; which thou shalt receive of their hands. After that thou shalt come to Gibeah, where is the pillar of the Philistines : and it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a band of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp, before them ; and they shall be prophesying ; and the spirit of God will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man. And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, that thou do as occasion serve thee; for Godis with thee. And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God. gave him another heart: and all those signs came to pass that day. And when they came to Gibeah, behold a band of prophets met him ; and the spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied among the prophets, then the people said one to another. What is this that is come unto the son of Kish ? Is Saul also among the prophets ? Therefore it became a proverb. Is Saul also among the prophets ? And when he had made an end of prophesying, he went home. And SauPs uncle said unto him and to his servant. Whither went ye ? And he said. To seek the asses : and when we could not find them, we came to Samuel. And Saul's uncle said. Tell me, I pray thee, what Samuel said unto you. And Saul said unto his uncle, He told us plainly that the asses were found. But of the matter of the kingdom, whereof Samuel spake, he told him not. What is meant by this prophesying of Saul I do not clearly understand, any more than what was meant by the prophesying of Eldad and Medad and the sixty-eight elders. The ' Pillar ' at Gibeah had probably been erected by the Philistines as a symbol or trophy of their supremacy. We shall hear of it again. § II. Soon an opportunity arises for Saul, who has had this private interview with Samuel, to show his prowess publicly. 192 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Now it came to pass after about a month that Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabesh-gilead : and all the men of Jabesh said unto Nahash, Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee. And Nahash the Ammonite said unto them. On this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes, and lay it for a reproach upon all Israel. And the elders of Jabesh said unto him. Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers unto all Israel : and then, if there be none to save usy we will come out to thee. Then came the messengers to Gibeah, the city of Saul, and told the tidings in the ears of the people : and all the people lifted up their voices and wept. And, behold, Saul came after the herd out of the field ; and Saul said, What aileth the people that they weep ? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh. And the spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those words, and his anger was kindled greatly. And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed . them in pieces, and sent them throughout all Israel by the hand of messengers, saying. Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul, so shall it be done unto his oxen. And a terror from God fell on the people, and they came out as one man. And when he numbered them in Bezek,the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. And he said unto the messengers that came. Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, To-morrow, by the time the sun is hot, ye shall have help. And the n^essengers came and told the men of Jabesh; and they were glad. Therefore the men of Jabesh said. To-morrow we will come out unto you, and ye shall do with us all that seemeth good unto you. And it was so on the morrow, that Saul put the people in three companies ; and they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch, and smote the Ammonites. until the heat of the day: and it came to pass, that they which remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together. And all the people went to Gilgal ; and there they made Saul king before God in Gilgal ; and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace offerings before God; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. § 12. Thus Saul is chosen king of Israel, and he justifies the confidence of the people in his valour by the overthrow of the THE PROWESS OF JONATHAN 193 Philistines. But this only happened after perilous adventures^ as we shall now hear. And Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel; whereof two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in the hill country of Beth-el, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin : and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent. And Jonathan brake the pillar of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard that the Hebrews had revolted. For Saul had blown the trumpet throughout all the land. And all Israel heard that Saul had broken the pillar of the Philistines, and that Israel also was had in abomination with the Philistines. And the people were gathered together after Saul to Gilgal. And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight with Israel, three thousand chariots, and six thousand horse- men, and people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitude: and they came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward of Beth-aven. When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for they were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in rocks, and in holds, and in pits. And some passed over the fords of the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead ; but as for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people forsook him trembling. And Saul numbered the people that remained with him, about six hundred men. And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were with them, abode in Geba of Benjamin : but the Philistines encamped in Michmash. And a troop of plunderers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies : one company turned unto the way that leadeth to Ophrah, unto the land of Shual: and another company turned the way to Beth-horon : and another com- pany turned the way of the hill that looketh down upon the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness. And an outpost of the Philistines went out towards the pass of Michmash. Now it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said unto the young man that bare his armour. Come and let us go over to the Philistines' outpost, that is on yonder side. But he U^d not his father. Now Saul was tarrying in the uttermost part of Gibeah under the pome- granate tree which is in Migron ; and the people that were with him were about six hundred men. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone. And between the pass, o 194 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the outpost of the Philistines^ there was a steep rock on the one side, and a steep rock on the other side : and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh. The forefront of the one was situate over against Michmash, and the other southward over against Geba. And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour^ Come and let us go over unto the outpost of these Philistines : it may be that God will work for us : for there is no restraint to God to save by many or by few. And his armourbearer said unto him. Do all unto which thine heart inclineth; behold I am with thee; according to thy heart so is my heart. Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto the men, and we will discover ourselves unto them. If they say thus unto us. Tarry until we come to you ; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. But if they say thus. Come up unto us ; then we will go up : for God hath delivered them into our hand : and this shall be the sign unto us. And both of them discovered themselves unto the outpost of the Philistines: and the Philistines said. Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves. And the men of the outpost answered Jonathan and liis armourbearer, and said. Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said unto his armour- bearer. Come up after me : for God hath delivered them into the hand of Israel. And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armourbearer after him : and the Philistines fled before Jonathan; and he smote them, and his armourbearer slew them after him. And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armourbearer made, was about twenty men. And there was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people ; the outpost and the plunderers, they also trembled: and the earth quaked; so there was a very great trembling. And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked; and, behold, the camp was in commotion, swaying hither and ^thither. And Saul and all the people that were with him assembled themselves, and when they came to the battle, behold, every man^s sword was against his fellow, and there was a very great discomfiture. Now the Hebrews that were with the Philis- 'THE MANNER OF THE KING 195 tines before, who went up with theni into the camp ; even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan. Likewise all the men of Israel who had hid themselves in the hill country of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them in the battle. So God saved Israel that day. Much fighting against the Philistines still continued, and else- where it says that ' there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul/ but the permanent dominion of the Philistines over Israel had passed away. § 13. Before continuing the history of Saul we must listen to the second account of the establishment of the monarchy. It is very different from the first. Samuel plays in it a much more important part. It begins in the following way : And it came to pass when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel. Now the name of his firstborn was Joel ; and the name of his second, Abijah : they were judges in Beer-sheba. And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgement. Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah : and they said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways : now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said. Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto God. And God said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee : for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them. And Samuel told all the words of God unto the people that asked of him a king. And he said. This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you : he will take your sons, and appoint them over his chariots, and over his horses ; and they shall run before his chariots : and he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties ; o % 196 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and he will set them to plough his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots. And he will take your daughters to be perfumers, and to be cooks, and to be bakers. And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants. And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants. And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest oxen, and your asses, and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your sheep ; and ye shall be his servants. And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king whom ye shall have chosen you ; and God will not hear you in that day. But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel ; and they said, Nay ; but we will have a king over us ; that we also may be like all the nations 5 and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles. And God 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. And Samuel called the people together unto Mizpah ; and he said unto the children of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms that oppressed you: but ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations ; and ye have said unto him. Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present your- selves before God by your tribes and by your thousands. And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was taken. And when he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of the Matrites was taken. And the family of the Matrites was brought near man by man, and Saul the son of Kish was taken ; but when they sought him, he could not be found. Then one said. Behold, he haith hid himself among the stuff. And they ran and fetched him thence; and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward. And Samuel said to all the people. See ye him whom God hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people ? And all SAMUELS CHARGE TO THE PEOPLE 197 the people shouted, and said, God save the king. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. And Saul also went home to Gibeah ; and there went vsdth him the valiant men whose hearts God had touched. But certain base fellows said. How shall this man save us ? And they despised him, and brought him no present. But he held his peace. You will notice that in this version of the story Saul is chosen by lot, to which, just because of its uncertainty, men in ancient times "were sometimes wont to ascribe divine power. They believed that God overruled chance, and that through the lot was revealed his will. The only excellence which this story allows to Saul is his height. The teller of it was not partial to Saul. For the choice of the beloved hero David a nobler reason is given. "We shall hear it later on. § 1 4. A still later writer puts another set speech into the mouth of Samuel on the subject of the kingdom. And Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold, I have hearkened unto your toice in all that ye said unto me, and have made a king over you. And now, behold, the king walketh before you : and I am old and greyheaded ; and, behold, my sons are with you : and I have walked before you from my child- hood unto this day. Here I am : witness against me before God, and before his anointed : whose ox have I taken ? or whose ass have I taken ? or whom have I defrauded ? whom have I oppressed ? or of whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind mine eyes therewith ? and I will restore it you. And they said. Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken aught of any man^s hand. And he said unto them, God is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that ye have not found aught in my hand. And they answered. He is witness. And Samuel said unto the people. Let God be witness that appointed Moses and Aaron, and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. Now therefore stand still, that I may plead with you before God, and relate to you all the righteous acts of God, which he did to you and to your fathers. When Jacob was come into Egypt, the Egyptians oppressed them. And your fathers cried unto God, and God sent Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and God made them to dwell 198 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING in this place. But they forgat God, and he sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Jabin king of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. And they cried unto God, and said. We have sinned, because we have forsaken God : but now deliver us out of tlie hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee. And God sent Gideon and Barak and Jephthah, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelled safe. And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me. Nay, but a king shall reign over us : when the Lord your God was your king. Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen ; God hath set a king over you. If ye will fear God, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of God, and both ye and also the king that reigneth over you continue following the Lord your God, well: but if ye will not obey the voice of God, but rebel against the commandment of God, then shall the hand of God be against you, and against your king. Now therefore stand still and see this great thing, which God will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat harvest to-day ? I will call unto God to send thunder and rain ; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of God, in asking you a king. So Samuel called unto God, and God sent thunder and rain that day : and all the people greatly feared God, And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the Lord thy God, that we die not : for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king. And Samuel said unto the people. Fear not : ye have done all this wickedness ; yet turn not aside from following God, but serve God with all your heart; and turn ye not aside after the vanities which cannot profit nor deliver, for they are vain. For God will not forsake his people for his great name's sake : because it hath pleased God to make you his people. Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against God in ceasing to pray for you : but I will teach you the good and the right way. Only fear God and serve him in truth with all your heart : for consider how great things he hath done for you. But if ye shaU still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king. SAUL AND DAVID 199 CHAPTER VIII THE BEIGN OF SAUL AND THE ACCESSION OF DAVID § I. The date of Saul's election to tlie kingship over all Israel has been fixed by the best scholars at about 1037 B.C., that is some 2936 years ago, and he probably reigned about nineteen years, that is till 1018 B.C. We know hardly anything of what happened during his reign, except at its warlike and prosperous opening and at its tragic and gloomy close. At some point in the course of it dissensions arose between Samuel and Saul. Two different reasons for this dis- sension are mentioned. Of these two, one seems improbable and rather trivial. The other relates to Saul's conduct in a campaign against the Amalekites. "War was carried on in a relentless spirit in those days, and little mercy or quarter was shown by either side to each other. The methods of warfare were no better and no worse among the Hebrews than among their neighbours. But in the Amalekite campaign Saul had saved the life of the king of the Amalekites called Agag, whereas Samuel desired and obtained his execution. Let us hope that this alleged cause of the dis- sension between Saul and Samuel is not accurate. One does not like to associate the child of Hannah with deeds of vengeance. § 2. Whether it was the quarrel with Samuel or the constant wars with the Philistines or other reasons which we know not of, a deep spirit of gloom and melancholy settled upon Saul, As the oldest Hebrew writers refer all things, whether good or bad, to the direct, if inexplicable, agency and will of God, they called Saul's melancholy an evil spirit from God. They also expressed the same thing by saying that God's (good) spirit had left him. This melancholy of Saul had large and important consequences. Because of it Saul made the acquaintance of the warrior hero David, who was destined to succeed him on the throne. Of David and of his early fortunes and of his first meeting with Saul there are different accounts in the Bible, One is older and more historical, the other later and less historical. We will listen to the older account first. 20O THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Now the spirit of God departed from Saul^ and an evil spirit from God terrified him. And Saul's servants said unto him. Behold now, an evil spirit from God terrifieth thee. Let our lord now command thy servants, who are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning player on the harp : and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well. And Saul said unto his servants. Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me. Then answered one of the young men, and said. Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in speech, and a comely person, and God is with him. Wherefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said. Send me David thy son, who is with the sheep. And Jesse took ten loaves of bread, and a skin of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son unto Saul. And David came to Saul, and stood before him : and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying. Let David, I pray thee, stand before me : for he hath found favour in my sight. And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took the harp, and played with his hand: so Said was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him. § 3, That is the first and older account. But the same writer who gave us the later account of the establishment of the monarchy, has also given us a second account of how Saul became acquainted with David. It is the famous story of the giant Goliath. The occasion of it is a fresh campaign of the Philistines against Israel. Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Socoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes- dammim. And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched in the vale of the terebinths, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. And the Philis- tines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side: and the ravine was between them. And there went out a champion out of the ranks of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. And he had an hehuet of THE CHALLENGE OF GOLIATH 201 brass upon his head^ and he was clothed with a coat of mail ; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass. And he had greaves of brass upon his legs^ and a shield of brass between his shoulders. And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and his shieldbearer went before him. And he stood and cried unto the ranks of Israel, and said unto them. Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants : but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us. And the Philistine said, I mock the ranks of Israel this day ; give me a man, that we may fight together. And when Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid. And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days. Now there was a man of Bethlehem in Judah, whose name was Jesse, and he had eight sons. And the three eldest of them had gone after Saul to the war, and their names were Eliab, Abinadab, and Shammah. And the name of the youngest son was David. And Jesse said unto David his son. Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp to thy brethren ; and carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge. For Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, are in the vale of the terebinths, fighting with the Philistines. And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him ; and he came to the entrenchment, as the host was going forth to the battle array, and they were shouting for the battle. For Israel and the Philistines had put the battle in array, army against army. And David left his baggage in the hand of the keeper of the baggage, and ran to the army, and came and asked his brethren how they fared. And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the ranks of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words : and David heard them. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from 202 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING him^ and were sore afraid. And the men of Israel said. Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to mock Israel is he come up : and it shall be, .that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and niake his father's house free in Israel. And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying. What shall be done to the man that killeth this Phihstine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this Philistine, that he should mock the armies of the living God? And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him. And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men ; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said. Why art thou come down ? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness ? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart 5 for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle. And David said, What have I done now ? Was it not but a word ? And he turned away from him toward another, and spake after the same manner : and the people answered him again after the former manner. And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for him. And David said to Saul, Let not my lord's heart sink within him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine, And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him : for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war. And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep ; and when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth : and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. Thy servant smote both lion and bear : and this Phihstine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath mocked the armies of the living God, God that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and God shall be with thee. And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head. And David girded on his sword, and he sought to go, but in vain; for he had not THE SLING AND THE SWORD 203 proved them. And David said unto Saul^ I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him. And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the shepherd^s bag vrhich he had, even in his scrip ; and his sling was in his hand : and he drew near to the Philistine. And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David ; and the man that bare the shield went before him. And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him : for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves ? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field. Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin : but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which thou hast mocked. This day will God deliver thee into mine hand ; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee ; and I will give thy carcase and the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth ; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, And all this assembly shall know that God saveth not with sword and spear : for the battle is God^s, and he will give you into our hands. And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. And David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, even unto Gath, and to the gates of Ekron. And the children of 204 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines^ and they spoiled their tents. Now when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine^ he said unto Abner, the captain of the host^ Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said. As thy soul liveth^ O king, I cannot tell. And the king said. Inquire thou whose son the stripling is. And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him. Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite. And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. And Saul took him that day, and would let him go no more home to his father's house. Then Jonathan made a covenant of friendship with David, because he loved him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his warrior's dress, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle. And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and he prospered. And Saul set him over the men of war, and he was beloved in the sight of all the people, and even in the sight of the servants of Saul, * Take their pledge ' means bring back some token of their •welfare. Ordinary people did not write letters in those days. A terebinth is a coniferous tree, from the resinous exudation of which turpentine is made. Its Latin name is Pistacia terebintkus. A cubit is about a foot and a half, and a span is half a cubit. So Goliath was about 9 feet 9 inches high. Five thousand shekels is over 200 lbs. and six hundred shekels is over 24 lbs., so the giant's coat of mail and spear's head were very heavy ! Notice that in the older account David is already grown up ; he IS a mighty man of valour and a man of war and prudent in speech. Here he is a shepherd lad, ignorant of war, though of great natural strength. The friendship of Jonathan and David has " remained a famous type and example of friendship for all time. Even when Jonathan realized, as he soon did, that the star of his father was sinking, and that the star of David was rising, his friendship with David suffered no break or loss. § 4. A still later writer told a tradition according to which David had known, even before his victory over Goliath, that he 'GOD SEETH NOT AS MAN SEETH 205 was destined to become Israel's king. This tradition is probably- mistaken, but the story which embodies it is very beautiful. And God said unto Samuel^ How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite : for I have provided me a king among his sons. And Samuel said. How can I go ? if Saul hear it, he will kill me. And God said. Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to God. And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do : and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee. And Samuel did that which God spake, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the city trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably? And he said, Peaceably : I am come to sacrifice unto God : sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the saciifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacri- fice. And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said. Surely God's anointed is befoi*e him. But God said unto Samuel, Look not on his coun- tenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him : for God seeth not as man seeth ; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but God looketh on the heart. Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said. Neither hath God chosen him. Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said. Neither hath God chosen him. So Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, God hath not chosen these. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children ? And he said, There re- maineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him : for we will not sit down till he come hither. And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look at. And God said. Arise, anoint him : for this is he. Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren : and Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. You will remember the second account of Saul's election. * There is none like liim among all the people ' means that Saul 2o6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING was taller than them all. Here, in obvious and intentional contrast to that story, we have outward appearance and height of stature disparaged. The words are notable : too often man looks on the outward appearance both of men and things ; our heavenly Father judges us and all we do by a true and inward standard, § 5. Both the earlier and the later accounts represent David as becoming after a time the successful general of Saul in campaigns against the Philistines. Gradually SauVs jealousy of David's success and popularity became aroused. For after such successful expeditions we are told that : The vromen used to come out of all the cities of Israel singing and dancing to meet David^ with tabrets and exult- ■ing and instruments of music. And the vromen answered one another in their mirth, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands. But David his ten thousands ! And Saul was very wroth, and this saying displeased him ; and he said. They have ascribed ten thousands to David, and to me they have ascribed but thousands ; and what can he have more but the kingdom? And Saul eyed David from that day and forward. And David prospered in all his ways ; and God was with him. Wherefore when Saul saw that David prospered greatly, he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them. Now Michal SauPs daughter loved David : and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him. So Saul thought, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul commanded his servants, saying. Commune with David secretly, and say. Behold, the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants love thee: now therefore be the king's son in law. And Saul's servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you a light thing to become the king's son in law, seeing that I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed? And the servants of Saul told him, saying. On this manner spake David. And Saul said. Thus shall ye say to David, The king desireth not any dowry, but an hundred of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies. But Saul thought to make David fall by the hand THE JEALOUSY OF SAUL 207 of the Philistines. And when his servants told,.JDav«i^ese words, it pleased David well to be the iiing's son in law. Wherefore David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines an hundred men ; and David brought them in full tale to the king, that he might become the king's son in law. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to vrife. But when Saul saw more plainly that God was with David, and that all Israel loved him, he was yet the more afraid of him. So Saul became David^s enemy continually. And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that he would kill David. But Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David ; and Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee : now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself in the morning, hide thyself and remain concealed. And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will commune with my father of thee ; and what I see, that I will tell thee. And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him. Let not the king sin against his servant, against David ; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been to thee-ward very good : for he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, and God wrought a great salvation for all Israel : thou sawest it, and didst rejoice : wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause ? And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan : and Saul sware. As God liveth, he shall not be slain-. Then Jonathan called David, and told him aU those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as in times past. And when there was war again, David went out and fought with the Philistines and slew them with a great slaughter ; and they fled from him. § 6. Thus Saul's jealousy was appeased for a time, but only to break forth again with greater violence than ever. Now the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand, and David played before him on his harp. And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with his spear ; but David avoided his cast, so that he drove the spear- into the wall. And David fled, and escaped. And he came unto Jonathan and said. What have I done ? 2o8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING What is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father that he seeketh my life ? And Jonathan said unto David, God forbid ; thou shalt not die : behold, my father doeth nothing either great or small, but that he sheweth it unto me : and why should my father hide this thing from me ? it is not so. But David said. Thy father knoweth that 1 have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith. Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved : but truly as God liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death. Then said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee. And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to-morrow is the new moon, and I will not sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the even. If thy father miss me, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-iehem his city: for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family. If he say thus. It is well ; thy servant shall have peace : but if he be wroth, then know that evil is determined by him. Therefore deal kindly with thy servant ; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of friendship with thee : notwithstanding if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself ; for why shouldest thou bring me ,to thy father ? And Jonathan said. Far be it from thee : for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee ? Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me if perchance thy father answer thee roughly ? And Jonathan said unto David, Come and let us go out into the field. And they went out both of them into the field. And Jonathan said unto David, The Lord God of Israel be witness ; when I have sounded my father about this time to-morrow, behold, if there be good toward David, shall ' I not send unto thee, and shew it thee? God do so and much more to Jonathan, should it please my father to do thee evil, if I shew it not unto thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace : and God will be with thee, as he hath been with my father. And wilt thou not, if I am still ahve, shew me the kindness of God, that I die not, and not cut off thy mercy from my house for ever ? Yea, even when God hath cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth, the name of Jonathan shall not be cut off from the house of David. And Jonathan THE FRIENDSHIP OF JONATHAN AND DAVID 209 sware again to David^ for the love that he had to him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul. And Jonathan said unto him. To-morrow is the new moon : and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty. And when thou hast stayed two days, thou «halt be greatly missed; then come down and hide thyself and remain by this mound. And on the third day I will shoot with arrows^ as though I shot at a mark. And, behold, I will send the lad, saying. Go, find the arrow. If I say unto the lad. Behold, the arrow is on this side of thee : come then home, for there is peace to thee and no hurt, as God liveth. But if I say thus unto the boy, Behold, the arrow is beyond thee : go thy way; for God hath sent thee away. And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, God is witness between thee and me for ever. So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to eat meat. And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon the seat by the wall; and Jonathan sat opposite to Saul, and Abner sat by SauFs side : but David's place was empty. Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought. Something hath befallen him, he is not clean ; surely he is not clean. And it came to pass on the morrow after the new moon, that David^s place was empty : and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to-day? And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem : and he said. Let me go, I pray thee ; for our family hath a sacrifice in the city ; and my brethren have bidden me to be there: and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he cometh not unto the king's table. Then SauPs anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him. Do not I know that thou art a companion of the son of Jesse to thine own confusion ? For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be stablished, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die. And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him. Wherefore shall he be slain ? what hath he done ? And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him : whereby Jonathan knew that it 2IO THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING was determined of his father to slay David. So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger^ and did eat no meat the second day of the month : for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame. And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed vidth David, and a little lad with him. And he said unto his lad, Run, find now the arrow which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said. Is not the arrow beyond thee ? And Jonathan cried after the lad. Make speed, haste, stay not. And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrow, and brought it to his master. But the lad knew not any thing; only Jonathan and David knew the matter. And Jonathan gave his artillery unto his lad, and said unto him. Go, carry them to the city. And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of his hiding-place by the mound, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times : and they kissed one another, and wept one Avith another exceedingly. And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of God, God shall be witness between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed, for ever. And he arose and departed : and Jonathan went into the city. §7. Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at meeting David, and said unto him. Why art thou alone, and no man with thee? And David said unto Ahimelech the priest. The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me. Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee : and the young men I have directed to such and such a place. Now therefore, if there are some loaves of bread under thine hand, give them unto me, or whatsoever there is present. Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the mightiest of Saul's runners. And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword ? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste. And the priest said, The AHIMELECH AND THE PRIESTS OF NOB 211 sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the vale of the terebinths^ behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth : if thou wilt take that, take it : for there is no other save that here. And David said. There is none like that ; give it me. So David departed thence, and escaped to the mountain- stronghold of Adullam : and when his brethren and all his fathePs house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him ; and he became a captain over them : and there were with him about four hundred men. And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab : and he said unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, dwell with you, till I know what God will do for me. And he brought them before the king of Moab : and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the hold. And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the hold ; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hereth. And Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him : now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk tree on the height, having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. And Saul said unto his servants that stood about him^-Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, and make you all captains of thousands and captains of hundi'eds; that all of you have conspired against me, and there is none that disclosed to me when my son made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that had compassion for me, or disclosed unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to be my enemy, as at this day? Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. And he gave him victuals^ and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine. Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his fathei-'s house, the priests that were in Nob; and they came all of them to the king. And Saul said. Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. And he answered. Here I am, my lord. And Saul said unto him. Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that p 2 212 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thou hast given him bread, and a sword, that he should rise against me to be my enemy, as at this day? Then Ahime- lech answered the liing, and said. And who among all thy servants is so faithful as David, who is the king's son in law and captain over thy bodyguard, and is honourable in thine house ? Let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father : for thy servant knoweth nothing of all this, less or more. And the king said. Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house. And the king said unto the guard that stood about him. Turn, and slay the priests ; because their hand also is with ]Dq,vid, and because they knew that he fled, and did not tell me. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests. And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and he slew on that day fourscore and five. But one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David. And Abiathar told David that Saul had slain the priests. And David said unto Abiathar, I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul : I am guilty in respect of all the persons of thy fathei^'s house. Abide thou with me, fear not ; for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life ; with me thou shalt be in safeguard. § 8. For some time David seems to have led the wild life of an outlaw among the mountain fastnesses of Southern Judah, Here are some striking incidents which we are told of that exciting period of wandering and adventure. And they told David, saying. Behold, the Philistines fight against Keilah, and they rob the threshingfloors. So David and his men went to Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and smote them with a great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. And it was told Saul that David was come to Keilah. And Saul said, God hath delivered him into mine hand ; for he is shut in, by entering into a town that hath gates and bars. And Saul called all the people together to war, to go down to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. And David heard that Saul was devising mischief against SAUL PURSUES AFTER DAVID 213 him. So David and his men, who were about six hmidred, arose and departed out of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And it was told Saul that David was escaped from Keilah; and he forbore to go forth. And David abode in the wilderness in the strong holds of the hill country. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand. And David was afraid, because Saul was come out to seek his life : and David was at Horesh in the wilderness of Ziph, And Jonathan SauFs son arose, and went to David at Horesh, and strengthened his heart in God. And he said unto him^ Fear not : for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee 5 and that also Saul my father knoweth. And they two made a covenant of friendship before God: and David abode at Horesh, and Jonathan went to his house. Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying. Doth not David hide himself with us in the mountain strong holds near Horesh ? Now therefore, O king, come down, according to all the desire of thy soul to come down ; and our part shall be to deliver him into the king's hand. And Saul said. Blessed be ye of God ; for ye have compassion on me. Go, I pray you, give good heed, and find out quickly where his haunt is : for it is told me that he dealeth very subtilly. See therefore, and take knowledge of all the lurking places where he hideth himself, and bring me certain news, and I will go with you : and it shall come to pass, if he be in the land, that I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah. And they arose, and went to Ziph before Saul, But David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon. So Saul and his men went to seek him. And they told David : wherefore he came down to the rock, which is in the wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in the wUderness of Maon. And Saul and his men went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the mountain : and David made haste to get away for fear of Saul ; for Saul and his men were trying to surround David and his men to take them. But there came a messenger unto Saul, saying. Haste thee, and come ; for the Philistines have invaded the land. So Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went against the Philistines : therefore they called that place 214 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the Rock of Divisions. And David went up from thence, and dwelt in the strong holds of En-gedi. And it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying. Behold, David is in the wilderness of En-gedi. Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats. And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave ; and Saul went into the cave. Now David and his men were sitting down in the recesses of the cave. And the men of David said unto him. Behold, the day on which God saith unto thee, I deliver thine enemy into thine hand^ that thou mayest do unto him as it shall seem good unto thee. But David said unto his men, God forbid that I should do this thing unto my lord, to stretch forth my hand against him, seeing he is God^s anointed. So David restrained his men with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. Then David arose, and cut off the edge of Saul^s mantle privily. And it came to pass afterward that David's heart smote him, because he had cut off the edge of SauPs mantle. And Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way. David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul, saying. My lord the king. And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth, and bowed himself. And David said to Saul, Wherefore hearest thou men^s words, saying. Behold, David seeketh thy hurt ? Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that God had delivered thee to-day into mine hand in the cave : and some bade me kill thee : but I spared thee ; and I said, I will not put forth mine hand against my lord; for he is God's anointed. Moreover, my father, see, yea, see the edge of thy mantle in my hand ; for in that I cut off the edge of thy mantle, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in mine hand, and I have not sinned against thee ; yet thou huntest my soul to take it. God shall judge between me and thee, and God shall avenge me of thee : but mine hand shall not be upon thee. As saith the proverb of the ancients. From the wicked cometh wickedness : but mine hand shall not be upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out ? after whom dost thou pursue ? after a dead dog, after THE MAGNANIMITY OF DAVID 215 a flea. God therefore be judge between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause^ and deliver me out of thine hand. And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said. Is this thy voice, my son David ? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept. And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I : for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil. And thou hast increased thy kindly dealing with me this day: forasmuch as when God had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not. For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away ? where- fore God will reward thee good for that thou hast done unto me this day. And now, behold, I know that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand. Swear now therefore unto me by God, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house. And David sware unto Saul. And Saul went home; but David and his men gat them up unto the hold. § 9. David's character was very mixed. He was a warrior and chieftain of the ancient type, fierce and cruel in war and anger, but yet often capable of noble generosity and magnanimous for- bearance, pious too after his manner, warm hearted and ambitious, a good friend and a keen hater, a reckless sinner and a sincere penitent. The story of his magnanimity to Saul is repeated with variations by a later writer. But it is obviously one story which got told iu different ways. Here follows the second version. And the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying. Doth not David hide himself in the hiU of Hachilah, which is before the desert? Then Saul arose, and went down to the vtdlderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. And Said pitched in the hill of Hachilah, which is before the desert, by the way. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness. . David therefore sent out spies, and heard where Saul was, and he arose, and came to the place where Saul had pitched : and David beheld the place where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host : and 2i6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Saul lay within the entrenchment, and the people pitched round about him. Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother to Joab^ saying. Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp ? And Abishai said, I will go down with thee. So David and Abishai came to the people by night; and, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the entrenchment, and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster : and Abner and the people lay round about him. Then said Abishai to David, God hath delivered thine enemy into thine hand this day : now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear even to the earth at once, and I will not smite him the second time. And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not : for who can stretch forth his hand against God^s anointed, and be guiltless ? As God liveth, God shall smite him ; or his day shall come to die ; or he shall descend into battle, and perish. God forbid that I should put forth mine hand against his anointed: but I pray thee, take thou now the spear that is at his bolster, and the cruse of water, and let us go. So David topk the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's bolster ; and they gat them away, and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither awaked : for they were all asleep : because a deep sleep was fallen upon them. Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of the mountain afar off ; a great space being between them: and David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, Answerest thou not, Abner ? Then Abner answered and said. Who art thou that criest to the king? And David said to Abner, Art not thou a valiant man ? and who is like to thee in Israel ? where- fore then hast thou not kept watch over thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord. This thing is not good that thou hast done. As God liveth, ye are worthy to die, because ye have not kept watch over your lord. And now, see, where the king's spear is, and the cruse of water that was at his bolster. And Saul knew David's voice, and said. Is this thy voice, my son David ? And David said. It is my voice, my lord, O king. Wherefore doth my lord pursue after his servant ? for what have I done ? or what evil is in mine hand ? Now therefore, I pray thee, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. Let not my blood fall to the earth : for the THE FOLLY OF NABAL 217 king of Israel is come out to seek my life, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains. Then said Saul, I have sinned; return, my son David: for I will no more do thee harm, because my hfe was precious in thine eyes this day : behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly. And David answered and said. Behold the king's spear ! let one of the young men come over and fetch it. And God render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness : for God delivered thee into my hand to-day, but I woiild not stretch forth mine hand against God's anointed. And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of God, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation. Then Saul said to David, Blessed be thou, my son David: thou shalt both do great things, and also shalt still prevail. So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place. § 10. Another story gives us a further insight into the mixed character of David, easily roused to anger and yet ready to forgive. Note that the word nahal in Hebrew means folly. . Now there was a man 'in Maon, whose business was in Carmel; and the man was very rich, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats : and he was shearing his sheep in CarmeL Now the name of the man was Nabal ; and the name of his wife Abigail : and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance : but the man was churlish and evil in his doings. And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep. And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men. Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name : and thus shall ye say to him. Peace be both unto thee, and peace be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. And now I have heard that thou art shearing: thy shepherds who were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there aught missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel, Ask thy young men, and they will shew thee : wherefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes ; for we come at a holiday ; give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand, unto thy servants, and to thy son David. And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal 2i8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING according to all those words in the name of David^ and ceased. And Nabal answered David^s servants^ and said. Who is David ? and who is the son of Jesse ? there be many- servants now a days that break away every man from his master. Shall I then take my bread, and my wine, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they be ? So David^s young men turned on their way, and came and told him all these sayings. And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword ; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men ; and two hundred abode by the stuff. But one of the young men told Abigail, NabaPs wife, saying. Behold, David sent messengers out of the vrilderness to salute our master; and he railed at them. But the men were very good unto us, and we were not mocked, neither missed we any thing, as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in the fields: they were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is deter- mined against our master, and against all his house : for he is such a churlish man, that one cannot speak to him. Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two skins of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. And she said unto her young men, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal, And it was so, as she rode on her ass, that she came down by the covert of the mountain, and, behold, David and his men came down against her; and she met them. Now David had said. Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him : and he hath requited me evil for good. God do so unto David, and more also, if I leave of all that pertain, to him by the morning light so much as one. And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off her ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground. And she fell at his feet, and said. Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: THE PRUDENCE OF ABIGAIL 219 and let thine handmaid^ I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thine handmaid. Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this churlish man, even Nabal : for as his name is, so is he ; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him : but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. Now therefore, my lord, as God liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing God hath with- holden thee from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now therefore let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. And now this present which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow my lord. I pray thee forgive the trespass of thine handmaid, and if any man rise up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, may the soul of my lord be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord thy God ; and the souls of thine enemies, them may he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling. And it shall come to pass, when God shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel; that this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself : and when God shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid. And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me: and blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, who hast kept me this day from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. For in very deed, as the God of Israel liveth, who hath kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one. So David received of her hand that which she had brought him: and he said unto her. Go up in peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person. And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and NabaPs heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken : wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. And it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and 220 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING his wife told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. And it came to pass about ten days after, that he died. And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said. Blessed be God that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back his servant from evil : for God hath returned the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. And David sent and spake concerning Abi- gail, to take her to him to wife. And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying, David hath sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife. And she arose, and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said. Behold, let thine handmaid be a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord. And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with five damsels of hers that attended her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife. David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel ; and they were also both of them his wives. But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Phaltiel the son of Laish, who was of Gallini. § II. At last David felt unable to maintain his position. He began to fear that sooner or later he must inevitably fall into the hands of Saul if he remained on Israelite or Judaean territory. So he determined to take a strange and desperate step. David, the great enemy of the Philistines, took refuge on Philistine soil ! Like Themistocles, the great Athenian, who fled to his lifelong enemy, the King of Persia, so David £ed to Achish, the Philistine King of Gath. And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul : there is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul shall despair of me, to seek me any more in all Israel : so shall I escape out of his hand. And David arose, and passed over with the six hundred men that were with him, unto Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. And David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household. And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath : and he sought no more again for him. And David said unto Achish, If now I have found grace in thine eyes, let them give me a place in some town in the DAVID AMONG THE PHILISTINES 221 country, that I may dwell there : for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee ? Then Achish gave him Ziklag that day: wherefore Ziklag pertaineth unto the kings of Judah unto this day. And the time that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a full year and four months. In truth it was a desperate and dangerous game which David attempted to play. He did not intend to fight (as Achish douhtless believed that he would) against his own countrymen. From Ziklag he made marauding expeditions not against Judah, as he pretended, but against the nomad Arabian tribes of the south. And David and his men went upland invaded the Geshurites, and the Girzites, and the Amalekites : for those nations were the inhabitants of the land^ from Telam as thou goest to Shur, even unto the land of Egypt. And when David made a raid^ he saved neither man nor woman alive, and took away the sheep, and the oxen, and the asses, and the camels, and the apparel ; and he returned, and came to Achish. And Achish said. Whither have ye made a raid to-day ? And David said. Against the South of Judah, and against the South of the Jerahmeelites, and against the South of the Kenites. And David saved neither man nor woman alive, to bring to Gath, saying. Lest they should tell on us, saying. So did David, and such was his manner all the while he dwelt in the country of the Philistines. And Achish believed David^ saying. He hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor him; therefore he shall be my servant for ever. § 12. Emboldened by David's presence and aid, the Philistines determined to make one more great effort against Israel. And it came to pass that the Philistines gathered their hosts together for warfare to fight with Israel. And Achish said unto David, Know thou assuredly that thou must go out with me to battle, thou and thy men. And David answered. It is well : now shalt thou see what thy servant can do. And Achish said unto David, I will make thee the keeper of my head for the whole time. Now the Philistines gathered together all their hosts to Aphek : and the Israelites pitched by the fountain which is 222 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING in Jezreel. And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds, and by thousands : and David and his men passed on in the rearward, with Achish. Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews here ? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines, This is David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, who hath been with me these two years, and I have found no fault in him since he deserted unto me unto this day. But the princes of the Philistines were wroth with him ; and the princes of the Philistines said unto him. Make this fellow return, that he may go again to his place where thou hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us to battle, lest in the battle he be an adversary to us : for wherewith should he reconcile himself better unto his master than with the heads of these our men ? Is not this David, of whom they sang one to another in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands. And David his ten thousands ? Then Achish called David, and said unto him, As God liveth, thou hast been upright, and thy going out and thy coming in with me in the host is good in my sight : for I have not found evil in thee since the day of thy coming unto me unto this day: nevertheless the lords favour thee not. Where- fore now return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the lords of the Philistines. And David said unto Achish, But what have I done ? and what hast thou found in thy servant so long as I have been with thee unto this day, that I may not go fight against the enemies of my lord the king ? And Achish answered and said to David, I know that thou art good in my sight, as an angel of God : notwithstanding the princes of the Philistines have said. He shall not go up with us to the battle. Wherefore now rise up early in the morning with thy master's servants that are come with thee: and return to the place which I have appointed for thee, and think no evil of me in thy heart, for thou art good in my sight : rise up therefore early in the morning, that, as soon as it is light, ye may depart. So David rose up early, he and his men, to depart in the morning, to return in the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel. "Whether David meant to act as the Philistine princes suspected, we cannot tell. He must any way, in spite of his deceptive words 'AN OLD MAN COMETH UP 223 to Achish (who makes a favourable impression upon us), liave been glad of the opportunity for escape. He returned accordingly to Ziklag. But the Philistines marched into the valley of Jezreel, and pitched their camp at a place called Shunem, and over against them to bar their way lay the host of Saul at Gilboa. The Philistines had, I suppose, marched along the coast northwards, and then turned inland to the valley of Jezreel. Look at the place on a good map. § 13. Meanwhile the weary and trouble-stricken King of Israel was sick at heart, for sore disaster seemed imminent. Before the decisive battle was fought he sought strange help. While he was still friendly with Samuel, we are told that, at Samuel's suggestion, he had forbidden all sorcery and witchcraft and all attempted foretelling of the future by magic spells and incanta- tions and familiar spirits and invocations of the dead. [The casting of the lot was not forbidden ; it was indeed regularly used by the priests of the period and by Samuel himself. But then it was supposed that this lot was guided by and indicated the will of God. After David's time it is, however, pleasant to find that the use of the lot dies away.] Now Saul in his desperation and his melancholy turned in the hour of gloom and disaster to the very practices he had himself forbidden. Samuel was long since dead ; would his spirit take pity upon the forlorn king ? This is the weird story, of which how much is true and how much legendary no man can say. Now when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid and his heart trembled greatly. And he sought counsel of God, but God answered him not whether by dreams or by prophets. Then said Saul unto his servants. Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and inquire of her. And his servants said to him. Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at En-dor. And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment^ and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up whom I shall name unto thee. And the woman said unto him. Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, hovv he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land : wherefore then layest thou a snare for my 224 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING life, to cause me to die ? And Saul sware to her, saying. As God livethj there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing. Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee ? And he said. Bring me up Samuel. And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice : and the woman spake to Saul, saying. Why hast thou deceived me ? for thou art Saul, And the king said unto her. Be not afraid : what seest thou ? And the woman said unto Saul, I see a spirit coming up out of the earth. And he said unto her. What form is he of ? And she said, An old man cometh up ; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself. And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up ? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed ; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams : therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do. And Samuel said. Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing that God is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy ? To-morrow shalt thou fall together with^thy sons ; and I will deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines. Then Saul fell in agony his full length upon the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel : and there was no strength in him ; for he had eaten no food all the day, nor all the night. And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said unto him. Behold, thine handmaid hath obeyed thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me. Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the voice of thine handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee ; and eat, that thou mayest have strength, when thou goest on thy way. But he refused, and said, Iwill not eat. But his servants, together with the woman, constrained him : and he hearkened unto their voice. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed. And the woman had a fatted calf in the house ; and she hasted, and killed it ; and she took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof : and she brought it before Saul, and before his servants ; and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night. THE DEATH OF SAUL 225 § 14. Now follows the mournful story of the Israelite defeat, and of the death of Saul and of Jonathan, So the Philistines fought against Israel : and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and their slain lay- around on mount Gilboa. And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons ; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers found him ; and he trembled sore because of the archers. Then said Saul to his armourbearer. Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest the Philistines come and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not ; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took his sword, and fell upon it. And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell upon his sword, and died with him. So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armourbearer, that same day together. And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley saw that the host of Israel had fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook their cities, and fled ; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in mount Gilboa. And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to announce it unto their idols, and to the people. And they put his armour in the house of Ashtoreth : and they exposed his body on the wall of Beth- shan. But when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard of that which the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan ; and they came to Jabesh, and burnt them there. And they took their bones, and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh, and fasted seven days. So Saul died a hero's death, like some valiant Eoman, nor would his faithful armourbearer survive him. It is pleasant to read how the men of Jabesh showed their gratitude to Saul who had brought them aid against the Ammonites. Their gratitude rose superior to the risk they ran, and overcame it. § 15. Meanwhile David had returned t6 Ziklag. But a mournful spectacle awaited him there. 226 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the South, and smitten ZiiUag, and burned it with fire ; and had taken captive the women and all that were_ therein, both small and great : they slew not any, but carried them ofP, and went their way. So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire ; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David^s two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jez- reelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite, And David was greatly distressed ; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters : but David en- couraged himself in the Lord his God. And he arose, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the brook Besor. But David pursued, he and four hundred men : for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they could not go over the brook Besor. And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they gave him water to drink : and they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins ; and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him : for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and "three nights. And David said unto him. To whom belongest thou ? and whence art thou ? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite ; and my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick. We made an invasion into the south country of the Cherethites, and into that which belongeth to Judah, and we burned Ziklag with fire. And David said to him, Canst thou bring me down to this troop ? And he said. Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me up into the hands of my mastei", and I will bring thee down to this troop. And- when he had brought him down, behold they were spread abroad, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. And David smote them from the tvidlight even unto the evening of the next day : and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred THE BURNING OF ZJKLAG 227 young men, who rode upon camels and fled. And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away : and David rescued his two wives. And there was nothing lacking to them^ neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to them : David recovered all. And they took all the flocks and the herds, and drave them before David, and they said. This is David^s spoil. And David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to abide at the brook Besor : and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him : and when David came near with his men, they saluted them. Then said all the churlish men of those that went with David, Because they went not with us, we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away, and depart. Then said David, Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which God hath given unto us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand. For who will hearken unto you in this matter ? but as his share is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his share be that tarrieth by the stuff : they shall share alike. And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel, unto this day. And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying. Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of God ; also to them who were in Bethul, and to them who were in Ramoth of the south, and to them who were in Jattir, and to them who were in Ararah, and to them who were in Siphmoth, and to them who were in Eshtemoa, and to them who were in Carmel, and to them who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to them who were in the cities of the Kenites, and to them who were in Hormah, and to them who were in Bor-Ashan, and to them who were in Athach, and to them who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were wont to haunt. § 16. It was not long before the news of Saul's death and Jonathan s reached the ears of David. The narrative how David Q 2, 228 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING was told seems made up of two stories, of which the first prohably followed the older and (I should imagine) truer tradition that Saul died by his own hand, while the second followed a later tradition according to which Saul was killed by an Amalekite. And it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag ; it came even to pass on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head : and so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeisance. And David said unto him. From whence comest thou? And he said unto him. Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped. And David said unto him. How went the matter ? I pray thee, tell me. And he answered. The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead ; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also. Here you see the news is borne by * a man ' (in Hebrew IsK) and probably an Israelite. But at this point this narrative is broken off, and its place is taken by the other narrative which followed the later tradition. In it the news is brought by a ' young man/ (in Hebrew Naar)^ an Amalekite, by whose hand Saul had fallen. Ignorant of the noble elements in David's character, he rashly believed that news, evil to the friends of Saul, would be to David good news and pleasant. He hoped for reward, and he got a reward, but it was different from what he had expected. It is also possible that the whole story was invented by the Amalekite for the sake of the reward which he had hoped to obtain, and in that case it may be that the manner of Saul's death was the same in both versions. And David said to the young man that told him. How knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan his son be dead ? And the young man that told him said, I happened by chance to be upon mount Gilboa and, behold, Saul leaned upon his spear ; and, lo, the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called unto me. And I answered, Here am I. And he said unto me, Who art thou ? And I answered him, I am an Amalekite. And he said unto me. Stand, I pray thee, beside me, and slay me, for giddiness hath taken hold of me; because my life is yet whole in me. So I stood DAVID S LAMENT OVER SAUL AND JONATHAN 229 beside him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen : and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither unto my lord. And David said unto the young man that told him. Whence art thou ? And he answered, I am the son of a stranger, an Amalekite. And David said unto him. How wast thou not afraid to put forth thine hand to destroy' God^s anointed ? And David called one of the young men, and said. Go near, and fall upon him. And he smote him that he died. And David said unto him. Thy blood be upon thy head ; for thy mouth hath testified against thee, saying, I have slain God^s anointed. Then David took hold on his clothes, and rent them ; and likewise all the men that were with him : and they mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the house of Israel j because they were fallen by the sword. And David composed this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son : and he bade them teach it to the children of Judah. Thy beauty, O Israel, is slain upon thy high places ! How are the mighty fallen ! Tell it not in Gath, Publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon ; Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice. Lest the daughters of the foreigner triumph. Ye mountains of Gilboa, Let there be no dew nor rain upon you : For there the shield of the mighty was vilely cast away. The shield of Saul, not anointed with oil. From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty. The bow of Jonathan turned not back. And the sword of Saul returned not empty. Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives. And in their death they were not divided ; They were swifter than eagles. They were stronger than lions. Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, Who clothed you in scarlet and delights. Who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel. How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle ! 230 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Jonathan is slain upon thy high places. I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan ; Very pleasant hast thou been unto me : Thy love to me was wonderful. Passing the love of women. How are the mighty fallen, And the weapons of war perished ! There is no reason wliy we may not believe that in this beautiful and manly elegy we have the very words of the warrior-poet before usj written some 2,916 years ago. There were grand elements of nobility and tenderness in David's nature, and we feel that the heroic first king of Israel (for he too, with all his faults, was yet a hero), together with his brave and gracious son, has received for all time a worthy lamentation and requiem at the hand of the man whose life he sought so keenly and so long. DAVID AND ESHBAAL 2^1 CHAPTER IX THE REIGN OF DAVID § I, The result of the battle of Gilboa was that Israel again became the vassal of the Philistines. Abner, Saul's general, fled with Eshbaalj Saul's surviving son, over Jordan to Mahanaim, aud there Eshbaal was crowned king over Israel. But his kingdom, as it would seem, was tributary to the Philistines. [In the Bible itself you will find his name written not, as here, Eshbaal, but Ish-bosheth. His true name was, however, Eshbaal, and the name meant Man or Servant of God, for Baal (lord) was in old days a title of God, But the title was disfavoured and finally dropped, because of a possible confusion of God when so called with the Phoenician divine name Baal, and thus for Baal (lord) there was substituted in most names with which it had been compounded Bosheth (shame). Hence for Eshbaal we get Esh- or Ish-bosheth. In one or two places, however, the form Eshbaal still survives, and I think it is better that we should now call the son of Saul by his true name. Mephibosheth, too, stands for Meribbaal, for the first part of the name was still further modified. Meribbaal was the uame of Jonathan's son.] Meanwhile David moved eastwards to Hebron in the heart of Judah, and thither the * men of Judah ' came and * anointed David king over the house of Judah.' So now there were two kings, Eshbaal in the north and David in the south. For seven years and a half David remained king of Judah only, with his residence in Hebron. In more ways than one he attempted to push his influence and power. Here is an example. And they told David^ sayings The men of Jabesh-gilead were they that buried Saul. And David sent messengers unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said unto them. Blessed be ye of God, that ye have shevred this kindness unto your lord, even unto Saul, and have buried him. And now may God shew kindness and truth unto you: and I also will shew you good, because ye have done this thing. Now 232 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING therefore let your hands be strong, and be ye valiant: for your master Saul is dead^ and also the house of Judah have anointed me king over them. But soon a long and desultory war brote out between the two rival kings, and though we know hardly anything of the details, we are told in general terms tbat David waxed stronger and stronger, and Eshbaal waxed weaker and weaker. On one occasion ; Abner the son of Ner, and the men of Eshbaal the son of Saulj went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon, And Joab the son of Zeruiahj and the men of David, went out, and met together by the pool of Gibeon ; and they sat down, the one on the one side of the pool, and the other on the other side of the pool. And Abner said to Joab, Let the young men arise and fight before us. And Joab said. Let them arise. Then there arose and went over by number twelve of the men of Eshbaal, and twelve of the men of David. And they caught every one his fellow by the head, and thrust his sword in his fellow's side; so they fell down together; wherefore that place was called The Field of the Plotters. And there was a very sore battle that day ; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the men of David. And the three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab, and Abishai, and Asahel : and Asahel was as light of foot as a wild roe. And Asahel pursued after Abner ; and in going he turned not to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner. Then Abner looked behind him, and said. Art thou Asahel ? And he answered, I am. And Abner said to him. Turn thee aside to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay thee hold on one of the young men, and take thee his armour. But Asahel would not turn aside from following of him. And Abner said again to Asahel, Turn thee aside from following me : wherefore should I smite thee to the ground ? how then should I hold up my face to Joab thy brother ? Howbeit he refused to turn aside : wherefore Abner turned and smote him in the belly, that the spear came out behind him ; and he fell down there, and died in the same place : and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still. But Joab and Abishai pursued after Abner : and the sun went down when they were come ABNER AND ASAHEL 233 to the hill of Ammahj that lieth before Giah by the way of the wilderness of Gibeon. And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together after Abner^ and became one band^ and stood on the top of the hill. Then Abner called to Joab, and said. Shall the sword devour for ever? knowest thou not that it will be bitterness in the latter end ? how long shall it be then, ere thou bid the people return from following their brethren ? And Joab said^ As God liveth^ if thou hadst not spoken, surely the people had not ceased from following every one his brother even until the morning. So Joab blew the trumpet, and all the people stood still, and pursued after Israel no more, neither fought they any more. And Abner and his men marched all that night through the Arabah; and they passed over Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and came to Mahanaini, And Joab returned from fol- lowing Abner; and when he had gathered all the people . together, there lacked of David^s servants nineteen men and Asahel. But the men of David had smitten of Benjamin^ and of Abner's men, three hundred and threescore, «And they took up Asahel, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, which was in Beth-lehem, And Joab and his men marched all night, and the day brake upon them at Hebron. § 2, After a time Abner and his master Eshbaal had a quarrel, and Abner made up his mind to desert to David, whose fortunes were clearly in the ascendant. He opened up communications with him, and he also began to hint at his views and aims to the ' elders of Israel.' His traitorous intentions were, however, prematurely cut short. And Abner sent messengers to David unto Hebron, saying, Make thy league with me, and, behold, my hand shall be with thee, to bring about all Israel unto thee. And David said. Well ; I will make a league with thee : but one thing I require of thee, that is, thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal SauVs daughter, when thou comest to see my face. And David sent messengers to Eshbaal, Saul's son, saying, Deliver me my wife Michal, whom I espoused to me for an hundred of -the Philistines. And Eshbaal sent, and took her from her husband, even from Phaltiel the son of Laish, And her husband went with her, and followed her, 234 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING weeping all the way, to Bahurim. Then said Abner unto him. Go, return. And he returned. And Abner had com- munication with the elders of Israel, saying, In times past ye sought for David to be king over you : now then do it : for God hath spoken of David, saying. By the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies. And Abner also spake in the ears of Benjamin : and Abner went also to speak in the ears of David in Hebron all that seemed good to Israel, and to the whole house of Benjamin. So Abner came to David to Hebron, and twenty men with him. And David made Abner and the men that were with him a feast. And Abner said unto David, I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel unto my lord the king, that they may make a league with thee, and that thou mayest reign over all that thine heart desireth. And David sent Abner away ; and he went in peace. And, behold, the servants of David and Joab came from a raid, and brought in a great spoil with them : but Abner was" not with David. in Hebron; for he had sent him away, and he was gone in peace. When Joab and all the host that was with him were come, they told Joab, saying, Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he hath sent him away, and he is gone in peace. Then Joab came to the king, and said. What hast thou done ? behold, Abner came unto thee ; why is it that thou hast sent him away, and he is quite gone ? Thou knowest Abner the son of Ner, that he came to deceive thee, and to know thy going out and thy coming in, and to know all that thou doest. And when Joab was come out from David, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the well of Sirah : but David knew it not. And when Abner was returned to Hebron, Joab took him to the side of the gate to speak with him quietly, and smote him there in the belly, that he died, for the blood of Asahel his brother. And afterward when David heard it, he said, I and my kingdom are guiltless for ever from the blood of Abner the son of Ner : let it rest on the head of Joab, and upon all his father's house. And David said to Joab, and to all the people that were with him. Rend your clothes, and gird you with sackcloth, and mourn before Abner. And king David followed the bier. And they buried Abner in Hebron : and the king THE MURDER OF ABNER AND OF ESHBAAL 235 lifted up his voice^ and wept at the grave of Abiier; and all the people wept. And the king lamented over Abner, and saidj Had Abner to die as a reprobate dieth ? Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters : As a man falleth before wicked men^ so fellest thou. And all the people wept again over him. And all the people came to cause David to eat bread while it was yet day; but David sware^ saying. So do God to me, and more also, if I taste bread, or aught else, till the sun be down. And all the people took notice of it, and it pleased them : as whatsoever the king did pleased all the people. So all the people and all Israel understood that day that it M^as not of the king to slay Abner the son of Ner. And the king said unto his servants. Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel ? And I am this day weak, though anointed king ; and these men the sons of Zeruiah be too hard for me : may God reward the doer of evil according to his wickedness. § 3- Upon the murder of Abner there followed hard the murder of his king. And when Eshbaal heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands grew feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled. Now Eshbaal had two men that were captains of bands : the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin. And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the day to the house of Eshbaal, as he took his rest at noon. And, behold, the woman that kept the door of the house was vdnnowing wheat, and she slumbered and slept; and the brethren, Rechab and Baanah, went privily into the house, and as he lay on his bed in his bedchamber, they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and- gat them away toward the Arabah all night. And they brought his head unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Eshbaal the son of Saul thine enemy, who sought thy life; God hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed. And David answered Rechab 236 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As God liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity, when one told me, saying. Behold, Saul is dead, tliinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his tidings. How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed, shall I not now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth ? And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up beside the pool in Hebron, But they took the head of Eshbaal, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron. All eyes were now turned towards David, for his triumph was assured. Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. In times past, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and God said to thee. Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be ruler over Israel. So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron ; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before God ; and they anointed David king over Israel. David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. He reigned over Judah seven years and six months : and he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah. The date of Saul's death was about 1018 : so that David's reign extended from about 10 18 to 978 B.C. § 4. David's election to be king over all Israel was quickly followed by renewed war with the Philistines. David was not minded to be ruler of a tributary kingdom! Of the details of this war we hardly know anything. Once David was in great danger. A Philistine giant called Dod, whose spear weighed 300 shekels of brass, made at him and was near to have killed him. *But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David adjured him, * saying, Thou shalt go no more with us to battle, that thou quench not the lamp of Israel.' On another occasion, apparently quite soon after THE NEW CAPITAL 237 David's election as king of Israel at Hebron, when- he had been compelled to retreat to the mountain stronghold of Adullam, and the Philistines had occupied Bethlehem, we are told that : David longed, and said. Oh that one would give me to drink of the vt^ater of the vrell at Bethlehem which is by the gate ! And the three mightiest heroes of David's army brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it and brought it to David ; but he would not drink thereof, but poured it out as a libation to God. For he said. Be it far from me, O God, that I should do this : should I drink the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives ? Therefore he would not drink thereof. Finally David successfully carried the war into the enemy's country and captured the capital of the Philistines. After this, they seem to have made peace with Israel, and to have given their neighbours no further ti'ouble. § 5, The next thing we are told about David is his choice of a new and central capital for his kingdom. He chose Jerusalem, at that time called Jebus, and in the possession of a Canaanite clan. It was an excellent choice. Jerusalem is a city of hills, and it has been proved over and over again how difficult it is to capture it in fight or siege. It lies in the extreme north of Judah, and David*s capital was therefore in the middle of his kingdom. As a trade centre ifc was also of value. David captured the city by a coup de main. And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem (which is Jebus) ; where the Jebusites were, the inhabitants of the land. And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come hither. Nevertheless David took the citadel, called Zion, which is the city of David. And David said. Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites first shall be chief and captain. And Joab the son of Zeruiah went first up, and was chief. And David dwelt in the citadel ; therefore they called it the city of David, And he fortified the city and repaired it. So David waxed greater and greater; for the Lord of hosts was with him. David determined to make his new capital the religious as well as the political centre of his kingdom. To that end he brought 233 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thither the Ark, of the making of which we heard in the Eetrospect of Moses. He desired also to build, and he made preparations for the building of a large national temple which should worthily enshrine the ancient Ark, and give still greater fame to his capital and his dynasty. Nevertheless he did not build this temple himself, for he was ordered by the prophet Nathan to forego the building. This is what we hear. And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons : and they built David an house. And it came to pass, that the king said unto Nathan the prophet. See now, I dwell in an house of *cedar, but the Ark is only in a tent with curtains. And Nathan said to the king. Go, do all that is in thine heart ; for God is with thee. But it came to pass the same night, that the M^ord of God came unto Nathan, saying. Thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thou shalt not build me an house. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be ruler over my people : and I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies ; and I will make thee a great name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in tiheir own place, and move no more ; and I will cause them to rest from all their enemies. And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, and I wiU establish their kingdom, and they shall build an house for my name. I will be their father, and they shall be my sons : if they commit iniquity, I will chasten them with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men ; but my mercy shall not depart from them, as I took it from him who was before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before me : thy throne shall be established for ever. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David, Then David said. Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me as far as this ? And this was yet a small thing in thine eyes, O Lord God ; but thou hast spoken also of thy servant^s house for a great while to come; and hast let me see future generations, O Lord God ! And what can David say more unto thee ? for THE SON OF JONATHAN 239 thou knowest thy servant, O Lord God. For thy servant^s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done, to make thy servant know all this greatness. Wherefore thou art great, O Lord God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears. And what one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel? For thou didst make Israel to be a people unto thee for ever; and thou becamest their God. And now, O Lord God, the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, establish thou it for ever, and do as thou hast said. •^ And let thy name be magnified for ever: and may the house of thj^ servant David be established before thee. For thou, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, hast revealed to thy servant, saying, I will build thee an house : therefore hath thy servant found in his heart to pray this prayer unto thee. And now, O Lord God, thou art God, and thy words are true, and thou hast promised this goodness unto thy servant : now therefore let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee : for thou, O Lord God, hast spoken it : and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever. § 6. The next story we hear of David shows him to us in a kindly light : he has not yet forgotten bis friendship with Jonathan. Now Jonathan, SauPs son, had a son who was lame of his feet. For he was five years old when the tidings came of the death of Saul and Jonathan, and his nurse took him up and fled : and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Meribbaal. And David said. Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may shew him kindness for Jonathan's sake ? And there was of the house of Saul a servant whose name was Ziba, and they called him unto David; and the king said unto him. Art thou Ziba ? And he said. Thy servant is he. And the king said. Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may shew the kindness of God unto him ? And Ziba said unto the king, Jonathan hath yet a son, who is lame on his feet. And the king said unto him. Where is he ? And Ziba said unto the king. Behold, he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar. 240 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. And Meribbaal^ the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul^ came unto David, and fell on his face, and did reverence. And David said, Meiibbaal ! And he answered, Behold thy servant! And David said unto him, Fear not : for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy grandfather; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. And he did obeisance, and said. What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am ? Then the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said unto him, I have given unto thy master's son aH that pertained to Saul and to all his house. Thou therefore, and thy sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him ; and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have bread to eat : but Meribbaal thy mastei''s son shall eat bread alway at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. Then said Ziba unto the king. According to all that my lord the king commandeth his servant, so shall thy servant do. So Meribbaal ate at the king's table, as one of the king's sons. And Meribbaal had a young son, whose name was Micha. And all that dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants unto Meribbaal, So Meribbaal dwelt in Jerusalem : for he did eat continually at the king's table ; and he was lame on both his feet, § 7. Now once more we come back to scenes of war. What kind act Nahash, king of Ammon, had shown to David is not known or alluded to elsewhere. And it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead. And David said, I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father shewed kindness unto me. So David sent by the hand of his servants to condole wdth him for his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon, But the princes of the children of Ammon said unto Hanun their lord, Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? hath not David sent his servants unto thee to search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it ? So Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, and DEFEAT OF TrtE SYRIANS 241 sent them away. When they told it unto David, he sent to meet them ; for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said. Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return. And when the children of Ammon saw that they were become odious to David, the children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-rehob, and the Syrians of Zobah, twenty thousand footmen, and the king of Maacah and Ishtob with twelve thousand men. And when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host of the mighty men. And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array at the entering in of the gate : and the Syrians of Zobah, and of Rehob, and Ishtob and Maacah, were by themselves in the open field. And when Joab saw that he was likely to be attacked both before and behind, he chose from among all the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians : and the rest of the people he committed into the hand of Abishai his brother, that he might put them in array against the children of Ammon. And he said. If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me : but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will come and help thee. Be of good courage, and let us play the men for our people, and for our cities : and may God do that which seemeth him good. So Joab and the people that were with him drew nigh unto the battle against the Syrians : and they fled before him. And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fled, then fled they also before Abishai, and entered into the city. So Joab returned from the children of Ammon, and came to Jerusalem, And when the Syiians saw that they were smitten before Israel, they gathered themselves together. And Hadadezer sent, and brought out the Syrians that were beyond the River: and they came to Helam, and Shobach the captain of the host of Hadadezer went before them at their head. And it was told David ; and he gathered all Israel together, and passed over Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Syrians set them- selves in array against David, and fought with him. And the Syrians fled before Israel ; and David slew of the Syrians the horses of seven hundred chariots, and forty thousand men, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, that he died there. And when all tlie kings that were servants to Hadadezer saw that they were smitten before Israel, they 242 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING made peace with Israel^ and served them. So the Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon any more. And it came to pass, at the return of the year, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel ; and they ravaged the land of the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried at Jerusalem. [For ' Syrians * it would be more accurate to say Aramaeans. But wbo the Aramaeans were, what was their degree of kinship to the Hebrews, and why the English Bible calls them Syrians, I cannot explain here, for it would take too long.] § 8. The campaign against the Ammonites was the occasion of the greatest sin of David's life. His cruelties in war were not out of harmony with the moral ideas of the age, but the sin of which we are now to hear made a deep impression upon his contemporaries. You will remember that David, like other Eastern monarchs, had many wives. But in those days, as in Mahommedan countries now, to have more than one wife was not considered wrong. And it came to pass one evening, that David was walking upon the roof of his house; and from the roof he saw a beautiful woman : and the woman was very fair to look upon. And David sent and inquired after her. And one said. She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite. Now Uriah the Hittite was serving in the army under Joab before Rabbah, So David sent a letter to Joab, and he wrote in the letter, saying. Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die. And it came to pass, while Joab was besieging the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were. And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab : and there fell some of the men of David ; and Uriah the Hittite died also. Then Joab sent and told David all the things concern- ing the war ; and he charged the messenger, saying. When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the war unto the king, and if so be that the king^s wrath arise, and he say unto thee, Wherefore went ye so nigh unto the city when ye did fight ? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall ? why went ye so nigh the wall ? then shalt thou say, Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also. DAVID S SIN AND NATHAN S PARABLE 243 So the messenger went^ and when he arrived and told David all that Joab had bidden him^ and how the war progressed, David was wrath with Joabj and he said to the messenger. Wherefore went ye so near to the city to fight ? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall ? why drew ye nigh unto 'the wall ? And the messenger said unto David, Because the men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we followed after them even unto the entering of the gate. And the shooters shot at thy servants from off the wall; and some of the king's servants be dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also. Then David said unto the mes- senger. Thus shalt thou say unto Joab, Let not this thing displease thee, for the sword devoureth now one and now the other; make thy battle more strong against the city, and overthrow it : and encourage thou him. And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife. But the thing that David had done displeased God. And God sent Nathan the prophet unto David, And he came unto him, and said unto him. There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds : but the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up : and it grew up together with him, and with his children ; it did eat of his own food, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him, but took the poor man^s lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him. And David^s anger was greatly kindled against the man ; and he said to Nathan, As God liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die : and he shall restore the lamb sevenfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul, Wherefore hast thou despised the bidding of God, to do evil in his sight ? thou hast smitten Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the B 2 244 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING sword of the children of Ammon, And David said unto Nathan^ I have surely sinned against God. Now a son was born to David and Bathsheba^ and it came to pass soon afterwards that it was very ill. Then David besought God for the child, and he fasted, and lay all night upon the ground. And the elders of his house arose, and went to him, to raise him up from the ground : but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead : for they said. Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice : how then shall we tell him that the child is dead, so that he do himself some harm ? But when David saw that his servants whispered together, David perceived that the child was dead : and David said unto his servants, Is the child dead ? And they said. He is dead. Then David arose from the ground, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his appai'el ; and he came into the house of God, and worshipped : then he came to his own house ; and he asked, and they set bread before him, and he did eat. Then said his servants unto him. What thing is this that thou hast done ? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive ; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread. And he said. While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept : for I said. Who knoweth whether God will not be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again ? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me. In the eyes of all his contemporaries the death of this little child was David's punishment for his sin against Uiiah. That seems fcti'ange to us to-day, but in ancient times a man's family and especially his sons were regarded much more as an actual part of him than they are at presenfc, so that it was not only not thought unjust if a son suffered through the sin of his father, but such suffering was looked upon as a punishment. § 9. Meanwhile the war with the Ammonites was brought to a Buccessful end. And Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and took the city of waters. And Joab sent messengers to ABSALOM'S FEAST 245 Davidj and said^ I have fought against Rahbah, and have taken the city of waters. Now therefore gather the rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and take it : lest I take the city, and my name be connected with it. And David gathered all the people together, and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it. And he took the crown of their idol from off its head ; and the weight thereof was a talent of gold, and in it was a precious stone ; and it was set on David's head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city in great abundance. And he brought forth the people that were therein, and made them labour at saws, and harrows of iron, and axes of iron, and at bricks : and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Amnion. And David and all the people returned unto Jerusalem, § 10. As years passed on, troubles came to David from his own family. Two of his sons, Absalom and Amnon, had a desperate quarrel with each other, in which Amnon was in the wrong. Disastrous and far-reaching were its issues. And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom held sheepshearing in Baal-hazor : and Absalom invited all the king's sons. And Absalom came to the king, and said. Behold now, thy servant holdeth sheepshearing ; let the king, I beseech thee, and his servants go with thy servant. And the king said to Absalom, Nay, my son, let us not all go, lest we be a burden unto thee. And he pressed him : howbeit he would not go, but bade him farewell. Then said Absalom, If not, I pray thee, let my brother Amnon go with us. And the king said unto him. Why should he go with thee ? But Absalom pressed him, that he let Amnon and all the king's sons go with him. And Absalom made a feast like a king's feast, and he commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now, when Amnon's heart is merry with wine ; and when I say unto you. Smite Amnon, then kill him, fear not : have not I commanded you ? be courageous, and be valiant. And the servants of Absalom did unto Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king's sons arose, and every man gat him up upon his mule, and fled. And it came to pass, while they were in the way, that tidings came to David, saying, Absalom hath slain all the king's sons, and there is not one of them left. Then the king arose, and tore his garments, and lay on the earth ; and all his servants 246- THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING who stood by rent their clothes. And Jonadab^ the son of Shimeah David's brother, answered and said. Let not my lord suppose that they have killed all the young men the king's sons ; for Amnon only is dead. Now therefore let not my lord the king take the thing to his heart, to think that all the king's sons are dead : for Amnon only is dead. And the young man that kept the watch lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came much people, coming from the way of Horonaim down the hill ; and he came and told the king and said, I see men coming from the way of Horonaim down the hill. And Jonadab said unto the king. Behold, the king's sons are come : as thy servant said, so it is. And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of speaking, that, behold, the king's sons came, and lifted up their voice, and wept : and the king also and all his servants wept very sore. And David mourned for his son every day. But Absalom fled, and went to Talmai the son of Ani- mihur, king of Geshur, and was there three years. And the spirit of the king longed to go forth unto Absalom : for he was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead. Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king's heart was toward Absalom, And Joab sent to Tekoa, and fetched- thence a wise woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on mourning apparel, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned for the dead : and come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth. And when the woman of Tekoa came to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said. Help, O king, help ! And the king said unto her. What aileth thee ? And she answered, I am indeed a widow woman, and mine husband is dead. And thy handmaid had two sons, and they two strove together in the field, and there was none to part them, but the one smote the other, and slew him. And, behold, the whole family is risen against thine handmaid, and they said. Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother whom he slew ; so shall they quench my coal which is left, and shall leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the earth. And the king said unto the woman. Go to thine house, and I will give THE WOMAN OF TEKOA 247 charge concerning thee. And the woman of Tekoa said unto the king, My lord, O king, the iniquity be on me, and on my father's house : and the king and his throne be guiltless. And the king said. Whosoever saith aught unto thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more. Then said she, I pray thee, let the king remember the Lord thy God, that thou suffer not the revenger of blood to destroy any more, lest they destroy my son. And he said. As God liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth. Then the vpoman said, Let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak a word unto my lord the king. And he said. Say on. And the woman said. Wherefore then hast thou devised such a thing against the people of God ? for the king, in saying this, is as one who is guilty, in that the king doth notietch home again his banished. For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the gi'ound, which cannot be gathered up again ; yet doth God not take away the life of him who deviseth means how he that is banished may be no longer an outcast from him. Now therefore seeing that I am come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid : and thy handmaid said, I will now speak unto the Idngj it may be that the king will perform the request of his servant. For the king will hear, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God. And the woman said. The word of my lord the king shall be comfortable unto me : for as an,.angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad : and the Lord thy God be with thee. Then the king answered and said unto the woman. Hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that I shall ask thee. And the woman said. Let my lord the king now speak. And the king said. Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this ? And the woman answered and said. As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from aught that my lord the king hath spoken : for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid : to change the face of the matter hath thy servant Joab done this thing : and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth. 248 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Then the king said unto Joab^ Behold now, I will do this thing: go therefore, bring the young man Absalom again. And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and bowed himself, and blessed the king: and Joab said. To-day thy servant knoweth that I have found grace in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king hath fulfilled the request of his servant. So Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. And the king said. Let him turn to his own house, but let him not see my face. So Absalom turned to his own house, and saw not the king^s face. Now in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. And when he polled his head, (it was at every year's end that he polled it : because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it:) he weighed the hair of his head at two hunclred shekels, after the king's weight. And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar : she was a woman of a fair countenance. So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem; and he saw not the king's face. Then Absalom sent for Joab, to fiend him to the king ; but he would not come to him ; and when he sent again a second time, he would not come. Therefore he said unto his servants. See, Joab's field is near mine, and he hath barley there ; go and set it on fire. And Absalom's servants set the field on fire. Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him, Whergfore have thy servants set my field on fire ? And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent unto thee, saying. Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say,_ Wherefore am I come from Geshur ? it had been good for me to have been there still ; now therefore let me see the king's face ; and if there be iniquity in me, let him kill me. So Joab came to the king, and told him : and when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king : and the king kissed Absalom. §11. Thus Absalom won his pardon from the king. But in spite of this he showed the blackest ingratitude to his father, and rebelled against him. He attempted to stir up dissension between * Israel ' and * Judah,' between the men of the north and the men ABSALOM S REBELLION 249 of the soutL The long narrative of Absalom's rebellion is too dramatic and exciting to be broken up into sections. Let us hear it as a whole. And it came to pass after this^ that Absalom prepared him a chariot and horses^ and fifty men to run before him. And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate : and it was so, that when any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgement, then Absalom called" unto him, and said. Of what city art thou ? And he said. Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel. And Absalom said unto him. See, thy matters are good and right ; but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee, Absalom said moreover. Oh that I were made judge in the land^ that every man who hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice ! And it was so, that when any man came nigh to do him obeisance, he put forth his hand, and took him, and kissed him. And on this manner did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for judgement : so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel. And it came to pass at the end of four years, that Absalom said unto the king, I pray thee, let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed unto God, in Hebron. For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur, saying. If God shall indeed bring me again to Jerusalem, then I will perform it. And the king said unto him. Go in peace. So he arose, and went to Hebron, But Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, As soon as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, then ye shall say, Absalom reigneth in Hebron. And with Absalom went two hundred men out of Jerusalem, that were called, and went in their simplicity; and they knew not any thing. And Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilo- nite, David's counsellor, from his city, even from Giloh, while he offered the sacrifices. And the conspiracy was strong ; for the people increased continually with Absalom, And there came a messenger to David, saying. The hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom, And David said unto all his servants that were with him at Jerusalem, Arise, and let us flee ; for M^e shall not else escape from Absalom : make speed to depart, lest he overtake us suddenly, and bring evil upon us, and smite the city with the edge of the sword. And the king's servants said unto the king, Behold, thy 250 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING servants are ready to do whatsoever my lord the king shall decide. And the king went forth, and all his servants and his household, and they halted at the last house. And all his servants passed on beside him ; and all the mercenaries, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and the men of Ittai, the Gittite, who came from Gath, six hundred men in all, passed on before the king. Then said the king to Ittai the Gittite, Wherefore goest thou also with us ? return, and abide with the kJhg : for thou art a foreigner, and also an exile from thy place. Whereas thou camest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go up and down with us, seeing I go whither I may ? return thou, and take back thy brethren ; God will shew thee mercy and truth. And Ittai answered the king, and said. As God liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be. And David said to Ittai, Go and pass by. And Ittai the Gittite passed by, and all his men, and all the little ones that were with him. And all the country, wept with a loud voice, while all the people passed by. And the king stood by the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over toward the olive tree which is by the wilderness. And, lo, Zadok also came and Abiathar, the priests, bearing the ark of God ; and they set down the ark of God, xmtil all the people had done passing out of the city. And the king said unto Zadok, Carry back the ark of God into the city: if I shall find favour in the eyes of God, he will bring me again : but if he say thus, I have no delight in thee ; behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him. The king said also unto Zadok, Return into the city in peace, and Ahimaaz thy son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. See, I will tarry at the fords of the wilderness, until there come word from you to certify me. Zadok therefore and Abiathar carried the ark of God again to Jerusalem: and they tarried there. And David went up by the ascent of the mount of Olives, and wept as he went up ; and he had his head covered, and went barefoot : and all the people that were with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went. And one told David, saying, Ahithophel is among the con- spirators with Absalom, And David said, O God, I pray thee, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness. And SHIMEI CASTS STONES AT DAVID 251 it came to pass^ that when David was come to the top of the ascent, behold, Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his coat rent, and earth upon his head ; and David said unto him, If thou passest on with me, then thou shalt be a burden unto me : but if thou return to the city, and say unto Absa- lom, I will be thy servant, O king ; as I have been thy f ather^s servant in time past, so will I now be thy servant ; then niayest thou defeat for me the counsel of Ahithophel, And hast thou not there with thee Zadok and Abiathar the priests ? therefore it shall be, that what thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king^s house, thou shalt tell it to Zadok and Abia- thar the priests. Behold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz Zadok^s son, and Jonathan Abiathai-^s son ; and by them ye shall send unto me every thing that ye can hear. So Hushai David^s friend came into the city ; and Absalom came into Jerusalem. And when David was a little past the top of the hill, behold, Ziba the servant of Meribbaal met him, with a couple of asses saddled, and upon them two hundred loS-ves of bread, and an hundred bunches of raisins, and an hundred of summer fruits, and a skin of wine. And the king said unto Ziba, What meanest thou by these ? And Ziba said. The asses be for the king^s family to ride on ; and the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat ; and the wine, that such as be faint in the wilderness may drink. And the king said. And where is thy master's son ? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem : for he said. To-day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father. Then said the king to Ziba, Behold, thine is all that pertained unto Meribbaal. And Ziba said, I humbly beseech thee that I may find grace in thy sight, my lord, O king. And when king David came to Bahurim, behold, thence came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera : he came out, and cursed still as he came. And he cast stones at David, and at all the servants of king David : and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. And thus said Shimei when he cursed. Begone, begone, thou man of blood, and worthless fellow ; God hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned; and God hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son : and, behold, thou art in misfortune, because thou 252 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING art a man of blood. Then said Abishai the son of Zemiah unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king ? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head. And the king said^ What have I to do vrith you, ye sons of Zeruiah ? If he curseth, and if God hath said unto him, Curse David ; who then shall say, Wherefore hast thou done so? And David said to Abishai, and to all his servants. Behold, my son seeketh my life: hov? much more this Benjamite ! let him alone, and let him curse : for God hath bidden him. It may be that God will look on my affliction, and will requite me good for his cursing this day. And as David and his men went by the way, Shimei went along on the hill side over against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him, and cast dust. And the king, and all the people that were with him, came weary to the Jordan ; and they refreshed themselves there. And Absalom, and all the men of Israel, came to Jeru- salem, and Ahithophel with him. And it came to pass, when Hushai the Archite, David's friend, was come unto Absalom, that Hushai said unto Absalom, God save the king, God save the king. And Absalom said to Hushai, Is this thy kindness to thy friend ? why wentest thou not with thy friend? And Hushai said unto Absalom, Nay; but whom this people, and all the men of Israel choose, his will I be, and with him will I abide. And again, whom do 1 serve? do I not serve his son? as I have served thy father, so will I serve his son. Then said Absalom to Ahithophel, Give counsel among you what we shall do. And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Let me now choose out twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night: and I will come upon him while he is weary and weak handed, and will make him afraid : and all the people that are with him shall flee ; and I will smite the king only : and I will bring back all the people unto thee, as a bride returneth unto her husband : thou seekest but the life of one man, and all the people shall be in peace. And the saying pleased Absalom well, and all the elders of Israel. Then said Absalom, Call now Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear likewise what he saith. And when Hushai was come to Absalom, Absalom spake unto him, saying, Ahitho- phel hath spoken after this manner : shall we do after his GOOD COUNSEL AND BAD S53 saying? if not^ speak thou. And Hushai said unto Absalonij The counsel that Ahithophel hath given is not good at this time. For, said Hushai, Thou knowest thy father and his men, that they be mighty men, and they are fierce of spirit, as a bear robbed of her whelps in the field : and thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with the people. Behold, he is hid now in some pit, or in some other place : and it will come to pass, when some of them be fallen at the first, that whosoever heareth it Mali say. There is a slaughter among the people that follow Absalom, And even he that is valiant, whose heart is as the heart of a lion, shall utterly melt : for all Israel knoweth that thy father is a mighty man, and they who be with him are'valiant men. Therefore I counsel that all Israel be gathered together unto thee, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, as the sand that is by the sea for multitude; and that thou go thyself in their midst. So shall we come upon him in some place where he shall be found, and we will light upon him as the dew falleth on the ground : and of him and of all the men that are with him we will not leave so much as one. Moreover, if he be gotten into a city, then shall all Israel bring ropes to that city, and we will draw it into the river, until there be not one small stone found there. And Absalom and all the men of Israel said. The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel. For God had devised to defeat the good counsel of Ahitho- phel, to the intent that evil might come upon Absalom, Then said Hushai unto Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, Thus and thus did Ahithophel counsel Absalom and the elders of Israel ; and thus and thus have I counselled. Now therefore send quickly, and tell David, saying, Lodge not this night at the fords of the wilderness, but speedily pass over ; lest the king be swallowed up, and all the people that are with him. Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz stayed by Enrogel; and a maidservant used to go and tell them ; and they went and told king David : for they might not be seen to come into the city. But a lad saw them, and told Absalom : and they went both of them away quickly, and came to a man^s house in Bahurim, who had a well in his court, whither they went down. And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth, and scattered ground com thereon ; and the thing was not known. And when Absalom's ser- vants came to the woman to the house, they said, Where are 254 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Ahimaaz and Jonathan ? And the woman said unto them, They be gone over the brook of water. And when they had sought and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem. And it came to pass, after they were departed, that they came up out of the well, and went and told king David; and they said unto David, Arise ye, and pass quickly over the water : for thus hath Ahithophel counselled against you. Then David arose, and all the people that were with him, and they passed over Jordan: by the morning light there lacked not one of them that was not gone over Jordan. And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home, unto his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself; and he died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father. Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom passed over Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. And Absalom made Amasa captain over the host instead of Joab. And Israel and Absalom pitched in the land of Gilead. And it came to pass, when David was come to Mahanaim, that Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, brought beds, and coverlets, and pots, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and meal, and parched corn, and beans, and lentils, and honey, and butter, and sheep, and cheese of kine, for David, and for the people that were with him, to eat, for they said. The people is hungry, and weary, and thirsty, in the wilderness. And David numbered the people that were with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them. And David divided his army in three parts, a third part under the hand of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third part under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said unto the people, I will surely go forth with you myself also. But the people said. Thou shalt not go forth : for if we flee away, they will not care for us ; neither if half of us die, will they care for lis : but thou art worth ten thousand of us : therefore now it is better that thou be prepared to succour us out of the city. And the king said unto them. What seemeth you best I will do. And the king stood by the gate side, and all the people came out by hundreds and by thousands. And the king THE DEATH OF ABSALOM 255 commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai^ saying. Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom. So the people went out into the field against Israel : and the battle was in the forest of Mahanaim. And the people of Israel were smitten there before the men of David, and there was a great slaughter there that day of twenty thousand men. For the battle was scattered over the face of aU the country : and the wood devoured more people that day than the sword devoured. And Absalom came across some of David^s men. And Absalom rode upon his mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak, and his head caught hold of the oak, and he hung between heaven and earth ; and the mule that was under him ran away. And a certain man saw it, and told Joab, and said. Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak. And Joab said unto .the man that told him. If thou sawest him, why didst thou not smite him there to the ground ? and I would have given thee ten pieces of silver and a girdle. And the man said unto Joab, Though I should receive a thousand pieces of silver in mine hand, yet would I not put forth mine hand against the king's son : for in our hearing the king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying. Have a care of the young man, of Absalom. Otherwise if I had dealt falsely against his life, (and there is no matter hid from the king,) thou thyself wouldest not have shielded me. Then said Joab, I may not taiTy thus with thee. And he took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak. And ten young men that bare Joab^s armour drew near and smote Absalom, and slew him. And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing after Israel : for Joab held back the people. And they took Absalom, and cast him into a great pit in the wood, and laid a very great heap of stones upon him : and all Israel fled every one to his tent. Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that God hath avenged him of his enemies, - And Joab said unto him. Thou shalt not be the bearer of tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another day: but" this day thou shalt bear no tidings, because the king's son is dead. Then said Joab to the Cushite, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. 256 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And the Cushite bowed himself unto Joab, and ran. Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Jbab, Neverthe- less^ let me, I pray thee, also run after the Cushite. And Joab said, Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou wilt have no recompense for the tidings ? Notwith- standing, said he, I will run. And he said unto him. Run, Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Plain, and overran the Cushite. Now David sat between the two gates : and the watchman went up to the roof of the gate unto the wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, a man running alone. And the watchman cried, and told the king. And the king said. If he be alone, there is tidings in his mouth. And he came apace, and drew near. And the watchman saw another man running : and the watchman called into the gate, and said. Behold, another man running alone. And the king said. He also bringeth tidings. And the watchman said. Me thinketh the running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok. And the king said, He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings. And Ahimaaz drew near and called, and said unto the king, All is well. And he fell down to the earth upon his face before the king, and said. Blessed be the Lord thy God, who hath delivered up the men that lifted up their hand against my lord the king. And the king said. Is the young man Absalom safe ? And Ahimaaz answered, When Joab sent thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was. And the king said. Tarn aside, and stand here. And he turned aside, and stood still. And, behold, the Cushite came ; and the Cushite said. Tidings for my lord the king : for God hath avenged thee this day of all them that rose up against thee. And the king said unto the Cushite, Is the young man Absalom safe ? And the Cushite answered. The enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise against thee to do thee huit, be as that young man is. Then the king shuddered, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept : and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom ! would God I had died in thy stead, O Absalom, my son, my son ! And it was told Joab, Behold, the king weepeth and mourneth for Absalom. And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people : for the people heard say that day how the king was grieved for his son. And the ' O ABSALOM, MY SON, MY SON ! ' 257 people gat them by stealth that day into the city, as people being ashamed steal away when they flee in battle. And the king covered his fat^e, and the king cried with a loud voice^ my son Absalom, , O Absalom, my son, my son ! And Joab came into the house to the king, and said. Thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, who this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy vidves ; in tha,t thpu lovest thine enemies and hatest thy friends. For thou hast declared this day, that princes and servants are nothing to thee : for this day I perceive, that if Absalona had lived, and all we had died this day, then it had pleased thee well. Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak comfortably unto thy servants : for 1 swear if thou go not forth, there will not tany one with thee this night: and that wiQ be worse unto thee than all the evil that befell thee from thy youth until nqw. Then the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying, Behold, the king doth sit in the gate: and all the people came before the king. This long Bection of the revolt and death of Absalom presents no particular difficulties. How lifelike and vivid the narrative is — one of the best examples of classic Hebrew prose, written too in all probability not very long after the events which it describes. We shall hear in the next section that Meribbaal was perhaps quite innocent of the treachery which Ziba imputes to lum. But his innocence is left uncertain, and David, as we shall see, was himself uncertain too. David's foi-bearance to Shimei is very striking. It is based upon his faith in God. Because David believed that Absalom's revolt was God-willed, he held his peace at Shimei's insolence, and forgave him at his return. Of course the advice of Ahithophel was far better than Hushai'a pretended good counsel. Through the delay David was able to collect a considerable army. The story reaches its culmination of interest and beauty in David's agony at the news of Absalom's death. Eebellion and ingratitude cannot destroy his love. This is another striking instance of the noble elements in David's character, § 12. We now hear how David returned to his capital, andl of the after-effects of Absalom's rebellion. Now Israel had fled every man to his tent. And all the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying^ s 258 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The king delivered us out of the hand of our enemies, and he saved us out of the hand of the Philistines ; and now he is fled out of the land from Absalom. And Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now therefore why do ye delay to bring the king back ? And what Israel said came unto the king. And the king sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, 8a3dng, Speak unto the elders of Judah, saying. Why are ye backward to bring the king back to his house ? Ye are my brethren, ye are my bones and my flesh : wherefore then are ye backward to bring back the king ? And say ye to Amasa, Art thou not of my bone and of my flesh ? God do so to me, and more also, if thou be not captain of the host before me continually in the room of Joab. And he bowed the heart of all the men of Judah, even as the heart of one man ; so that they sent word unto the king, Return thou, and all thy servants. So the king returned, and came to Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to conduct the king over Jordan. And Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, who was of Bahurim, hasted and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David. And there were a thousand men of Benjamin with him. And Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him, sped down to Jordan before the king, and crossed over the ford in order to bring over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, as he was about to pass over Jordan, And he said unto the king. Let not my lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy servant did perversely the day that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem, that the king should take it to his heart. For thy servant doth know that I have sinned : therefore, behold, I am come this day the first of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said. Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed God's anointed ? And David said. What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah, that ye should this day be tempters unto me? shall there any man be put to death this day in Israel ? for do not I know that I am this day king over Israel ? So the king said unto Shimei, Thou shalt not die. And the king sware unto him. David's return to Jerusalem 259 And Meribbaal the son of Saul came down to meet the king ; and he had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came again in peace. And it came to pass, when he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, that the king said unto him. Wherefore wentest thou not with me, Meribbaal ? And he answered. My lord, O king, my servant deceived me : for thy servant said. Saddle me an ass, that I may ride thereon, and go to the king ; because thy servant is lame. And he hath slandered thy servant unto my lord the king ; but my lord the king is as an angel of God : do therefore what is good in thine eyes. For all my father's house were but dead men before my lord the king : yet didst thou set thy servant among them that did eat at thine own table. What right therefore have I yet to cry any more unto the king ? And the king said unto him. Why speakest thou any more words ? I say, Thou and Ziba divide the land. And Meribbaal said unto the king. Yea, let him take all, forasmuch as my lord the king is come in peace unto his own house. And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim ; and he went down to the Jordan with the king, to conduct him over Jordan. Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even four- score years old : and he had provided the king with sustenance while he lay at Mahanaim; for he was a very rich man. And the king said unto Barzillai, Come thou over with me, and I will sustain thine old age with me in Jerusalem. And Barzillai said unto the king. How long have I to live, that I should go up with the king unto Jerusalem ? I am this day fourscore years old : can I discern between good and bad ? can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink ? can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women ?. wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto my lord the king ? Thy servant would but just go a little way with the king : and why should the king recompense it me with such a reward? Let thy servant, I pray thee, turn back again, that I may die in mine own city, by the grave of my father and my mother. But behold, thy servant Chim- ham ; let him go over with my lord the king ; and do to him what shall seem good unto thee. And the king answered, Chimham shall go over with me, and I will do to him that which shall seem good unto thee : and whatsoever thou shalt require of me, that will I do for thee. And all the people s % 26o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING went over Jordan, and the king went over: and the king kissed Barzillai, and blessed him : and he returned unto his own place. So the king went over to Gilgal, and Chimham went over with him : and all the people of Judah escorted the king, and also half the people of Israel. And, behold, all the rest of the men of Israel drew near and came to the king, and said. Why have our brethren the men of Judah stolen thee away, and brought the king, and his household, over Jordan, and all David^s men with him ? And all the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, Because the king is near of kin to us : wherefore then be ye angry for this matter ? have we eaten at all of the king^s cost? or hath there been aught gained by us ? And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said. We have ten parts in the king, and I am also the firstborn rather than thou : why then do ye despise us ? and was not our advice the first to bring back our king ? But the words of the men of Judah were yet fiercer than the words of the men of Israel. And there happened to be there a worthless man, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichii, a Benjamite: and he blew the trumpet, and said. We have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse : every man to his tents, O Israel. So every man of Israel deserted David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri: but the men of Judah clave unto their king, from Jordan even to Jerusalem. Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Judah within three days, and be thou here present. So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah : but he tarried longer than the set time which David had appointed him. And David said to Joab, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom : take thou thy lord^s servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and cause us great mischief. So Joab went out with Abishai and his troops, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men : and they went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri. When they were at the great stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. And Joab had a sword in his hand underneath his warrior's dress, and over it he was girt with a sword fastened upon his loins in the sheath thereof; and as he went forth it fell out. And Joab said to Amasa, SHEBA THE BENJAMITE 261 Art thou in health, my brother ? And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him. But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand : so he smote him therewith in the belly, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and struck him not again ; and he died. And Joab and Abishai his brother pursued after Sheba the son o£ Bichri. And there stood over him one of Joab's young men, and said. He that favoureth Joab, and he that is for David, let him follow Joab. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he earned Amasa out of the high way into the field, and cast a garment over him, when he saw that every one that came by him stood still. When he was removed out of the high way, all the people went on after Joab, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri, And Sheba passed through all the tribes of -Israel unto Abel, and all the Bichrites gathered together, and went in after him into the city. And Joab and his army came and besieged him in Abel, arid they cast up a bank against the city, and it stood against the outmost wall : and all the people that were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down. Then cried a wise woman out of the city, Hear, hear ; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither, that I may speak with thee. And he came near unto her; and the woman said. Art thou Joab? And he answered, I am. Then she said unto him, Hear the words of thine handmaid. And he answered, I do hear. Then she spake, saying, They were wont to speak in old time, saying, Let them ask in Abel and in Dan whether anything had ever there come to an end which the faithful of Israel had established : thou seekest to destroy a city and a mother in Israel: why wilt thou swallow us up ? And Joab answered and said. Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy. The matter is not so : but a man of the hill country of Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against the king, even against David : deUver him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said unto Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall. Then the woman persuaded all the people in her wisdom to cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and to throw it out to Joab. And he blew the trumpet, and they withdrew from the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalem unto the king. 262 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING It was, I suppose, because David realized that Absalom's death was due to Joab that he put Amasa in Joab's place as commander- in-chief. Joab, cruel and fierce as he was, had always been faithful to David, whereas Amasa had deserted to Absalom. Though Joab forgave David, he did not forgive Amasa, and his hands were stained with another murder. The meaning of the saying of the wise woman of Abel is, that Joab was about to destroy a city which had been always specially faithful and loyal to old Israelite ordinances" and traditions. The revolt of Absalom is almost the last historical event of which we hear in the reign of David. He died at a ripe old age, and was succeeded by his son Solomon. It was not entirely a peaceful or undisputed succession, for there was an elder son called Adonijah, whose claims were set aside by David at the instigation of Solomon and of his mother Bath-sheba, And soon after his accession, Solomon, in true eastern despot fashion, put Adonijah to death. But I do not propose to say more about Adonijah in this place. Yet before going on with the reign of Solomon, there is still something more to be said of David himself. And what there is to say is so different in character as to require a chapter to itself. DAVID THE IDEAL KING 263 CHAPTER X THE IDEALIZING OP DAVID § I. The character of David was many-sided and full of contrasts. To us who judge him by modern standards the bad elements in it stand out almost as clearly as the elements of goodness and of greatness. But to his contemporaries the good and the attractive predominated largely over the repulsive and the evil, for Ds-vid's faults were mainly the faults of every successful wariior and statesman of his age, and therefore were little recognized as such. When, as in the case of Bath-sheba, he exceeded the licence of the time, his sincere repentance was as conspicuous as his sin. We see that he inspired among his friends and adherents genuine and even passionate devotion, and the very attractiveness of his nature serves liim in good stead when he is playing a part in his relations with Achish, king of Gath. David was a great patriot. He loved his country well, and did not, like his successor, oppress and impoverish it by cruel taxation and wasteful display. He was a mighty and successful warrior ; he ruled over a united Israel ; in spite of many reverses and calamities he made his kingdom powerful, respected, prosperous. The reign of the £rst king of Israel had ended in gloom and in disaster, but David vanquished the Philistines for good and all, and his own loDg reign ended quietly in peace and splendour. Thus the age of David was a contrast to all that had preceded it and to all that was to come. As, therefore, David was an ideal king to the men of his own age, so he remained the ideal king to the ages that followed him. But he could only remain the ideal king by his character becoming, as we say, idealized. For men's ideals of goodness and greatness change and vary (and on the whole for the better) from age to age, so that if the hero of one age is to remain the ideal hero of another, the conception of his character must gradually be modified. Men put or read into the actual character all that they are fain to believe was really there. And thus even as the real David answered to the ideal of his own age, so an idealized David was made to answer to the ideal of ages to come. a64 THE BIBLE' FOR HOME READING First of all then David becomes and remains the ideal Hebrew king. In days of trouble and of weakness, in days of exile and depression, the heroic figure of David loomed large in the popular imagination, and when men dreamed of a great king to come who should deliver Israel from his enemies and secure a golden age of prosperity and righteousness, they thought of him not only as a scion of David's race, but himself as a second David, possessed of all the idealized glory and sublimity of his great progenitor. § 2. Eut David was not merely the ideal king from the point of view of emancipation and of war. He was also the ideal king because he was genuinely devoted to the national religion, the firm fiiend of prophet and of priest. From this point of view too his character was idealized, because men's ideas of religion and of piety are also changed Und modified from age to age. Moreover, David was a famous singer and musician, a poet too of no mean capacity, to judge by his noble lamentation over Jonathan and Saul. Taking these two facts together, it is not surprising that when Hebrew poetry became more and more exclusively religious (so that the ideal poet was the religious poet), men were wont to ascribe the national hymns, as- they increased and were collected, to David, the ideal poist, even as they ascribed the national laws to Moses, the ideal legislator. "We still have preserved to us in the Bible a uniquely beautiful collection of these hymns {150 in number); kn6wn now as the 5ook of Psalms. Of these 150 hymns, some seventy-three are ascribed by their ' headings ' to David, Thus the Psalms of David have become famous all the world over, though it is quite possible that none of the seventy-three are rightly ascribed to him. Happily this uncertainty does not affect their beauty, any more than the uncertainty about the similar authorship of the Mosaic laws affects their value. § 3. Of the seventy-three Davidic Psalms some are not merely Leaded * A psalm of David,' but are referred to that particular period in his life for which, in the eyes of the editor, they seemed ap- propriate. And in order that we may see what sort of thoughts appeared to the later Hebrews to fit in with David's character and career in certain important events of his life, I will quote a few of these Psalms here, though not in their entirety. The following hymn is called * A psalm of David when he fled before Absalom, his son.' Lord, how are they increased that trouble me : Many are they that rise up against me. Many there be who say of my soul. There is no help for him in God. GOD A SHIELD AND A REFUGE 265 But thou^ O Godj art a shield around me ; My glory, and the lifter up of mine head. I cried unto God with my voice. And he answered me out of his holy habitation, I laid me down and slept ; I awaked ; for God sustaineth me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, That have set themselves against me round about. Arise and save me, O my God : Salvation belongeth unto thee : Thy blessing be upon thy people. The following hymn is headed ' A psalm of David, the servant of God, who spake the words of this song on the day that God delivered him from all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.' God is my rock in my affliction. He is my deliverer. My God is my rock, to whom I take refuge. My shield and the horn of my salvation ; He is my fortress and my refuge. My saviour, who saveth me from violence. I will call upon God, who is worthy to be praised : So shall I be saved from mine enemies. For waves and breakers had compassed me, Deceitful iloods had made me afraid. In my distress I called upon God, And he heard my voice. And my cry entered into his ears. He looked, and the earth trembled. The foundations of heaven moved And were shaken, because he was wroth. There went up a smoke out of his nostrils. And fire out of his mouth devoured : Coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down ; And darkness was under his feet. And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly : Yea, he was poised upon the wings of the wind. And he made darkness a pavilion round about him. Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies. At the brightness before him Hail and coals of fire broke forth. 266 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING God thundered from heaven, And the Most High uttered his voice. And he sent out arrows^ and scattered them; Lightning, and discomfited them. Then the channels of the sea appeared^ The foundations of the world were discovered. At the rebuking of God, At the blast of the breath of his nostrils. He reached out from on high, he took me ; He drew me out of great waters ; He delivered me from my strong enemy. From them that hated me; for they were too strong for me. They came upon me in the day of my calamity: But God was my stay. He brought me forth also into a large place : He delivered me, because he delighted in me. God rewarded me according to my righteousness : According to the cleanness of my hands hath he recom- pensed me. For I have kept the ways of God, And have not wickedly departed from my God. For all his judgenaents were before me : And from his statutes I did not depart. I was also flawless toward him. And I kept myself from iniquity. Therefore hath God recompensed me according to my righteousness ; According to the cleanness of my hands in his eyes. With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful. With the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright ; With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure ; And with the perverse thou wilt shew thyself froward. And the afflicted people thou wilt save : But the eyes of the haughty thou bringest down. For thou art my lamp, O God : And God is a light to my darkness. As for God, his way is perfect : The word of God is well-tried. He is a shield to all who trust in him. For who is a refuge, save God ? Who is a rock beside him ? A WARRIORS HYMN 267 God girdeth me with strength ; He maketh my path plain. He maketh my feet like hinds' feet ; And «etteth me on high places. He teacheth my hands to war ; So that mine arms do bend a bow of brass. Thou hast given me the shield of thy salvation. And thy lowliness hath made me great. Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O God, among the nations. And will sing praises to thy name. Great deliverance giveth he to his king ; And sheweth lovingkindness to his anointed. To David and his seed, for evermore. There are several difficulties which may disturb the reader in this magnificent hymn, but I cannot explain or deal fully with them all in this place. (i) It speaks of God, as we say, metaphorically. It speaks of him as if he were a great warrior who comes down from the skies to fight. It describes him as taking part in a very material sort of way in a human battle, and as taking sides with one of the con- tending parties. This way of talking about God is very frequent in Hebrew poetry, but we must not for a moment suppose that the poets meant to describe something real. It was a mere metaphor. Nevertheless {2) we feel that the Psalm breathes a more martial spirit than we are accustomed to associate with religion. God teaches the fighter how to fight, and the warrior exults in his prowess and in its results. He exults in the overthrow of the enemy. It is all very natural and sincere, and there is no suspicion in the mind of the author that he is not perfectly justified in all his triumph. Yet it is clearly not the highest type of religion nor the highest type of religious poetry. To the Psalmist because man is a fighter, therefore God is a fighter too. It is often said that man makes his idea of God in his own human image. In one sense this is necessarily true. We can only think of God with our human reason and therefore humanly. Righteousness and love are the highest qualities we know in man, and therefore we suppose that they form the essence of God. But we must take care that it is really only the very highest and purest human qualities which we ascribe to God, and we must avoid pushing the likeness too far. It is only the purest virtues of mind and soul that we dare ascribe, even in their most perfect excellence, to God. Unfortunately men 268 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING have been too apt to ascribe to him also some of tlieir own human passions, weaknesses, and imperfections. To argue that because man is a fighter, therefore God is a fighter, is a deduction doubt- ful in logic and dangerous in religion. And yet there is one sense (partly realized by the Psalmist) in which a man's fight may be regarded as a divine fight too. For our human life is a constant battle between good and evil, a battle in which we must ever have our sword girt and be ever ready to draw it and use it in the fight. And if God in that sense is not a fighter too, it is only because with him the fight is, as it were, of his own allowing. For him there is no struggle ; in his sight the issue is sure. The process and the result are alike present to God. (3) We also notice that the writer of the Psalm is convinced that he is in the right and his enemies are in the wrong. There- fore God fights exclusively for him and against his enemies. His enemies are God*s. But we feel that even as we are not and never can be perfect, so before God we are never wholly in the right. * In thy sight/ as the Bible teaches us, ' shall no man living be justified.' * If thou shouldst mark iniquities, God, who shall stand 1 ' To boast of our righteousness implies (for us to-day) either inor- dinate conceit or an imperfect realization of what righteousness and purity really are. For no one who realizes all that they imply can . ever believe that he is so righteous and so pure as to be able to assert and maintain his goodness before the very presence of God, It may, indeed, be that in our Psalm the writer is not speaking of himself but of his nation. The * I ' is Israel. That would make a considerable difference, because the sense of national righteousness is far better than the sense of individual righteousness. I may think my nation pure and righteous, and yet be far from thinking that I individually am pure and righteous. But the -Conviction of national righteousness is in one way undesirable. For it leads on to national pride, to a contempt of other nations, to thinking other nations deserve less well of God and are less dear to him than our own, and into all these faults the Jews were rather apt to fall. They were faults, however, by no means peculiar to the Jews, just as they are faults by no means eradicated from the nations of Europe even at the present day, (4) The faith in God which the Psalm reveals comes home to us all. It is very pure and true and strong, and we can rightly apply it to our own lives. Yet we do not quite agree with the Psalmist in his notion of reward. Few people would venture to say that their goodness deserved a reward, and no one would think that we can or ought to estimate our fortunes and surroundings in this life as rewards or punishments of God. A CRY FOR DELIVERANCE 269 (5) The Psalm seems to assert that God changes according to the man he has to deal with. But surely God is always the same. To none does he show himself froward. It is only man who changes. Who could love God if he did not love us all ? What son would love his father if he thought that his father only cared for him when be was good ? And far more righteous and far more loving than the most righteous and loving of human fathers is our Father who is in heaven. We shall find that most of the criticisms which I have ventured to make upon some of the teaching in this Psalm are indirectly made by other Psalms which will be quoted later on. I have, however, not scrupled to let you hear this Psalm, because we already know that there are degrees and varieties in Biblical teaching, and also because this Psalm seems not out of keeping with the character of David the warrior in one of his happier and more confident moods. The following beautiful supplication is ascribed to David when he was a fugitive in the moimtain stronghold of Adullam ; — I cry unto God with my voice ; With my voice unto God do I make supplication. I pour out my complaint before him ; I shew before him my trouble. When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walk have they laid a snare for me. Look on my right hand, and behold ; for there is no man that knoweth me : Escape hath failed me ; no man careth for my soul, I cried unto thee, O God ; I said. Thou art my refuge. My portion in the land of the living. Attend unto my cry; for I am brought very low : Deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I. Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name : The righteous shall compass me about ; For thou shalt deal bountifully with me. Another hymn is headed, * A psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah.' It contains some of the most beautiful thoughts and aspirations of spiritual religion to be found in all the Bible. Any man who can echo the words of it truthfully, who 270 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING can say *I, too, have sometimes felt that: I, too, have realized these words,' has reached a very high grade of real religiousness. God, thou art my God ; earnestly do I seek thee : My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee. In a dry and weary land, where no water is. For thy lovingkindness is better than life ; My lips shall praise thee. So will I bless thee while I live : 1 will lift up my hands in thy name* My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness ; And my mouth praiseth thee with joyful lips ; When I remember thee upon my bed. And meditate on thee in the night watches. For thou hast been my help. And in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice* My soul f olloweth hard after thee : Thy right hand upholdeth me. The following are said to be ' the last words of David.' They are just but stern. David the son of Jesse saith. And the man who was raised on high saith. The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the beloved of the psalms of Israel : The spirit of God spake in me. And his word was upon my tongue. The God of Israel said. The Rock of Israel spake to me : He that ruleth over men righteously. That ruleth in the fear of God, He shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, A morning without clouds ; When the tender grass springeth out of the earth. By clear shining after rain. Is not my house so with God ? Yea, he hath made with me an everlasting covenant. Ordered in all things, and sure : For all my salvation, and all my desire, Will he not make it to grow ? THE TRUE SACRIFICE 271 But the ungodly shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, That cannot be taken with the hand : But the man that toucheth them Must be armed with iron and the staff of a spear ; And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place. The last Psalm which I shall here quote is ascribed to David after Nathan had made him realize the heinousness of his sin against Uriah and against God. It is, perhaps, the noblest peni- tential hymn in all the world. Ha^e mercy upon me, O God, according to thy loving- kindness : According to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgi-essions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity. And cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions : And my sin is ever before me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts : Therefore in the secret place make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean : Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness ; That the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins. And blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God ; And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence ; And take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation : And uphold me with a willing spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways ; And sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation ; And my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips ; And my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice ; . else would I give it s Thou delightest not in burnt offering. 272 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit : A broken and a contrite hearty O God, thou wilt not despise. Everybody should learn this, perhaps the noblest of the Psalms, by heart. § 4. We have still not quite done with the many and various idealizations of David. Some seven hundred years after his death, that is to say, about as many years after David as separate the reign of Queen Victoria from the reign of Henry IT, a Levite or sub-priest of the Temple at Jerusalem, and especially connected with and interested in the musical services of the Temple, made a history of the kings of Judah from the accession of David. His work is now known as the Books of the Chronicles. So mvid is there made to correspond to the Levite 8 ideal of a pious king, and . that ideal includes a vivid interest in the Temple and its music. And as David was the real founder of the monarchy at Jerusalem, and as we know that he did bring the Ark to the capital, so, according to this writer, he becomes the founder of the musical services of the Temple, though as a matter of fact these services were not arranged in the way which he describes for many cen- turies after David. Thus when David brings the Ark to Jerusalem, this is what our Levite idealist has to say about it. So they brought the ark of God, anjd set it in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it: and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. And when David had made an end of offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of God. And he dealt to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to every one a loaf of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a cake of raisins. And he appointed certain of the Levites to minister before the ark of God, and to thank and praise the Lord God of Israel: Asaph the chief, and second to him Zechariah, Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Ehab, ^ and Benaiah, and Obed-edom, and Jeiel, with psalteries and with harps; and Asaph with loud sounding cymbals ; and Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests with clarions continually, before the ark of the covenant of God. Then on that day did David first appoint to give thanks unto God, by the hand of Asaph and his brethren, as follows : THE TEMPLE MUSIC AND PSALMODY 273 O give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name ; Make known his deeds among the peoples. Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him ; Talk ye of all his wondrous works. Glory ye in his holy name : Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord. Seek the Lord and his strength ; Seek his face continually. Rememher his marvellous works that he hath done ; His wonders, and the judgements of his mouth; O ye seed of Israel his servant. Ye children of Jacob, his chosen ones. He is the Lord our God ; His judgements are in all the earth. Be ye mindful always of his covenant ; The word which he commanded to a thousand genera- tions ; Of the covenant which he made with Abraham, And of his oath unto Isaac ; And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law. To Israel for an everlasting covenant : Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, The lot of your inheritance : When ye were but few ; Even a few, and strangers in it ; And they went from nation to nation. And from one kingdom to another people. He suffered no man to do them wrong ; Yea, he reproved kings for their sakes. Saying, Touch not mine anointed ones. And do my prophets no harm. Sing unto the Lord, all the earth ; Shew forth from day to day his salvation. Declare his glory among the nations. His marvellous works among all the peoples. Glory and honour are in his presence : Strength and gladness are in his place. Give unto the Lord, ye kindreds of the peoples. Give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto bis name : Bring an offering, and come before him : Worship the Lord in holy array. 274 TH.E BIBLE FOR HOME READING Fear before him^ all the earth : He has made fast the world that it cannot be moved. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; And let them say among the nations^ the Lord reigneth. Let the sea roar^ and the fulness thereof ; Let the fields rejoiccj and all that is therein; Then shall the trees of the wood sing out at the presence of the Lord^ Because he cometh to judge the earth. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever. And say ye. Save us, O God of our salvation, And gather us together, and deliver us from the nations. To give thanks unto thy holy name. And to triumph in thy praise. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, From everlasting even to everlasting, Aind all the people said, Amen, and praised God. § 5. Our Levite idealist (for he is hardly an historian in our modern sense of the word) describes David as making the most elaborate preparations for the building of the great Temple which' is to enshrine the Ark. And David appointed masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God, And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings ; and brass in abundance without weight ; and cedar trees in abundance; for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David. And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded to God must be exceeding magnifical, of fame and of glory throughout all countries : I will therefore make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death. Then he called for Solomon his son, and charged him to build an house for the Lord God of Israel. And David said to Solomon, My son, it was in my heart to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, But the word of God came to me, saying. Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars : thou shalt not build an house unto mv name, because thou hast shed much blood unon the pai'tln DAVID S CHARGE TO SOLOMON 275 in my sight : behold^ a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about : for his name shall be Solomon (that isj Peaceable)^ and I wUl give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days : he shall build an house for my name ; and he shall be my son^ and I will be his father ; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever. Now^ my son, may God be with thee ; and prosper thou, and build the house of the Lord thy God, as he hath said of thee. Only may God give thee wisdom and understanding, and give thee charge concerning Israel ; that so thou mayest keep the law of the Lord thy God. Then shalt thou prosper, if thou takest heed to fulfil the statutes and the judgements which God charged Moses with for Israel : be strong, and of good courage 5 dread not, nor be dismayed. Now, behold, I have prepared for the house of God an hundred thousand talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver; and of brass and iron without weight; for it is in abundance : timber also and stone have I prepared ; and thou mayest add thereto. Moreover there are workmen with thee in abundance, hewers and workers of stone and timber, and all manner of cunning men for every manner of work ; of the gold, the silver, and the brass, and the iron, there is no number; arise and be doing, and God be with thee. David also commanded all the princes of Israel to help Solomon his son, saying. Is not the Lord your God with you ? and hath he not given you rest on every side ? for he hath delivered the inhabitants of the land into mine hand; and the land is subdued. Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God ; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of God, and the holy vessels, into the house that is to be built to the name of God, And David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the companies that served the king by course, and the captains over the thousands, and the captains over the hundreds, and the stewards over all the substance and possessions of the king and of his sons, with the officers, and with the mighty men, and with all the valiant men, unto Jerusalem, Then David the king stood up upon his feet, and said. Hear me, my brethi'en, and my people : as T 2 276 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING for me^ I had in mine heart to build an house of rest for the ark of the covenant of God ; and I had made ready for the building. But God said unto me, Thou shalt not build an house for my name, because thou hast been a man of war, and hast shed blood. Howbeit the Lord God of Israel chose me out of all the house of my father to be king over Israel for ever : for he hath chosen Judah to be the ruler ; and of the house of Judah, the house of my father ; and among the sons of my father he liked me to make me king over all Israel : and of all my sons, (for God hath given me many sons,) he hath chosen Solomon my son to sit upon the throne of the kingdom over Israel. And he said unto me, Solomon thy son, he shall build my house and my courts: for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. Moreover I will establish his kingdom for ever, if he be constant to do my commandments and my judgements, as at this day. Now therefore, in the sight of all Israel, and in the audience of our God, I exhort you to observe and obey all the command- ments of the Lord your God : that ye may possess this good land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children after you for ever. And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for God searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts : if thou seek him, he will be found of thee ; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. Take heed now ; for God hath chosen thee to build an house for the sanctuary : be strong, and do it. And David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom God hath chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great : for the palace is not for man, but for the Lord God, Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the brass for the things of brass, the iron for the things of iron, an^ wood for the things of wood ; onyx stones, and stones to be set, stones for inlaid work, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance- Moreover also, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own private good, given unto the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house ; even three thousand talents of sold, of the e^old of 'ALL THINGS COME OF THEE 277 Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses vrithal : of gold for the things of gold, and of silver for the things of silver, and for all manner of work to he made by the hands of aitificers. Who then will likewise make an offering this day unto God ? Then the princes of the fathers^ houses, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers over the king's work, offered willingly; and they gave for the building of the house of God of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand darics, and of silver ten thousand talents, and_of brass eighteen thousand talents, and a hundred thousand talents of iron. And they who had precious stones gave them to the treasure of the house of the Lord, into the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite. Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with a perfect heart they offered willingly to God : and David the king also rejoiced with great joy. And David blessed God before all the congregation : and David said. Blessed be thou, O Lord God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty ; for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine ; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all ; and in thine hand is power and might ; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name. For who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as all our fathers were : our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no abiding. O Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own. I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things : and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee. O Lord God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and 278 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING guide their heart unto thee : and give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision. And David said to all the congregation. Now bless the Lord your God, And all the congregation blessed the Lord God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and worshipped. There are several very notable sayings in the speeches put by our Levite idealist into the mouth of David. Let me quote them again : * God searcheth all hearts, and undersfcandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts/ * If thou seek him, he will he found of thee/ *A11 things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee/ ' Guide their hearts unto thee/ There is a yery great deal of religion contained in these four simple sayings. THE REIGN OF SOLOMON 279 CHAPTER XI THE REIGN OF SOLOMON § I. We now tate up the thread of our history where we broke it off at the death of King David. He was succeeded on the throne, as I have already said, by his son Solomon, whose teign, for very different reasons, was nearly as important as his father's. Solomon excited the national imagination almost as keenly as David, but in a very different way. He was never a popular favourite, and towards the close of his reign the disaffection of the north against Judah, which David had been easily able to quell, broke out again, and led to most disastrous and fateful issues. Solomon was the builder of the famous temple at Jerusalem, and a very wealthy, powerful, and magnificent monarch. During his reign, as during the latter half of the reign of his father, the kingdom of Israel and Judah was a really important power in Western Asia. Moreover, Solomon was famous for his wisdom: * a very Solomon for wisdom' is still a phrase among us to-day. Wherein precisely his wisdom was displayed we hardly know, for a wise ruler in the true sense of the word — in the sense, that is, of caring for his people's good — ^he certainly was not. He was luxurious, extravagant, and oppressive. Like so many other famous Eastern kings, he had a passion for building and pomp and display, and his unfortunate subjects had to find the larger portion of the cost. Taxation was heavy, and with taxation went exaction and forced labour. Hence Solomon, though he dazzled the eyes of his own people and of his neighbours by his grandeur and magnifi- cence, was thoroughly unpopular, more especially outside his own tribe of Judah. We do not possess such full and faithful, or such early and vivid, records about Solomon as about David. So the stories to tell of him will be less detailed and interesting. It was about the year 978 B.C. that he came to the throne, and he reigned for about forty years. § 2. Let us first hear the stories of his wisdom. One of our authorities regards it rightly as the gift of God, and describes the giving of it in the following way : 28b THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there ; for that was the gi'eat high place. And in Gibeon God appeared to Solomon in a dream by night : and God said. Ask what I shall give thee. And Solomon said. Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee ; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father : and I am but a little child ; I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude; Give thy servant therefore an understanding heart to rule thy people, that I may discern between good and bad ; for otherwise who is able to rule this thy great people ? And the speech pleased God, that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him. Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life ; neither hast asked riches for thy- self, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies ; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern Judgement; behold, I have done according to thy word : lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart ; so that there hath been none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honour, so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee, all thy days. And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days. And Solomon awoke, and, behold, it was a dream. Then follows the famous story of the Judgement, which is adduced as a signal illustration of Solomon's wisdom. Then there came two women, and stood before the king. And the one woman said. Oh my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house, and there is no else vvdth us in the house. And we both had two little children only a few days old. And this woman^s child died last night, because she overlaid it. And she arose at midnight, and took my son from be- side me, while thine handmaid slent, and laid it in her bosom. A FAMOUS JUDGEMENT 281 and laid her dead child in my bosom. And when I rose in the morning, behold, my child was dead : but when I looked at it well, behold, it was not my son at all. And the other woman said. Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said. No ; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the king. Then said the king. The one saith. This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead : and the other saith. Nay; but thy son is *the dead, and my son is the living. And the king said. Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. And the king said. Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her love towards her son was strongly moved within her, and she said. Oh my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said. Let it be neither mine nor thine ; divide it. Then the king said. She who said 'give her the living child, and in no wise slay it' — she is its mother. And all Israel heard of the judgement which the king had judged ; and they feared the king : for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him^ to do judgement. Then, further, we are told in general terms : And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding ex- ceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore. And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all the nations round about. And he spake three thousand proverbs : and his songs were a thousand and five. And he spake of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall : he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. And there came of all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom. Even as David became the ideal singer, so Solomon became the ideal sage, and just as Psalms when collected were ascribed to David, so Proverbs when collected were ascribed to Solomon. There is still preserved, among the books of the Biblej a collection 282 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of aphorisms and wise sayings called the Book of Proverbs. The majority of these are attributed to Solomon. But just as it is doubtful whether any of our Psalms are David's, so it is uncertain whether any of our Proverbs are Solomon's. § 3. Now let us hear of this great king's wealth and splendour. And Solomon had twelve officers^ who were appointed for all Israel. And they provided supplies for the king and his household : each man had to make provision for a month in the year. And Solomon^s provision for one day was thirty cors of fine flour, and threescore cors of ordinary flour; ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures^ and an hundred sheep, besides harts and gazelles and roebucks and fatted fowl. And he had forty thousand horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horses for riding. And the twelve officers provided supplies for king Solomon, and for all that came to king Solomon^s table, every man in his month : they let nothing be lacking. Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds brought they unto the place where the king was^ every man according to his charge. Thirty cors would be about 294 bushels I Next we are told of Solomon's great palace which he built after he had finished the temple. The two buildings were contiguous, for the temple was a royal as well as a national sanctuary. The temple took seven years to build, and the palace six years more. Remember that a cubit is about one foot and a half. A hundred cubits are there- fore 150 feet. And Solomon took six more years to build his palace, and then all his building was finished. For he built the house of the forest of Lebanon : its length was an hundred cubits, and its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, and it rested on three rows of cedar wood pillars, and cedar beams lay upon them. And it was covered with cedar wood above the side chambers, which were above the pillars, forty-five in number, fifteen in each row. And there were beams in three rows, and windows over against windows three times. And all the doors and windows were square in the upper wood- work. And he made the hall of pillars ; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits ; and a hall before it with pillars and a threshold. And he made the throne-room where he might judge, even the hall of THE SPLENDOUR OF SOLOMON 283 judgement: and it was panelled with cedar from floor to ceiling. And his house where he dwelt was in another courts beyond the halls^ and it was of the like work. He made also an house for Pharaoh^s daughter, (whom Solomon had taken to wife,) like unto the halls. All these were of costly stones, hewed according to measure, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside unto the great court. And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits. And above were costly stones hewed according to measure, and cedar wood. And the great court round about had three rows of hewn stone, and a row of cedar beams; like as the inner court of the temple. Here follow some miscellaneous details of Solomon's luxury and magnificence. The navy of Hiram brought Solomon gold from Ophir, and a great plenty of sandal wood and precious stones. And the king used the sandal wood for the temple and for his palace as well as for making harps and psalteries for the singers : there came no such quantity of sandal wood into Israel unto this day. And Solomon made two hundred great targets of beaten gold : six hundred shekels of gold went to one target. And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold ; three manehs of gold went to one shield ; and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon. Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind : and there were stays on either side by the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays. And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps : there was not the like made in any kingdom. And all king Solomon^s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold : none were of silver ; it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. For the king had at sea ships of Tarshish with the ships of Hiram : once every three years came the ships of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, and ivory, and apes, and peacocks. So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. And all the earth sought the presence 284 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules. And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, which he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the lowland, for abundance. And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt; and the king's merchants received them in droves, each drove at a price. ' Ophir * is probably a place in Arabia. Tarsbish is Tartessus, a colony of the Phoenicians in Spain, and Tarshish ships are ships suited for a voyage to Tartessus or any other place a long way off. Three ' manehs ' are equal to about 8 lbs. ; 600 shekels to about 27 lbs. Solomon's fame was spread abroad, and provoked the curiosity of the queen of Sheba. And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to prove him with riddles. So she came to Jerusalem with a very gi'eat train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones : and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. And Solomon answered all her questions : there was not any thing hid from the king which he could not answer her. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built, and the meat of his table, and the dwellings of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his offerings which he made in the temple, there was no more spirit in her. And she said to the king. It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy state, and of thy vrisdom, Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it : and, behold, the half was not told me : thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, who stand con- tinually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the Lord thv God. who delighted in thee, to set thee on HIRAM KING OF TYRE 285 the throne of Israel: because God loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgement and justice. And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these vv^hich the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, what- soever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned, and went to her own land, she and her servants. § 4. But Solomon's greatest achievement, both in his own eyes and in the sight of posterity, was the building of the temple. And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon ; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father : for Hiram was ever a lover of David. And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying. Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house for the name of the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every side. But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side ; there is neither adversary, nor evil occurrent. And, beliold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, as God spake unto David my father, saying. Thy son, whom I will get upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name. Now there- fore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon ; and my servants shall be with thy servants ; and I will give thee hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint : for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Zidonians. And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said. Blessed be God this day, who hath given unto David a wise son over this great people. And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the things which thou sentest to me for : I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concern- ing timber of cypress. My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea : and I will convey them by sea in rafts unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them : and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household. So Hiram gave Solomon timber 286 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of cedar and timber of cypress according to all his* desire. And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat for food to his household^ and twenty thousand baths of pure oil : thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon ; and they two made a league together. And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel ; and the levy was thirty thousand men. And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses : a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home : and Adoniram was over the levy. And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains ; besides Solomon^s chief officers that were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who ruled over the people that wrought in the work. And the king com- manded, and they quarried great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with wrought stone. And Solomon^s builders and Hiram^s builders and the Gebalites did hew them, and prepared timber and stones to build the house. And king Solomon sent and fetched Huram out of Tyre. He was the son of a widow woman of the tribe of Naphtali^ and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in bronze, and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and cunning, to work all works in bronze. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work. Our Levite idealist describes the correspondence between Solomon and Hiram as follows : Now Solomon determined to build a temple to God, and a royal palace. And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand men that were hewers in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them. And Solomon sent to Hiram the king of Tyre, saying. As thou didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build him an house to dwell therein, even so deal with me. Behold, I build an house to the name of the Lord my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him incense of sweet spices, and for the continual shewbread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the appointed feasts of the Lord our God. And the house which I build is to be very great. But who is able to build THE TIMBER OF LEBANON 287 God an house^ seeing the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain him ? who am I then^ that I should build him an house? It is only to burn incense before him. Now therefore send me a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide. Send me also cedar trees, cypress trees, and sandal wood, out of Lebanon : for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon ; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants, even to prepare me timber in abundance : for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great. And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand cors of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand cors of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil. Then Hiram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because God loveth his people, he hath made thee king over them. Hiram said moreover. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with discretion and understanding, that should build a temple unto God. And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, even Huram, the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson ; also to grave any manner of graving, and to devise all manner of curious work which may be appointed unto him with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David thy father. Now therefore the wheat and the barley, the oil and the wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants : and we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need : and we will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa ; and thou shalt cany it up to Jerusalem, [One ' bath * was a tenth of a * cor.'] § 5. Now we go back to the earlier historian. So it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon^s reign over Israel, in 288 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the month Ziv^ which is the second months that Solomon began to build the temple. The chronology is artificial. If the temple was begun about 973 B. Cjthis would mean that the Exodus took place about 1 453 b, c, but I believe' this is more than a hundred years too early. Then follows an elaborate description of the temple. But this description is very difiB.cult, the Hebrew text is in great disorder, and it is almost impossible to understand it without elaborate plans and an architect to explain them. Even then people dispute as to details. So I omit the description. At last, in the eleventh year, in the month Bui, which is the eighth month, the temple, in all its parts, was wholly finished. So Solomon was seven years in building it. Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, at Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant out of the city of David, which is Zion. So all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto Solomon at the feast of Ingathering in the seventh month. And the priests took up the ark of the covenant, and brought it into the place which Solomon had made for it in the temple. There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone* which Moses had put therein. Then the king blessed all the congregation of Israel, and all the congregation of Israel stood. And he said. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who spake unto David my father, and hath fulfilled it, saying. Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel that a house should be built, that my name might be there; but I have chosen Jerusalem, that my name might be there, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel. Now it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel, But God said unto David my father. Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house for my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart : neverthe- less thou shalt not build the house ; but thy son, he shall build the house unto my name. And God hath performed his word that he spake ; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as God promised, and have built the house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. And there have I set a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant which God made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. SOLOMON S DEDICATION PRAYER 289. And Solomon stood before the altar in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven : and he said, O Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath 5 who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants, that walk before thee with all their heart : who hast kept with thy servant David my father that which thou didst promise him; yea, thou ^pakest, and hast fulfilled it, as it is this day. Now there-: fore, O Lord Grod of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that which thou didst promise him, saying. There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel ; if only thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me as thou hast walked before me. Now therefore, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father. But will God in very deed dwell on the earth ? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee ; how much less this house that I have buUded ! Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy sei'vant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer which thy servant prayeth before thee this day : that thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said. My name shall be there : that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place. And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray in this place : and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place 5 and when thou hearest, forgive. If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and he come and swear before thine altar in this house : then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head ; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness. When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee ; if they turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray and make supplication unto thee in this house : then hear thou in heaven, and for- give their sin. When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray in this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest u £9^ THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING them : then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, because thou teachest them the good way wherein they should walk ; and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance. If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust or caterpiller ; if their enemy besiege them in any of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; what pi'ayer and supplication soever be made by any man who shall feel the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house : then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to all his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men ;) that they may fear thee, to walk in thy ways, all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers. Moreover concerning the foreigner, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name^s sake ; (for they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy mighty hand, and of thy stretched out arm ;) when he shall come and pray before this house; hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calleth to thee for ; that all the peoples of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as doth thy people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by thy name. If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, and they pray unto God toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for thy name : then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and main- tain their cause. If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captive unto the land of the enemy, far or near ; yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captive, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wicked- ness ; and so return unto thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast 'THE LORD IS GOD* 291 chosen^ and the house which I have built for thy name: then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause; and forgive thy people who have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee ; and give them compassion before those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them : for they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron: that thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee. For thou didst separate them from among all the peoples of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God, And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto God, he arose from before the altar, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven. And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying, Blessed be God, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised : there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant. The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers : let him not leave us, nor forsake us : that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgements, which he commanded our fathers. And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before God, be nigh unto the Lord our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel, at all times, as the matter shall require : that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is none else. Let your heart there- fore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day. And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice, and he and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of God. And Solomon held the feast of Ingathering at that time, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the brook of Egypt, before the Lord our u z 292 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING God, seven days. And on the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that God had done unto David his servant, and to Israel his people. § 6. There are a few things I should like to speak about in this noble dedication prayer. *0 Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath/ So the prayer opens. This seems a strange expression. We should say : ' There is no God hut thee.' But the Hebrews were surrounded by neighbours who each had their own national gods, and although they came to understand and realize that these other gods were no gods — mere idols and nonentities — so that, as it says in this very prayer, besides the true God ' there is none else,' no other divine power at all, they had not always realized this. Some had only thought that their God was greater than any other god, and so phrases like ' No God like thee/ meant at first what they seem to mean quite simply and naturally. But in our present prayer and to our present writer, ' there is no God like thee,' meant just the same as * there is no God but thee.' And 60 towards the end of the prayer it is said, * That all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and that there is none else.' ' The Lord is God.' What do these words mean 1 Well, here again we have a survival. If you were to take up an English Bible, you would observe that in many places where my extracts have the word * God,' the English Bible has the words ' the Lord.' In the Song of Moses, and in the hymn which, accord- ing to the Levite idealist, David appointed to be sung before the ark of God ' by the hand of Asaph and his brethren,' I have kept ' the Lord ' unchanged. But almost everywhere else I have substi- tuted ' God,' because I did not wish to use ' the Lord ' till I could find a convenient place in which to explain its origin and meaning. For us, just as for the author of Solomon's prayer, ' the Lord ' and ' God ' are quite the same. * The Lord ' is a mere synonym for ' God.' So in the Greek translation of the Bible we find the words ' Ho Kurios,' which mean * the Lord.' But the Hebrew word, which we translate * the Lord,' does not mean ' the Lord.' The Hebrew word is a proper name. Now a proper name for God seems to us unnecessary, and it is unnecessary for all those who believe that there is only one God. A proper name is only wanted when there are more individuals than one of the same class. If you believe that there are two Gods, you want a name for each, to distinguish one from the other. If we had two suns, each would have its name. The Hebrew word which we translate * the Loi'd ' belongs. THE ETERNAL NOW 293 to a time wien all the Hebrews did not believe thai their neighbours' gods were mere ' things of nought ' — fictions, nonen- tities, and idols. At that time they had to distinguish their own God from the gods of their neighbours. And as the other false gods had proper names, so must their true God have a proper name too. How and when this name was adopted, and what it means, are not precisely known. But the Hebrews themselves supposed that it was connected with the Hebrew word Hayali, which means * to be.' The name signified, they believed, the exist- ence of God. He is, in a sense in which no created thing can be said to be at all. He is pure Being. He is what he is : one, eternal, changeless, incomprehensible. He was, he is, he ever will be. You will remember how, in the story of the revelation at the burning bush, Moses says unto God, * Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, the God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, what is his name 1 what shall I say unto them ? ' And God replies to Moses and says, 'I AM THAT I AM. Thus shalt thou say unto the chil- dren of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.' The words * I am that I am' probably mean that the best description or name of God is one which most simply and purely afifirms his existence. HE IS ; the one supreme reality, the condition of all things, the eternal Now, without beginning and without end. But after having used the phrase ' I am that I am,' and imme- diately afterwards the shorter form ' I am,' as his true name, God says unto Moses, — Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, ' The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you : this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.' (* Memorial ' is here a mere synonym for name.) Now the Hebrew word, inaccurately translated * the Lord,' and here said to be God's name, is not quite the same as * I am,* but it is to be also regarded as a form of the verb 'to be.' 'I am' is never used again, but always this other form, of which * I am ' was, I suppose, intended to be the explanation or paraphrase. In the Hebrew language, as you know, the vowels have no letters. Only consonants have letters. The vowel points were not devised and placed under the consonants for centuries after all the Bible had been written and finished. The consonants of the word which we translate * the Lord ' are these four : YHVH. But in all probability the Hebrew V was pronounced like our "W, and so the letters should be YHWH. Now when all the Hebrews became not only worshippers of one God, but fiinn believers in his Aloneness — assured that * there is 294 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING none else/ like the author of Solomon's prayer and of a famous chapter in the Eetrospect — a name for God presented great diffi- culties. He could not have, because he could not need, a dis- tinguishing name like the gods of other nations. Yet the name was there. They were therefore convinced that, if name there were, it was wholly different in nature and meaning from all other names in the world. The only meaning they knew of, the simple and solemn meaning, *I am' — pure Being — was sufficient to mark it off from all other names, whether of gods or men. In that ' I am ' they believed there lay vast and inexhaustible reserves of power and significance. In some mysterious and incomprehensible way the name was supposed to contain within it the nature and essence of the Divine Being. The Jews were inclined the more readily to this belief because to the men of old the saying * what's in a name ' does not hold good at all. They believed that there was a great deal in a name, for there existed some strange and mysterious connexion between a man's name and his very self. Hence the Jews, partly through reverence and partly through awe (just because their national God had become to them the only God), entirely gave up using or pronouncing the once familiar name of God. It was only pronounced on one day in the year by one person, and that was by the High Priest on the Day of Atonement at the most solemn moments of the sacred ritual. And when the Temple was destroyed, nobody ever said it at all. Instead of uttering it, they said Adonai, which really does mean Lord. They still wrote the four consonants, YHVH, but they said ADONAI. Hence, when the vowel points were added under the consonants, nobody knew what the proper vowels for YHVH were. The punctuators, therefore, arbitrarily put under these consonants the same vowels as they rightly put under Adonai, which word in Hebrew also has four consonants. The vowels of one word were given to another. Now these vowels added to YHVH make the word come out thus YeHoVaH, that is, Yehovah. But as in English, J is customarily used to express the Hebrew Y, Yehovah becomes Jehovah. Hence, in Milton and other poets you often find Jehovah used as a synonym for God. What the real vowels for YHVH should be nobody knows for certain. Learned people, however, think they should be * a ' and ' e,' put thus : YaHVeH, that is Yahveh. And as the Hebrew V was pronounced "W, and the accent would fall on the second syllable, the probable pronunciation was Yahw^h. Now we see the meaning of the phrase: 'The Lord is God.' It means the God of the Hebrews is emphatically the true and only God : there is none else. THE OMNIPRESENCE OF GOD 295 We also understand better the constant reference to God's * name ' in the course of the prayer. It occurs some seven or eight times. God's * name * means little more and little less than God's self. So we could practically substitute for it 'thou' and 'thy.' Thus, ' for thy name's sake ' means ' for thy sake/ Tlie temple which is * built for thy name ' means ' built for thee ; ' * called by thy name ' means ' associated with or belonging to thee/ * Confess thy name ' means * acknowledge thee/ to confess thy kingship and Godhead and the justice of the punishment which has befallen us. Tor they shall hear of thy great name' means 'hear and realize that the God of Israel is the only true God/ Lastly, * My name shall be there' means little more than ' I will show favour to this place/ Next let us notice the great saying, ' Will God in very deed dwell on the earth ? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee : how much less this house that I have builded 1 ' The old idea was that in the temple which was made for him, the god of that temple resided — at all events from time to time. But though the Hebrews kept on with their temple — for old forms outlast new ideas and are made to embody them — ^they outgrew such primitive notions. They knew that God was not a material being, and therefore could not rightly be said to ' dwell ' anywhere. Heaven is, indeed, still called his dwelling-place, but it is a mere phrase. Human beings as we are — made up of body and soul — we are bound sometimes to localize God in order to realize him. As we are here, so we think of him as there, though we all the time believe that he is, in a wonderful sense which we cannot fully under- stand, both there and here. We speak of him as being in heaven, but with far-seeing eyes and far-hearing ears to see and hear all that goes on upon the earth. Yet these too are metaphors, which there is no harm in using so long as we remember that they do not express the full truth, but are mere 'ways of speaking' suited to our human needs. The highest truth that we can realize about God and his every whereness is expressed in the words ; ' Will God in very deed dwell on the earth 1 Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain him : how much less this house that I have builded ! ' It is also expressed in a great psalm, which says ; ' Whither shall I go from thy spirit 1 Or whither shall I flee from thy presence 1 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there : If I make my bed in the lower world, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning. And descend at the uttermost parts of the sea ; Even there shall thy hand lead me, And thy right hand shall hold me/ 296 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Solomon's prayer probably finished at first with the part about the foreigner. This would indeed make a fine climax or peroration. The author sympathized with another great writer who hoped that the temple of the Jews would become a House of Prayer for all peoples. Note too how prayer is gradually supplanting sacrifices. The rest of the prayer was probably added by a writer who lived during the exile, and who yearned for restoration to his own land. The prayer breathes throughout a beautiful spirit of sincerity, simplicity, and faith. Simple and fundamental are the requests and needs ; peace, independence, fertility of soil, justice, and above all, the forgiveness of sin. The seat of sin and of goodness is in the heart, and only God, who knows the hearts of all the children of men, can be the judge of man. We can only roughly and outwardly judge actions : God can judge the heart. Besides and except God none can fully know his neighbour's heart, for each man feels alone the ' plague of his own heart ' : as we should say in modern phrase, the stings of conscience are only known to ourselves and to God. § 7. Seeds of rebellion and disaffection were thickly sown by the oppressive government of Solomon. Moreover, the purer spirits in Israel were not satisfied by the king's attitude to religion. It was true he had built a great temple, but many preferred a simpler, and perhaps sincerer worship. Moreover, Solomon had many foreign wives, and according to one writer, * these wives turned away his heart.' He seems to have built * high places/ or altars for sacrifice to the national gods of his foreign wives. You will remember in your English history what offence was caused by Charles I mai'rying a Boman Catholic princess, and by her having a private chapel at court, in which Roman Catholic worship was carried on. The same kind of offence with greater cause was given by the action of Solomon. Rebellion broke out even during Solomon's reign, but he was able to quell it by force. As we have the story now, it is hetero- geneous, that is to say, it is a mixture of an old story and a later one, BO that whereas we have the beginning of the old story and just the end of it, the middle of it has been removed and a new story put in its place. But the new middle follows very awkwardly on the old beginning, and the old end follows still more awkwardly on the new middle. The story begins thus : And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman^ he also lifted up his hand against the king. AHIJAH AND JEROBOAM 297 And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Milloj and repaired the breach of the city of David his father. And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour : and Solomon^ seeing that the young man was industrious^ appointed him over all the labourers of the house of Joseph, The * Millo ' was part of the fortifications of the citadel of Jerusalem, which citadel was called Zion, or the * city of David.' The story must have gone on to tell how Jeroboam, put by Solomon in a position of responsibility, used or abused it to raise the standard of revolt, Eut Solomon was too strong for him, and Jeroboam (as we are told at the end) 'fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and remained in Egypt until the death of Solomon/ Into this story, after the words ' the house of Joseph/ a later writer has wedged in the following : And it came to pass at that time that once, when Jeroboam had gone out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah of Shilo found him in the way ; now Ahijah was clad with a new garment ; and they two were alone in the field. And Ahijah took hold of the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces. And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces : for thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee : (but he shall have one tribe, for my servant David^s sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel :) because that he hath forsaken mcj and hath worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zido- nians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon ; and he has not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes^ and to keep my statutes and my judgements, as did David his father. Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand : and I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David my servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes : but I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes. And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a lamp alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel. And it shall be, if thou wilt 298 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that which is right in mine eyes, to keep my statutes and commandments, even as David my servant ; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee. Then follows the old end, which is obviously out of all connexion with what we have just heard ; Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon. It is quite likely that Ahijah, in Lis justifiable antagonism to Solomon s erection of the high places to the gods of his foreign wives, may have urged Jeroboam to rebel against the king. The middle of our present story was, however, written long after the event, so what Ahijah actually said and did is uncertain, and we are wholly in the dark as to the course and manner of the rebelhon. Suppressed for Solomon's lifetime, it was to break out, as we shall hear, with greater force and success after his death, against his son Rehoboam. Notice that in the speech of Ahijah one tribe only is reserved to the house of David. This was actually the case. The tribe of Benjamin was always least favourable to David, for it was the tribe to which David*s predecessor had belonged. Benjamin be- longed to the northern kingdom. "Why, then, do we hear of ten tribes and not of eleven, although Ahijah divides his mantle into twelve pieces 1 The reason is that the tribe of Simeon had by this time disappeared or been absorbed in Judah, while the tribe of Levi was no longer (if it had ever been) a tribe with its own terri- tory, but simply a tribe of Priests scattered through both kingdoms. This would leave only nine tribes for the North, but the tribe of Joseph was customarily counted as two — Ephraim and Manasseh — so that we thus obtain the given number of ten. YOUTH AND AGE 299 CHAPTER XII FKOM JEROBOAM TO OMRI: FROM REHOBOAM TO ASA § I . Now the rest of the acts of Solomon^ and all that he did^ and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father : and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead. Now when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard that Solomon was dead (for he was yet in Egypt, whither he had fled from king Solomon), he returned from Egypt. And Rehoboam went to Shechem : for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying. Thy father made our yoke grievous : now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee. And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that had stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, saying. How do ye advise me to answer this people? And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever. But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, that stood before him. And he said ' unto them. What counsel give ye, that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying. Make the yoke that thy father did put upon us lighter? And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying. Thus shalt thou say unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, 30O THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us: thus shalt thou speak unto them, My httle finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke : my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. -o i i_ So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying. Come to me again the third day. And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men^s counsel which they had given him ; and spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying. My father made your yoke heavy, bat I will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. Thus the king hearkened not unto the people ; for it was brought about of God, that he might perform his word, which he spake by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat. And when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying. What portion have we in David ? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse : to your tents, O Israel : now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. But as for the chUdren of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the levy; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. So king Rehoboam made speed to get him^ up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. So Israel rebelled against the house of David, unto this day. And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was returned, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel : there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. So now there were two kingdoms among the Hebrews, the kingdom of the North, or kingdom of Israel, and the kingdom of the Southj or kingdom of Judah. The northern kingdom lasted some 215 years, from 937 to 722 B.C. The southern kingdom lasted some 351 years, from 937 to 586 B.C., or 136 years longer than the kingdom of Israel. The disruption of the kingdoms was most disastrous for both. First of all there was frequent civil war, whereby the resources of both kingdoms were wasted in internal strife, with infinite wretched- ness and misery to both sides. Secondly, whereas a united Israel FOUR LAWS ABOUT PUBLIC WORSHIP 301 uuder a David, or even a Solomon was an important figure in western Asia, a power to be reckoned with, the two separate kingdoms, weakened by civil war, were unable to make a stand against foreign foes or rivals. Egypt on the one side, the kingdom of Damascus on the other, ravaged and oppressed the land of Judah and Israel, even before the great empire of Assyria overthrew the northern kingdom utterly, and made a humble vassal of the south. § 2. The history of both kingdoms is very imperfectly and fragmentarily preserved to us. The * books of Kings,' as they are called, were not compiled to teach history, but to teach religion. The compiler included historical facts, but the facts were by no means his main object. He just picked out from his authorities what suited his purpose, curtailed and expanded his materials in the way he thought best, set them in the most effective light and drew the moral he desired. The compiler s central idea was that the kings of the northern kingdom were always ungodly rulers, and the kings of the south frequently so. What does he mean by ungodly rulers ? He means by it that they had not obeyed, and induced their subjects to obey, the religious laws of the Retrospect. And by * religious ' laws he included the laws relating to public worship. Let me mention what these laws are : (i) Only one God, and he ' the Lord,' the true God, must be worshipped in Israel. (2) There must be no representation of that one God in visible form. (3) There must be no religious symbols such as poles and pillars which were customary among, and imitated from the Canaanites. (4) No sacrifices must be offered except at the Temple of Jerusalem. Now the laws of the Retrospect were not published and accepted till about the year 623, that is some 314 years after the death of Solomon, and many of them were totally unknown before that time. Remembering this, let us now take our four main laws in the reverse order, beginning with number four. (4) The law that no sacrifices must be offered except at the Temple of Jerusalem was a very great innovation. We shall here- after see why it was put forward and what was its justification, but as at that time all public worship involved and implied sacri- fice, the law came to the same thing as if it were to be ordered now that there should be no synagogues in all England, except one central synagogue in London. Till synagogues were established, 303 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING superseding and transcending the Temple, it was hardly possible that the law could be obeyed at all, and of course before it was known and accepted there could be no sin in disobeying it. But our compiler quite honestly believed that it had always been known to everybody. (3) The religious symbols, such as pillars and poles, were also not known or realized to be wrong till the date of the Eetrospect, It was true that they had been borrowed from the Canaanites, but no one had objected to them till about the time when the Retrospect was compiled. (2) It is said in the Ten Words : ' Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, the likeness of any form that is in the heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth : thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them nor serve them.' It is not certain whether these words were commonly understood to forbid the representation of God himself in visible form as well as the worship of the images of other gods or of visible objects such as sun or moon. It is unfortunately true that the Hebrews imitated the Canaanites, and from time to time worshipped God under the symbol of a bull, and only gradually got to understand how monstrous and degrading such a practice really was. (i) Ever since Moses the law had been known and recognized that no God but * the Lord ' must be worshipped in Israel. With regard then to the four fundamental religious laws of the Retrospect, the compiler of the books of Kings is justified in blaming the kings, of either North or South, for any violation of the first. He is less justified in blaming them for any violation of the secondj although there was no visible representation of God in the public worship at the centi'al sanctuary of Jerusalem. He is not at all justified in blaming them for any violation of the third or fov/rtJi. We must not, however, forget how enormously important the conflict against idolatry in all its forms and phases really was. All the world was given up to idolatry : it needed endless struggles and preachings and sufferings for Israel to renounce it utterly. No cost was too great to secure this all important end. No real and yet popular progress in religion could be made till all idolatry was wholly got rid of. It is very difiicult for us to realize this now. Nor do we realize (as the compilers of the books of Kings and of the Retrospect could realize) the moral degradation which almost always accompanied idolatry. Purity of life and Canaanite idolatry were almost a contradiction in terms. We can, therefore, forgive any amount of historical inaccuracy, and even historical or THE REIGN OF REHOBOAM 303 judicial vmfaimtss^ if it helped on the great and noble cause of pure and undiluted Monotheism. § 3, Now let us come back to the history, remembering always from whose pen much of it comes, and by whom and when the facts were arranged, elaborated and commented on. It is not an easy history to understand and remember, because for 215 years there is a double series of kings to bear in mind, and a double series of events. Let us first take the history of Judah for the sixty years after the death of Solomon, i.e. from 937 to 877 B.C. Three kings ruled during this period, namely, Kehoboam, Abijah, and Asa, Thus : Rehoboam , . . 937-920 Abijah 920-917 Asa 917-876 And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was foi'ty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which God chose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there: and his mother's name was Naamah the Ammonitess. And Judah did that which was evil in the sight of God, For they built them high places, and pillars, and poles, on every high hill, and under every green tree; they did according to all the abominations of the nations vrhich God cast out before the children of Israel. And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem : and he took away the treasures of the temple, and the treasures of the king's house ; he even took away all : and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. And king Rehoboam made in their stead brazen shields, and committed them to the hands of the chiefs of the guard, who kept the door of the king's house. And it was so, when the king went into the temple, the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber. Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days. And Rehoboam slept vdth his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Abijah his son reigned in his stead. Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of 304 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Nebat began Abijah to reign over Judah. Three years reigned he in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him : and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father. Nevertheless for David's sake did the Lord his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his sons after him, and to establish Jerusalem: because David did that, which was right in the eyes of the Lord, and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. And the rest of the acts of Abijah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam, And Abijah slept vidth his fathers ; and they buried him in the city of David : and Asa his son reigned in his stead. And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah. And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Maacah. And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, as did David his father. And he I'emoved all the idols that his fathers had made. And also Maacah his mother he removed from being queen-mother, because she had made an image for Astarte ; and Asa cut down her image, and burnt it at the brook Kidron, But the high places were not removed : nevertheless Asa^s heart was perfect with the Lord all his days. And he brought into the temple the things which his father had dedicated, and the things which himself had dedicated, silver, and gold, and vessels. And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. And Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not suffer any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the temple, and the treasures of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants : and king Asa sent them to Ben-hadad, the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying. There is a league between me and thee, between my father and thy father : behold, I have sent unto thee a present of silver and gold ; come and break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me. So Ben-hadad hearkened unto THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL 305 king Asa, and sent the captains of the hosts which he had against the cities of Israel, and smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-beth-maacah, and all Chinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. And it came to pass, when Baasha heard thereof, that he left o£E building of Ramah, and returned to Tirzah, Then king Asa made a proclamation unto all Judah; none was exempted : and they took away the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had builded ; and king Asa built with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah. Now the rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might, and all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? Nevertheless, in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. And Asa slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead. The sins which Judah is said to have committed under Rehoboam were at that time, as we know, not sins at all. No one knew that there was any objection either to the local sanctuaries (or high places) or to the sacred pillars and poles which were dotted through the length and breadth of the land. On the other hand the idols which Asa destroyed, and especially the idol which Maacah used in the worship of Astarte, wei'e a real and known violation of the fundamental religious law. Thou shalt have no other gods beside me. § 4. Now as to the kingdom of Israel during these sixty years. Here there ruled six kings instead of three. Thus : Jeroboam I . . . 937-915 Nadab 915-914 Baasha 914-890 Ela 890-889 Zimri 889 Omri 889-877, And Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and dwelt therein ; and he went out from thence, and built PenueL And Jeroboam thought in his heart. Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David ; if this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jeinisalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah; and they shall kill me. Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of X 3o6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING gold ; and he said unto the people. Ye have gone up long enough to Jerusalem ; behold thy god, O Israel, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. And he built temples, and made priests from among all the people, who were not of the sons of Levi. And these things became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth. At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. And Jeroboam said to his wife. Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam : and get thee to Shiloh ; behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, who told me that I should be king over this people. And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him : he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. And Jeroboam^s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see ; for his eyes were set by reason of his age. And God said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask thee about her son ; for he is sick ; thus and thus shalt thou say unto her. So when she came in disguised, and Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, he said. Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam ; why feignest thou thyself to be another ? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel : Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over ray people Israel, and rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee : and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes i but hast done evil above all that were before thee, and hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and has cast me behind thy back: therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every man child, and will utterly sweep away the house of Jeroboam, as a man sweepeth away dung, till it be all gone. Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat : for the Lord hath spoken it. Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine house : and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. And all Israel THE HOUSE OF JEROBOAM 307 shall mourn for him, and bury him ; for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave : because in him there is found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam, Moreover the Lord shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam. For the Lord shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the River; because of the poles which they have made, provoking the Lord to anger. And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, wherewith he did sin, and wherewith he made Israel to sin. And Jeroboam^s wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah : and when she came to the threshold of the house, the child died. And they buried him ; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet. And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years : and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead. And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin. And Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him ; and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines ; for Nadab and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon- Even in the third year of Asa king of Judah did Baasha slay him, and reigned in his stead. And it came to pass, when he reigned, he smote aU the house of Jeroboam ; he left not to Jeroboam any that breathed, until he had destroyed him ; according unto the saying of the Lord, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the Shilonite : because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and wherewith he made Israel to sin ; by his provocation wherewith he provoked the Lord God of Israel to anger% Now the rest of the acts of Nadab, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? In the third year of Asa king of Judah began Baasha the X 3 3o8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING son of Ahijah to reign over all Israel in Tirzah, and reigned twenty and four years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, and vi^alked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin. Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over my people Israel ; and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins ; behold, I will utterly sweep away Baasha and his house; and I will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Him that dieth of Baasha in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth of his in the field shall the fowls of the air eat. Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? And Baasha slept with his fathers, and was buried in Tu'zah; and Elah his son reigned in his stead. In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah began Elah the son of Baasha to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and reigned two years. And his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him : now he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, steward of his house in Tirzah : and Zimri went in and smote him, and killed him, in the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his stead. And it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he smote all the house of Baasha, together with his kinsfolks, and his friends. Thus did Zimri destroy all the house of Baasha, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, for all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned, and by which they made Israel to sin, to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger with their vanities. Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah did Zimri reign seven days in Tirzah. Now the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philis- tines, And the people that were encamped heard say, Zimri hath conspired, and hath also slain the king: wherefore all Israel made Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel god's judgement and man's judgement 309 that day in the camp. And Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah. And it came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the king^s house, and burnt the king^s house over him with fire, and died, for his sins which he sinned in doing evil in the sight of the Lord, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he did, to make Israel to sin. Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and his treason that he wrought, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? Then were the people of Israel divided into two parts : half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king; and half followed Omri. But the people that followed Omri prevailed against the people that followed Tibni the son of Ginath : so Tibni died, and Omri reigned. In the thirty and first year of Asa king of Judah began Omri to reign over Israel, and reigned twelve years: six years reigned he in Tirzah. And he bought the hill Samaria of Shemer for two talents of silver; and he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill, Samaria. And Omri wrought evil in the sight of the Lord, and did worse than all that were before him. For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sins wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger with their vanities. Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his might that he shewed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? So Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria : and Ahab his son reigned in his stead. We have to read these passages about the kings of Israel from Jeroboam to Omri remembering the writer and all that we have heard about him before. His one fixed idea was that all the kings of Israel were wicked, and that they were wicked because they transgressed the laws of the Retrospect. He repeats the same judgement in almost the same words about every one of them, though Omri (so far as we know merely because he was the father of Ahab, of whom we are soon to hear) is declared to have been even worse than his forerunners. Notice that Zimri, who only reigned seven days, is condemned precisely in the same stereotyped way ! But what strikes us even more is this : the writer assumes that what he thinks, God thought, and that as his judgement was, so too was 310 ' THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and must be the judgement of God. Yet as we know, Ms judge- ment was often unhistorical and unfair. For the laws of the Eetrospect had not even been written, far less published and accepted, by the reign of Omri. The consequence of our writer s rash identification of his own thoughts with the thoughts of God is that he puts words into the mouths of the prophets of that time which cannot represent what they actually said, and he makes God responsible for, and the author of, the very horrible and wholesale murders by which each fresh usurper exterminated the family of his predecessor on the throne. Once more it is from the Bible that we have to correct the Bible, for we must never drag down what is highest in the Bible to the level of what is less high. Now the Bible says this ; My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. And again ; God is full of compassion and gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy. Like as a father pitieth his children, so God pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame ; he remembereth that we are dust. And in the law of the Retrospect itself we are told : The father shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers. And elsewhere this : The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son. Cast away from you all your transgressions, and make you a new heart and a new spirit. I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves and live. If we compare these utterances with what we have heard about the kings of Israel, we shall be aware of a difference between the two. And it is a good working rule that that which is higher and better is also truer and more divine. PROPHETS AND THEIR WORK 311 CHAPTER XIII EIGHTY YEARS OE ISRAELITE AND JUDAEAN HISTORY § I. We will now take an eighty years' stretcli of history in the two kingdoms, beginning this time with Israel instead of Judah, Here we find for these eighty years ^ve kings only. Thus : Ahab 877-855 . 855-854 Ahaziah Jehoram Jehu Joahaz . , 854-842 . 842-814 . 814-797. The reign of Ahab is very famous, especially because of the great prophet Elijah who lived at that time. Perhaps it will be advisable for me to say a few words here about the prophets generally. We have already met with a few prophets since the days of Saul. At first they are hardly individualized, and we do not know what their prophesying consists of or what it means. It seems a sort of strange excitement, accompanied with music ; but without any moral basis or object. But gradually the excitement becomes less, and the individual prophets emerge and step out of the crowd. We get to Gad, Nathan, and Ahijah, and of these three Nathan already represents the type of the Prophet as we have him at his best, when in God's name he denounces David for his sin against TJriah. The prophets, then, were messengers and teachers : they were men who felt that the spirit of God had come to them and drove them to say certain things. These things might be warnings or threats : they might be moral teachings, promises, or foretellings, but in all of them alike the prophets believed that God had charged them with their message. * There is within me, as it were,' says one of them, * a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I cannot contain myself.' Speak he must. How do we know that it was God's spirit which drove these men to speak ? We have no other test to go by than this : what is great and noble and true — that is the work of God and his spirit. God has not chosen that any man should always speak what is great and noble and true for all time. He has chosen that the more good and the less good 312 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING should be mixed up, and he has left us to separate, as the Bihle says, the * wheat from the chaff.' So there were different kinds of ' prophets/ and even of those who honestly believed that what they spoke was the will of God, the words of some are much truer and greater than the words of others. For a long time the prophets did not write down their messages. They were delivered for a particular occasion to a particular gi'oup of people and for a particular end. After a time they began to write down what they had said, or bits of it, and fragments of these prophetical writings, mixed up with the additions of their editors, have survived to our own time. Elijah, of whom we have now to hear, did not write down his messages. He was more a man of deeds than of words. A grand, huge, and solitary figure, of whom all sorts of wonderful tales were told and repeated (with many additions in the telling) from mouth to mouth, so that it is very difficult to separate off what is probably quite true from what is probably erroneous. Sometimes we may well believe that the great prophet was much greater than the stories told of him, and that they reflect the views of his people rather than his own. For Elijah in all probability towered above the men of his age in his views about goodness and God. § 2. Now then let us begin the history of Ahab. And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah began Ahab the son of Omri to reign over Israel : and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty and two years. And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were before him. And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a pillar and a pole for Baal, and Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him. Thus Ahab appears to have committed the same kind of sin as Solomon. He married a Tyrian princess, and he built a temple with an altar for the worship of the Tyrian god Baal and he worshipped at this altar himself. There was moreover a regular company of idolatrous priests to attend to the idolatrous worship of the foreign god, "When the better and purer minds in Israel remembered the great law, * Thou shalt have no other gods beside ELIJAH THE TISHBITE 313 me/ and when they murmured at the new idolatry, the king appears to have allowed Jezebel and her party to maltreat and oppress the murmurers, and more especially the prophets. For they were naturally to the fore in antagonism and complaint. But the heart and soul and head of the opposition to Jezebel was the prophet Elijah. There seems to have existed a collection of stories respecting him, of which collection some have been incorporated by our compiler in his history of the kings. The first story which he gives was clearly not the first in the collection, for Elijah is suddenly introduced without explanation, comment, or preface, and we are plunged into the very middle of the struggle between him and Ahab. This is how the story begins ; And Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbeh of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. And the word of God came unto him, saying. Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is east of Jordan. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So he did according unto the word of God : for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is east of Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread in the morning, and flesh in the evening ; and he drank of the brook. And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land. And the word of God came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there : behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. So he arose and went to Zarephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow woman was there gathering sticks : and he called to her, and said. Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said. Fetch me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said. As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a baiTel, and a little oil in a cruse : and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. And Elijah said unto her. Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith 314 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that God sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did accord- ing to the saying of Elijah : and she and he and her son did eat day by day. The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord,, which he spake by Elijah. And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick ; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him. And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? thou art come unto me to call my sin to remem- brance, and to slay my son ! And he said unto her. Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed. And he cried unto God, and said, O Lord my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son ? And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto God, and said, O Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child^s soul come into him again. And God heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother : and Elijah said. See, thy son liveth. And the woman said to Elijah, Now I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth. There was a great and long famine in Palestine, extending apparently not only over the land of Israel, but also over Phoenicia, In those days famine was always supposed to indicate divine anger, and so it was believed by many pious Israelites that God had sent this famine as a punishment for Ahab's idolatry. The Zidonian woman has faith in Elijah's prediction, and of the small remnant of food that still belongs to her she spares a part to give to him. Note the strange words, *Thou art come unto me to bring my sin to remembrance and to slay my son/ They imply several curious ideas. The poor woman thinks that because her lodger is a prophet, therefore she, in her insignificance till then unnoticed, has now been brought to the knowledge and notice of God. Noticing her, he notices her sinfulness (* for there is no man that sinneth not '), and as a punishment he kills her son. She does not yet understand that God does not directly (though he does in- THE PROPHET AND THE KING 315 directly) punish the son for the sin of its parents, nor does she realize that if any of us are God's children then are we dLL As our own great poet has taught us, through the lips of an unlettered girl (and the most ignorant have brightest gleams of highest truth); All service ranks the same with God — With God, whose puppets, best and worst, Are we: there is no last nor first. § 3. The story of Elijah continues thus : And it came to pass after many days^ that the word of God came to Elijah, in the third year, saying". Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab- And there was a sore famine in Samaria. And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over his house. (Now Obadiah feared God greatly : for it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.) And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Let us go through the land, unto all the fountains 01 water, and unto all the brooks: peradventure we may find grass and save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts. So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it : Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him : and he knew hirn, and fell on his face, and said. Art thou my lord Elijah ? And he answered him, I am ; go, tell thy lord. Behold, Elijah is here. And he said. Wherein have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me? As the Lord thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee : and when they said. He is not here, he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not. And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord. Behold, Elijah is here. And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the spirit of the Lord shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me : but I thy servant fear God from my youth. Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the Lord, how I hid an hundred men of the Lord's prophets by fifty in a cave, and 3i6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING fed them with bread and water? And now thou sayest. Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here : and he shall slay me. And Elijah said. As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to-day. So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him : and Ahab went to meet Elijah. And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Is it thou, thou troubler of Israel? And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy fathei^'s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed the Baalim. Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, who eat at JezebeFs .table. So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets togethei' unto mount Carmel. And Elijah came unto all the people, and said. How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him : but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word. Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord ; but BaaFs prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, and put no fire under; and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on the wood, and put no fire under. And call ye on the name of your god, and I will caU on the name of the Lord : and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God, And all the people answered and said. It is well spoken. And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under. And they took the bullock, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they danced about the altar which they had made. And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said. Cry aloud : for he is a god ; either he is meditating, or he is gone aside, or he is on a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked. And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lances, till the blood gushed out upon them. BAAL OR THE LORD? 317 And it came to pass when midday was pastj that they prophesied until the time of the evening meal-offering; but there was neither voice^ nor any answer, nor any that regarded. And Elijah said unto all the people. Come near unto me ; and all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was brpken down. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as M^ould contain two measures of seed. And he put the wood in order^ and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it on the wood. And he said. Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the offering, and on the wood. And he said, Do it the second time; and they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time ; and they did it the third time. And the water ran round about the altar ; and he filled the trench also with water. And it came to pass at the time of the evening meal- offering, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, O Lord God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou, Lord, art God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. Then fire from heaven fell, and consumed the offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces : and they said. The Lord, he is God ; the Lord, he is God. Then Elijah said unto the people. Take the prophets of Baal ; let not one of them escape. And they took them : and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there. And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink ; for there is a sound of abundance of rain. So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees. And he said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said. There is nothing. And he said. Go again. And he went again and yet again seven times. And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said. Behold, there ariseth a cloud out of the sea, as small as a man^s 3i8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass in a little while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah ; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying. So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to-morrow about this time. And Elijah was afraid and he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day^s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree : and he requested for himself that he might die ; and said. It is enough ; now, Lord, take away my life ; for I am not better than my fathers. And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, an angel touched him, and said unto him. Arise and eat. And he looked, and, behold, there was at his head a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said. Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee. And he arose, and did eat and drinkj and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God. And he went into a cave and passed the night there. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord ; but the Lord was not in the wind : and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earth- quake: and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire : and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said. What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, 1 have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the ELIJAH S JEALOUSY FOR GOD 319 sword ; and I, even I only, am left ; and they seek my life, to take it away. And the Lord said unto him. Go, return on thy way to the wildei'ness of Damascus : and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria : and Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room. And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay. Yet will I spare seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him. So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was ploughing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth : and Elijah passed over unto him, and cast his mantle upon him. And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said. Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said unto him. Go back again ; but remember what I have done to thee. And he retui'ned, and took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him. Does this story reveal to us more of Elijah's character or of the characters of those who told and wrote these stories about him 1 But note first that it can hardly be a literal statement where Elijah says that he only is left of all the prophets of ' the Lord.' Oba- diah elsewhere is said to have saved a hundred, and in a following chapter we shall find a number of them giving counsel to Ahab. Note, secondly, that Elijah is grieved for the overthrow of the altars of God and knows nothing of the law of the Retrospect, according to which all these altars would he offensive and illegal. "When you read your Scotch history and hear of the Covenanters and the Puritans, this will give you some suggestions for under- standing better and for sympathizing better with the character of Elijah. In his hot, if pure zeal for God and for the cause, *No God save " the Lord," ' he is unsparing of human life, and so he has no scruple in killing all the prophets of Baal. The vision at Horeh is very famous, but it has usually been misunderstood. The 'still small voice' has been contrasted with the wind and the earthquake and the fire, but this was not the intention of the writer. 320 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING He, believing in God's justice and righteousness, did not yet realize that his righteousness is not less righteous by being tempered and penetrated with love. The highest righteousness is discerning love : the mercy which it shows is the mercy of insight. It 'makes allowances,' as the saying is, because it knows. To this writer there is no remedy and no punishment for disobedience but slaughter and death. God's ways are subtler : they are less rough and ready. Note lastly that the order to anoint Hazael and' Jehu is not carried out by Elijah. The stories which we shall hear with regard to them follow a different tradition. § 4. The next story we hear about Elijah represents him to us in a different light. Before he fights for the cause, * Thou shalt have no God but me ' ; now he fights for the cause, * The Lord is righteous and loves righteousness/ These two causes taken to- gether, and in their relation to and connexion with each other, are the keynote of Hebrew prophecy. And it came to pass after these things^ that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard^ vrhich was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying. Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house; and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it : or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. And Naboth said to Ahab, God forbid that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee. And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him : for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and covered his face, and would eat no bread. But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him. Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread ? And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him. Give me thy vineyard for money ; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard. And Jezebel his wife said unto him. Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel ? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. So she wrote a letter in Ahab's name, and sealed it with his seal, and sent the letter unto the elders and to the nobles NABOTH S VINEYARD 321 that were in his city^ that dwelt with Naboth. And she wrote in the letter, saying. Proclaim a fast, and set Nabotli at the head of the people : and set two worthless men before him, to bear witness against him, saying. Thou didst curse God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he die. And the fflien of his city, even the elders and the nobles, did as Jezebel had sent unto them, and as it was written in the letter which she had sent unto them. They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth at the head of the people. And the two worthless men came in and sat before him : and they bare witness against him in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth did curse God and the king. Then they carried him forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died. Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned, and is dead. And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money : for Naboth is not alive, but dead. And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that he rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who dwelleth in Samaria : behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. And thou shalt speak unto him, saying. Hast thou killed, and also taken possession ? and thou shalt speak unto him, saying. In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine. And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee. Because thou hast sold thyself to do that which is evil in the sight of the Lord, behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will utterly sweep thee away, and will cut off from Ahab every man child : and I will make thine house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and hast made Israel to sin. And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly. And the word of the Lord came to EUjah the Tishbite, saying, Seest thou how Ahab Y 322 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING humbleth himself before me ? because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days : but in his son^s days will I bring the evil upon his house. As to the last words of this striking story it is enough for me to refer to what I said as to the death of David's son after the murder of Uriah. The prediction that dogs shall lick up the blood of Ahab is, perhaps, not cancelled by the further announcement that the evil is to come in the days of his son, for according to old Israelite notions the same blood which flows in the veins of the father flows also in the veins of the son. In Elijah's answer to Ahab he does not repeat the words which he has been bidden to say. Apparently the compiler has here substituted his own stereo- typed phrases in the place of the earlier narrative. § 5. "We now have to hear some quite different stories about the life and history of Ahab, written by a different pen. Ahab will appear to us in them in a more favourable light. Elijah is not mentioned. And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him^ and horses and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel^ into the city^ and said unto him^ Thus saith Ben-hadad, Thy silver and thy gold is mine. And the king of Israel answered and said^ My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. And the messengers came again, and said. Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying. Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children. And I will send my servants unto thee to-morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the house of thy servants ; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in their eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away. Then the king of Israel called all the elders, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief : for he hath sent unto me for my wives and my children; my silver and my gold I denied him not. And the elders and all the people said unto him. Hearken not unto him, nor consent. Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king. All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do : but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again. AHAB AND BEN-HADAD 323 And Ben-hadad sent unto hini^ and said^ The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me. And the king of Israel answered and said. Tell him. Let not him that girdeth on his armour hoast himself as he that putteth it off. And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings, in the huts, that he said unto his servants, Set the engines in position. And they set the engines in position against the city. Then Ahab numbered the young men of the piinces of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two : and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand. And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, saying, There are men come out from Samaria. And he said. Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive ; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive. And the king of Israel went out, and took the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughtei*. And the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them ; and Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on an horse. And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their god is a god of the hills ; therefore they were stronger than we : but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And do this thing; take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put governors in their I'oom : and number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot : and we will fight against them in the plain, and sm'ely we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so. And a man of God came and spake unto the king of Israel, and said. Thus saith the Lord, Because the Syrians have said. The Lord is a god of the hills, but he is not a god of the valleys ; therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the Lord. And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Ben-hadad mustered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. And the children of Israel were numbered, and were victualled, and went against them: and the children of Israel pitched before them like two little y a 324 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING flocks of kids; but the Syrians filled the country. And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that on the seventh day the battle vi^as joined ; and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thousand footmen in one day. But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and the wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand men that were left. And Ben-hadad fled^ and came into the city. And his servants said unto him. Behold now^ we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings : let us^ we pi'ay thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel : peradventure he will save thy life. So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said. Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said. Is he yet alive ? he is my brother. Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing would come from him, and did hastily catch it; and they said. Is thy brother Ben-hadad ? Then he said. Go ye, bring him. Then Ben-hadad came forth to him ; and he caused him to come up into the chariot. And Ben-hadad said unto him. The cities which my father took from thy father I will restore ; and thou shalt have a quarter in Damascus, as my father had in Samaria : and as for me, do thou send me away with this covenant. So Ahab made a covenant with him, and sent him away. And they conthiued three years without war between Syria and Israel. And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel, And the king of Israel said unto his servants. Know ye that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and we be still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria ? And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth- gilead ? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses. And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Inquire, I pray thee, at the word of the Lord to-day. Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them. Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear ? And they said. Go up ; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king. But Jehoshaphat said. Is there not here one more prophet A PROPHET OF EVIL 325 of the Lordj that we might inquire of him ? And the king of Israel said ui^o Jehoshaphat^ There is yet one more man by whom we may inquire of the Lord^ Micaiah the son of Imlah : but I hate him ; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me^ but evil. And Jehoshaphat said^ Let not the king say so. Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said. Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah. Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, at the entrance of the gate of Samaria ; and all the prophets prophesied before them. And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith the Lord, With these shalt thou push the Syrians until they be consumed. And all the prophets prophesied so, saying. Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper: for the Lord shall deliver it into the king's hand. And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake unto him, saying. Behold now, the prophets speak good unto the king with one mouth : let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak thou that which is good. And Micaiah said, As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak. So he came to the king. And the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear ? And he answered him, Go up, and prosper; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king. And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou speak unto me nothing but that which is true in the name of the Lord ? And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd : and the Lord said. These have no master ; let them return every man to his house in peace. And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil ? And he said. Not so ; hear thou the word of the Lord : I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven stand- ing by him on his right hand and on his left. And the Lord said. Who will beguile Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead ? And one said on this manner 5 and another said on that manner. And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will beguile him. And the Lord said unto him. Wherewith ? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt beguile him, and shalt 326 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING prevail also : go forth, and do so. Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the nioutb of all these thy prophets; and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee. Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near^ and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said. Which way went the spirit of the Lord from me to speak unto thee ? And Micaiah said. Behold, thou shalt see on that day, when thou shalt go from chamber to chamber to hide thyself. And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son ; and say. Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace. And Micaiah said. If thou return at all in peace, the Lord hath not spoken by me. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle 5 but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle. Now the king of Syria had commanded his thirty and two captains that had rule over his chariots, saying. Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel. And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said. Surely it is the king of Israel ; and they turned aside to fight against him : and Jehoshaphat cried out. And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him. And a certain man drew his bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness : where- fore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thine hand, and carry me out of the army ; for I am sore wounded. And the battle increased that day : and the king stood up in his chariot against the Syrians until even, but at even he died. And the cry went throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying. Every man to his city, and every man to his country; for the king is dead. So they returned to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria. Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house Avhich he made, and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the THE DEATH OF AHAB 327 chronicles of the kings of Israel ? So Ahab slept with his fathers ; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead. The first part of the story of these campaigns against the Syrians needs hardly any explanation. The ' quarter ' in Damascus was probably a special market-place for Israelite merchants and chapmen. The second part is more difi&cult. Here we have the first instance of a great difference between ' the prophets of the Lord * among themselves. The 400 are the king's friendSj but Micaiah is his enemy, for ' he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.' Prophecy, like other good things, was liable to abuse. Some men sought to give their servility the form of prophecy. Others were genuinely mistaken, and were possessed of a less illuminative and piercing insight into the laws of goodness and God. The 400 prophets might be regarded as examples of both these classes, for their confidence on the present occasion was, according to the story, fore-ordained. They were ' beguiled.' Micaiah's words must, however, not be taken literally. They are allegorical. Micaiah believed that the prophets were mistaken in their con- fidence and advice. And as all things are done by the will of God, so too this. Therefore tJieir error was, to Micaiah's mind, GodJs intention : in other words, they were * beguiled/ We too attribute all things to God, but less directly, nor do we even attempt to understand his purposes in all earthly events. But in the funda- mental belief that God is the world's Kuler and Sustainer we are at one with Micaiah. § 6. Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned two years over Israel. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. For he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked to anger the Lord God of Israel, according to all that his father had done. And Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them. Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease. But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and 328 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING say unto theni^ Is it because there is not a God in Israel^ that ye go to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron ? Now therefore thus saith the Lord^ Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed. And when the messengers came back to the king, he said unto them. Why is it that ye are come back ? And they said unto him. There came up a man to meet us, and said unto us. Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him. Thus saith the Lord, Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron ? therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And he said unto them. What manner of man was he who came up to meet you, and told you these words? And they answered him. He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And the king said. It is Elijah the Tishbite. Then he sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him : ,and, behold, he sat on the top of a hill. And he spake unto him, O man of God, the king hath said. Come down. And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty. If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. And again the king sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up, and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said. Come down quickly. And Elijah answered and said unto him, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. And again the king sent a captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And he went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and consumed the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: let my life now be precious in thy sight. And the angel of the Lord said unto Elijah, Go down with him : be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king. And he said unto him. Thus saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou hast THE PASSING OF ELIJAH 329 sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron^ therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up^ but shalt surely die. So he died according to the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram his brother b^gan to reign in his stead ; because he had no son. Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? In this story we have Elijah once more represented to us in Iiis fiercer mood. Perhaps the story is due to the imagination of his admirers rather than to himself and to fact. It strikingly illustrates the cruel carelessness of human life so characteristic of ancient times. A * hairy man ' means a man clad in a hairy skin, § 7. The last story about Elijah is the most marvellous. It tells how the prophet was reported to have mysteriously disappeared from the earth and how this disappearance had been effected. And it came to pass, when the Lord would take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah went with Ehsha from Gilgal. And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee ; for the Lord hath sent me to Beth-el, And Elisha said. As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Beth-el, And the sons of the prophets that were at Beth-el came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thee to-day ? And he said. Yea, I know it 5 hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee ; for the Lord hath sent me to Jericho. And he said. As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho. And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came near to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thee to-day ? And he answered. Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him. Tarry here, I pray thee ; for the Lord hath sent me to Jordan. And he said. As the Lord liveth^ and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on. And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood over against them afar off : and they two stood by 330 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Jordan. And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Ehsha, Ask what I shall do for J:hee, before I be taken from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said. Thou hast asked a hard thing : nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee ; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on^ and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, which parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried. My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof! And he saw him no more : and he took hold of his own clothes^ and rent them in two pieces. He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan. And he took the mantle of Elijah, and smote the waters, and said. Where is the Lord God of Elijah ? and when he had smitten the waters, they were divided hither and thither : and Elisha went over. And when the sons of the prophets saw him, they said. The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him. And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men ; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master : lest peradventure the spirit of the Lord hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said. Ye shall not send. And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said. Send. They sent therefore fifty men ; and they sought three days, but found him not. . And when they came again to him, (for he tamed at Jericho,) he said unto them. Did I not say unto you. Go not ? § 8. We now come to a story about Jehoranij Jehoshaphat, and Elisha, parallel in some respects to our former story of Ahab, Jehoshaphat, and Micaiah. Edom, we are elsewhere told, was at this time subject or tributary to Judah, so that the king of Edom mentioned in this story must be its governor or satrap appointed by Jehoshaphat. MESHA THE SHEEP-MASTER 331 Now Jehoram the sou of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years. And he wrought evil in the sight of the Lord; but not like his father and like his mother ; for he put away the pillars of Baal that his father had made. Nevertheless he cleaved unto the sins of Jero- boam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin ; he departed not therefrom. Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep-master; and he rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand lambs^ and the wool of an hundred thousand rams. But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. And king Jehoram went out of Samaria, and numbered all Israel. And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying. The king of Moab hath rebelled against me : wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle ? And he said, I will go up : I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses. And Jehoshaphat said, Which way shall we go up? And he answered. The way by the wilderness of Edom, So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king pf Edom: and they fetched a compass of seven days' journey : and there was no water for the host, and for the cattle that followed them. And the king of Israel said, Alas ! that the Lord hath called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab. But Jehoshaphat said. Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may inquire of the Lord by him ? And one of the king of Israel's servants answei*ed and said. Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah. And Jehoshaphat said. The word of the Lord is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him. And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee ? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him. Nay : for the Lord hath called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab. And Elisha said. As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee. But now bring me a minstrel. And it 332 THE BIBLE FOR HOME . READING came to pass^ when the minstrel played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him. And he said, Thus saith the Lord, Make this valley full o¥ pits. For thus saith the Lord^ Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain, yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye shall drink, both ye and your army and your beasts. And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord ; he will also deliver the Moabites into your hand. And it came to pass in the morning, when the meal-offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water. And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come lip to fight against them, they gathered together all that were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood on the border. And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood : and they said. This is blood ; the kings have surely fought together, and they have smitten each man his fellow : now therefore, Moab, to the spoil. And when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before them : and they went forward into the land smiting the Moabites, and taking their cities. § 9. The compiler of the Boolts of Kings inserts various stories about Elisha, some of which seem modelled upon or developed out of stories about Elijah. It is hard to say ho"w much of them can have happened both to one and to the other, Elisha, so far as we can gather, was not as great or original a man as his master Elijah. But the stories told about him are still fuller of marvels and miracles. And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman ; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband. Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, who passeth by us continually. Let us make, I pray thee, a little upper chamber on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick : and it shall be, when he Cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber and lay there. And he said to Gehazi bis servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, GREAT BUT SIMPLE 333 she stood before him. And he said unto her. Behold, thou hast been careful for us witli all this care ; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host ? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. And he said. What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered. Verily she hath no son, and her husband is old. And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. And he said. At this season next year thou shalt embrace a son. And she said. Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. And the woman bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her. And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers. And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad. Carry him to his mother. And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died. And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out. And she called unto her husband, and said. Send me, I pray thee, one of- the servants, and one of the asses, that I maj'- run to the man of God, and come again. And he said. Wherefore wilt thou go to him ? it is to-day neither new moon nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant. Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee. So she went, and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his seiTant, Behold, yonder is the Shunammite : run, I pray thee, now to meet her, and say unto her. Is it well with thee ? is it well with thy husband ? is it well with the child? And she answered. It is well. And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet. And Gehazi came near to thrust her away ; but the man of God said. Let her alone ; for her soul is vexed within her; and the Lord hath hid it from me, and hath not told me. Then she said. Did I desire a son of my lord ? did I not say. Do not deceive me ? Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way : if thou meet any man, salute him not ; and if any salute thee, answer him not again : and 334 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING lay my staff upon the face of the child. And the mother of the child said. As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her. And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child ; but there was neither voice, nor heed. Wherefore he went back to meet him, and told him, saying. The child is not awaked. And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the Lord, And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands : and he stretched himself upon him ; and the flesh of the child waxed warm. Then he returned, and walked in the house once to and fro ; and went up, and stretched himself again upon the child : and the child sneezed seven times, and opened his eyes. And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said. Take up thy son. Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground ; and she took up her son, and went out. Notice in this story the pretty picture of family life, and the vividness of the narrative. The ' great' or rich woman hves simply, and the guest-chamber is simply furnished. Later on the compiler gives us another glimpse of the Shunammite in the following words. She was now, as it would seem, a widow. And EHsha spake unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying. Arise, and go thou and thine house- hold, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn : for the Lord hath called a famine upon the land seven years. And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God : and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years. And it came to pass at the seven yeai's' end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Phihstines: and she went forth to cry unto the king for her. house and for her land. Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying. Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done. And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored the dead to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her THE DEAD RESTORED TO LIFE 335 house and for her land. And Gehazi said. My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now. And the men of Jericho said unto Elisha, Behold, we pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth : but the water is naught, and there is barrenness in the land. And he said. Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him. And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast salt therein, and said. Thus saith the Lord, I^have healed these waters ; there shall not be from thence any more death or barrenness. So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake. Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying. Thy servant my husband is dead : and thou knowest that thy servant did fear God : and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. And Elisha said unto her. What shall I do for thee ? tell me ; what hast thou in the house ? And she said. Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil. Then he said. Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels ; borrow not a few. And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and pour out into all those vessels 5 and thou shalt set aside that which is full. So she went from him, and did so. And she shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her, and she poured out. And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son. Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her. There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed. Then she came and told the man of God. And he said. Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy sons of the rest. And Elisha came again to Gilgal : and there was a dearth in the land ; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him : and he said unto his servant. Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets. And one went out into the field to gather lierbs, and found a wild vine, and 336 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage : for they knew them not. So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pasS;, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof. But he said. Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said. Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot. And there came a man from Baal-shalishah, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and fresh ears of corn. And he said. Give unto the people, that they may eat. And his servitor said. What, shoidd I set this before an hundred men? But he said again. Give the people, that they may eat; for thus saith the Lord, They shall eat, and shaU leave thereof. So he set it before them, and they did eat^ and left thereof, according to the word of the Lord, And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where M-e may dwell. And he answered. Go ye. And one said. Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. But as one was felling a beam, the axe-head fell into the water : and he cried, and said, Alas, master ! for it was borrowed. And the man of God said. Where fell it ? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and the iron did swim. And he said. Take it up to thee. So he put out his hand, and took it. The next story of Elisha's wonderful deeds is very striking and dramatic. Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him God had given victory unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper. And the Syrians had gone out in bands, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. And she said unto her mistress. THE liEALING OF NAAMAN 337 Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy. And he went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel. And the king of Syria said. Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of z'aiment. And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying. And now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy. And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy ? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quari-el against me. And it was so, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying. Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes ? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel. So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariots, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying. Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said. Behold, I thought. He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand, and recover me of my leprosy. Are not Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel ? may I not wash in them, and be clean ? So he turned and went away in a rage. And his servants came near, and spake nnto him, and said, If the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it ? how much rather then, when he saith to thee. Wash, and be clean ? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God ; and his flesh came again like nnto the flesh of a little child^ and he was clean. And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said. Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel : now therefore, I pray thee, take a present of thy servant. But he said. As the Lord liveth, before whom z 338 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused. And Naaman said. If not, let there, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth ; for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the Lord. But in this thing may the Lord pardon thy servant; when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when he bows himself in the house of Rimmon, may the Lord pardon thy servant in this thing. And he said unto him, Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way. But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared this Naaman, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought : as the Lord liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him. So Gehazi fol- lowed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw one running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said. Is all well ? And he said. All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from the hill country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets ; give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver. And Naaman said. Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, and laid them upon two of his servants ; and they bare them before him. And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house : and he let the men go, and they departed. But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi ? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said imto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to nieet thee ? Behold, thou hast taken money, and wilt get there- with garments, and oliveyards and vineyards, and sheep and oxen, and menservants and maidservants, but the leprosy of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow. To a Jew of a later age the extension of Gehazi's punishment to his 'seed' -would have appeared unjust, but to the men of Elisha's day a man and his son formed a unity. The words, 'If the prophet had bid thee do some great thino-, wouldest thou not have SIN AND RETRIBUTION 339 done it ? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean/ have often been used as a preacher's text. Men are often willing (or fancy themselves willing) to do some great thing or make some great sacrifice, but they murmur at the due fulfilment of the little ordinary duties of every day. § 10. The next story represents Elisha on better terms than we can imagine him with a son of Ahab, the idolator. Perhaps the story refers not to Jehoram, but to Jehoahaz the son of Jehu, of whom we shall hear later on. Now the king of Syria warred against Israel ; and he took counsel with his servants^ saying, In such and such a place shall ye hide yourselves in ambush. And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel^ saying. Beware that thou pass not such a place; for there the Syrians are hidden. And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of ; and he saved himself there, not once nor twice. And the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing ; and he called his servants, and said unto them. Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king of Isi'ael ? And one of his servants said. None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bed- chamber. And he said. Go and spy where he is, that I may send and capture him. And it was told him, saying. Behold, he is in Dothan, Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night and compassed the city about. And Elisha rose early in the morning, and went forth, and, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master ! how shall we do ? And he answered. Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed, and said. Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. And when the Syrians drew near to him, Elisha prayed unto the Lordj and said. Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. And Elisha said unto them. This is not the way, neither is this the city ; follow z % 340 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING mcj and I "will bring you to the man whom ye seek. And he led them to Samaria. And it came to pass^ when they were come into Samaria, that EHsha said. Lord, open the eyes o£ these men, that they may see. And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw ; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them. My father, shall I smite them ? shall I smite them ? And he answered. Thou shalt not smite them : wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow ? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master. And he pre- pared great provision for them : and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel. §11. It was perhaps during this truce between Syria and Israel that another strange event occurred in the life of Elisha. You will remember that according to a previous story Elijah was bidden to go to Damascus and anoint Hazael as king. The exe- cution of this mandate is here ascribed to Elisha. And Elisha came to Damascus : and Ben-hadad the king of Damascus was sick ; and it was told him, saying, The man of God is come hither. And the king said unto Hazael, Take a present in thine hand, and go, meet the man of God, and inquire of the Lord by him, saying. Shall I recover of this disease ? So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said. Thy son Ben-hadad king of Syria hath sent me to thee, saying. Shall I recover of this disease ? And Elisha said unto him. Go, say unto him. Thou shalt certainly recover; howbeit the Lord hath shewed me that he shall surely die. And he settled his countenance stedfastly upon him, until * he was ashamed : and the man of God wept. And Hazael said. Why weepeth my lord ? And he answered. Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel : their strong holds wilt thou set on iire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword. And Hazael said. But what is thy servant, the dog, that he should do this great thing ? And Elisha answered^ The Lord hath A FAMINE AND ITS HORRORS 34! shewed me that thou shalt be king over Syria, So he departed from Elisha, and came to his master; who said to him. What said Elisha to thee ? And he answered, He told me that thou shouldest surely recover. And it came to pass on the morrow, that he took a thick cloth and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died : and Hazael reigned in his stead. § 12. The following terrible story takes us back to the days of Ben-hadad, whom Hazael suffocated ; but some scholars think that the Ben-hadad referred to in it is the son of Hazael, who was also called Beu-hadad. In that case the king of Israel is not Jehoram son of Ahab, but Jehoahaz son of Jehu. And Jehu was a greater murderer than Ahab. But it is also possible that the king of Israel is Ahab himself. Tliere seem good historical reasons for this, into which I cannot here enter. And ' son of a murderer ' in Hel)rew and Eastern idiom need mean no more than murderer plain and simple. And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria : and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore shekels of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove's dung for five shekels of silver. And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying. Help, my lord, O king. And he said. If the Lord do not help thee, whence shall I help thee ? out of the threshing-floor, or out of the winepress ? And the king said unto her, What aileth thee ? And she answered, This woman said unto me. Give thy soii, that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him : and I said unto her on the next day. Give thy son, that we may eat him : and she hath hid her son. And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes, as he stood on the wall ; and the people perceived that he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day. But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him ; and the king sent a man from before him : but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye ho\v 342 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head ? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him back with the door : is not the sound of his master's feet behind him? And while he yet talked with them, behold, the king came down unto him : and he said. Behold, this evil is of the Lord ; why should I wait for the Lord any longer? And Elisha said. Hear ye the word of the Lord: thus saith the Lord, To-morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria, Then the ofi&cer on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said. Behold, if the Lord should make windows in heaven, might this thing be ? And he said. Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof. Now there were four leprous men outside the gate : and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die ? If we say. We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there : and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians : if they save us alive, we shall live ; and if they kill us, we shall but die. And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians : and when they were come to the outer part of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no man there. For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host : and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to the outer part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it ; and they came back, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it* Then they said one to another. We do not well : this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace : if we tarry till the morning light, our guilt will find us out : now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king's household. So they came and called unto the kee])ers of the gate of the city : and they told them, saying. We came to the cam^D of the Syrians, and, behold, FROM WANT TO PLENTY 343 there was no man there^ neither voice of man^ but horses tied^ and asses tied, and the tents as they were. And the keepers of the gate called the officers of the city, and the officers told it to the king^s household within. And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants^ I will now shew you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we be hungry ; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city. And one of his servants answered and said. Let some take^ I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, and let us send and see. They took therefore two chariots with horses; and the king sent after the host of the Syrians, saying. Go and see. And they went after them unto Jordan : and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their hasfe. And the messengers returned, and told the king. And the people went out^ and spoiled the camp of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the Lord. And the king appointed the officer on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate : and the people trode upon him in the gate, and he died, § 13. Awful scenes of carnage accompanied the fall of Omri's liouse. From the accession of Ahab to the death of Jehoram, his second son, thirty-five years elapsed. Jehoram's death was due to the hand of an usurper. His name was Jehu, and he is one of the worst figures in all Israelite history. He was a man (unfortunately there have been many like him) who took advantage of a real religious sentiment to forward his own ambition and to secure the stability of his throne by terrible bloodshed. He sought to excuse his cruelties by the pretended zeal of a feigned religious fervour. To sin for sin's sake openly is bad enough, but to sin in the name of religion is twenty times worse. "We are told that Jehu's rebellion was suggested by Elisha. According to another tradition, Elijah had been given the commission to anoint him king. We can but hope that both Elijah and Elisha had as little as possible to do with Jehu and his rebellion. The revolt began during a campaign against the Syrians or Aramaeans. Together with Ahaziah king of Judah, Jehoram of Israel fought against Hazael king of Damascus at Eamoth-gilead and besieged the town. There Jehoram was wounded. * Bo he 344 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING returned to be liealed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him. And Ahaziah king of Judah went down to visit him at Jezreel, because he was sick/ Jehu remained as commander of the Israelite forces before Eamoth-gilead, And Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said unto him. Gird up thy loins, and take this vial of oil in thine hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead. And when thou comest thither, look out there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brethren, and carry him to an inner chamber. Then take the vial of oil, and pour it on his head, and say. Thus saith the Lord, I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and tarry not. So the young man went to Ramoth-gilead. And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting ; and he said, I have an errand to thee, O captain. And Jehu said. Unto which of all us ? And he said. To thee, O captain. And he arose, and went into the house ; and he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I have anointed thee king over the people of the Lord, even over Israel. And he opened the door and fled. Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord; and they said unto him. Is all well ? wherefore came this mad fellow to thee ? And he said unto them. Ye know the man and his discourse. And they said. It is false ; tell us now. And he said, Thus and thus spake he to me, saying. Thus saith the Lord, I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew the trumpet, saying, Jehu is king. And Jehu said. If it be your mind, then let none go forth nor escape out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel. So Jehu i*ode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel ; for Jehoram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Jehoram. And there stood a watchman on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, I see a company. And Jehoram said, Take an horse- man, and send to meet them, and let him say, Is it peace ? So there went one on horseback to meet him, and said. Thus saith the king. Is it peace ? And Jehu said. What hast thou to do with peace ? turn thee behind me. And the watchman JEHU S REBELLION 345 told, saying. The messenger came to them, but he cometh not again. Then he sent out a second on horseback, who came to them, and said, Thus saith the king. Is it peace ? And Jehu answered. What hast thou to do with peace ? turn thee behind me. And the watchman told, saying. He came even unto them, and cometh not again : and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi ; for he driveth furiously. Then Jehoram said. Make ready. And they made ready his chariot. And Jehoram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu, and they met him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite. And it came to pass, when Jehoram saw Jehu, that he said. Is it peace, Jehu ? And he answered. What peace, so long as the idolatries of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many ? And Jehoram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah, There is treachery, O Ahaziah. And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength, and smote Jehoram between his arms, and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot. Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain, Take him up, and cast him on the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezi'eelite : for remember how thatj when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father, the Lord uttered this saying against him; Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons ; and I will requite thee on this ground. Now therefore take and cast him on the ground, according to the word of the Lord. But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. And Jehu followed after him, and said. Smite him also : and they smote him at the going up to Gur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there. And his servants lifted him on to the chariot and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his sepulchre with his fathers in the city of David. And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it ; and she painted her eyes, and tired her head, and looked out at the window. And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Is it peace, thou Zimri, thy master's murderer ? And he lifted up his face to the window, and said. Who is on my side ? who ? And there looked out to him two or three servants. And he said, Throw her down. So they threw 346 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING her down : and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses : and they trode her under foot. And when he was come in, he did eat and drink ; and he said, See now to this cm'sed woman, and bury her: for she is a king^s daughter. And they went to bury her : but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet^ and the palms of her hands. Wherefore they came again, and told him. The reference to Naboth's murder shows that the writer of this narrative knew a tradition about it varying in some slight respects from the one which was followed in that version of the story which we heard before. For here Ahab slays Naboth's sons as well as their father ; the ' vineyard ' becomes a ' field/ and Jehu is a witness to the prophetic threat, which is, however, not specifically ascribed to Elijah. Now Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters, and sent them to Samaria, unto the rulers of the city and unto the elders, and unto them that brought up Ahab^s children, saying, Now as soon as this letter cometh to you, seeing your master's sons are with you, and there are with you chariots and horses, and fenced cities, and armour ; look ye out the best and meetest of your master's sons, and set him on his fathei^'s throne, and fight for your master's house. But they were exceedingly afraid, and said. Behold^ the two kings stood not before him : how then shall we stand ? And he that was over the household, and he that was over the city, the elders also, and the bringers up of the children, sent to Jehu, saying. We are thy servants, and will do all that thou shalt bid us ; we will not make any man king : do thou that which is good in thine eyes. Then he wrote a second letter to them, saying. If ye be on my side, and if ye will hearken unto my voice, take ye the heads of your master's sons, and come to me to Jezreel by to-morrow this time. And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king's sons, and slew them, even seventy persons, and put their lieads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel. And there came a messenger, and told him^ saying. They have brought the heads of the king's sons. And he said, Lay ye them in two heaps at the entering in of the gate until the morning. And it came to pass in the morning, that he went out, and stood, and A MURDERERS ZEAL 347 said to all the people^ Ye are guiltless : behold, I conspired against my master, and slew him : but who slew all these ? Then Jehu smote all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his friends, and his priests, until he left him none remaining. And he arose and departed, and went towards Samaria. And when he came to Beth-eked, he met with the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said. Who are ye ? And they answered. We are the brethren of Ahaziah : and we go down to salute the children of the king and the children of the queen-mother. And he said. Take them alive. And they took them alive, and slew them, and cast them into the pit of Beth-eked, even two and forty men; neither left he any of them. And when he was departed thence, he lighted on Jeho- nadab the son of Rechab coming to meet him : and he saluted him, and said to him. Is thine heart right with me, as my heart is with thy heart ? And Jehonadab answered, It is. Then Jehu said. If it be, give me thine hand. And he gave him his hand ; and he took him up to him into the chariot. And he said. Come with me, and see my zeal for the Lord. So Jehonadab rode with Jehu in his chariot. And when Jehu came to Samaria, he smote all that remained unto Ahab in Samaria, till he had destroyed them all. Then Jehu gathered all the people together, and said unto them, Ahab served Baal a little i but Jehu shall serve him much. Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, and all his priests ; let none be wanting : for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy the wox*shippers of Baal. And Jehu said. Sanctify a solemn assembly for Baal. And they proclaimed it. And Jehu sent through all Israel : and all the worshippers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left that came not. And they came into the house of Baal : and the house of Baal was f idl from one end to another. And he said unto him that was over the vestry. Bring forth vestments for all the wor- shippers of Baal. And he brought them forth vestments. And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal ; and he said unto the worshippers of Baal, Search, and look that there be here with you none of the servants of the Lord, but the worshippers of Baal only. And 348 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING he went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had appointed him fourscore men without^ and said. He who letteth any of the men whom I deliver into your hands escape, his hfe shall be for the life of him. And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, Go in, and slay them ; let none come forth. And they smote them with the edge of the swordi And they brought forth the sacred pole that was in the house of Baal, and burned it. And they brake down the altar of Baal, and brake down the house of Baal, and made it a draught house unto this day. Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel. The writer from whom the compiler of the Books of Kings borrows this narrative tells the story as a true historian. He ' nothing extenuates and sets down nought in malice.' He neither approves nor condemns ; he merely relates the tale in all its grimness. On the other hand, it is a sad and painful fact that the compiler, who lived about 250 years after the rebellion of Jehu, clings so rigidly to the dominating idea that the character of all the Israelite kings is to be gauged by their smaller or greater deviation from the religious laws of the Retrospect (using the word religious in its narrower sense), that all the treachery and bloodshed of Jehu are as nothing in his eyes. He simply sees in him the destroyer of the worship of Baal, and praises him accordingly. He does not even say : So far as Jehu destroyed all idolatrous worship and idolatrous symbols he did well ; so far as he was treacherous and murderous he did ill. So unfortunate in its perversion of the moral judgemeut may be the domination of a single over- mastering idea in the mind of man ! The compiler even dares to say in the most outspoken and deliberate manner that the com- parative length of Jehu's dynasty was a divine reward for his having done that which was right in the eyes of God ! The great prophet Hosea, who spoke in the reign of Jeroboam II, the great- grandson of Jehu, thought very differently. To him the coming destruction of the whole kingdom of Israel is not too great a punishment for the murders of Jehu. * Yet a little while,' he says, * and God will visit the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause the kingdom of Israel to cease.' Hosea was no less zealous against idolatry than the compiler, but his religion was more moral and less one-sided. § 14. Of the whole twenty-eight years of Jehu's reign, and of the seventeen years of the reign of Jehoahaz his son, we learn next to COMPILER AND PROPHET 349 nothing. With the death of Jehoahaz our period of eighty years (877-797) will be completecl, and we must then turn our attention to the kingdom of Judah, In those days the Lord began to cut Israel short : and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel ; from Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead^ the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites^ from Aroer, which is by the valley of Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan. Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all his might, ai'e they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? And Jehu slept with his fathers : and they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead. And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel was twenty and eight years. In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin ; he departed not therefrom. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael. And he left not to Jehoahaz of the people save fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria destroyed them, and he crushed them like the dust. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers ; and they buried him in Samaria : and Joash his son reigned in his stead, § 15. During the eighty years (877-797 ^-c) in which Ahab, Ahaziah, Jehoram, Jehu, and Jehoahaz reigned in Israel, four kings and one queen occupied the throne of Judah. Thus we have : Jehoshaphat ♦ • . • • 876-851 Jehoram , 851-843 Ahaziah ....•• 843-842 Athaliah ,..,,. 842-836 Joash 836-796. This is what the compiler of the Books of Kings lets us hear of the first of these five, Jehoshaphat ; 350 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. Jehoshaphat was thirty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. And he walked in all the ways of Asa his father ; he turned not aside from itj doing that which was right in the eyes of the Lord : how- beit the high places were not taken away ; the people sacri- ficed and burnt incense yet in the high places. And Jeho- shaphat made peace with the king of Israel. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat^ and his might that he shewed^ and how he warred, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And there was then no king in Edom : a deputy of king Jehoshaphat was king. And he made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold : but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber. Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab unto Jehoshaphat, Let my servants go with thy servants in the ships. But Jeho- shaphat would not. And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father : and Jehoram his son reigned in his stead. The Levitical idealist of "whom I Lave spoken before has a great deal more than this to say about Jehoshaphat, but I omit it here because what he says is almost certainly unhistorical, and is not particularly interesting. I will just mention this ; And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city; and he said to the judges, Consider well what ye do : for ye judge not for man, but for God, who is with you in the judgement. Now therefore let the fear of God be upon you : take heed in all ye do : for there is no unrighteousness with God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes. And in the fifth year of Jehoram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to reign. Thirty and two yeai's 6ld was he when he began to reign ; and he reigned eight years 'in Jerusalem. And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: the daughter of Ahab vi^as his wife: and he did evil in the sight of the Lord. In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves. A WICKED QUEEN 351 So Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, unto this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time. And the rest of the acts of Jehoram^ and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And Jehoram slept with his fathers^ and was buried with his fathers in the city of David : and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead. In the twelfth year of Jehoram the son of Ahab king of Israel did Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah begin to reign. Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign ; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem, And his mother's name was Athaliah the daughter of Omri king of Israel. And he walked in the way of the house of Ahab^ and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord^ as did the house of Ahab : for he was the son in law of the house of Ahab. And he went with Jehoram the son of Ahab to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth-gilead : and the Syrians wounded Jehoram. And king Jehoram went back to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him at Ramah^ when he fought against Hazael king of Syria, And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab in Jezreel^ because he was sick. Of the death of Ahaziah, at the instigation and command of Jehu, we have ah'eady heard. § 16. "When the corpse of Ahaziah was brought to Jerusalem, Athaliah, the queen-mother, Omri's daughter, did a fearful and horrible deed. Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead^ she arose and destroyed all the seed royal. But Jehosheba^ the daughter of king Jehoram^ sister of Aha- ziah, and wife of Jehoiada the priest, took Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away from among the king's sons that were slain, even him and his nurse, and concealed them in the bedchamber ; and she hid him from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. And he was with her hid in the house of the Lord six years : and Athaliah reigned over the land. And in the seventh year Jehoiada the priest sent and fetched the captains over the hundreds of the Carians and of the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the 352 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Lord ; and lie made a covenant with thenij and took an oath of them in the house of the Lord, and shewed them the Idng's son. And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do : the third part of you, that go back from the temple on the sabbath, to be keepers of the watch of the king's house, and the two parts of you, even all that go from the palace on the sabbath, to keep the watch of the house of the Lord — all of you together shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand ; and he that cometh within the ranks, let him be slain : so shall ye be with the king when he goeth out from the temple, and when he cometh in to the palace. And the captains over the hundreds' did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and they took every man his men, both those that were wont to go back from the temple on the sabbath, with those that w^re wont to go from the palace on the sabbath, and they came to Jehoiada the priest. And the priest gave to the captains over the hundreds the spears and shields of king David, that were in the temple of the Lord, And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, from the south side of the temple to the north side of the temple. Then Jehoiada brought out the king's son, and put the ci'own on him and the bracelet; and they made him king, and anointed him; and they clapped their hands, and said, God save the king. The next part of the story seems to follow a slightly diffei'ent tradition. Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people, she came into the house of the Lord : and she looked, and, behold, the king stood by the pillar, as the manner was, and the captains and the trumpeters by the king; and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets. Then Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried. Treason, treason. And Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the host, and said unto them. Have her forth ; and him that followeth her slay with the sword ; for the priest said. Let her not be slain in the house of the Lord. So they laid hands upon her; and she was brought out by the way which the horses come into the king's house : and there was she slain. And Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they should be the Lord's people ; THE PRIEST AND THE KING 353 between the king also and the people. And all the people of the land went to the house of Baal, and brake it down 5 his altars and his images brake they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the Lord. And he • set forward the captains over hundreds, and the Carians, and the guard ; and they brought down the king from the house of the Lord, and came by the way of the gate of the guard unto the king's house. And he sat on the throne of the kings. So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet : for they had slain Athahah with the sword beside the king's house. So six years after Jehu had destroyed the worship of Baal out of Israel, Jehoiada and his allies destroyed it out of Judah, hut with far less bloodshed and cruelty. Jehoash was seven years old when he began to reign. In the seventh year of Jehu began Jehoash to reign ; and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. And Jehoash did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord all his days because Jehoiada the priest instructed him. Save only that the high places were not taken away: the people stiU sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places. And Jehoash said to the priests. All the money that is brought into the house of the Lord, let the priests take it to them : and they shall repair the breaches of the house, wheresoever any breach shall be found. But it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the bi*eaches of the house. Then king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the priest, and for the other priests, and said unto them, Why repair ye not the breaches of the house ? now therefore ye shall receive no more money, but deliver it for the breaches of the house. And the priests consented to receive no more money of the people, neither to repair the breaches of the house. But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it : and the priests that kept the door put therein all the money that was brought into the house of the Lord. And it was so, when they perceived that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe came up, and they put up in bags and counted the money that was found in the A a 354 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING house of the Lord. And they gave the money that was weighed out into the hands of them that did the work^ that had the oversight of the house of the Lord : and they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders, that wrought upon the house of the Lord, and to masons and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and hewn stone to repair the breaches of • the house of the Lord, and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it. Howbeit there were not made for the house of the Lord bowls of silver, snuffers, basons, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house of the Lord : for they gave it all to them that did the work, and repaired therewith the house of the Lord, Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to bestow on the workmen : for they dealt faithfully. At that time Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath, and took it: and Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem. And Jehoash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Aha- ziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicated, and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the king's house, and sent it to Hazael king of Syria : and he went away from Jerusalem. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and smote Jehoash at the house of Millo. For Jozacar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died; and they buried him vrith his fathers in the city of David: and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead. THE LAST EIGHT ISRAELITE KINGS 355 CHAPTER XIV THE THREE GREAT PROPHETS OF THE EIGHTH CENTURY § I. Wb may now take a third space of timCj extending over Beventy-five years for the kingdom of Israel, and some eighty-one years for the kingdom of Judah. Deducting 75 from 797, we come to the year 722, and in that year Samaria, the capital of the north, was captured hy the Assyrians, and the separate life of the Israelite kingdom abolished for ever. Here is the list of kings with their approximate dates, but the chronology of the Books of Kings for this period is very confused and contradictory. It is through the Assyrian inscriptions that certain dates, such as the fall of Samaria, have become definitely fixed. Jehoash 797~78i Jeroboam II 781-740 Zechariah 740 Shallum 740 Menahem 740-737 Pekahiah 737-735 Pekah 735-733 Hoshea 733-722. In the thirty and ninth year of Jehoash king of Judah began Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord ; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat^ who made Israel to sin : but he walked therein. Now Hazael king of Damascus died; and Ben-hadad his son reigned in his stead. And Jehoash took again out of the hand of Ben-hadad the cities which Hazael had taken from the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Jehoash smite him, and recovered the cities of Israel. These three victories of Jehoash over the Syrians were connected in Israelite tradition with the now aged prophet Elisha. This is the last story about him which the compiler of the Books of Kings has taken up into his history. A a o. 356 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died : and Jehoash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face^ and said. My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof ! And Elisha said unto him. Take bow and arrows : and he took unto him bow and arrows. And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow: and he put his hand upon it. And Elisha laid his hands upon the king's hands. And he said. Open the window eastward : and he opened it. Then Elisha said. Shoot : and he shot. And he said, An arrow of victory from the Lord ; yea, an arrow of victory over Syria : for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them. And he said. Take the arrows: and he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the gi'ound: and he smote thrice, and stayed. And the man of God was wroth with him, and said. Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst con- sumed it : whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice. And Elisha died, and they buried him. Now at that time bands of Moabites used to invade the land. And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band ; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha : and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet. Thus even after his death Elisha worked a miracle. In that age, as in so many ages after, there was nothing, if I may say so, strange about miracles. That any great seer or teacher should work miracles seemed the most natural thing in the world. Many things of which we now should seek the cause by scientific inquiry or careful investigation, wei^e then at once put down without hesitation to direct supernatural agency. This tendency continued down to modern times, and as a wise friend of mine, who has given me great help in the preparation of this book, remarked to me, we may easily find delightful and graphic illustrations of it in the tales of Sir Walter Scott. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? And Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel ; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead. A NEW DEPARTURE 357 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah Jeroboam the son of Jehoash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria, and reigned forty and one years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord : he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He restored the border of Israel from the entering in of Hamath unto the sea of the Arabah. Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and his might, how he warred, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel ; and Zechariah his son reigned in his stead. Thus the compiler of the Books of Kings has very httle to tell us of the long and prosperous reign of the second Jeroboam, Yet Jeroboam did great things, and for a time restored the kingdom of Israel to a position of dignity and seeming importance. Large tracts of lands on the east of Jordan, from the Dead Sea (' the sea of the Arabah ') at the far south, right away up into Aramaean territory on the north, were won or won back by Jeroboam to the kingdom of Israel. A transient gleam of glory and of outward prosperity shone brightly. The truth "was that the Aramaeans had been weakened by the Assyrians, that great empire of the east to which even Jehu of Israel, as we now know from the Ass3Tian inscriptions, had already paid tribute in the year 842. But during the reigns of Jehoash and Jeroboam II, feeble or peaceful monarchs occupied the throne of Assyria, so that Israel was enabled to push its conquests and to assume the airs of a proud and independent monarchy. Within three years of Jeroboam's death, Israel had once more to become the tributary of Assyria. § 2, For us, however, the importance of Jeroboam's reign does not lie in his successful campaigns. It lies in an event which at the time doubtless was little thought of and soon forgotten. What event was that ? It was that the prophet Amos — first of the prophets whose writings have been (though, alas, but fragmentarily) preserved to us — spoke and wrote in the reign of Jeroboam. A new chapter in the history of the Jewish religion then began : a new stage in what the Jews had to learn and teach about Good- ness and God. What was the purport of Amos' message 1 What did he come from Judah — for he was no man of the north himself — to say 1 His home was at Tekoa, a village near Bethlehem, and he was a simple herdman. 358 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The land of Israel was prosperous. Wealth abounded. The liearts of many were filled with gladness and pride. God seemed favourable and friendly. But though many were rich and com- fortable, many more were poor and needy. Injustice and oppression were common. There was much parade of outward religion — costly sacrifices and ofEerings — but little knowledge of God. So AmoSj the peasant of Judah, felt the inward call from God to speak a strange word in the ears of the Israelite nobles. Here are some specimens of what he says, and he speaks in the name of God. Hear this word that God hath spoken against you^ O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up out of the land of Egypt. You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth : therefore I will visit upon you all your iniquities. Proclaim it at the castles of Ashdod, and at the castles in the land of Eg}^pt, and say. Assemble yourselves upon the mountains around Samaria, and behold the great tumults within it, and the oppressions in its midst. For they know not to do right, but gather up the profit of their violence and robbery in their castles. They sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of shoes, and pervert the cause of the afflicted. Go then to Beth-el, and transgress ! Go then to Gilgal, and multiply transgression ! Bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes every three days ! Burn leavened bread as thank offerings, and proclaim freewill offerings and make them known : For this is your pleasure, O children of Israel, Therefore I will crush you as the threshing cart crusheth the threshing floor that is full of sheaves. And refuge shall fail the swift, and the strong man shall not maintain his power, and the warrior shall not save his life^ nor the bow- man make a stand, nor shall the rider be delivered. On the day when I visit the transgressions of Israel upon him, I will visit them upon the altars of Beth-el, and the horns thereof shall be cut off and fall to the ground. And I will smite the winter house and the summer house together, and the houses of ivory shall be demolished, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the Lord. Hear this word which I take up as a lamentation over you, O house of Israel, SEEK GOD AND LIVE 359 Fallen down, 110 more to rise. Is the virgin of Israel : She is cast down upon the ground ; There is none to raise her up. The city that mustereth a thousand shall have a hundred left: The city that mustereth a hundred shall be left with ten. Thus saith God unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live : But seek not the altars of Beth-elj Visit not the altars of GilgaL Seek God, and ye shall live ; Seek him who made the Pleiades and Orion, Who turneth deep night into morning, and dai'keneth the day into night. Who summoned the waters of the sea, and poured them forth upon the face of the eaith ; The Lord is his name ! But as for you, ye turn judgement to wormwood, and cast down righteousness to the ground. Ye hate him who reproveth in the gate, ye abhor him that speaketh uprightly. Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him of wheat ; though ye build houses of hewn stone, ye shall not dwell in them ; and though ye plant pleasant vineyards, ye shall not drink their wine. For I know how manifold are your transgressions and how mighty are your sins : ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the poor in the gate from their right. Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time ; for it is an evil time. Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live : and so the Lord God of hosts shall be with you, as ye have spoken. Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgement in the gate : it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph, Once more he takes up his bitter cry of threat and denunciation. Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and to them that are secure in Samaria, They lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall ; they sing idle songs to the sound of the viol ; they invent for them- selves instruments of music, like David ; they drink wine in 36o tHE BIBLE FOR HOME READING bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments; but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph. Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the feasting cry of them that stretched themselves shall pass away. The Lord God hath sworn by himself^ saith the Lord, the God of hosts : I abhor the pride of Jacob, and hate his palaces : therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein. For, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel ; and they shall afflict you from border to border, and I will cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith the Lord, the God of hosts is his name ! For I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no pleasure in your festal assemblies. Yea, though ye offer me burnt offerings and meal offerings, I will not accept them : neither will I regard the thank offerings of your fat beasts. Did ye bring me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel ? Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs ; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols. But let judgement roll down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream. It was not wonderful that the authorities (and especially the official religious authorities) took exception to this startling and outspoken language. This is what happened. Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos saith, Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land. Also Amaziah said nnto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there : but prophesy not again any more at Beth-el : for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a royal temple. Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I am no prophet, neither am I a prophet's son; but I am an herdman, and a cultivator of mulberry trees. But God took me from following the flock, and said unto me. Go, prophesy unto my people Israel. Now therefore hear thou the word of the Lord : Thou sayest. Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac ; therefore thus saith the Lord : Thou thyself shalt die FOUR FUNDAMENTAL STATEMENTS 361 in a foreign land^ and Israel shall surely be carried away captive out of his own land. We find, then, Amos, like his successors, ringing the changes on three or four fundamental statements : (i) Outward religion (to him consisting mainly of sacrifices and offerings) is valueless, if it be not a sign of inward religion ; and, even then, it is of secondaiy value. (2) "What God loves and asks for is social morality; rectitude, justice, compassion. For the just God, justice ; for the compassionate God, compassion: both summed up in this : for the righteous God, righteousness. (3) Because Israel, as a nation, has scandalously neglected this duty, therefore, as a nation, it shall be punished. (4) All the more because Israel is God's people, shall it therefore be punished, and rightly punished, for its sins. (What will happen to Israel after its punishment Amos does not clearly inform us : perhaps we ought rather to say his editors have not clearly allowed us to hear. Probably he anticipated repen- tance, forgiveness, and restoration. But Lis main business was with the present, and with the near, not with the distant future.) Note the last of these four great statements. What is the use, men said, of being the Lord's people, if ' the Lord' will not protect his own, if he will not deliver us from all calamity, and maintain us in all prosperity % But the God of Amos was not a pati*on deity of this kind. If he had a special relation to one people, that relation could only be a moral one. The fault of my acquaintance it may not be my business to notice, the fault of my child I may not pass over. This moral relation of Israel to God and of God to Israel was a notable stage in religious development. It led the Israelites on to realize that even as God is the divine Father of Israel, so is he a Father to all the peoples of the world. § 3. We now come back to the history of the northern kingdom. In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah did Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel in Samaria six months. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lordj as his fathers had done ; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him, and reigned in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine and 362 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah; and he reigned a full month in Samaria. For Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, and came to Samaria^ and smote Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria^ and slew him^ and reigned in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Shallum^ and his conspiracy which he made^ behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel, Then Menahem smote Tappuah^ and all that were therein^ because they opened not their gates to him. In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over Israel, and reigned ten years in Samaria. And . he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord ; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. In his days there came against the land Pul the king of Assyria ; and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land. Now the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel ? And Menahem slept with his fathers; and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead, Jeroboam II died in 740 e.g., aud Menahem probably reigned thirteen years, and not ten, as it is said by the compiler. The year in which ' Pul ' king of Assyria * came against ' Israel was 738 B.C. The king here called ' Pul' was really Tiglath-pileser III, one of the mightiest of the Assyrian monarchs. He ruled from 745 to 727 B.C. § 4. In the reign of Menahem another great prophet spoke and wrote in the kingdom of Israel. And this time the prophet was not a southerner, but an Israelite himself. His name was Hosea. He is the only Israelite prophet whose writings have been pre- served to us. Unfortunately not only is his language very difficult, but the text is often corrupt; that is, we frequently have no longer the exact Hebrew words before us which Hosea wrote. They have got changed and spoilt by the copyists. Hosea, like Amos, predicted punishment and captivity for national sin. GOODNESS VERSUS SACRIFICE 363 Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel : for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor love, nor knowledge of God in the land. There is nothing but swearing, and breaking faith, and murdering, and stealing : they break into the houses, and blood touches blood. The very priests and teachers are no better than the people they should teach. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge ; because ye priests have rejected knowledge, I will reject you, that ye shall no more be priests unto me. And it shall be, like people like priest: I will punish them for their ways, and reward them for their doings. Still their idle and worthless sacrifices continue, for all the people forget the great truth: I take pleasure in lovingkindness and not in sacrifice, in the knowledge of God rather than in .burnt offerings. There is but one way of salvation possible : Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap according tc lovingkindness ; break up your fallow ground, seek to know God, till the fruit of righteousness come to you. Hosea adds other complaints to those of Amos. Noi only are sacrifices no equivalent or substitute for righteousness, but the whole system of public worship is to him tainted with idolatry. With Hosea begins the fierce attack against the worship of the golden bulls, with which we are familiar in the compiler of the Books of Kings. The one true God must not be represented by images. It is a vile debasement. Moreover, the public worship was combined with debauchery and sensual excesses which were a mockery of real religion. Should the pure God be served by impurity ? This worship, though nominally rendered to God, seemed to Hosea not merely unworthy of him, but wholly dis- connected with him. It was on a par with, it was the double of, the worship offered by the Canaanites to their false gods and idols. Hence Hosea does not hesitate to call it rank idolatry : it is the worship of Baal, or of the Baalim, that is, of the many local Baals or Lords ; for Baal is not a proper name, but means simply Lord or Master. 364 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Of their silver and gold they have made them idols, that they may be cut off. I loathe thy calf, O Samaria ; mine anger is kindled against it. For a workman made it, and it is not God 5 yea, the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces. Israel vras a luxuriant vine, whose fruits flourished ; ac- cording to the multitude of his fruit hath he multiplied his altars; according to the goodness of his land, he made goodly pillars. Their heart is divided ; therefore they shall suffer : God will smite their altars and shatter their pillars. The inhabitants of Samaria shall be in terror for the calf of Beth-aven : its people mourn for it, its priests tremble. For it shall be brought to Assyria as a present to the great king. Ephraim shall receive shame and Israel confusion from its idol ! Samaria is destroyed : her king shall be like a chip of wood upon the waters. And the high places of Israel shall be destroyed, and the thorn and the thistle shall come up upon their altars, and they shall say to the mountains. Cover us ; and to the hills. Fall on us. The other great complaint which Hosea makes against Israel is its ingratitude. God had been all goodness, but Israel had repaid him with apostasy. When Israel was young, I loved him, and I called his sons out of Egypt. But when I called them, they turned aside from me : they sacrificed unto idols, and burned incense to graven images. Yet I taught Israel to go: I took them upon my arms ; but they perceived not that I healed them. I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love. They knew not that it was I who gave them corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied their silver and their gold — they used them for the worship of Baal ! Yet I, the Lord, am thy God from the land of Egypt ; thou knowest no god but me, and beside me there is no saviour. It was I who fed thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought. But according to their pasture, so were they filled, and when they were filled, their heart was puffed up, and therefore they forgot me. So Samaria must suffer, for that she has rebelled against God, and her inhabitants shall fall by the sword. Yet Hosea is not content to predict punishment. He dreams of a future which suffering shall help to produce, a future of penitence and restoration and forgiveness. A VISION OF THE FUTURE 365 O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God : for through thy iniquity thou didst fall. Take with you words of repentance^ and return unto the Lord ; and say unto him : Forgive us our iniquity; receive the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us ; we will not ride upon horses : neither will we say to the work of our hands. Ye are our gods ; for in thee the fatherless find mercy. I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely : for mine anger is turned away from them. Mine heart is turned within me ; my compassion is kindled. For I am God, and not man; the Holy One in the midst of thee. I will be as the dew unto Israel; he shall blossom as the lily, and cast forth his roots like Lebanon, His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow shall grow as the corn and blossom as the vine ; Israel shall be famous as the wine of Lebanon, O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols ? Fx*om me alone cometh thy fruit. I will betroth thee unto me for ever: yea, I vidll betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgement, and in lovingkindness, and in mercy. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness : and thou shalt know the Lord, And the editor of Hosea's writings adds : Who is wise that he may understand these things ? who hath insight that he may know them ? For straight are the ways of God : the righteous shall walk upon them in safety, but transgressors shalLfell thereon. The words of the editor seem to mean that it is a law of God that in the long run righteousness achieves its ends, but wickedness fails. In the long run there is something positive, constructive, permanent, and secure about goodness, but something negative, uncertain, slippery, and evanescent about sin. There are two strains which we meet -with in the prophets, to which I have called your attention before. On the one hand we have the urgent summons, * Kepent, return ; ' on the other, the promise, * I will heal their backsliding, I will pardon their iniquity.' On the one hand, man is blamed because he does not ' know God;' on the other hand, the knowledge of God is a final and supreme gift from God himself. This double strain answers to a double feeling in human nature itself. It is for us to seek goodness, and to repent of our transgressions : it is from God that there comes the power and the help. If there were no God, there would be no 366 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING goodness. To that principle we must hold fast, however little we may understand how much is of God and how much is of our- selves in human righteousness and repentance. In one true sense all is God's, and therefore, ' not unto us, O God, not unto us, but unto thee be the glory,' now and evermore. § 5. It is time to return to the sad history of the northern kingdom, now hastening forward to its mournful and inevitable doom. In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judali Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria^ and reigned two years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord : he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. And Pekah the son of Remaliahj his captain^ conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the king^s palace, and with him were fifty men of the Gileadites; and he killed him^ and reigned in his room. Now the rest of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord : he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel-beth-maacah, and Janoah and Kedesb, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali 5 and he carried them captive to Assyria, And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, beliold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel, In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel, and reigned nine years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him. Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyi'ia; and Hoshea became his servant, and brought him tribute. But the king of Assyria found Hoshea faithless ; for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to THE FALL OF SAMARIA 367 the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year : therefore the king of Assyria shut him up^ and bound him in prison. Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years. In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away unto Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and in Habor, on the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath and Sephar- vaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel ; and they possessed Samaria^ and dwelt in the cities thereof. And the men of each nation set up their own idols in the temples of the high places which the Israelites had made. And they worshipped the Lord, and served also their own gods, after the manner of the nations from whom they had been carried away. The reign of Pekah did not last twenty years, as is here stated. It probably lasted only two or three years ^[735-733). The reason why Tiglath-pileser attacked Pekah and carried many Israelites captive to Assyria we shall hear more distinctly in the story of Ahaz king of Judah. After Hoshea, the last king of Israel, had been sent a prisoner to Assyria, the capital still stood a three years' siege, till at last famine compelled a capitulation. In one of his inscriptions Sargon (who ascended the throne of Assyria in the year of Samaria's fall, 722) tells us that he deported 27,280 Israelites to Assyria, This was enough to arrest and stifle the entire national life. The most educated and cultivated sections of the people were exiled from their land, and new colonists were gradually introduced from other parts of the Assyrian empire. The liingdom of Israel became a province of Assyria, and with the extinction of its national independence, its religious history and development also came to an untimely end. Hosea, as we know, spoke in despairing tones of the religious and moral corruption around him. Men of Hosea's stamp could have maintained their religion in its purity even amid alien or unfamiliar surroundings. The ordinary Israelite of that time could not. The new-comers brought their idols with them, and the Israelites learnt fresh idolatries from them, even while they taught them something of the worship of ' the Lord.' A low level of religion ensued. The Israelite exiles in Assyria could not main- tain their religion outside their land. They became absorbed in the populations among whom they dwelt, and we hear of them no more. All hope for the future must now centre in Judah. To 368 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the history of Judah, then, we must now turn, taking up the story at the death of Jehoash in the year ^96. But before we do so, let us hear the moralizing, partly historical and partly imaginative, of the compiler of the Books of Kings over the fall of Israel. And it was so^ because the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, and walked in the statutes of the nations, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel. And the children of Israel did things that were not right against the Lord th^eir God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. And they set them up pillars and poles upon every high hill, and under every green tree : and there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the nations whom the Lord carried away before them : and they served idols, whereof the Lord had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing. Yet the Lord testified against Israel, and against Judah, by the hand of all his prophets, saying. Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the teaching which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets. Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their neck, like to the neck of their fathers, who did not believe in the Lord their God. And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies with which he warned them ; and they followed vanity, and became vain like the nations that were round about them, concerning whom the Lord had charged them that they should not do like them. And they abandoned all the com- mandments of the Lord their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made them poles, and wor- shipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal, And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold them- selves to do that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only. For when God rent Isi'ael from the NATIONAL RUIN AND ITS CAUSES 369 house of David^ and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king, Jeroboam drave Israel from following the Lord, and made them sin a great sin. And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them ; until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away out of their own land to Assyria, unto this day. And thus what Amos the prophet had foretold came fully and fatally to pass. * Fallen down, no more to rise, is the virgin of Israel. She is cast down upon the ground ; there is none to raise her up/ § 6. Turning back now to the history of the kingdom of Judah, we will take a period of eighty-one years, extending from the death of Jehoash to the death of Ahaz, seven years (according to a probable reckoning) after the fall of Samaria. Four kings fill up the eighty-one years, or an average of twenty years to a reign. Thus : Amaziah 796-786 Azariah 786-737 Jotham 737-735 ■A-haz 735-715. The chronology of this period is veiy confused and uncertain. Some authorities think, for instance, that Ahaz died in 727. In the second year of Jehoash son of Joahaz king of Israel reigned Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah. He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. And he did that which was right in the eyes of the Loi'd, yet not like David his father : he did according to all that Jehoash his father had done. Howbeit the high places were not taken away : the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places. And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, that he slew his servants who had slain the king his father : but the children of the murderers he slew not ; according to that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, wherein the Lord commanded, saying. The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers ; but every man shall be put B b 370 tHE BIBLE rOR HOME READING to death for his own sin. He slew of Edom in the Valley of Salt ten thousand, and took Sela by war, and called the name of it Joktheel, unto this day. Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying. Come, let ns look one another in the face. And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying. The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife : and . there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle. Thou hast indeed smitten Edom, and thine heart hath lifted thee up : glory of this, and tarry at home : for why shouldest thou meddle to thy hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee ? But Amaziah would not hear« Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went up ; and he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in the face at Beth-shemesh, which belongeth to Judah, And Judah was put to the worse before Israel ; and they fled every man to their tents. And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits. And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria, And Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years. And the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? Now they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem ; and he fled to Lachish : but they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there. And they put him upon a chariot ; and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the room of his father Amaziah. He it was who built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers. In the twenty and seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel began Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign. Sixteen years old was he when he began to reign 5 and he reigned two and fifty years in Jerusalem : and his mother's THE CfeDAR AND THE THISTLE 37^ name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem, And he did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord^ according to all that his father Amaziah had done. Save that the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burnt incense on the high places. And he became a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a lazar house. And Jotham the king's son was over the household, judging the people of the land- And the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? So Azariah slept with his fathers ; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David : and Jotham his son reigned in his stead. In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel began Jotham the son of Azariah king of Judah to reign. Five and twenty years old was he when he began to reign ; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok. And he did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord : he did according to all that his father Azariah had done. Howbeit the high places were not removed : the people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord. Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not ^vritten in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? In those days Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, prepared to come up against Judah, And Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead. In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign. Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign ; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem : and he did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord his God, like David his fathei\ But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree. Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war : and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him. At B b 2 372 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Edom, and drave the Jews from Elath : and theEdomites came to Elath, and dwelt there, unto this day. And Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son : come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me. And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria, And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him : and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin. And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus ; and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. And Urijah the priest built the altar: according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it before Ahaz returned to Jerusalem. Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David : and Hezekiah his son reig^ed in his stead. So far the Books of Kings, or rather so little ! It would seem that the king of Israel and the king of Damascus formed a coalition against the king of Assyria, In view of the common danger threatening all Syria they made up their ancient quarrel. Tyre and Zidon joined them. They were, as it appears, anxious that Judah should join the alliance, for only the united forces of all Syria could hope to make a stand against the huge power of Assyria. When Jotham had apparently refused to join, they pre- pared an expedition against him. At this juncture Jotham died, and Ahaz his son, a stripling of twenty, succeeded him. The allied forces of Damascus and Israel entered Judah, and probably even began the siege of Jerusalem. Ahaz took a desperate measure of defence, which, however, proved, for the time being, successful, though not without its cost. He sought the help, and became the vassal, of Assyria. The entry of an Assyrian army into Palestine compelled llezin and Pekahiah to break up the siege of Jerusalem, and Ahaz breathed freely once mox'e. THE CALL OF ISAIAH 373 § 7, The reigns of Jotham and Ahaz witnessed the first pro- phecies of Isaiah. He is the third of the great prophets whose writings have been preserved to us, and of these great prophets he is perhaps the stateliest and most majestic. But many of the passages ascribed to him are very ohscure, and it is difficult to know for certain to what precise historical events they allude. Moreover, with Isaiah's own words there have been mingled (to what degree is still disputed) the words of his editors. Hence a single 'chapter' may perhaps include pieces from different generations or even centuries. For these reasons I shall make but very few extracts from his prophecies here and now. But later on, when we have finished the history of the Jews in Bible times, I hope to print several chapters of the ' Book of Isaiah ' (as it is commonly called), both for the sake of the great thoughts and noble poetry contained in them, as well as to give a good example of written Hebrew prophecy in the composite and sometimes even confused form, wherein we now, for the greater part, possess it. Isaiah, too, was a preacher of national punishment as the neces- sary retribution for national sin. He represents his inward call to the office of prophet in a wonderful vision. In the year that king Azariah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne^ high and lifted up, and his train filled the palace. Above him stood the seraphim : each one had six wings ; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And the one kept crying unto the other, and saying. Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts : the whole earth is full of his glory. And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. Then said I, Woe is me ! for I am undone ; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips : for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphim unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar : and he caused it to touch my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips ; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. And I heard the voice of God, saying. Whom shall I send? Then I said. Here am I ; send me. And he said. Go, and tell this people. Hear ye indeed, but understand not ; and go on seeing, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears lieavy^ and 374 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING shut their eyes ; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heai% and turn again, and be healed. Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be waste without inhabitant, and the houses without men, and the land be left a desolation, and until God have removed men far away, and the deserted tract be large in the midst of the land. We must not understand any part of this vision literally, and the words of God least of all. Isaiah, reflecting in later daya (when he wrote down his vision) upon the unbelief with which his words were received, can only regard this unbelief and obduracy as founded in the will of God. For all things are caused or suffered by him for some good purpose, often shrouded wholly from our eyes. The burden of Isaiah's teaching is the same as that of Amos and Hosea. Because this people draw near me with their mouth and with their lips do honour me, but their heart they keep far from me, and their religion is a rote-learned precept of men ; therefore, behold, I will go on dealing with this people wonderfully, yes, wonderfully, so that the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the discernment of their sagacious men shall be hid. To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me ? saith the Lord. I am sated with the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts: and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he-goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts ? Bring no more oblations ; vain is the incense of sacrifice ; it is an abomination unto me ; new moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies, — I cannot away with iniquity hand in hand with the solemn meeting. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth : they are an encumbrance unto me; I am weary to bear them. And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you : yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear : your hands are full of blood. Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes ; cease to do evil : learn to do well ; seek judgement, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. THE PROPHET AND THE KING 375 iBaiah did not approve of the alliance of Ahaz with Assyria. He foresaw that the cost would outweigh the gain, and he believed that Judah would have heen delivered from its danger even without the abandonment of national independence. We have still preserved to us the record of a striking meeting between him and Ahaz at the opening of the war. Isaiah's son Shear-jashub was at that time (734 B.C.) about four years old. His name means * a remnant shall return/ and it expresses Isaiah's belief that a remnant of Judah would be saved and purified after and through the impending calamity, and would * return ' to a better knowledge of Goodness and of God. And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz^ king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Syi'ia, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, vrent up to Jerusalem to war against it ; but could not prevail against it. And it was told the house of Davidj saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim, And his heart shook, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. And God said unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear-jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, in the high way of the fuller's field ; and say unto him. Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted for the two tails of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and of the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, Ephraim, and the sons of Remaliah have taken evil counsel against thee^ saying. Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set up a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeel : thus saith the Lord God, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass. For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin : and the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is RemaliaVs son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established. Of Tabeel we know nothing. Before the words ' If ye will not believe' something has clearly fallen out. We have the intro- duction to the prophecy, but not the prophecy itself. It must have contained an assurance that the attack on Jerusalem would fail even without any Assyrian help. Still stronger words are attributed to Isaiah upon the same occasion. And Isaiah spake unto Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a sign of 376 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the Lord thy God ; ask it either in the depths or in the height above. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord. And he said. Hear ye now, O house of David ; is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself shall appoint you a sign ; behold, the young woman shall bear a son, and she shall call his name ^God with us/ For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land of whose two kings thou art in terror shall be made desolate. The interpretation is very disputed. Perhaps the meaning is that because the Aramaeans and the Israelites will soon have to retire at the rumour of Assyrian invasion, God will put it in the heart of a woman or of many women of Judah to call her child or their children Immanuel (God is with us). While children, so named, shall still be babies, the lands of Damascus and Israel shall be made desolate by their Assyrian foe. HEZEKIAH OF JUDAH 377 CHAPTER XV FROM THE FALL OF SAMARIA TO THE FALL OP JERUSALEM § r, Wb now liave to deal exclusively with the kingdom of Jndah, which maintained its existence for J36 years after the fall of Samaria. But with the destruction of this kingdom, the religion which gives to it its interest and value in our eyes is not also destroyed. On the contrary, it lives and grows to greater purity and power than ever hefore. This period is filled up by eight kings, an average of sixteen years to each. Thus we have : Hezekiah 715-686 Manasseh 686-641 Amon 641-639 Josiah 639-608 Jehoahaz 608 Jehoiakim 608-597 Jehoiachin 597 Zedekiab 597"5S6. And in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign ; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem ; and his mothei'^s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father did. He brake the pillars, and cut down the poles : and he brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made; for unto those days the children of Israel burnt incense to it, and it was called Nehushtan (the brazen one). He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. For he clave to the Lord, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the Lord commanded Moses. 378 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING § 2. The reign of Hezekiali is famous on account of a campaign of king Sennacherib of Assyria against Palestine and Judah. The story of that invasion is unfortunately not wholly clear. The only contemporary account we have of it is from king Sennacherib him- self in one of his inscriptions. The Books of Kings contain two other accounts pieced together, both written long after the invasion, and each with difficulties of its own. What seems to have happened was something like this. A coalition was formed against Assyria by the petty states of southern Palestine, partly stirred up by, and partly relying on, the kingdom of Egypt. For till the coming of the Assyrians, Egypt had been a great power, and she was not willing to yield her position to Assyria. Hezekiah joined the coalition, and thus, as the Book of Kings says, ' rebelled against the king of Assyria.' Sennacherib hurried west. This is what he says : * In my third campaign I marched to the land of Chatti (roughly = Palestine). Elulaeus king of Sidon was overpowered by the terror of the majesty of my dominion, and he fled far into the sea : his land I took away. . . . Ethobal I placed on the royal throne, and I imposed upon him a yearly fixed tribute payment to my rule.' [After this many kings submitted.] 'All the kings of the west land brought rich presents, and kissed my feet. .But Zidka, king of Ashkelon, who had not submitted to my yoke — the gods of his father s house, himself, his wife, his sons, his daughters, his brothers, the seed (i. e. the family) of his father's house, I took away and brought them to Assyria. Sashidari the son of Kubikti, their former lord, I placed as king over the people of Ashkelon, and I imposed on him the tribute to my rule. . . . * Then the nobles and officers of Ekron, who had cast Padi, their king by Assyrian right and oath, into iron chains, and delivered him to Hezekiah of Judah, who had thrown him into prison, were afraid at heart. Then came the kings of Egypt with horses and chariots and countless troops to their aid. Before the city of Altaku the battle array was set against me. Confiding in Assur my lord, I fought with them and defeated them. The commander of the chariots and the sons of one of the Egyptian kings, together with the commander of the chariots of the king of Miluchi, I took prisoner in the battle. I besieged the towns Altaku and Timnath, and captured them and carried away their booty. Then I advanced to Ekron : the nobles and officers who had transgressed I slew, and I impaled their corpses on stakes round the wall. Those inhabi- tants of the town who had practised wickedness and sin, I carried away as prisoners ; while to those who had not committed sin and AN INSCRIPTION OF SENNACHERIB 379 were not guilty, I proclaimed amnesty. And I brought out Padi, their former king, from Jerusalem, and made him again ascend the throne of dominion. And as to Hezekiah of Judah, who had not submitted to my yoke, I besieged and captured forty-six of his fortified cities, and smaller towns in their neighbourhood without number. 200,150 persons, including young and old, male and female, I carried away and reckoned as booty, with horses, and mules, and asses, and camels, and oxen, and sheep, without number, Hezekiah himself I shut up like a caged bird in Jerusalem, his royal city: I erected fortifications against him, and those who came out of the gate of the city I made to turn back. His cities which I had plundered, I separated from his land, and gave them to Mitinti the king of Ashdod, and to Padi king of Ekron, and to Zilbal king of Gaza : so I diminished his land. To the former yearly tribute I added the tribute which befits my rule, and I laid it upon them. Terror of the majesty of my rule overpowered Hezekiah. The Arabians and the brave warriors whom he had sent for to defend Jerusalem, his royal city, laid down their arms. And I had thirty talents of gold and 800 talents of silver, and precious stones, and ivory couches, and seats of elephant hide, a mighty treasure, and his daughters and his wives brought after me to Nineveh, my royal city, and he sent his envoy for the payment of the tribute and for doing homage.' Sennacherib thus records an unbroken series of successes. But the facts cannot have been quite as he states them, or, rather, he both omits and exaggerates. For it is certain that Sennacherib did not invade Egypt, and it is probable that he did not even obtain so complete a submission from Hezekiah as he had desired. His return to Assyria was hasty, and not purely voluntary. Either bad news from his Babylonian provinces, or a plague which decimated his army, or both, drove him home sooner than he could have wished, and without the possession of Egypt. § 3. But now let us turn to the narratives in the Books of Kings, This is the first. It begins thus : Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Senna- cherib king of Assyria come up against all the fenced cities of Judah, and took them. The date is 701 B.C., or nearly 2,600 years ago. This quite corresponds with the statements of Sennacherib. Now, however, follows a statement which has quite possibly (whether purposely or accidentally) been put in its wrong place. 38o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachishj saying, I have offended 5 return from me : that which thou puttest on me will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's house. At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid^ and gave it to the king of Assyria. Here Hezekiah seems to submit before any appearance of the Assyrians at Jerusalem. But afterwards, according to the Biblical narrative in its present form, an Assyrian force is sent to Jerusalem with further demands, which Hezekiah, at the advice of the prophet Isaiah, determines to resist. Eabshakeh is an Assyrian military title, like our word * general/ And the king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great host against Jerusalem. And he went up and came to Jerusalem. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the high way of the fuller's field. And when he summoned the king, thei'e came out to him Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe^ and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder. And the Rabshakeh said unto them,' Speak ye now to Hezekiah^ Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What coiifidence is this wherein thou trustest? Thinkest thou a mere word is enough to provide right counsel and strength for the war? Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me? Now, behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt ; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it : so is the Pharaoh king of Egypt unto all that trust on him. Now therefore, I pray thee, make a wager with my master the king of Assyria; I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them. How then canst thou turn away the face of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen ? Am I now come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said unto me, Go up against this land, and destroy it. SPEECH OF THE RABSHAKEH 3S1 Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, unto the Rabshakeh^ Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in Aramaean; for we understand it: and speak not with us in Jewish, in the ears of the people that are on the wall. But the Rabshakeh said unto them. Hath my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men who sit on the wall? Then the Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in Jewish, saying. Hear ye the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. Thus saith the king. Let not Hezekiah deceive you; for he shall not be able to deliver you out of my hand : neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying. The Lord vnll surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Hearken not to Hezekiah : for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make your peace with me, and come out to me ; and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his cistern ; until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of oil olive and of honey, that ye may live, and not die : and hearken not unto Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying. The Lord will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria ? Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad ? where are the gods of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah ? where are the gods of the land of Samaria ? have they delivered Samaria out of my hand ? Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand? But they held their peace, and answered him not a word : for the king's commandment was, saying. Answer him not. Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah witli their clothes rent, and told him the words of the Rabshakeh, And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet. And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah^ 382 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of blas- phemy. It may be the Lord thy God will hear all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God, and will rebuke the words which the Lord thy God hath heard : wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left. So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say to your master. Thus saith the Lord, Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumour, atid shall return to his own land ; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land, '* So the Rabshakeh returned to the king of Assyria. And Sennacherib heard say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, Behold, he is come out to fight against thee : so he departed and went back and dwelt at Nineveh. And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer smote him with the sword : and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esar-haddon his son reigned in his stead. According to the second account (the beginning of which is wanting) Sennacherib sent a letter by messengers to Hezekiah bidding him surrender. The letter is couched much in the same terms as the speech put in the mouth of the Eahshakeh. Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly : and shalt thou be delivered ? Have the gods of the nations delivered them, which my fathers have destroyed, Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden who were in Telassar ? Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed, and said, O Lord God of Israel, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth. Lord, bow down thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes^ Isaiah's defiance of Assyria 383 O Lord^ and see : and hear the words of Sennacherib^ where- with he hath sent to reproach the living God. Of a truth. Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire : for they were no gods, but the work of men^s hands, wood and stone ; therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our God, save thou us, I beseech thee, out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only. Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard thee. This is the word that the Lord hath spoken concerning him : The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn ; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed ? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice and lifted up thine eyes on high ? even against the Holy One of Israel, By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said. With the multitude of my chariots I came up to the height of the mountains, to the recesses of Lebanon ; and 1 cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice cypress trees thereof : and I have entei'ed into his farthest height, the forest of his fruitful field. I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up aU the rivers of Egypt, Hast thou not heard how I prepared it long ago, and formed it of ancient times ? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps. Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up. But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me. Because thy rage against me and thy pride is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou earnest. And this shall be the sign unto you : ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same ; and in the third year sow 384 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof. And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion : the zeal of the Lord shall achieve this. Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come unto this city, nor shoot an arrow there, neither shall he come before it with shield, nor cast a mound against it. By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and he shall not come unto this city, saith the Lord, For I will defend this city to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake. And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and vrhen men arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. It is doubtful whether we have here authentic prophecies of Isaiah. It would certainly seem, from the very definite statement of Sennacherib, that Jerusalem was at all events temporarily besieged. The prayer of Hezekiah breathes the full faith of developed Judaism. The tradition that Sennacherib's retreat was due to a plague decimating his army was also partly known in Egypt, for the Greek historian Herodotus relates that when the Assyrians under king Sennacherib invaded Egypt and besieged Pelusium in the days of king Sethos, field mice * ate up their quivers and their bows and the handles of their shields, so that on the next day they fled, and being without defence of arms, great numbers fell/ It is quite possible, as some scholars think, that Sennacherib made two successive demands to Hezekiah, of which the one was granted and the other refused. He first demanded tribute and the surrender of Padi. To this Hezekiah acceded. He then demanded (presumably) a full alliance and the surrender of Jerusalem. This second demand Hezekiah refused, and Sennacherib was unable^ owing to the bad news from home or to the plague, to compel his submission. It is also possible that HezekiaVs tribute, as recorded in the Bible, should be placed not he/ore the visit of the Rabshakeh, but (in accordance with the Assyrian inscription) after it. In this case the surrender of Padi and the tribute were all that was demanded, and the demands were acceded to. Nevertheless, the sudden de- parture of the Assyrians was looked upon before long as a special intervention of God, and consequently it was supposed that the HEZEKIAH S SICKNESS 385 plans of Sennacherib against Judah could not have been realized or accomplished. However this may be, Hezekiah remained the vassal of Assyria. But the deliverance of Jerusalem from spoliation, the fact that the Assyrians had not entered within its gates, made a deep and lasting impression upon the national mind, so that gradually the deliver- ance became regarded both as greater than it actually had been, and as the reward granted to Hezekiah for his piety and fidelity to God. § 4. Hezekiah was at one time stricken by a severe illness, from which, however, he unexpectedly recovered. Strange tales were told of his recovery, and, as the years rolled on, the strangeness of the tales increased, and marvel was added to marvel. What we hear from the compiler of the Books of Kings is, in the first place, the following: In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him^ and said unto him. Thus saith the Lord^ Set thine house in order ; for thou shalt die^ and not live. Then he turned his face to the waD, and prayed unto the Lordj saying, I beseech thee, O Lord, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and vnth a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying. Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people. Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears : behold, I will heal thee : on the third day thou shalt go up imto the house of the Lord. And I will add unto thy days fifteen years ; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria ; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David^s sake. And Isaiah said. Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered. In the Book of Isaiah's prophecies the story of Hezekiah's recovery is also related, with the addition that a wonderful * sign ' preceded his restoration to health. The first part of the story as far as the sore weeping of Hezekiah is the same as in the Book of Kings. It continues thus : Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah, saying. Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David c c 386 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thy father^ I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears : behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years. And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria: and I vs^ill defend this city. And this shall be a sign unto thee from the Lord, that the Lord vrill do this thing that he hath spoken ; Behold, I will bring again the shadow as many degrees as the sun has gone down in the dial of Ahaz, backward. So the sun returned the ten degrees by which it had gone down on the dial. This story of the sundial became slightly variedj and made still more miraculous, in course of time, and a later version of it has been incorporated in the Book of Kings and placed immediately after the words, 'And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered/ In this version Hezekiah himself suggests and asks for a ' sign/ And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up unto the house of the Lord the third day? And Isaiah said. This sign shalt thou have of the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing that he hath spoken : shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees ? And Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees : nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees. And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the Lord : and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz. People do not expecb, and scarcely credit, miracles in our own days, but I do not think that this is an indication that they believe in God any the less. For he who really believes thafc whether in life or in death he is equally in the hands of God, he who really feels that God is near him, has no need of miracles or signs. Nay, more, he has no place for them. For in all that befalls him the conviction is ever before his mind : It is the will of God. If the laws of nature are the laws of God, one event is hardly more marvellous than another. Of those we love one falls sick and recovers, and one falls sick and dies, and of one and of the other let us seek to say, * The Lord gives, the Lord takes ; blessed be the name of the Lord/ § 5. The last incident in Hezekiah's reign recorded in the Book of Kings is another instance of how historic events got distorted in those ancient days. A certain Merodach-baladan had usurped the A PRESENT FROM BABYLON 387 crown of Babylon, and he sent an embassy to stimulate Hezekiah to join in a revolt against Assyria. In this, as we know, he succeeded. Thus the embassy fell, not after, but before the Assyrian invasion, and it had nothing to do with Hezekiah'g sickness. What the prophet Isaiah said as regards the embassy cannot now be ascertained; probably he did his utmost to dissuade Hezekiah from becoming a partner to the revolt. But we may be quite certain that he did not say what is ascribed to him in the Book of Kings and in the collection of his prophecies. For distant predictions of this kind are totally unlike the method and manner of the true prophet. His threats were always threats for the near future, never vague and unmotived threats of what would happen in more than a hundred years. There is no proportion here between the offence and the punishment. It was perhaps foolish on Heze- kiah's part to show the Babylonian ambassadors the treasures of his house, but it was not a sin. National exile was the retribution of national sin : it was not a capricious punishment sent by God for one man's momentary folly. We may also hope that the real Hezekiah would have been less thoughtless of his nation's future well-being than he is here represented. Let the story, however, now speak for itself. At that time Merodach-bahidan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon^ sent letters and a present unto Hezekiah : for h^ had heard that Hezekiah had been sick and was recovered. And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them all the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of hisi armour, and all that was found in his treasures : there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him. What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said. They are come from a far country, even from Babylon. And he said. What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered. All the things that are in mine house have they seen : there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Lord. Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon : nothing shall be left, saith the Lord. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, shall they take away ; and they shall C c 3 388 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING be servants in the palace of the king of Babylon, Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken. For he thought. There will be peace and security in my days. § 6. Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made the pool, and the conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And Hezekiah slept with his fathers : and Manasseh his son reigned in his stead. This pool is known now as the Pool of Siloam. A tunnel cut through the rock connects it with what is now called the Virgin's Spring, from which the pool derives its water. ' At a distance of about 1 9 feet from where the tunnel opens into the Pool of Siloam, and on the right-hand side as one enters it, is an artificial niche or tablet iu the rock, the lower part of which ia covered by an inscrip- tion/ which was first re-discovered in i88o, some 2,580 years after it had been composed ! This is what the inscription, which is unfortunately imperfect, says : 1. [Behold] the pierciiig through ! And this was the manner of the piercing through. Whilst yet [the miners were lifting up] 2. the pick each towards his fellow, and whilst yet there were three cubits to be [cut through, there was heard] the voice of each call- 3. ing to his fellow, for there was a fissure (?) in the rock on the right hand . . . And on the day of the 4. piercing through, the miners (literally, the hewers) smote each so as to meet his fellow, pick against pick ; and there flowed 5. the water from the source to the pool, 1,200 cubits; and one hun- 6. dred cubits was the height of the rock over the head of the miners. § 7. Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned five and fifty years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Hephzi-bah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, after the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel. For he reared up altars for Baal, and made poles, as did Ahab king of Israel, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them. And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. And he made his son to pass through the fii*e, and used Boothsayings and divinations, and appointed such as had THE SINS OF MANASSEH .389 familiar spirits, and wizards : he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. And he set the graven image of Ashtarte, that he had made^ in the house of which the Lord said to David and to Solomon his son. In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever : neither will I cause the feet of Israel to wander any more out of the land which I gave their fathers ; if only they will observe to do according to all that I have commanded them. But they hearkened not : and Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than did the nations^ whom the Lord destroyed before the children of Israel. And the Lord spake by his servants the prophets, saying. Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abomina- tions, which are worse than all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols : therefore thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold, I bring such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle. And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab : and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. And I will forsake the remnant of mine inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies ; because they have done that which is evil in my sight, and have pro- voked me to anger, since the day their fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day. Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another ; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and all that he did, and his sin that he sinned, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in his sepulchre, in the garden of Uzza : and Amon his son reigned in his stead. Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned two years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Meshullemeth the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, as did Manasseh his father. And he walked in all the 390 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING way that his father walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped them: and he forsook the Lord, the God of his fathers, and walked not in the way of the Lord. And the servants of Amon conspired against him, and slew the king in his own house. But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon; and they made Josiah his son king in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Amon and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? And he was buried in the sepulchre of his father, in the garden of Uzza: and Josiah his son reigned in his stead. The reign of Manasseh was one of considerable though mournful importance. The Books of Kings do not record a single external event throughout all the forty-five years of his rule. They must have passed in peace and in comparative prosperity. Manasseh remained the vassal of Assyria, and the Assyrian inscriptions speak of him as paying tribute to Sennacherib's successor, Esar-haddon (681-669), ^-^d to Asurbanipal (669-629), till whose death the supremacy of Assyria over all Palestine was quite undisputed. But uneventful as Manasseh^s reign was in * foreign politics,' it was all the more important internally from a religious point of view. Manasseh was the worst of all the Judaean kings. The compiler of our Books of Kings singles him out for special and repeated condemnation. The final overthrow of the kingdom, which hap- pened fifty-five years after his death, was to our compiler a deserved punishment for his unequalled iniquities. The 'sins of Manasseh' were of two kinds : religious and moral. There was first of all the sin of idolatry, including in that word all those various offences which are mentioned by the compiler. Assyrian star-worship was introduced into Judah together with Canaanite idolatries. Superstitious preachers were in full vogue. Most terrible of all was the appalling rite, borrowed from the Canaanites and others, of sacrificing children to the divinity in order to appease his wrath or to secure his favour. Ahaz had done this already, and Manasseh followed in his footsteps. To the compiler of the Books of Kings the religious sins of Manasseh are the greatest and the worst. We have already learnt something of his peculiar and rather limited point of view. Note the sentence : ' Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin:' as if the guilt of bloodshed were not the most terrible of all sins. But the A NOBLE FRAGMENT OF PROPHECY 391 compiler was so permeated with the idea that the sin which caused and therefore outwent and outweighed all others was idolatry, that by its side even bloodshed took a second and subordinate place. To the prophets of the time the moral sins of Mana&seh were perhaps even more condemnable and wicked than the sin of idolatry. It was they and tlieir friends and disciples who seem to have con- tributed the largest share of that innocent blood which Manasseh shed in Jerusalem. It is quite probable that a fine fragment from an unknown and unnamed prophet of Manasseh's time has still been preserved to us. It is now found in the Book of Micah. "We get from it a vivid and mournful picture of the moral corruption of the age. Can a man be pure with wicked balances, and with a bag of deceitful weights ? For the rich men in the city are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. The good man is perished out of the earth, and there is none upright among men : they all lie in wait for blood ; they hunt every man his brother with a net. Their hands reach only to that which is evil to do it diligently ; the prince asketh, and the judge is ready for a bribe ; and the great man, he freely uttereth his mischievous desire : thus they weave it together. The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is worse than a thorn hedge. Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a familiar friend : keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man^s enemies are the men of his own house. Hear ye now what the Lord saith : Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice. Heai', ye mountains, the Lord^s controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth : for the Lord hath a^ controversy with his people, and he will plead with Israel. O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have 1 wearied thee ? testify against me. For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of bondage ; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, Dost thou ask. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high ? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old ? Will God be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten 392 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression^ the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul ? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good ; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God ? ThuB in opposition to the most awful mockery of religion is set the purest expression of it, and out of the corruption of the age there shines like a star the purest light of prophecy. 'He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy (or lovingkindness), and to walk humbly with thy God 1 * But there was something more than this noble fragment which was either written in or suggested by the persecutions and the idolatries and the wickedness of the reign of Manasseh. It was the Tale and Law of the Eetrospect. "We do not know hy whom the Eetrospect was written. But scholars are agreed that we do know when it was written. Though it received many additions, the bulk of it was compiled either in Manasseh's reign or in that of his successor Josiah. How it came to be known and accepted by king and people as the will and law of God, we are now to hear. § 8. Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Boz- kath. And he did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, in the eighth month, that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of MeshuUam, the scribe, to the house of the Lord, saying. Go up to Hilkiah the priest, and seal the money which has been brought into the house of the Lord : and let them give it to the workmen who are in the house of the Lord, to repair the breaches of the house. And Hilkiah the priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have emptied out the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of the workmen that have the oversight of the house of the Lord, And Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilkiah A MOMENTOUS DISCOVERY 393 the priest hath delivered me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king. And it came to pass^ when the king" had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes. And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Micaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king's servant, saying. Go ye, inquire of the Lord for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written therein. So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asaiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the second quarter;) and they communed with her. And she said unto them. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read: because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched. But to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall ye say to him. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard, because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me ; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold, therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace ; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again. The real answer which Huldah made to the king's inquiry has probably not been preserved to us. For the words which are put 394 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING in her mouth do not deal directly "with the Book of the Law or with the questions of the king. Probably Huldah told Josiah to trust the Book and to execute its enactments. For this is what he actually did. And the king sent^ and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem, And the king went up to the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great : and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the Lord. And the king stood by the pillar, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were wiitten in this book : and all the people entered into the covenant. And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for Ashtarte, and for all the host of heaven : and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron. And he brought out the pole from the house of the Lord, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder. And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba. Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the. Lord in Jerusalem, but they did eat their portions among their brethren. And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech. And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had made to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord ; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire. And the altars that were on the roof, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, did the king throw down, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron. And the high places that were east of Jerusalem, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the THE REFORMATION OF JOSIAli S95 abomination of the children of Amnion^ did the king defile. And he brake in pieces the pillars^ and cut down the poles. And the king commanded all the people^ saying. Keep the passover unto the Lord your God, as it is written in the book of this covenant. Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah ; in the eighteenth year of king Josiah was this passover holden to the Lord in Jerusalem. Moreover the teraphim, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might fulfil the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses ; neither after him arose there any like him. § 9. We do not know how or why it was that the Book of the Law, which we have hitherto called ' the Code of the Retrospect/ had been put in the Temple. Some think that the writer (or writers) of it, believing that such a Code was not only best suited to meet the evils of the age, but was also both in spirit and intention in full accordance with the teaching of Moses and the prophets, hid the book in the Temple as a kind of dedication to God, hoping that one day it would be found and bear good fruit. Many of the laws m the Code were taken from other and older collections. Some were modified and adapted. That the Code was written not long before it was found we know from many reasons, into which I cannot enter here. One reason is that the idolatrous practices which it forbids are just those which were in fullest vogue under the reign of Manasseh. That the Book of the Law which Hilkiah found and Josiah heard was the Code of the Retrospect we know, because (among many other reasons) the reform of Josiah was conducted on the lines of the Code. It is the Retrospect which forbids poles and pillars, even in the worship of the true God. It is the Retrospect which forbids the worship of the host of heaven. Above all, it is the Retrospect which suggested and enjoined the great and startling innovation of one, single, central sanctuary for all Israel. Here, for example, ia a passage from the Retrospect which I have not quoted before. When ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the Lord your God giveth you to inherit, and he giveth you rest 396 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING from all your enemies round about^ so that ye dwell iu safety ; then it shall be that the place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there, thither shall ye bring all that I command you ; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord : and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates, for- asmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you. Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest : but in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I com- mand thee. Notwithstanding thou mayest kill and eat flesh in all thy gates, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee : the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the gazelle, and as of the hart. Only ye shall not eat the blood ; ye shall pour it upon the earth as water. Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy vnne, or of thine oil, or the firstlings of thy herd or of thy flock, nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill offerings, nor the heave offering of thine hand : but thou must eat them before the Lord thy God in the place which the Lord thy God shall choose, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates : and thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. By ' the place "which the Lord your God shall choose,' the Ee- trospect means the Temple of Jerusalem. It was a great innovation. Till then every town or village had its own sanctuary, as every town and village has to-day its own church. In Palestine people did not eat meat frequently as we do, and when they did eat it the occasion was a festival, and they always offered some portion of it as a sacrifice to God. The only exception was in the case of game or venison, such as gazelles or harts, which the Germans call Wildpret. Such animals they shot, and ate them as we do, vfithout religious rite. The worship at the local sanctuaries in Judah (' high places/ the writers of the Retrospect and their successors call them) was often very idolatrous and FROM TEMPLE TO SYNAGOGUE 397 corrupt, and so it seemed better to the compilers of the Code that there should be only one place for offerings and sacrifices, where the worship could be more easily supervised and con- trolled. In return, the people were to he allowed to eat meat in their homes in the same way as they ate venison, without religious rite. Only the blood was forbidden. Josiah carried out this law, and no doubt his reform seemed very hard and cruel to many persons who were honestly and deeply attached to thejr own sanctuaries. Their overthrow seemed a wanton act of despotism. For now there was to be no public and common worship of God except in Jerusalem. Thither every one must now journey who desired to make ofiering or supplication to God, and thither, whether they wished it or not, were all to wend their way on the three great yearly festivals. Men were urged and even bidden to * rejoice,' but it was to be in one prescribed place, away from their homes and their associations. Nevertheless the Law of the Ee- trospect and the Reform of Josiah, though hard upon some, were of enormous benefit to Judaism and to the world. For the abolition of the country sanctuaries was a first step in the substitution of the synagogue for the Temple, of prayer for sacrifice. There came a time when the prohibited sanctuary was replaced by a synagogue, and though at first the glory of the Temple overshadowed the synagogue, yet gradually the glory of the synagogue, with its prayer and i)raise, has come to overshadow for ever the glory of any temple of sacrifice, however stately and magnificent. § 10. It must have been a bitter disappointment to the reformers and the prophetical party that the pious king Josiah met with a pre- mature and violent death. It came about in this wise. Upon the death of Asurbanipal (626 B.C.) there followed quickly the collapse of the mighty Assyrian empire. Babylon revolted; and an Assyrian general of Babylonian birth, who had been sent to quell the insurrection, put himself at its head and became the founder of a new dynasty. His name was Nabopolassar, and with him begins the empire of Babylon. Meanwhile the north and north-western provinces of Assyria fell into the hands of the Medes, and amid all these turmoils the authority of Assyria over the vassal kingdoms of the west was gradually weakened to vanishing point. The Medes advanced and besieged Nineveh. Compelled by the invasion of the Scythians (of whom you will read in Herodotus) to raise the siege for a time, by the year 609 they reappeared under their king Cyaxares before its walls. The time seemed opportune to Necho II, king of Egypt, to seize those outer portions of the Assyrian empire which now lay unprotected. He invaded Palestine, hoping perhaps to extend the limits of his kingdom even 398 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING to the banks of the Euphrates. King Josiah rashly determined to bar his progress. Barely escaped and free from vassalage to Assyria, he was not willing to fall under the overlordship of Egypt. Necho had not set foot on Judaean soil : but Josiah marched north to meet him notwithstanding. It was in 608 B.C. The evil issue is told in very few words. Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? In his days Pharaoh-necoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates : and king Josiah went against him : and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him. And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead. The Levitical idealist somewhat expands the story of Josiah's defeat and death. He tries to account for it, but his explanation is probably unhistorical. Better perhaps not to attempt an ex- planation, but like the older historian simply to record the fact. There are very many incidents in history for which no moral reason can be given. We have simply to submit to the will of God, and it is foolish to think that every misfortune which happens to a man must have its cause in some fault of his own. It is perhaps more than foolish to invent a fault when none is apparent. Josiah's comparatively early death was to him at any rate not necessarily a misfortune at all. Perhaps, as a later prophet would have expressed it, he was ' taken away because of the wickedness around him/ Let us, however, listen to the story from the mouth of our Levitical idealist. The lamentations of Jeremiah (of whom we are soon to hear) were certainly historical, and assuredly deserved. After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight at Carchemish by the Euphrates : and Josiah went out against him. But he sent ambassadors to him, saying. What have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah ? I come not against thee this day, but against the house wherewith I have war : for God commanded nie to make haste : forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroy thee not. Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but determined to fight with him, and hearkened not unto the words of Necho THE DEATH OF JOSIAH 399 from the mouth of God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo. And the archers shot at king Josiah; and the king said to his servants. Have me away; for I am sore wounded. His servants therefore took him out of that chariot, and put him in the second chariot that he had ; and they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in one of the sepulchres of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah. And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah : and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and they were made an ordinance in Israel : and, behold, they are written in the lamentations. Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and his pious deeds, according to that which was written in the law of the Lord, and his deeds, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. § II. Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. And Pharaoh-necoh put him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and put upon the land a tribute of an hundred talents of silvei', and ten talents of gold. And Pharaoh-necoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim : but he took Jehoahaz away; and he came to Egypt, and died there. And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh : he exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the landj of every one according to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaoh-necoh. It was likely enough that Josiah's unfortunate defeat and death would bring about a strong reaction against the religious policy which he had pursued. And so indeed it happened. There was no heed given during the twenty-two years which still remained for the monarchy of Judah to the laws of the Eetrospect. And what is still more lamentable, moral degradation seems to have gone hand in hand with i-eligious corruption. "We must always remember that the party and cause of religious purity were the cause and party of moral purity as well. The two things, like their opposites, went hand in hand. 400 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The new king Jehoiakim reigned eleven years. Of these years the historian has very little to tell us, but they were years of great importance in the history of Judah and of all Asia. First, how- ever, let us hear our compiler. Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem : and his mother's name was Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Runiah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years : then he turned and rebelled against him. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah ? So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead. And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land : for the king of Babylon had taken, from the torrent of Egypt unto the river Euphrates, all that pertained to the king of Egypt. Thus the supremacy of Egypt was not longlived. The power of Nabopolassar of Babylon grew rapidly, Nineveh had fallen before Cyaxares and the Medes in 607. Nabopolassar married his son Nebuchadnezzar (or Nebuchadrezzar, as he should more properly be called) to Amylis, daughter of Cyaxares, and secured himself towards the east and north by a firm alliance with the Medes. He determined to obtain for his own share of the spoil the large Assyrian dominions of the west. He sent his son Nebuchadrezzar at the head of an army against the Egyptians. Necho advanced to meet him, and the battle, which decided the fate of all Palestine, was fought out at Carchemish in the year 605 B.C. Carchemish, called in classical times Circesium, is on the Euphrates, Look it up upon the map, as this battle was one of the really eventful battles of ancient history. The Egyptians were totally defeated, and fled. Nebuchadrezzar was, however, compelled to postpone his advance for a time. His father had died, and he hurried to Babylon to secure the succession and the throne. Returning to the army in the following year, he moved gradually forward, and by 600 B.C. he was master of all Palestine as far as the borders of Egypt, and Jehoiakim, king of Judah, * became his servant.' The vassalage continued for three years (601-598). Then, doubtless at the instigation of Necho, king of Egypt, Jehoiakim JEREMIAH THE PROPHET 401 rebelled. But Necho was powerless to help him. The neighbour- ing states remained faithful to Babylon ; and before Nebu- chadrezzar himself appeared at Jerusalem to inflict a summary punishment upon the rebellious tributary, bands of Aramaeans, MoabiteSj and Ammonites, in conjunction with a small force of Babylonians drawn from garrisons in Palestine, seem to have invaded and ravaged Judah. In the midst of these troubles Jehoiakim died, so that the inevitable end of the rebellion was left as a mournful heritage to his son and successor Jehoiachin. § 12. Here let us pause, for a little while, before continuing the history. It is time to say a few words about a great prophet who spoke and wrote in Jerusalem during the last twenty-five years of the monarchy. His name was Jeremiah. Of Jeremiah's life we know more than that of any other prophet. He tells us more about himself. He reveals to us, if I may say so, something of the man as well as of the prophet. His words make us realize better than those of any other prophet remaining to us how convinced and assured these great men were that they were charged with a mission and message from God. That message was no easy task. Jeremiah shows us something of the conflict that frequently took place within his soul. The words which he was bound to speak were for the most part words of rebuke, of menace and calamity. They exposed him to persecution and danger and hatred. He was regarded as a traitor to his people, an enemy to his country, and yet, in very truth, he loved his people with a pure patriot's love. He would gladly have remained silent. But the call of duty and of God was too strong. At all cost and at what- ever risk he must speak the message of the Lord, Thus on one occasion, of which we shall hear anon, when his plain speaking had made him pass a night in the stocks, we find him complaining : O Lordj thou didst entice me^ and I let myself be enticed : thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed : I am in derision all the day, every one mocketh me. For as often as I speak, I must cry out ; I cry. Violence and oppression ; therefore the word of the Lord has become a reproach unto me, and a derision, all the day. And if I say, I will not think more of him, nor speak any more in his name, then there is in mine heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones^ and I am weary with forbearing, and I cannot withhold it. I have heard the defaming of many, terror on every side. Denounce, they say, and we will denounce him, yea even my D d 402 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING familiar friends, they watch for my halting ; peradventm-e he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him. But the Lord is with me as a mighty one and a terrible : therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed, even with an everlasting reproach which shall never be forgotten. But, O Lord of hosts, that triest the righteous, that seest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them ; for unto thee have I committed my cause. Sing unto the Lord, praise ye the Lord : for he delivereth the soul of the poor from the hand of evil-doers. Cursed be the day wherein I was born : let not the day wherein my mother bare me be blessed. Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making him very glad. Wherefore was I bom to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame ? Jeremiah felt keenly the painful position in which he was placed. Realizing that it was God's message which he spoke, he had no pity for those who used him ill ; he treated them with scorn and contumely. He met imprecation by imprecation, scoff with scoff. The weak- nesses of his character as well as its great strength are revealed to us in his book, but we must remember that he was tried almost beyond endurance. For, as it would seem, Jeremiah, in his most fundamental views and teachings, was in a very small minority. The burden of the prophets, in his age, was carried by him almost alone. Yet he seems to have been occasionally conscious that his heartrending complaints and his revilings of his enemies were due to his own' human weakness, and did not constitute a true part of his divine message. His life was a lonely agony, long drawn out. He lets us have a glimpse sometimes into the depths of his nature, and witness how he poured out his soul unto God, and what answer there seemed to come to him. O Lord, thou knowest : remember me, and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in thy longsuffering : know that for thy sake I have suffered reviling. Thy words were found, and I did eat them ; and thy words were unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart : for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts. I sat not in the assembly of laughers, nor rejoiced. I sat alone because of thy hand ; for thou hast filled me with indignation. Why is my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which ref useth 'THE PRECIOUS WITHOUT THE VILE' 403 to be healed? wilt thou indeed be unto me as a deceitful stream, as waters that fail ? Therefore thus saith the Lord, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, that thou mayest stand before me ; and if thou bring forth the precious without the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth : they shall return unto thee, but thou shalt not return unto them. And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall; and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee : for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the Lord. And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible. This is not an easy passage, but the important words are * If thou bring forth the precious without the vile/ These words the best scholars now suppose to mean * If thou wilt speak my message purely,' as free as possible from human alloy. Jeremiah is himself conscious that thei'e is a higher and a lower element in his own words, and he feels that it is the will of God that he should confine himself to the higher element, and speak the message of God without any mixture of human passion. § 13. Jeremiah received the call to his prophetical ofi&ce when still quite young. Long afterwards he wrote down from memory how, as he believed, he came to be a prophet. It was in the reign of Josiah, some five years before the discovery of the Ketrospect and the great Keform. The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin : to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. Now the word of the Lord came unto me, saying. Before thou wast born I knew thee, and I sanctified thee ; I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. Then said I, Ah, Lord God ! behold, I cannot speak : for I am a child. But the Lord said unto me. Say not, I am a child : for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid because of them : for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord. Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth ; and the Lord said unto me. Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth : see, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, and to destroy and to throw down ; to build, and to plant. D d 2 404 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Moreover the word of the Lord came unto iiie^ sayings Jeremiah^ what seest thou ? And I said^ I see a branch of an ahnond tree. Then said the Lord unto me^ Thou hast well seen : for I am wakeful over my word to perform it. And the word of the Lord came unto me the second time^ saying, What seest thou ? And I said, I see a seething pot ; and the face thereof is from the north. Then the Lord said unto me, Out of the north evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord 5 and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah, And I will bring them to judgement becayse of all their wickedness ; in that they have forsaken me, and have burned incense untq other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands. Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee : be not dismayed at them, lest I make thee dismayed before them. For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land. And they shall fight against thee ; but they shall not prevail against thee ; for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee. The almond tree is called in Hebrew the ivakefut tree, because it awakens first of all the trees from the sleep of winter. It seemed to the prophet that the symbolism of the almond tree and of the eeething pot were put into his mind by God, and according to the methods of eastern writers, he clothes this belief in a direct and pictorial form. We know but very little of Jeremiah's prophetical work in the reign of Josiah. Nor do we know what part he played in the great Eeform. You will remember that the king turns for advice not to Jeremiah (he was still, I suppose, too young), but to the prophetess Huldah. Jeremiah probably sympathized with the Eeform heart and soul. But more clearly and painfully than others, he realized that the Beform, suddenly adopted and violently carried out, might readily Buffer shipwreck. He saw too that the reformation was largely outward — a purification of ritual — whereas the moral corruptioi^ NATIONAL SIN : NATIONAL RUIN 405 continued. And no less than Amos, Hosea, and Isaiah, he was urgent for goodness and rectitude : no idolatry, on the one hand ; righteousness, purity, and compassion on the other. § 14, The reaction under Jehoiakim was therefore no surprise to him. His true hour had now come. From the very beginning of Jehoiakim's reign he assumed a position of open and determined opposition to the moral condition of Judah and to the religious policy of the king. He foretold national ruin for national sin. The temple should be no protection against transgression. Very soon too he realized who it was that should play the part of an instrument in God's hand for the punishment of his people. The sword of Nebuchadrezzar should strike the blow : Jerusalem and its temple should fall. The escape from Sennacherib should not be repeated. Yet even now there was still opportunity (but Jeremiah was aware that it would not be taken) for salvation and peace. As the only possible internal means for obtaining them, Jeremiah preached righteousness and repentance. Ceremonial worship and outward religion are useless and vain ; they are worse than useless when stained and tainted with idolatry. The temple of the north had fallen through Israel's sin, and now, unless there was thorough amendment, the temple of the south should fall likewise. As the only possible external policy, Jeremiah was always giving the un- popular advice of steady and patient submission to Babylon. The folly of Jehoiakim's rebellion and its inevitable issue he foresaw and foretold from its beginning. Let us now hear some of his actual words. Thus saith the Lord : Go down to the house of the king of Judahj and speak there this vrord^ and say^ Hear the word of the Lordj O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates. Thus saith the Lord: Execute ye judge- ment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor : and do no M^rong, do no violence, to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place. For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people. But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself, saith the Lord, that this house shall -become a desolation. He fearlessly denounces Jehoiakim. 4o6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not his hire for his work ; that saith, I will build me a wide house and large chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it is cieled with cedar, and painted with vermilion. Art thou a king, because thou art eager about cedar-work ? thy father ate and drank, but he did judgement and justice : then it was well with him. He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this to know me ? saith the Lord. But thine eyes and thine heart are only turned to blood, and to oppression, and to violence to do them. There- fore thus saith God concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah : They shall not lament for him, saying. Ah my brother ! they shall not lament for him, saying. Ah my lord ! He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem. Jehoiakim, like so many monarchs of the East, seems to have had a passion for building, but he used forced labour, and paid no wages. Some people translate ' Art thou a king (i. e. is this your idea of kingship) because thou strivest to rival thy father in cedar building 1' In that case the 'father* is not Josiah, but Solomon. Jehoiakim may be supposed to reply, * But did not my father eat and drink (i. e. was he not prosperous), although he built palaces of cedar?' Yes, is the rejoinder, but he did not only build : he also did judgement and justice ; he judged the cause of the poor and needy (i.e. he obtained justice for them). Hence his prosperity was deserved. If we translate as above, then ' thy father ' may be Josiah, and the meaning is, Art thou a king because thou buildest great palaces through cruelty and oppression 1 Josiah, it is true, enjoyed outward prosperity. But why 1 Because he proved him- self a king indeed. He executed justice and cared for the poor. Note the words ' Was not this to know me ? saith the Lord.' He who is good, who does goodness and loves it, is on the true path- way to the knowledge of God. It is the righteous who see God : in other words, the purer and nobler your own character, the better you will be able to realize the living cause of goodness, who is God. § 15. Here is an important prophecy which is twice repeated, once in a longer and once in a shorter form. The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, sayings Stand in the gate of the Lord^s house, and' proclaim there this word, and say. Hear the word of the Lord, all ye of LYING WORDS AND WICKED DEEDS 407 Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. Trust ye not in lying words when they say. The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, are these. Nay, but if ye throughly amend your ways and your doings ; if ye throughly execute judgement between a man and his neighbour ; if ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt : then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers for ever. Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit. Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye have not known, and come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We have escaped; that ye may do forsooth all these abominations? Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes ? Behold, I too so regard it, saith the Lord. But go ye now unto the temple which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel. And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the Lord, and I spake unto you constantly, but ye heard not ; and I called you, but ye answered not : therefore will I do unto the house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh. And I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim. Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me : for I will not hear thee. Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem ? The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger. Do they provoke me to anger ? saith the Lord ; do they not provoke themselves, to the confusion of their own faces ? Therefore thus saith the Lord God : Behold, mine anger and my fury shall be poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of 408 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the field^ and upon the fruit of the ground ; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Add your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat their flesh. For I spake not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, con- cerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: but this thing com- manded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people : and walk ye in all the way that I command you, that it may be well unto you. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels of their evil heart, = and went backward and not forward. Since the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt unto this day, I have constantly sent unto you all my servants the prophets : yet they hearkened not iinto me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck: they did worse than their fathers. And thou shalt speak all these words unto them; but they will not hearken to thee : thou shalt also call unto them ; but they will not answer thee. And thou shalt say unto them. This is the nation that doth not obey nor hearken to the voice of the Lord their God, nor receiveth correction : faithfulness is perished, and is cut off from their mouth. Sacrifice, according to Jeremiah, was not ordered by God, It is a bold statement ; for even the Law of the Retrospect prescribes certain sacrifices, though in far less detail and with much less stress than later and more priestly Codes. But what does God's * voice ' enjoin if it is silent about sacrifices and ritual ? What are his ways in which men should go? To Jeremiah the answer seemed so certain and obvious as to need no telling. It is the old burden of the prophets. Negatively: no idolatry. Positively: do justice, love mercy and walk kumhly before God. The shorter version of the prophecy gives us its historical setting and issue, and a very dramatic story it is. Let us hear it. In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, came this word from the Lord, saying. Thus saith the Lord : Stand in the court of the Lord^s house, and speak unto the men of all the cities of Judah, who come to worship in the Lord's house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them ; diminish not a word. If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way ; 'I SPAKE NOT CONCERNING SACRIFICES 409 that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings. And thou shalt say unto them. Thus saith the Lord : If ye will not hearken to me, to walk in my teaching, which I have set before you, to hearken to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I send unto you ; then will I make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth. And the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. And it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying. Thou shall surely die. Why hast thou prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying. This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without inhabitant ? And all the people were banded to- gether against Jeremiah in the house of the Lord. And when the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king's house unto the house of the Lord ; and they sat in the entry of the new gate of the Lord's house. Then spake the priests and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying. This man is worthy to die; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears. Then spake Jeremiah unto all the princes and to all the people, saying, God sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard. Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, arid obey the voice of the Lord your God ; and the Lord will repent him of the evil that he hath pro- nounced against you. But as for me, behold, I am in your hand : do with me as is good and right in your eyes. But know ye for certain that, if ye put me to death, ye shall bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof: for of a truth the Lord hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears. Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets : This man is not worthy to die ; for he hath spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God. Then rose up certain of the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people, saying, Micaiah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah ; and he spake to all the people of Judah, saying. Thus saith the 4IO THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Lord of hosts : Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the wooded heights of a forest. Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him at all to death ? did he not fear God, and intreat his favour, so that God repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them ? But we are like to procure great evil against our own souls. And there was also a man that prophesied in the name of God, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath-jearim ; and he prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah. And when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty men, and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death. But when Urijah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt. And Jehoiakim the king sent men into Egypt : and they fetched forth Urijah out of Egypt, and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king; who slew him with the sword, and cast his dead body into the graves of the common people. But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was vrith Jeremiah, that he was not given into the hand of the people to put him to death. The paragraph about Urijah seems to refer to a different period. For at this point it is the priests and prophets who want to put Jeremiah to death, whereas the princes and the people are on his side. § 1 6. Here is a curious incident, a kind of parable from real life. The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying. Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink. Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites ; and I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Tgdaliah, the man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door: and I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites flagons full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them. Drink ye wine. JEREMIAH AND THE RECHABITES 411 But they said, We will drink no wine : for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying. Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons, for ever : neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any : but all your days ye shall dwell in tents ; that ye may live many days in the land wherein ye sojourn. So we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters ; nor to build houses for us to dwell in : neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed : but we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. But it came to pass, when Nebu- chadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said. Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and fot fear of the army of the Aramaeans ; so we dwell at Jerusalem. Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Go, and say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to my words ? saith the Lord, The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons, not to drink wine, are performed ; for unto this day they drink none, but obey their fathei'^s commandment : but I have constantly spoken unto you ; and ye have not hearkened unto me. I have also constantly sent unto you all my servants the prophets, saying. Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers : but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unfo me. The sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father which he commanded them, but this people hath not hearkened unto me ; therefore thus saith the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel : Behold, I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them : because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard ; and I have called unto them, but they have not answered. And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and 412 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING kept all his precepts^ and done according unto all that he hath commanded you; therefore thus saith the Lord oi hosts, the God of Israel : Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever. How far this prophecy was fulfilled, it is quite impossible to say. Jeremiah may have spoken it somewhat rashly on the spur of the moment when he contrasted the filial obedience of the Kechabites with the filial ingratitude and disobedience of the Israelites. For even as Jonadab was the father of the Kechabites, so God, as the Author of their being, and as their Guardian and Keeper, is the Father of the Jews. (Jeremiah hardly realizes that God is the just and loving Father of all men, caring equally for every race.) We have to suppose that an occasion on which the Eechabites refused to drink wine, at which Jeremiah was present, suggested to him this visible symbol of the relation of Israel to God. He therefore saw in that occasion an event, though trivial in one senee to outward seeming, yet from its symbolic meaning, God-ordained, and he does not hesitate to give to the occurrence the form of a divine command. § 17. Now let me put before you a most vivid and interesting picture of a moving scene in Jeremiah's life. It also lets us see how his prophecies were first committed to writing. And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah^ that this word came unto Jeremiah from the Lord,, saying. Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah^ and against all the nations, from the day I spake unto thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day. It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them ; that they may return every man from his evil way ; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin. Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah; and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the Lord, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book. And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am prevented from going into the house of the Lord: therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the Lord in the ears of the people in the Lord^s house upon a fast day: and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come THE ROLL OF JEREMIAH S PROPHECIES 413 out of their cities. It may be they will present their supplica- tion before the Lord, and will return every one from his evil way : for great is the anger that the Lord hath pronounced against this people. And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him^ reading in the book the words of the Lord in the Lord^s house. Now it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth months that all the people in Jerusalem, and all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem, were summoned to a fast before the Lord, Then read Baruch in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the Lord, in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the upper court, at the entry of the new gate of the Lord's house, in the ears of all the people. And when Micaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard out of the book all the words of the Lord, he went down into the king's house, into the scribe's chamber : and, Jo, all the princes sat there, even Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Eluathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes. Then Micaiah declared unto them all the words that he had heard, when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people. Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, unto Baruch, saying. Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand, and came unto them. And they said unto him. Sit down now, and read it in our eai's. So Baruch read it in their ears. Now it came to pass, when they had heard all the words, they turned tremblingly one to the other, and said unto Baruch, We will surely tell the king of all these words. And they asked Baruch, saying. Tell us now. How didst thou write all these words? Then Baruch answered them. He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book. Then said the princes unto Baruch, Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah i and let no man know where ye be. And they went in to the king into the court; but they laid 414 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING m^ the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe ; and they told all the words in the ears of the king. So the king sent Jehudi to fetch the roll : and he took it out of Elishama the scribe^s chamber. And Jehudi read it in the ears oi the king^ and in the ears of all the princes who stood beside the king. Now the king sat in the winter house m the ninth month: and the brasier was burning before him. And it came to pass, when Jehudi had read three or four leaves^ that the king cut them with the penknife, and cast them into the fire that was in the brasier, until all the roll was con- sumed in the fire that was in the brasier. Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his servants that heard all these words. And although Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah entreated the king that he would not burn the roll, he would not hear them. And the king commanded Jerahmeel the king's son, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet : but they were hid. Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the roll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying. Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned. And thou shalt say to Jehoiakim king of Judah, Thus saith the Lord : Thou hast burned this roll, saying. Why hast thou written therein, saying. The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease from thence man and beast ? Therefore thus saith the Lord of Jehoiakim king of Judah : He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David : and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost. And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring upon them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men of Judah, all the evil that I have pronounced against them, but they hearkened not. Then took Jeremiah another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah ; who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire : and there were added besides unto them many like words. JEREMIAH IN THE STOCKS 4^5 According to the Book of Kings, Jehoiakim died a natural death. It is possible that Nebuchadrezzar, when he found that the punish- ment which he had intended for his rebellious vassal had been forestalled by death, showed some indignity to his corpse. Perhaps he disinterred it from its sepulchre and cast it out, dishonoured, on to the open field. Or were these prophecies against Jehoiakim individually no essential part of Jeremiah's message ? Even in the prophetic writings there is a higher and a lower : we have to study and to sift. And even Jeremiah himself, as we have heard, realized that alloy was mingled with the gold. § 1 8. On one occasion the prophet's fearless words made him pass a night in the stocks. Thus saith the Lord^ Go and buy a pottei^'s earthen bottle, and take of the elders of the people, and of the elders of the priests; and go forth unto the valley of Ben-Hinnom, vrhich is by the entry of the gate of potsherds, and proclaim there the words vrhich I shall tell thee. And thou shalt break the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee, and shalt say unto them. Thus saith the Lord of hosts : Even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter's vessel that cannot be made whole again. Then came Jeremiah from Topheth, whither the Lord had sent him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of the Lord^s house, and said to all the people : Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it ; because they have hardened their necks, that they might not hear my words. Now Pashhur the son of Immer the priest, who was chief officer in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesy these things. Then Pashhur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the upper gate of Benjamin, which was at the house of the Lord. And it came to pass on the morrow, that Pashhur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah unto him. The Lord hath not called thy name Pashhur, but Magor-missabib (i.e. terror on every side). For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring terror upon thyself, and upon all thy friends : and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it : and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive to 4i6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword. Moreover I will give all the stores of this city^ and all the profits thereof, and all the precious things thereof, yea, all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their enemies, who shall spoil them^ and take them, and carry them to Babylon. And thou, Pashhur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity : and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and there shalt thou be buried, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied falsely. § 19. Spoken or acted parables about j)otters and tiieir work are common in Hebrew prophecy. We meet with another in Jeremiah in a passage which is also important as showing the conditional nature (in the prophetic conception of the matter) of the divine threatenings and promises. It is never too late to mend, on the one hand; but, on the other, past good may be annulled by present evil. Perhaps this doctrine, at least as regards the second half of it, is truer of nations than of indi- viduals. The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheel. And whensoever the vessel whereat he was working was marred^ he made it again into another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord, Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in nune hand, O house of Israel. At one instant I may speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it ; but if that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. And at one instant I may speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it ; but if it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them. Now therefore go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying. Thus saith the Lord ; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you : return ye now every one from his evil way, and make 'NOTE THAT POTTER's WHEEL ' 417 your ways and your doings good. But they will say. It is in vain ; for we will walk after our own devices, and we will every one execute the stubbornness of his evil heart. There- fore thus saith the Lord : Ask ye now among the heathen, who hath heard such things ; the virgin of Israel hath done a very horrible thing. Will the snow of Lebanon leave the high rock ? Will the cold, bubbling waters of the spring dry up ? But my people hath forgotten me, they have burned incense to vain gods; they have stumbled in their way, and walked in a path not cast up ; to make their land an astonishment, and a perpetual hissing ; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished, and wag his head, I will scatter them as with an east vtdnd before the enemy ; I will shew them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity. § 20. A large majority of both priests and prophets were hostile to Jeremiah. He constantly complains of their wickedness and self-delusion. He alone is the true prophet ; for he speaks what costs him pain and brings him suffering. In those days the prophet of evil could alone be the prophet of truth. Thus he says : An appalling and horrible thing is committed in the land : and prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule in accord with them ; and my people love to have it so. But what will ye do at the end thereof ? The priests were jjermanent officials with powers of jurisdiction and police. But these powers they now exercised at the heck of the prophets. Covetous priests, as Jeremiah calls them (but we must remember that many of them were probably not so bad as they are painted), and flattering or deluded prophets, were hand and glove with each other. Elsewhere he says : From the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth deceitfully. They heal the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying. Peace, peace j when there is no peace. On one occasion there was a great drought in Judaea. Jeremiah describes its effects, and how he prayed to God for the sake of his people. First comes the description : Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they bow down mourning unto the ground; and the cry of E e 4i8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Jerusalem is gone up. And her nobles have sent their dependants to the waters : they come to the pits, and find no water ; they return with their vessels empty ; they are ashamed and confounded, and cover their heads. For the sake of the ground which is dried up, for there is no rain in the earth, the ploughmen are ashamed, they cover their heads. Yea, the hind also forsaketh her calf in the field, because there is no grass. And the wild asses stand on the bare heights ; they snuff up the wind like jackals ; their eyes fail, because there is no herbage. Then follows the prayer : O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name's sake : for our backslidings are many ; we have sinned against thee, O the hope of Israel, the saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry but for a night ? Why shouldest thou be as a man astonied, as a mighty man that cannot save ? yet thou, O Lord, art in the midst of us, and we are called by thy name ; leave us not. But God answers : Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the Lord doth not accept them ; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins. Moreover the Lord said unto me. Pray not for this people for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence. Against this dread conviction of his soul (which he feels to be the message of God) that the need of punishment is very sore, Jeremiah attempts to protest by suggesting that the fault is less the people's than the prophets*. They delude the people. But the plea is inadequate : Then said I, Alas, Lord God! behold, the prophets say unto them. Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place. Then the Lord said unto me. The prophets prophesy lies in my name ; I sent them not, neither have I commanded DECEITFUL PROPHESYING 419 them, neither spake unto them : they prophesy unto you a false vision and a vain divination, and the deceit of their heart. Tlierefore thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not, yet they say. Sword and famine shall not be in this land ; By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed. And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword ; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters : for I will pour their wickedness upon them. On another occasion Jeremiah thunders against the prophets in the following words. (Sodom and Gomorrah were the two cities of which the story went that their inhabitants were exceedingly wicked, and that at last a strange and sudden destruction befell them. See Chapter II § ro.) Mine heart within me is broken; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine hath overcome, because of the Lord, and because of the words of his holiness. For both prophet and priest are profane ; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the Lord. Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness ; they shall be driven on, and fall therein : for I will bring evil upon them in the year of their visitation, saith the Lord. I saw folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied through Baal, and caused my people Israel to err. But in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen an appalling thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness : they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink poisonous water : for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all the land. Thus saith the Lord of hosts. Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you : they delude you : they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord. They say still unto them that despise the word of the Lord, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh in the stubbornness of his own E e 2 420 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING heart. No evil shall come upon you. Yea, he who standeth in the council of the Lord, he perceiveth and heareth his word ! He who marketh his word, he proclaimeth it ! I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran : I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my council, they would cause my people to hear my words, and they would turn them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings. A God at hand am I, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off. Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him ? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth ? saith the Lord, I hear what the prophets say, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream ; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What hath the straw to do with the wheat ? saith the Lord. Is not my word like as a fire ? saith-the Lord ; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces ? § 21. In spite of the fact that the populace was mainly on the side of its leaders, Jeremiah's affection for his people — his patriotism, in the higher sense of the word — shone through and mingled with his fierce words of denunciation and rebuke. Some- times the two are strangely mixed together, as in the following prophecy. And the word of the Lord came to me, saying. Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the Lord; I remember the love of thy youth, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown. Hear ye, then, the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel : Thus saith the Lord, What injustice did your fathers find in me, that they went far from me, and walked after vain gods, and became vain ? Neither said they. Where is the Lord that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt? And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my landp and made mine heritage an abomination. The 'THE FOUNTAIN OF LIVING WATERS 421 priests said not, Where is the Lord ? and they that handle the law knew me not: the rulers also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal^ and walked after things that do not profit. Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the Lord^ and with your children's children will I plead. For pass over to the isles of the Chittim, and see ; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if such a thing hath happened even there ! Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods ? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. Be appalled, O ye heavens, at this, and shudder, be ye very amazed, saith the Lord. For my people have committed two evils ; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water. Here let me put together some fragments from various prophecies in which Jeremiah calls his people to repentance, or laments and marvels over their sin. Thus saith the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up for you a fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest yet be saved. How long shall thy thoughts of iniquity still lodge within thee ? Thus spake the Lord : Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said. We will not walk therein. Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed ; how then art thou turned into the degenerate branches of a strange vine unto me ? For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is in- grained before me, saith the Lord God, Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. Hear, O earth ; behold, I bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their backsliding, because they have not hearkened unto my words, and have rejected my teaching. To what purpose Cometh there to me incense from Sheba, and the sweet cane from a far country ? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices sweet unto me. Do men fall, and not arise ? doth a man turn away, and not turn back ? Why then is this people slidden back with 422 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING a perpetual backsliding, holding fast unto deceit, refusing to return ? I hearkened and listened, but they spake not aright : no man repenteth him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done ? eveiy one turneth aside in his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle. Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming ; but my people know not the religion of the Lord. How do ye say. We are wise, and the teaching of the Lord is with us ? Lo, certainly the false pen of the scribes hath made it falsehood. O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes : make thee mourning, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation : for the spoiler shall suddenly come among us. Jeremiah's life was very lonely. It was not for him, with such a mission, in such a time and amid such surroundings, to know the joy of wife and children. His loneliness seemed to him the very command of God. The word of the Lord came also unto me, saying, Thou shalt not take thee a wife, neither shalt thou have sons or daughters in this place. Enter not into the house of mourning, neither go to lament the dead nor bemoan them : for I have taken away my peace from this people, saith the Lord, even lovingkindness and mercies. Thou shalt not also go into the house of feasting, to sit with them to eat and to drink. For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel ; Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place in your eyes, and in your days, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride. At the time of the drought the prophet bewailed the present and the coming misfortunes of his peoj)]e, speaking as one of them. Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease ; for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach, with a very grievous blow. If I go forth into the field, then behold the slain with the sword ! and if I enter into the city, then behold them that are sick with famine ! yea, both the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know not. Hast thou utterly THE LONELY WRETCHEDNESS OF JEREMIAH 423 rejected Judah ? hath thy soul loathed Zion ? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us ? we looked for peace, and there is no good ; and for the time of healing, and behold terror ! We acknowledge, O Lord, our wicked- ness, and the iniquity of our fathers : for we have sinned against thee. Do not abhor us, for thy name^s sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory : remember, break not thy covenant vdth us. Are there any among the vain idols of the nations that can cause rain ? or can the heavens give showers ? is it not thou, O Lord our God ? therefore we will wait upon thee; for thou hast made all these things. Elsewhere he breaks out mto passionate lamentation over the woes which, as he foresees, the doomed inhabitants of Jerusalem and of Judah must before long irretrievably undergo. Oh that I could find comfort against my sorrow; my heart is faint within me. For the heart of the daughter of my people, I am hurt : I mourn ; horror hath taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead ? Is there no physician there ? Why then is there no healing for the daughter of my people ? Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of my people. § 22. It is time to turn back to the history as recorded in tlie Books of Kings. "We broke it off at the point where Jehoiakim has just died before the arrival of Nebuchaclrezzarj and had been succeeded by his son Jehoiachin. This was in the year 597. Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned in Jerusalem three months : and his mother^s name was Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father had done. At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon "came against the city, and his servants did besiege it ; and Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers : and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign. And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels 424 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord. And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon j and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon, And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his fathei^'s brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah. § 23. Thus the ' captivity' of Judah had begun. Some of the best and most cultivated portions of the people were now exiles in Babylonia : among them was the future prophet Ezekiel. Those who remained were not purified either religiously or morally by the blow which had befallen the state. It would seem that the religious and moral condition of Judah had never been worse than under the reign of its last king. Jeremiah fixed his hopes upon the captives in Babylonia. In days to come their children should be restored to the soil of Judaea. For the present let them but remain peaceful subjects of Babylon ; just as the last and only faint hope for Zedekiah is absolute and unresisting submission to Babylon. But this absolute and unresisting submission the foolish counsellors &f poor young Zedekiah {un rot fain^cmt, as he has been called) were determined that he should not yield. Ambassadors from the neighbouring petty states appeared in Jerusalem to arrange and persuade a fresh alliance, leading to a fresh rebellion. Once more Jeremiah makes his voice heard. The Lord shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the Lord, after that Nebu- chadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe : and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. Then said the Lord unto me. What seest thou, Jeremiah ? And I said. Figs ; the good figs, very good ; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel ; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of JEREMIAH S LETTER TO THE EXILES 425 Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans, for their good. For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land : and I will build them, and not pull them down ; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord ; and they shall be my people, and I vdll be their God ; for they shall return unto me with their whole heart. And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil ; surely thus saith the Lord, So will I make Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt : and I will make them a shuddering unto all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers. Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the elders, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon : by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,) saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all whom I have caused to be carried away captive from Jeru- salem unto Babylon : Build ye houses, and dwell in them ; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them ; take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters ; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters ; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto the Lord for it : for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace. For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : , Let not your prophets that be in the midst of you, and your diviners, deceive you, neither hearken ye to your dreams which ye dream. For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name : I have not sent them, saith the Lord. For thus saith the Lord, After seventy years be accomplished for Babylon, I will 426 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope and futurity. And if ye call upon me, I will hearken unto you. And if ye seek me, ye shall find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. In the fourth year of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah came this word unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying. Thus saith the Lord to me : Make thee bands and yokes, and put them upon thy neck ; and send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the children of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers who are come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah ; and bid them say unto their masters. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Thus shall ye say unto your masters ; I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the face of the earth, by my great power and by my outstretched arm ; and I give it unto whom it seemeth meet unto me. And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant ; and the beasts of the field also have I given him to serve him. And it shall come to pass, that the nation and the kingdom which will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them. Therefore hearken ye not to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreams, nor to your soothsayers, nor to your sorcerers, who speak unto you, saying. Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon : for they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your land. But the nation that shall bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, that nation will I let remain in their own land, saith the Lord; and they shall till it, and dwell therein. So I spake to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying. Bring your necks under the yoke of. the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live. Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the Lord hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon ? HANANIAH S PROPHECY 427 Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that speak unto yoUy saymg^ Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon : for they prophesy a lie unto you. For I have not sent them^ saith the Lord^ but they prophesy lyingly in my name ; that 1 might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you. Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith the Lord : Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying. Behold, the vessels of the Lord^s house shall be brought again from Babylon : for they prophesy a lie unto you. Hearken not unto them; serve the king of Babylon, and live: wherefore should this city be laid waste ? But if they be prophets, and if the word of the Lord be with them, let them now make intercession to the Lord of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon. For thus saith the Lord of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the brasen sea, and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that are left in this city, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not, when he carried away captive Jehoiachin, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem ; yea, thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : They shall be carried to Babylon, and there shall they be, until the day that I visit them, saith the Lord ; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place. And it came to pass the same year, the fourth year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of Azzur the prophet, spake unto me in the house of the Lord, in the presence of the priests and of all the people, saying. Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two full years will I bring again into this place all the vessels of the Lord^s house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place, and carried them to Babylon : and I will bring again to this place Jehoiachin the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, with all the captives of Judah, that went to Babylon, saith the Lord : for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon. 428 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Then the prophet Jeremiah said unto the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests, and in the presence of all the people that stood in the house of the Lord, Amen : the Lord do so : the Lord perform thy words which thou hast prophesied, to bring again the vessels of the Lord^s house, and all that is carried away captive, from Babylon unto this place. Nevertheless hear thou now this word that I speak in thine ears, and in the ears of all the people : the prophets that have been before me and before thee of old prophesied against many countries, and against great king- doms, of war, and of evil, and of pestilence. But the prophet who prophesieth of peace, when his word cometh to pass, shall be known as the prophet whom the Lord hath truly sent. Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from off the prophet Jeremiah^s neck, and brake it. And Hananiah spake in the presence of all the people, saying. Thus saith the Lord : Even so will I break the yoke of the king of Babylon from off the neck of all the nations. And the prophet Jeremiah went his way. Then the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah, after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off his neck, saying, Go, and tell Hananiah, saying. Thus saith the Lord : Thou hast broken the yoke of wood ; but I will make in its stead a yoke of iron. For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon ; and they shall serve him : and I have given him the beasts of the field also. Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet. Hear now, Hananiah ; the Lord hath not sent thee ; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie. Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will send thee away from off the face of the earth : this year thou shalt die. And Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month. § 24. The negotiations for rebellion in the fourth year of Zedekiah (594 B.C.) seem to have come to no definite result. For a time, perhaps, wiser counsels prevailed. But not for long. Nebuchadrezzar determined that on this occasion there should be no half measures. The punishment of Judah should be complete : the monarchy abolished ; the city and the temple razed to the ground. THE FALL OF JERUSALEM 429 This is the account of the end given in the Books of Kings, and illustrated and enlarged, as we shall see, hy several chapters in the Book of Jeremiah. The compiler tells his tale simply and fairly ; on this occasion he draws no moral. The grim and terrible story speaks for itself. The one gleam of better things is the 'lifting up the head ' of the hapless prisoner Jehoiachin. With this isolated fact the editor closes his work. As its date is 561 B.C., the com- pilation was not finished till some thirty years after the fall of Jerusalem. Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem : and his mothei*^s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jeru- salem, and pitched against it ; and they built forts against it round about. So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was grievous in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land. Then a breach was made in the city, and the king and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king's garden: (now the Chaldeans were against the city round about :) and they went by the way of the Arabah. But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho : and all his army was scattered from him. So they took the king, and brought him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah ; and he gave judgement upon him. And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon. Now in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard^ a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem : and he burnt the house of the Lord, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem. And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake 430 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING down the walls of Jerusalem round about. And the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard cany away captive to Babylon. But the captain of the guard left of the poor of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen. And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the Lord, and the bases and the brasen sea that were in the house of the Lord, did the Chaldeans break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon. And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away. And the firepans, and the bowls, and that which was of gold, and that which was of silver, the captain of the guard took away. The two pillars, the one sea, and the bases, which Solomon had made for the house of the Lord ; the brass of all these vessels was without weight. The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and a chapiter of brass was upon it : and the height of the chapiter was five cubits ; with network and pomegranates upon the chapiter round about, all of brass : and like unto these had the second pillar with its network. And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door : and out of the city he took an officer that was set over the men of war; and five men of them that saw the king^s face, who were found in the city; and the scribe of the captain of the host, who mustered the people of the Land ; and threescore men of the people of the land, that were found in the city. And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah, And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away captive out of his land. And as for the people that were left in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, governor. And when all the captains of the forces, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the THE SECOND DEPORTATION 431 Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite^ they and their men. And Gedaliah sware to them and to their men, and said unto them. Fear not because of the Chaldeans : dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you. But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldeans that were with him at Mizpah. And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and came to Egypt : for they were afraid of the Chaldeans. And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evil- merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison ; and he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon. And he changed his prison garments, and did eat bread before him continually all the days of his life. And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the king, every day a portion, until the day of his death. § 25. Zedekiah, it seems, recognized the greatness of Jeremiahj hut he was but a tool in the hands of his ministers and the court. He could only secretly take counsel with the prophet. Here are some incidents of the siege, preserved to us in the collection of Jeremiah's prophecies. And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, to the prophet Jeremiah, saying. Pray now unto the Lord our God for us. And Pharaoh^s army was come forth out of Egypt: and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they brake up from Jerusalem. Then came the word of the Lord unto the prophet Jeremiah, saying. Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel : Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to inquire of me: Behold, Pharaoh^s army, which is come forth to help you, shall return to Egypt into then* own land. And the Chaldeans shall come again, and fight against this city; and they shall take it, and burn it with fire. Thus saith the Lord : Deceive not yourselves, saying. The Chaldeans shall surely depart 432 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING from us: for they shall not depart. For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight agamst you, and there remained but some wounded men among them, yet should they rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire. And it came to pass that when the army of the Chaldeans was broken up from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh^s army, then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to secure an inheritance there. . And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying. Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans. Then said Jere- miah, It is false ; I fall not away to the Chaldeans, But he hearkened not to him, and Irijah laid hold on Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes. Wherefore the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and smote him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe ; for they had made that the prison. And Jeremiah was brought into the dungeon house, and into the Cells, and he remained thei*e many days. Then Zedekiah the king sent, and fetched him : and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said. Is there any word from the Lord ? And Jeremiah said. There is. And he said. Thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon. Moreover Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah, What have I offended against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison ? Where now are your prophets who prophesied unto you, saying. The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land ? Therefore hear now, I pray thee, O my lord the king : let my supplication, I pray thee, be accepted before thee ; that thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there. Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the guard, and that they should give him daily a loaf of bread out of the bakers^ street, until all the bread in the city was spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard. ^ The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, when king Zedekiah sent unto him Pashhur the son of Malchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, saying. Enquire, I pray thee, of the Lord for us ; for Nebuchadnezzar king of JEREMIAH AND THE PRINCES 433 Babylon maketh war against us ; if so be that the Lord will deal with us according to all his wondrous workSj that he may go up from us. Then said Jeremiah unto them. Thus shall ye say to Zedekiah: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel; Behold^ I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, who besiege you without the walls, and I will assemble them into the midst of this city. And I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath. And I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast : they shall die of a great pestilence. And afterward, saith the Lord, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, and his servants, and the people that are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life : and he shall smite them with the edge of the sword ; he shall not spare them, neither have pity, nor have mercy. And unto this people thou shalt say. Thus saith the Lord ; Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death. He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence : but he that goeth out, and falleth away to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey. For I have set my face against this city for evil, and not for good, saith the Lord : it shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah spake unto all the people, saying. Thus saith the Lord, He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live 5 for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live. Thus saith the Lord, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon^s army, which shall take it. Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death ; for he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all Ff 434 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the people^ in speaking such words unto them : for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt. And Zedekiah the king said. Behold, he is in your hand : for the king is not he that can do any thing against you. Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the pit of Malchiah the king's son, that was in the court of the guard : and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the pit there was no water, but mire : so Jeremiah sank in the mire. Now when Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the pit ; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin 5 Ebed-melech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying. My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the pit ; and he is like to die there through famine. Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying. Take from hence three men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the pit, before he die. So Ebed- melech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags, and let them down by cords into the pit to Jeremiah. And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine arm-holes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so. So they drew up Jeremiah with the cords, and took him up out of the pit : and Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard. Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third entry that is in the house of the Lord : and the king said unto Jeremiah, I will ask thee a thing ; hide nothing from me. Then Jeremiah said unto Zedekiah, If I declare it unto thee, wilt thou not surely put me to death ? and if I give thee counsel, thou wilt not hearken unto me. So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying. As the Lord liveth, that gave us our lives, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life. Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel : If thou wilt go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire ; and thou shalt live, and thine house : but if thou wilt not go forth to the A LAST COUNSEL 435 king of Babylon^s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans^ and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand. And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen away to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me. But Jeremiah said. They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the Lord, which I speak unto thee : so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live. But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that God hath shewed me : Thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon : and this city shall be burned with fire. Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah, Let no man know of these words, and thou shalt not die. But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee, and they come unto thee, and say unto thee, Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the king ; hide it not from us, and we will not put thee to death : also what the king said unto thee : then thou shalt say unto them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan's house, to die there. Then came all the princes unto Jeremiah, and asked him : and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him ; for the matter was not reported. So Jeremiah abode in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken. § 26. While he was shut up in the court of the guard, Jeremiah brooded over the fortunes of his people, and of all that would happen to them in the future. He foresaw and foretold a time of gladness and peace which should at last succeed to the present times of misery and war. Here is a story, which perchance contains later words added on to the words of Jeremiah, but gives us an idea of the prophet's hopeful anticipations even in the midst of personal and national calamity. And Jeremiah said : Hanamel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the guard, and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth : for the right of in- heritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I realized that this was the word of the Lord. So I bought the field of Hanamel mine uncle's son, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver. Ff a 436 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And I subscribed the deed, and sealed it, and called witnesses. And I took the deed of the purchase, and I gave it unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel mine uncle's son, and in the presence of the wit- nesses who had attested it, before all the Jews that sat in the court of the guard. And I charged Baruch before them, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Take this deed of the purchase^ and put it in an earthen vessel ; that it may continue many days. For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Houses and fields and vineyards shall yet again be bought in this land. Now after I had delivered the deed of purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed unto God, saying. Ah Lord God ! the mounds of the besiegers reach even unto the city, that they may take it ; and the city will surely be given into the hand of the Chaldeans that fight against it, because of the sword, and of the famine, and of the pestilence : and what thou hast spoken is come to pass ; and, behold, thou seest it. And yet thou hast said unto me, O Lord God, Buy thee the field for monej^^, and take witnesses ; whereas the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans. Then came the word of the Lord unto me, saying, Behold, I am the Lord God of all flesh : is there any thing too hard for me ? Therefore thus saith the Lord: Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it : and the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set this city on fire, and burn it, with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink offerings unto other gods. For the children of Jerusalem and the children of Judah have only done that which was evil in my sight from their youth. For this city hath been to me a provocation from the day that they built it even unto this day ; that I should remove it from before my face : because of all the evil of the children of Jerusalem and of the children of Judah, which they have done, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And they have turned unto me the back, and not the face : and though I constantly taught them, yet they have not hearkened to receive correction. THE FIELD OF HANAMEL 437 But now, thus saith the Lord God of Israel, concerning this city, whereof thou sayest. It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence : Behold, I will gather them out of all the countries, whither I have driven them ; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely : and they shall be my people, and I will be their God : and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them. And I will make an ever- lasting covenant with them, that I vtdll not turn away from them, to do them good ; and I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I vrill plant them in this land. Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them. And fields shall be bought in this land, whereof ye say. It is desolate, without man or beast ; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans. Men shall buy fields for money, and subscribe the deeds, and seal them, and take witnesses, in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities of the hill country, and in the cities of the lowland, and in the cities of the South : for I will bring their captives home, saith the Lord. Moreover the word of God came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was still shut up in the court of *the guard, saying. Thus saith the Lord, I vnll cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first. And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me. And this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, who shall hear all the good that I do unto it, and shall fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I procure unto it. Thus saith the Lord : Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say is desolate, without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the 438 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that say. Give thanks unto the Lord of hosts, for the Lord is good, his mercy endureth for ever. For I will cause the captivity of the land to return as at the first, saith the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts : Again in this place, vrhich is desolate, without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, and in the cities of the South, and in the land of Benjamin^ and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that counteth them, saith the Lord. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and unto the house of Judah. In those days, and at that time, will I cause a Shoot of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgement and righteous- ness in the land. In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely : and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The Lord is our righteousness, § 27. The Book of Jeremiah tells us eometbing of the fate of Jeremiah himself after the fall of Jerusalem, And it came to pass, when Jerusalem was taken, that all the nobles of the king of Babylon came and sat in the middle gate, even Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim the Rab- saris (the lord chamberlain) and Nergal-sharezier the Rab-mag fthe chief magian), with all the residue of the nobles, ^nd they sent and took Jeremiah out of the court of the guard, and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, that he should bring him unto his house. So he dwelt among the people. This happened presumably after the capture, but before the destruction, of the city. Afterwards, however, Jeremiah was taken with a body of other prisoners as far as Eamah, but there he was released through the goodwill of Nebuzaradan (to whom naturally he must have seemed a true friend of the Babylonians) or through the intervention of Gedaliah. And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, The Lord thy God pronounced this evil upon this place. Now the Lord hath brought it, and done according JEREMIAH S CHOICE 439 as he hath said : because ye have sinned against the Lord^ and have not obeyed his voice^ therefore this thing is come upon you. And now^ behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which are upon thine hand. If it seem good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come, and I will look well unto thee ; but if it seem ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, then go unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon hath made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people : or go wheresoever it seemeth convenient unto thee to go. So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a present, and let him go. Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah, and dwelt with him among the people that were left in the land. Thus Jeremiah (who might doubtless have enjoyed a quiet and outwardly comfortable existence at the court of Nebuchadrezzar) refused to desert his country or the poor remnant of its inhabi- tants. He would see the tragedy out to its closing scene, even the sordid epilogue he would not miss. Voluntarily he would drain the cup of misfortune to its last bitter dregs. We have already heard from the compiler of the Books of Kings about Gedaliah and Ishmael, and how the Jews, for fear of Baby- lonian anger at Gedaliah's murder, took refuge in Egypt. Of these events and of the prophet's share in them we hear in the Book of Jeremiah in greater detail. Now when all the captains of the forces which were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and had committed unto him men, and women, and children, and of the poor of the land, of them that were not carried away captive to Babylon; then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite^ and Jezaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men. And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan sware unto them and to their men, saying, Fear not to serve the Chaldeans : dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you. As for me, behold, I will dwell at Mizpah, to represent you before the Chaldeans, who may come unto us : but ye, gather ye wine and summer fruits and oil, and put them in 440 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING your vessels^ and dwell in your cities that ye have taken possession of. Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab, and among the children of Ammon, and in Edom^ and that were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan; then all the Jews returned out of all places whither they were driven, and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah, unto Mizpah, and gathered wine and summer fruits very much. But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, and said unto him. Dost thou know that Baalis the king of the children of Ammon hath sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to slay thee ? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed them not. Then Johanan the son of Kareah spake to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying, Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it : wherefore should he take thy life, that all the Jews who are gathered unto thee should be scattered, and the remnant of Judah perish ? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah, Thou shalt not do this thing : for thou speakest falsely of Ishmael. Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah ; and there they did eat bread together. Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah with the sword, and all the Jews that were with him at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there. And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it, that there came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the Lord. And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he went : and it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them. Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that he slew them^ and cast them into the midst of the pit. THE MURDER OF GEDALIAH 441 But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael, Slay us not: for we have treasures in the field, of wheatj and of barley, and of oil, and of honey. So he forbare, and slew them not among their brethren. Now the pit wherein Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had slain was the great pit which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel ; even this pit Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled with them that were slain. Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king's daughters, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam : Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the Ammonites. But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon. Now it came to pass that when all the people which were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, then they were glad. So all the people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned, and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah. But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites, Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, all the remnant of the people whom Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had carried away from Mizpah, after that he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, even the men, and the women, and the children, whom he had brought again from Gibeon : and they departed, and stayed for a time in Geruth Chimham, which is by Beth- lehem, to go to enter into Egypt, because of the Chaldeans : for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor over the land. Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near, and said unto Jeremiah the prophet. Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto 442 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the Lord thy God^ even for all this remnant ; for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us : that the Lord thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we should do. Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard you : behold, I will pray unto the Lord your God according to your words ; and it shall come to pass that whatsoever thing the Lord shall answer you, I will declare it unto you ; I will keep nothing back from you. Then they said to Jeremiah, The Lord be a true and faithful witness against us, if we do not even according to all the direction wherewith the Lord thy God shall send thee to us. Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the Lord our God. And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah. Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces which were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest, and said unto them. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, before whom ye bade me to make supplication : If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up. Be not afraid of the king of Babylon; be not afraid of him, saith the Lord : for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand. And I will shew you mercy, that he may have mercy upon you, and let you dwell in your own land. But if ye say. We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the Lord your God; saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we dwell: now therefore hear ye the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah ; thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there; then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye fear, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye are afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt ; and there ye shall die. And it came to pass that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto the people all these words, then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, THE JEWS IN EGYPT 443 and all the proud men unto Jeremiah^ Thou speakest falsely : the Lord our God hath not sent thee to say. Go not into Egypt to sojourn there : but Bainich the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chal- deans, that they may put us to death, and carry us away captives to Babylon, So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, obeyed not the voice of the Lord, to dwell in the land of Judah. But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the renmant of Judah, that were returned from all the nations whither they had been driven to sojourn in the land of Judah ; even men, and women, and children, and the king's daughters, and every person that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah ; and they came into the land of Egypt ; for they obeyed not the voice of the Lord. Thus came they even to Tahpanhes. Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying. Take great stones in thine hand, and hide them in mortar at the entry of the palace of Pharaoh in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah; and say unto them. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid ; and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them. And when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt; such as are for death to death, and such as are for captivity to captivity, and such as are for the sword to the sword. And I will Idndle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captives : and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd putteth on his garment ; and he shall go forth from thence in peace. He shall also break the pillars of Beth-shemesh, that is in the land of Egypt ; and the houses of the gods of the Egyptians shall he burn with fire. The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who dwelt in the land of Egypt, at Migdol, and at Tahpanhes, and at Noph, and in the country of Pathros, saying. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel ; Ye have seen all 444 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, and upon all the cities of Judah ; and, behold, this day they are a desola- tion, and no man dwelleth therein ; because of their wicked- ness which they have committed to provoke nie to anger, in that they went to burn incense to other gods, whom they knew not. Howbeit I constantly sent unto you all my servants the prophets, saying. Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear to turn from their wickedness, to burn no incense unto other gods. Where- fore mine anger was poured forth, and was kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; and they are wasted and desolate, as at this day. Therefore now thus saith the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel : Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your own souls, to cut off from you man and woman, child and suckling, out of the midst of Judah, to leave you none to remain; in that ye provoke me with the works of your hands, burning incense unto other gods in the land of Egypt, whither ye be gone to dwell ; that ye may be cut off, and that ye may be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth ? Have ye forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, and the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of their princes, which they committed in the land of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem ? They did not humble themselves even unto this day, neither did they fear, nor walk in my law, nor in my statutes, that I set before them and before their fathers. Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Behold, I will set my face against you for evil, to cut off the remnant of Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and they shall all be consumed. Then all the men who knew that their wives burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great assembly, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying. As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do the entire word which hath gone forth out of our mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem : for then had we plenty of victuals, and LAST WORDS OF JEREMIAH 445 were well, and saw no evil. But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offer- ings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine. And the women said. When we burn incense to the queen of heaven, and pour out drink offerings unto her, do we make her cakes to worship her, and pour our drink offerings unto her, without our husbands ? Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, even to all the people who had given him that answer, saying. The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye and your fathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the Lord remember them, and came it not into his mind ? so that the Lord could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land become a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without inhabitant, as at this day. Because ye have burned incense, and because ye have sinned against the Lord, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies ; therefore this evil is happened unto you, as it is this day. Moreover Jeremiah said unto all the people, and to all the women. Hear the word of the Lord, all Judah that are in the land of Egypt: thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and fulfilled with your hand, saying. We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her : accomplish, then, your vows. But behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying. As the Lord God liveth. Behold, I watch over them for evil, and not for good : and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be con- sumed by the sword and by the famine, until there be an end of them. Only a small number that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah ; and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose word shall stand, 446 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And this shall be the sign unto you, saith the Lord, that I will punish you in this place, that ye may know that my words shall surely stand against you for evil : thus saith the Lord : Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of them that seek his life ; as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, his enemy, and that sought his life. This is the last prophecy of Jeremiah which has been preserved to us, and it is the last event which we know of in his life. So the curtain falls upon him : lonely, despised, misunderstood, dis- obeyed. His land desolate, his people exiles : the future doubtful and dark. It is a sombre end to a sombre life. Yet he never falters in his fundamental belief : God is righteous. But when we read the report of his last recorded words, do we not have a feeling that this sorely tried prophet, in the heat of his zeal for the pure worship of God,' has sometimes spoken as an angry man (however justifiable the anger) rather than as the messenger of Divine Justice and Divine Love? The violence of his language seems more human than godhke. When we read the words of the Psalmist, ' If thou. Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, Lord, who shall stand 1 With God there is mercy and redemption. For he knoweth our frame : he remembereth that we are dust,' does there not seem some contradiction between words like these and the relentless violence of Jeremiah's 1 Which are truer to the divine nature 1 May we not, must we not, believe that no wickedness can make a man an everlasting outcast before God 1 Shall not all find mercy, if not in this life, then in another 1 Whether the threats uttered by Jeremiah against the Jewish refugees in Egypt were soon fulfilled we do not know. We hear of them no more. They play no further part in the history of their people or of their religion. Yet whatever their fate, we cannot believe that they were permanent enemies of God — for God has no enemies in our sense of the word — or that, even as he did not punish without pitying, their punishment did not conduce to their own good, after death if not before it. Even Jeremiah had not learnt that the idea of vengeance — mere tit for tat — is out of place as applied to God. Who would think of beating a dog except to benefit the dog ? So only can we think of divine punishment upon man : it is and can only be purely disciplinal. It makes for repentance and goodness, or it does not exist at all. The prophecy against Hophra was not, so far as we can ascertain, literally fulfilled. The sign failed. For Nebuchadrezzar did not TRUTH AND ERROR 447 invade and ravage Egypt till after Hophra's death. But the value of Jeremiah's message does not lie in any attempted foretelling of the future. It lies in whatever true words he uttered about goodness and God. Sometimes we may be inclined to ask, why should there be any error or imperfection at all in the words of great religious teachers ? Would it not have been better that they were wholly true and good 1 We may, however, rightly remember that the great teacher remains a man ; and no man is errorless or perfect. Again, the search for truth and the upward striving towards the better are among the highest qualities of man. If any one teacher, or set of teachers, could reveal to man the absolute and complete truth once for all, no further search or striving would be either needful or possible. Human life in one direction would come to a standstill, and standstill and stagnation are closely allied. Lastly, the elements of good are not themselves less good and true because they are mingled with error. The gold is gold in spite of the alloy which surrounds it. Truth and goodness are God's creations, and he who created them is himself the living ideal of Goodness and Truth, § 28, Before finally parting with Jeremiah let us hear a famous chapter from his book, which may or may not be from his pen, about the future restoration of the exiles both of the Northern and of the Southern kingdom, Tt contains passages of great interest and importance. At that timcj saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel^ and they shall be my people. Thus saith the Lord, The people who have escaped the sword shall find grace in the wilderness ; Israel cometh to his rest, I have loved thee with an everlasting love : therefore I draw thee to me with lovingkindness. Again will I build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel : again shalt thou be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry. Again shalt thou plant vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria : the planters shall plant, and shall enjoy the fruit thereof. For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mountains of Ephraim shall cry. Arise ye^ and let us go up to Zion unto the Lord our God. For thus saith the Lord, Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout for the chief of the nations ; publish ye, praise ye, and say, God hath saved his people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the furthest parts of the earth : a great company shall 448 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING return hither. They shall come with weeping, and with suppli- cations will I lead them : I will cause them to walk by rivers of waters^ in a straight way wherein they shall not stumble : for I am a father to Israel^ and Ephraim is my fii-stborn. Hear the word of the Lord^ O ye nations^ and declare it in the isles afar off ; and say^ He that scattered Israel will gather him^ and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he. Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of-Zion, and their soul shall be as a watered garden ; and they shall not sorrow any more at all. Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, and j'^oung men and old together : for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow. And my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord, Thus saith the Lord : A voice is heard in Ramah, lamen- tation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children ; she refuseth to be comforted for h^r children, because they are not. Thus saith the Lord : Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears : for they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope for thy time to come, saith the Lord; and thy children shall come again to their own border, I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus. Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a calf unaccustomed to the yoke : turn thou me, and I shall be turned ; for thou art the Lord my God. Surely after that I turned away from thee, I re- pented ; and after that I found understanding, I smote upon my thigh: I am ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I bear the reproach of my youth. Is Ephraim my dear son ? is he a pleasant child ? for as often as I threaten him, I must earnestly remember him still : therefore my pity is moved for him ; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the Lord, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Yet again shall they use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity : The Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness. And there shall dwell therein Judah and all the cities thereof together; the husbandman, and they that go forth with flocks. For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul. A NEW COVENANT 449 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast. And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict ; so will I watch over them to build and to plant, saith the Lord. In those days they shall say no more. The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge. But every one shall die for his own iniquity : every man that eateth sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah : not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, and I rejected them, saith the Lord. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord ; I will put my law in their in- ward parts, and write it in their hearts ; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people : and they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying. Know the Lord : for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord : for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more. Thus saith the Lord, who giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, who stii'reth up the sea, that the waves thereof roar : the Lord of hosts is his name : If those ordi- nances depart from before me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever. Thus saith the Lord : If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord. * God will have pity upon Israel.' This is Jeremiah's unalterable conviction. If so, the deduction was obvious. There would be a return from captivity. Israel would come again into his own land : both Samaria and Jerusalem would be rebuilt and flourish anew. So if the Danes were conquered by the Russians and carried away as exiles to Siberia, the highest good which they could conceive, and the greatest proof of divine forgiveness, would be 45t> THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING restoration to Denmark : independence and prosperity in their own land. To-day our hopes and thoughts are different. We also know that the kingdom of Israel and its inhabitants have disappeared for ever. Our notion of God's forgiveness and favour is no longer quite the same as Jeremiah's. Our notion of God's favour is that the peculiar work and mission of Judaism shall be accomplished in the world. This indeed implies that those of our brotherhood who are suffering under persecution and distress shall suffer no longer, but it does not imply restoration to Palestine. For the Jews are something other and higher than a nation. They are a religious brotherhood, who hold together and remain apart not for political and national, but for religious and spiritual ends. And we think of the Jews less in relation to themselves than in relation to the world. Our highest idea of prosperity for an individual is not merely that he should himself be happy, but that he should make others happy to the full limits of his own powers. And when we say happy we do not mean merely happy in the lower sense of the word, but we mean wise and good and religious. And so our highest idea of prosperity for the Jews is not merely that they should themselves be ' happy,' but that they should help towards and witness the gradual fulfilling of the ancient hope : ' in thee all families of the earth shall he blessed.' The only true business and function of the Jew are with goodness and God. Now let us notice a few particular traits in the general picture. 'Turn thou me and I shall be turned.' Famous words. "We have had the thought before. And Jeremiah had prayed : ' Heal me, Lord, and I shall be healed ; save me, and I shall be saved : for thou art my praise.' God brings us back to him if we seek to return. Repentance is neither purely human nor purely divine. It is both in one. *The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge.' A strange proverb. But I will not speak about it here, for we shall meet it again, and then I shall have several things to say of it, * I will make a new covenant.' A very famous passage. Many people think it means much more than, or something very different from, that which it really does mean. The contents of the old and the new covenants are just the same. Both say : "Worship, fear, and love God; purely, simply, faithfully. Both say: Be just, compassionate, humble. Be holy, for God is holy. Both say; As regards thy fellow man, help, forgive, love. But the old covenant was external : that is to say, God said, Do this and do that, and God's bidding was written down and became a law. LAW AND LOVE 451 Israel broke this covenant, for it did not obey this law. The new covenant is inward : that is to say, the divine commandments shall fit in with and correspond to man's new and regenerate nature. He shall not need to be taught : for what he ought to do, he will wish to do. As he should be, so he will be. The written and external law will be absorbed. It will be wholly his. It will become part and parcel of his very self, bone of his bone, spirit of his spirit. There will be no difference between ' is * and ' ought,' for * ought ' will be graven upon the very heart of man. The seat and source of all action, the heart (and where we in English say the will, the mind, the disposition, the character, the Hebrew could only say the heart) shall become pure and good and loving. The heart shall know God and love God and yearn to do his bidding. If, then, there be this good will, all compulsion, all command, become needless. Or rather what was command is now desire. "What was duty is now transfigured into love. Of course all this is an ideal, but it is an ideal which may and can influence our lives, and towards which we should constantly strive. We must seek to obey God's law, in other words we must seek to be good. If we cannot obey it without a struggle, then we must obey it with a struggle. But the highest and best thing is to want to obey it, so to love God that obedience becomes our wish and will. When the heart is set towards goodness and God, what need of words like ' thou shalt ' or ' thou shalt not ' 1 We should then need compulsion to do wrong, not compulsion to do right ! Thus, the new covenant is not different from the old as regards its contents. And perhaps no one can draw near to the gates of the new covenant who has not served his apprenticeship in the old. Most of us must be content if we are partly and sometimes in the old covenant and partly and sometimes in the new. For none of us can hope to live always without error and without sin. And yet, if we all * knew the Lord ' in Jeremiah's sense, sin and error would be impossible. Still we can strive : and the more we strive and the more we love — love God and love goodness — the nearer shall we come to the ideal in which duty and desire are always one, and law and love are merged into a fair and flawless unity. § 29. Jerusalem wa^ taken on the ninth day of the fourth month. That is the month called in Hebrew ^6, and corresponding roughly with our July. The siege had lasted one year, &vq months, and twenty-seven days. Great must have been its horrors : * the famine was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land.' These short words of the historian imply more than they say. What they imply is partly revealed to us in the five Gga 452 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING songs of sorrow, called the Lanientations,written to commemorate the siege and sack of Jerusalem and the fall of the monarchy. Where and "when they were written and by whom are all unknown. It used to be supposed that they were the work of Jeremiah, but this is erroneous. As examples of what is called elegiac poetry, and as examples of deep and natural grief for national disaster, they take high rank, and therefore I cannot refrain from quoting portions of them here. Then we shall have to follow the fortunes of the Jewish exiles in Eabylonia, How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people ! How is she become as a widow, that was great among the nations ! The princess among the provinces is become tributary ! She weepeth sore in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks ; Among all her lovers she hath none to comfort her : All her friends have dealt treacherously with her. They are become her enemies. Judah is gone into exile because of affliction, and because of great servitude ; She dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest : All her persecutors overtook her in the midst of her straits. The ways to Zion do mourn, because none come to the festal assembly ; All her gates are desolate, her priests sigh : Her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness. Her adversaries are become the head, her enemies prosper ; For the Lord hath afflicted her for the multitude of her transgi'essions : Her children are gone into captivity before the adversary. And from the daughter of Zion all her splendour is departed : Her princes are become like harts that find no pasture. And they are gone without strength before the pursuer. Jerusalem remembereth the days of her affliction and of her miseries. When her people fell into the hand of the enemy, and none did help her. The adversaries saw her, they did mock at her bereave- ments. THE LAMENTATIONS 453 Jerusalem hath grievously sinned; she is become an impurity : AH that honoured her despise her, because they have seen her ruin : Yea, she sigheth, and tumeth away. The adversary stretched out his hand towards all her treasures. Yea, she hath seen the heathen enter into her sanctuary. All her people sigh, they seek bread ; They have given their treasures to possess their lives. All ye that pass by. Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me. Wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of his anger. For these things I weep; mine eye runneth down with tears ; Because the comforter that should revive my soul is far from me : My children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed. • Zion spreadeth forth her hands ; there is none to comfort her. The Lord is righteous; for I have rebelled against his commandment : Hear, I pray you, all ye peoples, and behold my sorrow : My virgins and my young men are gone into captivity. I called for my lovers, but they deceived me : My priests and mine elders died from hunger. While they sought them food but found it not. Behold, O Lord, my distress ; my soul is troubled ; Mine heart is turned within me; for I have grievously rebelled : Abroad the sword bereaveth, at home there is pestilence. They have heard my sighing; there is none to comfort me; All mine enemies have heard of my trouble ; they are glad that thou hast done it. How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud ! He hath cast down from heaven unto the earth the beautv of Israel. 454 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The Lord hath destroyed all the habitations of Jacobs and hath not pitied ; He hath thrown down in his wrath the strong holds of the daughter of Judah ; He hath brought them down to the ground : He hath polluted the kingdom and the princes thereof. The Lord is become as an enemy, he hath swallowed up Israel ; He hath swallowed up all his palaces^ he hath destroyed his strong holds : And hath increased in the daughter of Judah mourning and lamentation. The Lord hath caused festival and sabbath to be forgotten in Zion, And hath despised in his indignation the king and the priest. The Lord hath cast off his altar, he hath abhorred his sanctuary. He hath given it up into the hand of the enemy. They have made a noise in the house of the Lord, as in the day of a festival. The Lord hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion ; He hath stretched out the line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying : He made the rampart and wall to lament ; they languish together. Her gates are sunk into the ground ; he hath destroyed and broken her bars : Her king and her princes are among the nations ; There is no teaching ; her prophets find no vision from the Lord. The elders of the daughter of Zion sit upon the ground^ and keep silence ; They have cast up dust upon their heads ; they have girded themselves with sackcloth : The virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground. Mine eyes do fail with tears^ my heart is troubled. My soul is wasted within me, for the destruction of the daughter of my people j THE AGONY OF JERUSALEM 455 Because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city. They say to their mothers^ Where is corn and wine ? When they swoon as the wounded in the streets of the city, When they breathe out their lives into their mothers' bosom. To what shall I compare thee ? what shall I liken to thee^ O daughter of Jerusalem ? What shall I equal to thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion ? For thy breach is great like the sea : who can heal thee ? Thy prophets saw vain and foolish visions for thee. And they did not discover thine iniquity, to prevent thine exile ; But have seen for thee oracles of vanity and banishment. All that pass by clap their hands at thee ; They hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem. Is this the perfection of beauty. The joy of the whole earth ? All thine enemies have opened their mouth against thee ; They hiss and gnash the teeth; they say. We have swallowed her up; Certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it. The Lord hath done that which he devised ; He hath fulfilled his word that he enjoined in the days of old ; He hath thrown down, and hath not pitied : And he hath caused the enemy to rejoice over thee. He hath set up the horn of thine adversaries. Cry aloud unto the Lord, O virgin daughter of Sion, let thy tears run down like a river day and night ; Give thyself no rest ; let not the apple of thine eye cease. Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches ; Pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord : Lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children. Young and old lie on the ground in the streets ; My virgins and my young men are fallen by the sword : Thou hast slain them in the day of thine anger ; thou hast killed, and not pitied. Thou hast called, as in the day of a festival, them that frighten me from every side. 456 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING So that in the day of the Lord^s anger none escaped nor remained : Those that I have swaddled and brought up hath mine enemy consumed. How hath the gold become dim ! how was the most fine gold changed ! The stones of the sanctuary were thrown about at the corners of every street. The pi'ecious sons of Zion^ comparable to fine gold^ How were they esteemed as earthen pitchers^ the work of the hands of the potter ! The tongue of the sucking child clave to the roof of his mouth for thirst ; The young children asked for bread^ and no man brake it unto them. They that did feed delicately perished in the streets : They that were brought up in scarlet embraced dunghills. Her nobles were purer than snow^ they were whiter than milkj They were more ruddy in body than corals, their hair shone like sapphires. But now their visage is blacker than a coal ; they are not known in the streets : Their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered^ it is become like a stick. Happier they that were slain with the sword than they that were slain with hunger ; For these pined away, wasted like the fruits of the field. The hands of women have sodden their own children ; They were their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people. The Lord hath poured out his anger i And he hath kindled a fire in Zion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof. The kings of the earth and all the inhabitants of the world believed not That the adversary and the enemy would enter into the gates of Jerusalem. It is because of the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests. That have shed the blood of the just in the midst of her. FAMINE AND SLAUGHTER 457 Men cried unto them, Depart ye, unclean ! depart, depart, touch not : They can find no rest, they shall no more sojourn here. Our eyes failed in looking vainly for help : In our watching we watched for a nation that could not save. They hunted our steps, that we could not go in our streets : Our end drew near, our days were fulfilled. Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heaven : They pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness. The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the Lord, was taken in their pits ; Of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the nations. Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us : Consider, and behold our reproach. Our inheritance is given unto strangers. Our houses unto aliens. We are orphans and fatherless. Our mothers are as widows. We have drunken our water for money ; Our wood is sold unto us. Our pursuers are upon our necks, we are pursued j We labour, and have no rest. Our fathers have sinned, and are not ; And we have borne their iniquities. Servants rule over us : There is none that can deliver us out of their hand. We get our bread with the peril of our lives Because of the sword of the wilderness. Our skin is black like an oven Because of the burning heat of famine. Princes were hanged up by their hand : The faces of elders were not honoured. The young men must bear the mill. And the children stumbled under the wood. The elders have ceased from the gate. The young men from their music. The joy of oui* heart is ceased ; 458 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Our dance is turned into mourning. The crown is fallen from our head: Woe unto us ! that we have sinned. For this our heart is faint ; For these things our eyes are dim ; For the mountain of Zion^ which is desolate ; The foxes walk upon it. ThoUj O Lord^ remainest for ever ; Thy throne is from generation to generation. Wherefore dost thou forget us for ever^ And forsake us so long time ? Turn thou us unto thee^ O Lord, and we shall be turned ; Renew our days as of old. I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me and brought me into darkness and gloom. Surely against me he turneth his hand all the day. My flesh and my skin hath he worn out ; he hath broken my bones. He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and wormwood. He hedged me about, that I cannot get out ; he made my chain heavy. Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer. He inclosed my ways with hewn stone, he made my paths crooked. He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, as a lion in secret places. He turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces; he hath made me desolate. He bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow. He hath caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins, I am become a derision to all peoples ; and their song all the day. He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood. He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes. Thou hast robbed my soul of peace ; I forgat prosperity. HOPE AND PRAY 459 And I said. My strength and my hope are perished from the Lord. Remember mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope : The Lord^s mercies cease not, his compassions fail not. They are new every morning ; great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul 5 therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good imto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord. It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone and keep silence, because God hath laid it upon him. Let him put his mouth in the dust ; perchance there may yet be hope. Let him give his cheek to him that smiteth him ; let him be filled full with reproach. For the Lord will not cast ofE for even For though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men. To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth. To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the Most High, To subvert a man in his cause, the Lord approveth not. Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, unless the Lord commandeth it ? Out of the mouth of the Most High proceedeth not evil and good ? Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins ? Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the Lord, Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens. These songs of sorrow are very human both in their weakness and in their strength. They should not be regarded as purely 46o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING religious poetry. They are patriotic poetry, penetrated more or less thoroughly with religious sentiment. Some parts of them we cannot now wholly agree with, but in the comfort and happiness of our English or American homes we are not good judges of their writers' case. If we had seen London or New York besieged, cap- tured and given to the flames, had seen men and women and children slain by the sword and * slain ' by famine, and others sold as slaves or led away into captivity, we should be able better to appreciate the feelings of those who wrote the Lamentations. But the wild longings for vengeance (many of which I have omitted), and the inability to see that God can have any relation to other nations except to use them as instruments of his anger against Israel, and then to punish them for the very deeds which he had arranged for them to do — ^these things are hard for us to understand. For though we realize that a longing for vengeance was very natural, it hurts us when we find it mixed up with God and given the sanctity of religion. And it hurts us still more to think that God should be regarded as the God of the Jews and not equally as the God of the * heathen.' We are convinced that he is not one kind of God to the Jew and another kind of God to the Gentile, but one and the same God to all. He is no more the God of the one (though the one may know more of him) than he is the God of the other. And we are also hurt by the constant allusions to the divine anger. We feel that God is passionless. Much suffering has nothing to do with sin, and we cannot explain it. We can say that suffering has brought out the noblest qualities of man more than any other factor in life, but even this explanation leaves many sorts of suffering quite unexplained. But if there be some suffering which has a close relation (as of result to cause) with sin, that relation can only be educational. If any suffering is a punishment, that punishment is never vindictive or retributory. It is quite impossible to apply the principle of retribution (i. e. tit for tat) to God. Not only the souls of the righteous are in the hands of God, but the souls of the wicked also. Goodness (and God is goodness) can never be vindictive. It can but desire the welfare of all men, and it can make no difference in this respect between Jew and Gentile, sinner and saint. God's aim can only be the ultimate good of those whom he has brought into being. The author of the last bit of the Lamentations which I have quoted is feeling his way towards these beliefs. He has laid down the great and true doctrine : God does not afflict willingly, though he did not x'ealize that before a great mass of human suffering one can but bow one's head in mute resignation without any hope or attempt to understand it. It is much better to do that than to RELIGION AND COUNTRY 461 assume tliat the cause of all suffering is sin. But the poet saw clearly that if there be any correspondence between iniquity and suffering, the suffering is educational. ' It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Let him keep silence, for God has laid it upon him,' Let him not murmur at his trial, though it be very sore : but rather let him endure it bravely and patiently. Let it lead him to * search and try his ways, and turn again to the Lord/ These teachings are still true and helpful for us all ; and helpful and true they must, I should imagine, continue to remain from age to age. § 30. It is perhaps well at this point to pause for a moment and think of the long journey we have made. From Hoses to Jeremiah, what a number of generations ! Full 700 years lie between them. As long as from Richard I to the present day. What changes these 700 years witnessed in the Hebrew race and in the Hebrew religion! "We start with sundry shepherd tribes in Egypt, then comes the settlement in Palestine, then the strange and dark period of the so- called judges, then the establishment of the monarchy with its brief early days of success and splendour, then the division of the king- doms, then the gradual downfall of the North and of the South. And the religion. Here, too, we have change and development. First, the great figure of Moses, to whom later ages ascribe so much ; then the long blank after his death, partly advance and partly retrogression ; then the gradual move forward with Samuel and the early kings, till we come at last to Elijah and to the great prophets of the written Scripture, to Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. But even at the close of this long chain of persons and events, the religion of the Jews is still the religion of a single people living in their own land, and to many the downfall of the sta,te must have seemed to betoken the downfall of the religion. As it had happened to Samaria, so would it happen to Jerusalem. But the contrary took place. The religion became in many respects purer and freer when separated from the national soil. Some of the passages which we treasure most dearly in the Bible were written in a foreign land, and one of the greatest of its teachers was bred there. Judaism could never have become what it now is without the exile of Babylon. You will realize this the better when you study the Bible and books about the Bible for yourselves. But you can easily perceive that it was a very im- portant thing for Jews to understand that they could love God and pray to Him, ' and do justice and love mercy and walk humbly,' as well in exile as in Judaea, and that God had no more regard for or connexion with one bit of the earth's inhabited surface than 462 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING with another. The exile helped to make these truths gradually filter into their minds. It also helped to prepare the way for the final abolition of all sacrifices. There could be no sacrifices by Jews in Babylonia, for it was not considered right to sacrifice to God except on Israelite soil, while according to the Law of the Retrospect all sacrifices were illegal outside the temple at Jerusalem. So men had to learn perforce that prayer might be a substitute for sacrifice, and it gradually became understood that the substitute was better than the original. Moreover, the exile paved the way for another idea of equal im- portance. Hitherto, as we know, the Jewish religion was limited to the Jewish race. Though this unfortunately is still largely the case, many of us hope that it may not always be so, and, at any rate, the limitation no longer depends upon any fancied superiority of ourselves to the rest of the world. On the contrary, we are so convinced that there are many religious roads which lead to God that we are not perhaps sufficiently anxious to point out the road which seems to us the safest, the shortest, and the best. Kow ifc was during the exile of Babylon that the idea arose among the Jews that their religion in its essentials ought to be, and would in time become, the universal religion of mankind. A few thought that the Jews should teach religion, and should try to diffuse that higher knowledge of God which they believed themselves to possess. These ideas of a chosen few had no great success at first, and were for many years almost utterly ignored, but during one long and important period they became very prevalent, and they have never wholly died out. Even now they may have a great future before them. THE EXILES IN BABYLONIA 463 CHAPTEE XVI THE JEWISH EXILES IN BABYLONIA AND THE PROPHET EZEKIEL § I. The capture of Jerusalem took place in the year 586 e.g., and many thousands of fresh exiles were sent to join their brethren in race and creed in Babylonia. For you will remember that the first great deportation had occurred eleven years previously, in 597, when 'the chief men of the land and all the men of might' had been ^carried into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.' Where the exiles lived is not precisely known, but it was prohably in the province of which the city of Babylon was the capital and centre. If we do not know the * where,' we are equally in the dark as to the *how.' It has been supposed, from the very slight evidence which we possess, that their conditions of life were fairly peaceful and prosperous. The letter of Jeremiah, which has already been quoted, shows that they might own houses and gardens. They lived in large groups and colonies, and were probably allowed within certain limits to manage their own affairs. Even as at home, thei'e were among them rich and poor, high born and low born; and there were 'judges and elders' in Babylonia, even as there had been in Palestine. On the other hand, there is a likelihood that there were many individual cases of hardship and ill usage. For the early days of the exile we have a great literary monu- ment in the Book of the prophet Ezekiel. Ezekiel was a young man at the time of the first deportation, and he was one of its victims. He was a priest, and he may already have been old enough to have passed some years of priestly service in the temple of Jerusalem before 597. He was devoted to his office. Pure of heart and passionately attached to God and to his worship, he lived and moved in the ideas and habits of his order. But in the exile there was no opportunity for the discharge of his priestly functions, so far as public worship was concerned. And yet the priest of old times had been as much a teacher as a bringer of sacrifices. To that side of the priestly office Ezekiel returned, replacing his interrupted work at the altar by work of a higher and a nobler kind, independent of temple and land. He did not cease to be 464 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING a priest, but lie became a prophet as well. In the fifth year of the exile, six years before the capture of Jerusalem, 'the word of the Lord came unto him, and the hand of the Lord was upon him/ Ezekiel is a very difficult writer, and there are very few passages of his book which I can here transcribe. A large part of it is taken up by prophecies of the fall of Jerusalem. The desolation of Judaea and the ruin of the monarchy were, as he believed, the necessary forerunners of repentance and restoration. His own fellow-exiles would not turn with all their hearts to God till every hope from their own country had been utterly cut off. Ezekiel, as well as Jeremiah, met with contumely and unbelief from the people to whom he was sent. But whether they heard him or forbore, his mission must be fulfilled. This is how he conceived it. His book opens with a strange vision. Now it came to pass in the thiiiieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the river Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin^s captivity, the word of the Lord came unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar ; and the hand of the Lord was there upon him. And I looked, and, behold, a whuiwind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with a fire flashing continually, and a brightness round about the cloud, and out of the midst of the fire there was shining as of bronze. And out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the shape of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings. And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf s foot : and they sparkled like burnished brass. And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides : and as for their faces and their wings, their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went ; they went every one straight foiTvard. As for the likeness of their faces, in front was the face of a man ; and on the right side the face of a lion ; and on the left side the face of an ox; and behind was the face of an eagle. And their wings were spread out above; two wings of every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies. And they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit urged them to go, they went; E2ekiel's vision 465 they turned not when they went. And in the midst of the living creatures^ there was an appearance as of burning coals of fire; it was as if torches moved up and down among the living creatures : and the fire was bright^ and out of the fire went forth lightning. Now I beheld a wheel upon the earth beside each of the living creatures. The appearance of the wheels was like unto the colour of a beryl : and they four had one likeness : and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel within a wheel. They went towards their four sides : they turned not when they went. As for their felloes^ they were high and dreadful^ and were full of eyes round about. And when the living creatures went^ the wheels went beside them : and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. Whither- soever the spirit urged the creatures to go, they too went : and the wheels were lifted up even as they; for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels. When those went, these went ; and when those stood, these stood ; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up also : for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels. And over the head of the living creature there was a form as of a firmament, like the colour of crystal, stretched forth over their heads above. And under the firmament were their wings stretched out, the one toward the other : every one had two which covered their bodies. And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings like the noise of great waters : when they stood, their wings hung down. And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone : there was a form like a throne, and on the throne was a form as the appearance of a man. And I saw as the shining of bronze from that which looked like his loins upward ; and from the appearance of his loins downward I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness round about him. As the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the brightness round about. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake. And he said unto me. Son of man, stand upon thy feet^ H h 466 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and I will speak with thee. . And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet^ that I heard him that spake unto me. And he said unto me. Son of man, I send thee to the house of Israel, to the rebellious ones who have rebelled against me : they and their fathers, even unto this very day. And thou shalt say unto them. Thus saith the Lord God. And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a re- bellious house,) yet shall know that there is a prophet among them. And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions : be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear : for they are most rebellious. But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house : open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. And when I looked, behold, an hand was stretched out towards me ; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein ; and he spread it before me ; and it was written within and without : and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe. And he said unto me. Son of man, eat this roll, and go, speak unto the house of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the roll to eat. Then did I eat it ; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. And he said unto me. Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them. For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech, but to the house of Israel ; not to many peoples, whose words thou canst not understand. But I have sent thee unto these: they can hearken unto thee. Nevertheless the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee ; for they will not hearken unto me : for all the house of Israel are stifE of forehead and hard of heart. Behold, I have made thy face hard against their faces, and thy forehead hard against their foreheads. As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead : fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. Moreover he said unto me. Son of man, all my words that I speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears. And A watchman's office 467 go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them. Thus saith the Lord God ; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear. Then the spirit took me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great quaking, when the glory of the Lord was lifted up from its place. And I heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, even the noise of a great quaking. So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away: and I went in sorrow, in the excitement of my spirit, and the hand of the Lord was strong upon me. Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, by the river Chebar ; and I sat there astonied among them seven days. And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel ; therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. When I say unto the wtcked. Thou shalt surely die ; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die through his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die through his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die through his sin, and his righteous deeds which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand. But if thou warn the righteous man, that he sin not, but he sinneth nevertheless, he shall surely die because of his sin ; but thou hast delivered thy soul. Ezekiel's conception of God's relation to man is not quite the same as ours to-day. He believed far more than we do in special judgements and great crises, as well as in sudden revolutions from good to had and from bad to good. We hold that a man is not to-day wholly a sinner and to-morrow wholly a saint, and still less is he to-day a saint and to-morrow a sinner. Ezekiel believed that there was soon to come a new and wonderful age, in which all the troubles and sins of his people would be suddenly and utterly removed. To-day we do not so much hope for sudden 468 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING upheavals and revolutions as for gradual improvement and en- lightenment. Ezekiel believed that after the fall of Jerusalem there would ensue a further 'judgement' still, hut that this * judgement' would be a final one, and after it would come the advent of the golden age. As men's moral condition might be at the coming of that judgement, so would be their future. The good would live through the judgement and enter into the promised glory : the bad must die. Hence Ezekiel has a watchman's duty; he must warn the wicked that he may turn from his evil and live, he must warn the backsliding righteous that he may repent while there yet was time. We have been driven by long experience and painful thought to feel tolerably certain that God rules the world by other laws than these. We have been led to believe in a gradual develop- ment and progress of the human race in this world, and above all to hope for a gradual progress of each individual both in this world and in another. § 2. For us to-day the most valuable and striking elements in Ezekiel's teaching are these : (i) He taught that God considers and cares not only for a people as a whole, but for each individiftil soul. (2) He taught that God desires repentance, and will help us to repent. (3) He taught that the ultimate test of a man's worth and of what must in the long run befall him is of his own making and doing. His own righteousness preserves him : his own wickedness destroys him. (4) He taught that man's relation to God must be one of combined humility and hope : a full recognition, on the one hand, of human unworthiness ; a full recognition, on the other hand, of the divine goodness and compassion. We shall understand these points the better after what we are now to hear. The word of the Lord came unto me again, saying. What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying. The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge ? As I live, saith the Lord God, ye shall not any more use this proverb in Israel. Behold, all souls are mine ; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son ; they are mine : the soul that sinneth, it shall die. But if a man be just, and do righteousness and judgement, and eateth not upon the mountains, neither lifteth up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and wrongeth not any, but restoreth to the debtor his pledge, spoileth none INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY 469 by violence, giveth his bread to the hungry, and covereth the naked with a garment ; he that giveth not upon usury, neither taketh any interest, that withdraweth his hand from iniquity, and executeth true judgement between man and man, walketh in my statutes, and keepeth my judgements, to deal truly ; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord God. If he beget a son that sheddeth blood and walketh not in the ways of his righteous father, but eateth upon the mountains, and wrongeth the poor and needy, spoileth by violence, doth not restore the pledge, and lifteth up his eyes to the idols, committeth abomination, giveth upon usury, and taketh interest : shall he then live ? He shall not live :. he hath done all these abominations : he shall surely die ; his blood shall be upon him. Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father's sins, which he hath done, and feareth, and doeth not such like, eateth not upon the mountains, neither lifteth up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither wrongeth any, nor taketh aught to pledge, neither spoileth by violence, but giveth his bread to the hungry, and covereth the naked with a garment, that keepeth his hand from iniquity, that receiveth not usury nor interest, but executeth my judgements, and walketh in my statutes ; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live. As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed and spoiled by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, lo, he shall die through his iniquity. Yet say ye. Why doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father ? When the son doeth that which is lawful and right, and keepeth all my statutes, and doeth them, he shall surely live. The soul that sinneth, it shall die : the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son ; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. But if the wicked turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him : because of his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. Have I any pleasure at till that 470 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the wicked should die ? saith the Lord God : and not rather that he should return from his ways and live ? But when the righteous turneth away from his righteous- nesSj and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, all his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: through his trespass that he hath trespassed, and through his sin that he hath sinned, through them shall he die. Yet ye say. The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel: Is not my way equal? are not your- ways unequal ? When the righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, he shall die; because of his iniquity that he hath done shall he die. Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth righteousness and justice, he shall save his soul alive. Because he turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the Lord is not equal, O house of Israel, are not my ways equal ? are not your ways unequal ? Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord God. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions ; so shall there not be a stumbling block of guilt unto you. Cast away from you all your transgressions, wherein ye have transgressed ; and make you a new heart and a new spirit : for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God : wherefore tui'n yourselves, and live. Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son ol man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them. When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watch- man : if, when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning, if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning ; his blood shall be upon him : the watch- man warned and hath delivered his soul. But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the 'TURN YOURSELVES AND LIVE ' 471 people be not warned^ and the sword come^ and take any person from among them; he is taken away because of his iniquity, but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand. So thou, son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel ; therefore hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die, and thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way ; that wicked man shall die through his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it, and he turn not from his way ; he shall die because of his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul. And thou, son of man, say unto the house of Israel : Thus ye speak, saying. Our transgressions and our sins lie heavy upon us, and we pine away because of them; how then should we live? Say unto them. As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked ; but that the wicked turn from his way and live : turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways ; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? Therefore thou, son of man, say unto the children of thy people. The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression ; and as for the wicked- ness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness. When I say to the righteous. Thou shalt surely live ; if he trust to his righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousness shall not be remem- bered ; but because of his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die. Again, when I say unto the wicked. Thou shalt surely die ; if he turn from his sin, and do righteousness and justice; if he restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity ; he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him : he hath done righteousness and justice ; he shall surely live. Yet the children of thy people say, The way of the Lord is not equal : but as for them, their way is not equal. When the righteous turneth from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, he shall even die because of it. And when the wicked turneth from his wickedness, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby. Yet ye say, The way 472 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel^ I will judge you every one after his ways. Thus we here meet again with the same proverb whicli we met with in Jeremiah : * The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge/ What did the people mean by this proverb ] Well, in the first place, they meant that many of them seemed to be suffering for the sins of their fathers or grand- fathers. For instance. If the exile had come because of the sins of the men of Judah under Manasseh and Jehoiakim, the young men who were growing up to middle age in Babylonia were suffering because of their fathers' misdeeds. Was this just or unjust ? But, in the second place, they meant that there seemed to be a kind of chain of iniquity and guilt extending from father to son, the links of which could not be broken. It was a sort of hereditary succession in sin and in calamity. In their language : * Our transgressions and our sins are heavy upon us, and we waste away because of them/ It seemed impossible to make an effort or to break the chain. They could not free themselves from the bondage of sin or be healed of its disease. There was an atmosphere of evil which spread the taint from father to child. Such feelings would easily create moral lethargy or despair. And such despair would cause or imply much moral corruption. If you do not think it either worth while or possible to try to become better than you are, you will probably become worse. If you do not think it possible to repent, you will probably continue to sin. If you do not think it profitable or possible to lead an earnest and strenuous life, you will probably lead a slack and feeble one. The condition of affairs was, therefore, grave. Ezekiel meets it in different ways. It is met indirectly by insisting that the despair of the exiles rests partly upon an inadequate and false conception of God, God does not desire that man should be bad. He desires that man should be good. He has given him the power to repent, and he will aid him to use it. There is every reason to loathe one's own sin, but there is also every reason to hope that a real effort to overcome it may be crowned with success. Then, secondly, Ezekiel with great emphasis and solemnity contradicts the very proverb itself. God does not allow the son to share the burden of his father's guilt or to profit by his father's excellence. What are we to say to this bold denial 1 There is a sense in which it was not and is not true. Righteous men as well as sinners were sent into exile, and probably those who were most faithful to their religion suffered the most. When wicked or ambitious kings go to war with each other, who pays the cost and feels the pain ? The innocent soldiers of either CAUSE AND EFFECT 473 side ; the women who are beveft of their LusbandSj the children who are bereft of their fathers. In any world such as ours, governed by laws of cause and effect, the sin of A must constantly cause the misfortune of B. If I neglect to educate my child, or spend the money which should have been devoted to his education on buying china or etchings, my son will bear the iniquity of his father. Though this law is stem and sometimes cruel, I am not sure that in the long run it does not do much more good than evil. At all events, we cannot imagine a state of things upon earth in which it would not operate. If no one suffered by my wrong doing, might I not sometimes be tempted to sin where now I am wholesomely restrained ? On the other hand, it is not true that God punishes the son for the sin of his father. That would be a very different story, and it was against this false idea that Ezekiel did so well to protest. If there be a 'judgement,' for instance, in our ordinary sense of the word, after death, we may be sure that perfect justice (which is God) would not judge us more or less leniently because of the merit or the guilt of our parents. Only if we had been more likely to sin through our father s negligence or error, must we believe that the Divine Equity would take this fully into account. Ezekiel's earnestness at this point is all the more understandable and apposite when we remember that till his time, and even long afler.it, people did believe that God allowed his relation to the men of one generation to be affected by the merits or demerits of its predecessor. It used to be said in perfect simplicity and good faith that God visited the iniquity of the fathers even upon the third and fourth generation. You will remember that a state- ment to that effect was added on to the original form of the Second Commandment, which we may reasonably suppose to have at first contained nothing more than the prohibition of all idolatry. On p. 95 of this book I said that the expansion of the ' second word ' was very difficult, but that I should say something about it later on. This seems to be the appropriate place. Few words are necessary. For we have already often met with the view that a man's sons and direct descendants form a kind of living and organic whole, so that just as a man might not improperly suffer at sixty for a sin committed at thirty, so a grand- child might not improperly suffer for the sin of his grandfather. And we too, as I have just indicated, still in a somewhat modified form, maintain the same position. Just as we are immensely cheered and stimulated to labour and sacrifice by the thought that another generation will reap the benefit of our faithfulness to duty, so must we recognize the solemn but salutary law that our 474 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING guilt and our sinfulness will also bear their fruit : they will harm others as well as ourselves. This law is God's law, and thus the statement added on to the Second Commandment is justified by experience. As to the phrase 'a jealous God/ I said before that 'in any ordinary sense of the word "jealous," it is quite mistaken to apply that word to God. You can only fitly apply that word to God by explaining it away.' Perhaps that is a little too strongly stated, * A jealous God ' may be regarded as opposed to an indifferent God. And surely we must suppose that God cares supremely for the world which he has made. "While we feel that passion, in the ordinary sense of the word, is utterly inconsistent with the Divine Nature, we yet realize that Love, which is God's chosen attribute, is not consonant with Indifference, And divine jealousy we may at least interpret for our modern use and needs to be identical with a divine solicitude. Eeturning now to Ezekiel, when we consider the question of a change in moral condition within the life of one and the same person, we feel that the prophet's language needs some qualifi- cation and reserve. It is seldom true that a man changes suddenly from good to bad or from bad to good. Human conduct and character is far more complicated and subtle. But it would seem that indirectly Ezekiel wishes to teach the doctrine that however good a man may be, he can never afford to become slipshod and careless, for he is always liable to error and sin. Man is frail. On the other hand, whatever sins we have com- mitted, it is never too late to mend. We can break with our evil past and turn again to goodness and to God. Our own effort and the grace of God can win great and strange victories. Each individual has a separate relation of his own to God, For God deals not merely with nations, as was thought before, but, as Ezekiel teaches, with individuals. God is the ' lover of souls.' He does not think only of England or France, but of Thomas and Louis. Each of us, however insignificant, claims and receives the knowledge and the love of our Father who is in heaven. According to Ezekiel, the sinner shall * die ' ; the righteous shall ' live.' It is very hard for us to give any meaning to these state- ments, "We do not suppose that the length of men's lives has any- thing to do with their goodness or baseness. Nor do we suppose that a man's sorrows have any necessary or fixed relations to his sins. On the contrary. The best men are frequently very unhappy. Sometimes even their unhappiness is of their own choosing. They choose it because they are good. But though this is true, there is nevertheless a certain, though fluctuating THE STERNNESS OF LOVE 475 relation between goodness and happiness. First of all, a man's vices and a child's faults often make them miserable while their virtues make them happy. Secondly, there are the higher peace and satisfaction of right-doing and self-sacrifice, and the deeper misery and want of sin, impurity and selfishness. Goodness gives life indeed — the highest life. Sin brings death indeed — the deepest death. The life of virtue ia as much superior to the life of mere ' happiness/ as the pleasure of looking at a great picture is higher than the pleasure of eating a bath-bun. The death which sin brings is worse than the death which is the separation of soul and body, for it is the death of our higher powers and purer feelings, the disease and corruption of the soul. Then, thirdly, for the life beyond the grave, we would fain believe that all sorrow and pain which do not directly purify and ennoble will there find no place. Therefore it is true that sin tends towards death, while goodness tends towards life. Ezekiel's teaching increases the dignity of human labour, the importance of our actions, the solemnity of our lives. God desires man's 'happiness*: he has no pleasure in the death of bim that dieth. He helps towards goodness and repentance: he does not harden or impel towards sin. Constantly, then, as we fail in our upward struggle, we may still continue to trust in the goodness and compassion of God. Humility and hope may go hand in hand. But Ezekiel, on the other hand, would give no sanction to any idea that God's compassion is nerveless or lawless. What I have just written must not be taken to mean that so far as God is concerned it makes no difference whether we are bad or good. God's righteousness is a cleansing fire. It cannot be the same for a man whether be sins or does nobly, whether he be strenuous or slack. The consequences of his deeds must at last come home to him, their author. Love is loving, but love is stern. If it were not stern, it would not be loving. § 3. I will now quote two or three passages in which Ezekiel sets forth his hopes of the future or golden age. It will be seen that his point of view is here somewhat different. What before he had urged his auditors to get for themselves by their own effort, he now declares will come to them as the gift of God. God will give it for his own sake. All history is au unfolding of the glory of God. Somewhat too closely, to our tastes and minds, is the honour of the one people Israel identified with the honour of God. Nor is our hope for the future a restoration to Palestine and a renewal of the kingdom. But we must not expect an Israelite priest and patriot of nearly twenty-five centuries ago to think about these things as we do. We must pick out and treasure those 476 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING thouglita and truths which are universal and abiding, and which, therefore, are still precious to ourselves and to the world. Just as we still need the bidding, ' Make you a new heart and a new spirit/ so do we still need the assurance, ' A new heart will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you/ The subject is opened up with an attack upon the wicked kings and nobles of the past. The figure of the shepherd is familiar in Greek as well as in Hebrew literature. In the future the true Good Shepherd will be God. And the word of the Lord came unto me^ saying. Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them. Thus saith the Lord God : Woe unto the shepherds of Israel that did feed themselves ! Should not the shepherds feed the sheep ? Ye drank the milk, and ye clothed you with the wool, ye killed the fatlings ; but ye fed not the sheep. The diseased ye did not strengthen, neither did ye heal that which was sick, neither did ye bind up that which was broken, neither did ye bring again that which was driven away, neither did ye seek that which was lost; but with force and with rigour did ye rule over them. And they were scattered, because there was no shepherd : and they became meat to all the beasts of the field. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill ; yea, my sheep were scattered upon all the face of the earth ; and there was none that did search or seek after them. Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord : As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because my sheep became a prey, and my flock became meat to all the beasts of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock ; therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord; thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock ; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more ; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. For thus saith the Lord God : Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day of the thunderstorm, so will I seek out my sheep ; and I will deliver them . out of all places whither they have been scattered in the day of cloud SHEEP AND SHEPHERD 477 and darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples^ and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel, by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the mountains of Israel shall their fold be : there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. I myself will feed my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God, I will seek that which was lost, and will bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick : and the fat and the strong I will preserve ; I will feed them rightly. And as for you^ O my flock, thus saith the Lord God : Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, the rams and the he-goats. Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture ? and to have drunk of the clear waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet ? And as for my sheep, they have to eat that which ye have trodden with your feet, and they have to drink that which ye have fouled with your feet. Therefore thus saith the Lord God unto them : Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and the lean cattle. Because ye thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye scattered them abroad ; therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David ; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the pasture-country, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing ; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be secure in thein land ; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and have delivered them out of the hand of 478 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING those that made bondmen of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the nations^ neither shall the beast of the earth devour them ; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will raise up unto them a planta- tion of peace, and they shall be no more consumed with famine in the land, neither bear the mockery of the nations any more. And they shall know that I the Lord their God am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord God. And ye are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, saith the Lord God. Ezekiel's conception of the shepherds and their duty may be combined with his description of his own office as a watchman. He teaches the grave moral responsibility which falls on every man or woman who fills any post of trust and influence. The greater the post, the greater the responsibility and the more imperious the call. And as we all fill some post and place in the world, this moral responsibility falls upon us all. With this sense of responsibility we should also strive to develop the moral courage to do and to endure. Even as it was said to Ezekiel, ' Son of man, be not afraid of them,' so may it be necessary for us all now and again to seek such divine encouragement. There is a time for silence, but there is also a time for speech. And occasionally open speech and open deed may be right and useful, although to ourselves unpleasant. The following vision is very famous. It is directed against the despair of the exiles as to their own future. It must be noticed that in Hebrew, * breath,' ' spirit,* ' wind,* and what I have rendered 'spirit of life/ are all represented by one and the same word, Ruach, The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley ; and it was full of bones ; and he caused me to pass by them round about: and behold, there were very many in the open valley ; and lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me. Son of man, can these bones live ? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. Again he said unto me. Prophesy to these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones : Behold, I will cause the spirit of life to enter into you, and ye shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and 'CAN THESE BONES LIVE? 479 fut breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that am the Lord. So I prophesied as I was commanded : and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold an earthquake, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And as I looked, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me. Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God : Come from the four winds, O spirit of life, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the spirit of life came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Then he said unto me. Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel : behold, they say. Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are quite cut off. Therefore prophesy, and say unto them. Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, and brought you up out of your graves, O my people. And I will put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land : then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord. Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying. Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their way and by their doings. Wherefore I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the countries : according to their way and according to their doings I judged them. And when they entered unto the nations, whither they went, they profaned my holy name ; in that men said of them. These are the people of the Lord, and are gone forth out of his land. But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations, whither they went. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God: I do not this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the nations, whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great 48o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING name, which was profaned among the nations, which ye have profaned in the midst of them ; and the nations shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified through you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean* water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you : and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judge- ments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers ; and ye shall be my people, and I wiU be youi- God. THE CONQUESTS OF CYRUS 481 CHAPTER XVII CYRUS AND THE SECOND ISAIAH § I. For some years after Ezekiel's life-work liad "been brought to a close — the latest date given in his book is 570 B.C., sixteen years after the capture of Jerusalem — nothing happened to make it seem likely that any part of his forecasts for the future would be realized. Everything remained much as before. Nebuchadrezzar died in 562, but the strength of the Babylonian empire did not seem diminished during the reigns of his two successors, Evil^ Merodach and Neriglossor. In 5^6, however, troubles began. A successful conspiracy placed a nominee of its own called Nabon- nedos upon the throne. Two years before that a great and dis- tinguished jSgure in Asiatic history had begun his royal career. Cyrus, the Achaemenid, had ascended the throne of Persia. Till his time Persia had been more or less dependent upon Media. But Cyrus soon threw off the Median yoke and turned the tables completely. In 549 he was master of all Media, and it was clear that a new great empire was being established. Nabonnedos was unfit to cope with a man Like Cyrus. He was more a pious antiquarian, keen about restoring temples and discovering old inscriptions, than a soldier or a statesman. But at last an alliance was formed against Cyrus by Lydia, Egypt, and Babylon. Cyrus turned first against Lydia. You have read, or will read, in the great Greek historian Herodotus how he fared and how he won. Seven years passed before he attacked the Babylonians. Nabonnedos was not a popular monarch, and when Cyrus opened the campaign in 539, a single battle sufficed to decide the issue. One city after another opened its gates, and at last the capital itself followed suit. In 538 Cyrus entered Babylon in triumph, and received, as it would appear, on all hands an enthusiastic welcome. It was a great and bloodless victory. The Jewish exiles were naturally raised to a high state of excitement by the progress and successes of Cyrus. A sober critic might have said that they would only change one master for another (and he would have been mainly in the right), but to the more hopeful and believing spirits among them, the coming of I i 482 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Cyrus seemed to imply not merely the downfall of the Lated Babylonian supremacy, but the speedy advent of the golden age. Songs were composed in semi-prophetic language exulting in the fall of the enemy. One of these songs is still preserved to us. It is not religious in the higher sense of the word, but yet, as it contains some fine poetry, I will insert it. It is introduced by a prediction in prose. The Hebrew text is here and there corrupt, so the translation is sometimes uncertain, I must forbear to explain its difficulties. Note the famous hexameter in the line about Lucifer, the day star. For the Lord will have mercy on Jacobs and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land : and the stranger will join himself to them, and they vrill cleave to the house of Jacob. And the peoples shall take them, and bring them to their place : and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord for servants and for handmaids : and they shall take them captive, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors. And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy trouble, and from the hard service wherein thou wast made to serve, that thou shalt take up this mocking song against the king of Babylon, and say. How hath the oppressor ceased ! the insolent dealing ceased ! The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, the sceptre of the tyrant ; Who smote the peoples in wrath with a continual stroke. That subdued the nations in anger, with a perpetual persecution. The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet : they break forth into singing. Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon : Since thou art laid down, no feller cometh up against us. Sheol from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming : It stirreth up the shades for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth ; It hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. All they answer and say unto thee. A MOCKING SONG 483 Art thou also become weak as we ? art thou become like unto us? Thy pomp is brought down to Sheol, and the noise of thy viols : Corruption is spread under thee^ and worms cover thee. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning ! How art thou cut down to the ground, who didst lay low the nations ! Thou saidst in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God ; And I will sit upon the mount of assembly, in the utter- most parts of the north : I will ascend above the heights of the clouds ; I will be like the Most High. Yet thou art brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the pit. They that see thee narrowly look upon thee, ponder thee : Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms : That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; That released not his prisoners to their home ? All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, every one in his own house. But thou art cast forth among the slain, among them that are thrust through with the sword. Going down to the stones of the pit, as a carcase trodden under foot. Thou shalt not be joined with thy fathers in burial. Because thou hast destroyed thy land, thou hast slain thy people ; The seed of evil-doers shall not be named for ever. Prepare the shambles for his children for the iniquity of their fathers ; That they rise not up, and possess the earth, and fill the face of the world with ruins ! § 2. There was one great Jewish writer at this momentous crisis whose vision of the future was not limited to the mere downfall of Babylon. His name is unknown, nor can we tell when exactly he wrote, though it is probable that all that we have of his was written Bome few years before Cyrus entered Babylon. He too believed I i 3 484 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING that the victory of Cyrus would soon be followed by all -the splendours of the golden age. The idea of the long and gradual progress of mankind was quite foreign to the Jewish mind. Yet his main prediction, that Cyrus would show friendship to the Jews and allow a restoration to Palestine, was realized, though on a humbler scale and with far smaller results than he had hoped for and foretold. But his real value and interest for us lies in this, that he set forth in grand and moving language many great and noble ideas about God and the mission of Israel. The whole history of the Jews might have been very different if they had attempted with all their heart to realize the teaching of this nameless seer. His writings, for some unknown reason, were incorporated into the ' Book of Isaiah.' Only a small and ill-defined portion of that book can have been written by Isaiah himself. The greater part of it was written later. The work of the prophet with whom we are now concerned — for a prophet he was, though of a different kind from Amos or Jeremiah — begins at the fortieth chapter of the Book of Isaiah, and continues for sixteen chapters with insignificant interruptions. The remaining eleven chapters are probably the work of other and later hands. For the sake of convenience he has sometimes been called the Second or Babylonian Isaiah. As regards God, the Second Isaiah is the great biblical preacher of pure and absolute Monotheism. There is one God only. The God of the Jews is the God of the whole world, creator and sustainer of all the universe of things. No previous writer in the Bible so completely identified the idol with the deity whom it was fashioned to represent. To the Second Isaiah the wooden or golden idol is the god, and therefore it is no god, but a mere lifeless block, the work of man's hands, with no reality beyond it or outside it. As regards the Jews, the Second Isaiah is convinced that they are the witnesses of God. In his highest moments he rises to the following conception: Israel is God's servant for the purpose of diffusing and teaching through the world the knowledge and the worship of the one and only God. Israel has been chosen not for its own sake, but for the world's sake. ' Through thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.' And this idea of election or vocation for the sake of others is pushed still further. As Israel stands to the world, so stand the best Israelites to Israel. They suffered and suffer for the sake of Israel, just as Israel has suffered and suffers for the sake of the world. What a grand explanation have we here of sorrow and suffering — an explanation which admits of endless applications and is eternally true. It is the doctrine of self-sacrifice, which ennobles sorrow and gives us courage to put 'COMFORT YE MY PEOPLE* 485 the deepest suffering to highest use. How far higher and truer than the old idea, that goodness invariably caused and implied prosperity, while adversity was the invariable consequence of sin. For now we can understand that the most poignant sorrow may both produce and imply the fullest faith and the most devoted goodness. Suffering and goodness will be at least as natural a combination as goodness and prosperity. Let us see how these great doctrines shine out here and there from their environment. § 3. The prophet begins with the main burden of his message : the central declaration of forgiveness and restoration. To the exiles themselves this was the most important statement he had to make. Note that the return of Israel is metaphorically depicted as a return of God. Comfort ye^ comfort ye my people^ saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem^ and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned ; that she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins. The voice of one that crieth. Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a high way for our God, Let every valley be exalted, and every moun- tain and hill be made low: and let the crooked be made straight, and the rough places plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together : for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. O thou that bringest good tidings to Zion, get thee up on a high mountain; O thou that bringest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid ; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold, your God ! Behold, the Lord God will come as a strong one, and his arm shall rule for him : behold, his reward is with him, and his requital before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd ; he shall gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that give suck. A voice said. Cry. And I said. What shall I cry ? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field : the grass withereth, the flower f adeth ; because the breath of the Lord bloweth upon it. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth : but the word of our God shall stand for ever. 486 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Now follows a grand and impassioned outburst on the omnipo- tence and uniqueness of God. Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted the heavens with a span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance ? Who hath directed the spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him ? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgement, and taught him know- ledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding ? Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the fine dust of the balance : behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All the nations are as nothing before him ; they are counted to him a thing of nought and emptiness. To whom then will ye liken God ? or what likeness will ye compare nnto him ? The graven image, a workman melted it, and the gold- smith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth for it silver chains. They help, each one the other ; and one saith to his fellow. Be of good courage. So the carpenter encourageth the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that striketh the anvil, saying of the soldering. It is good; and he fasteneth it with nails, that it may not move. He that is too poor for such an offering chooseth a tree that will not rot ; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, that will not move. Can ye not perceive ? Can ye not hear ? hath it not been told you from the begin- ning ? have ye not understood it from the foundation of the earth ? It is he that sitteth above the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers ; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in : that bringeth princes to nothing ; he maketh the judges of the earth as emptiness. Scarce are they planted, scarce are they sown, scarce hath their stock taken root in the earth : when he bloweth upon them, and they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble. To whom then will ye liken me, that I should be equal to him ? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and see; who hath created these ? He who bringeth out their host by number : he calleth them all by name ; by the greatness of his might, and for that he is strong in power, not one is wanting. 'WHO HATH CREATED THESE?' 487 He admonishes the weak hearted and the doubting among the exiles. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgement is passed over by my God ? Hast thou not known ? hast thou not heard ? An everlasting God is the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth ; he faintetb not, neither is he weary ; there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint ; and to him that hath no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall : but they that wait upon the Lord shaU renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles ; they shall run^ and not be weary ; they shall walk, and not faint. It is the eternal and only God who has summoned Cyrus and given him victory. Who hath raised up from the east him whom victory meeteth at every step? he giveth nations before him, and maketh him rule over kings. His sword maketh them as dust; his bow as driven stubble. He pursueth them, and passeth on safely ; he scarce treadeth the path with his feet. Who hath wrought and done this? He who called the generations from the beginnings ; I, the Lord, the first, and with the last, I am he. But thou, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend; thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the furthest parts thereof, and said unto thee. Thou art my servant, I have chosen thee and not cast thee away. Fear thou not, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded : they that strove with thee shall be as nothing, and shall perish. Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee : tbey that warred against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee. Fear not ; I will help thee. Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel ; I will 488 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING help thee, saith the Lord, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth : thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff. Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them : but thou shalt exult in the Lord, thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel. The afflicted and the needy who seek for water and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst — I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on bare hills, and fountains in the midst of the valleys : I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree ; I will set in the desert the fir tree, the plane, and the larch tree together: that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it. The idols are challenged to prove that they are gods. But only the true God can prove his divinity. Produce your cause, saith the Lord ; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob. Let them bring them forth, and tell us what shall happen: tell us the former things, what they are, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them : or declare to us things for to come. Shew the things that are to come hereafter; that we may know that ye are gods : yea, do good, or do evil, that we may look one upon anothei', and behold it together. Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought : an abomination is he that chooseth you. I have raised up one from the north, and he is come ; from the rising of the sun one that calleth upon my name : and he shall trample upon rulers as upon mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay. Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know ? and beforetime, that we might say. He is right ? yea, there was none that declared, yea, there was none that shewed, yea, there was none that heard your words, I first said unto Zion, Behold, behold them ; and I gave to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings. And when I looked, there was no man ; even among them there was no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word. Behold, they THE SERVANT OF GOD 489 are all emptiness; their works are nought: their molten images are wind and confusion, § 4. At this point is suddenly introduced one of those great passages ahout the mission of Israel as the servant of God and the teacher of the nations, to which I alluded at the beginning. Behold my servant^ whom I uphold ; my chosen^ in whom my soul delighteth : I have put my spirit upon him ; he shall bring forth true religion to the nations. He shall not clamour nor cry, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break^ and a dimly burning wick shall he not quench : he shall bring forth true religion faith- fully. He shall not burn dimly, nor shall his spirit be crushed, till he have set true religion in the earth ; and the isles shall wait for his teaching. Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out ; he that spread forth the earth and that which cometh out of it ; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein : I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and taken hold of thine hand, and formed thee, and made thee for a covenant people, for a light of the nations ; to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. I am the Lord ; that is my name : and my glory wiU I not give to another, neither my praise unto graven images. Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare : before they spring forth I tell you of them. "We will consider this passage more fully later on. After a short song of triumph, not closely connected with what has just gone before, and here omitted, the prophet pointedly contrasts the Israel of the present and the past with the predicted Israel of the near future. Hear, ye deaf ; and look, ye blind, that ye may see. Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I send ? who is blind as he that is my friend, and deaf as the Lord^s servant? Thou seest many things, but thou observest not; thine ears are open, but thou hearest not. The Lord was pleased, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the teaching, and make it honourable. And yet it is still a people robbed and spoiled ; they are all of them snared in 490 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING holes, and they are hid in prison houses : they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore. Who is there among you that will give ear to this ? who will hearken and hear for the time to come ? Who gave up Jacob for a spoil, and Israel unto robbers, and poured upon him his anger, and the strength of battle ; and it set him on fire round about, yet he heeded it not ; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart ? He turns again to consolatory prediction and tender pleading. But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel : Fear not, for I redeem thee ; I call thee by thy name, thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee ; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee : when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned ; neither shall the flame kkidle upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy saviour. Fear not ; for I am with thee : I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west ; I will say to the north. Give up ; and to the south, Keep not back; bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth; every one that is called by my name, and whom I have created for my glory; I have formed him ; yea, I have made him. Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears. Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the peoples be assembled: who among them can declare this ? Let them tell unto us former things : let them bring their witnesses, that they may be justified : that we may hear, and say. It is truth. Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen : that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he ; before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and beside me there is no saviour. I have declared, and I have saved, and I have shewed, and there was no strange god among you : therefore ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and I am God. Yea, even from this day forth I am he ; and there is none who can deliver out of my hand. When I work, who shall let it ? After two rather difficult passages, which I omit, there follows a noble prediction. One most notable verse speaks of the proselytes whom Israel shall win. 'YE ARE MY WITNESSES* 491 Hear^ O Jacob my servant; and Israel^ whom I have chosen : thus saith the Lord that made thee, and will help thee : Fear not, O Jacob my servant ; and thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and streams upon the dry ground : I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring ; and they shall spring up as grass amidst the waters, as willows by the watercourses. This one shall say, I am the Lord^s ; and that one shall call himself by the name of Jacob ; and that one shall write on his hand, Unto the Lord, and be surnamed by the God of Israel. Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel, and his redeemer, the Lord of hosts : I am the first, and I am the last ; and beside me there is no God. Fear ye not, neither be afraid ; ye are my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? Yea, there is no Rock; I know not any. Remember these things, O Jacob : and Israel, for thou art my servant. I have blotted out as a mist thy transgressions, and as a cloud thy sins : return unto me ; for I have redeemed thee. Sing, O ye heavens ; for the Lord hath done it : shout, ye lower parts of the earth : break forth into singing, ye moun- tains, O forest, and every tree therein ; for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorifieth himself in Israel. § 5. In the middle of the preceding passage there is a long and sarcastic description of the manufacture of an idol, which some scholars think has been inserted by a later writer. They that make a graven image are all of them vanity ; and their delectable things can not profit: and their own witnesses see not, nor know: that they may be ashamed. Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing ? Behold, all that join themselves thereto shall be ashamed; and the workmen, they are of men : let them all be gathered together, let them stand up ; they shall fear, they shall be ashamed together. The smith sharpeneth an axe, and worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with the strength of his arms; yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth; he drinketh no water, and is faint. The carpenter stretcheth out his rule ; he marketh it out with a tool ; he shapeth it with planes, and he marketh it out with compasses, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty 492 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of a man^ to stay in the house. He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the hohn tree and the oak, and reareth for himself one among the trees of the forest : he planteth a fir tree, and the rain doth nourish it. And it serveth for a man to burn; he taketh thereof, and warmeth himself; yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread : yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it ; he maketh it a graven image, and f alleth down thereto. He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roasteth roast, and is satisfied : yea, he warmeth himself, and saith. Aha, I am warm, I feel the fire : and the I'esidue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image : he falleth down unto it and worshippeth and prayeth unto it, and saith. Deliver me ; for thou art my god. They know not, neither do they consider : for their eyes are daubed, that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand. And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire ; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination ? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree ? He feedeth on ashes : a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand ? § 6. We now come to a direct mention of Cyrus as the minister of God's will. Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer : I am the Lord, that maketh all things ; that stretched forth the heavens alone ; that spread abroad the earth; who was with me? that fi'ustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad ; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their know- ledge foolish: that confirmeth the word of his servants, and performeth the counsel of his messengers : that saith of Jerusalem, Let it be inhabited; and of the cities of Judah, Let them be built : that saith to the deep. Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers : that saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and all my pleasure shall he perform. Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him, and to loose the loins of kings ; to open the doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut; I will go before thee, and make THE ONE AND ONLY GOD 493 the hilly places plain : I will break in pieces the doors of brasSj and cut in sundei* the bars of iron : and I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I am the Lord, who call thee by thy name, even the God of Israel. For Jacob my servant^s sake, and Israel mine elect, I have called thee by thy name : I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I am the Lord, and there is none else ; there is no God beside me : I girded thee, though thou hast not known me : that they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me : I am the Lord, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness ; I make peace, and create evil ; I, the Lord, do all these things. Drop down, ye heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness : let the earth open, that it may bring forth salvation, and cause righteousness to spring up together; I the Lord have created it. It would seem that some of the exiles protested against a Persian deliverer. They hoped that one of themselves would have rescued them from captivity. The prophet rebukes their temerity to dare to question the purposes of God. Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker ! a potsherd among the potsherds of the earth I Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it. What makest thou? or his work. Thou hast no hands ? Thus saith the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker : Concerning the things that are to come, will ye question me ? and concerning the work of my hands, will ye command me ? I have made the earth, and created man upon it : I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded. I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will make straight all his ways : he shall build my city, and he shall let go my exiles, not for price nor reward, saith the Lord of hosts. Thus saith the Lord, The labour of Egypt, and the merchandise of Ethiopia, and the Sabeans, men of stature, shall belong to him and follow him; in chains they shall pass by, and they shall fall down unto thee, and shall make supplication unto thee, saying. Surely God is in thee ; and there is none else, there is no God beside. Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour, 494 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING ^" They shall be ashamed and confounded, all of them : they shall go to confusion together that are makers of idols. But Israel shall be saved through the Lord with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end. For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens ; he is God ; that formed the earth and made it ; he established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited : I am the Lord; and there is none else. I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the land ; I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain : I the Lord speak righteous- ness, I declare things that are right. Assemble yourselves and come ; draw near together, ye that are escaped of the nations : they have no knowledge that bear the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save. Announce ye, and bring it forth ; yea, let them take counsel together : who hath declared this from ancient time ? who hath told it of old ? have not I the Lord ? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a saviour; there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth : for I am God, and there is none else. By myself have I sworn, a true word is gone forth from my mouth, a word that shall not be revoked, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear, § 7. After a few somewhat less interesting passages, which I here omit, we come to the second of the great servant episodes. The Servant himself is the speaker. Listen, O isles, unto me ; and hearken, ye peoples, from far : the Lord hath called me from my birth ; and he made my mouth like a sharp sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me ; and he made me a polished shaft, in his quiver he concealed me : and he said unto me. Thou art my servant, in whom I will be glorified. But I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought and in vain : yet surely my judgement is with the Lord, and my recompence with my God. And now saith the Lord that formed me to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, and that Israel be gathered unto him : (for I am honourable in the eyes of the Lord, and my God is become my strength :) yea, he saith. It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the 'A LIGHT TO THE NATIONS' 495 tribes of Jacobs and to restore the preserved of Israel : I will also give thee for a light to the nations^ that my salvation may be unto the end of the earth. Thus saith the Lord, the redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nations abhor, to a servant of rulers : Kings shall see and arise ; princes, and they shall bow down ; because of the Lord that is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen thee. Thus saith the Lord, In an acceptable time I answer thee, and in a day of salvation I help thee : and I pre- serve thee, and appoint thee for a. covenant people, to raise up the land, to assign the desolate heritages ; that thou mayest say to the prisoners. Go forth ; to them that are in darkness. Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be on all high places. They shall not hunger nor thirst ; neither shall the scorching wind nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them. And I will make all my mountains a way, and my high ways shall be exalted. Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, earth ; and break forth into singing, O mountains : for the Lord comforteth his people, and hath compassion upon his afflicted. ' § 8. After some passages which I omit, we come to the third great servani episode, which is once more a soliloquy. The Lord God hath given me the tongue of disciples, that 1 may know how to succour with words him that is weary : he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear that I may hearken as disciples. The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I have not been rebellious, neither turned away back, I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair : I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord God will help me ; therefore have I not been confounded : therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed. He is near that justifieth me ; who will contend with me ? let us stand up together : who is mine adversary ? let him come near to me. Behold, the Lord God will help me ; who is he that shall condemn me ? behold, they all shall wax old as a garment ; the moth shall eat them up. 496 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Upon this there follow, without very clear or close connexion, grand words of consolation and comfort to the nation in exile. Occasionally national hatreds bring the teaching down to a lower level. Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the Lord : look unto the rock whence ye were hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye were digged. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and I blessed him, and increased him. For the Lord hath comforted Zion : he hath comforted all her waste places, and hath made her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like th§ garden of the Lord ; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody. Attend unto me, O my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation : for teaching shall go forth from me, and my religion for a light of the peoples. My righteousness is near, my salvation is gone forth ; mine arms shall judge the peoples ; the isles shall wait for me. Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath : for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die like gnats : but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished, , Hearken unto me, ye that know righfeousness, the people in whose heart is my teaching ; fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid at their revilings. For the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool : but my righteousness shall be for ever, and my salvation unto all generations. I, even I, am he that comforteth you : who art thou, that thou art afraid of man that shall die, and of the son of man who shall be made as grass ; and forgettest the Lord thy Maker, that stretched forth the heavens, and laid the founda- tions of the earth ; and fearest continually all the day because of the fury of the oppressor ? Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, who hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of bewilderment, and wrung them out. There was none to guide her among all the sons whom she brought forth ; neither was there any that took her by the hand of all the sons that she hath brought up. These two THE DIVINE COMFORTER 497 things befell thee ; who can bemoan thee ? desolation and destruction^ famine and the sword 5 who can comfort thee ? Thy sons lay fainting at the corners of all the streets^ as an antelope in a net ; they were full of the rebuke of thy God. Therefore hear now this^ thou afflicted, and drunken, but not with wine : thus saith thy Lord the Lord, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people. Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of bewilderment, even the dregs of the cup of my fury ; thou shalt no more drink it again : and I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee ; who have said to thy soul. Bow down, that we may go over : and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that go over. Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion ; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city. Shake thyself from the dust ; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem : loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation ; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth ! The voice of thy watchmen ! they lift up the voice, together do they sing ; for they see, eye to eye, when the Lord returneth to Zion. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem : for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem. The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God. Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing ; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, ye that bear the vessels of the Lord. For ye shall not go out in haste, neither shall ye depart by flight : for the Lord will go before you ; and the God of Israel will be your rearward. § 9. Ve now come to the fourth, last, most famous and most difficult, of the servant passages. It is introduced quite suddenly, and has no visible connexion with what precedes and with what follows it. The five paragraphs of the English correspond with ^\e strophes into which the Hebrew is divisible. The text of the last strophe is in all probability very corrupt, and the meaning is consequently extremely doubtful and uncertain. K k 498 the: feiBLE FOR HOME READING Behold^ my servant shall prospei', he shall be exalted and extolled^ and shall be very high. Like as many were appalled at him, (his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men,) so shall he startle many nations ; kings shall shut their mouths at him : for that which had not been told them shall they see j and that which they had not heard shall they perceive. Who can believe our revelation? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed ? For he grew up before us as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground : he had no form nor comeliness that we should regard him, no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised, and forsaken of men ; a man of pains, and acquainted with sickness : and as one from whom men hide their face, he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Yet surely it was he who bare our sickness, and carried our pains : yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities : the chastisement of our peace was upon him ; and through his stripes we have been healed. All we like sheep had gone astray ; we turned every one to his own way ; and the Lord made light on him the guilt of us all. He was oppressed, but he humbled himself and opened not his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before her shearers is dumb ; yea, he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgement he was taken away; and as for his fate, who considered it, — that he had been cut off out of the land of the living, that for the trans- gression of my people he had been stricken unto death. And they made his grave with the wicked, and with the defrauders his mound ; although he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to crush him. For if he made his soul an offering for guilt, he should see his seed, he should prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord should prosper in his hand. He should see of the travail of his soul, and should be satisfied : by his knowledge should my servant make many righteous ; for he would bear the burden of their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong ; because he poured out his soul unto death, and let himself be num- MARTYRDOM FOR OTHERS 499 bered with the transgressors 5 whereas it was he who had borne the sin of many^ and for the rebellious had made inter- cession, § 10. Then, without any reference or allusion to this remarkable chapter — perhaps the most remarkable, and certainly the most famousj in all the prophetical writings — we get one more ode of consolation to Judah and Jerusalem. Judah is represented as the wife of God, rejected and cast off for a brief space, but now called back by her husband to her home for evermore. Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear ; break forth into singing, and cry aloud: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord. Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations ; spare not : lengthen thy cords^ and strengthen thy stakes. For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left ; and thy seed shall inherit the nations, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited. Fear not ; for thou shalt not be ashamed : neither be thou con- founded ; for thou shalt not be put to shame : for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For thy Maker is thine husband ; the Lord of hosts is his name : and the Holy One of Israel is thy redeemer ; the God of the whole earth shall he be called. For the Lord hath called thee as a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, even a wife of youth — can she be rejected ? saith thy God. For a small moment I forsook thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In overflowing wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment ; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy redeemer. As the days of Noah is this time unto me : as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth ; so have I sworn that I will not be wroth with thee^ nor rebuke thee. For the mountains may depart, and the hills may be removed ; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall my covenant of peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee, O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will set thy stones in fair colours, and lay thy foun- dations with sapphires. And I will make thy battlements of K k 2 500 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING rubies, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy border of pleasant stones. And all thy builders shall be disciples of the Lord ; and great shall be the peace of thy children. In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression, for thou shalt not fear ; and from terror, for it shall not come near thee. Behold, it was I who created the smith that bloweth upon the fire of coals, and bringeth forth a weapon according to his craft ; and it was I who created the waster to destroy. No weapon that is formed gigainst thee shall prosper ; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord^ and their justification which is of me, saith the Lord. With the following glad summons and prediction the writings of the Second Isaiah, so far as they have been preserved to us, are probably brought to a close. Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money ; come ye, buy, and eat ; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread ? and your labour for that which satisfieth not ? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me ; hear, and your soul shall live: and I vrill make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. Behold, for a witness to the peoples I appointed him, a ruler and commander of the nations. Behold, thou shalt call a people that thou knowest not, and a people that know not thee shall run unto thee, because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel ; for he hath glorified thee. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near : let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts : and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him ; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord, For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it WHO IS THE SERVANT? 50I bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater ; so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth : it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace ; the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree : and it shall be to the Lord for a memorial, for an ever- lasting sign that shall not be cut off. § 1 1. The passages in the Second Isaiah about the Servant of the Lord have given rise to endless discussion. They have been of very great importance in the history of European religion, as you will later on learn for yourselves. But scholars are still almost as far as ever from an agreement as to their exact meaning and as to their relation to the other parts of the prophet's work. Some think that these servant passages were written by the same man who wrote all the other passages which surround them (that is, by the Second Isaiah), and at the same time. Some think that the same man wrote them, but before he wrote their surroundings, and that he, as it were, used his own former work and inserted the servant passages where they now are. Others think that they were written before his time, but used and inserted by him. Others, again, think they were written after his time, and inserted into their present places by a later editor. Some think he (the Second Isaiah) wrote the first three passages, but not the fourth and last. Then we get the same curious diversity of opinion as to the Servant himself. Some think the Servant is the people of Israel. Others think he is the ideal people, the people as it should be, but is not. Others think he represents the best and chosen spirits among the people in every age. All these, therefore, think that the Servant, in one sense or another, is a personification ; a single figure standing for many. But others think he is what he is represented to he, namely, an individual, and of these some think he was an historical person known to the writer and already dead, others think that the passages about him are a prediction of an individual who was to come hut had not yet been born, while a third section think that they give an idealized picture of any faithful Israelite, Many scholars, moreover, believe that in any case the life of Jeremiah was often before the poet's mind when he composed these It is very hard to decide between all these conflicting theories. 502 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The truth is that there are so many just because none quite fully and fairly fits the facts. For myself I incline to believe that the Servant is a personification of the ideal Israel, but I should not like to express any opinion as to whether the servant passages themselves were written by the Second Isaiah, or before his time or after it. The whole question demands much more space than I can give to it here, and bristles with difficulties. In the fourth servant passage, the 'we' who speak are either the people of Israel as a whole or the Gentile and heathen world, or both in one. The conception of Israel's office and work in the servant passages is higher and purer than the conception of them elsewhere, and the connexion between these passages is sometimes thin and artificial. That is one reason why some people think they could not have been written by the same man who wrote their surroundings. If the Servant is the ideal Israel, it follows that he has a mission to his own people or community, as well as to the world. Just as the best Englishmen may be said to have a special duty to England, so the best Jews have a special duty to Judaism. This teaching may be applied in many ways. And we may give to the word * best ' a variety of significations of different degrees of excellence, They who are most richly endowed by nature, by circumstance, by environment, by fortune and by effort, have the deepest responsibility to their people and their community. The more you have and are, the more is demanded of you alike by God and man. From and out of men's work among their people and community must come their influence upon the world beyond. The Servant's work begins at home, but it does not end at home. He teaches true religion first within the fold and then without it. For God's children are not limited to one race. The great difficulty with all the old Jewish teachers of religion was to realize that the God whom they worshipped was not their Father in heaven more than he was the Father in heaven of the Babylonian or the Edomite. When their eyes were turned towards their own people, they thought and taught pure and noble things about goodness and God; but when they looked beyond their own borders, and thought of God in his relation to other peoples, they saw less clearly. They were often proud, exclusive, and uncharitable. It seems very odd to us, for we have been taught from childhood that God is no respecter of persons or of races, and that he does not care for the Englishman more than for the Dane, or for the Jew more than for the Christian. But obvious as this seems to us, it took many centuries to learn, and even now some EngUsh people (happily very few, if any, English Jews) still believe that God cares more for opinions than he does THE SERVANTS METHOD AND REWARD 503 for goodness, and tbat he shows more favour to those who hav6 been brought up in one creed than to those who have been brought up in another. The writer of the servant passages declared that the Servant's peculiar mission or office was to preach true religion to the outside world. The Spirit of God is in him, to 'bring forth/ as it says in the first passage, ' true religion to the nations/ The Servant is a light to mankind. And what the Servant is, that Isasael as a whole should be. And what is the Servant*s method? It is expressed in the famous words : ' He shall not clamour nor cry, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break, and a dimly burning wick shall he not quench. He shall bring forth true religion faithfully.' The Israelites were by nature a nation of the sword. Their early notion of God is a great and powerful warrior, just but stern. It took them very long to purify these notions, and to remember that in God love and justice go hand in hand. Shreds and patches of the old ideas clung for ages to their language and thought. Hence the Second Isaiah himself talks much more fre- quently and contentedly of God's anger or even of God's fury than we should think either seemly or true. It is all the more striking that the picture of the Servant is so tender and quiet. He succeeds by gentleness, not by force. To those whose faith is feeble and whose troubles are sore, he brings strength and healing and encourage- ment. And yet his labour meets for long with no outward and visible reward. Sometimes (see the second passage) the Servant himself is despondent. Has he 'spent his strength for 'nought and vanity 1 ' But no ! His heavenly Father gives and will give him his reward. And what is his reward ? The success of his work ; not his own pride or riches or power, but the success of his work. As his sorrow and suffering are for the sake of others, so his true reward is their well-being. In the third servant passage we read : ^ I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair : I hid not my face from shame and spitting.' He rose above and superior to the common code of tit for tat. He did not ask God that as his enemies had done to him, so might it be done to them. He endured in silence : because patient endurance helped forward his work. He was right. The patient and unrevengeful endurance of personal injury will often make its own impression for good upon those who witness it. It is more likely to convert the sinner than violence or hatred. This is an added reason to the reason for patient en- durance given to us in the Lamentations : ' Let him give his cheek 504 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING to him that smiteth him ; let him sit alone and keep silence, because God hath laid it upon him/ Might we not wish that the third servant passage ended somewhat differently? The Servant is justified in expressing his confidence that his cause is right ; but would it not have been better if he had uttered a wish that his adversaries should be forgiven because of their ignorance, or converted to the truth, rather than that he should assert, 'they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up ' 1 Here a touch of the lower humanity seems momentarily to drive aside the working of the Spirit of God. Now we come to the last passage, which tells of the voluntary degradation and death of the Servant and of his subsequent resurrection and glory. What a beautiful and fascinating story it is ! How very unfortunate that at a critical point the text should have become so uncertain and corrupt. Once more we have the full idea of patient endurance. * He was oppressed, yet he humbled himself, and opened not his mouth ; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before her shearers is dumb ; yea, he opened not his mouth.' But it is now clearly explained what God's object in inflicting, and the Servant's object in accepting, this degradation and suffering really were. The object was the success of the work. "When it has succeeded and as it succeeds, when true religion is universal and as it be- comes so, then the meaning of the Servant's sufferings is realized. His persecutions were endured for the sake of his persecutors. Gradually men's eyes become opened : by his stripes they find their healing. He bears the load and burden of their iniquities : the punishment which, on the old tit for tat theory, should come to them falls, as it were, upon him, not as punishment, but in order that they may see it and, through the sight and understanding of it, be healed of their sin. Upon him it falls not as punishment, but as suffering and sorrow, and while he suffers, he 'makes intercession ' ; he prays for the enlightenment and forgiveness of those who cause him sorrow, and not for their injury or chastise- ment. This, again, is true religion and true morality. At last he triumphs : his cause triumphs because he voluntarily sacrificed himself. He died for others. For this is the highest that man can achieve, a ' conscious voluntary sacrifice.' Sometimes people have not unwisely thought that the fierce and cruel persecutions which the Jews have undergone, and in some countries still undergo, are a real fulfilment of this great servant passage. They suffer for the sake of their religion, and at last the world will understand their teaching and recognize its truth, and their cause will triumph and they will triumph in their cause. 'A CONSCIOUS VOLUNTARY SACRIFICE 505 But, however this may be, we all of us in a small way can try to be servants of the Lord, We can try to hear each other's burdens, and we can each strive by our own sacrifice to help others. Every one of us will have some opportunity, for suffering in the place and in the stead of another. Every one of us will have some oppor- tunity for patient endurance, and for painful fidelity to truth, to goodness, and to love — in other words, for being a servant of God. 5o6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING CHAPTER XVIII FROM ZERUBBABEL TO NEHEMIAH § I. Wb pass from glowing poetry to rather commonplace prose when we turn from the broad and noble aspirations of the Second Isaiah to their somewhat partial and narrow fulfilment. After his conquest of Babylon, Gyrus, from whatever reasons, did allow the Jewish exiles to return to Palestine, and a good number of them availed themselves of this permission, though many more, from various motives, remained behind in their new eastern homes. The story of the return and of the hundred years which followed it is contained in the two books of the Bible called Ezra and Nehemiah. These books are very confused. They are made up of passages from many different writers. The chronology is very un- certain. Scholars are just now working hard at these very books, and have not yet arrived at undisputed opinions about them. Parts of them were written by that idealist historian from whose writings I made a few quotations when dealing with the life of David and of some of his successors in the kingdom of Judah. He wrote about 200 years after the return under Cyrus, and his state- ments are often very inaccurate. On the other hand, we have in these two books of Ezra and Nehemiah some precious and authentic fragments from the memoirs of the two chief actors of the time, who give these books their names. This is how the idealist historian describes the return. Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying. Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth ; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people ? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel. And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the meu FROM POETRY TO PROSE 507 of his place help hiih with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God in Jerusalem, Then rose up the heads of fathers' houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, even all whose spirit God had stirred to go up to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. And al] they that were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts, and with precious things, beside all that was willingly offered. Also Cyi'us the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods: even those did Cyrus king of Persia bring forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and numbered them unto Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah. And this is the number of them : thirty chargers of gold, a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives; thirty tankards of gold, silver tankards of a second sort four hundred and ten, and other vessels a thousand. All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up, when they of the captivity were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem. The whole congregation together was forty and two thousand three hundred and three score, beside their men- servants and their maidservants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven : and there were among them two hundred singing men and singing women. Their horses were seven hundred thirty and six ; their mules, two hundred forty and five; their camels, four hundred thirty and five; their asses, six thousand seven hundred and twenty. And some of the heads of fathers' houses, when they came to the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem, offered wiUingly for the house of God to set it up in its place : they gave after their ability into the treasury of the work threescore and one thousand darics of gold, and five thousand pound of silver, and one hundred priests' garments. * Charger' is an old English word meaning 'platter,' and some- times also ' basin ' or * bowl/ Sir Walter Scott, in Old Mortality, speaks of 'a huge charger of broth.' 'Knives' should more probably be ' pans/ The ' silver tankards of a second sort ' rest on 5o8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING some corruption in the Hebrew text. If we add up the list of vessels, it comes to 2,499, instead of 5,400. The Persian gold- coin called a *daric' was worth about 23 shillings; the silver 'pound' was worth about 4^d. Many statements made in this passage are very doubtful. The return under Cyrus was probably less important than the historian makes out : fewer took part in it. Sheshbazzar is usually identi- fied with Zerubbabel, the grandson of Jehoiachin. Some scholars, however, believe that he was a Persian official. We must remember that the Jews were not independent. Their country formed a mere province of the great empire of Persia. The story of the return is continued by the idealizing historian as follows ; And when the seventh month was corae^ and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem. Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerub- babel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God. And they set the altar upon its old base; for fear was upon them because of the inhabitants of the land: and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord, even burnt offerings morning and evening. They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the custom, as the duty of every day required ; and after- ward the continual burnt offering, and those of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of the Lord that were con- secrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill offering unto the Lord, From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the Lord: but the foundation of the temple of the Lord was not yet laid. They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea, unto Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia. Now in the second year of their coming unto the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the remnant of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all WEEPING AND JOY 509 they that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem; and appointed the Levites^ from twenty years old and upward^ to set forward the work of the house of the Lord. Then Jeshua with his sons and his brethren^ and Kadmiel and his sons^ and the sons of Hodaviah^ and the sons of Henadad with their brethren the Levites^ entered into their service to have the oversight of the workmen in the house of God. And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the Lord, after the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the Lord, saying. For he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers' houses, the old men that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice ; and many shouted aloud for joy : so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people : for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off. Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the Lord God of Israel ; then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the heads of fathers' houses, and said unto them, Let us build with you : for we seek your God, as ye do : and we do sacrifice unto him since the days of Esar-haddon king of Assyria, who brought us up hither. But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses of Israel, said unto them. Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto our God; but we ourselves together will build unto the Lord God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia hath commanded us. Then the inhabitants of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building, and hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even unto the reign of Darius king of Persia, This passage is full of difficulties into which I cannot enter here. It would scarcely seem as if the attempted rebuilding of the 5IO THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Temple advanced even so far as is here described. In tbe year 520 two prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, still speak of the existing ruins of the old Temple, and do not allude to any earlier, if un- successful, attempt at restoration or rebuilding. Who are the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin ? They seem to have been mainly the mixed inhabitants of what was once the northern kingdom. Were the Jews right or wrong in their exclusiveness and refusal 1 On the one side, it may be urged that these neighbours probably did not worship or think of God as purely as the Jews ; on the other side, it may be urged that the Servant of the Lord should help and not hinder, attract and not repel. * A bruised reed shall he not break, and a dimly burning wick shall he not quench.' Surely the Second Isaiah would have given a different counsel. Still, it would never have done for the JewSj with their higher and purer religion (for the exile had purified their faith), to have been swamped by the northerners. It is difficult to judge their action fairly at this distance of time, and with our very scrappy and imperfect knowledge of the circumstances. § 2. For sixteen years, then, things were at a standstill at Jerusalem. Then in 520 B.C. the building of the Temple was taken vigorously in hand, and in the year 516 b. c. it was com- pleted. The historian describes these events as follows. But I do not think we must place reliance upon the verbal accuracy of the supposed decrees of either king Cyrus or king Darius. Now the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel. Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem; and with them were the prophets of God, helping them. At the same time came to them Tattenai, the governor beyond the river, and Shethar-bozenai, and their companions, and said thus unto them. Who gave you a decree to build this house ? And they spake unto them after this manner. What are the names of the men that make this building ? But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, and they did not make them cease, till the matter should come to Darius, and answer should be returned by letter concerning it. The copy of the letter that Tattenai, the governor beyond the river, and Shethar-bozenai, and his companions the Apharsachites, who were beyond the river, sent unto Darius THE LETTER OF TATTENAI 511 the king : they sent a letter unto him^ wherein was written thus : Unto Darius the kingj all peace. Be it known unto the king, that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, which is builded with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls, and this work goeth fast on and prospereth in their hands. Then asked we those elders, and said unto them thus. Who gave you a decree to build this house ? We asked them their names also, to certify thee, that we might write the names of the men that were the chief of them. And thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and build the house that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and set up. But because our fathers provoked the God of heaven unto wrath, he gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house, and carried the people away into Babylon. But in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree to build this house of God. And vessels also of gold and silver of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem, and brought them into the temple of Babylon, those did Cyrus the king take out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered unto one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor ; and he said unto him, Take these vessels, go, put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be builded in its place. Then came the same Sheshbazzar, and laid the foundations of the house of God which is in Jerusalem : and since that time even until now hath it been in building, and yet it is not finished. Now therefore, if it seem good to the king, let there be search made in the king's treasure house, which is there at Babylon, whether it be so, that a decree was made of Cyrus the king to build this house of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send his pleasure to us concerning this matter. Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the archives, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon. And there was found at Ecbatana, in the palace that is in the province of Media, a roll, and therein was a record thus written : In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king made a decree ; Concerning the house 513 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of God at Jerusalem, let the house be builded, the place where they offer sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits; with three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber : and let the expenses be given out of the king's house : and also let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to its place, and place them in the house of God. Now therefore, Tattenai, governor beyond the river, Shethar-bozenai, and your companions the Apharsachites, who are beyond the river, be ye far from thence: let the work of this house of God alone ; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in its place. Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to these elders of the Jews for the building of this house of God: that of the king's goods, even of the tribute beyond the river, expenses be given unto these men, that they be not hindered. And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the word of the priests who are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail : that they may offer sacrifices of sweet savour unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons. Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let a beam be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon ; and let his house be made a dunghill for this : and the God that hath caused his name to dwell there overthrow all kings and peoples, that shall put forth their hand to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree ; let it be done with speed. Then Tattenai, the governor beyond the river, Shethar- bozenai, and their companions, according to that which Darius the king had sent, so they did speedily. And the elders of the Jews builded and prospered, through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the decree of Cyrus, and Darius, king of Persia. And this house THE PROPHET HAGGAI 513 was finished on the third day of the month Adar^ in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king. And the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy. § 3. Some of the words of the two prophets alluded to hy the historian have heen preserved to us in the Bible, Unlike the Second Isaiah in many things, they were like him in this. They expected that at the completion of a near event, the ideal or golden age would at once begin. They did not realize that the mills of God grind slowly. Haggai, for example, believed that if oBly the Temple were rebuilt and finished, God would fill the land vrith. glory. In his keenness for a material temple and for sacrifices, Haggai seems very different from Jeremiah, and not only different but inferior. "We must, however, remember that the circumstances of his time were quite unlike those of Jeremiah. And if the Jews had really neglected to rebuild the Temple from the causes mentioned by Haggai, they deserved his censure. Here are some of Haggai's words : In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, sayings Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying. This people say. The time to build the Lord^s house hath not yet come. Then came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet, saying. Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your cieled houses, and for this house to lie waste ? Now there- fore thus saith the Lord of hosts : Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and bring in little ; ye eat, but ye have not enough ; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink ; ye clothe you, but there is none warm ; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. Thus saith the Lord of hosts : Consider your ways. Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house ; and I vnll take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the Lord, Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little ; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why ? saith the Lord of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, while ye run every man to his own house. Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit. Ll 514 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands. Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the Lord theu' God had sent him; and the people did fear before the Lord. Then spake Haggai the Lord^s messenger in the Lord^s message unto the people, saying, I am with you, saith the Lord. And the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor bi Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people ; and they came and did work in the house of the Lord of hosts, their God, in the four and twentieth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king. In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet, saying. Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtid, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying. Who is left among you that saw this house in its former glory ? and how do ye see it, now? is it not in your eyes as nothing? Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the Lord; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest ; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the Lord, and work : for I am with you, saith the Lord of hosts, and my spirit abideth among you ; fear ye not. For thus saith the Lord of hosts : Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the desirable things of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, and in this place will I give peace. Zechariah was filled with a similar unrealized hope, and Le connected it closely with Zerubbabel, the governor of his time and the grandson of Jehoiachin, and with Joshua the high priest. Zerubbabel would complete the Temple and sit upon his father's throne ; while Joshua the priest would stand at his right hand, ZECHARIAH AND THE CROWNS 515 and, harmony and peace would prevail between them. Jerusalem would be filled with outward glory and spiritual blessedness. On one occasion, when certain Jews in Babylon had sent an embassy and gifts to Jerusalem, Zechariah felt impelled to act as follows : And the word of the Lord came unto me^ saying. Take of the gifts of them of the captivity, even of Heldai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah ; and come thou the same day, and go into the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah, vrhither they are come from Babylon; yea, take sUver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Zerubbabel and of Joshua the high priest ; and speak unto them, saying. Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying. Behold, a man whose name is the Sprout ; and it shall sprout forth under him, and he shall build the temple of the Lord : even he shall build the temple of the Lord ; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne ; and there shall be a pnest upon his right hand : and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. And the crowns shall remain for a memorial to Heldai, and Tobijah, and Jedaiah, and to the kindness of the son of Zeghaniah, in the temple of the Lord. And they that are far on shall come and build in the temple of the Lord, and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you. This daring prediction was not realized. Zerubbabel never ascended the throne of his ancestors. To another deputation from Babylon, who came with a question as to the continued observance of the fasts connected with the siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple, Zechariah answers in the true prophetical manner. And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chislev, that the family of Elsharezer and Regem-melech sent an embassy to intreat the favour of the Lord, and to speak unto the priests of the house of the Lord of hosts, and to the prophets, saying. Should I weep in the five months, abstaining from food, as I have done these so many years ? Then came the word of the Lord of hosts unto me, saying. Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying. When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month, even these seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me ? And L 1 2 5i6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING when ye eat^ and when ye drink^ are not ye they that eat, and are not ye they that drink ? Were not these the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the South and the lowland ? Execute true judgement, and shew mercy and compassion every man to his brother: and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart? But they refused to hearken, and turned a stubborn shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the teaching and the words which the Lord of hosts sent by his spirit by the hand of the former prophets : therefore came a gi'eat wrath from the Lord of hosts. Therefore it came to pass that, as he cried, and they would not hear; so they shall cry, and I will not hear, said the Lord of hosts; but I will scatter them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate. But now, thus saith the Lord : I am returned unto Zion, and will dweU in the midst of Jerusalem : and Jerusalem shall be called The city of truth ; and the mountain of the Lord of hosts The holy mountain. There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, every man with his stafE in his hand for very age. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof. These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth with his neighbour ; execute the judgement of truth and peace in your gates : and let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour ; and love no false oath : for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts : The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love ye truth and peace. Thus saith the Lord of hosts : It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come peoples, and the inhabitants of many cities: and the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying. Let us go speedily to intreat the favour of 'WE WILL GO WITH YOU* 517 the Lordj and to seek the Lord of hosts: I will go also. Yea, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to intreat the favour of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts : In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, shall even take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying. We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you. The fast of the fourth month commemorated the capture of Jerusalem by Nebuchadrezzar. The fast of the fifth month commemorated the burning of the Temple. The fast of the seventh month commemorated the murder of Gedaliah. The fast of the tenth month commemorated the opening of the siege of Jerusalem. In his prophecy of a time when many nations shall 'join them- selves to God and be to him for a people/ as well as in his noble contrast between fasting and goodness, Zechariah combines the spirit both of the Babylonian Isaiah and of the old prophets of the two kingdoms. Not unworthily is the list of historical prophets closed with him. We need not be troubled that his anticipations of the near future were not realized. The very fact that they were not realized shows that God regards it as a desirable thing for us that in the words of one and the same teacher truth and error should be strangely mingled together. It is for us to use, on the one handj our reason and our knowledge, and, on the other hand, our faith in goodness and in God, to discover for ourselves, whether in the Bible or in any other book, the good, the true, and the beautiful, and to profit by and cherish them for our own improvement and help. § 4. For over fifty years after the completion of the Temple in 516 B.C. we know little or nothing of the condition of the community. Many among them seem to have contracted marriages with the semi-Israelites of the north and with other neighbouring tribes. If the religious purity of the community had not suffered by these alliances, they would not have been undesirable. But as a fact it would seem that tbey tended to depress the level of religious knowledge and fervour, though it must be remembered that we only know about them through the writings of their very bitter and, on the whole, somewhat narrow-minded opponents. In the year 458 B.C. Ezra, a Jewish priest, arrived at Jerusalem at the head of a fresh band of Jewish emigrants from Babylon. The date of his arrival is, however, disputed, and it is quite possible that Ezra's journey to Jerusalem took place several years after 458, and was subsequent to the arrival of Nehemiah, wlio is 5i8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING usually placed after him. Ezra brought with him a new law book from Babylon, which was chiefly concerned with the better and more detailed regulation of the Temple ceremonial, and with various ritual practices for both laymen and priests. That code book was afterwards added to the law of the Ketrospect, then already appended to certain older narratives, and this composite compilation now forms the first ^ve 'books' of the Bible, and is commonly known as the Pentateuch. Pentateuch is made up of two Greek words, ' Pente/ which means * five/ and ' Teuchos/ which in late Greek means 'book.' This is the account which we have of Ezra's journey and doings. Part of it is taken, more or less verbatimj from his own memoirs. Now after these things^ in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the. son of Hilkiah, the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub, the son of Amariah^ the son of Azariah, the son of Mei'aioth, the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi^ the son of Bukkij the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest : this Ezra went up from Babylon ; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which the Lord God of Israel had given : and the king granted him all his request, accoi*ding to the hand of the Lord his God upon him. And there went up some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king. And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, in the seventh year of the king. For upon the first day of the first month began he to go up from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month came he to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him. For Ezra had directed his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgements. Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest, the scribe, even the scribe of the words of the commandments of the Lord, and of his statutes to Israel. Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, and so forth. I make a decree, that all they of the people of Isi*ael, and their priests and Levites, in my realm, who are minded of their own free will to go to Jerusalem, go with thee. Foras- much as thou art sent of the king and his seven counsellors^ THE DECREE OF ARTAXERXES 519 to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of thy God which is in thine hand ; and to carry the silver and gold^ which the king and his counsellors have freely offered unto the God of Israel, whose habitation is in Jerusalem, and all the silver and gold that thou mayest find in all the province of Babylon, with the freewill offering of the people, and of the priests, offering willingly for the house of their God which is in Jerusalem; therefore thou shalt buy with this money bullocks, rams, lambs, with their meal offerings and their drink offerings, and offer them upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerusalem. And whatsoever shall seem good to thee and to thy brethren to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, that do after the will of your God. The vessels also that are given thee for the service of the house of thy God, deliver thou before the God of Jerusalem. And whatsoever more shall be needful for the house of thy God, which thou shalt have occasion to bestow, . bestow it out of the king's treasure house. And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers who are beyond the river, that whatso- ever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done exactly, unto an hundred talents of silver, and to an hundred measures of wheat, and to an hundred baths of wine, and to an hundred baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much. What- soever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be diligently done for the house of the God of heaven ; for why should there be wrath against the realm of the king and his sons ? Also we certify you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, the singers, porters, or ministers of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose toll, tribute, or custom upon them. And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God that is in thine hand, set magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God ; and teach ye them that know them not. And whosoever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, let judgement be executed upon him, whether it be unto death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprisonment. Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, who hath put such a thing as this in the king's heart, to beautify the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem; and hath extended mercy 520 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING unto me before the king^ and his counsellors^ and before all the king's mighty princes. And I was strengthened accord- ing to the hand of the Lord my God upon me, and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me. Ezra then gives a list of his associates. 1068 men had joined him, exclusive of women and children. He continues as follows : And I gathered them together to the river Ahava, and there we encamped three days. Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek of him a straight road, for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of ,soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way : because we had spoken unto the king, saying. The hand of our God is upon all them that seek him, for good; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him. So we fasted and be- sought our God for this : and he was intreated of us. Then I separated twelve of the chiefs of the priests, and Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren with them, and weighed unto them the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, even the ofering for the house of our God, which the king, and his counsellors, and his princes, and all Israel there present, had offered : I even weighed into their hand six hundred and fifty talents of silver, and silver vessels an hundred talents ; of gold an hundred talents; and twenty tankards of gold, of a thousand darics; and two vessels of glittering brass, precious as gold. And I said unto them. Ye are holy unto the Lord, and the vessels are holy ; and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering unto the Lord God of your fathers. Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh them before the chiefs of the priests and the Levites, and the pi'inces of the fathers' houses of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the chambers of the house of the Lord. So the priests and the Levites re- ceived the weight of the silver and the gold, and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem unto the house of our God. Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem : and the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and of such as lay in wait by the way. And we came to Jerusalem, and abode there three days. And on the fourth day was the silver and the gold and the vessels EZRA' AT JERUSALEM 521 weighed in the house of our God into the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest ; and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas ; and with them was Jozabad the son of Jeshua^ and Noadiah the son of Binnui, the Levites; the whole by number and by weight: and all the weight was written down at that time. Now when these things were done^ the princes came to me, saying. The people of Israel, and the priests and the LeviteSj have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, as they should have done because of their abomina- tions, even from the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Periz- zites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. For they have taken of their daughters for themselves and for their sons ; so that the holy seed have mingled themselves with the peoples of the lands : yea, the hand of the princes and rulers hath been chief in this trespass. And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonied, because of the trespass of them of the captivity. Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, but I sat astonied until the evening sacrifice. And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness ; and having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the Lord my God ; and I said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God : for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our guiltiness is grown up unto the heavens. Since the days of our fathei*s have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to spoiling, and to confusion of face, as it is this day. And now for a little moment grace hath been shewed from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage. For we are bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem, 522 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? for we have forsaken thy commandments, which thou hast commanded by thy servants the prophets, saying. The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land because of the filthiness of the peoples of the lands, through their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleanness. Now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daugh- ters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their well being for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your chil- dren for ever. And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass guilt, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such a residue, should we again break thy commandments, and join in afi&nity with the peoples of these abominations ? wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor escaping ? O Lord God of Israel, thou art righteous ; for we remain yet escaped, as it is . this day : behold, we are before thee in our trespasses ; for we cannot stand before thee because of this. Now while Ezra prayed, and made confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children : for the people wept very sore. And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said unto Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, and have married foreign women of the peoples of the land : yet now there is hope for Israel con- cerning this thing. Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of om* God ; and let it be done according to the law. Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee ; we also will be with thee : be of good courage, and do it. Then arose Ezra, and made the chiefs of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they would do according to this word, And they sware. Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib : and he passed THE FOREIGN WIVES 523 the night there; he did eat no breads nor drink water: for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried into exile. And they made proclama- tion throughout Judah and Jerusalem imto all the children of the captivity, that they should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem ; and that vrhosoever vrould not come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all his substance should be forfeited, and himself separated from the congregation of those that had been carried away. Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves together unto Jerusalem within the three days ; it was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month: and all the people sat in the open place before the house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain. And Ezra the priest stood up, and said unto them. Ye have transgressed, and have married foreign women, to increase the trespass of Israel. Now therefore make confession unto the Lord God of your fathers, and do his pleasure : and separate yourselves from the peoples of the land, and from the foreign women. Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice. As thou hast said concerning us, so must we do. But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to stand without, neither is this a work of one day or two : for we have greatly transgressed in this thing. Let now our rulers be appointed for all the congregation, and let all them that are in our cities who have married foreign women come at appointed times, and with them the elders of every city, and the judges thereof, until the wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us. Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah stood up against this resolution, and MeshuUam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them. But the children of the captivity did accordingly. And Ezra the priest chose certain heads of fathers' houses, after their fathers' houses, and all of them by their names ; and they sat down in the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter. And they made an end with all the men that had married foreign women by the first day of the first month. Then there follows a list of the transgressors, including seventeen priests, ten Levites, and eighty-six laymen. Ezra proceeds thus : 524 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING All these had taken foreign wives, and — Here the memoirs (omitting five words which are corrupt and untranslatable) suddenly break off. We may assume that the foreign wives were expelled. This seems to us a horribly cruel resolution, but if there was a possibility of real idolatry recurring as . in the days of Ahaz or Manasseh, it may have been partially justified by the greatness of the danger. It is, however, very difficult to imagine that so ruthless a step was really necessary or right. § 5. The Book of Euth was in all probability written about this time to protest against an exclusive policy. Euth the Moabitess can become as good a Jewess as the purest blooded in the land, and she is the ancestress of the great national hero David. There were still some gentler and wider spirits in Israel who saw that the mission of the Jews was not to expel and to reject, but to teach and to convert, and that their aim should be not to exclude but to expand. One of them was a prophet, and a noble fragment of his work still survives. Would that his policy and aspirations had found more following and success I He is no less keen a Jew than Ezra and the rigorists, and the sanctification of the Sabbath is as important to him as to Nehemiah. Thus saith the Lord, keep ye judgement, and do righteous- ness : for my salvation is near to come^ and my righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that holdeth fast by it ; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil. And let not the foreigner that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying. The Lord will surely separate me from his people. For thus saith the Lord unto the foreigners, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; even them M^ill I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar : for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for air peoples. The Lord God who gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith. Yet will I gather others to him, beside those of him that are gathered. § 6. Ezra's memoirs, as we have just seen, break off suddenly. What happened afterwards is conjectural. It is likely that in several cases the husbands of the ejected wives followed them into EZRAS REPULSE 525 exile, and that they helped to kindle a flame of anger and revenge among the neighbouring communities whose daughters had thus been exposed to indignity. Both within and without Jerusalem there seems to have been opposition to Ezra's policy. Ezi*a, therefore, may have thought that he could not develop his plans further, until he had made Jerusalem itself more secui'e from attack. It is supposed that he attempted to rebuild its walls, and make it once more a fortified city. But his ■ enemies induced the Persian officials to represent to the king that this attempted fortification was a first step towards rebellion. Artaxerxes accordingly gave orders that the work should be stopped: the new walls were broken down. Great was the satisfaction of Ezra's opponents; his influence was destroyed, and it is quite possible that several of the men who had followed their wives into exile may now have returned with them to Jerusalem. It is an isolated and misplaced chapter of the Book of Ezra which has suggested the above conjectural course of events to many scholars. That misplaced chapter runs thus : — And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, unto Artaxerxes king of Persia 5 and the writing of the letter was written in Aramaic. Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king in this sort : Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions; the Dinaites, and the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archev- ites, the Babylonians^ the Shushanchites, the Dehaites, the Elamites, and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnapper brought over, and set in the city of Samaria, and in the rest of the cities beyond the river, and so forth. This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto Artaxerxes the king: Thy servants the men beyond the river, and so forth. Be it known unto the king, that the Jews who came up from thee are come unto Jerusalem; they are building the walls of the rebellious and the bad city, and have repaired the foundations. Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls set up again^ they will not pay toll, tribute, or custom, and it will at last bring damage to the kings. Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not meet for us to see the king^s dishonour, therefore have we sent and certified the king ; that search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers : so shalt thou find 526 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING in the book of the records^ and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time :■ for which cause was this city destroyed. We certify the king that, if this city be builded, and the walls set up, by this means thou shalt have no portion beyond the river. Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and in the rest of the cities beyond the river. Peace, and so forth. The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me. And I commanded, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein. There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all the country beyond the river ; and toll, tribute, and custom was paid unto them. Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given by me. Take heed that ye fail not to do this : why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings ? Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their com- panions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them cease by force and power. § 7. The noise of these events was not long in reaching Babylon. Yet whether this attempted rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and its failure took place soon after the expulsion of the foreign wives or not, is quite uncertain. The chronology is very obscure. If it took place soon after the expulsion, we are at a loss to understand why the result of it came as a shock and surprise to Nehemiah (as we shall soon hear) some twelve years later. If there was a long interval between the expulsion and the attempted rebuilding, what was Ezra doing in the meanwhile 1 However this may be, what we next hear dates from about the year 445, and comes from the memoirs of Nehemiah. Nehemiah was a trusted officer of the king of Persia, but he was also a devoted Jew. He was a man of strong feeling: a good friend and a fierce hater. He was somewhat too conscious of his own merits, and over anxious for their due reward from God. He forgot that a good deed is its own reward, and he sometimes offends us by attempting in a rather absurd way to remind God of his services to the cause NEHEMIAH THE CUPBEARER 527 of Judaism and religion. Nevertheless he had in many ways a noble character : he was zealous, brave, high-minded and sincere. His fervent belief that he is fighting for the righteous cause, and his ever-present consciousness of his own rectitude of purpose, produced in him the type of character which in later ages becomes familiar to us in the nobler crusaders and puritans and in the cove- nanters of Scotland. This is how the book which bears his name begins : The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it came to pass in the month Chislev^ in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the castle, that Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men out of Judah ; and I asked thenx concerning the Jews that had escaped, who were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me. The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach : the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days; and I fasted and prayed before the God of heaven, and said, I beseech thee, O Lord, the God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments: let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee : yea, both I and my fathei'^s house have sinned. We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgements, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses. Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou com- mandedst thy servant Moses, saying. If ye trespass, I will scatter you abroad among the peoples : but if ye return unto me, and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts were in the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there. Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer 528 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of thy servant^ and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name : and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. (For I was the king's cupbearer.) And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him ; and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence. And the king said unto me. Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick ? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid. And I said unto the king. Let the king live for ever : why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire ? Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request ? So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said unto the king. If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it. And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be ? and when wilt thou return ? So it pleased the king to send me ; and I set him a time. Moreover I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may let me pass through till I come unto Judah ; and a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the castle which appertaineth to the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me. Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent with me captains of the army and horsemen. And when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly, for that there was come a man to seek the welfai-e of the children of Israel. So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days. And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me ; neither told I any man what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem : neither was there any beast with me. NEHEMIAH AT JERUSALEM 529 save the beast that I rode upon. And I went out by night by the valley gate, even toward the dragon's well, and to the dung gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire. Then I went on to the fountain gate and to the king^s pool : but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass. Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall ; and I turned back, and entered by the valley gate, and so returned. And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did ; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work. Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste', and the gates thereof are burned with fire : come and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach. And I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also of the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said. Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work. But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite,* and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said. What is this thing that ye do ? will ye rebel against the king ? Then answered I them, and said unto them. The God of heaven, he will prosper us ; therefore we his servants will arise and build ; but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem. § 8. Nehemiah then gives a long list of the various persona who undertook to rebuild various portions of the wall. He proceeds thus : But it came to pass that, when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews. And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said. What do these feeble Jews ? will they fortify themselves ? will they sacrifice ? will they make an end in a day ? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, which are burned? Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said. Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall break down their stone wall. Hear, O our God ; for we are despised : and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in M m 530 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the land of captivity. And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee. But we con- tinued to build the wall ; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof : for the people had a mind to work. But it came to pass that, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem went forward, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth ; and they conspired all of them together to come and fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder us. But we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them. And the Jews said. The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish ; so that we are not able to build the wall. And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come into the midst of them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. And it came to pass that the Jews who dwelt by them came, and reported unto us ten times from all places that which they had devised against us. Therefore set I in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows. And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people. Be not ye afraid of them : remember the Lord, who is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses. And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work. And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my people wrought in the work, and half of them held the swords and the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons ; and the rulers were behind all the Jews that builded the wall. And they that bare burdens were also ready for battle ; every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other held his weapon ; and the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me. And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people. The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another: in what place soever ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us ; our God shall fight for us. THE BUILDING OF THE WALLS 531 So we wrought in the work : and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared. Likewise at the same time said I unto the people^ Let every one with his people lodge within Jerusalem^ that in the night they may he a guard to us^ and may labour in the day. So neither I^ nor my brethren^ nor my servants^ nor the men of the guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes j every one had his weapon by his right hand, § 9. And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews. For there were that said, We have to pledge our sons and our daughters that we may get corn, that we may eat and live. Some also there were that said. We are mortgaging our fields, and our vineyards, and our houses, that we may buy com, because of the dearth. There were also that said. We have borrowed money for the king's tribute upon our fields and our vineyards. Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children : and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought into bondage already : neither is it in our power to avoid it; for other men have our lands and our vineyards. And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words. Then I consulted with myself, and contended with the nobles and the rulers, and said tmto them. Ye exact usury, every one of his brothei*. And I called a great assembly against them. And I said unto them. We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, who were sold unto the heathen ; and will ye even sell your brethren, or shall they sell themselves unto us ? Then held they their peace, and found nothing to answer. Also I said. It is not good that ye do : ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God, because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies ? And I likewise, my brethren and my servants, have lent them money and corn on usury, I pray you, let us leave off this usury. Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their fields, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also remit the exaction of the pledge for the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye have lent them. Then said they. We will restore them, and will require nothing of them ; so will we do, even as thou sayest. Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them, that M m 3 532 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING they should do according to this promise. Also I shook out my lap, and said. So God shake out every man from his house, and from his labour, that performeth not this promise ; even thus be he shaken out, and emptied. And all the con- gregation said. Amen, and praised the Lord. And the people did according to this promise. Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year even unto the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes the king, th^t is, twelve years, I and my brethren have not eaten the bread of the governor. But the former governors that were before me were chargeable unto the people, and took of them for bread and wine daily forty shekels of silver ; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people ; but so did not I, because of the fear of God. Yea, also I continued in the work of this wall, neither bought we any land : and all my servants were gathered thither unto the work. Moreover the Jews, both the rulers an hundred and fifty men, and those that came unto us from among the heathen that were round about us, were at my table. Now that which was prepared for one day, namely one ox and six choice sheep, and fowls, was prepared at my cost, and once in ten days store of all sorts of wine : yet for all this required I not the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy upon this people. Think upon me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people. § JO. Now it came to pass, when Sanballat and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein ; (though at that time I had not set up the doors in the gates ;) that Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down : why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you ? And they sent unto me four times after this sort ; and I answered them after the same manner. Then sent Sanballat his servant unto me in like manner the fifth time with an open letter in his hand ; wherein was written. It is reported among the nations, and Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel; PLOTS AGAINST NEHEMIAH 533 for which cause thou buildest the wall : and thou wouldest be their king, according to these words. And thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying. There is a king in Judah : and now shall it be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together. Then I sent unto him, saying. There are no such things done as * thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart. For they all would have made us afraid, saying. Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. Now, therefore, O God, strengthen my hands. Afterwards I came unto the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabel, who was shut up; and he said. Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple : for they will come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee. And I said, Should such a man as I flee ? and how could I, a layman, go into the temple and live ? I will not go in. And, lo, I perceived that God had riot sent him : but he pronounced this prophecy against me : and Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. For this cause was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin, and that they might have matter for an evil report, that they might reproach me. So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days. And it came to pass, when all our enemies heard thereof, that all the nations that were about us feared, and were much cast down in their own eyes : for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God. Moreover in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters unto Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came unto them. For there were many in Judah sworn unto him, because he was the son in law of Shecaniah the son of Arab ; and his son Johanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah to wife. Also they reported his good deeds before me, and uttered my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear. Now it came to pass, when the wall was built, I set up the doors, and the porters were appointed. And I gave my brother Hanani, and Hananiah the governor of the castle, charge over Jerusalem : for he was a faithful man, and feared God above many. And I said unto them, Let not the gates 534 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot ; and while they yet stand at their posts, let the doors be shut and barred : and appoint watches o£ the inhabitants of Jerusalem, every one in his watch, and every one to be over against his house. Now the city was wide and large : but the people were few therein, and the houses were not builded. And my God put into my heart to gather together the nobles, and the rulers, and the people, that they might be reckoned by genealogy. And I found a register of the genealogy of them who came up at the first, and I found written therein : These are the children of the province, that went up out of the captivity of those that had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away, and that returned unto Jerusalem and to Judah, every one unto his city. § IT. Nehemiah proceeds to give this list, but, alas! at the end of it his memoirs are broken off, and what follows has no connexion with what has gone before. Later on we do get a short account of the dedication of the walls, but the narrative is a mixed one. There are a few extracts from Nehemiah's memoirs, but the rest is from the hand of the idealizing historian. To show which bit belongs to which, I will in this instance enclose the historian's portions in brackets. And the nobles of the people dwelt in Jerusalem : the rest of the people cast lots to bring one of ten to dwell in Jeru- salem the holy city, and nine parts in the other cities. And the people blessed all the men that willingly offered them- selves to dwell in Jerusalem. [And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, psalteries, and with harps. And the sons of the singers gathered themselves together, both out of the plain round about Jerusalem, and from the villages of the Netophathites ; also from Beth-gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth : for the singers had builded them villages round about Jerusalem. And the priests and the Levites pui-ified themselves ; and they purified the people, and the gates, and the wall,] Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the waU, and appointed two great companies that gave thanks and went in procession ; whereof one went on the right hand upon the DEDICATION OF THE WALLS 535 wall toward the dung gate : and after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of Judah^ [and Azariah^ Ezra^ and Meshullanij Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jere- miahj and certain of the priests^ sons with trumpets : Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Matta- niah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph; and his brethren, Shemaiah, and Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, and Judah^ Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God; and Ezra the scribe was before them :] and their course was unto the fountain gate, and going straight forward they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, above the house of David, even unto the water gate eastward. And the other company of them that gave thanks went on the left hand, and I after them, with the half of the people, upon the wall, above the tower of the furnaces, even unto the broad wall ; and above the gate of Ephraim, and by the old gate, and by the fish gate, and the tower of Hananel, and the tower of Hammeah, even unto the sheep gate : and they stood still in the gate of the guard. So stood the two com- panies of them that gave thanks in the house of God, and I, and the half of the rulers vrith me : [and the priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets ; and Maaseiah, and Shemaiah, and Eleazar, and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, and Malchijah, and Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang loud, with Jezrahiah their overseer. And they offered great sacrifices that day, and rejoiced ; for God had made them rejoice with great joy; and the women also and the children rejoiced ; so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.] § 12. Soon after the dedication of the walls there followed, as it would seem, a ceremony of still greater consequence. It was the reading of the new law book, which Ezra brought with him to Jerusalem, but which had not yet been made known to the community. That book was a compilation of narrative and laws, about which you can read for yourselves later on in the works of scholars. This is what we are told. Ezra's memoirs appear to have been used as the basis of the whole account. And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in their cities, then all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the open place that was 536 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses^ which the Lord had commanded to Israel. And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation, both men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month. And he read therein in the open place that was before the water gate from early morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could under- stand ; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law. And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Uriah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchijah, and Hashum, and Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and MeshuUam. And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people ;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up : and Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered. Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground. Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Janiin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah, the Levites, caused the people to understand the law : and the people stood in their place. And they read in the book, in the law of God, distinctly ; and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading. And Nehemiah the governor, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people. This day is holy unto the Lord your God ; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law. Then he said unto them. Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto him for whom nothing is prepared : for this day is holy unto our Lord : neither be ye grieved ; for the joy of the Lord is your strength. So the Levites stilled all the people, saying. Hold your peace, for the day is holy ; neither be ye grieved. And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them. And on the second day were gathered together the heads THE READING OF THE LAW 537 of fathers' houses of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to consider the words of the law. And they found written in the law, which the Lord had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month: and that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and branches of wild olive, and mp-tle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written. So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the open place of the water gate, and in the open place of the gate of Ephraim. And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and dwelt in the booths : for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, they read in the book of the law of God, And they kept the feast seven days ; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the statute. Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel assembled with fasting, and with sackcloth, and earth upon them. And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all foreigners, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the Lord their God a fourth part of the day ; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the Lord their God. Then stood up upon the scaffold of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto the Lord their God. Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Shere- biah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said. Stand up and bless the Lord your God from everlasting to everlasting : and let them bless his glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. And Ezra said. Thou, even thou, art Lord alone ; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the e^rth and all things that are thereon, the seas and all that is 538 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING therein^ and thou preservest them all ; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. Thou art the Lord God^ who didst choose Abraham^ and broughtest hhn forth out of Ur of the Chal- deeSj and foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hit- tite, the AmoritCj and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, even to give it unto his seed^ and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous. And thou sawest the afflictions of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red Sea ; and thou didst shew signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land ; for thou knewest that they dealt cruelly against them. And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their pursuers thou didst throw into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters. Thou earnest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgements and true laws, good statutes and command- ments : and madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant : and gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and didst promise them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them. But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their neck, and hearkened not to thy commandments, and refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them ; but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not. Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said. This is thy god that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great pro- vocations ; yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not. Thou gavest them also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst. Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing ; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not. Their children also didst thou multiply as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou didst say to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it. EZRA S SERMON 539 And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all goods, cisterns digged, vineyards and olive- yards, and fruit trees in abundance : so they did eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness. Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their back, and slew thy prophets who testified against them to turn them again unto thee, and they wrought great provocations. Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies who vexed them : and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest from heaven ; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours who saved them out of the hand of their enemies. But after they had rest, they did evil again before thee : therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them : yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest from heaven ; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies; and didst testify against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgements, (which if a man do, he shall live in them,) and turned a stubborn shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear. Yet many years didst thou bear with thdm, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit through thy prophets : yet would they not give ear : there- fore gavest thou them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. Nevertheless for thy great mercies^ sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them ; for thou art a gracious and merciful God. Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, let not all the travail seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day. Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us ; for thou hast done faithfully, but we have done wickedly : neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst testify against them. For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodness 540 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them, neither turned they from their wicked works. Behold^ we are servants this day, and as for the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof^ behold^ we are servants in it. And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins : also they have power over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress. So because of all this we made a faithful covenant and subscribed it. And to the sealing were subscribed the names of our rulers, our priests and our Levites. Here follows the list of twenty-three * princes ' or rulers, begin- ning with Nehemiah, who had signed their names ; then the names of twenty-two priests, eighteen Levites, and forty-four * chiefs of the people.' Then the narrative continues thus : And the rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the porters, the singers, and all they that had separated them- selves from the peoples of the lands unto the law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, every one having knowledge and understanding ; they clave to their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a bond, and into an oath, to walk in God^s law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord, and his judgements and his statutes ; that we would not give our daughters unto the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons : and if the peoples of the land bring ware or any victuals on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy of them on the sabbath, or on a holy day : and that in the seventh year we would let the land lie fallow and forego the exaction of every debt. Also we made ordinances for us, to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God ; for the shewbread, and for the continual meal offering, and for the continual burnt offering, of the sabbaths, of the new moons, for the set feasts, and for the holy things, and for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house of our God. And we cast lots, the priests, the Levites, and the people, for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, after the houses of our fathers, at times appointed, year by year, to burn upon the 'A FAITHFUL COVENANT 541 altar of the Lord our God^ as it is written in the law : and to bring the firstfruits of our ground, and the firstfruits of all fruit of all manner of trees, year by year, unto the house of the Lord: and to bring the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks to the house of our God, unto the priests that minister in the house of our God : and that we should bring the firstfruits of our coarse meal, and our heave offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, the wine and the oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God ; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites ; that they, the Levites, might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage. And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes : and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house. For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the heave offering of the corn, of the wine, and of the- oil, unto the chambers, where are the vessels of the sanctuary, and the priests that minister, and the porters, and the singers ; and we will not forsake the house of our God. § 13. It "will be noticed that even this new code book, with all its mass of purely ritual arrangements for sacrifices and offerings, was put in the mouth of Moses, and regarded by all the people as the law of Moses. So inveterate was the custom to ascribe all law, even the most modern regulations, to the Founder, Nor did the practice stop here. A quantity of unwritten rules gradually came into existence, and these too were regarded as traditional and as Mosaic. One would mind all this confusion much less if the laws had not been so purely ceremonial. Sacrifices seemed given a new lease of hfe in spite of all that the older prophets had said. The words of Jeremiah, though still preserved, were explained away or forgotten. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Put your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat their flesh. For I spake not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices : but this thing commanded I them, saying. Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you. A singer of the time attempted to stem the tide of ritualism in a noble hymu; of which the following is a portion. God is the speaker. 54^ THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Hear, O my people, and I will speak ; Israel, and I will testify against thee : The Lord thy God am I. 1 will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices ; Thy burnt offerings are continually before me. I will take no bullock out of thy house, Nor he-goats out of thy folds. For every beast of the forest is mine. And the cattle upon a thousand hills* I know all the fowls of the mountains : And the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee : For the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Do I eat the flesh of bulls. Or drink the blood of goats ? Offer unto God thy thanksgiving ; And so pay thy vows unto the Most High : And call upon me in the day of trouble ; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. He who offereth thanksgiving giveth me honour, And to him whose way is blameless I will shew the salvation of God. At the same time it is most necessary to remember that things were very different in the days of Ezra from what they had been in the days of Hosea and Jeremiah. For now the very same men who were so keen about sacrifices and offerings were also keen about justice and mercy, Hosea had said of God : * I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings,' Nehemiah and his party believed that God desired both mercy and sacrifices, both the knowledge of God and burnt offerings. As long as they remembered the mercy and the know- ledge of God, it did not much matter that the sacrifices and burnt offerings were superadded. It is interesting to compare the reading of the law under Nehemiah with the parallel story of Josiah's reformation some 1 80 years before. The religious advance is clearly great. The assembly of Josiah was convened by the authority of the king : Ezra's assembly was popular. We hear nothing of any weeping or lamentation in the year 62 1. In spite of their ritualism, religion had a much nobler and deeper meaning to the contemporaries of Ezra than to the contemporaries of Jeremiah. Jeremiah indeed stands head and shoulders above Ezraj but he is an isolated exception^. SECOND VISIT OF NEHEMIAH 543 whereas Ezra and Nehemiali are leaders of a considerable band. The way in which Nehemiah and his colleagues check the outburst of weeping is also noteworthy. This day, they argue, is holy unto God; eat, drink, be merry and send portions unto the poor. Cheerfulness and charity are both Jewish characteristics; both have been regarded by the best teachers of our religion as blessings and duties of man. § 14. Nehemiah, as he himself tells us, remained twelve years in Jerusalem as the governor of Judaea. Then he returned to Persia. After an unknown interval, he again visited Judaea. "Whether he came as governor is uncertain, but at any rate he was armed with considerable powers. All we know of this second visit is contained in one short last fragment of his memoirs. This fragment begins suddenly, and ends suddenly too. Some scholars suppose that Ezra*s departure from Babylon and his arrival in Jerusalem, as well as the introduction of the new law book, took place not partly before and partly during Nehemiah's first visit to Judaea, but altogether after the second visit. From what Nehemiah him- self tells us it would seem as if the regulations and ordinances to which he had induced the people to conform during his first governorship had been greatly neglected during his absence. He acted accordingly with a very high hand. This is what we hear. And before this, Eliashib the priest, who was appointed over the chambers of the house of our God, being allied unto Tobiah, had prepared for him a great chamber, where afore- time they laid the meal ^ offerings, the frankincense, and the vessels, and the tithes of the corn, the wine, and the oil, which was commanded to be given to the Levites, and the singers, and the porters; and the heave offerings for the priests. But in all this time I was not at Jerusalem : for in the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I went unto the king, and after certain days I requested leave of the king : and I came to Jerusalem, and understood of the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, in preparing him a chamber in the courts of the house of God. And it grieved me sore : therefore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber. Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers : and thither brought I again the vessels of the house of God, with the meal offerings and the frankincense. And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them ; so the Levites and the singers, that did 544 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING the work, were fled every one to his field. Then contended I with the rulers, and said^ Why is the house of God forsaken ? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place. Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the wine and the oil unto the treasuries. And I appointed over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah : and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah : for they were counted faithful, and their office was to distribute unto their brethren. Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and' for the offices thereof. In those days saw I in Judah some treading winepresses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses therewith; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day : and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals. There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, who brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them. What evil thing is this that ye do, that ye profane the sabbath day ? Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city ? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. And it came to pass that, when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and commanded that they should not be opened till after the sabbath : and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day. So the merchants and sellers of all kinds of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice. Then I testified against them, and said unto them. Why lodge ye before the wall ? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath. And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy. In those days also saw I the Jews that had married wives of Ashdod, of Amnion, and o^ Moab: and their children spake half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in A HARVEST HYMN 545 the Jews' language, but according to the language of each people. And I contended with them, and reviled them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying. Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons, or for yourselves. Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things ? yet among many nations was there no king like him, and he was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel : nevertheless even him did foreign women cause to sin. Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying foreign women ? And one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was son in law to Sanballat the Horonite: therefore I chased him from me. Thus cleansed I the priesthood from all foreigners, and appointed charges for the priests and for the Levites, every one in his business ; and for the wood offering, at times appointed, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good. Perhaps these strong measures of Nehemlah were justified by the circumstances of the time. But that we may never forget that the highest aspirations of Judaism are expansive and not exclusive, let us put side by side with these last words of Nehemiah a lovely harvest hymn, composed perhaps at about the same period by a pious Jewj less practical than Nehemiah doubtlesSj but with a wider outlook into the future. God be merciful unto us, and bless us. And cause his face to shine upon us ; That thy way may be known upon earth. Thy salvation among all nations. Let the peoples praise thee, O God ; Let all the peoples praise thee. O let the nations be glad and sing for joy. That thou rulest the peoples with equity, And leadest the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise thee, O God ; Let all the peoples praise thee. The earth hath yielded her increase ; The Lord our God hath blessed us. God shall bless us ; And all the ends of the earth shall fear him, N n 546 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING § 15. There are certain chapters now included in the Book of Isaiah, which Professor Cheyne (who has given more labour and thought to that book than any other great scholar of his day) believes to have been most probably written in the age of Ezra and Nehemiah. One of these chapters I have already quoted on p. 153. It is the magnificent prophetic conception of a true Fast. The first part of the following chapterj written perhaps by the same great teacher, brings heavy charges against the moral con- dition of the Jews at that time. Should we date the passage between the first and second visits of Nehemiahl Beholdj the Lord's hand is not shortened^ that it cannot save ; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear : but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have made him hide his face from you, that he will not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity ; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness. None putteth forward his suit in justice, nor any pleadeth in truth : they trust in vanity, and speak lies. They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web : he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper. Their webs will not serve for garments, neither can men cover themselves with their works : their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands. Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity ; wasting and destruction are in their paths. The way of peace they know not ; and there is no judgement in their goings : they have made them crooked paths : whoso- ever goeth therein knoweth not peace. Therefore is judgement far from us, neither doth righteous- ness overtake us : we wait for light, but behold obscurity ; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes : we stumble at noon day as in the night. We growl all like bears, and moan sore like doves : we look for judgement, but there is none ; for salvation, but it is far off from us. For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them ; in transgressing and lying against the Lord, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering SOME FRAGMENTS OF PROPHECY 547 from the heart words of falsehood. And right is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off : for truth hath stumbled in the street, and equity cannot enter. And truth is not to be found ; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. Immediately succeeding to this complaint, but, as Professor Cheyne thinks, not originally connected with it, comes a de- scription, as it would seem, of the divine deliverance of Israel from the Persian supremacy and from its surrounding and neigh- bouring foes. In this prophecy we notice what we have often had occasion to notice before : a zeal for religion, not sufficiently purified from national and party hatreds, makes the language of the writer intemperately violent whenever he looks beyond the limits of his own community. Let us, who are so far removed from all these local and national hatreds, seek to absorb and profit by what is noble and abiding in these utterances, and neglect what is temporary and imperfect. And the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgement. And he saw that there was no man, and marvelled that there was none to interpose : therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteous- ness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head ; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies. So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. For he shall come like a straitened stream which the breath of the Lord driveth on, but as a redeemer shall he come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord, As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord : My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed^s seed, saith the Lord, from henceforth and for ever, I will here quote another famous fragment which may also have been written in the Nehemian age. He that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain. Cast ye up, cast ye N n 2 548 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING up^ prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people. For thus saith the high and lofty One that is enthroned for eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the , spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. For I will not contend for ever, neither will^ I be always wroth : for the spirit would fail before me, and the souls which I have made. For his iniquity was I wroth, and smote him : I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart. I have seen his ways, and will heal him : I will lead him also, and bring comfort unto him and to his mourners. Thus saith the Lord, that createth the fruit of the lips ; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, and I will heal him. But the wicked are like the troubled sea, for it cannot rest, and its waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. Several great doctrines of religion seem contained in this short passage. God dwells on high, but he also dwells below. He is far and near at one and the same time, or rather his nearness and farness are not to be measured by considerations of space. He dwells with the humble. Just as intellectual humility is the condition of true wisdom, so moral humility is the condition of true religiousness. To the wicked, so long as he is unrepentant, there can be no peace : to the humble, peace is offered and is obtainable, be he near or be he far. Probably the writer meant 'near' and 'far' in this passage locally; he was thinking of the Jews who were in Jerusalem and Judah on the one hand, and of the many still scattered abroad in distant lands upon the other. But we may interpret 'near* and *far* like the Eabbis; the sinner is offered peace as well as the good, provided that he desires to obtain what is offered to him by the Eternal Saviour. § 1 6. A sincere student of the Second Isaiah, who lived perchance in the age of Nehemiah and of Ezra, drew a picture of the Golden Age, in the speedy advent of which he devoutly believed, in the following ode. He is in some respects a close imitator of his great master, but he falls a little short of him in depth and purity. He does not soar so high or see so far. Perhaps he wrote before Nehemiah had built the walls of Jerusalem. Arise, shine ; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, darkness covereth THE FUTURE GLORY OF JERUSALEM 549 the earthy and gross darkness the peoples : but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the nations shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see : all they gather themselves together, they come to thee : thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be borne at the side. Then thou shalt see, and shine with joy, and thine heart shall throb, and be enlarged, because the abundance of the sea shall be turned unto thee, the riches of the nations shall come unto thee. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah ; * all they from Sheba shall come : they shall bring gold and incense ; and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee : they shall come up vrith acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows ? Surely the sailors shall gather themselves together for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. And foreigners shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee : for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bi'ing unto thee the riches of the nations, and their kings in a captive train. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary ; and that I may make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee and that despised thee shall come bending unto thee ; and they shall call thee. The city of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an external excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the nations, and shalt suck the breast of kings : and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob, For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver : I will also make thy officers peace, and thy governors 550 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders ; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. The sun shall be no more thy light by day ; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee : but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down ; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself : for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all righteous : they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of ray hands^ that I may be glorified. The little one shall become a thousand, and the small one a strong nation : I the Lord will hasten it in its time. The same writer continues his now noble and now somewhat material anticipations of national prosperity and political inde- pendence in the two or three passages which immediately follow upon the preceding ode. He imitates the Second Isaiah by twice introducing the Servant of the Lord as the speaker. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me ; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek ; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound ; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God ; to comfort all that mourn in Zion, to give unto them a coronet for ashes, the oil of Joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness ; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your ploughmen and your vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord : men shall call you the Ministers of our God : ye shall eat the riches of the nations^ and in their glory shall ye adorn yourselves. Because shame in double measure, and confusion, and spitting were their portion : therefore in their land they shall possess the double : everlasting joy shall be unto them. For I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery and wickedness ; and I will recompense them in truth, and I will make an ever- 'MY DELIGHT IS IN THEE* 551 lasting covenant with them. And their seed shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples : all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed, I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God ; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered nle with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with a tiara, and as a bride adometh herself with her jewels. For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Loi'd God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. For Zion^s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jeru- salem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a torch that burneth. And the nations shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory : and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate : but thou shalt be called Hephzi-bah (my delight is in thee), and thy land Beulah (married) ; for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy Builder marry thee : and as the bride- groom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night : ye that are the Lord's remembrancers, keep not silence, and give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength. Surely I will no more give thy corn to be food for thine enemies ; and the sons of the stranger shall not. drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured: but they that have garnered it shall eat it, and praise the Lord ; and they that have gathered it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness. Go through, go through the gates ; prepare ye the way of the people ; cast up, cast up the highway ; gather out the 552 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING stones; lift up a standard for the peoples. Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh ; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. And they shall call them. The holy people. The redeemed of the Lord: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken, • "What are we rightly to think and say about these prophetic paeans 1 They seem to echo the words of the Second Isaiah, but scarcely to echo his spirit. The spirit seems sometimes to echo the esclusiveness of Ezra and Nehemiah. If God has a closer relation to Israel than to any other race, then we feel that the only ex- pression of that nearness which does not jar upon our moral sense is the immortal utterance of Amos : * You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth : therefore I will visit upon you all your iniquities/ (See p. 358.) There is a certain error of mind which people call Chauvinism : the word is only eighty years old, but the fault which it now serves to designate is far older. Chauvinism is an exaggerated or illiberal patriotism. There can moreover be Chauvinism in religion as well as in nationality. Among the Jews in the Neliemian age there was the very closest connexion between the nation and the creed. It was practically almost im- possible for any one to be keen and eager about his religion who was not also keen and eager about his people. For the cause of religion was (as it seemed) inexplicably bound up with the cause of the nation. The defeat of the one seemed the defeat of the other; the victory of the one seemed the victory of the other. For though the Jews at that time firmly believed in one God only, they also believed that he was their God in a far nearer and friendlier sense than he was the God of the Samaritans, the Persians, and the Egyptians, The consequence was that instead of religion checking the excesses of patriotic feeling, it positively increased them, "Whereas now, just because there are French Jews, German Jews, and Dutch Jews, or just because there are French Protestants, German Protestants, and Dutch Protestants, any false pride or enmity of English Jews or English Protestants against France, Germany, or Holland is checked and curbed by religion (for there is a community of religion which most happily does not coincide with the community of the nation), at that time all Jews belonged to one nation, and the religion was national. The purer and better it became, and the more fully the whole people was imbued with it, the deeper yawned the gulf between them and every other nation, and the wider and higher grew the barrier Avhich seemed to keep TWO GREAT DOGMAS 553 them aloof and asunder in proud and jealous isolation. Exclusiveness was dignified into a religious duty. Tlie Second Isaiah could hardly have taught what he did except ia exile. It is all the more remarkable that during the long period when it seemed impossible for a man to be a Jew in religion who was not a Jew by nationality, the teaching of the Second Isaiah never wholly died out. At least this much grew to be a common dogma of faith : that the drama of human history could never reach itsgoal until all mankind believed in one God only, and that God ' the Lord/ And with this dogma there went another, even though its implications were not, as regards the outer world, fully realized : the Lord is righteous, and loves righteousness. Both these great dogmas are clearly expressed in the prophetical passages which we have just read, and with the second as our guide and principle, we can ourselves determine the necessary developments and impli- cations of the first. Some of these developments we have, as it were, already seen exemplified in the Second Isaiah and in the fragment quoted on p. 524 ; other striking instances of them we have yet to hear. 554 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING CHAPTER XIX TRADITIONS OF THE PAST: VISIONS OF THE FUTURE § I. Before continuing in a second volume the history of the Jews after the age of Nehemiah, I will close the present volume by some extracts from the earliest chapters of the Bible. I do not say ' earliest ' because they were written first, but earliest because they come first. As I explained before, these two senses of * earliest ' by no means correspond. For instance, ihe first (and in that sense earliest chapter of the Bible was probably written some three hundred years after the second chapter, which now immediately succeeds it. The first chapter of the Bible had probably not yet been written at the time of the Second Isaiah. That first chapter is the opening of the introduction to the law-book written in Babylonia, and brought by Ezra to Jerusalem (pp. 518-535). § 2. You will remember that after a prefatory chapter of ex- planations, I told in the next four chapters of the present book, by means of extracts from the Bible itself, the story of the Hebrews, as they themselves have handed it down to us, from the ' first great Hebrew hero Abraham ' down to the death of Moses. Then in the sixth chapter I brought together a selection from the various laws and statutes which are assigned to the Founder. I explained tbat the narratives and the laws from which I quoted were written in different periods, and were pieced together by more than one editor and compiler. These narratives and laws taken together make up the first ^y^ books of the Bible, and are often called the Pentateuch. The word ' Pentateuch/ as I have already said, is derived from the Greek * Pente,' which means * five/ and ' Teuchos/ which in late Greek means 'book.' § 3. These ^yq * books ' are known in Hebrew by the words with which each begins. Thus the fifth bogk, which comprises the Betrospect, is called in Hebrew Beharim, or "Words, because it opens in Hebrew thus : Meh hadebarim, ' these are the words.' In English Bibles this book, which I have named the Retrospect, is called Deuteronomy, That again is a Greek word meaning literally THE BOOKS OF THE PENTATEUCH 555 second or repeated law. The name grew up out of an inexact Greek translation of a phrase in the following passage from the Retrospect, When thou art come unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me ; thou shalt surely set him king over thee, ^T'hom the Lord thy God shall choose : one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee : thou mayest not set a foreigner over thee, who is not thy brother. But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses : forasmuch as the Lord hath said unto you. Ye shall hence- forth return no more that way. Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away : neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites : and it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life : that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them : that his heart be not lifted up above his bretjiren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand or to the left : to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel. In the Greek the words * a copy of this law ' (which is a correct rendering of the Hebrew) are translated by ' this second or repeated law ' {to deuteronomion touto), and so the Eetrospect as a whole got the name of Deuteronomy. The fourth section of the Pentateuch is called in Hebrew after its fifth word, Bemidhar^ ' in the wilderness.' In the English Bible it is called NumherSi as in Latin Numeric and in Greek AHthmoL The name Numbers was given to it because it contains a census of the Israelite tribes. The third section of the Pentateuch is called in Hebrew Vayikra, ' and he called.' That is its opening word. In English we know it as LeviticuSi and it was so called because it contains a number of laws about the Levites and the priests, and the sacrifices and rites over which they presided. The second section of the Pentateuch is called in Hebrew Shemoi (names), because it begins with the words Veekh Shemot, ' And 556 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING these are the names.' In English it is called Exodus, because its main or most important subject is the Exodus from Egypt. Thus my fifth chapter (pp. 60-136) begins with the opening of Exodus, and contains selections from Exodus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The sixth chapter, which is a collection of laws (pp. 137-169), includes ordinances that are scattered through Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy. § 4. I have gone through the books or sections of the Pentateuch in their reverse order. The first section remains over. I have given extracts from it in my second, third and fourth chapters, which begin with the story of the * first great Hebrew hero Abraham' and end with the death of Joseph (pp. 9-59). But though I began my selections from the Bible with the story of Abraham, the .Bible itself does not begin with him. The first section of the Pentateuch is now divided into fifty chapters, and not till the twelfth chapter do we there come to the story of Abraham. There were two ' chronicles ' (as we may call them), both written before the Eetrospect, which told the stories of the old Hebrew heroes or patriarchs , as they are commonly called. Bits from both these chronicles, dovetailed sometimes in very ingenious fashion, are preserved to us in our present Pentateuch. You will remember how in the story of Joseph we were able to distinguish between the two versions of the one story (pp. 41, 49). And the later (or Ezra's) law-book (from which the first chaj)ter of the Bible is taken) is also set in a framework of history, and also speaks, though very briefly, of the old heroes, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For instance, the extract given in Chapter III, § 4, is taken from Ezra's law-book. One at least of those earlier chronicles began its narrative, as I have said, long before Abraham. And the later law-book in this respect followed its example. The first eleven chapters of the first section of the Pentateuch are made up of dovetailed pieces from one of these two earlier chronicles and from the later law-book. And now I come to the name of this first section, the name, that is, of the first book of the whole Bible. It is known in Hebrew from its opening word as BeresMtj ' in the beginning.' In English it is known as Genesis. Genesis is a good Greek word, meaning origin, birth, creation. And the reason for this name is accurate enough; for the Book of Genesis opens with the story of Creation, § 5. Both the author of the early chronicle and of the later law- book desire not merely to record the lives of Israel's ancestors, but also, as Professor Driver has said, * to define the place occupied by Isi'ael among other nations, and to show how it gradually emerges STORIES ABOUT CREATION 557 into separate and distinct existence.' They tlierefore trace the ancestiy of Abraham right back to the first man who ever liyed upon the earth, and they preface this with the story of Creation itself. How, you may reasonably ask, did these Hebrew writers know anything about such very far-off events ? Surely creation and the origin of man are veiled in the deepest obscurity, and science is only now beginning to lift the utmost corner of the veil. That is true. The world is millions of years, and man is thousands of years, older than these Hebrew writers knew of. Indeed, Igiowledge on these matters they had none. All they had was tradition. Most people have curious myths, legends and traditions about the origin of the world, the origin of man, and the origin of their own race. The Hebrews were no exception. But the traditions which they had were not purely Hebraic. They had them in common with their neighbours and kinsmen, and these legends and traditions passed and drifted about from land to land, and many versions and varieties of them came gradually into existence. Of late years fragments of the old Babylonian stories and traditions about the creation of the world, and the origin of man, and of the great Flood which destroyed all mankind except a single family, have been discovered and interpreted, and we find in them many curious and interesting parallels to the Hebrew stories and traditions preserved to us in the Bible. And even in Greek mythology there are some parallels to the biblical narratives. § 6. These stories, then, are in no sense historical. But there is a special peculiarity about them which makes them unsuitable reading with which to begin our knowledge of the Bible. They embody (more especially those portions of the eleven chapters which come from the earlier chronicler) popular traditions about very big subjects : Creation, the origin of evil, the beginnings of civilization, the subsequent destruction of all mankind except a single family, the diversities of language. Tradition and legend dealing with these huge subjects deal with them often in a childish, and sometimes in an unelevated way. The Hebrew writers took the traditions as they knew them and found them, and though they changed them here and modified them there, they left their essential character unaltered. - These first eleven chapters do not therefore by any means contain what is best and noblest in the Bible. The legends on which they are based were often crude, and the Hebrew writers could not remove their crudity without omitting them altogether. The ideas of the writers about goodness and God were often far superior to the ideas about goodness and God 558 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING which are reflected by these stories. And so it comes to pass that the greatest teachers in the Bible (e.g. Amos,^ Hosea or Isaiah) seldom refer or allude to the narratives contained in the opening eleven chapters of the Book of Genesis. Nevertheless the stories themselves are very famous, and he would be very ignorant who had never read them. And some of them contain noble thoughts and striking passages. But they are not suitable for anybody who is beginning to read or learn about the Bible, because of the reason which I have just given and on other grounds. I have therefore torn them away from their proper place, and instead of opening this volume with them I have inserted them as a concluding chapter. I will only here add one more word about them which was suggested to me by a very wise friend of mine who loves her Bible well. She bade me remember, as I through her bid my readers remember, that these old stories have been reverenced by countless persons for many hundreds^ of years. Therefore while we, in our devotion to the highest truth and goodness that we know, criticize them freely, we must yet treat them, in the very midst of our criticisms, with reverence and respect. And we must also bear in mind that though their writers or compilers had many child-like notions of things divine, in one point they never faltered (and that well nigh the greatest of all) : righteousness and goodness are the passports to God's approval. In other words, through righteousness we * live,' through sinfulness we 'die': the highest life is the life of goodness; the deepest death is the life of sin. If we then, as my wise friend says, learn to love what is morally true and good in these old stories, we shall hear the criticism upon them without danger. § 7. The Book of Genesis (and therewith the- Bible) opens, as I have already said, with the creation of the world. It gives two accounts of this Creation, the first taken from'the later law- book, the second from the earlier chronicle. The first account is the nobler, the simpler and the purer. Indeed, the first chapter of Genesis is a worthy opening to the whole Bible. In it those cruder religious notions about God (to which I alluded in the preceding paragraph) are conspicuously absent. Let us hear it as a whole. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void 5 and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God hovered upon the face of the waters. And God said. Let there be light : and there was light. And God saw the light, 'IN THE BEGINNING* 559 that it was good : and God divided the light from the dark- ness. And God called the light Day^ and the darkness he called Night, And there was evening and there was morning : the first day. And God said. Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters: and it was so. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament. And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning : the second day. And God said. Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear : and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said. Let the earth bring forth grass, plants bearing seed, and fruit trees yielding fruit after their kind, whose seed is in the fruit, upon the earth : and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and plants bearing seed after their kind, and trees yielding fruit, whose seed was in the fruit, after their kind : and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning : the third day. And God said. Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night ; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: and let them be for light in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth : and it was so. And God made the two great lights ; the gi-eater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night : he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness : and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning : the fourth day. And God said. Let the waters swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth towards the firmament of heaven. And God created great sea-monsters and every living creature that moveth, vnth which the waters swarm, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the 56o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth. And there was evening and there was morning : the fifth day. And God said. Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind : cattle, and creeping things, and wild beasts after their kind : and it was so. And God made the wild beasts after their kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after its kind : and God saw that it was good. And God said. Let us make man in our image, after our likeness : and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild beasts, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them^ Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it : and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said. Behold, I have given you every plant bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree whereon there is fruit yielding seed ; to you it shall be for food. But to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for food : and it was so. And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning : the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made 5 and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created. § 8. The last short paragraph, * These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created/ stood originally, as most scholars believe, at the opening of the whole. I cannot attempt to write any sort of commentary to this famous chapter. The writer seems to have imagined that before 'creation' there had existed from interminable time a chaotic mass THE SPIRIT OF GOD 561 of ' matter ' (in our ordinary sense of the word), and a limitless tumult of waters. What he means by the Spirit of God hovering, or brooding, * upon the face of the waters/ I do not know. You will remember how Milton expands the image in his famous invo- cation to the divine spirit at the opening of Paradise Lost : And chiefly Thou, O Spirit, that dost prefer Before all temples the upright heart and pure, Instruct me, for Thou know'sfc ; Thou from the first "Wast present, and, with mighty wings outspre9.d, Dove-like sat'st brooding on the vast Abyss, And mad'st it pregnant : what in me is dark Illumine, what is low raise and support ; That, to the highth of this great argument, I may assert Eternal Providence, And justify the ways of God to men. Note that to this Jewish writer God is one, omnipotent and supreme. There is and can be no resistance to his will. As he speaks, so it is. Into the problem why God created the world, the writer does not enter. It had probably not occurred to his mind. Moreover, the Creator himself is withdrawn from our sight. We only hear his Word ; that is to say, from the works of creation we infer the will of God. As the creation issues from the divine will it is * good.' At each stage of his work, *God saw that it was good'; while when the Supreme Artificer contemplates the Creation as a whole, including man the crown of it, * Behold, it was very good/ There is evil in the world, but the evil (our writer seems to imply) is not of God. It was not there originally. We shall see that the earlier chronicler also (like most other framers and recorders of creation stories) touched on this problem of evil, but in trutk neither he nor the wisest of the philosophers who came after him could (at the most) advance more than a few short inches on the road to its solution. Between ' all things come of God,' and ' from the good God there comes but goodness,* the human mind passes and repasses unceasingly. And at the last it can but say : ' Thou, God, art Truth, and before God who is Truth I must speak truly. Evil is Evil, and can never seem to me Good, but Good masters Evil as Hate is overcome by Love. Human righteousness and human love have their only source in Thy perfect righteous- ness and in Thy perfect love. Therefore, in spite of Evil, which 1 understand not, I will trust in Thee, for thou art Good.' Note that, according to our writer, man and beast, before Evil entered into the world, were alike herbivorous. Both lived only o o 562 THE BIBLE FOR tlOME READING on vegetables; the animals on one sort, man on another. The * wild beasts ' were at the beginning not wild beasts at all. The same fancy is found in the traditions of many races, just as so many have wistfully * looked backwards ' for the peace and happi- ness which were wanting in their own times. Of these things you can read in many books. I have already said that this story of Creation is a pure work of phantasy. There were no such six days, or six periods, nor were there plants upon the earth before there was sun or stars in the heaven. It is more important to notice the greatest feature of all in which this writer's idea of creation differs from any possible * story of creation ' which might be drawn up by anybody to-day. To use a long but expressive word, his point of view is antliro- pocentric, Anthrojpos is Greek for ' man/ and an anthropocentric point of view means a mental attitude for which man is the centre of everything. You will note that in this story of creation, man is not only the culmination of the whole process, but that for him everything else is made on earth and in heaven. Sun and moon and stars are created as * signs and seasons and lights ' for the use of man. The earth is the centre of the universe, which comes to an end at the firmament. The earth is fixed; the sun rises and sets. Whereas we now know that to space there is no limit or end. We know that the sun gives light and warmth to several other planets besides the earth, and that there are millions and millions of other stars beside the sun, myriads of which may each possess its own series of planets revolving round them, as our earth and its fellow-planets revolve round the sun. And on all these planets of all these suns there may be rational beings, wiser many of them perchance than we, praising the Wondrous Spirit- God who sustains the Infinite Whole in Kighteousness and Love, Thus our point of view has enormously widened : man is no longer the centre of the universe, while of all the rational creatures that adore God we human beings are not necessarily the highest in the scale. On the other hand, man's greatness remains in one respect untouched by the progress of knowledge, or is even increased by it, * So God created man in his own image : in the image of God created he him.' We do not precisely know what our author meant by these words. It is a striking fact that no later biblical writer ever refers to them. But other thinkers have also felt that there is some kinship or likeness at however great a distance between man and God. In the literature of Greece you will often come across the thought, expressed sometimes in noble and sometimes in phantastic forms. By the image of God we may THE DIVINE IMAGE 563 ■understand that man possesses Spirit or Reason, in virtue of which he frames the idea of Wisdom on the one hand, and of Goodness on the other, while he unites the two in the idea of God. Through Reason, the divine image, we can not only become wise and good, but know when we do well, and when we fail. Through the divine image we rise to the knowledge and the love of God. From God we come, of God we are : surely then, to God we go. If this be so, then man's greatness is as real as his littleness. But his humility must not be matched by his pride ; for whatever he has or whatever he is, the source is not in him, but in God. W© may profitably recall Milton's description of man : A creature who, not prone And brute as other creatures, but endued "With sanctity of reason, might erect His stature, and upright with front serene Govern the rest, self-knowing, and from thenco Magnanimous to correspond with Heaven, . But grateful to acknowledge whence his good Descends ; thither with heart, and voice, and eyes Directed in devotion, to adore And worship God Supreme, who made him chief Of all his works. It will be observed that God is made to say, ' Let us make man in o«r image, after our likeness.' The meaning of the plural has been discussed at great length by scholars and theologians. The most probable explanation seems to be that God is represented as declaring his will, like a monarch holding his court, among the assembled company of angels. And the words ' after ou/r likeness ' would imply that the image in which man is made is the image of that common nature wherein angels and God alike share, but which in God is unique and perfect, in angels derivative and subordinate. Angels are spiritual, we may suppose the writer to have imagined, but not perfect. And so man is spiritual too, but his spirituality corresponds rather with the imperfection of angels than with the consummate perfection of God. The story of the Creation suggested to the writer a justification for the Sabbath. Or rather, the idea of a Creation completed in six days was suggested by the existing institution of the Sabbath. In the Retrospect, and in a still older form of the Sabbath law elsewhere, the reason for the Sabbath observance is very different. It is purely human. But in the version of the Ten "Words found in the twentieth chapter of Exodus, and read in our synagogues (p. 95), the origin of the Sabbath is made to rest upon the story of 003 564 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING * the Creation in the later law-book. I do not know what the writer meant by the words, * And God rested on the seventh day/ To us they present no intelligible idea : for the activity of God is for us both ceaseless and tireless. It has been suggested to me that we may suppose God's ' rest ' to imply the idea of philosophic contemplation, which has its end in itself in contrast with creative action which has its end outside it. The highest mental energy does not ' make ' or * do,' but at the same time is intensely active. Its ' rest ' is the highest ' occupation.' But this idea is Greek and not Hebrew. The writer of the creation story meant by ' rest' some- thing analogous to what we mean- by it. Therefore the justification of the Sabbath in this version of the Ten Words appeals to us far less than its justification in the Eetrospect, For God does not ' rest/ in our human sense of the word, nor did he create the world in six days. But yet, as I have said on p. 95, ' even though God did not create the world in six days, still he remains its Creator, and the Sabbath, looked at in this light, becomes a day on which, week by week, we give thanks and praise to the Author and Sustainer of all the Universe, from the smallest thing in it to the greatest.' It is also noticeable that the institution of the Sabbath, according to our writer, corresponds in time with the creation of man. It is an institution, therefore, for all men, and not only for Israel. We may less confidently see one other idea both in this Creation story and in the other stories which follow it. ' At least we may believe that the idea was present to the compiler of the Book of Genesis as a whole. As mankind was created by God, and as all the races of men are descended from a single pair, so are they all related to each other. There is a bond of union, which transcends differences. All men are brethren : all the races of man are the common children of God. The Eabbis of the Talmud in their quaint fashion indicate the same truth. Why, they ask, was only one man created at the beginning (and not two or more) 1 Several answers are given, and one is this : * It was for the sake of peace, so that one man should not be able to say to his fellow, My father was greater than thine.' But a variant to this reply is elsewhere expressed thus : ' One man only was created at the beginning, so that the various families of men should not quarrel with each other. For if they quarrel even now, when but one man was created (i.e. when they all have but one and the same ancestor), how much more would they have quarrelled had there been two.* In the Midrash it is Bald that R. Akiba declared that the command, ' Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,' was the greatest axiom (or rule or THE GARDEN OF EDEN 565 inclusive assertion) in the Pentateuch. But Ben Azai said the verse (which will be quoted later on), * This is the book of the generations of Adam,' was the greatest. He meant that this verse implied the unity of the human race, and lay therefore at the bottom of all social morality. § 9. The compiler of the Book of Genesis and of the Pentateuch breaks off his first quotations from the later law-book (i.e. later than the Hetrospect or even than the Second Isaiah) at the end of the Creation narrative. I may here observe that he uses that law-book, with its framework of history, as the basis of his own work, so that by far the greater portion of it is thereby preserved to us. But before he gives us another and following section from the law-book, he insei-ts a second account of man's creation, drawn from the earlier chronicles. This account we have now to hear. At the time when the Lord God made heaven and earth — when no plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had sprouted (for the Lord God had not yet caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no man to till the ground, but a mist went up and watered the whole face of the ground) — then the Lord God formed the Man out of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life ; and the Man became a living soul. And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was divided, and became four branches. The name of the first is Pison : that is the river which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold ; and the gold of that land is good : there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel : that is it which goeth in front of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to till it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying. Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat : but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat: for when thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 566 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And the Lord God said^ It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every bird of the air ; and brought them unto the man to see what he would call them : and whatsoever the man should call them, that was to be their name. And the man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field ; but for a man he did not find an help meet for him. Then the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept : and he took one of his ribs, and filled up the place thereof with flesh ; and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from the man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And the man said. This at last is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh : she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore doth a man leave his father and his mother, and doth cleave unto his wife : and they become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. § lo. This second story of Creation is in almost every respect utterly different from the first. Man is certainly created before the animals, and apparently before the plants. In the former story man and woman are created together : here woman is created after man, and by a special and peculiar process. The second story is far less elevated. The writer of it had some striking and lofty ideas, hut he had no scruple in clothing these ideas in a popular and child-like form. This will be still more apparent as we proceed with his narrative. He adopts without demur the mythological stories, legends, or traditions current in his time, and they do not seem to jar upon him. Unlike the later writer, for whom Creation is the immediate result of the divine Will or "Word, our earlier chronicler represents God in the guise of a human artificer or workman, and (as we are soon to hear) he describes him as walking in the garden which he has made. This writer has the mind both of a grown man and of a little child, nor is he conscious of any conflict or disparity between the one half of him and the other. Some of his ideas are big ideas, and they deal with big problems ; some of his sayings are wise ; hut the form of his narrative almost always reflects the quaint imagination and simplicity of childhood. But, after all, the differences between him and ourselves are as nothing to the differences between ourselves ADAM AND EVE 567 and God. And at mucli of what the wisest of us no\v say and think about these high subjects, God, we may fancy, smiles as gently as we smile at the childish fancies of our old Hebrew story-teller, * God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.' In all life there was conceived to be something divine, for God is Life. But the quality of man's life is higher than the life of the beasts, and thus our author limits the divine breath as the source of vitality to man alone. God 'planted a garden.' What boy or girl has not heard of the Garden of Eden and of Adam and Eve 1 Well, here is the tale itself in the Bible's own words. The word ' Eden ' means in Hebrew ' loveliness ' or ' delight.' Hence the Garden of Eden is the garden of delight. But some scholars think that the word is Babylonian, and has nothing to do with the Hebrew noun of the same sound. The Garden of Eden is often called ' Paradise,' and one of the best results of the whole story is that it has produced our greatest English epic, Paradise Lost. Paradise is a Greek word, borrowed from the Persian, meaning 'an enclosed and wooded park,' In that sense it is also found in late Hebrew. It is idle to ask where the Garden of Eden was, for it is a garden of phantasy. Yet the rivers are real rivers, but they only show more clearly the unreality of the garden. For the Pison is probably the Indus, and the Gihon is the Nile, and the Hiddekel is the Tigris ; and thus we have a fairy river with its source in Asia, and with branches flowing round India on the one side, and round Ethiopia on the other I Ancient peoples had, as we have already heard, very strange and limited notions of geography. The lovely garden of Eden with its two forbidden trees, the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, rests on a basis of old and widely spread mythological stories. Eden has, as it were, connexions with the tales about the dwellings of the gods, which are usually placed on the summits of mountains. Ezekiel actually combines the garden of Eden with the mountain of the gods. Sometimes on the summits of these hills wondrous trees were pictured, sources of life and immortality. The Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden has many parallels, but the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil has as yet found no rival. And we may here at once notice a peculiarity of the story. Its sequel shows that the fruit of two trees was excluded from man's use. Yet the fruit of only one is actually prohibited ; and when man, as we shall hear, succumbs to temptation, it is again only one tree which is specifically mentioned. Hence some scholars have thought that the original story only contained the Tree of Knowledge of Good 568 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and Evil, while the Tree of Life was a later insertion, added on because a reader of the story could not imagine a proper Garden of Eden without its customary Tree of Life. What the writer meant by the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil it is not easy to say. "What were the ideas which he intended to convey ? It is not probable that he himself could have told us very clearly. Many peoples, as I have already mentioned, have believed that mankind has gradually degenerated, and they have placed in the forefront of human existence an Ideal or Golden Age. It was an age (they supposed) of purity and innocence, of happiness and peace. There was neither war nor strife, neither discontent nor travail. There was no sorrow and suffering ; there was no labour or toil. Whatever caused pain and want and turmoil in the world they knew was absent from the world's beginning and from the Golden Age. But when one comes to reflect what such an age could possibly be like, one sees that it would not be a human condition of things at all. For it is through labour and want, and even through suffering and pain, that all progress and civilization have come to be. Through the knowledge of sorrow, and even through the knowledge of sin, men have struggled upwards ; they have helped each other and have improved themselves. God has willed that man should only learn wisdom and goodness through the pressure of want and of evil. He can only learn the bliss of peace through the turmoil of struggle. So our story-teller of Paradise did right to join the knowledge of good and of evil together, for man can only hecome good through evil. Through evil, in the form of suffering and of want, he becomes wise; and through evil, both in that form and in the form of sin, he becomes good. It is a hard saying, but it is a true one. Who has lived to the age of fifteen and found it always easy to be good ? There are some persons (saintly persons we may call them, and saintly is a beautiful word describing a beautiful quality) who seem to find it easy to be always good. But they did not always find it easy. They have had their struggles and their temptations ; perhaps even an occasional fall. But tlirough and because of this they have reached the highest stage of human goodness — a saintly serenity of good. Even if they have scarce ever sinned at all, even if their struggles and efforts were always successful — struggles to resist evil, efforts to do the utmost good — ^yet these struggles and efforts by which they reached their level of saintship involve and imply the knowledge of evil, the knowledge of sin. Hence a Golden Age when there was no knowledge of evil would also be an age when there was no knowledge of good — an age of butterfly innocence perchance, but not a human life at all, not an existence to pine for THE GOLDEN AGE 569 or to regret. No, the only possible Golden Age for man must lie in the future, not in the past : it must be the distant goal of his development, and of his progress ; it cannot be placed — it has no meaning if we place it — at the beginning of his history, before that development and progress are fairly started and under way. And that is perhaps one reason why the great Hebrew prophets never refer to the story of Paradise. Their Golden Age is always to come : it is a beacon light, a loadstar beckoning forward to amendment and improvement. A paradise lost can have little influence upon human action : a new paradise to be won is better than an old paradise regained. Indeed, the original writer seems to have felt in some degree that the fall from paradise was not all loss. No doubt in human achievement and culture there seemed to him as much sorrow as gain, and greater weariness than joy. Yet he must partly have realized that the sentence on disobedient man (which we are now to hear) — * in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread ' — was not all punishment. Had he not some half- conscious feeling of the truth expressed in the famous adage of Hesiod : ' The immortal gods have set sweat before virtue * ? Moreover he is, as a matter of fact, unable to form any picture of a human condition without the knowledge of good and evil. It is true that he tells us that * the man and his wife were naked, and not ashamed.' But nevertheless man did possess a knowledge of good and evil, for otherwise how could he have even vmd&ratood, the command that the fruit of one particular tree was not to be eaten? He knew the meaning of obedience, and that it was right to obey. Therefore he already knew the good in its simplest and most comprehensive form. The Hebrew word for man is * adam* and therefore the first man is commonly called Adam. The noun * adam, or ' man,' has become a proper name. In the Hebrew, throughout the Paradise story, the word ' adam ' has the article prefixed, and it should therefore be translated * the man/ not * Adam.' But it was also used as the first man's name by the Hebrew writers themselves. It is not quite easy to see the writer's drift in the part of his story about the creation of woman. God determines to make 'an help meet' for the Man, and he first of all brings every beast and bird for Adam to see and name. But * for a man,' that is ' for a human being like himself,' the Man ' did not find an help meet for him.' Apparently the idea is that man could only find his mate and partner in a being like unto himself, related to God even as he. The formation of woman out of the man's rib is naive and child-like, but the words ' bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh ' suggest the thought of the absolutely unique tie which unites 570 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING a wife to her husband, and a husband to his wife. (Man in Hebrew, when you want to emphasize the sex, is Ish ; and Woman is Ishah; IsJiah is just the feminine affix 'ah* added on to the word 'tsh/ There is the same difference between Adam and Ish in Hebrewi as between Homo and Vir in Latin.) The writer generalizes the words of Adam in the famous saying, * Therefore a man leaveth his father and mother, and cleaveth unto his wife : and they become one flesh/ Holy as is the bond which binds a man to his parents, the bond which binds him to his wife is holier still. Great as is the love of a man to his father and his mother, the love of husband to wife is greater still. And note that in this story of the formation of woman, and in the aphorism of the story- teller, it is implied that this unique relation between husband and wife, which excels and transcends in closeness and in sanctity the relation between parent and child, subsists only between one and one. There can be no ideal of marriage and of married life unless there be but one wife to one husband. § II. We have now to hear bow the bliss of paradise was quickly lost. Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman^ Hath God really said^ Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden ? And the woman said unto the serpent. We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden : but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath saidj Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And. the serpent said unto the woman. Ye shall surely not die : for God doth know that as soon as ye eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw. that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her ; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked ; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. Now when they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And the Lord God called vxnto the man, and said unto him. Where art thou? And he said. PARADISE LOST 57i I heard thy sound in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said. Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done ? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the serpent. Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed among all cattle, and among every beast of the field ; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed ; it shall crush thy head, and thou shalt crush its heel. Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy pain ; in pain thou shalt bring forth children ; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. And unto the man he said. Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying. Thou shalt not eat of it : cursed is the ground for thy sake ; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee ; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the gi'ound ; for out of it wast thou taken : for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. And the man called his wife^s name Eve (Life) ; for she became the mother of all living. Unto the man also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them. And the Lord God said. Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil : and now, I fear lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever. Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man ; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden the Cherubim and the blade of the flashing sword to keep the way to the tree of life. § 12. In this story of 'Paradise lost,' the narrator has taken up and reproduced many early notions about God and life, which seem to us strange and distant. We can no longer tell what he 572 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING meant to convey by every part of it. Its opening paragraph is not the least difficult. What is the Serpent ? Why did it tempt the woman to transgress the command of God ? Is the Serpent an allegory ? Does it represent man's own evil desire 1 Or is it Sin personified ? No certain answer can be given to any of these questions, and it must be owned that the whole thing has only a far-ofP or antiquarian interest. It does not really much matter what is meant. God had said before that man was not to eat the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, ' for when thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.' These words do not necessarily mean * die at once,' but 'become mortal.' The notion apparently was that man as first created, if he had refrained from sin, could have lived on in Paradise for ever, even without eating from the fruit of the Tree of Life. The Serpent's answer was therefore partly true and partly false, and we know that ' a lie which is half a truth is always the blackest of lies.' The Garden of Paradise still partly retains its original char- acter as the garden of the gods. So in his naive simplicity the writer has not objected to speak of God audibly walking about in the garden in the cool of the evening. Note the mean way in which Adam tries to throw the responsibility of his sin partly upon Eve and partly upon God himself. (*The woman whom thou gavest to be with me.*) The curse pronounced upon the Serpent has little meaning to us. But in the old days the snake from very obvious reasons was an object of peculiar interest to man. Sometimes he was regarded with horror and fear ; sometimes he was venerated and deified. There were stories that in the Golden Age the animals and man spoke the same speech, and our chronicler has adopted and made use of this fanciful tradition. And another creation of fancy which his tale implies is that the serpent origin- ally had legs and moved about like other animals. Its creeping, insidious movements are due to a * punishment.' Needless to say such fancies have no value. The 'punishment' which the story- teller inflicts upon Adam is only a punishment to those who fail to see that labour is not a curse but a blessing, not the result of man's degradation, but the very condition of his progress and development. * Dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return.' The writer wrote truly. But since his time a nobler hope has dawned upon the mind of man : our body only shall return to dust, but as for our souls, our ' hope is full of immortality.' Eve, in Hebrew Chayah, means ' Life/ which the mother of mankind is rightly called. CAIN AND ABEL 573 ' Behold the man is become as one of us.' The words ' one of us * are supposed to mean ' like us possessors of the divine nature/ God is represented as talking to the angels. The knowledge of good and evil is an element in the higher nature whereof the angels partake partly, and God supremely and uniquely. God's fear lest man should now use his newly-acquired knowledge to discover the Tree of Life and to eat its fruit is again quite in accordance with ancient ideas. It is an illustration of that widespread notion of the envy of the gods which we meet with so frequently in Greek mythology and literature, as for instance very markedly in Hero- dotus. It is not in the least specifically Hebraic, and is inconsistent with those pure ideas of the divine Fatherhood to which the Jews, in the course of their long history, attained. As for the Cherubimj I must leave you to find out about them for yourselves in some good Commentary or in a Dictionary of the Bible, § 13. The story of the lost Paradise is immediately followed by the story of Adam's first two sons, called respectively Cain and Abel. For this narrative the compiler has again drawn upon the earlier chronicle, Abel was a keeper of sheep^ but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass^ that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord, And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect imto Abel and to his offering : but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth ? and why is thy countenance fallen ? Is there not, if thou doest well, lifting up ? and if thou doest not well, sin croucheth at the door. And unto thee is its desire, but thou shouldest rule over it. And Cain said unto Abel his brother. Let us go into the field : and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not; am I my brother's keeper ? And he said. What hast thou done ? Hai'k, thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now cursed art thou from the land, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand. When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength j a fugitive 574 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING and a vagabond shalt thou be on the earth. And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the land ; and from thy face must I hide myself, and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth ; and it shall come to pass, that any one that findeth me shall slay me. And the Lord said unto him. Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord gave Cain a sign, that no one meeting him should kill him. And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden, The way in which Cain realized that God 'had respect' to Abel's offering and not to his own is not explained, nor is it directly stated why it was that the offering of the one brother was accepted while the offering of the other was disregarded. But we are evidently meant to infer that Abel was righteous and Cain sinfulj so that we have here an early foreshadowing of the doctrine of the Hebrew prophets and sages, that * the sacrifices of the wicked are an abomination unto the Lord.' God is unbribable. * Is there not, if thou doest well, lifting up 1 ' That is the literal translation, but the Hebrew of this entire verse is very awkward, and is probably corrupt. If thy conscience is good, there is no need that thy countenance should be fallen. But if not, 'sin croucheth at the door ' ; like a wild beast which lies in wait ready to seize its prey. Sin seems regarded as an independent and separate living force, eager to grasp its opportunity. If a man fail but a little, Sin is always at hand to hurry and urge him forward in the downward path of iniquity. But man should grapple with Sin in good time, and should conquer it. "We may also transfer the entire scene of temptation, attack and defeat to within the soul. "We know that the evil impulse becomes harder to resist the oftener we yield to it, just as an habitual dwelling on evil thoughts and feelings is very likely to issue in evil words and deeds. Yet on the other hand we know that Sin, though the desire towards it be strong within us, can be and should be resisted. If we willi we can conquer it ; we can crush down the lower and evil impulse, and practically annihilate it. We can force it into submission, and compel it to disappear. Such may be the meaning of this passage, if the text be sound. But, as I have just said, this is probably not the case. "Wild beasts do not usually crouch ' at the door ' ; and the words ' unto thee is its desire' are very unsuitable in this connexion. It looks very much as if the phrase had somehow got mistakenly repeated from the 'SIN CROUCHETH AT THE DOOR 575 passage about the punishment of Eve, where almost the identical words occur. The punishment of Cain rests on the idea that the neighbourhood of Paradise was also the neighbourhood of the divine presence and dwelling-place. It therefore rests on an idea which has utterly passed away. When Cain says, ' From thy face I must hide myself, and any one that findeth me shall slay me,' the idea is that the locality near or in which God is forms a kind of sanc- tuary. And a sanctuary is for all antiquity a place of refuge for a murderer from the * avenger of blood/ We may also note that in this popular story it is quite forgotten that, according to what has gone before, Cain should really have nothing to fear, since besides himself and Adam no other man yet existed upon the earth. These old world legends and folk tales are never consistent with each other. The sign which was given to Cain is not explained, and it is idle to conjecture what is meant. Probably the story-teller himself did not know. Nor can we give any intelligible meaning or justi- fication to the fiat : ' Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.* It may just possibly be intended as a protest against the old system of avenging murder, by which in mournful and endless sequence of ruin, the murder of A by B was avenged by A's kinsman C, while the murder of B by C was avenged by B's kinsman D, and so on from link to link of an ever lengthening chain. § 14. After a short passage from the same chronicler as to the posterity of Cain and of Adam's third son Seth, the compiler of Genesis breaks off his citations from this source, and reintroduces us to the historical framework of the later law-book. What he now quotes fits on to where we had left off, and nothing probably was omitted in-between. The writer gives a supposed list of Adam's descendants down to the tenth generation, at which he makes a pause to give the story of the Flood. This list is of course purely phantastical, as are also the huge numbers of years which these ancient heroes are supposed to have lived. Whence he got his names and how they, as it were, grew up, none can tell. The passage is characteristic of the writer's somewhat dry and pedantic manner, and of his fondness for dates and lists and genealogies, and so I shall quote it in full. This is the book of the generation of Adam, In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him ; male and female created he them ; and he blessed them, and called their name Man, in the day when they were created. 576 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years^ and had a son in his own likeness, after his image ; and called his name Seth. And the days of Adam after Seth was born were eight hundred years : and he had sons and daughters : and all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years : and he died. And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and had a son Enos. And Seth lived after Enos was born eight hundred and seven years, and had sons and daughters : and all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years : and he died. And Enos lived ninety years, and had a son Cainan. And Enos lived after Cainan was born eight hundred and fifteen years, and had sons and daughters: and all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years : and he died. And Cainan lived seventy years, and had a son Mahalaleel. And Cainan lived after Mahalaleel was born eight hundred and forty years, and had sons and daughters : and all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years : and he died. , And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and had a son Jared. And Mahalaheel lived after Jared was born eight hundred and thirty years, and had sons and daughters : and all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years : and he died. And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and had a son Enoch, And Jared lived after Enoch was born eight hundred years, and had sons and daughters : and all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years : and he died. And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and had a son Methuselah. And Enoch walked with God after Methuselah was born three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years : and Enoch walked with God : and he was not ; for God took him. And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and had a son Lamech. And Methuselah lived after Lamech was born seven hundred eighty and two years, and had sons and daughters : and all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years : and he died. And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and had a son Noah. And Lamech lived after Noah was born TRADITIONS OF A GREAT FLOOD 577 Hve hundred ninety and iive yeais^ and bad sons and daughters : and all the days of Laniech were seven hundred seventy and seven years : and he died. And Noah was five hundred years old : and Noah had three sons : Shem^ Ham^ and Japheth. § 1 5, We have now reached the second of the two great stories vhich tl^e Bihle tells of the ages before Abraham. The first story was that of the Creation and of Paradise, and of the first man and woman and their children ; the second story is that of the destruction of almost the entire human race by God on account of their exceeding wickedness and corruption. One family only was saved to be the second Father of all mankind, for amidst universal sinfulness one righteous man alone was found. This is the story of Noah and his Ark, and of the great Flood, which covered all the face of the earth. Traditions of a great Flood are common to many Asiatic races, and are found in many literatures, but the home and source of them all seems to be Babylonia. And very possibly a huge earth- quake, causing an immense overflow from the waters of the Persian Gulf over all the low adjacent country, may have left behind it awful memories, which ultimately produced and set in motion the stories of the great Flood. At any rate the Hebrew versions of the Flood seem modelled upon those of Babylon. * The Hebrew versions.' For the compiler of Genesis has let us hear two versions, though he has tried, and not unskilfully, to dovetail them together. The first version, which is told at greater length and almost in its entirety, is that of the later law-book, The second version, which is dovetailed into the first and is not complete, is taken from the earlier chronicle. AVe will first listen to the version from the later law-book. Both versions are, it is needless to say, tales of marvel and wonder: they are not historical. This is the history of Noah : Noah was a just and blame- less man among his contemporaries, and Noah walked with God, And Noah had three sons : Shem, Ham, and Japheth. But the earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt ; for all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is determined on by me ; for the earth is filled with violence because of them ; and, behold, I will destroy them from off the earth. pp 578 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Make thee an ark of cypress wood ; cells shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is how thou shalt make it : the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubitSj the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. A window shalt thou make to the ark, a cubit wide shalt thou construct it ; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof ; with lower, middle, and upper stories shalt thou make it* And, behold, I^ even I, do bring the flood upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish my covenant ; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee ; they shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee ; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them. Thus did Noah ; according to all that God commanded him, so did he. And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood came upon the earth. In the six hundredth year of NoaVs life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day all the fountains of the great deep were burst asunder and the waters of heaven were opened. On the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Ja- pheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah^s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark ; they, and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every winged thing. And there went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God commanded him. And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth ; and the ark floated on the face of the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth ; and all the high mountains, that are under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail ; NOAH AND HIS ARK 579 and the mountains were covered. And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of birds, and of cattle, and of beasts, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man. And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days. Then God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that were with him in the ark. And the fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were shut, and God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters sank. And after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters grew less. And in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat. And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen. And in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth. And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, the earth was dry. And God spake unto Noah, saying. Go forth from the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons^ wives with thee. Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee,' of all flesh, both of birds, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth : that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth. And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him. Every beast, eveiy creeping thing, and every bird, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark. And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air ; with all wherewith the ground swarmeth, and with all the fishes of the sea, into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liyeth shall be food for you ; even as the green herb have I given it you all. Only flesh that hath yet the life, which is the blood, in it, shall ye not eat. But your blood of your own lives will I require; from the hand of every beast will I require it : and from the hand of man, from the band of every man's brother, will I require the life of man. Whoso p p a 58o THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed : for in the image of God made he man. And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply J bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein. And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying. And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you ; and with every living creature that is with you, of the birds, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you ; with every beast of the earth that goeth forth out of the ark. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood ; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said. This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations : I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, and the bow is seen in the clouds, that I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh i and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And when the bow is in the clouds, I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh, that is upon the earth. And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan. These are the three sons of Noah: and of them was the whole earth overspread. And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years : and he died. § 1 6. Because the story-tellers of the Flood have said in their narratives that God destroyed all mankind on account of their wickedness, we need not suppose that they believed in a cruel God, They told the tale as it was told before them. And many millions of people have gone on taking it quite literally ever since, and have not found any such moral difficulty in the story. But as soon as we come to see that punishment is disciplinal, we also THE COVENANT WITH NOAH 581 realize thai the divine education of the human race can hardly have been effected, at any period of mankind's history, by a universal destruction. Moreover, universal wickedness of equal degree belongs to the realm of fancy and not of fact. The covenant which God makes with Noah after the cessation of the Flood contains two or three notable passages. Two * negative commands ' are enjoined upon humanity as a whole. The second is the more important and fundamental. It is the prohibition of murder — afterwards repeated as the Sixth of the Ten Words. Here the punishment to be inflicted upon its transgression is added to the commandment itself. * Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed : for in the image of God made he man.' Note well how, as Professor Wellhausen has pointed out, the author of the later law-book makes the punishment of murder not the affair of the relatives of the murdered man, but the affair of society, the affair of God. Blood is demanded for man as man, whether free or slave, and no money compensation is allowed^ All this indicates a developed ethical and religious point of view. At the same time it is curious that an animal which has killed a man is also doomed to die : its blood is also * required.' This is quite in the spirit of antiquity. If a man fell from his horse and was killed by the blow, the horse would have been killed. Just as only gradually the difference became apparent between intentional murder and involuntary homicide, so the perception that only man could in any true sense of the word be said to be * responsible ' for his actions was also of gradual growth. Moreover, for a long time the intention was not so much to punish the doer as to avenge the dead. The deed was the same, to all outward seeming, whether wrought by man or beast, by accident or by design. But in the laws of the Hebrews the distinction between murder and accidental homicide is clearly recognized. The first command is more difficult. * Only flesh that hath yet the life (which is the blood) in it, ye shall not eat.' This ordinance appears to include in it a prohibition against eating raw meat, and a prohibition against drinking blood. It would imjply that before the flesh of an animal is eaten the blood must be Suffered to flow out of it, and that it must then be cooked. The origin and cause of the command, as well as the immense impor- tance which this writer seems to assign to it, have been very widely and learnedly discussed. To all ancient people blood presents a great mystery. The blood seems to be identical with the * life.' If you eat the blood, you in some mysterious way eat the life also. Now ' life ' is itself a mystery, and to eat life is outside the common privilege of man. Nevertheless for this very 582 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING reason all kinds of idolatrous and superstitious practices grew up connected with th« drinking of blood, or with its use in sacrificial observances. Blood was regarded as a great ' |;z'acw^MW ' or atone- ment. The blood of an animal, and sometimes even of a man, was supposed, as it were, to absorb sins, so that the life-blood shed by a substituted victim could atone for iniquity, or 'satisfy' God in respect to sins which an individual or a community had committed against his laws. The Hebrew lawgivers, partly under the weight of an universal belief that there was something truly ' mysterious ' about blood, but partly also from a conscious protest against all these idola- trous and superstitious beliefs and practices, prohibited the drinking of blood under the severest penalties. And in this place we find the author of our * later law-book ' (who, being a priest, was immensely interested in all laws that had a sacrificial and ritual bearing) trying to make this ordinance about blood not merely a law for Israelites, but a law for mankind. And as abroad principle mankind has adopted and approved his ordinance. For anybody would justly regard a person who ate his meat raw, or who drank blood, with disgust and horror. The * mystery' of blood has vanished, but the old commandment has worked its way into all civilized communities, and its observance constitutes a mark of permanent difference between man and beast. God promises Noah that there shall never again be an universal flood of destruction, and as the token of this 'covenant,' he sets the * bow amid the clouds/ In ancient days, befoi'e the real cause of the rainbow was clearly known, it was often regarded as a super- natural sign. It is unusual in the ' later law-book ' for God to be lepresented as speaking in so human a way. He seems to institute the bow as a reminder for himself. But even to the writer this can only have been meant as an accommodation to human methods of speech. The story of God and the rainbow is for us a story only, but the belief that God is indeed the God of * every living creature of all flesh ' — that he is truly our Father in heaven — this belief remains as our abiding consolation and sustainment. § 17. We must now listen to the older version of the Flood- story, which has been dovetailed by the compiler of the Book of Genesis into the version of the later law-book. This older version has naturally not been preserved in its entirety ; to avoid iterations on the one hand and too many glaring inconsistencies on the other, the compiler was compelled to leave out several bits of it here and there. Here, too, we start from the growing and exceeding depravity of mankind. The human method of speaking as applied to God is THE OLDER STORY OF THE FLOOD 583 more marked in this narrative than the other. The opening worcia supply a conspicuous instance, for, as it says elsewhere in the Bible, God 'is not a man that he should repetit/ I ought to mention that the compiler of the Book of Genesis has made certain changes in, additions to, and omissions from the earlier version, in order to assimilate the one version to the other. The more important of these additions I have indicated by square brackets. And in one or two places I have put in round brackets the words which in all probability stood originally in the text when it was an independent work. And the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth ; [both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the birds of the air ;] for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, The building of the ark is given according to the later version only. The next bit from the earlier narrative is as follows. Note the variation as to the number of the animals taken into the ark. And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark ; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this genei'ation. Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female; and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. [Of birds also of the air by sevens, the male and the female ;] to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights ; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded him. And Noah went in (with all his house), [and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him,] into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, [and of birds, and of everything that creepeth upon the earth, there went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah]. And the Lord shut him in. And it came to pass after the seven days, that the. waters of the 5^4 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING flood came upon the earth. And the rain was upon the earth forty daj^s and forty nights. And the waters in- creased^ and bare up the ark, and it was lifted up above the earth. All in whose nostrils was the breath [of the Spirit] of life, of all that was on the dry land, died. So (the Lord) destroyed every living thing which was upon the face of the ground, [both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the birds of the heavens ; and they were destroyed from off the earth]. And Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark, • . . • , And it came to pass at the end of the forty days, that the rain from heaven was restrained, and the waters returned from off the earth continually* And Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made, and he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. And he stayed seven days, and he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground ; but the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth : then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark. And he stayed yet other seven days ; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark ; and the dove came in to him in the evening ; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off : so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. And he stayed yet other seven days, and he sent forth, the dove ; and she returned unto him again no more. And Noah removed the roof of the ark, and looked, and behold, the face of the ground was dry. And Noah built an altar unto the Lord ; and he took of every clean beast, and every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelt the sweet . savour; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man^s sake ; for the imagina- tion of man^s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I smite any more every thing living, as 1 have done. While the earth remaineth, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. These two accounts of the Flood are quite distinct and inde- pendent of each other. Note that in the first account the waters ASSYRIAN STORY OF THE FLOOD 585 increase for 150 days, in the second account for only forty days. The whole process in the first account from the beginning of the Flood till the earth is quite dry fills one lunar year and ten days (from the 17th of the second month in one year to the 27th of the second month in the next). One lunar year and ten days makes one whole solar year of 365 days. Thus if the Flood took 150 days to reach its maximum, its gradual decrease till the eaiih was quite dry occupied 215 days. But in the second account the Flood only lasts for forty days, and the earth takes only twenty-one days to dry. Again, in the first account (i.e. j^fii here given, later in date), the Flood is caused by the bursting forth of the fountains of the great deep from below, and by the floodgates of the waters of heaven (that is,, above the heavens) being opened. In the second account the entire flood is caused more simply by natural rain. How the two accounts were joined and dovetailed together by the compiler you can and will doubtless see for yourselves in any English or Hebrew Bible. § 18. The Assyrian story of the Flood presents striking parallels to the Hebrew naiTatives. The tablets on which it is inscribed formed part of the library of King Asurbanipal, who reigned from 668-626 B.C. How these tablets were discovered and interpreted is in itself an interesting tale, which cannot however here be told. The Assyi'ian story is itself a translation from a much more ancient Babylonian original. In this version Chasisadra or Sitnapistim (his Assyrian name) relates to Iztubar the story of the flood and of his own deliverance. He first tells how the gods having resolved to cause a flood, their determination is announced to him in a dream by the god la. Thus- he is bidden : ' Thou man of Surippak, son of Ubaratutu, construct a house, build a ship, save thy possessions, save thy life. Bring eeedxf life of all kinds into the ship.' Sitnapistim does as he is bid, builds the ship and stores it. * With all that I had I filled it. With all that I had of silver I filled it. With all that I had of gold I filled it. With all that I had of seed of life of eveiy kind I filled it. I brought into the ship my whole family and woman- kind ; cattle of the field, beasts of the field, artisans, all together I brought them into it.' Then at the appointed sign of heavy rain in the evening, he enters into the ship and shuts the door. The flood begins. *At the first appearance of dawn, a dark cloud arose from the horizon'; there was lightning and thunder and darkness. ' Brother saw not brother ; men were not recognized in heaven. The gods were frightened at the tempestuous flood ' ; they fled from before it and took refuge in heaven. Then the goddess Istar cries out * Tlie former time (i. e, the former men) has again become 586 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING clay ; they fill the sea like fishes.' The gods weep with her at the work of destruction. Six days and nights the tempest and flood continue. On the seventh day the storm subsides ; the waters abate.. * I looked ' (Sitnapistim continues) ' on the sea, and lifted up my voice, but all men had again become clay. . . • I opened the air-hole, the light fell on my cheek : I stooped, I sat down and wept ; over my cheek the tears dropped down. I looked upon the earth — all terror, sea ! * At last, after twelve days, land becomes visible ; * the mountain of the land of Nisir held the ship fast, and allowed it not to move/ This continued for six days. Then ' when the seventh day came, I took out a dove and let it loose. The dove flew hither and thither, but because there was no resting-place, it returned. Then I took out a swallow and let it loose, but because there was no resting-place, it returned. Then I took out a raven and let it go. The raven flew about, it saw the decreasing of the waters, it came (again) near but it did not return. Then I sent out all to the four winds. I offered a sacrifice, I made a libation on the top of the mountain, I set up seven vessels of libation. Under them I spread calmus and cedar wood. The gods smelt the savour : the gods smelt the fragrant savour. Like flies the gods gathered around the sacrificer.' Then the goddess Istar speaks : ' These days I shall remember, and in the future I shall not forget them. Let the gods approach to the libation, but Bel shall not approach to the libation, because he did not consider, and aroused the stoi'm of the flood, and delivered up my mankind to the judgement. When Bel approached, he saw the ship. Then Bel was filled with anger and said, Who has escaped 1 No man shall escape the judgement. Ninib opened his mouth and spake and said to the warrior Bel, Who but la has done this thing 1 la opened his mouth, and spake and said to the warrior Bel, Thou wise one among the gods, thou warrior ! So inconsiderate hast thou been in that thou hast stirred up a deluge. Lay his sin upon the sinner: lay his transgression upon the transgressor, but let not man be utterly cut off. Wherefore wilt thou stir up a flood 1 Let a lion draw near and diminish mankind. Wherefore wilt thou stir up a flood 1 Let a leopard draw near and diminish mankind. Wherefore wilt thou stir up a flood *? Let there arise a famine, and (ruin) the land. Wherefore wilt thou stir up a flood ? Let a pestilence come and destroy mankind. I did not disclose the determination of the great gods. I let the wise man see a dream, and so he heard the determination of the gods. Then Bel made a resolve, and he went up into the ship and he took my hand, and. he led me forward, andhe led forward my wife, and he turned us towards each other, and he placed himself between us^ THE TOWER OF BABEL 587 and greeted us and blessed us saying : Formerly Sitnapistim was human, but in future Sitnapistim and his wife shall be regarded like ourselves, the gods. Sitnapistim shall dwell far away at the mouth of the rivers. So they took us away and afar at the mouth of the rivers they caused us to dwell.' We see how the polytheistic elements in this story have been entirely removed in both the Hebrew versions of it, and the heathen elements almost wholly so. The effect of the * sweet savour ' remains the same in the narrative of the eai'lier chronicle as in the Babylonian original, but the author of the later law-book, whose religion is severer and purer, rightly rejects this paganizing incident. Note further that in both the Biblical versions it is emphatically stated that the flood was caused by the exceeding and universal wickedness of man. The Assyrian account, as Professor Schrader (from whose book and from Professor Jensen's I have made up my excerpts) rightly points out, * represents the flood and the destruction of all living things as essentially the arbitrary act of the gods, especially of Bel. It is only at the close of the story that the narrator gives a hint that in reality it was the wrath of the gods over the iniquity of mankind that was the ultimate cause of the judgement.' § 19. The stories of the Flood bring us to the ninth chapter of Genesis. Only two chapters are given to the period between Noah and Abraham. In them the compiler has placed genealogical lists from the later law-book of the descendants of Ham, Japheth, and Sem. Seven generations only according to this writer lie between Sem and Terah, Abraham's father. This list too has no historical value. From the earlier chronicle the compiler cites certain genealogical notices, as well as one famous legend with which my extracts from these first eleven chapters of Genesis will be brought to a close. It is the story of the tower of Babel. And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed eastward, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another. Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and bitumen had they for morter. And they said. Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven ; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, \vhich the children of men builded. And the Lord said. 588 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Behold^ one people are they, and they have all one language ; and this is but the beginning of their doing; and hence- forward nothing will be unattainable to them, which they purpose to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth : and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel ; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth ; and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. This story too is hut the written form of a very old and popular tradition. We see this from the naively human way in. which God is spoken of and represented. ■ Note too the fear which the divine beings are made to feel at the venturous activity of man. This story, then, is included in my book not because of its religious value, but because of its interest as a specimen of old world legend and of ancient and popular feelings and thoughts. The plain of Shinar is the plain of Babylon, and the legend took its origin from one or other of those huge Babylonian buildings, of >vhich the Greek historian Herodotus speaks with such unfeigned amazement, and giant fragments of which remain even to our own day. The etymology given to Bahel is a piece of popular Hebrew folk-lore : the true etymology of Babel is not connected with any root-meaning to * confound,' but is simply £db-Il, ' Gate of God,' while the larger form, Babylon, is Bdh'Ildn% ' Gate of the gods/ The story of the tower of Babel attempts, in naive and simple fashion, to account for the diversity of languages. The human way in which it speaks of God would be quite foreign to the more elevated and purer ideas of the author of the later law-book. The fact is, as Prof. Wellhausen has observed, that the materials of the narrative in the first eleven chapters of Genesis have not a specially Israelite, but a generally ethnic origin. The traces of this origin are much more distinctly preserved in the earlier than in the later narrative. It is mythic or mythological material which lies at the bottom of both the narratives, but in the earlier of the two the process of emptying the primitive legends of their original meaning and character has not gone nearly so far as in that of the later law-book. Moreover, as the same high authority points out, the religious, superiority of the later writer shows itself also in its freer, more optimistic spirit. The stories of the earlier chronicle reveal THE GREATNESS OF MAN 589 a peculiar sombre earnestnesa; God is unwilling to allow man to come too near him : there is a distinct indication of the heathen idea of the divine jealousy. In the later law-book all this has quite disappeared; 'here man no longer feels himself under a curse, but allied to God and free, as lord of nature.' § 20. That loftier conception of man as lord over nature, which Prof, Wellhausen sees reflected in the later law-book, finds poetical expression in a beautiful psalm. LoBD our Lord, How glorious is thy name in all the earth. Who hast set thy majesty upon the heavens ! Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou founded a power Because of thine enemies. That thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers. The moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained ; What is man, that thou art mindful of him ? And the son of man, that thou visitest him ? For thou hast made him but little lower than the angels. And hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands ; Thou hast put all things under his feet : All sheep and oxen. Yea, and the beasts of the field ; The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, And whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. O Lord our Lord, How glorious is thy name in all the earth ! The words 'out of the mouth' down to 'the avenger' are not very clear. They probably mean that the praises of humble Israehtes are a power which will at last silence and quench the unbelief of the heathen, § 21. We have heard of God's relation to outward natiire in the stories of creation and the flood. Let us now, before ending our book, hear of that relation from a more poetical and also (as I think) more religious point of view, in some few chosen lyrics of the Psalter. (Of the Psalter itself and how it was formed I shall have more to say in my second volume.) 590 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Here is what Prof. Cheyne calls 'a storm piece' — 'a noble epecimen of parallelism and a poetical gem of purest ray.' The thunder is poetically regarded as the voice of God. Give unto the Lord, O ye angels, Give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name ; Worship the Lord in holy aiTay. The voice of the Lord is upon the waters : The God of glory thundereth : The Lord is upon great waters. The voice of the Lord in power ! The voice of the Lord in majesty ! The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars ; Yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon, He maketh them also to skip like a calf ; Lebanon and Sirion like a young antelope. The voice of the Lord cleaveth out the flames of fire; The voice of the Lord shaketh the wilderness ; The Lord shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh, The voice of the Lord pierceth the oaks. And strippeth the forests bare ; While in his palace all are saying. Glory. The Lord sat enthroned at the Flood ; Yea, the Lord sitteth King for ever. The Lord will give strength unto his people ; The Lord will bless his people with peace, A *sea piece' may match the 'storm piece'; hut in the sea piece the ' streams ' are probably symbolical. They- typify the turbulent nations, who (because to the Psalmist the enemies of Israel are dangerously near to being identical with the enemies of God) vainly hurl their onset against the world-ruler's throne. The Lord hath become King, he hath clothed himself with majesty ; The Lord hath clothed himself, he hath girded himsdf with strength : He hath made fast the world, that it cannot be moved. Thy throne is established of old : Thou art from everlasting. The streams have lifted up, O Lord, The -Streams have lifted up their voice; The streams lift up their roaring. GOD AND NATURE 591 Than the voices of many waters^ Mighty waters, breakers of the sea. More mighty is the Lord on high. Thy testimonies are very faithful : Holiness becometh thine house, Lord, for ever. To pure Hebrew monotheism the heavens told only the glory of their Creator, as in the following psalm fragment. The heavens declare the glory of God ; And the firmament telleth his handyivork. Day unto day poureth out speech. And night unto night proclaimeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language. Their voice cannot be heard. Their voice is gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tent for the sun. Who is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber. And rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. From one end of the heavens is his going forth. And his circuit unto the ends of it : And there is nothing hid from his heat. The pious Hebrew looks for help not from Nature, but from Nature's Ruler and Lord. 1 lift up mine eyes unto the hills : From whence cometh my help ? My help cometh from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved : He that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper : The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day. Nor the moon by night. The Lord shall keep thee from all evil : He shall keep thy soul. The Lord shall keep thy going out and thy coming in From this time forth, and even for evermore. 592 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING § 2 2, Sometimes (as in many passages of the Second Isaiah) Nature is called upon to take part in the rejoicing of Israel, and in its praise of him who is the common God both of Nature and of Man. What great triumph of Israel and Israel's cause the next two psalms celebrate is not certain. It may be the return from Babylon ; it may be the successful issue of the Maccabean revolt of which we shall hear in the second volume. O sing unto the Lord a new song : Sing unto the Lordj all the earth. Sing unto the Lord^ bless his name ; Proclaim his salvation from day to day. ' Declare his glory among the heathen. His wonders among all peoples. For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised : He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are things of nought : But the Lord made the heavens. Splendour and majesty are before him : Strength and beauty are in his sanctuary. Give unto the Lord, O ye families of the peoples. Give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name : Bring an offering, and come into his courts. O worship the Lord in holy adornment : Fear before him, all the earth. Say among the nations. The Lord hath become king ; He hath made fast the world that it shall not be moved : He shall judge the peoples righteously. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad ; Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof. Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein : Then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord : for he cometh. For he cometh to judge the earth : He shall judge the world vrith righteousness, and the peoples with his truth. O sing unto the Lord a new song ; For he hath done marvellous things : His right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. The Lord hath made known his salvation : GOD THE KING 593 His righteousness hath he revealed in the sight of the nations. He hath rememhered his lovingkindness and his faithful- ness unto the house of Israel : All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth : Make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. Sing unto the Lord with the harp ; With the harp, and the sound of song. With trumpets and sound of cornet Make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof ; The world, and they that dwell therein. Let the floods clap their hands : Let the hills be joyful together before the Lord; for he Cometh to judge the earth : With righteousness shall he judge the world. And the peoples with equity. Praise ye the Lord : For it is good to sing praises unto him. Praise is comely unto our God- The Lord buildeth up Jerusalem : He gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. He healeth the broken in heart. And bindeth up their wounds. He telleth the number of the stars ; He calleth them all by their names. Great is our Lord, and of great power : His understanding is infinite. The Lord lifteth up the meek : He casteth the wicked down to the ground. Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; Sing praise upon the harp unto our God. He covereth the heaven with clouds. He prepareth rain for the earth. He maketh grass to grow upon the mountains. He giveth to the beast its food. And to the young ravens which cry. He delighteth not in the strength of the horse : He taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. Qq 594 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him. In those that hope in his mercy. Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem ; Praise thy God, O Zion. For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates ; He hath blessed thy children within thee. He maketh peace in thy borders, And fiUeth thee with the finest of the wheat. He sendeth foilih his commandment to the earth : His word runneth very swiftly. He giveth snow like wool : He scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes. He casteth forth his ice like morsels : Who can stand before his cold ? He sendeth out his word, and melteth them ; He causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow. He sheweth his word unto Jacob, His statutes and his judgements unto Israel. He hath not dealt so with any nation : He hath not made known to them his judgements. Praise ye the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. Praise ye the Lord from the heavens : Praise him in the heights. Praise ye him, all his angels : Praise ye him, all his hosts. Praise ye him, sun and moon : Praise him, all ye stars of light. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, And ye waters that are above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord : For he commanded, and they were created. He hath also stablished them for ever and ever : He hath made a decree which they cannot overstep. Praise the Lord from the earth. Ye sea-monsters and all deeps : Fire and hail ; snow and vapours ; Stormy wind fulfilling his word : Mountains and all hills ; Fniitful trees and all cedars : Beasts and all cattle ; 'PRAISE YE THE LORD* 595 Creeping things and winged birds ; Kings ol the earth and all peoples ; PrinceSj and all judges of the earth : Both young men and maidens ; Old men and children : Let them praise the name of the Lord ; For his name alone is exalted ; His gloiy is above the earth and heaven. And he hath raised up a horn for his people. To the praise of all his loving ones ; Even of the children of Israel, the people near unto him. Praise ye the Lord. § 23. A later Jewish writer expanded this last psalm into the following beautiful soug of praise. This song is not in the Bible, though perchance it was not written many years after the Biblical period had closed. We have it only in Greek, (in a collection of religious and historical writings known as the Apocrypha), but it may have been, and probably was, originally written in Hebrew. O all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord ; Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye heavens, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O ye angels of the Lord, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O all ye waters that are above the heavens, bless ye the Lord: Praise and exalt him above all for ever. all ye hosts of the Lord, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye sun and moon, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O ye stars of heaven, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O every shower and dew, bless ye the Lord. Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O all ye winds, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O ye fire and warmth^ bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye cold and heat, bless ye the Lord : Q q a 596 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye dews and storms of snow^ bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye nights and days^ bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O ye light and darkness, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye ice and cold, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye frost and snow, bless ye th^ Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye lightnings and clouds, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O let the earth bless the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye mountains and hills, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O all ye things that grow on the earth, bless, ye the Lord : Praise and exalt liim above all for ever. O ye fountains, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O ye seas and rivers, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O ye sea-monsters, and all that move in the waters, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O all ye birds of the air, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O all ye beasts and cattle, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye children of men, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever, O Israel, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye priests of the Lord, bless ye the Lord : Pj'aise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye ministers of the Lord, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye spirits and souls of the righteous, bless ye the Lord ; Praise and exalt him above all for ever. O ye holy and humble in heart, bless ye the Lord : Praise and exalt him above all for ever. A SPRING-TIDE HYMN 597 § 24. The following psalm is ' a song of praise, composed in the spring, when the pastures were already green, the meadows clothed with flocks, and the valleys covered with swelling corn. Not long hefore a great national deliverance had probably occurred, but this is not directly mentioned. The most prominent blessings in the psalmist's mind are the early and the latter rain.' Beautiful as the psalm is, it is also by no means easy, but I fear I must leave its difficulties unexplained, for this book does not supply the place of a commentary. Praise is fitting for thee, O God, in Sion : And unto thee men pay their vows. O thou that hearest prayer. Unto thee doth all flesh come. Iniquities had overcome us ; But thou pardonest our transgressions. Happy is the man whom thou choosest, And causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts : That we may be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, Even of thy holy temple. By terrible deeds of righteousness dost thou answer us, O God of our salvation ; Who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of the nations that are afar : Who by thy strength settest fast the mountains ; Being girded witli power : Who stillest the noise of the seas. The noise of their waves, and the tumult of the peoples ; So that they who dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy tokens : Thou makest the risings of the morning and evening to rejoice. Thou hast visited the earth, and watered it : Thou greatly enrichest it with The river of God, which is full of water : Thou preparest it for the corn ; Thou waterest the furrows thereof abundantly ; thou crushest its clods : Thou makest it soft with showers : thou blessest the springing thereof. Thou hast crowned the year of thy goodness ; And thy paths drop fatness. 598 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING Yea, the pastures of the prairie do drop ; And the hills gird themselves with joy. The meadows are clothed with flocks ; The valleys are covered with corn ; They shout for joy, they also sing. § 25. We have already seen how the praise of God is manifested both by his relation to Man (and more especially to Israel) and by his relation to Nature. There are two famous psalms, of which the first deals with the former aspect of God, the second with the latter. These two psalms are very probably by one and the same author. The second is perhaps the most beautiful of all the * nature' psalms now included in the Psalter. Not© that the conception of man in the first psalm seems sadder than that in the psalm quoted on p. 589, In this psalm, as in very many others, the speaker is not an individual ; the ' I ' is the personified community, or the people of Israel. The psalm is national or congregational. Bless the Lord, O my soul : And all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul. And forget not all his benefits : Who forgiveth all thine iniquities. And healeth all thy diseases ; Who redeemeth thy life from the pit, And crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender, mercies ; Who satisfieth thy soul vdth good things. So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's. The Lord executeth righteousness And judgement for all that are oppressed. He made known his ways unto Moses, His acts unto the children of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide : Neithei^ will he keep his anger for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins 5 Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, So great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, THE GOODNESS OF GOD 599 So far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children^ So the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame ; He remembereth that we are dust. As for man^ his days are as grass : As a flower of the fields so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone ; And the place thereof shall know it no more. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to ever- lasting upon them that fear him^ And his righteousness unto children's children ; To such as keep his covenant. And to those that remember his commandments to do them. The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens ; And his kingdom ruleth over all. Bless the Lord, ye his angels. That excel in strength, that do his commandments. Hearkening unto the voice of his word* Bless ye the Lord, all ye his hosts ; Ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure. Bless the Lord, all his works In all places of his dominion : Bless the Lord, O my soul. In the next psalm note the poet's use of the later creation story. After God has formed the earth with its hills and valleys, they are at first still covered with the waters of the great primaeval deep, which ' stand above the mountains.' At the word of the' creator the hills emerge, and the valleys become visible at the bottom. Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great ; Thou art clothed with splendour and majesty. Thou coverest thyself with light as with a garment : Thou stretchest out the heavens like a curtain : Thou layest the beams of thy chambers in the waters : Thou makest the clouds thy chariot : Thou walkest upon the wings of the wind : Thou makest winds thy messengers ; Flaming fire thy ministers. Thou hast fixed the foundations of the earth, 6oo. THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING That it should not be moved for ever. Thou didst cover it with the deep as with a garment : The waters stood above the mountains. At thy rebuke they fled ; At the voice of thy thunder they hasted away — The mountains rose, the valleys sank — Unto the place which thou hadst founded for them. Thou didst set a bound that they may not pass over 5 That they turn not again to cover the earth. He sendeth forth springs into the valleys. They flow between the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field : The wild asses quench their thirst. The trees of the Lord are full ; The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted. There the birds make their nests : As for the stork, the fir trees are her house. Upon them the birds of the heaven have their habitation. They sing among the branches. He watereth the hills from his upper chambers : The earth is satisfied with the fruit of his works. He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle. And herb for the service of man : That he may bring forth food out of the earth ; And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, And oil to make his face to shine. And bread which strengtheneth man's heart. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats ; And the rocks for the conies. He appointed the moon for set seasons : The sun knoweth his going down. Thou makest darkness, and it is night : Wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth. The young lions roar after their prey. And seek their food from God. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, And lay them down in their dens. Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening, O Lord, how manifold are thy works ! In wisdom hast thou made them all : The earth is full of thy creatures. 'HOW MANIFOLD ARE THY WORKS* 6oi So is this great and wide sea. Wherein are things creeping innumerable. Both small and great beasts. There go the ships : There is leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein. These wait all upon thee. That thou mayest give them their food in due season. That thou givest them they gather : Thou openest thine baud, they are filled with good. Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled : Thou takest away their breath, they die, And return to their dust. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created : And thou renewest the face of the earth. May the glory of the Lord endure for ever : May the Lord rejoice in his works. He who looketh on the earth, and it trembleth : Who toucheth the mountains, and they smoke. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live : I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. May my meditation be pleasant unto him : I will be glad in the Lord, May the sinners be consumed out of the earth, And may the wicked be no more. Bless thou the Lord, O my soul. Praise ye the Lord. The words * may sinners be consumed out of the earth ' is a correct translation of the Hebrew. But nevertheless, with a small change of vocalization, the word * sinners' could also be read as * sins/ and on this is based a familiar and beautiful story in the Talmud. ' There dwelt near Rabbi Meir some wicked persons who caused him much annoyance. He prayed to God that they might die. But his wife Beruria said to him : " How canst thou act thus 1 It says in the Psalms, ' Yetamu Chataim' Does it say, Choteim, ' may the sinners be consumed ? ' No, it says Chataim, ^ may sins be consumed.' And, moreover, look at the conclusion of the verse, 'and the wicked shall be no more.' As soon as sin is consumed, the wicked will be no more. Therefore do thou pray for those men that they may repent, and then the wicked will be no more." Eabbi Meir did so, and they repented of their sin.' The Stoic moralist Seneca said the same thing, with epigrammatic brevity: Ees optima est non sceleratos exstirpare, sed scelera. 6o2 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING § 26. It is interesting to find many of the ideas in this glorious psalm anticipated in a very old Egyptian hymn to the sun god, Amon-Ra. But the polytheism and mythology of the Egyptian writer makes much of his work seem foolish and antiquated in our eyes, whereas the Hebrew psalmist in his pure and simple mono- theism will never become * out of date/ I Avill quote here some of the best passages from the Egyptian hymn, to give some notion of its contents. Amon-Ea, the chief of all the gods, The lord of truth, the father of the gods. The maker of men, the creator of beasts, The lord of all that is, the creator of fruit trees, The maker of herbs, who causes the cattle to live. Maker of thinking beings (i. e. man) , . , Who hears them, if they pray to him in distress, Who is of kindly heart to those who call upon him. He delivers the timid from the hand of the proud, He judges the poor and the mighty, .(.*.■•«• Thou unique form, who created all existence, Thou one unique creator of all that is. From whose eyes mankind proceed, And the gods were at thy word. He created the herbs that the cattle might live, and fruit trees for man; He causes the fish to live in the waters, and the birds in the heaven : He gives breath to those who are in the egg, He vivifies the grasshopper and the birds : He provides corn for the rats in their holes; He lets the birds live on every tree. Hail to thee for all their joys. The one alone with many aims. Lying awake while all are sleeping, Seeking the good for all thy creatures, Amon who sustainest all things, Tum and Harmachis. All creatures praise thee, and they say. Praise to thee, who restest where we are, Homage to thee, who created us. Praise be to thee from all creatures, Laud be to thee from every land, AN OLD EGYPTIAN HYMN 603 To the height of the heaven, to the breadth of the earth, to the depths of the sea. The gods bow down before thy Majesty, They rejoice when thou who hast produced them drawest near ; They say to thee, Come in peace, Father of the fathers of all the gods ; Who raised the heaven, who fixed the earth. Maker of what is, creator of all existence, Sovereign of life, health and strength, chief of the gods, We praise thy Spirit, for that thou madest us. Thy creatures are we, who gavest birth to us. Praise be to thee, who didst create all existence, Lord of truth, father of the gods, Creator of men, maker of beasts. Lord of grains, Who causest all the beasts of the field to live. § 27, I have already pointed out that the Hebrew prophets placed their Golden Age in the future, and not in the past. And following them this has ever been the doctrine and the hope of Judaism and of the Jewish religion. It is the hope of the Psalmist as well as the hope of the Prophet, and it equally became the hope of the Kabbi and the Sage. Let me here give as a counterbalancing picture (and a picture of far higher religious worth) to the picture of Paradise, some few fresh and additional passages, in which the Hebrew yearnings for a glorious future have found noble and spiritual expression. We must remember that the Hebrew prophet or psalmist was first and foremost a Hebrew,- and therefore the first element in his dream or anticipation of the future is always the freedom and the glory of his people. But both psalmist and prophet rise far above this merely national hope. We know already how their national aspirations and their religious aspirations were mingled together, and I have indicated how this was in some respects a good, and in some respects an evil. Within their own people the one aspiration hardly interfered with the other. They longed for, they prayed for, they believed them- selves bidden by God to proclaim the coming of, a time when justice and mercy should reign supreme on earth, and when all Israel should know the Lord. We saw how Jeremiah taught that in those days there would be a new covenant, inward, not outward, by virtue of which all would do the right and live holy lives through free impulse and desire. Their heart would be set God- wards and goodwards. We saw how Ezekiel practically taught 6o^ THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING a similar doctrine. The heart of stone would be exchanged for the heart of flesh, and iniquity should cease. But the glory of God would not yet be satisfied. It was borne in upon the Hebrew prophets that God's purpose in human history could not be fulfilled unless all men, and not one race only, sbould know him and praise him even as Israel — unless justice and mercy should prevail in all the countries of the earth, and not only in Palestine. So they were partly able to triumph over their own exclusive and purely national aspirations. Of this too we have already heard, "We saw how the author of Solomon's prayer thought of the foreigner as well as of the Israelite, and how the motive was * that all the peoples of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel/ We have listened to the noble fragment which assured the ' foreigner ' that he could become as *near' to the Lord as the Jew, seeing that the Lord's house should be called a house of prayer for all peoples. And we listened to the high utterances of the Second Isaiah, who found the secret and the cause of Israel's vocation symbolized in his title of the Lord's Servant, and realized in his diffusion of true religion among all the nations of the world. § 28, Some one hundred and sixty years after the second visit of. Nehemiah, the Jews (as we shall hear in my next volume) were engirt by two great kingdoms, the Egyptian kingdom of the Ptole- mies and the Syrian kingdom of the Seleucids. They had never become an independent state, and at that particular point of time they were the subjects of the kingdom of Egypt, And it was probably then that a prophetic editor of an older prophecy con- ceived the noble idea oiF these two gi'eat kingdoms of the world (they almost made up the world to an untravelled Judaean) beconi- ing partners with Israel in the service and the praise of God. He added on this striking appendix to a prophecy against Egypt, and adopting the language of the past, he speaks of old Assyria when he means the newer Seleucid Syria. The first part of this appendix is difficult, and I shall not attempt to explain it here ; but the magnificent width of hope and vision, the broad-minded and liberal religiousness of the last short section, need no commentary or ex- planation. They speak for themselves. In that day shall there be an altar to. the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord, And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt : for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a champion, and he shall deliver 'BLESSED BE EGYPT MY PEOPLE ' 605 them. And the Lord shall make himself known to Egypt^ and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow avow unto the Lord, and perform it. And the Lord shall smite Egypt : he shall smite and heal it : and they shall return even to the Lord, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them. In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the earth : whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance. There is another famous prophecy of the future in the hook of Isaiah, which may quite possibly be from the . pen of the great prophet himself. In that case it would be some two thousand six hundred years old. It does not concern itself with the outside world, but gives a fair picture of a blissful state of things in Israel, when a scion of the royal house of David should rule in righteous- ness over his people, and when even the animal world should be in harmony with the human peace and goodness that reign supreme. It is possible that there may here be a passing allusion to old paradise stories, in which the wild beasts were not yet wild, and like man lived on herbage. In the blissful future these wonders, so the prophet declares, will be repeated. But whether we are to take his words literally, or as a mere symbol and picture of peace and justice and union, no man can say. This ideal king of the future here predicted is often called the Messiah, that is the Anointed one, but he is never so called by the Hebrew prophets themselves, who indeed very rarely allude to such a personage at all. The Lord's anointed is a phrase familiar to us in the story of David and elsewhere. To the Second Isaiah the Lord's anointed is Cyrus : for the restored Israel he does not seem to anticipate a kingly government. The ideal king in the present passage is filled with the spirit, of the Lord, whereby he is endowed with such wisdom that he needs no long investigation to judge aright, and with such power that the very breath of his lips can slay the wicked. But though the spirit of God is a spirit of knowledge, it is also a spirit of reverence. The fear of the Lord is as much a virtue of the wise and mighty monarch as of the humblest peasant in his land. 6o6 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesscj and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord, And he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither arbitrate after the hearing of his ears : but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and arbitrate with equity for the meek of the earth. And he shall smite the terrible with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together : and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the suckling child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the viper's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain : for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. One more daiing anticipation of the future shall he quoted from the prophetical literature. It occurs twice : once in the book of Isaiah, and once in the hook of Micah. It is a daring anticipation, but it is also a very great one. It predicts for the ' after-days ' of humanity an age of universal Peace, and this Peace is a Peace of God. The Peace depends on Eeligion, and Israel's God is the Divine Teacher of this Eeligion, for other God there is none, Jerusalem, as the political capital of Israel, is, as we might say, absorbed and swallowed up by its new position as the religious metropolis of the world. And it shall come to pass in the after-days, that the mountain of the Lord^s house shall be established on the highest of the mountains, and shall be exafted above the hills : and all nations shall flow unto it. And many peoples shall go and say. Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob ; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths : for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from SWORDS BEATEN INTO PLOUGHSHARES 607 Jerusalem. And he shall judge between the nations^ and shall arbitrate for many peoples : and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares^ and their spears into pruninghooks : nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. It is of this fragment of prophecy that the wise and learned Prof. Steinthal has said : Hoheres als jenes Fragment gibt's auf Erden nichU * Than this fragment there is nothing greater on earth.' § 29. The lyric poets, or FBalmistSj reproduced these prophetic anticipations in their own way. We have heard eome such pro- phetic echoes already. But I should like to quote once more the lovely hymn which we have used already on p. 545, as a sort of antidote to the exclusiveness of Nehemiah, God be merciful unto us, and bless iis. And cause his face to shine upon us ; That thy way may be known upon earth, Thy salvation among all nations. Let the peoples praise thee^ O God ; Let all the peoples praise thee. O let the nations be glad and sing for joy, That thou rulest the peoples with equity, And leadest the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise thee, O God ; Let all the peoples praise thee. The earth hath yielded her increase : The Lord our God hath blessed us. God shall bless us ; And all the ends of the earth shall fear him. And one more very favourite psalm of my own I will here quote, written perhaps at about the same time as the noble prophecy on p. 604, in which the highest anticipations of an expanding and universal Judaism are given lyric and poetical expression. It is a short psalm, but very difficult, and the text may here and there be corrupt. I shall quote it in Prof. Oheyne's translation. The subject of the psalm is the expansion of Judaism. Rahab stands for Egypt, and Babylon for Syria. Thus the localities named comprise together the ' World as known to the Psalmist,' the Avorld, at any rate, with which he was immediately conceraed. 6o8 THE BIBLE FOR HOME READING The poefc longingly loots forward to a time in which the peoples of all these kingdoms and states shall be as it were spiritually born anew as religious citizens of Jerusalem. They, as well as Israel, shall be God's votaries, and they as well as Israel shall acknow^ ledge that the source and fountain of their religious life is the mount of Zion. Before the spiritual union of a common faith the carnal differences of race and blood fall utterly away. His foundations upon the holy mountains^ Yea^ the gates of Zion the Lord loveth More than all the dwellings of Jacob. Honourable things are spoken of thee. Thou city of God : Rahab and Babylon I pi'oclaim my votaries : Behold Philistia and Tyre with Ethiopia — This one was born there. And concerning Zion it shall be said : Each and every one was born in her; And he, the most High, shall stablish her. The Lord shall reckon, when he writes down the peoples : This one was born there. And singers as well as dancers, (swelling the anthem) : All my fountains are in thee ! § 30. With this noble lyric, instinct with the highest aspirations of Judaism upon our lips and in our hearts, let us pause. With it the first volume of my Bible for Home Eeading may fitly close. And yet I think there should he one quotation more — a quotation from the Pentateuch, and more precisely from * the later law-book/ It is the priestly Blessing of the people which, according to the writer of that code, was instituted by Moses. Doubtless the Bless- ing was already very ancient in the days when the law-book was written, but how old it is and who composed it no man can say. Being traditional, it was regarded as Mosaic. This blessing is still used on many solemn occasions by us. to-day, and surely it is a blessing such as we should always wish to use, and with which, if granted, we should indeed be blessed. It does not hurt us here in the least, that God is spoken of in language literally applicable only to man. All of us can understand the meaning, and give to the sensuous images their spiritual interpretation. And so we close the first volume of our Bible with a prayer for Peace. And as our last word is Peace, so our last thought is of God, the ultimate Author of the peace for which we pray. THE PEACE OF GOD 609 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying. Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying. On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them. The Lord bless thee, and keep thee : The Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee : The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. K r INDEXES The first index follows the pages of the present volume and gives the references to all those passages of the Bible which are here printed in large type. The numbering of the chapters and verses is in accordance with the Authorized Version, The omission of part of a verse is not indicated in the index. The second index follows the books and chapters of the Bible, and shows what Biblical passages have been quoted in this volume, and on what pages they are to be found. The order of the books follows the Authorized Version, L PAGE 12. Gen. xii. 1-3. 13. — xiii. 2, 5-12, 14-18. 14. — XV. I, 2, 4-G, 15. —XV. 13-15. 16. — xvii. I, 2, 7, 8, 18-21 ; xxi. 8-1 1. 17. — xxi. 12-21, 18. — xviii. 23-30. 19. — xviii, 31, 32 ; Mic. vi. 6-8, 20. — xxlL. 1-13, 15-17. 21. — xxii. 18, 19; xxiii. 2-14. 22. — xxiii. 15-20 ; xxiv. 1-8, 23. — xxiv, 9-26, 24. — xxiv. 27-44. 25. —xxiv. 45-61, 63. 26. — xxiv. 64-67. 27. — xxvi. 12-18. 28. — xxvi. 19-22, 26-33. 29. — XXV. 29-34. 30. — xxvii. i-iS. 31. —xxvii. 19-35- 32. — xxvii. 36-45. 33. — xxviii. 1-4, 11-16, 34. — xxix. 2-13. 36. —r xxxii. 3-20. 37. — xxxii. 21; xxxiii. 1,3-5,8-11. 39. — xxxvii. 3-14. 40. — xxxvii. 15-21, 23-28, 31-35- 41. — xxxix. i-6. 42. — xxxix. 20-23 ; xl. 1-14. 43. — xl. 15-23 J xli. I. 44. ■ — xli. 2-21, R ^S. Gen. xli. 22-40, 42. 40, — xli. 43-57 ; xlii. i. 47, — xlii. 2-4, 6-22. 48, -- xlii. 23-26, 29-36, 38. 49, — xliii. 1-12, 50, — xliii. 13-29, 51, — xliii. 30-34; xliv. 1-8. 52, — xliv. 9-2S. 53, —xliv. 29-34; xlv. i-ii, 54, — xlv. 12-28. 55. 56. 57- 5S. 59- — xlvi. 1-7, 29-32. — xlvi. 33, 34; xlvii. l-io, 12, 27. — xlvii. 2S-3T ; xTviii. 1, 2, 10, 8, 9, II, 21 ; xlix. I, 28-31 ; xlviii. 7. — xlix. 33 ; 1. i-io, 12-17, _1. iS-26. 61. Exod. i. 8-14, 62. — ii. 3-12. 63. — ii. 13-22; iii. 1-3. 64. — iii. 4, 6-8, 10, 13-16, 19, 20 ; iv. 10-12. 65. — iv. 13-15, 18, 20, 27-31 ; V. 1, 2, 4-6, — V. 7-23 ; vi. I. — xii. 37, 34, 39. — xiii. 19 ; xiv. 5-14. 69. —xiv. 30, 31; XV. 1-9, 70. — XV. 10-21. 73, — xii. 14-18, 20, 26; xiii. 3-5, 8,9. r 2 66. 67, 68. 6l2 . INDEX I PAGE PAGE 73- Exod. xiii, 10. 129. 76. — xviii. I, 5, 7-IO, 12-30. 133- 77- — xviii. 21-27. 78. Deut. i. 9-18. 134. So. — iv. 1-6 ; Exod. xix. 5, 6 ; Deut. iv. 9-16. 81. — iv. 17-19, 32, 33, 35-40 ; V. 135. I, 2,4,6-9, II. 138. 82. — V. 12-22. 139- 94. Exod. XX. 1-5. 140. 95- — XX. 6-17. 97- Deut. V. 22-31 ; ix. 9, 10. 14T. 98. Exod. xxxii. 1-6 ; Deut. ix. 142. 12-17. 143. 99. Deut. ix. 1S-21, 26, 27 ; X. 10; 145- Num. xiv, 20 ; Deut. x. 146. ^ /"5' . 147. 100. Exod. XXXI ii. 13, 18-23 J 2:xxiv. 153- 2, 4, 6-8. 154. lOI. — xvi. 2-5, 13-16. 155- 102. — xvi. 17-3T. 157. 103. Num. XI. 4-6, 10-14, 16, 17, 104. — xi. 18-32. 106. Deut. ix. 4, 5, 107. — ix. 6 ; Lev. xx. 22, 23 ; Num. xiii. 17-20, 22-26. 158. 108. Num. xiii. 27, 28, 30-33; xiv. 1-9, II, 12. 159- 109. — xiv. 17-25, 39-45 ; Deut. i. 19-21. no. Deut. i. 22-32, 34-36, 39-41- 160. III. — i. 42-46. 112. Num. XX. 2-5, 7, 8, 10-13. 161, 113. — XX. 22-29, 14-16. 114. — XX. 17-21 ; Deut. ii. t-8. 115. Deut. ii. 9, 13, 17-19 ; Num. 163. xxi. 21-25. 164. 116. Num. xxii. 2-13. 165. 117. — xxii. 14-21, 36-41; xxiii. 1-3, 5^ 7. , ^ 118, — xxni. 8-14, 10, 18-21, 23. T72. 119. — xxiii. 24-30 J xxiv, 2-7, 9- 173- ^3- 174. 120. — XXIV. 14-18, 25. 175. 121. — xxxii. I, 2, 4-11. 176. X22. — xxxii. 12-14, 16-33. 177. 123. Deut, i, I ; vi. 1-14. 178. 124. — vi. 17, 18, 20-25 ; vii. 6-9, 179. 1 1 ; viii. 2. 180. 125. — viii, 3-20. 181. 126. — ix. I, 4-7 ; X. 12-22; xi. j.f 182. 127. — XI. 13-21 ; xxvi. 16-19 ; xi. 183. 26-28. 185. 128. — XXX. 1-13. 186. Deut. XXX. 14-20. — xxxii. 48-52 ; Num. xxvii. 15-18. Num. xxvii. 19, 20, 22, 23; Deut. iii. 23-2S ; xxxi. i- 3, 6, 7. Deut. xxxi. 8 ; xxxiv. i-io. — xvi. I, 3, 4. — xvi. 8 ; Lev. xxiii. 10, 11, 14. Lev. xxiii. 15-17, 20, 21 ; Deut. xvi. 9-1 1, Deut. xvi. 12-15. — xxvi. i-ri. Lev. xxiii. 39-43. — xxiii. 24, 25 ; Num. xxix. i. — xxiii. 27. — xxiii. 28, 31, 32 ; xvi. 29-31. Isa. Iviii. i-S. Jonah iii. 5-7. — iii. 8-10. Exod. XX. 16; Lev. xix. 16; Exod. xxiii. 1-3, 6-8 ; Lev. xix. 15 ; Deut, xvi. 18, 19 ; Lev. xix. 35, 36 ; Deut. XXV. 13. Deut. XXV. 14, 15 ; Lev. xix. II, 13 ; Deut. xxiv. 14, 15. — xxiv. 6, 10-13; Exod. xxii, 26, 27, 22 ; Deut. xxiv. 17, 18. Lev. xix. 9, 10 ; Deut. xxiv. 19-22 ; xix. 14; xiv. 28. Deut, xiv. 29 ; xv. 7, 8, 10 ; x. 19 ; Exod. xxiii. 9 ; Lev, xix. 33, 34. — xxii, 1-4 ; Exod. xxiii, 4, 5. Lev. xix. 1 7. Deut. XXV. 4; xxii, 10, 6, 7 ; Lev. xix. 32, 14, 18; Deut, vi. 5. Judges xiv. i, £, — xiv. 3-1 6. — xiv. 17-19 ; XV. i-ii. — XV. 12-17 ; XVI. .1-8. — xvi. 9-20, — xvi. 21-31. Ruth i. l-ii, 13-17. — i, 18 — 22 ; ii. i-io. ' — ii. 11-23, — iii. 1-17. — iii. 18 ; iv. i-ii, 13. — iv. 14-17. 1 Sam. i. 1-3, 7, 8. — i- 9-27- INDEX I 613 PACK 187. I Sam, i. 2S ; ii. 11, 18, 19 ; iii- 1-6, 8-10, 15-17. 188. — iii. 18 ; iv. 12-18 ; vs. 1-3. 189. — ix. 4-8. 10-17. 190. — ix. 18-27 ; ^- 1 J 2. 191. —X. 3-7, 9-16. 192. — xl. i-ii, 15. 193. — xiii.2-7,i5-i8,23;xiv,i-4. 194. — xiv. 5-16, 20, 21. 195. — xiv. 22, 23; viii. 1-12. 196. — viii. 13-20, 22 ; X. 17-24. 197. —X. 25-27 ; xii. 1-8. 198. — xii. 9-25. 200. — xvi. 14-23 ; xvii. 1-5. 201. —xxii. 6-11, 16, 12-14, 17-24. 202. — xvii. 25-39. 303. — xvii. 40-53. 204. — xvii. 55-58 ; xviii, 1-5. 205. — xvi. I -1 3. 206. — xviii. 6-9, 14-16, 20-25. 307. — xviii. 26-29 ; xix. i-io ; XX. I. 208. — XX. 2-15, 17, 209. — XX, 18-33. 210. — XX. 34-42 ; xxi. 1-3, 7-9. 211. — xxii. 1-13. 212. — xxii. 14-18, 20-23; xxiii. I. 5j 7-9- 213. — xxiii^ 13-28. 214. — xxiii. 29 ; xxiv. 1-14. 215. — xxiv. 15-22 ; xxvi. 1-5. 216. — xxvi. &-20. 217. —xxvi. 21-25 J ^^"^' 2-9. 218. — XXV. 10-24. 219. —XXV. 25-37, 220. — -XXV. 38-44; xxvii. 1-5. 221. — xxvii. 6-12; xxviii. i, 2; xxix. I. 222. — xxix. 2-1 1. 223. — xxviii. 5-9. 224. — xxviii. 10-16, 19-25. 225. — xxxi. 1-13. 226. • — XXX. 1-6, 9-17" 227. — XXX. 18-31. 228. 2 Sam. i, i-io. 229. — i. 13-16, II, 12, 17-25. 230. — i. 26, 37. 231. — ii. 4-6. 332. — ii. 7, 12-24. 233. — ii- 25-32 ; iii. 12-16. 234. —iii. 17-29, 31, 32. 235. — iii. 33-39 ; i^- ^j 2, 5-9. 236. — iv. 10-12 ; V. 1-5. 337. — xxiii. 15-17; V. 6-10. PAGS 238. 2 Sam. V. II ; vii 1-4, 8-20. 239. — vii. 21-29 ;-i'^-4 ; i^' ^-4- 240. — ix. 5-13; X. 1-4. 241. ~x. 5-19. 242. — xi. 1-3, 14-21. 243. — xi. 22-27 i ^i- i-7» 9* 244. —xii. 13, 15-23, 26, 27. 245. — xii. 28-31 ; xiii. 23-31. 246. — xiii. 32-39 ; xiv. i-8, 247. — xiv. 9-20. 248. — xiv. 21-33, 249. —XV. I -1 5. 250. — XV. 16-32. 351. —XV. 33-37 ; xvi. 1-8. 252. — xvi. 9-20; xvii. 1-6. 253. — xvii. 7-20. 254. — xvii. 21-29 i xviii. 1-5. 255. — xviii. 6-17, 19-21. 256. — xviii. 22-33; ^i^- J^"3- 257. —xix. 4-9. 25S. — xix. 10-23. 259. — xix. 24-39. 260. — xix. 40-43 ; XX. I, 2, 4-9. 261. XX. 10-22. 264. Ps. iii. I, 2. 265. — iii. 3-S ; 2 Sam. xxii. -^-5, 7-13- 266. 2 Sam. xxii. 14-29, 31, 32, 267. — xxii. 33-36, 50, 51. 269. Ps. cxlii. 1-7. 270. — xliii. 1, 3—8 ; 2 Sam xxiii. 1-5- 271. 3 Sam. xxiii, 6, 7 ; Ps. Ii. 1-3, 6-16. 272. Ps. Ii. 17 ; I Chron. xvi. 1-7. 273. 1 Chron. xvi. 8-24, 27-29. 274. — xvi. 30-36; xxii. 2-8. 275. — xxii, 9-19 ; xxviii. i, 2. 276. — xxviii, 3-10; xxix. 1-4. 277. — xxix. 5-18. 278. — xxix. 19, 20. 2S0, I Kings iii. 4-20. 281. — iii. 21-28 ; iv. 29-34, 282. — iv. 7, 22, 23, 26-28; vii. 1-7. 283. — vii. 8-12 ; X. II, 12, 16-24. 284. — X. 25-28, 1-9. 285. — X. 10, 13; V. I-IO. 286. — V. I i-i 8 ; vii, 13, 14 ; 2 Chron, ii, 1-6. 287. 2 Chron. ii. 7-16; 1 Kings vi. I. 288. I Kings viii. 1-4, 9, 14-21. 289. — viii. 22-35, 290. — viii. 36-4S. 6i4 291. 292. 296. 297. 298. 299. 300. 303- 304, 305. 306. 307. 308. 309. 310. 312. 313. 314- 315. 316. 317- 31 s. 319- 320. 321. 322. 323- 324- 3-'5- 326. 327. 328. 329- 330- 331- 332. 333- 334- 335- 33<5. 337- 338. 339- 340. 341- 342. 343. INDEX I I Kings viii. 49-63, 65- PAQE 344- — viii. 66, 345- — xi. 26, 346. — xi. 27-38. 347. — xi. 40. 34S. — xi. 41-43 ; xii. i-ro. 349- — xii. 11-20. 350.' — xiv. 21-31 ; XV, I. — XV. 2-5, 7-20. — XV. 21-24 ; xii. 25-28. .^51- — xii. 29-31 ; xiii. 34; xiv. 352. 1-13. 353- — XIV. 14-20 ; XV. 25-31, 33. 354- — XV. 34 ; xvi. 1-6, 8-16. 35.'i. — xvi. 17-28. 356- Isa. Iv. 8, 9 ; Ps. ciii. 8, 13 ; 357- Deut. xxiv. 16 ; Ezek. 358. xviii. 20, 31, 32. I Kings xvi. 29-33. — xvii. 1-14. 359- — xvii. 15-24. — xviii. 1-13. 360. — xviii. 14-28. — xviii. 29, 30, 32-44. 361. — XVlll. 45, 46 ; xiX. 1-9, II- 362. 14- 363. — xix. 15-21, 364- — xxi. 1-8. — xxi. 9-22, 27-29, 365. — XX. 1-9. 366. XX. 10-12, 15-18, 21, 20, 367. 23-25, 28, 26, 27. 368. — XX. 29-34 ; 3cxii. 1-7. 3<59. — xxii. 8-22. 370- — xxu. 23-37, 39- 371. — xxii. 40, 51-53 ; 2 Kings i. 372. 1-3. 373- 2 Kings i. 4-16. 374. — i. 17, 18; ii. 1-7. ~ ii. 8-18. 37.5. — iii. 1-15. 376. — iii, 16-1S, 20-24; i^' 8-12. 377. — iv, 13-29. 379- — iv. 30-37 ; viii. 1-5. 380. — viii. 6; ii. 19-22; iv. 1-7, 38X. 38, 39- 382, — IV. 40-44 ; VI. 1-7 ; V. 1-3. 383. — V, 4-16. 384- — V. 17-27. 385- — vi. 8-1 9. 386. — vi. 20-23; viii. 7-13. — viii. 14, 15 ; vi. 24-32. 387. — vi. 33 ; vii. i-io. 388. — vii, 11-17. 389. 2 Kings ix. 1-6, 10-13, 15-18. — ix. 19-28, 30-33. — ix. 34-36 ; X. 1-9, — X. 11-24. — X. 25-28. — X. 32-36 ; xiii. 1-3, 7-9, 1 Kings xxii. 41-45, 47-50 ; 2 Ohron. xix. 5-7 ; 2 Kings viii. 16-20. 2 Kings viii. 22-29; ^^' i~4- — xi. 5, 7-17. — xi. 18 — 21 ; 3tii, i-io. — xii. 11-15, 17-21, — xiii. 10, II, 24, 25. — xiii. 14-21 ; xiv. 15, 16. — xiv. 23-25, 28, 29. Amos iii. i, 2, 9, 10; ii. 6 ; iv. 4, 5; ii. 13-15; iii- 14, 15 ; V. I. — V. 2-6, 8, 7, 10-15; "^i- It 4-6. — vi. 7, 8, 14; V. 27,21-24; vii. 10-17, 2 Kings XV. 8-11, 13. — XV. 14-22. Hos. iv. I, 2,6,9; "^i- 6 } ^' 12. — viii. 4-6 ; X. i, 2, 5-8 ; xi. 1-4 ; ii. 8 ; xiii. 4-6, 16. — xiv. 1-8 ; ii. 19, 20 ; xiv, 9, 2 Kings XV. 23-31 ; xvii. 1-4. — xvii. 5, 6, 24, 29, 33. — xvii. 7-18, 21. — xvii. 22, 23 ; xiv. 1-6. — xiv. 7-14, 17-22 ; XV. I, 2.. — XV. 3-7. 32-3S ; xvi. 1-6. — xvi. 7-11, 19, 20. Isa. vi. I-IO. — vi. II, 12 ; xxix. 13, 14 ; i. 11-17. — vii. i-ii, — vii, 12-14,16. 2 Kings xviii. 1-6. — xviii. 13. — xviii. 14-21, 23-25. — xviii. 26-37 ; xix. 1-3, — xix. 4-9, 37, 10-16. — xix. 17-29. — xix. 30-35: — XX. 1-7 ; Isa. xxxviii. 4, 5. Isa. xxxviii. 6-8 ; 2 Kings xx. 8-1 1. — XX. 12-18. — XX. 19-21 ; xxi. 1-6. — xxi. 7-21. INDEX I 615 facie; 390. 2 Kings xxi. 22-26. 39t. Mic. vi. II, 12 ; vii. 2-6 ; vi. 1-4, 6, 7. 392. — vi, 8 ; 2 Kings xxii. 1-5, 8-10. 393. 2 Kings xxii. 11-20. 394. — xxiii. 1-4, 6, 8-13. 395. — xxiii. 14, 21-25 ; Deut* xii. 10. 396. Deut. xii. 11-18. 398. 2 Kings xxiii, 28-30; 2 Cliron. XXXV. 20-22. 399. 2 Chron. xxxv. 23-27; 2 Kings xxiii. 31-35. 400. 2 Kings xxiii, 36, 37 ; xxiv- 1, 5-7. 401. Jei'. XX. 7-10. 402. — XX. 11-15, 18 ; XV. 15-18. 403. — XV. 19-21 ; i. I, 2,4-10. 404. — i. 11-19. 405. — xxii. 1-5. 406. — xxii. T3-19; vii. I, 2. 407. — vii. 3-20, 408. — vii. 31-28; xxvi. 1-3. 409. — xxvi. 4-18, 410. — xxvi, 19-24; xxxv. 1-5. 411. — xxxv. 6-18, 412. — xxxv. 19 ; xxxvi. 1-6. 413. — xxxvi. 7-20. 414. — xxxvi. 21-32, 415. — xix, I, 2, 10. II, 14, 15 ; XX. 1-4. 416. — XX. 5, 6; xviii. i-ii. 417. —xviii. 12-17 ; v. 30» 3i ; '^- 13, 14; xiv. 2. 418. — xiv, 3-14. 419. — xiv. 15, 16 ; xxiii. 9, 11-17. 420. — xxiii. 18, 21-25, 28, 29 ; ii. h 2, 4-7- . ^ 421. — ii. 8-13 ; iv. 3, 14 ; vi. 10 ; ii. 21, 22 ; xiii. 23 ; vi, 19, 20; viii. 4, 5. 422. — viii. 6-8 ; vi. 26 ; xvi, i, ^, 5, 8, 9; xiv. 17-19. ■ 423. — xiv. 20-22 ; viii. 18, 21,22; ix. I ; 2 Kings xxiv. 8-13. 424. — xxiv. 15-17; Jer. xxiv, 1-5. 425. — xxiv. 6-10; xxix. 1,3-10. 426. — xxix. 11-13; xxvii, 1-6, 8-13. 427. — xxvii. 14-22 ; xxviii. 1-4. 428. — xxviii. 5-17. 429. 2 Kings xxiv. 18, 19 ; xxv. i-io. PAGE 430. 2 Kings xxv. 11-23. 431. — xxv. 24-30 ; Jer, xxxvii. 3, T 5-9- .. 432. Jer. xxxvii. 10-21 ; xxi. i, 2. 433» — xxi- 3-10 ) xxxviii. 1-4. 434. — xxxviii. 5-18. 435. — xxxviii. 19-21, 23-28; XX xii. 6-9, 436. — xxxii. 10-16, 24-33. 437. — xxxii. 36-44 ; xxxiii. 1, 7- II. 438. — xxxiii, 12-16 ; xxxviii. 28; xxxix. 3, 14 ; xl. 2, 3. 439. — xl. 4-10. 440. — xl, 11-16 ; xii. 1-7. 441. — xii. 8-18 ; xlii. i, 2. 442. — xlii. 3-16; xliji. I, 2. 443. — xliii. 3-13; xliv. I, z. 444. —xliv. 3-12, 15-17, 445. — xliv. 18-28, 446. — xliv. 29, 30. 447. — xxxi. 1-8, 448. — xxxi. 9-20, 23-25. 449. —xxxi, 27-37. 452. Lam. i. 1-7. 453- — i- 8, 10-12, 16-21 ; ii. i, 454. — ii. 2, 5-1 1. 455. — li. 12-19, 21, 22, 456. — iv. 1,2,4, 5» 7-13. 457- — iv- 15) 17-20 ; V. 1-5, 7-10, 12-15. 458, — V. 16-21 ; iii. 1-5, 7-17. 459- — "i- 18, 19, 21-41, 464. Ezek, i. 1-12, 465. — i. 13, 15-24, 26-28; ii. I. 466. — ii. 2-10 ; iii, i-io, 467. — iii. 11-21, 468. — xviii, 1-7. 469. — xviii. 8-23. 470. — xviii. 24-33 ; xxxiii. 1-6. 471. — xxxiii. 7-20. 476. — xxxiv. 1-13. 477. — xxxiv, 14-27. 478. — xxxiv. 28-31 ; xxxvii. 1-6. 479. — xxxvii. 7-14 ; xxxvi. 16, 17, 19-23. 450. — xxxvi. 2-4-28. 482. Isa. xiv. I-IO, 483. — xiv. 11-21. 485. — xl. 1-5, 9-1 1, 6-8. 486. — xl. 12-26. 487. — xl. 27-31 ; xii. 2-4, 8-14, 488. — xii, 15-29. 489. — xlii. 1-9, 18-22, 6i6 INDEX I PAGH PAGTS 490. Isa. xlii. 23-25; xliii. 1-3, 544- 5-13- 545. 491- — xliv. 1-6, 8, 21-23, 9-13. 492. — xHv. 14-20, 24-28 ; xlv. 1, 2. 546. 493- — xlv. 3-9, 11-15. 547. 494. — xlv. 16-23 J xlix, 1-6. 548. 495- -^xlix. 7-1 1, 13; 1. 4-9. 549- 496. — li. 1-8, 13, 13, 17-19. 550- 497. — li. 20-23 ; lii' I) 2, 7-12. 551- 49S. — lii. 13-15 ; liii. 1-12. 552. 499- — liv. I -1 2. 555. 500. — liv. 13, 14, 16, 17; It. 1- 558. 10. 559- 501. — Iv. 11-13. 560. 506. Ezra i. 1-4. 565. 507. — i. 5-1 1 ; ii. 64-69. 566. 508. — iii. 1-8. 570. 509. — iii. 9-13; iv. 1-5. 571. 510. — V. 1-6. 573- 511. — V. 7-17; vi. 1-3. .574. 512. — vi. 4-15. 575- 513- — vi. 16 ; Hag. i. i-io. 576. 5M. Hag. i. 11-15; ii. i-9- 577- 515- Zech. vi. 9-15 ; vii. 1-5. 578. 516. — vii. 6, 7, 9-14; viii. 3-5, 16-21. 579- 517- — viii, 22-23. SIS. Ezra vii, 1-14. 519. — vii. 15-28. 580. 620. — viii. 15, 21-33. 583. 521. — viii. 34 ; ix. 1-9. 584. 522. — ix. 10-15 I ^' ^-^' 523. — X. 7-17. 524- — X. 44 ; Isa. Ivi. 1-3, 6-8. 587- 525- Ezra iv. 7-15. 588. 526. — iv. 16-23. 589. 527- Neh. i. i-ii. 590. 528. — ii. 1-12, 591- 529- — ii. 13-20 ; iv. 1-4. 530- — iv. 5-20. 592. 531. — iv. 21-23; v. r-i2. 593. 532. — v. 13-19 ; vi. 1-6. 594. 533- — vi. 7-13, 15-19; vii. 1-3. 595- 534- — vii. 4-6; xi. r, 2 ; xii. 27- 597. 31. - 598. 535- — xii. 32-43 ; vii. 73 ; viii. i. 599- 536. — viii, 2-13. 600. 537- — viii, 14-18 ; ix. 1-6, 601, 538. — ix. 7-11, 13-21, 23. 604. 539- — ix. 25-35, 605. 540- — ix. 36-38 ; X. 28-34. 606. 541- — ^- 35-39; Jer. vii. 21-23. 607. 642- Ps. 1. 7-15, 23. 608. 643- Neh. xiii, 4-10. 609. Neh. xiii. 11-24. — xiii. 25-28, 30, 31 ; Ps. Ixvii, 1-7. Isa. lix. 1-13. — lix. 14-21 ; Ivii. 13, 14, — Ivii. 15-21 ; Ix. 1, 2. — Ix. 3-iT, 13-17. — ^ Ix. 18-22 ; Ixi. 1-8. — Ixi. 9-1 1 ; Ixii. i-io — Ixii. II, 12. Deut. xvii. 14-30. Gen. i.' 1-4. — i. 5-22. — i. 23-31 ; ii. 2-4 — ii. 4b-i7. — ii. 18-25. — iii, I-IO. — iii. 11-24. — iv. 2-12. — iv. 13-16. — V. I, 2. — V, 3-30, — V. 31, 32; vi- 9-13. — vi. 14-22 ; vii. 6, 11, 13-16, 18-20. — vii. 21, 24; viii. i a, 2 a, lb, 3b, 4, 5, 13a, 14-19; ix. 1-5. — ix. 6-19, 28, 29. — vi. 5-8 ; vii. 1-5, 7-10. — vii. 12,17,22,^23; viii. 6 a, 2 b, 3 a, 6 b, 7-12, 13 b, 20-22. — xi. 1-6. — xi. 7-9. Ps. viii. 1-9. — xxix. i-ii ; xciii. 1-3. — xciii. 4, 5 ; xix. 1-6 ; cxxi. 1-8. — xcvi. 1-13 ; xcviii. i, 2. — xcviii. 3-9 ; cxlvii. i-io. — cxlvii. ii-ao ; cxlviii. i-io. — cxlviii. 11-14. — Ixv. I-II. — Ixv. 12, 13 ; ciii. 1-12. — ciii. 13-22 ; civ. 1-5, — civ, 6 -24. — civ. 25-35. Isa. xix. 19, 20, — xix. 21-25. — xi. 1-9 ; ii. 2, 3. — ii. 4 ; Ps. Ixvii. 1-7, Ps. Ixxxvii. 1-7. Num. vi. 22-26. INDEX II 617 II. Gei7ESIS page i- 1-4 558 J. 6-22 5S9 i. 23-31 560 ii. 2-4 a 560 ii-4l>-i7 565 ii. 18^25 ,.,.... 566 iii. i-io 570 "i- 11-24 571 iv. 2-12 573 iv, 13-16 574 V. ij 2 575 V. 3-30 576 "v. 3ij 32 577 vi. 5-8 583 vi. 9-13 577 vi. 14-22 57S vii. 1-5 583 vii. 6 57S vii. 7-10 583 vii. II 578 vii. 12 5S4 vii. 13-16 578 vii. 17 584 vii. 18-20 5S7 vii. 21 579 vii. 22, 23 584 vii. 24 579 viii. I, 2 a 579 viii. 3 b, 3 a 584 viii. 3 b, 4j 5 579 viii. 6-12 584 viii. 13 a ., 579 viii. 13 b .^84 viii. 14-19 579 viii. 20-22 584 3X. 1-5 579 ix. 6-19, 28, 29 580 xi. 1-6 587 xi. 7-9 58S xii. 1-3 12 xiii. a, 5-12, 14-1S ... 13 XV. I, 2, 4, 5 14 XV. 6, 13-15 ^5 xvii. I, 2, 7,8, 1S-21 ... 16 xviii. 23-30 18 xviii. 3i» 32 ^9 xxi. 8-11 j6 Genesis xxi. 12-31 . xxii. 1-13, 15-1 xxii. iS, 19 xxiii. 2-14 xxiii. 15-20 xxiv. 1-8 . xxiv. 9-26 xxiv. 27-44 xxiv. 45-61, xxiv. 64-67 XXV. 29-34 XX vi. 12^18 fi3 XXV). 19-32, 26- xxvii. i-iS xxvii. 19-35 xxvii. 36-45 xxviii. 1-4, I xxix. 3-13 xxxii. 3-20 xxxii. 21 . xxxiii. I, 3^5 XXX vii. 3-14 xxxvii. 15-21, 23-2S, 31- XXX ix. 1-6 xxxix. 20-23 xl. 1-14 . xl. 15-33 . xli. I . , xli. 2-21 . xli. 22-40, 42 xli. 43-57 xlii. 1 . . xlii. 2-4, 6-3 xlii. 23-26, 29-36, 38 xliii. 1-12 xliii. 13-39 xliii. 30-34 xliv. 1-8 . xliv. 9-2S. xliv. 29-34 xlv. I-II . Xlv. 1 2 -28 xlvi. 1-7, 29-32 xlvi. 33, 34 xlvii. i-io, I xlvii. 28-31 xlviii, I, 2, 7-1 1, 21 6i8 INDEX II Genesis pagb xlix. i,2S-3i 57 xlix. 33 58 1. i-io, 12-17 5S 1. 18-26 CO EXOBTIS i. S-14 ii. 3-12 ii- 13-25 :. iii. 1-3 iii. .<, 6-8, 10, 13-16, 19, :o iv. 10-12 iv. 13-15, i8, 20, 27-31 , , V. I, 2, 4-7 V. S-23 vi, I xii. 14-1 S, 20, 26 . . , . xii. 34. 37* £9 xiii. 3-5. 8^ 9 xiii. 10 xiii. 19 xiv. 5-T4 xiv- 30, 31 XV. 1-9 XV. 10-21 xvi. 2-5, 13-16 xvi. 17-31 xviii. I, 5, 7-10, 12-19 ■ • xviii. 2C-27 xix. 5, 6 XX. 1-5 XX. 6-17 xxii. 22, 26, 27 xxiii. I-;, 6-8 xxiii. 4, 5 xxiii. 9 xxxii. 1-6 xxxiii, 13, 18-23 .... xxxiv, 2, 4, 6-S Leviticus xvi. 29-31 xix. 9, 10. xix. II, 13 xix. 14 xix. 15, 16 xix. 18, 32 , xix. 33, 34 xix. 35, 36 XX. 22, 23 . xxiii. 10, II xxiii. 15-17, xxiii. 24, 25 xxiii. 27 , '4 61 62 63 63 64 64 65 65 66 66 72 67 72 73 68 68 69 69 70 lOI 102 76 77 80 94 95 159 157 163 161 98 100 100 147 160 158 165 157 165 161 157 105 139 140 145 146 Leviticus page xxiii. 28, 31, 32 .... 147 xxiii. 39-43 143 Numbers vi, 22-26 605 xi. 4~6, 10-14, 16, 17 . . 103 xi. iS-32 104 xiii. 17-26 107 xiii. 27, 28, 30-33 .... 108 xiv. 1-9, II, 12 108 xiv. 17-2=, 39-45 .... 109 xiv. 20 99 XX. 2-5, 7, 8, 10-13 ... 112 XX. 14-16 113 XX. 17-21 114 XX. 22-29 113 xxi. 21-25 ^i.S xxii. 2-13 116 xxii. 14-21, 36-41 . . . . 117 xxiii. 1-3, 5, 7 117 xxiii. 8-14, 16, 18-21, 23 , ilS xxiii, 24-30 119 xxiv. 2-7, 9-13 119, xxiv, 14-18, 25 , . . 120 xxvii. 15-18 133 xxvii. 19, 20, 32, 23 . . . 134 xxix. 1 145 xxxii. if 2, 4-1 1 . . . . 121 xxxii. 12-14, 16-32 , . . 122 Deutero^tomy i- I 123 1,9-18 78 i. 19-21 109 i. 22-52, 34-36, 39-41 , . no i. 42-46 Ill ii. 1-8 114 ii. 9, 13, 17-19 115 iii. 23-2S 134 iv. I, 6, 9-16 80 iv. 17-19, 32, 33.35-40 ■ • 81 V. I, 2, 4, 6-9, II ... . 81 V. 12-22 82 V. 22-31 97 vi. 1-14 123 vi. 5 165 vi. 17, 18, 20-25 • - • • 124 vii. 6-9, II 124 viii. 2 124 viii, 3-20 125 ix. I, 4-7 126 ix. 9, 10 97 ix. 12-17 98 ix. 17-21, 26, 27 ... . 99 INDEX II 61 g Deuteronomy page X. 1-5 99 X. 19 161 xi. I, 13-21, 26-2S , . . 127 xii. 10 395 xii. Ii-i8 396 xiv. 28 160 xiv. 29 161 XV. 7, 8, 10 161 xvi. I, 3, 4 138 xvi. 8 139 xvi. 9-1 1 140 xvi. 12-15 141 xvi. 18, 19 157 xvii. 14-20 555 xix. 14 160 xxii. 1-4 163 xxii. 6, *^, 10 165 xxiv. 14, 15 15S xxiv. 6, 10-13 ^59 xxiv. 16 310 ■xxiv. 17, 18 159 xxiv. 19-22 160 XXV. 4 165 XXV. 13 -. 157 XXV. 14, 15 158 xxvi. i-ii 143 xxvi. 16-19 ^27 XXX, 1-13 1 28 XXX. 14-20 129 xxxi. I, 3 134 xxxi. 6-8 135 xxxii. 48-52 133 xxxiv. i-io 135 Judges ' xiv. r 172 xiv. 2-16 173 xiv. 17-19 174 XV. i-ii 174 XV. 12-17 175 xvi. 1-8 175 xvi, 9-20 176 xvi. 21-31 177 Ruth i. I-II, 13-16 i. 17-22 . ii. i-io . ' ii. 11-23 ■ iii. 1-17 . iii. iS . . iv. i-ii, 13 iv. 14-17 - 17s 179 179 I So 181 I-fi2 1S2 183 I Samuel i- i-3» 7 • i. 8-26 . . , i. 27, 28 . ii. II, iS, 19 iii. 1-6, 8-iOj iii. i7j iS . iv. 12-18 viii. I-II viii. 12-20, 2 ix. I, 2 ix. 3-8, 10-] ix. 17-27 . X. I, 2 . . X. 3-7, 9-16 X. 17-24 . xi. I-II, 15 xii. 1-8 . xii. 9-25 , xiii. 2-7, 15. xiv. I, 2 . xiv. 3-16, 20. xiv. 22, 23 , xvi. 1-13 . xvi, 14-23 xvii. 1-4 , xvii. 5-14, i6- xvii. 24-39 xvii. 40-53 xvii. 54-58 xviii. 1-5 . xviii. 6-9, 14 xviii. 26-29 xix. I-IO , XX. I . XX. 2-15 . XX. 17-33 . XX. 34-42 . . xxi. 1-3, 7-9 xxii. 1-13 . . xxii. 14-18, 20- xxiii. I, 5, 7-9 xxiii^ 13-28 xxiii. 29 . xxiv, 1-14 xxiv. 15-22 XXV. 2—9 . XXV. 10-24 XXV. 25-37 XXV. 38-44 xxvi. 1-5 . xxvi. 6-20 xxvi. 21-25 xxvii. 1-5 xxvii, 6-12 16, 23 3C- 620 INDEX II 1 Samuel page xxviii. I, X 2 21 xxvin, 5-9 223 xxviii. 10-16, 19-25 - . . 224 xxix. I 221 xxix. 2-1 1 222 XXX. 1-6, 9-17 ,226 XXX. 18-31 227 xxxi. 1-13 225 2 Samuel i. 1-9 ^228 i. 10-25 "229 i. 26, 27 230 ii. 4-6 231 ii- 7 232 ii. 12-24 232 "• 25-32 233 iii. 12-16 233 iii. 17-29, SI . . , . . 234 ^"- 32-39 235 IV. I, 2, 5-9 235 iv. 4 239 iv, 10-12 236 V. 1-5 236 V. 6-10 237 V. II 23S vii. 1-4, 8-20 238 vii. 21-29 239 ix. i-4 239 IX. 5-13 240 X. 1-4 240 X. 5-19 241 xi. 1-3, 14-21 . . . . 242 xi. 22-27 243 xii. 1-7, 9 243 xii. 13, 15-23, 26 .... 244 xii. 27-31 245 xiii. 23-31 . - 245 xiii. 32-39 246 xlv. 1-8 246 xiv. 9-20 247 xiv. 21-33 248 XV. 1-15 249 XV. 16-31 250 XV. 32-37 251 xvi. 1-8 251 xvi. 9-20 252 xvii. 1-6 252 xvii. 7-20 • 253 xvii. 21-29 254 xviii. 1-5 , 254 xviil. 6-17, 19-21 .... 255 xviii. 22-33 256 xix. 1-3 256 2 Samuel page xix. 4-9 ....... 257 xix. 10-23 258 xix. 24-39 259 xix. 40-43 260 XX. I, 2, 4-9 260 XX. 10-22 261 xxii. 2-5, 7-13 265 xxii. 14-29, 31, 32 . . , . 266 xxii. 33-36, 5o» 51 • • ■ • 267 xxiii. 1-5 270 xxiii. 6, 7 270 xxiii. 15-17 237 1 Kings iii. 4-20 280 iii. 21-28 281 iv. 29-34 281 iv. 7, 22, 23, 26-2S , . . 2S2 V, i-io 2S5 V. 11-18 286 vi. I 287 vii. 1-7 282 vii. 8-12 2S3 vii. 13, 14 286 viii. 1-4, 9, 14-21 . . . 288 viii. 22-35 2S9 viii, 36-48 290 viii. 49-63, 65 291 viii. 66 292 x. 1-9 2S4 X. II, 12, 16-24 .... 283 X. 10, 13 285 X. 25-2S ....... 284 xi. 26 290 xi. 27-38 297 xi. 40 298 xi. 41-43 299 xii. i-io ....... 399 xii. 11-20 300 xii. 25-28 305 xii. 29—31 306 xiii. 34 306 xiv. 1-13 306 xiv. 14-20 . 307 xiv. 21-31 303 XV. I i 303 XV. 2-5, 7-20 ... .304 XV. 21-24 305 XV. 25-31, 33 307 XV. 34 308. xvi. 1-6, S-16 308 xvi, 17-28 309 xvi. 29-33 312 xvii. 1-14 313 INDEX 11 621 I Kl^'CS PAGE xvii. 15-24 314 xviii. 1-13 315 xviii. 14-28 316 xviii. 29, 30, 32-44 ... 317 xviii. 45, 46 318 xix. 1-9, H-14 318 xix. 15-21 319 XX. 1-9 322 XX. 10-12, 15, 16-18, 20,31, 23-2S 323 XX. 29-34 324 xxi. I-S 320 xxi. 9-22, 27-29 .... 321 xxii. 1-7 324 xxiL 8-2 2 325 xxii. 23-39 326 xxii. 40 327 xxii. 41, 45, 47-50 .... 350 xxii. 51-53 327 KiKGS i. 1-3 .... i. 4-16 .... i. r7, t8 . . . ii. 1-7 . ■ . , ii. 8-iS. . . . ii. 19-22 , . . iii. 1-15 . . , iii, 16-1S, 20-24 iv- 1-7, 38, 39 - iv. 8-12. . . , iv. 13-29 327 328 339 329 330 3.S5 331 332 335 332 333 iv. 30-37 334 336 33<> 337 338 336 339 340 341 342 342 343 334 335 340 34^ 350 351 344 34.T IV. 40-44 V- 1-3 V. 4-16 V. 17-27 vi. 1-7 vi. S-19 vi. 20-23 • . • • . vi. 24-32 vi. 33 vii. i-io vii. H-17 viii. 1-5 vili. 6 viii. 7-13 viii. 14, 15 .... viii. 16-20 .... viii. 22-29 . . . • ix. 1-6, 10-13, 15-18 . ix. 19-2S, 30-33 . . ix. 34-36 346 X, 1-9 346 2 KlKGS X. 11-24 . X, 25 -28 xi. 1-4 . . xi. 5, 7-17. xi. 18-21 . xii. i-io . xii. 11-15, 17 xiii. 1-3, 7-9 xiii. 10, II, 2 xiii. 14-21 xiv. 1-6 . xiv. 7-14 . xiv. 15, 16 xiv. 17-23 xiv. 23-25, 28, XV. 1,2. . XV. 3-7. . XV. 8-1 1, 13 XV. 14-22 . XV. 23-31 . XV. 32-38 . xvi. 1-6 , xvi. 7-11, 19, 2( xvii. 1-4 . . xvii. 5, 6, 24, 2 xvii. 7-18, 21 xvii. 22, 23 xviii. 1-6 . xviii. 13 . xviii. 14-21, xviii. 26-37 xix. 1-3 . xix. 4-9, 10 -I xix. 17-29 xix. 30-35 XX. 1-7 , XX, 8-1 1 . XX. 12-1S . XX. 19-21 . xxi. 1-6 . xxi. 7-21 - xxi. 23-26 xxii. 1-5, 8-10 xxii. 11-20 . xxiii. 1-4, 6, 8- xxiii. 14, 21-25 xxiii. 28-30 xxiii. 31-35 xxiii. 36, 37 xxiv. I, 5-7 xxiv. 8-13 xxiv. 15-17 xxiv. 18, 19 XXV. I-IO 33 25 37. 622 INDEX II 2 Kings tabb XXV. 11-23 , . . 430 XXV. 24-30 431 J Chro?^icles xvi. 1-7 272 xvi. 8-24, 27-29 . . , , 273 xvi. 30-36 274 xxii. 2-8 274 xxii. 9-19 275 xxviii. ij 2 275 xxviii. 3-10 276 xxix. 1-4 276 xxix. 5-1S 277 xxix. 19, 20 278 2 Chronicles ii. 1-6 2S6 ii. 7-16 287 3^ix- 5-7 350 XXXV. 20-2 2 398 XXXV. 23-27 399 Ezra i- 1-4 5^6 i- 5-II 507 H. 64-69 507 iii. 1-8 508 iii. 9-13 509 iv. 1-5 5°9 iv. 7-15 525 iv. 16-23 526 V. 1-6 510 V. 7-17 611 vi. 1-3 5" vi. 4-15 512 vi. 16 513 vii. 1-14 518 vii. 15-28 519 viii. 15, 21-23 520 viii. 34 521 ix. 1-9 521 A. 1-6 522 X. 7-17 523 X. 44 524 Nehemiaii i. i-ii 527 ii. 1-12 52S ii. 13-20 529 iv. 1-4 529 iv. 5-20 530 iv. 21-23 531 V. 1-12 ; 531 V. 13-19 532 vi. 1-6 532 Nehemiah vi. 7-13, 15-19 vii. 1-3 vii. 4-6 vii. 73 . viii. I . viii. 2-13 viii, 14-18 ix. 1-6 ix. 7-11, 13-21, 23 ix. 25-35 ix. 36-38 X. 28-34 X. 35-39 xi. I, 2 . xii. 37-31 xii. 32-43 xiii. 4-10 xiii. 11-24 - - xiii. 25-28, 30, 31 Psalms iii. I, 2 iii. 3-8 . . viii. 1-9 . xix. 1-6 . xxix. i-ii 1. 7-15, 23 Ii. i~3, 6-16 Ii. 17 . . Ixiii. I, 3-8 Ixv. I-II Ixv. 12, 13 Ixvii. 1-7 Ixxxvii. I-; xciii. 1-3 xciii. 4, 5 xcvi. 1-13 xcviii. X xcviii. 2-9 ciii. 1-12 ciii. 13-22 civ. 1-5 civ. 6-24 civ. 25-35 cxxi. 1-8 , cxiii. 1-7 cxlvii. i-io cxlvii. 11-20 cxlviii. 1-9 cxlviii. 10-14 Isaiah i. 11-17 ii- 2, 3 . 54 533 .=;33 534 535 535 536 537 537 538 539 540 540 541 534 534 535 543 544 545 264 265 5S9 591 590 542 271 272 270 597 598 1,603 608 590 591 592 592 .=93 598 599 599 600 601 591 269 593 594 594 595 374 606 INDEX II 623 Isaiah page ii. 4 607 vi. 1-9 373 vi. 10-12 374 xi. 1-9 606 xiv. i-io 482 xiv. 1 1-2 1 483 xix. 19, 20 604 xix. 21-25 605 xxix. 13, 14 374 xxxviii. 4, 5 385 xxxviii. 6-8 386 xl. i-ii 485 xl. 12-26 ,...,,, 4S6 xl. 27-31 4S7 xli. 2-4, 8-14 4S7 xU. 15-29 48S xlii. 1-9, 18-22 489 xlii. 23-25 490 xliii. 1-3, 5-13 490 xliv. 1-6, S-13 491 xliv. 14-20 492 xliv. 21-23 491 xliv. 24-2S 492 xiv. I, 2 492 xlv. 3-9, 11-15 493 xlv. 17-23 494 xlix. 1-6 494 xlix. 7-1 1, 13 495 1-4-9 495 li. 1-8, 12, 13, 17-19 , . . 4y6 li. 20-23 497 lii. I, -A, 7-12 497 lii. 13-15 498 liii. 1-12 498 liv. 1-12 499 liv. 13, 14, 16, 17 . . . . 500 Iv. i-io 500 Iv. 8, 9 310 Iv. 11-13 501 Ivii. 13, 14 547 Ivii. 15-21 548 Iviii. 1-8 153 lix. 1-13 546 lix. 14-21 547 Ix. I, 2 54S *lx. 3-11, 13-17 549 Ix. lS-22 ... ... 550 Ixi. 1-8 550 Ixi. 9-11 651 Ixii. I-IO 55T Ixii. II, 12 552 Jeremiah i. I, 2,. 4-T0 403 Jeremiah pacih i. 11-19 404 ii. I, 2, 4-7 420 ii. 8-13, 21, 22 421 iv. 3, 14 421 V.30, 31 4^7 vi. I3j 14 417 vi. 16, 19, 23 421 vi. 26 422 vii. I, 2 ' . 406 vii. 3-20 407 vii. 21-23 541 vii. 21-2S 408 viii. 4) 5 431 viii. 6-8 422 viii. iS, 21, 22 423 ix. I 423 xiii. 23 421 xiv, 2 417 xiv. 3-14 418 xiv. 15, 16 419 xiv. 17) 19 422 xiv. 20-22 423 XV. 15-18 402 XV. 19-21 403 xvi. I, 2, 5, S, 9 .... 422 xviii. i-ii 416 xviii. 12-17 417 xix. I, 2, 10, II; 14, 15 . . 415 XX. 1-4 415 XX. 5, 6 416 XX. 7-10 401 XX. 11-15, 18 402 xxi. I, 2 432 xxi. 3-10 433 xxii. 1-5 405 xxii. 13-19 406 xxiii. 9, 11-17 419 xxiii. 18, 21-25, 28, 29 . . 420 xxiv. 1-5 424 xxiv. 6-10 425 xxvi. 1-3 408 xxvi. 4-18 409 xxvi. 19-24 410 xxvii. 1-6, S-13 .... 426 xxvii. 14-22 427 xxviii. 1-4 427 xxviii. 5-17 428 xxix. I, 3—10 425 xxix. 11-13 426 xxxi. 1-8 447 xxxi. 9-20, 23-25 .... 44S xxxi. 31-37 449 xxxii. 8, 9 435 xxxii. 10-16, 24-33 . . . 4/6 624 INDEX 11 Jeremiah page xxxii. 36-44 437 xxxiii. I, 7-1 1 437 xxxiii. 13-16 . ..... 43S XXXV, 1-5 410 XXXV. 6- 1 8 411 XXXV. 19 412 xxxvi. 1-6 412 XXX vi. 7-20 413 xxxvi. 21-32 414 xxxvii. 3, 5-9 431 xxxvii. 10-21 433 xxxviii. 1-4 433 xxxviii. 5-18 434 xxxviii. 19, 23-3S .... 435 xxxix. 3, 14 438 xl. 2, 3 438 ^}-4-io 439 xl. 11-16 , . . 440 xli.1-7 440 xli. 8-18 441 xlii. I, 2 441 xlii. 3-16 ■ 442 xliii. I, 2 442 xliii. 3-13 443 xliv. r, 2 443 xhv. 3-12, 15-17 .... 444 xliv. 18-28 445 xliv. 29, 30 446 Lamentatioks i. 1-7 ... . i. 8, 10-12, 16-31 ii. I .... ii. 2, 5-11 . . ii. 12-19, 21, 23 iii. 1-5, 7-17 . iii. 18, 19, 31-41 iv, I, 2, 4, 5, 7-13 iv. 15, 17-20. . V. 16-21 . , . EZEKIEIt i. I-I3 i. 13,15-24, 26-2S . ii. I . . . . , ii. 2-10 . . . . iii, i-io . , , . iv. 11-21 . . . . xviii. i~7 , . . . xviii. 8-23 , . , xviii. 24-32 . , , xxxiii. 1-6 . . 4 452 453 453 454 455 458 459 456 457 45S 464 465 465 466 466 467 468 469 470 470 EztlCIEL PAOR xxxiii, 7-20 471 xxxiv. 1-12 ..... . 476 xxxiv. 13-27 477 xxxiv. 28-31 478 xxxvi. 16, 17, 19-23 . . . 479 xxxvi. 24-28 480 xxxvii. 1-6 478 xxxvii. 7-14 479 HOSEA ii-S 364 ii- 19, 20 365 iv. J , 2, 6, 9 363 vi. 6 363 viii. 4-6 ....... 364 X. I, 2, 5-8 364 X. 12 363 xi. 1-4 364 xiii. 4-6, 16 364 xiv. 1-9 365 Amos Ii. 6, 13-15 35S iii. I, 2, 9, 10, 14, 15 . . . 35S iv. 4»5 358 V. I 358 V. 2-8, 10-15 359 V. 21-24, 27 360 vi. I, 4 6 359- vi. 7, 8, 14 360 Jonah iii. ^-7 154 iii. 8-10 155 Micah vi. 1-4, 6, 7 387 vi. 6-8 19 vi. 8 392 vi. II, 12 391 vii. 2-6 391 Haggai i. i-io 513 i- "-15 514 ii. 1-9 514 Zechartah vi. 9-15 515 vii. i-S 515 vii. 6, 7, 9-14 516 viii. 3-5, 16-21 516 viii. 22, 23 517 OXFORD : HORACE HART, PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY h\^ ►X'?; '■>;',*.?■;'