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THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  NARRATIVE 

SEPARATED  OUT,  SET  IN  CONNECTED  ORDER 
AND   EDITED 


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T)'tUe  .    C.T,      Em,\ ',;>,.     Se\ec" 

THE  OLD  TESTAMENT 
NARRATIVE 


SEPARATED  OUT,  SET  IN  CONNECTED  ORDER, 
AND  EDITED 


BY 


ALFRED  DWIGHT  SHEFFIELD 


WITH  ILLUSTRATIONS 


*     JAN  30  1911      * 


iiSlQkl  SEW' 


BOSTON    AND   NEW    YORK 

HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY 

(Cfte  0itEr?iDe  J^ic0  Cambri&oe 

1910 


COPYRIGHT,   I91O,   BY  ALFRED  DWIGHT  SHEFFIELD 
ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 

Published  November  iqio 


PREFACE 

This  book  offers  substantially  the  entire  Old  Testament  nar- 
rative, arranged  in  its  due  sequence  as  a  history  of  Israel  from 
the  earliest  times  to  the  rededication  of  the  temple  by  the  Mac- 
cabees. Passages  which  in  the  received  text  are  duplicated  it 
gives  but  once ;  parallel  versions  of  the  same  tradition  it  gives 
together,  setting  the  later  or  less  interesting  one  in  a  footnote. 
In  editing  this  narrative  for  the  school  and  the  general  reader, 
I  have  assumed  that  two  considerations  should  be  uppermost : 
(l)  the  translation  should  do  it  justice  as  literature  ;  (2)  foot- 
notes should  give  only  such  matters  of  fact  as  either  explain  the 
text  or  supplement  it. 

The  former  consideration  almost  requires  the  use  of  the  King 
James  version,  which  is  still  unapproached  as  at  once  a  ren- 
dering of  an  ancient  text  and  an  English  prose  classic.  I  must 
disclaim,  however,  the  kind  of  veneration  that  seems  to  take 
literally  Jowett's  remark  about  it  as  "more  inspired  than  the 
original."  No  ^'literary''  study  of  the  Bible  is  worth  consider- 
ing which  does  not  aim  at  appreciating  what  its  original  writers 
meant;  and  what  they  meant  and  wrote  often  does  not  appear 
in  the  King  James  translation.  The  traditional  Hebrew  text 
from  which  both  the  King  James  and  the  Kevised  versions  were 
made,  is  in  scores  of  passages  —  especially  in  the  important 
books  of  Samuel — obscured  by  the  accumulated  copyists'  errors 
of  centuries.  Where  the  work  of  modern  textual  scholarship  has 
made  it  possible  to  remove  such  errors,  it  is  no  longer  excusable 
to  pass  them  on  to  future  readers.  I  have  therefore  cut  out  pal- 
pable glosses,  restored  (in  1  Sam.  xiv.  41  and  elsewhere)  original 
readings  that  have  dropped  out  of  the  Hebrew  but  are  preserved 
in  the  Greek,  and  used  corrected  renderings  where  the  received 
version  is  seriously  misleading.  Most  of  these  changes,  put- 
ting, for  example,  ^  asherah '  for  *  grove,'  ^  Edom '  for  '  Syria  ' 
(Aram),  *oak'  for  ^  plain,'  etc.,  c^n  hardly  be  said  to  affect  the 
style,  except  as  they  make  for  clearness ;  and  they  give  a  text 
which,  I  hope,  will  deliver  the  average  reader  from  his  present 
dilemma  between  a  correct  but  non-literary  translation,  and  a  lit- 
erary one  which  requires  continual  recourse  to  a  commentary. 

Two  minor  passages  I  have  omitted  as  not  of  enough  value  to 


VI  PREFACE 

offset  an  objection  pudoris  causa  ;  but  elsewhere  I  did  not  feel 
that  anything  warranted  bowdlerizing.  I  have  followed  the  He- 
vised  version  in  putting  ^  its '  for  '  his '  when  not  referring  to 
persons,  since  in  several  places  the  change  prevents  ambiguity; 
and  I  have  modernized  the  few  obsolete  spellings  —  '  plaster  ' 
for  ^plaister/  ^  basin'  for  'bason,'  'assuaged'  for  'asswaged,' 
etc.  —  which  survive  in  our  Bibles  largely  by  the  chance  of 
the  printing  house.  The  archaic  charm  of  Jacobean  idiom  is 
not  enhanced  by  a  scattering  of  merely  quaint-looking  forms. 

The  second  consideration  —  that  footnotes  should  give  such 
matters  of  fact  as  explain  or  supplement  the  text  —  requires  that 
the  assured  results  of  recent  excavations  in  Bible  lands  should 
be  briefly  subjoined  wherever  they  are  pertinent. 

In  February,  1909,  the  National  Conference  on  Uniform  En- 
trance Requirements  in  English  placed  the  chief  narratives  of 
the  Old  Testament  at  the  head  of  its  list  for  school  reading.  Its 
action  followed  a  conviction,  still  growing,  that  the  ignorance  of 
the  Bible  common  in  our  schools  is  not  creditable  to  the  com- 
munity. The  Old  Testament  stories  are  not  only  a  source  of 
continual  allusion  in  other  literature  read  at  school;  in  the 
classic  King  James  translation  they  are  an  abiding  standard  of 
taste  and  elevated  feeling.  It  is  part  of  the  aim  of  this  book  to 
set  them  at  an  advantage  for  school  use. 

My  debt  to  Haupt's  Sacred  Books  of  the  Old  Testament  is 
greater  than  appears  in  the  limited  scope  I  have  allowed  my- 
self for  textual  changes.  Among  other  authorities  I  must  make 
special  acknowledgment  to  the  following  commentaries:  Canon 
Driver's  Genesis,  Deuteronomy,  Jeremiah,  and  Daniel ;  A.  H. 
McNeile's  Exodus ;  G.  B.  Gray's  Numbers ;  G.  F.  Moore's 
Judges  ;  H.  P.  Smith's  Samuel ;  A.  R.  S.  Kennedy's  Samuel  ; 
Professor  Skinner's  Kings  ;  L.  B.  Paton's  Esther.  I  am  in- 
debted to  Professor  Torrey's  discussion  of  the  Ezra  story  in  the 
American  Journal  of  Semitic  Languages  for  July,  1909  (now 
republished  in  his  Ezra  Studies),  and  repeatedly  to  C.  F.  Kent's 
Student's  Old  Testament,  for  help  in  questions  of  sequence.  In 
Egyptian  names  and  dates  I  have  followed  Breasted's  History 
of  the  Ancient  Egyptians  (Scribner's,  1908).  I  have  been  able 
to  chock  a  number  of  my  summaries  from  the  reports  of  Pales- 
tine exploration  by  Canon  Driver's  Schweich  lectures  on  Modern 
Research  as  Illustrating  the  Bible. 

Alfred  Dwight  Sheffield. 

Cambridge,  Mass. 


CONTENTS 

Introduction xiii 

I.  The  Beginnings  of  History 1 

The  Creation  —  The  Fall  —  Cain  and  Abel  —  The  Patriarchs 
from  Adam  to  Noah  —  The  Flood  —  The  Cursing  of  Ca- 
naan —  The  Tower  of  Babel. 

II.  The  Ancestors  of  the  Hebrews 15 

1.  Abraham. 

The  Migration  to  Canaan  —  Sarai  and  Abimelech  —  Sepa- 
ration of  Abram  and  Lot  —  Abram's  Rescue  of  Lot  — 
Sarai,  Hagar,  and  the  Promised  Seed  — The  Destruction 
of  Sodom  —  Hagar  and  Ishmael  Cast  Off  —  The  Trial  of 
Abraham  —  The  Burial  of  Sarah  —  The  Winning  of  Be- 
bekah  for  Isaac. 

2.  Jacob. 

Birth  of  Esau  and  Jacob  —  Esau  Sells  his  Birthright — The 
Promises  Renewed  to  Isaac  —  The  Blessing  of  Jacob  — 
Jacob's  Flight  —  Jacob  and  Laban  —  Meeting  of  Jacob 
and  Esau  —  Dinah  and  Shechem  —  Experiences  in  Canaan. 

3.  Joseph. 

Joseph  Sold  into  Egypt  —  Joseph  and  Potiphar's  Wife  — 
Joseph  as  Interpreter  of  Dreams  —  Joseph  as  Governor 
of  Egypt  —  Joseph  Reunited  to  his  Brothers  —  Jacob's 
Blessing  and  Death  —  The  Later  Days  of  Joseph. 

III.  The  Exodus 80 

Increase  of  the  Israelites  —  The  Youth  of  Moses  —  Moses' 
Call  —  Mission  of  Moses  and  Aaron  —  The  Ten  Plagues  — 
Institution  of  the  Passover  —  The  Exodus  —  The  Journey 
to  Sinai. 

IV.  Israel  at  Sinai 102 

The  Commandments  —  The  Golden  Calf —  Renewal  of  the 
Covenant  —  The  Tabernacle  —  Jethro's  Advice  —  Appoint- 
ment of  Seventy  Elders  —  Jealousy  of  Miriam  and  Aaron. 

V.  Israel  in  the  Wilderness 115 

Departure  from  Sinai  —  The  Manna  and  the  Quails  —  Wa- 
ter from  the  Rock  —  The  Fight  with  Amalek —  Discour- 


viii  CONTENTS 

agement  at  the  Report  of  the  Spies  —  Revolt  of  Dathan 
and  Abiram  —  Korah  Punished  for  Claiming  Priestly 
Rights  —  The  Plague,  and  the  Budding  of  Aaron's  Rod. 

VI.  From  Kadesh  to  the  East  of  Jordan     ....  129 
The  Edomites  Refuse  Israel  Passage  —  Death  of  Aaron  — 

The  Brazen  Serpent  —  Defeat  of  Sihon  and  Og  —  Balak 
and   Balaam  —  Moabites    and   Midianites  corrupt  Israel 

—  Joshua  appointed  Moses'  Successor  —  Settlement  of 
Reuben  and  Gad  —  Death  of  Moses. 

VII.  The  Invasion  of  Canaan 145 

The  Summons  to  Conquest  —  Rahab  and  the  Spies  —  Pas- 
sage of  the  Jordan  —  Circumcision  at  Gilgal  —  The  Fall 
of  Jericho  —  The  Sin  of  Achan  —  Ai  Taken  by  Ambuscade 

—  The  Gibeonites  Secure  a  Treaty  —  Defeat  of  Five 
Amorite  Kings  —  Allotments  of  Land  to  the  Tribes  — 
Joshua's  Farewell  —  The  Conquest  Incomplete. 

VIII.  The  Judges 167 

Explanation  of  Israel's  Fortunes  during  the  Period  of  Settle- 
ment—  Othniel  —  Ehud,  Deliverer  from  Eglon  the  Mo- 
abite  —  Deborah  and  Barak,  Deliverers  from  Sisera  — 
Gideon,  Deliverer  from  the  Midianites  —  Abimelech  — 
Jephthah,  Deliverer  from  the  Ammonites  —  Samson  and 
the  Philistines  —  Micah's  Idols  and  the  Migration  of  the 
Danites  —  The  Outrage  at  Gibeah  —  Punishment  of  the 
Benjamites —  Ruth  the  Moabitess  —  Birth  and  Consecra- 
tion of  Samuel  —  Eli's  Wicked  Sons  —  The  Call  of  Samuel 

—  The  Ark  among  the  Philistines. 

IX.  The  Early  Monarchy 222 

1.  Saul. 

Saul  Anointed  by  Samuel  —  The  Deliverance  from  the 
Philistines  —  David  Anointed  by  Samuel  —  David  as  Saul's 
Harper — David  and  Goliath  —  Saul's  Jealousy  of  David 

—  David  and  Jonathan  —  David  a  Fugitive  —  Saul's  Re- 
venge on  the  Priests  of  Nob  —  David  Spares  Saul's  Life 

—  David  and  Abigail — David  among  the  Philistines  — 
David  and  the  Amalekite  Raid  —  Saul  and  the  Witch 
of  En-dor  —  The  Death  of  Saul  and  Jonathan  —  David's 
Lament  for  Saul  and  Jonathan. 

2.  David. 

David  King  at  Hebron  ;  Ishbaal  at  Mahanaim  —  Civil  War 

—  Abner's  Defection  and  Death  —  Murder  of  Ishbaal  — 
David  made    King  of  Israel  —  War  with  the  Philistines 

—  Capture  of  Jerusalem  —  The  Ark  brought  to  Jeru- 
salem—  David's  Dynasty  Assured  —  David's  Court  and 
Chief   Warriors  —  Execution   of   Saul's    Sons  —  David's 


CONTENTS  ix 

Kindness  to  Meribbaal — David's  Census  and  its  Conse- 
quences—  David's  Wars  of  Conquest — David  and  Bath- 
sheba  —  Absalom  Revenges  Tamar  —  The  Pardon  of 
Absalom  —  Absalom's  Kebellion  —  David's  Return  — 
Sheba's  Revolt  —  Adonijah's  Intrigue  for  the  Succession 

—  Death  of  David. 

3.  Solomon. 

The  Removal  of  Solomon's  Opponents  —  Solomon's  Wis- 
dom —  Prosperity  of  the  Kingdom  —  The  Building  of  the 
Temple — The  Temple  Furnishings  —  Dedication  of  the 
Temple  —  Solomon's  Palace  —  Solomon's  Resources  and 
Wealth  —  Visit  of  the  Queen  of  Sheba  —  Solomon's  Apos- 
tasy —  Solomon's  Enemies  and  Death. 

X.  Northern  Israel  to  the  Fall  of  Samaria      .     .  329 

Revolt  of  the  Northern  Tribes — Jeroboam's  Religious  In- 
novations —  The  Prophecy  against  the  Altar  of  Beth-el  — 
Ahijah's    Prophecy  —  Nadab  —  Baasha  —  Elah  —  Zimri 

—  Omri  —  Elijah  and  the  Drought  —  Elijah  and  the 
Prophets  of  Baal  —  Elijah  at  Horeb  —  The  Call  of  Eli- 
sha  —  Ahab  and  Naboth  —  Deliverance  of  Samaria  — 
Defeat  of  the  Syrians  at  Aphek  —  The  Death  of  Ahab  — 
Ahaziah — Jehoram  —  The  Translation  of  Elijah  —  The 
Healing  of  the  Waters  of  Jericho  —  Elisha  and  the 
Mocking  Children  —  The  Widow's  Oil  —  Elisha  Provides 
Food  for  the  Prophets  —  The  Lost  Axe-head  —  The  Shu- 
nammite's  Son  —  The  Shunammite's  Property  Restored — 
Healing  of  Naaman  the  Leper  —  The  War  with  Moab  — 
Elisha  Entraps  the  Syrians  —  Samaria  Delivered  from 
Siege  —  Elisha  and  Hazael  —  Jehu's  Revolution  —  The 
Reign  of  Jehu  —  Jehoahaz  —  Jehoash  —  Death  of  Elisha 

—  Victories  of  Jehoash  —  Jeroboam  II  —  Zechariah  — 
Shall  iim  —  Menahem  —  Pekahiah  —  Pekah  —  Hoshea  — 
The  Fall  of  Samaria  —  Origin  of  the  Samaritans. 

XL  JuDAH  TO  Jehoiachix's  Release 382 

Rehoboam  —  Abijam  —  Asa  —  Jehoshaphat  —  Joram  — 
Ahaziah  —  Athaliah's  Usurpation  —  Joash  Repairs  the 
Temple  —  The  Decline  of  Joash  —  Amaziah  —  Uzziah  — 
The  Call  of  Isaiah  —  Jotham  —  Ahaz  —  Hezekiah's  Re- 
forms—  Hezekiah's  Sickness  —  Embassy  of  IMerodach- 
baladan — Sennacherib's  Invasion  of    Judah  —  Manasseh 

—  Amon  —  Josiah  and  the  Discovery    of    the  Law-Book 

—  The  Great  Reformation — Josiah's  Death  —  Jehoahaz 

—  Jeremiah's  Preaching  and  Trial — The  Writing  of 
Jeremiah's  Prophecies  —  The  Reign  of  Jehoiakim  — 
Jehoiachin  and  the  First  Captivity  of  Judah  —  Zedekiah's 
Rebellion  —  The  Treatment  of  the  Hebrew  Slaves  — 
Jeremiah's  Imprisonment  —  The   Fall  of  Jerusalem  — 


X  CONTENTS 

Judah  under  Gedaliah  —  The  Migration  to  Egypt  — 
Ezekiel's  Vision  of  the  Valley  of  Bones  —  Jehoiachin's 
Release. 

XII.  The    Renewal    of   the   Jewish    Community   in 

Palestine 437 

The  Decree  of  Cyrus  —  The  Refounding  of  the  Temple  — 
The  Building  Recommenced  —  Completion  of  the  Temple 

—  Nehemiah's  Patriotic  Resolve  — The  Rebuilding  of  the 
Wall  —  Nehemiah's  Social  Reforms  —  Unsuccessful  Plots 
against  the  Work  —  Dedication  of  the  Walls  —  Nehe- 
miah's Religious  Reforms  —  The  Mission  of  Ezra  —  The 
Reading  of  the  Law  —  The  Suppression  of  Mixed  Mar- 
riages. 

XIII.  The  Stories  of  Jonah,  Daniel,  and  Esther    .  459 

1.  Jonah. 

2.  Daniel, 

Daniel's  Abstinence  —  Nebuchadnezzar's  Dream  —  The  Im- 
age of  Gold  and  the  Fiery  Furnace  —  Nebuchadnezzar's 
Madness  —  Belshazzar's  Feast  —  Daniel  in  the  Lions'  Den. 

3.  Esther. 

XIV.  The  War  for  Religious  Freedom 491 

The  Beginnings  of  Greek  Rule  —  Persecution  by  Antiochus 

IV  —  The  Uprising  of  Mattathias  —  The  Fortunes  of  the 
Fugitive  Jews  —  Judas's  Defeat  of  Apollonius  and  Seron 

—  Defeat  of  the  Syrian  Generals  —  The  Great  Victory 
over  Lysias  —  The  Restoration  of  the  Temple  Service. 

Chronology  of  the  Divided  Kingdoms 328 

Index  to  Special  Notes 509 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Diagram  showing  Early  Hebrew  Conception  of  the 
Universe 2 

Babylonian  Cylinder-seal  Impression,  suggesting  the 
Story  of  the  Fall 5 

Babylonian  Zikkurat 14 

Adapted  from  Perrot  and  Chipiez  :   Histoire  de  Vart  dans 
Vantiquitif  vol.  ii 

Hammurabi 21 

Ramses  II 80 

Early  Egyptian  Representation  of  a  Semitic  Captive 

AT  Labor 83 

From  Spiegelberg  :    Der  Aufenthalt  Israels  in  Agypten 

Merneptah 87 

Egyptian  Chariot 99 

From   Rosellini :    Monumenti  delV   Egitto    e    della    Nubia. 
vol.  i  (plate  cv) 

Amorites  (Relief  on  a  Pylon  of  the  Ramesseum)    .     .  121 
From  Maspero  :   Histoire  ancienne  des  peuples  de  V orient  das- 
sique,  vol.  ii 

Canaanite  Woman  from  Ashkelon 128 

From  Benzinger  :   Hebrdische  Archdologie 

Terra-cotta  Figure  of  Ashtart 167 

From  Perrot  and  Chipiez  :  op.  cit.,  vol.  iii 


XU  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Cylinder-seal  Impression,  showing  Asherah  and  Sa- 
cred Tree 169 

From  Ohnefalsch-Richter  :  Kypros  (plate  xxx) 

Egyptian  Relief-head  of  a  Philistine  Warrior  .     .     .  191 

Pillar-stones  at  Taanach 223 

After  Sellin  :   Tell  Ta'annek 

Longitudinal   Section   of   Solomon's   Temple   .     .     .  317 
After  Stade 

Ambassadors  from  Jehu  to  Shalmaneser  II    ...     .  372 

The  God  Amon  bringing  Captive  Cities  to  Shishak     .  383 

Sculptured  Boundary-stone  of  Merodach-baladan     .  402 
From  Gressmanu:  Altorientalische  Texte  und  Bilder,  voL  ii 

Sennacherib  receiving  the  Spoil  of  Lachish       .     .     .  403 

Assyrian  Chariot  of  the  Time  of  Sennacherib  .     .     .  405 
Based  onLayard:  Monuments  of  Nineveh^  2d  series  (plate  xlii) 

Jewish  Captives  at  Labor 435 

Stele  of  Esar-haddon 439 

Silver  Tetradrachm  with   Head  of  Antiochus  Epi- 

PHANES 491 

Candlestick  from  the  Temple  as  Shown  on  the  Arch 
of  Titus 493 


INTRODUCTION 

1.  Old  Testament  History 

The  Old  Testament  narrative  is  not  only  a  rich  literary  source, 
from  which  all  our  serious  prose  and  poetry  draw  ideas  and  ex- 
pressive forms  of  speech :  it  is  a  history,  recording  the  life  of  a 
people  that  has  influenced  the  course  of  human  affairs.  A  modern 
man,  therefore,  can  hardly  understand  either  his  native  litera- 
ture or  the  society  he  lives  in,  without  knowing  something  of 
the  story  of  Israel. 

This  importance  of  the  little  Hebrew  people  is  due,  not  to  its 
having  any  remarkable  antiquity,  nor  to  any  commanding  role 
that  it  played.  Israel  was  both  antedated  and  overshadowed  by 
great  civilized  states  in  the  valleys  of  the  Nile  and  of  the  Eu- 
phrates, and  between  these  her  national  life  was  finally  crushed 
out.  But  before  this  could  happen,  her  national  religion  had  be- 
come dominated  by  ideals  which  made  it  one  of  the  indestructible 
forces  of  the  spirit.  For  reasons  to  be  explained  later  (p.  xxi), 
the  growth  of  these  ideals  can  be  followed  only  imperfectly  by 
an  uncritical  reading  of  the  Old  Testament  books  as  they  stand. 
A  summary  of  Hebrew  history  is  therefore  required,  to  show, 
on  the  one  hand,  its  general  setting  in  the  ancient  world,  on  the 
other,  the  successive  parts  in  it  taken  by  the  prophets. 

Excavation  and  study  have  in  recent  years  brought  to  light 
some  information  about  Palestine  before  the  coming  of  the 
Hebrews.  Its  narrow  strip  of  habitable  land  was  important  to 
Babylonia  and  Egypt,  because  through  this  ran  great  trade  routes 
between  the  Nile  and  the  Euphrates.  Babylonia  was  first  to  con- 
trol the  region,  but  by  b.  c.  1500  it  had  passed  to  Egypt,  and 
under  Thutmose  III  (d.  1447)  was  consolidated  as  part  of  his 
great  empire.  His  successors,  however,  were  unable  to  defend 
Palestine  against  the  Aramean  nomads  that,  about  1350,  began 
pressing  in  from  the  desert,  and  taking  its  little  city-kingdoms 
one  by  one.  As  part  of  this  Aramean  migration,  though  perhaps 
more  than  a  century  later,  appeared  the  clans  of  Israel. 

The  gradual  and  irregular  advance  of  the  Israelites  into  Canaan 


XIV  INTRODUCTION 

is  pictured  in  the  book  of  Judges.  The  clans  were  only  loosely 
in  league,  and  for  the  most  part  won  their  way  singly.  Many 
city  strongholds  held  out  for  generations,  until,  by  securing 
rights  as  sojourners  and  by  intermarriage,  the  invaders  became 
blended  with  the  natives,  who  were  chiefly  of  their  own  Semitic 
stock.  During  this  period  the  Israelite  Beduins  had  to  contest 
their  ground  not  only  with  the  more  civilized  Canaan ite  inhabit- 
ants, but  with  new  invaders.  Moabites,  Midianites,  Ammonites, 
and  Philistines  tried  in  their  turn  to  supplant  the  tribesmen  in 
one  quarter  and  another.  These  inroads  were  met,  first  by  upris- 
ings under  various  local  heroes,  the  "judges,"  and  finally  by 
the  coalition  of  the  tribes  into  a  nation  under  Saul. 

Before  Saul's  death  David  had  won  the  leadership  of  Judah. 
On  succeeding  to  the  kingship  of  all  Israel  he  took  steps  to  con- 
solidate and  extend  his  realm.  He  captured  the  ancient  Canaan- 
ite  fortress  of  Jerusalem,  which  till  then  had  separated  Judah 
from  the  tribes  to  the  north,  and  by  making  that  his  capital  he 
averted  the  sectional  jealousies  that  would  have  attached  to  a 
royal  seat  either  north  or  south.  He  broke  the  power  of  the 
Philistines;  made  tributaries  of  Moab,  Edom,  Ammon,  and  Da- 
mascus ;  and  gave  Israel  a  recognized  position  among  the  nations. 
His  success  was  made  possible  by  the  fact  that  Assyria,  after 
the  reign  of  Tiglath-pileser  I,  had  fallen  into  a  period  of  weak- 
ness, while  Egypt,  now  under  the  21st  dynasty,  was  in  disunion 
between  rulers  at  Tanis  and  Thebes. 

Politically  the  young  nation's  career  was  hardly  noteworthy. 
The  Hebrews  had  none  of  the  Greek  civic  spirit,  nor  of  the  Ro- 
man talent  for  organizing.  David's  attractive  and  energetic  per- 
sonality availed  to  hold  his  kingdom  together  through  his  own 
lifetime  ;  but  on  or  soon  after  Solomon's  accession  (about  977 
B.  c.)  Edom  and  Damascus  fell  away,  and  during  his  reign  Israel 
itself  became  disaffected.  Solomon's  rule  was  outwardly  splendid, 
but  his  buildings,  commerce,  and  luxury  were  all  maintained  by 
exploiting  his  subjects  in  ways  familiar  to  Oriental  despotism. 
At  his  death  (937  b.  c.)  the  jealousy  of  North  Israel  towards 
Judah,  sharpened  by  the  general  discontent,  brought  on  a  final 
split  of  the  kingdom  into  two. 

Down  to  this  time  the  religion  of  Israel  seems  to  have  been  but 
little  higher  than  that  of  her  Semitic  kinsfolk.  By  tradition,  in- 
deed, the  clans  which  Moses  led  out  of  Egypt  had  made  a  solemn 
covenant  to  serve  Jehovah  as  their  God.    But  many  passages 


INTRODUCTION  XV 

show  that  the  early  Hebrews  thought  of  Him  chiefly  under  two 
secular  and  almost  non-moral  aspects.  He  was  their  tribal  war- 
god,  whom  they  invoked  against  their  enemies,  just  as  the  Moab- 
ites  invoked  Chemosh,  and  the  Ammonites,  jVIilcom.  He  was 
also  a  life-giving  deity,  to  whom,  as  the  Hebrews  changed  from 
a  nomadic  to  an  agricultural  people,  they  sacrificed  on  their  high 
places,  just  as  the  Canaanites  sacrificed  to  the  Baals,  in  order  to 
obtain  fertility  for  their  lands.  His  worship  did  not  exclude  cer- 
tain barbarous  and  superstitious  customs,  such  as  the  "'ban,'^  by 
which  the  whole  population  of  a  hostile  city  might  be  religiously 
destroyed,  the  law  of  blood  revenge,  and  the  use  of  household 
teraphim.  The  prophets  were  as  yet  simply  seers  and  ecstatic 
dervishes,  who  for  the  most  part  had  no  special  ethical  message. 
In  the  divided  kingdoms,  however,  the  religion  of  Jehovah 
met  issues  that  brought  into  play  its  latent  spiritual  power. 
North  Israel  was  a  country  of  fertile  plains,  crossed  by  highways 
for  trade  and  intercourse  with  its  neighbors.  Under  Omri  it  be- 
gan a  vigorous  national  life.  This  able  king  established  a  strong 
capital  at  Samaria,  made  alliances  with  Damascus  and  Tyre,  and 
put  Moab  under  tribute.  Under  his  son  Ahab  the  Israelites 
gained  so  rapidly  in  wealth,  and  in  the  culture  of  their  com- 
mercial neighbors,  that  it  became  a  question  whether  the  old 
ideal  of  their  national  covenant  to  serve  Jehovah  would  survive. 
Ahab's  queen,  Jezebel,  had  introduced  the  more  luxurious  cult 
of  her  native  deities,  the  Tyrian  Melkart  and  Ashtart,  and  had 
moved  Ahab  to  infringe  ancient  property-rights  of  Israel.  The 
crisis  brought  to  the  front  Elijah,  the  first  of  the  great  prophet 
reformers.  His  success  in  rousing  a  Jehovah  party  which  won 
the  upper  hand  in  Jehu's  revolution,  was  clouded  by  a  decline 
in  Israel's  fortunes  which  followed.  In  842  b.  c.  Jehu  paid 
tribute  to  Assyria,  and  for  nearly  half  a  century  after,  Israel 
was  hard  pressed  by  Damascus.  Beginning  about  800,  however, 
the  northern  kingdom  had  a  new  era  of  prosperity.  The  Assyri- 
ans were  occupied  meeting  attacks  from  the  Armenian  kingdom 
of  Urartu,  and  Damascus  broke  down  in  conflict  with  a  new 
Aramean  power  under  Zakar.  The  long  reign  of  Jeroboam  II 
was  one  of  increasing  wealth  and  luxury,  but  also  of  social  and 
religious  decline.  A  moneyed  class  had  grown  up,  who  made 
loans  to  the  poorer  husbandmen  on  terms  that  often  resulted  in 
the  seizure  of  their  small  land  holdings.  And,  while  Baalism 
had  been  suppressed,  the  worship  of  Jehovah  was  at  the  popular 


XVI  INTRODUCTION 

sanctuaries  corrupted  by  practices  learned  from  tlie  heathen 
cults.  These  conditions  called  forth  a  new  prophetic  movement, 
in  which  Jehovah's  relation  to  Israel  was  clearly  declared  to  rest 
upon  right  conduct  and  spiritual  worship.  About  750  B.  c.  was 
written  the  traditional  history  of  God's  dealings  with  His  peo- 
ple that  modern  criticism  has  distinguished  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment as  the  Ephraimite  narratives.  At  the  same  time  appeared 
Amos,  denouncing  the  oppression  of  the  poor,  and  urging  that 
Jehovah  took  no  pleasure  in  the  ritual  offerings  of  wrong-doers. 
Hosea  attacked  the  ritual  worship  itself,  debased  by  Baalish  im- 
moralities, as  only  grieving  the  jealous  love  of  their  God.  Both 
Amos  and  Hosea  pronounced  a  doom  from  Jehovah  to  be  threat- 
ening the  sinful  nation.  The  doom  soon  followed.  A  great  mon- 
arch, Tiglath-pileser  III,  was  already  reviving  the  prestige  of 
Assyria.  In  734  he  took  Damascus,  put  Pekah  king  of  Israel  to 
death,  and  deported  the  chief  inhabitants  north  of  the  Plain  of 
Jezreel.  Pekah's  successor,  Hoshea,  incited  by  the  Egyptians, 
still  ventured  to  resist,  but  in  722  Sargon  captured  Samaria,  de- 
ported more  inhabitants  from  the  region,  and  abolished  the  king- 
dom of  Israel. 

The  history  of  Judah,  since  the  division  of  the  kingdom,  had 
meanwhile  been  comparatively  uneventful.  Natural  and  political 
barriers  shut  in  her  rugged  and  unfertile  country,  which  faced 
toward  the  desert,  and  favored  the  simpler  habits  of  life  and 
thought  inherited  from  her  nomadic  past.  David's  dynasty  con- 
tinued on  the  throne.  The  reform  movement  that  Elijah  had 
set  afoot  took  effect  in  Judah  in  a  palace  revolution,  by  which 
the  priest  Jehoiada  deposed  Jezebel's  daughter  Athaliah,  who 
had  usurped  the  government,  and  was  favoring  the  worship  of 
Baal.  Shortly  after  850  b.  c,  Judean  prophets  began  putting 
into  literary  form  the  traditions  now  distinguished  in  the  Old 
Testament  as  the  Judean  narratives.  But  under  Uzziah  (782- 
737)  Judah  had  a  period  of  expansion  and  commerce  which  de- 
veloped much  the  same  social  conditions  as  were  rife  in  Israel. 
Her  political  position  also  was  insecure.  By  a  timely  submission 
she  escaped  when  Samaria  fell,  but  in  Hezekiah's  reign  a  party 
in  Jerusalem  was  continually  looking  to  the  Philistine  cities 
and  Egypt  for  a  coalition  against  Assyria.  This  policy  was 
steadily  opposed  by  the  prophet  Isaiah,  who  advised  the  king 
simply  to  trust  Jehovah  and  avoid  all  foreign  alliances.  Heze- 
kiah,  however,  upon   Sargon's  death  in   705,  was  drawn  into  a 


INTRODUCTION  XVll 

general  rebellion  which  had  the  support  of  Egypt.  The  uprising 
was  met  in  701  by  Sennacherib.  Defeating  the  allies,  he  invaded 
Judah,  captured  forty-six  of  the  smaller  towns,  and  invested 
Jerusalem  itself.  Its  inhabitants  were  stricken  with  panic.  Hez- 
ekiah  sent  belated  offers  of  tribute  to  Sennacherib,  whose  main 
army  had  pushed  on  to  the  borders  of  Egypt.  Isaiah  alone  came 
forward,  boldly  preaching  social  and  religious  reform,  and  pro- 
claiming a  faith  that  Jehovah  would  save  Jerusalem.  The  re- 
sult bore  out  his  trust.  A  plague  broke  out  in  the  Assyrian 
army,  and  Sennacherib  raised  the  siege. 

This  event  impressed  the  Hebrew  imagination  as  showing 
Jerusalem  to  be  the  favored  abode  of  Jehovah.  He  had  left  the 
ancient  shrines  of  Xorth  Israel  to  their  fate,  but  until  this  inva- 
sion a  number  of  the  countryside  shrines  of  Judah  had  flour- 
ished. They  were  now  attacked  by  the  prophetic  party,  both 
because  worship  at  these  high  places  was  continually  showing 
Baalish  features,  and  because  the  idea  was  gaining  headway  that 
the  one  God  should  be  worshipped  only  at  his  one  chosen  tem- 
ple. Hezekiah  therefore  took  steps  to  abolish  the  country  shrines, 
and  perhaps  to  correct  social  abuses  which  about  this  time  were 
denounced  by  Isaiah's  younger  contemporary,  Micah. 

The  following  reign  of  Manasseh  was  one  of  religious  reaction. 
The  superstitions  of  the  people  were  still  attached  to  the  half- 
heathenish  worship  of  the  high  places,  and  the  prophetic  party 
was  driven  into  retirement.  About  650  b.  c.  one  of  this  party 
embodied  its  ideals  in  the  code  of  Deuteronomy.  Judah  con- 
tinued in  submission  to  Assyria,  which  in  this  reign  extended 
its  rule  from  the  Taurus  mountains  to  the  Upper  Xile. 

Manasseh's  grandson,  Josiah  (639-608  b.  c.)  saw  the  decline 
of  the  Assyrian  power.  An  incursion  of  Scythians,  which  called 
forth  the  sermons  of  Zephaniah,  betrayed  its  weakened  condition, 
in  which  Judah  was  left  to  shape  her  own  policies.  The  stir- 
ring address  of  Xahum  shows  that  the  occasion  was  improved 
by  the  prophetic  party  to  press  their  reforms.  Josiah  came  wholly 
under  their  influence.  In  his  eighteenth  year  the  discovery  of 
the  law  of  Deuteronomy  prompted  him  to  make  a  sweeping 
reformation,  by  which  all  the  local  sanctuaries  were  abolished, 
and  the  worship  centralized  in  the  temple.  The  movement, 
however,  was  checked  by  political  misfortunes.  Assyria  was  now 
so  hard  beset  between  the  two  rising  kingdoms  of  the  Medes 
and  the  Chaldeans,  that  Egypt  took  the  opportunity  to  extend 


XVlll  INTRODUCTION 

her  domain  into  Asia.  Josiah  met  the  advance  of  Pharaoh 
Necho,  but  was  defeated  and  killed. 

Necho's  dominion  over  Judah  was  short.  The  new  Babylo- 
nian power,  having  with  the  Medes  overthrown  Assyria  in  606 
B.  c,  pressed  westward  to  take  over  its  apportioned  provinces. 
Its  approach  under  Nebuchadrezzar  called  forth  prophecies  by 
Jeremiah  and  Habakkuk.  The  Chaldean  prince  gave  Necho  a 
crushing  defeat,  but  was  called  home  to  assume  the  crown,  be- 
fore he  could  consolidate  his  western  conquests.  Jehoiakim  of 
Judah  foolishly  took  advantage  of  the  unsettled  state  of  affairs 
to  withhold  his  tribute.  In  retaliation  Nebuchadrezzar  sent  an 
army  to  Jerusalem ;  and,  in  597,  forced  its  surrender,  deported 
ten  thousand  of  its  citizens  into  Babylonia,  and  made  Zedekiah 
its  tributary  king.  Egypt,  however,  again  became  Judah's  evil 
genius.  In  spite  of  Jeremiah's  protests,  Judah  in  588  joined  a 
coalition  of  rebellious  states  headed  by  Pharaoh  Hophra.  A 
Babylonian  army  soon  appeared  and  began  the  siege  of  Jeru- 
salem. Its  inhabitants  looked  for  a  divine  deliverance,  but  Jere- 
miah had  advanced  in  religious  insight  beyond  Isaiah's  belief 
of  a  century  before  that  Jerusalem  was  inviolable.  He  now 
proclaimed  that  Jehovah  would  give  over  His  temple  to  de- 
struction, and  would  henceforth  make  His  covenant  simply  a 
spiritual  one  in  the  hearts  of  the  faithful.  At  the  same  time,  the 
young  priest  Ezekiel  was  preaching  among  his  fellow  exiles  the 
doctrine  that  God  deals  directly  with  the  individual.  Thus 
the  religion  of  Jehovah  had  already  ceased  to  be  identified  with 
the  state  worship,  when  in  586  b.  c,  Jerusalem  was  taken,  the 
temple  destroyed,  and  another  body  of  captives  deported. 

The  exiles,  who  now  formed  a  considerable  community  in 
Babylonia,  cherished  and  expanded  their  religious  ideals.  Eze- 
kiel, sometimes  called  the  father  of  Judaism,  elaborated  a  reli- 
gious polity  on  which  the  nation  might  in  time  reorganize.  An- 
other priestly  writer  compiled  the  Holiness  Code,  now  found  in 
the  book  of  Leviticus.  Some  years  later  appeared  the  Second 
Isaiah,  who  not  only  expressed  with  special  power  the  thought 
that  Jehovah  was  creator  of  the  world  and  maker  of  history,  but 
proclaimed  that  He  had  given  Israel  her  tragic  experience  that 
she  might  perform  the  mission  of  bringing  the  nations  to  Him. 

The  liberal  policy  of  Cyrus,  who  in  538  b.  c.  took  possession 
of  the  Babylonian  empire,  allowed  the  renewal  of  the  national 
worship  in  Palestine.  By  516  the  community  at  Jerusalem,  led 


INTRODUCTION  xix 

by  Haggai  and  Zechariah,  had  rebuilt  the  temple,  but  its  career 
for  the  next  eighty  years  was  troubled  and  precarious.  The 
dominant  religious  interest  of  the  time  was  in  the  regulation  of 
ritual  observances.  It  was  voiced  by  the  prophet  Malachi  in  an 
appeal  to  keep  the  service  of  Jehovah  pure,  and  it  led  to  the 
writing  of  a  history  of  Israel's  laws  and  institutions,  now  dis- 
tinguished in  the  early  Old  Testament  books  as  the  Friestly 
Document.  In  444  b.  c,  the  patriot  Nehemiah  came  to  Jeru- 
salem with  royal  permission  to  rebuild  its  walls.  Under  his 
energetic  leadership  the  civil  and  religious  life  of  the  commu- 
nity was  thoroughly  organized  on  the  basis  of  the  Levitical  law. 
The  Jewish  state  became  identified  with  the  Jewish  Church  ; 
and  this  conception  of  the  state  some  years  later  inspired  the 
composition  of    Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah. 

For  the  next  two  centuries  the  history  of  the  Jews  is  very 
obscure.  The  division  of  Alexander's  empire  left  Palestine  in 
its  old  unhappy  position  as  debated  ground  between  two  over- 
shadowing kingdoms,  —  the  Syrian  kingdom  of  the  Seleucids  and 
the  Egyptian  kingdom  of  the  Ptolemies.  The  spread  of  Greek 
civilization  widened  the  Jewish  outlook  upon  the  world.  It  also 
reacted  upon  Jewish  religious  thought.  The  great  increase  of 
city  life  gave  importance  to  the  synagogues  for  local  worship, 
and  to  the  scribes,  who  now  replace  the  prophets  as  religious 
leaders.  Devotion  to  the  law  found  expression  in  many  of  the 
Psalms  which  date  from  this  period ;  reflection  on  moral  and  re- 
ligious questions  gave  rise  to  the  "  wisdom  literature,"  including 
Job,  Proverbs,  and  Ecclesiastes ;  and  the  sense  of  Israel's  mis- 
sion to  the  Gentiles  prompted  the  writing  of  Jonah.  In  course 
of  time,  however,  Greek  culture  threatened  to  sap  the  national 
religion.  The  brightness  of  Greek  life  —  its  free  play  of  reason, 
its  art,  its  enthusiasm  for  a  rounded  training  of  body  and  mind 

—  was  bound  to  appeal  to  liberal  Jews.  By  175  b.  c,  therefore, 
there  was  a  strong  Hellenizing  party  at  Jerusalem.  The  danger 
to  the  national  faith  had  already  roused  a  zealous  puritan  party, 
when  the  Syrian  king  Antiochus  attempted  to  force  Greek  re- 
ligion upon  the  community.  This  tyrannical  act  may  have  seemed 
to  the  Gentile  peoples  of  his  time  in  some  measure  provoked 
by  an  illiberal  exclusiveness  common  among  the  stricter  Jews, 

—  a  spirit  that  appears  in  the  book  of  Esther.  But  persecution 
only  brought  out  their  heroic  qualities.  The  faithful  suffered 
at  first  unresistingly,  many  doubtless  finding   comfort   in  the 


XX  INTRODUCTION 

book  of  Daniel,  with  its  examples  of  constancy  under  trial,  and 
its  visions  of  Messianic  deliverance.  Then  came  the  uprising  of 
the  Maccabees.  One  after  another  of  the  patriot  brothers  headed 
their  little  bands  against  the  armies  of  Syria,  until  under  Simon 
in  142  B.  c.  they  won  a  period  of  national  independence.  The 
varying  fortunes  of  that  struggle  are  in  this  book  followed  only 
to  the  rededication  of  the  temple  in  165,  since  this  event,  mark- 
ing the  assured  continuance  of  the  national  worship,  was  the 
more  important  for  the  future  of  religion.  ''  It  was  not  merely 
a  local  triumph  of  Hebraism  over  Hellenism,  but  it  represents 
the  reentry  of  the  East  into  the  civilization  of  the  West."  ^ 

2.   The  Old  Testament  Narrative 

In  the  foregoing  review  of  Old  Testament  history  the  reader 
may  wonder  that  no  mention  occurs  of  the  familiar  names  by 
which  we  know  the  chief  narrative  books  from  Genesis  to  Kings. 
The  reason  is  that  in  their  present  form  these  books  represent 
the  last  of  several  stages  of  composition.  The  first  stage  was  the 
committal  to  writing,  in  the  ninth  and  eighth  centuries,  b.  c, 
of  traditions  running  back  to  the  time  of  Moses  and  before. 
This  gave  the  two  almost  parallel  narratives,  already  mentioned 
as  the  Judean  and  the  Ephraimite.  The  style  of  the  older 
Judean  is  well  shown  in  the  sending  of  Eliezer  for  Rebekah 
(pp.  33  ff.),  but  both  of  these  writings  are  characterized  by  simple, 
direct,  and  picturesque  story-telling.  At  about  650  b.  c.  an 
editor  or  editors  blended  these  two  into  a  single  narrative,  by 
piecing  together  their  corresponding  parts.  The  result  was  a 
fuller  anecdotal  history  of  Israel  from  patriarchal  times  to  the 
death  of  Joshua,  perhaps  even  to  the  early  monarchy. 

In  621  appeared  the  code  of  Deuteronomy,  insisting  with 
flowing  eloquence  on  a  pure  worship  of  Jehovah  as  the  one  na- 
tional requisite.  This  book  strongly  influenced  the  editors  who, 
at  the  fall  of  Jerusalem,  collected  the  annals  and  literary  re- 
mains of  their  country.  To  the  combined  prophetic  narrative 
they  now  added  from  these  sources,  writing  in  connective  pas- 
sages and  comments,  until  they  had  given  the  Mosaic  law  its 
setting  and  application  in  a  fairly  consecutive  history  of  Israel 
from  the  Creation  to  the  Captivity.  The  summary  on  pp.  167- 
168  is  an  example  of  the  Deuteronomic  style  and  teaching. 

1  Israel  Abrahams  :  Judaism. 


INTRODUCTION  XXI 

Finally,  during  and  after  the  exile,  the  growing  zeal  for  cere- 
monial law  led  to  the  writing  of  the  Friestly  Document.  This 
gives  the  laws,  with  the  precedents  in  history  for  their  observ- 
ance, from  God's  institution  of  the  Sabbath  at  Creation  to 
Joshua's  partition  of  Canaan  among  the  tribes.  Its  stately,  for- 
mal, repetitious  style  is  illustrated  in  Abraham's  purchase  of  the 
cave  of  Machpelah  (p.  32).  This  work  was  in  its  turn  interwoven 
with  the  Deuteronomic  history,  the  result  being  the  present  form 
of  Genesis,  Exodus,  Leviticus,  Numbers,  Deuteronomy,  Joshua. 
In  these  books,  therefore,  the  earliest  religious  conceptions  of 
the  Old  Testament  appear  side  by  side  with  the  latest. 

In  the  Hebrew  Holy  Scripture  the  first  five  books  (which  are 
really  only  mechanical  divisions  of  a  single  work)  form  its  first 
part,  called  the  Torah  or  "Law."  The  second  part  {Nehlii'im 
or  "  Prophets  ")  includes :  (l)  the  prophetic  histories,  Joshua, 
Judges,  Samuel,  Kings  ;  (2)  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  and 
the  Twelve  (the  Minor  Prophets).  The  third  part  {Kethuhhim 
or  '^Writings")  includes:  (l)  the  poetical  books.  Psalms,  Pro- 
verbs, Job  ;  (2)  the  five  Megilloth  or  ''  Festival  Eolls,"  Ca^iti- 
cles,  Ruth,  Lamentations,  Ecclesiastes,  Esther ;  (3)  Daniel, 
and  the  late  history,  Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah,  of  which 
Chronicles  is  chiefly  a  revision  of  the  Deuteronomic  history 
from  David  on.  This  list  was  by  a  synod  of  rabbis  held  at  Jam- 
nia  about  a.  d.  90,  defined  as  the  complete  Canon,  or  authori- 
tative scripture.  The  Alexandrine  Jews,  however,  included  in 
the  Canon  a  number  of  additional  books,  —  among  them  1st 
Maccabees,  part  of  which  is  used  in  this  volume.  Their  Greek 
version  of  the  Old  Testament  (called  the  Sej)tuagint,  or  Version 
of  Seventy,  from  the  legend  that  the  translation  was  made  by 
seventy-two  elders)  groups  the  books  loosely  by  their  subject- 
matter  as  Law  {Pentateuch),  History,  Poetry,  and  Prophecy, 
and  this  arrangement  is  followed  in  our  English  Bibles. 

Since  several  books  contain  a  variety  of  matter  —  history, 
poetry,  laws,  etc.  —  neither  of  these  arrangements  can  give  the 
narrative  in  a  consecutive  order.  Thus  a  number  of  chapters  in 
the  prophets  supplement  the  story  in  Kings.  Moreover  the  nar- 
rative itself  in  the  earlier  composite  books  shows  a  great  deal 
of  repetition.  In  this  volume,  therefore,  the  Old  Testament 
story  is  given  alone,  without  repeated  matter,  and  in  the  order 
of  its  events. 


THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  NARRATIVE 


THE   BEGINNINGS    OF    HISTORY 

The  Creation  (Gen.  i.,  ii.).  In  the  beginning  God  created 
the  heaven  and  the  earth. 

And  the  earth  was  without  form,  and  void  ;  and  darkness  was 
upon  the  face  of  the  deep ;  and  the  Spirit  of  God  moved  upon 
the  face  of  the  waters. 

And  God  said,  ^'  Let  there  be  light :  "  and  there  was  light. 
And  God  saw  the  light,  that  it  was  good :  and  God  divided  the 
light  from  the  darkness  ;  and  God  called  the  light  Day,  and  the 
darkness  he  called  Night.  And  the  evening  and  the  morning 
were  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 
God  made  the  firmament,  and  divided  the  waters  which  were 
under  the  firmament  from  the  waters  which  were  above  the  fir- 
mament :  and  it  was  so ;  and  God  called  the  firmament  Heaven. 
And  the  evening  and  the  morning  were  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,  the  herb 
yielding  seed,  and  the  fruit  tree  yielding  fruit  after  its  kind,  whose 
seed  is  in  itself  upon  the  earth  :  "  and  it  was  so ;  and  the  earth 
brought  forth  grass,  and  herb  yielding  seed  after  its  kind,  and  the 
tree  yielding  fruit,  whose  seed  was  in  itself,  after  its  kind  :  and 
God  saw  that  it  was  good.  And  the  evening  and  the  morning 
were  the  third  day. 

And  God  said,  "  Let  there  be  lights  in  the  firmament  of  the 

1  firmament.    The  solid  vault  of  heaven,  thought  of  as  spanning  the  earth 
like  a  great  dome.    See  the  diagram,  p.  2. 


2  THE    BEGINNINGS    OF   HISTORY 

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  lights  in  the  firmament  of  the  heaven  to  give  light  upon  the 
earth:"  and  it  was  so.  And  God  made  two  great  lights;  the 
greater  light  to  rule  the  day,  and  the  lesser  light  to  rule  the 
ni^ht :  he  made  the  stars  also ;  and  God  set  them  in  the  firma- 
ment of  the  heaven  to  give  light  upon  the  earth,  and  to  rule  over 


.^pmi^-m%j'p.^ 


Diagram  showing  the  Early  Hebrew  Conception  of  the  Universe.  [Adapted  from  C.  F.  Kent's 
Beginnings  of  Hebrew  History,  by  permission  of  Charles  Scribner's  Sons.J 


the  day  and  over  the  night,  and  to  divide  the  light  from  the 
darkness  :  and  God  saw  that  it  was  good.  And  the  evening  and 
the  morning  were  the  fourth  day. 

And  God  said,  "  Let  the  waters  bring  forth  abundantly  the 
moving  creature  that  hath  life,  and  fowl  that  may  fly  above 
the  earth  in  the  open  firmament  of  heaven.'^  And  God  created 
great  whales,  and  every  living  creature  that  moveth,  which 
the  waters  brought  forth  abundantly,  after  their  kind,  and 
every  winged  fowl  after  its  kind  :  and  God  saw  that  it  was  good, 
and  God  blessed  them,  saying,  ^'Be  fruitful,  and  multiply,  and 


THE    CREATION  6 

fill  the  waters  in  the  seas,  and  let  fowl  multiply  in  the  earth." 
And  the  evening  and  the  morning  were  the  fifth  day. 

And  God  said,  "  Let  the  earth  bring  forth  the  living  creature 
after  its  kind,  cattle,  and  creeping  thing,  and  beast  of  the  earth 
after  its  kind:  "  and  it  was  so;  and  God  made  the  beast  of  the 
earth  after  its  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  earth,  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  called  their  name  Adam.^  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  mov- 
eth  upon  the  earth."  And  God  said,  "  Behold,  I  have  given  you 
every  herb  bearing  seed,  which  is  upon  the  face  of  all  the  earth, 
and  every  tree,  in  the  which  is  the  fruit  yielding  seed ;  to 
you  it  shall  be  for  meat;  and  to  every  beast  of  the  earth,  and  to 
every  fowl  of  the  air,  and  to  every  thing  that  creepeth  upon  the 
earth,  wherein  there  is  life,  I  have  given  every  green  herb  for 
meat :  "  and  it  was  so :  and  God  saw  every  thing  that  he  had 
made,  and  behold  it  was  very  good.  And  the  evening  and  the 
morning  were  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  ;  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.^ 

In  the  day  that  the  Lord  God  made  the  earth  and  the  heav- 

1  Adam.  That  is,  '  Man.' 

2  Since  1872  there  has  been  brought  to  light  a  Babylonian  "  Creation  Epic," 
which,  though  polytheistic,  has  important  particulars  in  common  with  this  ac- 
count. Thus,  it  makes  out  a  watery  chaos  at  the  beginning  of  things;  calls  it 
by  a  similar  name,  Tidmnt  (the  Hebrew  is  'Ichom);  separates  it  afterwards  into 
upper  and  nether  waters;  begins  the  new  order  with  tiie  creation  of  light;  and 
on  the  forming  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  mentions  that  they  are  to  mark  the 
divisions  of  time.  The  epic  is  in  cuneiform  writing,  on  tablets  from  the  Library 
of  Asshurbanipal  (668-626  B.  c),  but  these  are  probably  transcripts  of  much 
earlier  texts. 


4  THE   BEGINNINGS    OF   HISTORY 

ens,  no  plant  of  the  field  was  yet  in  the  earth,  and  no  herb  of 
the  field  had  yet  sprung  up  ;  for  the  Lord  God  had  not  caused  it 
to  rain  upon  the  earth,  and  there  was  not  a  man  to  till  the 
ground ;  but  there  went  up  a  mist  from  the  earth,  and  watered 
the  whole  face  of  the  ground.  And  the  Lord  God  formed  man 
of  the  dust  of  the  ground,  and  breathed  into  his  nostrils  the 
breath  of  life  ;  and  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 
parted,  and  became  into  four  heads.  The  name  of  the  first  is 
Pison  :  that  is  it  which  compasseth  the  whole  land  of  Havilah, 
where  there  is  gold  ;  and  the  gold  of  that  land  is  good  :  there  is 
bdellium  2  and  the  onyx  stone.  And  the  name  of  the  second 
river  is  Gihon :  the  same  is  it  that  compasseth  the  whole  land 
of  Cush.  And  the  name  of  the  third  river  is  Hiddekel :  that  is 
it  which  goeth  toward  the  east  of  Assyria.  And  the  fourth  river 
is  Euphrates. 

And  the  Lord  God  took  the  man,  and  put  him  into  the  gar- 
den of  Eden  to  dress  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  of  it :  for  in  the  day  that  thou  eatest 
thereof  thou  shalt  surely  die." 

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  fowl  of  the  air  ;  and  brought  them  unto  Adam  to  see 
what  he  would  call  them :  and  whatsoever  Adam  called  every 
living  creature,  that  was  the  name  thereof.  And  Adam  gave 
names  to  all  cattle,  and  to   the  fowl  of  the  air,  and  to  every 

1  Cuneiform  inscriptions  indicate  that  Eden  was  the  plain  of  Babylonia  be- 
tween the  Tigris  and  the  Euphrates,  of  which,  owing  to  their  deposit  of  silt,  the 
ancient  mouths  were  over  eight}'  miles  inland.  The  Sumerian  name  for  this 
plain  was  Edin,  and  tradition  placed  near  Eridu,  the  seaport  of  early  Chaldea,  a 
garden  with  a  sacred  palm-tree,  often  shown  in  Assyrian  sculptures  as  guarded 
by  winged  spirits.  Cush  is  very  possibly  Cappadocia,  and  Havilah  is  the  sandy 
plain  of  north  Arabia. 

2  bdellium.  A  fragrant  yellow  resin  from  the  tree  Balsamodendron  mukul. 


THE   FALL 


5 


beast  of  the  field ;  but  for  Adam  there  was  not  found  an  help 
meet  for  him.  And  the  Lord  God  caused  a  deep  sleep  to  fall 
upon  Adam,  and  he  slept :  and  he  took  one  of  his  ribs,  and 
closed  up  the  flesh  instead  thereof  ;  and  the  rib,  which  the 
Lord  God  had  taken  from  man,  made  he  a  woman,  and  brought 
her  unto  the  man.  And  Adam  said,  ''  This  is  now  bone  of  my 
bones,  and  flesh  of  my  flesh ;  she  shall  be  called  Woman,  be- 
cause she  was  taken  out  of  Man."  Therefore  shall  a  man  leave 
his  father  and  mother,  and  shall  cleave  unto  his  wife  :  and  they 
shall  be  one  flesh.  And  they  were  both  naked,  the  man  and  his 
wife,  and  were  not  ashamed. 

The  Fall  (Gen.  iii.).    Now  the  serpent  was  more  subtle  than 
any  beast  of  the  field  which  the  Lord  God  had  made.   And  he 


Babylonian  Cylinder-seal,  snggestive  of  the  Story  of  the  Fall. 
The  horns  of  the  male  figure  symbolize  strength. 


said  unto  the  woman,  "  Yea,  hath  God  said.  Ye  shall  not  eat  of 
every  tree  of  the  garden  ?  "  And  the  woman  said  unto  the  ser- 
pent, "  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 
halh  said.  Ye  shall  not  eat  of  it,  neither  shall  ye  touch  it,  lest 
ye  die."  And  the  serpent  said  unto  the  woman,  "  Ye  shall  not 
surely  die :  for  God  doth  know  that  in  the  day  ye  eat  thereof, 
then  your  eyes  shall  be  opened,  and  ye  shall  be  as  gods,  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 


6  THE    BEGINNINGS    OF   HISTORY 

they  were  naked;  and  they  sewed  fig  leaves  together,  and  made 
themselves  aprons.  And  they  heard  the  voice  of  the  Lord  God 
walking  in  the  garden  in  the  cool  of  the  day :  and  Adam  and 
his  wife  hid  themselves  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord  God 
amongst  the  trees  of  the  garden.  And  the  Lord  God  called  unto 
Adam,  and  said  unto  him,  ''  Where  art  thou  ?  ^'  And  he  said, 
"  I  heard  thy  voice  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  above  all  cattle,  and  above  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  bruise  thy  head,  and  thou  shalt  bruise  his  heel."  Unto 
the  woman  he  said,  "  I  will  greatly  multiply  thy  sorrow  and 
thy  conception ;  in  sorrow  thou  shalt  bring  forth  children  ;  and 
thy  desire  shall  be  to  thy  husband,  and  he  shall  rule  over  thee." 
And  unto  Adam  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  ground ;  for 
out  of  it  wast  thou  taken  :  for  dust  thou  art,  and  unto  dust  shalt 
thou  return." 

And  Adam  called  his  wife's  name  Eve ;  because  she  was  the 
mother  of  all  living.  Unto  Adam  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,  lest  he  put  forth  his  hand,  and 
take  also  of  the  tree  of  life,  and  eat,  and  live  for  ever  ^  — " 

^  The  language  suggests  the  tradition,  found  among  other  ancient  peoples,  and 
familiar  in  the  story  of  Prometheus,  that  the  gods  were  jealous  lest  man  attain 
powers  rivalling  their  own. 


CAIN    AND   ABEL  7 

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 
Cherubim,^  and  a  flaming  sword  which  turned  every  way,  to 
keep  the  way  of  the  tree  of  life. 

Cain  and  Abel  (Gen.  iv.  1-16).  And  Adam  knew  Eve  his 
wife  ;  and  she  conceived,  and  bare  Cain,  and  said,  "  I  have  gotten 
a  man  from  the  Lord."  And  she  again  bare  his  brother  Abel. 
And  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  unto  Abel  and  to  his 
ofl'ering :  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  ?  If  thou  doest  well,  shalt  thou  not  be  ac- 
cepted ?  and  if  thou  doest  not  well,  sin  lieth  at  the  door.  And 
unto  thee  shall  be  its  desire,  but  do  thou  rule  over  it." 

And  Cain  talked  with  Abel  his  brother;  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  ?  the 
voice  of  thy  brother's  blood  crieth  unto  me  from  the  ground. 
And  now  art  thou  cursed  from  the  earth,  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  ;  a  fugitive  and  a  vagabond  shalt  thou  be  in  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  earth ;  and  from  thy  face  shall  I  be  hid ;  and  I 
shall  be  a  fugitive  and  a  vagabond  in  the  earth  ;  and  it  shall 
come  to  pass,  that  every  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  set 
a  mark  upon  Cain,  lest  any  finding  him  should  kill  him.   And 

1  Cherubim.  Winged  spirits  acting  as  attendants  or  bearers  of  the  Deity,  or  as 
guardians  of  sacred  things.  They  are  represented  as  of  symbolic,  composite 
form:  part  man,  part  lion,  etc. 


8  THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   HISTORY 

Cain  went  out  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord,  and  dwelt  in  the 
land  of  Nod,  on  the  east  of  Eden. 

The  Patriarchs  from  Adam  to  Noah  (Gen.  iv.  25,  26;  v.  4- 
25 ;  iv.  19-24 ;  v.  28,  29 ;  vi.  1-4).  And  Adam  knew  his  wife 
again ;  and  she  bare  a  son,  and  called  his  name  Seth  —  "  For 
God,"  said  she,  ''hath  appointed  me  another  seed  instead  of 
Abel,  whom  Cain  slew."  And  to  Seth,  to  him  also  there  was 
born  a  son  ;  and  he  called  his  name  Enos :  then  began  men  to 
call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord.  And  the  days  of  Adam  after 
he  had  begotten  Seth  were  eight  hundred  years:  and  he  begat 
sons  and  daughters.  And  all  the  days  that  Adam  lived  were 
nine  hundred  and  thirty  years  :  and  he  died. 

And  Seth  begat  Enos ;  and  Enos  begat  Cainan ;  and  Cainan 
begat  Mahalaleel ;  and  Mahalaleel  begat  Jared  ;  and  Jared  begat 
Enoch;  and  Enoch  begat  Methuselah.  And  Enoch^  walked  with 
God:  and  he  was  not;  for  God  took  him.  And  Methuselah  lived 
an  hundred  eighty  and  seven  years,  and  begat  Lamech.  And 
Methuselah  lived  after  he  begat  Lamech  seven  hundred  eighty 
and  two  years,  and  begat  sons  and  daughters  :  and  all  the  days  of 
Methuselah  were  nine  hundred  sixty  and  nine  years  :  and  he  died. 

And  Lamech  took  unto  him  two  wives :  the  name  of  the  one 
was  Adah,  and  the  name  of  the  other  Zillah.  And  Adah  bare 
Jabal :  he  was  the  father  of  such  as  dwell  in  tents,  and  of  such 
as  have  cattle.  And  his  brother's  name  was  Jubal :  he  was  the 
father  of  all  such  as  handle  the  harp  and  organ.  And  Zillah,  she 
also  bare  Tubal-cain,  an  instructer  of  every  artificer  in  brass  and 
iron.  And  the  sister  of  Tubal-cain  was  Naamah. 

And  Lamech  said  unto  his  wives  :  — 

"  Adah  and  Zillah,  hear  my  voice  : 
Ye  wives  of  Lamech,  hearken  unto  my  speech ; 
For  I  will  slay  a  man  for  wounding  me. 
And  a  young  man  for  bruising  me : 

1  Enoch,  the  seventh  of  the  ten  patriarchs  from  Adam  to  Noah,  corresponds 
to  Edoranchos,  the  seventh  of  the  ten  kings  that  in  Babvlonian  legend  reigned 
before  the  flood.  Edoranchos  is  doubtless  the  same  as  Enmeduranki,  a  prehis- 
toric king  of  Sippar,  a  city  devoted  to  the  worship  of  the  sun  god.  A  recently 
found  tablet  tells  that  the  sun  god  called  Enmeduranki  to  himself  ;  disclosed  to 
him  secrets  of  heaven  and  earth  ;  and  taught  him  the  art  of  divination,  which  he 
passed  on  to  his  descendants,  who  formed  a  guild  of  diviners.  The  later  Jewish 
Book  of  Enoch  made  Enoch  a  revealer  of  the  secrets  of  heaven  and  the  future. 


THE   FLOOD  9 

If  Cain  shall  be  avenged  sevenfold  : 
Truly  Lamech  seventy  and  sevenfold." 

And  Lamech  begat  a  son  :  and  he  called  his  name  Noah,  saying, 
"  This  same  shall  comfort  us  concerning  our  work  and  toil  of  our 
hands,  because  of  the  ground  which  the  Lord  hath  cursed."  ^ 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  men  began  to  multiply  on  the  face 
of  the  earth,  and  daughters  were  born  unto  them,  that  the  sons 
of  God  ^  saw  the  daughters  of  men  that  they  were  fair  ;  and  they 
took  them  wives  of  all  which  they  chose.  And  the  Lord  said, 
''  My  spirit  shall  not  abide  in  man  forever,  for  that  he  also  is 
flesh  :  therefore  his  days  shall  be  an  hundred  and  twenty  years." 
There  were  giants  in  the  earth  in  those  days  ;  and  also  after  that, 
when  the  sons  of  God  came  in  unto  the  daughters  of  men,  and 
they  bare  children  to  them,  the  same  became  mighty  men  which 
were  of  old,  men  of  renown. 

The  Flood  (Gen.  vi.  5-8,  13-22 ;  vii.  1,  4,  5,  11,  13-24 ;  viii. ; 
ix.  1-15).  And  God  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  fowls  of  the  air ;  for  it  repenteth  me  that  I  have 
made  them."   But  Noah  found  grace  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord. 

And  God  said  unto  Noah  :  '^  The  end  of  all  flesh  is  come  before 
me ;  for  the  earth  is  filled  with  violence  through  them  ;  and 
behold,  I  will  destroy  them  with  the  earth.  Make  thee  an  ark 
of  gopher  wood;  ^  rooms  shalt  thou  make  in  the  ark,  and  shalt 
pitch  it  within  and  without  with  pitch.  And  this  is  the  fashion 
which  thou  shalt  make  it  of  :  the  length  of  the  ark  shall  be  three 
hundred  cubits,  the  breadth  of  it  fifty  cubits,  and  the  height  of 
it  thirty  cubits.^  A  window  shalt  thou  make  to  the  ark,  and  in 
a  cubit  shalt  thou  finish  it  above ;  and  the  door  of  the  ark  shalt 
thou  set  in  the  side  thereof ;  with  lower,  second,  and  third  stories 

1  Lamech's  words  have  been  generally  explained  as  referring  to  Noah's  part 
in  founding  a  new  epoch  in  which  the  earth  is  not  again  cursed.  Some,  however, 
take  them  as  referring  to  Noah  as  the  first  maker  of  wine. 

2  Sons  of  God.  Angels. 

8  gopher  li'ood.  Probabh'  cypress. 

♦  If  the  cubit  was  18  inches,  the  ark  would  measure  450  ft.  in  length,  75  ft. 
in  breadth,  and  45  ft.  in  height. 


10  THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   HISTOEY 

shalt  thou  make  it.  And,  behold,  I,  even  I,  do  bring  a  flood  of 
waters  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  the  Lord  said  unto  Noah  :  ^'  Come  thou  and  all  thy  house 
into  the  ark;  for  thee  have  I  seen  righteous  before  me  in  this 
generation.  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  ofi"  the  face  of  the  earth." 
And  Noah  did  according  unto  all  that  the  Lord  commanded  him. 

In  the  six  hundredth  year  of  Noah's  life,  in  the  second  month, 
the  seventeenth  day  of  the  month,  the  same  day  were  all  the 
fountains  of  the  great  deep  broken  up,  and  the  windows  of 
heaven  were  opened.  In  the  self-same  day  entered  Noah,  and 
Shem,  and  Ham,  and  Japheth,  the  sons  of  Noah,  and  Noah's 
wife,  and  the  three  wives  of  his  sons  with  them,  into  the  ark ; 
and  of  clean  beasts,  and  of  beasts  that  are  not  clean,  and  of 
fowls,  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  him  :  and  the  Lord  shut  him  in. 

And  the  flood  was  forty  days  upon  the  earth ;  and  the  waters 
increased,  and  bare  up  the  ark,  and  it  was  lift  up  above  the  earth ; 
and  the  ark  went  upon  the  face  of  the  waters.  And  the  waters 
prevailed  exceedingly  upon  the  earth;  and  all  the  high  hills,  that 
were  under  the  whole  heaven,  were  covered.  Fifteen  cubits  up- 
ward did  the  waters  prevail ;  and  the  mountains  were  covered  ; 
and  all  flesh  died  that  moved  upon  the  earth,  both  of  fowl,  and 
of  cattle,  and  of  beast,  and  of  every  creeping  thing  that  creepeth 
upon  the  earth,  and  every  man  :  all  in  whose  nostrils  was  the 
breath  of  life,  of  all  that  was  in  the  dry  land,  died ;  and  Noah 
only  remained  alive,  and  they  that  were  with  him  in  the  ark. 


THE   FLOOD  11 

And  the  waters  prevailed  upon  the  earth  an  hundred  and  fifty 
days.  And  God  remembered  Noah,  and  every  living  thing,  and 
all  the  cattle  that  was  with  him  in  the  ark  :  and  God  made  a 
wind  to  pass  over  the  earth,  and  the  waters  assuaged  ;  the  foun- 
tains also  of  the  deep  and  the  windows  of  heaven  were  stopped, 
and  the  rain  from  heaven  was  restrained  ;  and  the  waters  returned 
from  off  the  earth  continually  :  and  after  the  end  of  the  hundred 
and  fifty  days  the  waters  were  abated.  And  the  ark  rested  in  the 
seventh  month,  on  the  seventeenth  day  of  the  month,  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,  were  the  tops  of  the  mountains  seen. 

And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  end  of  forty  days,  that  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.  Also  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  re- 
turned 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  sent  forth  the  dove,  which  returned  not  again  unto  him  any 
more. 

And  Noah  removed  the  covering  of  the  ark,  and  looked,  and 
behold,  the  face  of  the  ground  was  dry.  And  God  spake  unto 
Noah,  saying :  "  Go  forth  of  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  fowl, 
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,  every  creeping  thing,  and  every  fowl,  and  whatsoever  creep- 
eth upon  the  earth,  after  their  kinds,  went  forth  out  of  the  ark. 

And  Noah  builded  an  altar  unto  the  Lord  ;  and  took  of  every 
clean  beast,  and  of  every  clean  fowl,  and  offered  burnt  offerings 
on  the  altar.    And  the  Lord  smelled  a  sweet  savor  ;  and  the  Lord 


12  THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   HISTORY 

said  in  his  heart :  "  I  will  not  again  curse  the  ground  any  more 
for  man's  sake  ;  for  the  imagination  of  man's  heart  is  evil  from 
his  youth ;  neither  will  I  again  smite  any  more  every  thing 
living,  as  I  have  done.  While  the  earth  remaineth,  seedtime  and 
harvest,  and  cold  and  heat,  and  summer  and  winter,  and  day  and 
night  shall  not  cease." 

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  fowl  of  the  air,  upon  all  that  moveth  upon 
the  earth,  and  upon  all  the  fishes  of  the  sea ;  into  your  hand  are 
they  delivered.  Every  moving  thing  that  liveth  shall  be  meat 
for  you  ;  even  as  the  green  herb  have  I  given  you  all  things  :  but 
flesh  with  the  life  thereof,  which  is  the  blood  thereof,  shall  ye 
not  eat.  And  surely  your  blood  of  your  lives  will  I  require ;  at 
the  hand  of  every  beast  will  I  require  it,  and  at  the  hand  of  man  ; 
at  the  hand  of  every  man's  brother  will  I  require  the  life  of  man. 
Whoso  sheddeth  man's  blood,  by  man  shall  his  blood  be  shed : 
for  in  the  image  of  God  made  he  man." 

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  fowl,  of  the  cattle,  and  of  every  beast  of  the  earth 
with  you ;  from  all  that  go  out  of  the  ark,  to  every  beast  of  the 
earth.  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,  that  the  bow  shall  be  seen  in  the  cloud :  and  I  will  re- 
member my  covenant,  which  is  between  me  and  you  and  every 
living  creature  of  all  flesh  ;  and  the  waters  shall  no  more  become 
a  flood  to  destroy  all  flesh.  "^ 

1  Flood  traditions  are  found  among  many  peoples,  both  in  the  Old  World  and 
the  New.  That  of  ancient  Babylonia  is  the  most  important,  not  only  as  occurring 
in  records  far  older  than  the  book  of  Genesis,  but  as  containing  many  details  of 
the  Hebrew  account,  notably  the  following  : 

(1)  The  hero  has  a  special  revelation  of  the  fact  that  a  flood  is  impending. 

(2)  Animals  are  taken  into  an  ark. 


THE   CURSING   OF   CANAAN  13 

The  Cursing  of  Canaan  (Gen.  ix.  20-28).  And  jSToah  began 
to  be  an  husbandman,  and  he  planted  a  vineyard:  and  he  drank 
of  the  wine,  and  was  drunken ;  and  he  was  uncovered  within 
his  tent.  And  Ham,  the  father  of  Canaan,  saw  the  nakedness 
of  his  father,  and  told  his  two  brethren  without.  And  Sh  em  and 
Japheth  took  a  garment,  and  laid  it  upon  both  their  shoulders, 
and  went  backward,  and  covered  the  nakedness  of  their  father ; 
and  their  faces  were  backward,  and  they  saw  not  their  father's 
nakedness.  And  Noah  awoke  from  his  wine,  and  knew  what 
his  younger  son  had  done  unto  him.   And  he  said :  — 

''  Cursed  be  Canaan  ; 
A  servant  of  servants  shall  he  be  unto  his  brethren." 

And  he  said  :  — 

"Blessed  be  the  Lord  God  of  Shem ; 
And  Canaan  shall  be  his  servant. 
God  shall  enlarge  Japheth, 
And  he  shall  dw^eil  in  the  tents  of  Shem  : 
And  Canaan  shall  be  his  servant."  ^ 

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. 

\_The  "generations  of  the  sons  of  Noah"  are  here  omitted. 
Aviong  the  descendants  of  Ham  is  mentioned  Nimrod  :  "  He 
began  to  be  a  mighty  one  in  the  earth.  He  was  a  mighty  hunter 
before  the  Lord  :  wherefore  it  is  said,  Even  as  Nimrod  the 
mighty  hunter  before  the  Lord.  And  the  beginning  of  his  king- 
dom was  Babel,  and  Erech,  and  Accad,  and  Cain  eh,  in  the  land 
of  Shinar."] 

The  Tower  of  Babel  (Gen.  xi.  1-9).  And  the  whole  earth  was 
of  one  language,  and  of  one  speech.    And  it  came  to  pass,  as  they 

(3)  All  life  is  destroyed  from  the  earth. 

(4)  Birds  are  sent  out  three  times  before  the  water  is  found  to  have  subsided. 

(5)  The  hero  offers  sacrifice,  the  savor  of  which  is  acceptable,  and  wins  an 
assurance  that  there  will  be  no  more  floods. 

The  Greek  myth  of  Deucalion's  flood  is  also  an  interesting  parallel. 

1  It  was  anciently  believed  that  a  father's  blessing  affected  the  son's  destiny. 
Canaan  here  prefigures  the  native  peoples  of  the  land  of  Canaan,  who  were 
subjugated  by  the  Israelites,  the  descendants  of  Shem.  The  occasion  and  the 
form  of  Noah's  invocation  connects  their  destiny  with  the  fact  that  Shem's 
descendants  had  a  purer  religion  than  the  sensual  and  idolatrous  Canaanites. 


14 


THE  BEGINNINGS   OF  HISTORY 


journeyed  from  the  east,  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  slime  had  they  for  mortar.  And  they 
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  scat- 
tered abroad  upon  the 
face  of  the  whole 
earth."  And  the  Lord 
came  down  to  see  the 
city  and  the  tower, 
which  the  children 
of  men  builded.  And 
the  Lord  said  :  '^  Be- 
hold, the  people  is 
one,  and  they  have 
all  one  language  ;  and 
this  they  begin  to  do : 
and  now  nothing  will 
be  restrained  from 
them,  which  they 
have  imagined  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. 

1  Shinar.  Babylonia. 

2  The  narrator  regards  '  Babel '  as  derived  from  the  Hebrew  balal,  '  to  confuse.' 


Zikkurat  or  Staged  Temple-tower,  of  which  in  early  times 
there  were  imposing  rums  at  Babylon.  (After  the  restora- 
tion by  Chipiez.) 


II 

THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

1.  Abraham 

The  Migration  to  Canaan  (Gen.  xi.  31-xii.  8).  And  Terah 
[descendant  of  Shem]  took  Abram  his  son,  and  Lot  the  son  of 
Haran,  his  son's  son,  and  Sarai  his  daughter  in  law,  his  son 
Abram's  wife ;  and  they  went  forth  with  them  from  Ur  of  the 
Chaldees,  to  go  into  the  land  of  Canaan ;  and  they  came  unto 
Haran,  and  dwelt  there.  And  the  days  of  Terah  were  two  hun- 
dred and  five  years:   and  Terah  died  in  Haran. 

Now  the  Lord  had  said  unto  Abram :  "  Get  thee  out  of  thy 
country,  and  from  thy  kindred,  and  from  thy  father's  house, 
unto  a  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  I  will  bless  them  that  bless 
thee,  and  curse  him  that  curseth  thee :  and  in  thee  shall  all 
families  of  the  earth  be  blessed."  So  Abram  departed,  as  the 
Lord  had  spoken  unto  him  ;  and  Lot  went  with  him:  and 
Abram  was  seventy  and  five  years  old  when  he  departed  out  of 
Haran.  And  Abram  took  Sarai  his  wife,  and  Lot  his  brother's 
son,  and  all  their  substance  that  they  had  gathered,  and  the 
souls  that  they  had  gotten  in  Haran ;  and  they  went  forth  to 
go  into  the  land  of  Canaan ;  and  into  the  land  of  Canaan  they 
came.  And  Abram  passed  through  the  land  unto  the  place  of 
Shechem,  unto  the  oak  of  Moreh.  And  the  Canaanite  was  then 
in  the  land. 

And  the  Lord  appeared  unto  Abram,  and  said,  "  Unto  thy 
seed  will  I  give  this  land."  And  there  builded  he  an  altar  unto 
the  Lord,  who  appeared  unto  him.  And  he  removed  from 
thence  unto  a  mountain  on  the  east  of  Beth-el,  and  pitched  his 
tent,  having  Beth-el  on  the  west,  and  Ai  on  the  east :  and  there 
he  builded  an  altar  unto  the  Lord,  and  called  upon  the  name  of 
the  Lord. 

Sarai  and  Abimelech  (Gen.  xx. ;  xxi.  22-34).  And  Abram 
journeyed  from  thence  toward  the  south  country,  and  dwelled 


16         THE  ANCESTOKS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

between  Kadesh  and  Shur,  and  sojourned  in  Gerar.  And  Abram 
said  of  Sarai  his  wife,  "  She  is  my  sister.'^  And  Abimelech 
king  of  Gerar  sent,  and  took  Sarai.  But  God  came  to  Abime- 
lech in  a  dream  by  night,  and  said  to  him,  "  Behold,  thou  art 
but  a  dead  man,  for  the  woman  which  thou  hast  taken ;  for 
she  is  a  man's  wife."  But  Abimelech  had  not  come  near  her; 
and  he  said :  ^'  Lord,  wilt  thou  slay  also  a  righteous  nation  ? 
Said  he  not  unto  me.  She  is  my  sister  ?  and  she,  even  she  her- 
self said.  He  is  my  brother :  in  the  integrity  of  my  heart  and 
innocency  of  my  hands  have  I  done  this."  And  God  said  unto 
him  in  a  dream  :  "  Yea,  I  know  that  thou  didst  this  in  the  in- 
tegrity of  thy  heart ;  for  I  also  withheld  thee  from  sinning  against 
me :  therefore  suffered  I  thee  not  to  touch  her.  Now  therefore 
restore  the  man  his  wife  ;  for  he  is  a  prophet,  and  he  shall  pray 
for  thee,  and  thou  shalt  live.  And  if  thou  restore  her  not,  know 
thou  that  thou  shalt  surely  die,  thou,  and  all  that  are  thine. " 

Therefore  Abimelech  rose  early  in  the  morning,  and  called  all 
his  servants,  and  told  all  these  things  in  their  ears :  and  the 
men  were  sore  afraid.  Then  Abimelech  called  Abram,  and  said 
unto  him  :  ^'  What  hast  thou  done  unto  us  ?  and  what  have  I 
offended  thee,  that  thou  hast  brought  on  me  and  on  my  kingdom 
a  great  sin  ?  Thou  hast  done  deeds  unto  me  that  ought  not  to  be 
done. ' '  And  Abimelech  said  unto  Abram,  "  What  sawest  thou, 
that  thou  hast  done  this  thing  ?  "  And  Abram  said  :  "  Because 
I  thought,  Surely  the  fear  of  God  is  not  in  this  place ;  and  they 
will  slay  me  for  my  wife's  sake.  And  yet  indeed  she  is  my  sis- 
ter ;  she  is  the  daughter  of  my  father,  but  not  the  daughter  of 
my  mother;  and  she  became  my  wife.  And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  God  caused  me  to  wander  from  my  father's  house,  that  I 
said  unto  her.  This  is  thy  kindness  which  thou  shalt  shew  unto 
me ;  at  every  place  whither  we  shall  come,  say  of  me,  He  is  my 
brother." 

And  Abimelech  took  sheep,  and  oxen,  and  menservants,  and 
womenservants,  and  gave  them  unto  Abram,  and  restored  him 
Sarai  his  wife.  And  Abimelech  said,  "  Behold,  my  land  is  be- 
fore thee:  dwell  where  it  pleaseth  thee."  And  unto  Sarai  he 
said,  "  Behold,  I  have  given  thy  brother  a  thousand  pieces  of 
silver  :  behold,  it  is  for  thee  a  covering  of  the  eyes,  unto  all  that 
are  with  thee,  and  with  all  other."  Thus  was  she  reproved.  So 
Abram  prayed  unto  God :  and  God  healed  Abimelech,  and  his 
wife,  and  his  maidservants ;  and  they  bare  children ;   for  the 


SARAI    AND    ABIMELECH 


17 


Lord  had  fast  closed  up  all  the  wombs  of  the  house  of  Abime- 
lech,  because  of  Sarai  Abram's  wife.^ 

And  it  came  to  pass  at  that  time,  that  Abimelech  and  Phichol 

1  In  the  received  version  of  Genesis,  this  story  —  of  a  king  taking  a  patriarch's 
wife  for  his  sister  —  is  told  three  times:  (1)  in  the  present  place,  as  between 
Pharaoh  and  Sarai;  (2)  as  between  Abimelech  and  the  aged  Sarah,  after  the 
promise  that  she  shall  bear  a  son;  and  (3)  as  between  Abimelech  and  Rebekah. 
The  second  and  fullest  account  is  here  given  in  the  text,  at  the  place  of  the 
first,  and  consequently  with  a  change  of  spelling  in  the  names  of  Abraham  and 
Sarah.  The  other  two  parallels  are  as  follows: 

Gen.  xii.  10-20. 

And  there  was  a  famine  in  the  land: 
and  Abram  went  down  into  Egypt  to 
sojourn  there  ;  for  the  famine  was 
grievous  in  the  land.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  he  was  come  near  to  enter 
into  Egypt,  that  he  said  unto  Sarai  his 
wife:  "  Behold  now,  I  know  that  thou 
art  a  fair  woman  to  look  upon :  there- 
fore it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  the 
Egyptians  shall  see  thee, that  they  shall 
say.  This  is  his  wife:  and  they  will 
kill  me,  but  they  will  save  thee  alive. 
Say,  I  pray  thee,  thou  art  my  sister: 
that  it  may  be  well  with  me  for  thy 
sake;  and  my  soul  shall  live  because 
of  thee."  And  it  came  to  pass  that, 
when  Abram  was  come  into  Egypt,  the 
Egyptians  beheld  the  woman  that  she 
was  very  fair;  the  princes  also  of  Pha- 
raoh saw  her,  and  commended  her  be- 
fore Pharaoh  :  and  the  woman  was 
taken  into  Pharaoh's  house,  and  he  en- 
treated Abram  well  for  her  sake:  and 
he  had  sheep,  and  oxen,  and  he  asses, 
and  manservants,  and  maidservants, 
and  she  asses,  and  camels.  And  the 
Lord  plagued  Pharaoh  and  his  house 
with  great  plagues  because  of  Sarai 
Abram's  wife;  and  Pharaoh  called 
Abram,  and  said:  "What  is  this  that 
thou  hast  done  unto  me  ?  why  didst 
thou  not  tell  me  that  she  was  thy  wife? 
Why  saidst  thou,  She  is  my  sister  ?  s^o 
I  might  have  taken  her  to  me  to  wife: 
now  therefore  behold  thy  wife,  take 
her,  and  go  thy  way."  And  Pharaoh 
commanded  his  men  concerning  him: 
and  they  sent  him  away,  and  his  wife, 
and  all  that  he  had. 


Gen.  xxvi.  6-11. 

And  Isaac  dwelt  in  Gerar:  and  the 
men  of  the  place  asked  him  of  his  wife; 
and  he  said:  "She  is  my  sister;  "  for 
he  feared  to  say,  "She  is  my  wife; 
lest,"  said  he,  "the  men  of  the  place 
should  kill  me  for  Rebekah;  "  because 
she  was  fair  to  look  upon.  And  it  came 
to  pass,  when  he  had  been  there  a  long 
time,  that  Abimelech  king  of  the  Phil- 
istines looked  out  at  a  window,  and 
saw,  and  behold,  Isaac  was  sporting 
with  Rebekah  his  wife.  And  Abimelech 
called  Isaac,  and  said:  "Behold,  of  a 
surety  she  is  thy  wife:  and  how  saidst 
thou,  She  is  my  sister  ?"  And  Isaac 
said  unto  him:  "Because  I  said,  Lest 
I  die  for  her."  And  Abimelech  said: 
"  What  is  this  thou  hast  done  unto  us? 
one  of  the  people  might  lightly  have 
lien  with  thy  wife,  and  thou  should- 
est  have  brought  guiltiness  upon  us." 
And  Abimelech  charged  all  his  people, 
saying:  "He  that  toucheth  this  maa 
or  his  wife  shall  surely  be  put  to 
death." 


18  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

the  chief  captain  of  his  host  spake  unto  Abram,  saying  :  ''  God 
is  with  thee  in  all  that  thou  doest :  now  therefore  swear  unto 
me  here  by  God  that  thou  wilt  not  deal  falsely  with  me,  nor 
with  my  son,  nor  with  my  son's  son :  but  according  to  the  kind- 
ness that  I  have  done  unto  thee,  thou  shalt  do  unto  me,  and  to 
the  land  wherein  thou  hast  sojourned."  And  Abram  said,  "  I 
will  swear.'' 

And  Abram  reproved  Abimelech  because  of  a  well  of  water, 
which  Abimelech's  servants  had  violently  taken  away.  And 
Abimelech  said,  *'  I  wot  not  who  hath  done  this  thing  :  neither 
didst  thou  tell  me,  neither  yet  heard  I  of  it,  but  to-day."  And 
Abram  took  sheep  and  oxen,  and  gave  them  unto  Abimelech  ; 
and  both  of  them  made  a  covenant.  And  Abram  set  seven  ewe 
lambs  of  the  flock  by  themselves.  And  Abimelech  said  unto 
Abram,  "  What  mean  these  seven  ewe  lambs  which  thou  hast 
set  by  themselves  ?  "  And  he  said,  '^  For  these  seven  ewe  lambs 
shalt  thou  take  of  my  hand,  that  they  may  be  a  witness  unto 
me,  that  I  have  digged  this  well."  Wherefore  he  called  that 
place  Beer-sheba  ;^  because  there  they  sware  both  of  them.  Thus 

1  Beer-sheba.  "  Well  of  Seven  "  or  "  Well  of  the  Oath."  The  story  of  Isaac 
has  the  following  account  of  the  origin  and  naming  of  this  famous  well  and 
sanctuary,  —  parallel  to  the  account  above,  in  that  the  incident  follows  a  decep- 
tion of  Abimelech  about  the  patriarch's  wife;  has  its  occasion  in  a  quarrel  be- 
tween Abimelech's  and  the  patriarch's  servants;  and  ends  with  a  solemn 
oath: — 

And  Isaac's  servants  digged  in  the  valley,  and  found  there  a  well  of 
springing  water.  And  the  herdmen  of  Gerar  did  strive  with  Isaac's  herdmen, 
saying,  "The  water  is  ours."  And  he  called  the  name  of  the  well  Esek 
[Contention];  because  they  strove  with  him.  And  they  digged  another  well, 
and  strove  for  that  also:  and  he  called  the  name  of  it  Sitnah  [Enmity].  And 
he  removed  from  thence,  and  digged  another  well;  and  for  that  they  strove 
not:  and  he  called  the  name  of  it  Rehoboth  [Room];  and  he  said:  "For  now 
the  Lord  hath  made  room  for  us,  and  we  shall  be  fruitful  in  the  land." 

Then  Abimelech  went  to  him  from  Gerar,  and  Ahuzzath  one  of  his  friends, 
and  Phichol  the  chief  captain  of  his  army.  And  Isaac  said  unto  them :  "  Where- 
fore come  }'e  to  me,  seeing  3'e  hate  me,  and  have  sent  me  awaj'  from  you  ?" 
And  the}-^  said:  "  We  saw  certainly  that  the  Lord  was  with  thee.  And  we 
said.  Let  there  be  now  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  the  blessed  of  the  Lord."  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  he  called  it  Shebah:  therefore  the  name  of  the 
city  is  Beer-sheba  unto  this  day. 


SEPARATION   OF   ABRAM   AND   LOT  19 

they  made  a  covenant  at  Beer-sheba :  then  Abimelech  rose  up, 
and  Phichol  the  chief  captain  of  his  host,  and  they  returned 
into  the  land  of  the  Philistines.  *  And  Abram  planted  a  tamarisk 
tree  in  Beer-sheba,  and  called  there  on  the  name  of  the  Lord,  the 
everlasting  God.  And  Abram  sojourned  in  the  Philistines'  land 
many  days. 

Separation  of  Abram  and  Lot  (Gen.  xiii.  2-18).  Now 
Abram  was  very  rich  in  cattle,  in  silver,  and  in  gold.  And  he 
went  on  his  journeys  from  the  south  even  to  Beth-el,  unto  the 
place  where  his  tent  had  been  at  the  beginning,  between  Beth-el 
and  Ai,  unto  the  place  of  the  altar,  which  he  had  made  there  at 
the  first :   and  there  Abram  called  on  the  name  of  the  Lord. 

And  Lot  also,  which  went  with  Abram,  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  Abram's  cattle  and  the  herdmen  of  Lot's  cattle :  and 
the  Canaanite  and  the  Perizzite  dwelled  then  in  the  land.  And 
Abram  said  unto  Lot :  "  Let  there  be  no  strife,  I  pray  thee,  be- 
tween me  and  thee,  and  between  my  herdmen  and  thy  herdmen; 
for  we  be  brethren.  Is  not  the  whoie  land  before  thee  ?  separate 
thyself,  I  pray  thee,  from  me :  if  thou  wilt  take  the  left  hand, 
then  I  will  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  be- 
held all  the  plain  of  Jordan,  that  it  was  well  watered  every 
where,  before  the  Lord  destroyed  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  even 
as  the  garden  of  the  Lord,  like  the  land  of  Egypt,  as  thou  comest 
unto  Zoar. 

Then  Lot  chose  him  all  the  plain  of  Jordan ;  and  Lot 
journeyed  east :  and  they  separated  themselves  the  one  from  the 
other.  Abram  dwelled  in  the  land  of  Canaan,  and  Lot  dwelled 
in  the  cities  of  the  plain,  and  pitched  his  tent  toward  Sodom  ; 
but  the  men  of  Sodom  were  wicked  and  sinners  before  the  Lord 
exceedingly. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Abram,  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 
i  Philistines.   See  note,  p.  191. 


20  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

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." 

Then  Abram  removed  his  tent,  and  came  and  dwelt  by  the 
oaks  of  Mamre,  which  is  in  Hebron,  and  built  there  an  altar 
unto  the  Lord. 

Abram's  Rescue  of  Lot  (Gen.  xiv.).  And  it  came  to  pass  in 
the  days  of  AmrapheP  king  of  Shinar,  Arioch  king  of  Ellasar,^ 
Chedorlaomer  king  of  Elam,  and  Tidal  king  of  nations ;  ^  that 
these  made  war  with  Bera  king  of  Sodom,  and  with  Birsha  king 
of  Gomorrah,  Shinab  king  of  Admah,  and  Shemeber  king  of 
Zeboiim,  and  the  king  of  Bela,  which  is  Zoar.  All  these  were 
joined  together  in  the  vale  of  Siddim,  which  is  the  salt  sea.* 
Twelve  years  they  served  Chedorlaomer,  and  in  the  thirteenth 
year  they  rebelled.  And  in  the  fourteenth  year  came  Chedor- 
laomer, and  the  kings  that  were  with  him,  and  smote  the  Ke- 
phaim  in  Ashteroth  Karnaim,  and  the  Zuzim  in  Ham,  and  the 
Emim  in  Shaveh  Kiriathaim,  and  the  Horites  in  their  mount 
Seir,  unto  El-paran,  which  is  by  the  wilderness.  And  they  re- 
turned, and  came  to  En-mishpat,  which  is  Kadesh,  and  smote 
all  the  country  of  the  Amalekites,  and  also  the  Amorites,  that 
dwelt  in  Hazezon-tamar. 

And  there  went  out  the  king  of  Sodom,  and  the  king  of 
Gomorrah,  and  the  king  of  Admah,  and  the  king  of  Zeboiim, 
and  the  king  of  Bela  (the  same  is  Zoar)  ;  and  they  joined  battle 
with  them  in  the  vale  of  Siddim;  with  Chedorlaomer  the  king 

1  Amraphel  has  been  identified  with  some  probability  with  the  famous  Ham- 
murabi, king  of  Babylon  about  2150  b.  c.  A  code  of  his  laAvs,  inscribed  on  a 
broken  block  of  diorite,  was  found  at  Susa  in  January,  1902,  and,  with  other 
discoveries,  confirms  the  view  that  Babj'lon  at  this  era  was  already  a  civilized 
and  powerful  state. 

2  Arioch  .  .  .  Ellasar.  Identified  with  Eriaku,  king  of  Larsa  in  southern 
Babylonia. 

3  nations.  R.  V.  takes  Goiim,  the  Hebrew  word  here,  as  a  proper  name  ;  but  it 
may  mean  'hordes,'  that  is,  of  northern  invaders,  such  being  mentioned  on 
Assyrian  tablets. 

4  vale  oj"  Siddim  .  .  .  salt  sea.  The  Dead  Sea  is  cut  nearly  in  two  at  its  south- 
ern quarter  by  a  tongue  of  land  which  doubtless  once  formed  its  southern  shore. 
A  subsiding  of  the  land  here  may  have  changed  a  fertile  vale  into  the  present 
continuation  of  the  sea,  the  extreme  saltness  of  which  (26  per  cent,  as  compared 
with  the  ocean's  4  per  cent.)  is  due  to  a  hill  of  rock  salt  (Jebel  Usdum)  at  its 
southwestern  end. 


ABRAM'S   RESCUE   OF   LOT 


21 


of  Elam,  and  with  Tidal  king  of  nations,  and  Amraphel  king  of 
Shinar,  and  Arioch  king  of  Ellasar :  four  kings  with  five.  And 
the  vale  of  Siddim  was  full  of  slimepits  ;^  and  the  kings  of 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah  fled,  and  fell  ^  there  ;  and  they  that  re- 
mained fled  to  the  mountain.  And  they  took  all  the  goods  of 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah, 
and  all  their  victuals,  and 
went  their  way.  And  they 
took  Lot,  Abram's  bro- 
ther's son,  who  dwelt  in 
Sodom,  and  his  goods, 
and  departed. 

And  there  came  one 
that  had  escaped,  and 
told  Abram  the  Hebrew; 
for  he  dwelt  by  the  oaks 
of  Mamre  the  Amorite, 
brother  of  Eshcol,  and 
brother  of  Aner :  and 
these  were  confederate 
with  Abram.  And  when 
Abram  heard  that  his 
brother  was  taken  cap- 
tive, he  armed  his  trained 
servants,  born  in  his  own 
house,  three  hundred  and 
eighteen,  and  pursued 
them  unto  Dan.  And  he 
divided  himself  against 
them,  he  and  his  ser- 
vants, by  night,  and  smote  them,  and  pursued  them  unto  Hobah, 
which  is  on  the  left  hand  of  Damascus.  And  he  brought  back 
all  the  goods,  and  also  brought  again  his  brother  Lot,  and  his 
goods,  and  the  women  also,  and*  the  people. 

And  the  king  of  Sodom  went  out  to  meet  him  after  his  re- 
turn from  the  slaughter  of  Chedorlaomer,  and  of  the  kings  that 
were  with  him,  at  the  valley  of  Shaveh,^  which  is  the  king's 


Hammurabi  (Amraphel),  from  a  cast  of  the  relief 
showing  the  king  receiving  his  laws  from  the  Sun- 
god  Shamash.  It  surmounts  the  inscribed  code 
found  at  Susa. 


1  slimepits.  Wells  of  bitumen,  such  as  is  still  found  at  the  southern  end  of  the 
Dead  Sea. 
^  fell.  Their  armies  fell,  not  the  kings  themselves. 
8  A  spot,  probably  near  Jerusalem,  not  identified. 


22         THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

dale.  And  Melchizedek  king  of  Salem^  brought  forth  bread  and 
wine :  and  he  was  the  priest  of  the  most  high  God.  And  he 
blessed  him,  and  said  :  "  Blessed  be  Abram  of  the  most  high 
God,  possessor  of  heaven  and  earth ;  and  blessed  be  the  most 
high  God,  which  hath  delivered  thine  enemies  into  thy  hand.'^ 
And  he  gave  him  tithes  of  all.  And  the  king  of  Sodom  said 
unto  Abram,  "  Give  me  the  persons,  and  take  the  goods  to  thy- 
self." And  Abram  said  to  the  king  of  Sodom :  "  I  have  lift  up 
mine  hand  unto  the  Lord,  the  most  high  God,  the  possessor  of 
heaven  and  earth,  that  I  will  not  take  from  a  thread  even  to  a 
shoelatchet,  and  that  I  will  not  take  any  thing  that  is  thine, 
lest  thou  shouldest  say,  I  have  made  Abram  rich  :  save  only  that 
which  the  young  men  have  eaten,  and  the  portion  of  the  men 
which  went  with  me,  Aner,  Eshcol,  and  Mamre ;  let  them  take 
their  portion." 

Sarai,  Hagar,  and  the  Promised  Seed  (Gen.  xv.  l-xviii. 

15).  After  these  things  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  unto  Abram 
in  a  vision,  saying,  "  Fear  not,  Abram :  I  am  thy  shield,  and  thy 
exceeding  great  reward."  And  Abram  said,  ''Lord  God,  what 
wilt  thou  give  me,  seeing  I  go  childless,  and  the  steward  ^  of 
my  house  is  this  Eliezer  of  Damascus  ? "  And  Abram  said, 
"  Behold,  to  me  thou  hast  given  no  seed  :  and  lo,  one  born  in 
my  house  is  mine  heir."  And  behold,  the  word  of  the  Lord 
came  unto  him,  saying,  "  This  shall  not  be  thine  heir ;  but  he 
that  shall  come  forth  out  of  thine  own  bowels  shall  be  thine 
heir."  And  he  brought  him  forth  abroad,  and  said,  "  Look  now 
toward  heaven,  and  tell  the  stars,  if  thou  be  able  to  number 
them  :  "  and  he  said  unto  him,  "  So  shall  thy  seed  be."  And  he 
believed  in  the  Lord ;  and  he  counted  it  to  him  for  righteous- 
ness. And  he  said  unto  him  :  "  I  am  the  Lord  that  brought  thee 
out  of  Urof  the  Chaldees,  to  give  thee  this  land  to  inherit  it." 
And  he  said :  "  Lord  God,  whereby  shall  I  know  that  I  shall  in- 
herit it  ?"  And  he  said  unto  him:  "Take  me  an  heifer  of  three 
years  old,  and  a  she  goat  of  three  years  old,  and  a  ram  of  three 
years  old,  and  a  turtledove,  and  a  young  pigeon."  And  he  took 
unto  him  all  these,  and  divided  them  in  the  midst,  and  laid  each 

1  Salem.  Probably  an  old  name  for  Jerusalem.  The  Tel-el-Amarna  tablets 
(see  p.  122)  show  that  Jerusalem  was  known  —  as  Uru-salim  — as  earlv  as  about 
1350  B.  c. 

2  Steward.  R.  V.  has  :  '  he  that  shall  be  possessor.' 


SARAI,   HAGAR,  AND   THE   PROMISED   SEED  23 

piece  one  against  another:  but  the  birds  divided  he  not.  And  when 
the  fowls  came  down  upon  the  carcasses,  Abram  drove  them  away. 

And  when  the  sun  was  going  down,  a  deep  sleep  fell  upon 
Abram;  and  lo,  an  horror  of  great  darkness  fell  upon  him.  And 
he  said  unto  Abram:  "Know  of  a  surety  that  thy  seed  shall  be 
a  stranger  in  a  land  that  is  not  theirs,  and  shall  serve  them ;  and 
they  shall  afflict  them  four  hundred  years  ;  and  also  that  nation, 
whom  they  shall  serve,  will  I  judge :  and  afterward  shall  they 
come  out  with  great  substance.  And  thou  shalt  go  to  thy  fathers 
in  peace ;  thou  shalt  be  buried  in  a  good  old  age.  But  in  the 
fourth  generation  they  shall  come  hither  again  :  for  the  iniquity 
of  the  Amorites  is  not  yet  full."  And  it  came  to  pass,  that, 
when  the  sun  went  down,  and  it  was  dark,  behold  a  smoking 
furnace,^  and  a  burning  lamp  that  passed  between  those  pieces. 

In  the  same  day  the  Lord  made  a  covenant  with  Abram,  say- 
ing :  "  Unto  thy  seed  have  I  given  this  land,  from  the  river  of 
Egypt  ^  unto  the  great  river,  the  river  Euphrates  :  the  Kenites, 
and  the  Kenizzites,  and  the  Kadmonites,  and  the  Hittites,  and 
the  Perizzites,  and  the  Rephaim,  and  the  Amorites,  and  the 
Canaanites,  and  the  Girgashites,  and  the  Jebusites." 

Now  Sarai  Abram's  wife  bare  him  no  children :  and  she  had 
an  handmaid,  an  Egyptian,  whose  name  Avas  Hagar.  And  Sarai 
said  unto  Abram :  "  Behold  now,  the  Lord  hath  restrained  me 
from  bearing  :  I  pray  thee,  go  in  unto  my  maid ;  it  may  be  that  I 
may  obtain  children  by  her."  And  Abram  hearkened  to  the 
voice  of  Sarai.  And  Sarai  Abram's  wife  took  Hagar  her  maid 
the  Egyptian,  after  Abram  had  dwelt  ten  years  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  and  gave  her  to  her  husband  Abram  to  be  his  wife. 
And  he  went  in  unto  Hagar,  and  she  conceived  :  and  when  she  saw 
that  she  had  conceived,  her  mistress  was  despised  in  her  eyes. 
And  Sarai  said  unto  Abram  :  "My  wrong  be  upon  thee :  I  have 
given  my  maid  into  thy  bosom ;  and  when  she  saw  that  she  had 
conceived,  I  was  despised  in  her  eyes :  the  Lord  judge  between 
me  and  thee."  But  Abram  said  unto  Sarai :  "Behold,  thy  maid 
is  in  thy  hand  ;  do  to  her  as  it  pleaseth  thee."  And  when  Sarai 
dealt  hardly  with  her,  she  fled  from  her  face.  3 

'^furnace.  An  earthenware  stove-like  vessel  with  embers  at  the  bottom.  The 
rite  here  described  is  one  b}'  which  a  covenant  was  customarily  ratified.  See 
note,  p.  422. 

2  river  of  Egypt.  Possibly  the  Wady  el  Arish  on  the  border  of  Egypt. 

8  The  following  clause  from  the  code  of  Hammurabi  (see  p.  20)  would  seem  to 
show  that  an  ancient  Semitic  usage  is  here  involved  :  — 


24  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  found  her  by  a  fountain  of  water 
in  the  wilderness,  by  the  fountain  in  the  way  to  Shur.  And  he 
said  :  "  Hagar,  Sarai's  maid,  whence  earnest  thou  ?  and  whither 
wilt  thou  go?  "  And  she  said,  "  I  flee  from  the  face  of  my  mis- 
tress Sarai.''  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  her  :  ^'  Re- 
turn to  thy  mistress,  and  submit  thyself  under  her  hands." 
And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  her  :  "  I  will  multiply  thy 
seed  exceedingly,  that  it  shall  not  be  numbered  for  multitude." 
And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  her  :  "■  Behold,  thou  art 
with  child,  and  shalt  bear  a  son,  and  shalt  call  his  name  Ish- 
mael ;  because  the  Lord  hath  heard  thy  affliction ;  and  he  will 
be  a  wild  man ;  his  hand  will  be  against  every  man,  and  every 
man's  hand  against  him  ;  and  he  shall  dwell  in  the  presence  of 
all  his  brethren."  And  she  called  the  name  of  the  Lord  that 
spake  unto  her  ''  Thou  God  seest  me  :  "  for  she  said, ''  Have  I  also 
here  looked  after  him  that  seeth  me  ?  "  Wherefore  the  well  was 
called  Beer-lahai-roi ;  ^  behold,  it  is  between  Kadesh  and  Bered. 

And  Hagar  bare  Abram  a  son  :  and  Abram  called  his  son's 
name,  which  Hagar  bare,  Ishmael.  And  Abram  was  fourscore 
and  six  years  old,  when  Hagar  bare  Ishmael  to  Abram. 

And  when  Abram  was  ninety  years  old  and  nine,  the  Lord 
appeared  to  Abram,  and  said  unto  him :  "  I  am  the  Almighty 
God ;  walk  before  me,  and  be  thou  perfect ;  and  I  will  make 
my  covenant  between  me  and  thee,  and  will  multiply  thee  ex- 
ceedingly." And  Abram  fell  on  his  face:  and  God  talked  with 
him,  saying :  "  As  for  me,  behold,  my  covenant  is  with  thee,  and 
thou  shalt  be  a  father  of  many  nations ;  neither  shall  thy  name 
any  more  be  called  Abram,  but  thy  name  shall  be  Abraham ; 
for  a  father  of  many  nations  have  I  made  thee  ;  and  I  will  make 
thee  exceeding  fruitful,  and  I  will  make  nations  of  thee,  and 
kings  shall  come  out  of  thee.  And  I  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." 

And  God  said  unto  Abraham :  "  This  is  my  covenant,  which 
ye  shall  keep,  between  me  and  you  and   thy  seed  after   thee ; 

"146.  If  a  man  has  married  a  votary  [a  woman  consecrated  to  a  deity],  and 
she  has  given  her  husband  a  maid  who  has  borne  children,  and  if  afterward  that 
maid  has  placed  herself  on  an  equality  with  her  mistress  because  she  has  borne 
children,  her  mistress  shall  not  sell  her;  she  shall  place  a  slave-mark  upon  her, 
and  reckon  her  with  the  slave-girls." 

1  Beer-lahai-roi.  "  Well  of  the  living  one  that  hath  seen." 


SAKAI,    HAGAR,    AND    THE    PROMISED    SEED  25 

Every  man  child  among  you  shall  be  circumcised  ;  and  ye  shall 
circumcise  the  flesh  of  your  foreskin  ;  and  it  shall  be  a  token  of 
the  covenant  betwixt  me  and  you.  And  he  that  is  eight  days 
old  shall  be  circumcised  among  you,  every  man  child  in  your 
generations,  he  that  is  born  in  the  house,  or  bought  with  money 
of  any  stranger,  which  is  not  of  thy  seed :  and  my  covenant 
shall  be  in  your  flesh  for  an  everlasting  covenant.  And  the  un- 
circumcised  man  child  whose  flesh  of  his  foreskin  is  not  circum- 
cised, that  soul  shall  be  cut  off  from  his  people  ;  he  hath  broken 
my  covenant." 

And  God  said  unto  Abraham :  *'  As  for  Sarai  thy  wife,  thou 
shalt  not  call  her  name  Sarai,  but  Sarah  shall  her  name  be. 
And  I  will  bless  her,  and  give  thee  a  son  also  of  her :  yea,  I 
will  bless  her,  and  she  shall  be  a  mother  of  nations;  kings  of 
people  shall  be  of  her."  Then  Abraham  fell  upon  his  face,  and 
laughed,  and  said  in  his  heart  :  ''  Shall  a  child  be  born  unto 
him  that  is  an  hundred  years  old?  and  shall  Sarah,  that  is  ninety 
years  old,  bear  ?  "  And  Abraham  said  unto  God,  "  O  that  Ish- 
mael  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  ever- 
lasting covenant,  and  wdth  his  seed  after  him.  And  as  for  Ish- 
mael,  I  have  heard  thee  :  Behold,  I  have  blessed  him,  and  will 
make  him  fruitful,  and  will  multiply  him  exceedingly  ;  twelve 
princes  shall  he  beget,  and  I  will  make  him  a  great  nation.  But 
my  covenant  will  I  establish  with  Isaac,  which  Sarah  shall  bear 
unto  thee  at  this  set  time  in  the  next  year."  And  he  left  off 
talking  with  him,  and  God  went  up  from  Abraham. 

And  Abraham  took  Ishmael  his  son,  and  all  that  were  born 
in  his  house,  and  all  that  were  bought  with  his  money,  every 
male  among  the  men  of  Abraham's  house ;  and  circumcised  the 
flesh  of  their  foreskin  in  the  selfsame  day,  as  God  had  said  unto 
him.  And  Abraham  was  ninety  years  old  and  nine,  when  he  was 
circumcised  in  the  flesh  of  his  foreskin.  And  Ishmael  his  son 
was  thirteen  years  old,  when  he  was  circumcised  in  the  flesh  of 
his  foreskin. 

And  the  Lord  appeared  unto  him  by  the  oaks  of  Mamre  :  and 
he  sat  in  the  tent  door  in  the  heat  of  the  day  ;  and  he  lift  up 
his  eyes  and  looked,  and  lo,  three  men  stood  by  him.  And  when 
he  saw  them  he  ran  to  meet  them  from  the  tent  door,  and  bowed 
himself  toward  the  ground,  and  said :  ''  My  Lord,  if  now  I  have 


26  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

found  favor  in  thy  sight,  pass  not  away,  I  pray  thee,  from  thy 
servant :  let  a  little  water,  I  pray  you,  be  fetched,  and  wash  your 
feet,  and  rest  yourselves  under  the  tree :  and  I  will  fetch  a  mor- 
sel of  bread,  and  comfort  ye  your  hearts ;  after  that  ye  shall  pass 
on :  for  therefore  are  ye  come  to  your  servant.'^  And  they  said, 
"So  do,  as  thou  hast  said."  And  Abraham  hastened  into  the 
tent  unto  Sarah,  and  said  :  ^'Make  ready  quickly  three  measures 
of  fine  meal,  knead  it,  and  make  cakes  upon  the  hearth."  And 
Abraham  ran  unto  the  herd,  and  fetcht  a  calf  tender  and  good, 
and  gave  it  unto  a  young  man ;  and  he  hasted  to  dress  it.  And 
he  took  butter,^  and  milk,  and  the  calf  which  he  had  dressed, 
and  set  it  before  them;  and  he  stood  by  them  under  the  tree, 
and  they  did  eat. 

And  they  said  unto  him,  "  Where  is  Sarah  thy  wife  ?  "  And 
he  said,  "Behold,  in  the  tent."  And  he  said:  "I  will  certainly 
return  unto  thee  according  to  the  time  of  life;  and  lo,  Sarah 
thy  wife  shall  have  a  son."  And  Sarah  heard  it  in  the  tent 
door,  which  was  behind  him.  Now  Abraham  and  Sarah  were 
old  and  well  stricken  in  age;  and  it  ceased  to  be  with  Sarah 
after  the  manner  of  women.  Therefore  Sarah  laughed  within 
herself,  saying:  '^ After  I  am  waxed  old  shall  I  have  pleasure, 
my  lord  being  old  also?"  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Abraham: 
^'Wherefore  did  Sarah  laugh,  saying,  Shall  I  of  a  surety  bear  a 
child,  which  am  old  ?  Is  any  thing  too  hard  for  the  Lord  ?  At 
the  time  appointed  I  will  return  unto  thee,  according  to  the 
time  of  life,  and  Sarah  shall  have  a  son."  Then  Sarah  denied, 
saying,  "I  laughed  not;"  for  she  was  afraid.  And  he  said, 
"Nay;  but  thou  didst  laugh." 

The  Destruction  of  Sodom  (Gen.  xviii.  16-xix.  28).  And 
the  men  rose  up  from  thence,  and  looked  toward  Sodom:  and 
Abraham  went  with  them  to  bring  them  on  the  way.  And 
the  Lord  said :  "  Shall  I  hide  from  Abraham  that  thing  which 
I  do ;  seeing  that  Abraham  shall  surely  become  a  great  and 
mighty  nation,  and  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  shall  be  blessed 
in  him  ?  For  I  know  him,  that  he  will  command  his  children 
and  his  household  after  him,  and  they  shall  keep  the  way  of  the 
Lord,  to  do  justice  and  judgment;  that  the  Lord  may  bring 
upon  Abraham  that  which  he  hath  spoken  of  him."  And  the 
Lord  said :  "  Because  the  cry  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  is  great, 
1  butter.  Curdled  milk,  a  drink. 


THE   DESTRUCTION   OF   SODOM  27 

and  because  their  sin  is  very  grievous,  I  will  go  down  now,  and 
see  whether  they  have  done  altogether  according  to  the  cry  of 
it,  which  is  come  unto  me ;  and  if  not,  I  will  know.''  And  the 
men  turned  their  faces  from  thence,  and  went  toward  Sodom. 

But  Abraham  stood  yet  before  the  Lord;  and  Abraham  drew 
near,  and  said:  ''Wilt  thou  also  destroy  the  righteous  with  the 
wicked  ?  Peradventure  there  be  fifty  righteous  within  the  city 

—  wilt  thou  also  destroy  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  M'icked:  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  the  Lord 
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  now,  I  have 
taken  upon  me  to  speak  unto  the  Lord,  which  am  but  dust  and 
ashes  :  peradventure  there  shall  lack  five  of  the  fifty  righteous 

—  wilt  thou  destroy  all  the  city  for  lack  of  five  ?  "  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  the  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." 
And  the  Lord  went  his  way,  as  soon  as  he  had  left  communing 
with  Abraham :  and  Abraham  returned  unto  his  place. 

And  there  came  two  angels  to  Sodom  at  even ;  and  Lot  sat  in 
the  gate  of  Sodom :  and  Lot  seeing  them  rose  up  to  meet  them ; 
and  he  bowed  himself  with  his  face  toward  the  ground ;  and  he 
said  :  "  Behold  now,  my  lords,  turn  in,  I  pray  you,  into  your 
servant's  house,  and  tarry  all  night,  and  wash  your  feet,  and  ye 
shall  rise  up  early,  and  go  on  your  ways."  And  they  said: 
•'Xay;    but  we  will  abide  in  the  street    all  night."  And    he 


28  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

pressed  upon  them  greatly  ;  and  they  turned  in  unto  him,  and 
entered  into  his  house  ;  and  he  made  them  a  feast,  and  did  bake 
unleavened  bread,  and  they  did  eat. 

But  before  they  lay  down,  the  men  of  the  city  compassed  the 
house  round,  both  old  and  young,  all  the  people  from  every 
quarter.  And  they  called  unto  Lot,  and  said  unto  him :  "  Where 
are  the  men  which  came  in  to  thee  this  night  ?  bring  them  out 
unto  us,  that  we  may  know  them."  And  Lot  went  out  at  the 
door  unto  them,  and  shut  the  door  after  him,  and  said :  "I  pray 
you,  brethren,  do  not  so  wickedly.  Behold  now,  I  have  two 
daughters  which  have  not  known  man  ;  let  me,  I  pray  you,  bring 
them  out  unto  you,  and  do  ye  to  them  as  is  good  in  your  eyes ; 
only  unto  these  men  do  nothing ;  for  therefore  came  they  under 
the  shadow  of  my  roof." 

And  they  said,  "  Stand  back."  And  they  said  again :  "  This 
one  fellow  came  in  to  sojourn,  and  he  will  needs  be  a  judge  : 
now  will  we  deal  worse  with  thee,  than  with  them."  And  they 
pressed  sore  upon  the  man,  even  Lot,  and  came  near  to  break 
the  door.  But  the  men  put  forth  their  hand,  and  pulled  Lot  into 
the  house  to  them,  and  shut  to  the  door.  And  they  smote  the 
men  that  were  at  the  door  of  the  house  with  blindness,  both 
small  and  great :  so  that  they  wearied  themselves  to  find  the 
door. 

And  the  men  said  unto  Lot :  ^'  Hast  thou  here  any  besides  ? 
son  in  law,  and  thy  sons,  and  thy  daughters,  and  whatsoever  thou 
hast  in  the  city,  bring  them  out  of  this  place  :  for  we  will  destroy 
this  place,  because  the  cry  of  them  is  waxen  great  before  the 
face  of  the  Lord ;  and  the  Lord  hath  sent  us  to  destroy  it."  And 
Lot  went  out,  and  spake  unto  his  sons  in  law,  which  were  to 
marry  his  daughters,  and  said  :  '^  Up,  get  you  out  of  this  place  ; 
for  the  Lord  will  destroy  this  city."  But  he  seemed  unto  his 
sons  in  law  as  one  that  mocked. 

And  when  the  morning  arose,  then  the  angels  hastened  Lot, 
saying :  "  Arise,  take  thy  wife,  and  thy  two  daughters,  which 
are  here ;  lest  thou  be  consumed  in  the  iniquity  of  the  city." 
And  while  he  lingered,  the  men  laid  hold  upon  his  hand,  and 
upon  the  hand  of  his  wife,  and  upon  the  hand  of  his  two 
daughters ;  the  Lord  being  merciful  unto  him  :  and  they  brought 
him  forth,  and  set  him  without  the  city.  And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  they  had  brought  them  forth  abroad,  that  he  said :  "  Es- 
cape for  thy  life ;  look  not  behind  thee,  neither  stay  thou  in  all 


HAGAR  AND  ISHMAEL   CAST   OFF  29 

the  plain;  escape  to  the  mountain,  lest  thou  be  consumed." 
And  Lot  said  unto  them :  ''  Oh,  not  so,  my  Lord:  beliold  now, 
thy  servant  hath  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  and  thou  hast  mag- 
nified thy  mercy,  which  thou  hast  shewed  unto  me  in  saving 
my  life;  and  I  cannot  escape  to  the  mountain,  lest  some  evil 
take  me,  and  I  die :  behold  now,  this  city  is  near  to  flee  unto, 
and  it  is  a  little  one :  Oh,  let  me  escape  thither,  (is  it  not  a 
little  one?),  and  my  soul  shall  live."  And  he  said  unto  him: 
^'  See,  I  have  accepted  thee  concerning  this  thing  also,  that  I 
will  not  overthrow  this  city,  for  the  which  thou  hast  spoken. 
Haste  thee,  escape  thither ;  for  I  cannot  do  any  thing  till  thou  be 
come  thither."    Therefore  the  name  of  the  city  was  called  Zoar.^ 

The  sun  was  risen  upon  the  earth  when  Lot  entered  into 
Zoar.  Then  the  Lord  rained  upon  Sodom  and  upon  Gomorrah 
brimstone  and  fire  from  the  Lord  out  of  heaven ;  and  he  over- 
threw those  cities,  and  all  the  plain,  and  all  the  inhabitants  of 
the  cities,  and  that  which  grew  upon  the  ground.  But  his  wife 
looked  back  from  behind  him,  and  she  became  a  pillar  of  salt.^ 

And  Abraham  gat  up  early  in  the  morning  to  the  place  where 
he  stood  before  the  Lord :  and  he  looked  toward  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah,  and  toward  all  the  land  of  the  plain,  and  beheld,  and 
lo,  the  smoke  of  the  country  went  up  as  the  smoke  of  a  furnace. 

Hagar  and  Ishmael  Cast  Off  (Gen.  xxi.  l-2l).  And  the 
Lord  visited  Sarah  as  he  had  said,  and  the  Lord  did  unto  Sarah 
as  he  had  spoken.  For  Sarah  conceived,  and  bare  Abraham  a 
son  in  his  old  age,  at  the  set  time  of  which  God  had  spoken  to 
him.  And  Abraham  called  the  name  of  his  son  whom  Sarah  bare 
to  him,  Isaac.  And  Abraham  circumcised  his  son  Isaac  being  eight 
days  old,  as  God  had  commanded  him.  And  Abraham  was  an 
hundred  years  old,  when  his  son  Isaac  was  born  unto  him. 
And  Sarah  said  :  ''  God  hath  made  me  to  laugh,  so  that  all  that 
hear  will  laugh  with  me."  And  she  said:  "Who  would  have 
said  unto  Abraham,  that  Sarah  should  have  given  children  suck  ? 
for  I  have  borne  him  a  son  in  his  old  age."  And  the  child 
grew,  and  was  weaned  :  and  Abraham  made  a  great  feast  the 
same  day  that  Isaac  was  weaned. 

»  Zoar.   '  Small.' 

^  pillar  of  salt.  Late  Jewish  tradition  identified  the  pillar  here  referred  to 
with  one  of  the  fragments  that  from  time  to  time  wear  away  from  the  cliffs  of 
rock  salt  southwest  of  the  Dead  Sea.    See  note,  p.  20. 


30  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE  HEBREWS 

And  Sarah  saw  the  son  of  Hagar  the  Egyptian,  which  she 
had  borne  unto  Abraham,  mocking;^  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  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,  putting  it  on  her 
shoulder,  and  the  child,  and  sent  her  away.  And  she  departed, 
and  wandered  in  the  wilderness  of  Beer-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  good  way  off,  as  it  were  a  bowshot :  for  she  said,  "  Let  me 
not  see  the  death  of  the  child."  And  she  sat  over  against  him, 
and  lift  up  her  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  hold  him  in  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. 

The  Trial  of  Abraham  (Gen.  xxii.  1-19).  And  it  came  to 
pass  after  these  things,  that  God  did  test  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  wood  for  the  burnt  offering, 
1  mocking.  Or  '  playing.' 


THE   TRIAL   OF   ABRAHAM  31 

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  ofif.  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  where  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  the  Lord  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  any 
thing  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  behind  him 
a  ram  caught  in  a  thicket  by  its  horns :  and  Abraham  went  and 
took  the  ram,  and  offered  it  up  for  a  burnt  offering  in  the  stead 
of  his  son.  And  Abraham  called  the  name  of  that  place  Jehovah- 
jireh :  as  it  is  said  to  this  day,  "  In  the  mount  of  the  Lord  it 
shall  be  seen." 

And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  called  unto  Abraham  out  of  heaven 
the  second  time,  and  said :  "  By  myself  have  I  sworn,  saith  the 
Lord,  for  because  thou  hast  done  this  thing,  and  hast  not  with- 
held thy  son,  thine  only  son,  that  in  blessing  I  will  bless  thee, 
and  in  multiplying  I  will  multiply  thy  seed  as  the  stars  of  the 
heaven,  and  as  the  sand  which  is  upon  the  sea  shore ;  and  thy 
seed  shall  possess  the  gate  of  his  enemies ;  and  in  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. 


32  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

The  Burial  of  Sarah  (Gen.  xxiii.).  And  Sarah  was  an  hun- 
dred and  seven  and  twenty  years  old :  these  were  the  years  of 
the  life  of  Sarah.  And  Sarah  died  in  Kirjath-arba ;  the  same  is 
Hebron  in  the  land  of  Canaan :  and  Abraham  came  to  mourn 
for  Sarah,  and  to  weep  for  her.  And  Abraham  stood  up  from 
before  his  dead,  and  spake  unto  the  sons  of  Heth,^  saying  :  "  I 
am  a  stranger  and  a  sojourner  with  you.  Give  me  a  possession 
of  a  burying  place  with  you,  that  I  may  bury  my  dead  out  of 
my  sight.''  And  the  children  of  Heth  answered  Abraham,  say- 
ing 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,  but  that  thou  may- 
est  bury  thy  dead." 

And  Abraham  stood  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  intreat  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  he  shall  give  it  me  for  a  possession  of  a  buryingplace 
amongst  you."  And  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 
his  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  down  himself  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  give  it,  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  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  sons  of  Heth,  four  hundred 
shekels  ^  of  silver,  current  money  with  the  merchant. 

And  the  field  of  Ephron,  which  was  in  Machpelah,  which  was 
before  Mamre,  —  the  field,  and  the  cave  which  was  therein,  and  all 
the  trees  that  were  in  the  field,  that  were  in  all  the  borders  round 
1  sons  of  Heth.  The  Hittites.  2  shekels.  See  note,  p.  281. 


THE    WINNING    OF   REBEKAH   FOR    ISAAC  33 

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  Mamie. 

The  Winning  of  Rebekah  for  Isaac  (Gen.  xxiv. ;  xxv.  5- 
10).  And  Abraham  was  old,  and  well  stricken  in  age :  and  the 
Lord  had  blessed  Abraham  in  all  things.  And  Abraham  said 
unto  his  eldest  servant  of  his  house,  that  ruled  over  all  that  he 
had  :  ^'  Put,  I  pray  thee,  thy  hand  under  my  thigh :  and  I  will 
make  thee  swear  by  the  Lord,  the  God  of  heaven,  and  the  God 
of  the  earth,  that  thou  shalt  not  take  a  wife  unto  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  camest  ?  "  And 
Abraham  said  unto  him :  "  Beware  thou  that  thou  bring  not  my 
son  thither  again.  The  Lord  God  of  heaven,  which  took  me  from 
my  father's  house,  and  from  the  land  of  my  kindred,  and  which 
spake  unto  me,  and  that  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 
will  not  be  willing  to  follow  thee,  then  thou  shalt  be  clear  from 
this  my  oath  :  only  bring  not  my  son  thither  again."  And  the 
servant  put  his  hand  under  the  thigh  of  Abraham  his  master, 
and  sware  to  him  concerning  that  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  the  evening,  even  the  time  that 
women  go  out  to  draw  water.  And  he  said :  "  0  Lord  God  of  my 
master  Abraham,  I  pray  thee,  send  me  good  speed  this  day,  and 
shew  kindness  unto  my  master  Abraham.  Behold,  I  stand  here 
by  the  well  of  water ;  and  the  daughters  of  the  men  of  the  city 
come  out  to  draw  water.  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 
1  city  of  Nahor.  Haraa. 


34  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

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  be- 
hold, Rebekah  came  out,  who  was  born  to  Bethuel,  son  of  Milcah, 
the  wife  of  Nahor,  Abraham's  brother,  with  her  pitcher  upon  her 
shoulder.  And  the  damsel  was  very  fair  to  look  upon,  a  virgin, 
neither  had  any  man  known  her.  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  water  for  thy  camels  also,  until  they  have  done  drink- 
ing." 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  wondering  at  her  held  his  peace,  to  wit 
whether  the  Lord  had  made  his  journey  prosperous  or  not. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  as  the  camels  had  done  drinking,  that 
the  man  took  a  golden  earring  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  Milcah,  which 
she  bare  unto  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  the  Lord.  And 
he  said :  ''  Blessed  be  the  Lord  God  of  my  master  Abraham,  who 
hath  not  left  destitute  my  master  of  his  mercy  and  his  truth. 
I  being  in  the  way,  the  Lord  led  me  to  the  house  of  my  master's 
brethren."  And  the  damsel  ran,  and  told  them  of  her  mother's 
house  these  things. 

And  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  earring  and  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  the  Lord ;  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, 


THE   WINNING  OF   REBEKAH   FOR   ISAAC  35 

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  meat  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  the  Lord  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,  The  Lord,  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  this  my  oath,  when 
thou  comest  to  my  kindred ;  and  if  they  give  not  thee  one,  thou 
shalt  be  clear  from  my  oath.  And  I  came  this  day  unto  the  well, 
and  said,  O  Lord  God  of  my  master  Abraham,  if  now  thou  do 
prosper  my  way  which  I  go :  behold,  I  stand  by  the  well  of  water; 
and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  when  the  virgin  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  camels :  let  the  same  be  the 
woman  whom  the  Lord  hath  appointed  out  for  my  master'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  water :  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,  whom  Milcah  bare 
unto  him :  and  I  put  the  earring  upon  her  face,  and  the  bracelets 
upon  her  hands.  And  I  bowed  down  my  head,  and  worshipped 
the  Lord,  and  blessed  the  Lord  God  of  my  master  Abraham, 
which  had  led  me  in  the  right  way  to  take  my  master's  brother's 
daughter  unto  his  son.  And  now  if  ye  will  deal  kindly  and  truly 


36  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

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  the  Lord :  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  the  Lord  hath  spoken." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  that,  when  Abraham's  servant  heard 
their  words,  he  worshipped  the  Lord,  bowing  himself  to  the  earth. 
And  the  servant  brought  forth  jewels  of  silver,  and  jewels  of 
gold,  and  raiment,  and  gave  them  to  E-ebekah :  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  master. "  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  the  Lord  hath  prospered  my  way ;  send  me  away 
that  I  may  go  to  my  master."  And  they  said:  "We  will  call 
the  damsel,  and  enquire  at  her  mouth."  And  they  called  Ee- 
bekah,  and  said  unto  her,  *'  Wilt  thou  go  with  this  man  ?  " 
And  she  said,  "I  will  go."  And  they  sent  away  Eebekah  their 
sister,  and  her  nurse,  and  Abraham's  servant,  and  his  men.  And 
they  blessed  Rebekah,  and  said  unto  her :  "  Thou  art  our  sister, 
be  thou  the  mother  of  thousands  of  millions,  and  let  thy  seed 
possess  the  gate  of  those  which  hate  them." 

And  Eebekah  arose,  and  her  damsels,  and  they  rode  upon  the 
camels,  and  followed  the  man:  and  the  servant  took  Eebekah, 
and  went  his  way. 

And  Isaac  came  from  the  way  of  the  well  Lahai-roi;  for  he 
dwelt  in  the  south  country.  And  Isaac  went  out  to  meditate  in 
the  field  at  the  eventide :  and  he  lifted  up  his  eyes,  and  saw, 
and  behold,  the  camels  were  coming.  And  Eebekah  lifted  up 
her  eyes,  and  when  she  saw  Isaac,  she  lighted  off  the  camel.  For 
she  had  said  unto  the  servant :  "  What  man  is  this  that  walketh 
in  the  field  to  meet  us  ?  "  And  the  servant  had  said,  "  It  is  my 
master :  "  therefore  she  took  a  vail,  and  covered  herself.  And 
the  servant  told  Isaac  all  things  that  he  had  done.  And  Isaac 
brought  her  into  his  mother  Sarah's  tent,  and  took  Eebekah,  and 
she  became  his  wife  ;  and  he  loved  her :  and  Isaac  was  comforted 
after  his  mother's  death. 


BIRTH   OF   ESAU   AXD   JACOB  37 

And  Abraham  gave  all  that  he  had  unto  Isaac.  But  unto  the 
sons  of  the  concubines,  which  Abraham  had,  Abraham  gave 
gifts,  and  sent  them  away  from  Isaac  his  son,  while  he  yet 
lived,  eastward,  unto  the  east  country. 

And  these  are  the  days  of  the  years  of  Abraham's  life  which 
he  lived,  an  hundred  threescore  and  fifteen  years.  Then  Abra- 
ham gave  up  the  ghost,  and  died  in  a  good  old  age,  an  old  man, 
and  full  of  years ;  and  was  gathered  to  his  people.  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  is  before 
Mamre ;  the  field  which  Abraham  purchased  of  the  sons  of  Heth : 
there  was  Abraham  buried,  and  Sarah  his  wife. 

2.  Jacob 

Birth  of  Esau  and  Jacob  (Gen.  xxv.  21-28).  And  it  came 
to  pass  after  the  death  of  Abraham,  that  God  blessed  his  son 
Isaac ;  and  Isaac  dwelt  by  the  well  Lahai-roi. 

And  Isaac  intreated  the  Lord  for  his  wife,  because  she  was 
barren :  and  the  Lord  was  intreated  of  him,  and  Kebekah  his  wife 
conceived.  And  the  children  struggled  together  within  her;  and 
she  said:  "If  it  be  so,  why  am  I  thus?''  And  she  went  to 
enquire  of  the  Lord.   And  the  Lord  said  unto  her : 

"  Two  nations  are  in  thy  womb, 
And  two  manner  of  people  shall  be  separated  from  thy 

bowels ; 
And  the  one  people  shall  be  stronger  than  the  other 

people  ; 
And  the  elder  shall  serve  the  younger." 

And  when  her  days  to  be  delivered  were  fulfilled,  behold, 
there  were  twins  in  her  womb.  And  the  first  came  out  red,  all 
over  like  an  hairy  garment ;  and  they  called  his  name  Esau.  And 
after  that  came  his  brother  out,  and  his  hand  took  hold  on 
Esau's  heel ;  and  his  name  was  called  Jacob :  and  Isaac  was 
three-score  years  old  when  she  bare  them.  And  the  boys  grew : 
and  Esau  was  a  cunning  hunter,  a  man  of  the  field ;  and  Jacob 
was  a  plain  man,  dwelling  in  tents.  And  Isaac  loved  Esau,  be- 
cause he  did  eat  of  his  venison :  but  Rebekah  loved  Jacob. 

Esau  Sells  his  Birthright  (Gen.   xxv.  29-34).   And  Jacob 
sod  ^  pottage :  and  Esau  came  from  the  field,  and  he  was  faint. 
1  sod.  'Seethed,'  boiled. 


38  THE  ANCESTORS   OF  THE  HEBREWS 

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,  ''Sell  me  this  day  thy  birth- 
right." ^  And  Esau  said:  "Behold,  I  am  at  the  point  to  die: 
and  what  profit  shall  this  birthright  do  to  me  ? ''  And  Jacob 
said,  "  Swear  to  me  this  day  ;  "  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  Promises  Renewed  to  Isaac  (Gen.  xxvi.  1-5,  12-17, 
23-25,  34,  35).  And  there  was  a  famine  in  the  land,  beside  the 
first  famine  that  was  in  the  days  of  Abraham.  ^  And  Isaac  went 
unto  Abimelech  king  of  the  Philistines  unto  Gerar.  And  the 
Lord  appeared  unto  him,  and  said :  "  Go  not  down  into  Egypt; 
dwell  in  the  land  which  I  shall  tell  thee  of.  Sojourn  in  this  land, 
and  I  will  be  with  thee,  and  will  bless  thee ;  for  unto  thee,  and 
unto  thy  seed,  I  will  .give  all  these  countries,  and  I  will  perform 
the  oath  which  I  sware  unto  Abraham  thy  father ;  and  I  will 
make  thy  seed  to  multiply  as  the  stars  of  heaven,  and  will  give 
unto  thy  seed  all  these  countries ;  and  in  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.'' 

Then  Isaac  sowed  in  that  land,  and  received  in  the  same  year 
an  hundredfold :  and  the  Lord  blessed  him,  and  the  man  waxed 
great,  and  went  forward,  and  grew  until  he  became  very  great: 
for  he  had  possession  of  flocks,  and  possession  of  herds  and 
great  store  of  servants.  And  the  Philistines  envied  him;  for  all 
the  wells  which  his  father's  servants  had  digged  in  the  days  of 
Abraham  his  father,  the  Philistines  had  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  he  went  up  from  thence  to  Beer-sheba.  And  the  Lord 
appeared  unto  him  the  same  night,  and  said :  "  I  am  the  God  of 
Abraham  thy  father :  fear  not,  for  I  am  with  thee,  and  will  bless 

1  Edom.  Red. 

*  birthright.  This  was  valued  as  conferring  both  a  better  position  in  the 
family,  and  a  larger  share  of  the  inheritance. 
8  See  note,  p.  17. 


THE   BLESSING   OF   JACOB  39 

thee,  and  multiply  thy  seed  for  my  servant  Abraham's  sake." 
And  he  builded  an  altar  there,  and  called  upon  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  and  pitched  his  tent  there:  and  there  Isaac's  servants 
digged  a  well. 

And  Esau  was  forty  years  old  when  he  took  to  wife  Judith 
the  daughter  of  Beeri  the  Hittite,  and  Bashemath  the  daughter 
of  Elon  the  Hittite;  which  were  a  grief  of  mind  unto  Isaac  and 
to  Kebekah. 

The  Blessing  of  Jacob  (Gen.  xxvii.  1-40).  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  savory  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  veni- 
son, and  make  me  savory  meat,  that  I  may  eat,  and  bless  thee 
before  the  Lord  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  savory  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  per- 
adventure  will  feel  me,  and  I  shall  seem  to  him  as  a  deceiver; 
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  savory  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 


40  THE   ANCESTOKS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

upon  his  hands,  and  upon  the  smooth  of  his  neck  :  and  she  gave 
the  savory  meat  and  the  bread,  which  she  had  prepared,  into  the 
hand  of  her  son  Jacob. 

And  he  came  unto  his  father,  and  said,  ''My  father."  And 
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  Jacob's  voice,  but  the 
hands  are  the  hands  of  Esau."  And  he  discerned  him  not,  be- 
cause 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  the  Lord  hath  blessed : 
Therefore  God  give  thee  of  the  dew  of  heaven, 
And  the  fatness  of  the  earth. 
And  plenty  of  corn  and  wine: 
Let  people  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  savory  meat,  and  brought 
it  unto  his  father,  and  said  unto  his  father :  "  Let  my  father 


JACOB'S   FLIGHT  41 

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  ?  where  is  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,  0  my  father."  And  he  said  :  "  Thy 
brother  came  with  subtlety,  and  hath  taken  away  thy  blessing." 
And  he  said :  '*  Is  not  he  rightly  named  Jacob  ?  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  the  fatness  of  the 

earth, 
And  of  the  dew  of  heaven  from  above  ; 
And  by  thy  sword  shalt  thou  live. 
And  shalt  serve  thy  brother. 
And  it  shall  come  to  pass  when  thou  shalt  have 

the  dominion, 
That  thou  shalt  break  his  yoke  from  off  thy  neck. "  ^ 

Jacob's  Flight  (Gen.  xxvii.  41-xxix.  12).  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  Hebekah.  And  she 
sent  and  called  Jacob  her  younger  son,  and  said  unto  him : 
"  Behold,  thy  brother  Esau,  as  touching  thee,  doth  comfort  him- 
self, purposing  to  kill  thee.    Now  therefore,  my  son,  obey  my 

1  In  the  Hebrew  a  play  on  the  word  'Jacob  '  gives  'supplant.' 

2  The  Edomites  were  subjected  by  David  (p.  283),  but  in  the  reign  of  Joram, 
king  of  Judah,  they  made  a  successful  revolt. 


42  THE  ANCESTORS   OF  THE  HEBREWS 

voice ;  and  arise,  flee  thou  to  Laban  my  brother,  to  Haran  ;  and 
tarry  with  him  a  few  days,  until  thy  brother'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  also  of  you  both  in  one  day  ?  "  ^ 

And  Rebekah  said  to  Isaac :  "  I  am  weary  of  my  life  because 
of  the  daughters  of  Heth.  If  Jacob  take  a  wife  of  the  daughters 
of  Heth,  such  as  these  which  are  of  the  daughters  of  the  land, 
what  good  shall  my  life  do  me  ?  " 

And  Isaac  called  Jacob,  and  blessed  him,  and  charged  him, 
and  said  unto  him:  *'  Thou  shalt  not  take  a  wife  of  the  daughters 
of  Canaan.  Arise,  go  to  Padan-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 
may  est  be  a  multitude  of  people  ;  and  give  thee  the  blessing  of 
Abraham,  to  thee,  and  to  thy  seed  with  thee ;  that  thou  mayest 
inherit  the  land  wherein  thou  art  a  stranger,  which  God  gave 
unto  Abraham."  And  Isaac  sent  away  Jacob:  and  he  went  to 
Padan-aram  unto  Laban,  son  of  Bethuel  the  Syrian,  the  brother 
of  Rebekah,  Jacob's  and  Esau's  mother. 

When  Esau  saw  that  Isaac  had  blessed  Jacob,  and  sent  him 
away  to  Padan-aram,  to  take  him  a  wife  from  thence  ;  and  that 
as  he  blessed  him  he  gave  him  a  charge,  saying:  ''Thou  shalt 
not  take  a  wife  of  the  daughters  of  Canaan ;  "  and  that  Jacob 
obeyed  his  father  and  his  mother,  and  was  gone  to  Padan-aram ; 
and  Esau  seeing  that  the  daughters  of  Canaan  pleased  not  Isaac 
his  father ;  then  went  Esau  unto  Ishmael,  and  took  unto  the 
wives  which  he  had  Mahalath  the  daughter  of  Ishmael,  Abra- 
ham's son,  the  sister  of  Nebajoth,  to  be  his  wife. 

And  Jacob  went  out  from  Beer-sheba,  and  went  toward 
Haran.  And  he  lighted  upon  a  certain  place,  and  tarried  there 
all  night,  because  the  sun  was  set ;  and  he  took  of  the  stones  of 
that  place,  and  put  them  for  his  pillows,  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  behold,  the 
Lord  stood  above  it,  and  said:  ''I  am  the  Lord  God  of  Abra- 
ham thy  father,  and  the  God  of  Isaac:  the  land  whereon  thou 
liest,  to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed ;  and  thy  seed  shall 
1  After  killing  Jacob,  Esau  would  have  to  flee  from  the  blood-avenger. 


JACOB'S   FLIGHT  4S^ 

be  as  tlie  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 
in  thee  and  in  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." 

And  Jacob  awaked  out  of  his  sleep,  and  he  said:  "Surely  the 
Lord  is  in  this  place ;  and  I  knew  it  not."  And  he  was  afraid, 
and  said:  '^  How  dreadful  is  this  place!  This  is  none  other  but 
the  house  of  God,  and  this  is  the  gate  of  heaven." 

And  Jacob  rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  took  the  stone 
that  he  had  put  for  his  pillows,  and  set  it  up  for  a  pillar,  and 
poured  oil  upon  the  top  of  it.  And  he  called  the  name  of  that 
place  Beth-el:  but  the  name  of  that  city  was  called  Luz  at  the 
first.  And  Jacob  vowed  a  vow,  saying:  "If  God  will  be  with 
me,  and  will  keep  me  in  this  way  that  I  go,  and  will  give  me 
bread  to  eat,  and  raiment  to  put  on,  so  that  I  come  again  to  my 
father's  house  in  peace  ;  then  shall  the  Lord  be  my  God  :  and 
this  stone,  which  I  have  set  for  a  pillar,  shall  be  God's  house  :^ 
and  of  all  that  thou  shalt  give  me  I  will  surely  give  the  tenth 
unto  thee." 

Then  Jacob  went  on  his  journey,  and  came  into  the  land  of 
the  people  of  the  east.^  And  he  looked,  and  behold  a  well  m  the 
field,  and  lo,  there  were  three  flocks  of  sheep  lying  by  it ;  for 
out  of  that  well  they  watered  the  flocks:  and  a  great  stone  was 
upon  the  well's  mouth.  And  thither  were  all  the  flocks  gathered: 
and  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, 

1  The  veneration  of  an  erect  stone  or  "pillar  "  as  the  abode  of  deity  is  com- 
mon among  peoples  of  primitive  culture.  Pausanias  (ix.  38)  says  :  "  By  all 
the  Greeks  [of  earlier  days]  the  honors  due  to  images  of  the  gods  were  paid  to 
unwrought  stones,"  and  he  mentions  a  sacred  stone  at  Delphi,  upon  which  oil 
was  poured  daily.     In  parts  of  India  to-day,  every  village  has  a  fetish  stone. 

2  land  .  .  .  east.  That  is,  Mesopotamia. 

3  loere  gathered,  rolled,  watered, put  in  this  sentence  denote  customary  action. 
When  a  well  belonged  to  two  or  three  families,  a  stone  cover  so  heavy  that  it 
took  all  their  shepherds  together  to  remove  it,  would  prevent  any  one  family 
from  coming  and  taking  more  than  its  share. 


44  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

"  Know  ye  Laban  son  of  Nahor  ?  "  And  they  said,  "  We  know 
him."  And  he  said  unto  them,  "Is  he  well  ? ''  And  they  said, 
*'  He  is  well  :  and  behold,  Each  el  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,  and  till  they  roll  the  stone  from 
the  well's  mouth;  then  we  water  the  sheep." 

And  while  he  yet  spake  with  them,  Kachel  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, 
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  brother,^  and 
that  he  was  Rebekah's  son:  and  she  ran  and  told  her  father. 

Jacob  and  Laban  (Gen.  xxix.  13-xxxii.  2).  And  it  came  to 
pass,  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.  And  he  told  Laban  all  these  things. 
And  Laban  said  to  him :  "  Surely  thou  art  my  bone  and  my 
flesh."  And  he  abode  with  him  the  space  of  a  month.  And  La- 
ban said  unto  Jacob  :  "  Because  thou  art  my  brother,  shouldest 
thou  therefore  serve  me  for  nought  ?  tell  me,  what  shall  thy 
wages  be  ?  "  And  Laban  had  two  daughters :  the  name  of  the 
elder  was  Leah,  and  the  name  of  the  younger  was  Rachel.  Leah 
was  tender  eyed  ;  but  Rachel  was  beautiful  and  well  favored. 
And  Jacob  loved  Rachel ;  and  said  :  "  I  will  serve  thee  seven 
years  for  Rachel  thy  younger  daughter."  And  Laban  said  :  "  It  is 
better  that  I  give  her  to  thee,  than  that  I  should  give  her  to 
another  man  :  abide  with  me."  And  Jacob  served  seven  years 
for  Rachel ;  and  they  seemed  unto  him  but  a  few  days,  for  the 
love  he  had  to  her. 

And  Jacob  said  unto  Laban  :  "  Give  me  my  wife,  for  my  days 
are  fulfilled,  that  I  may  go  in  unto  her."  And  Laban  gathered 
together  all  the  men  of  the  place,  and  made  a  feast.  And  it  came 
to  pass  in  the  evening,  that  he  took  Leah  his  daughter,  and 
brought  her  to  him ;  and  he  went  in  unto  her.  And  Laban  gave 
unto  his  daughter  Leah  Zilpah  his  maid  for  an  handmaid.   And 

1  brother.  Nephew. 


JACOB    AND    LABAN  45 

it  came  to  pass,  that  in  the  morning,  behold,  it  was  Leah.  And 
he  said  to  Laban  :  ''  What  is  this  thou  hast  done  unto  me  ? 
Did  not  I  serve  with  thee  for  Rachel  ?  wherefore  then  hast  thou 
beguiled  me?"  And  Laban  said:  "It  must  not  be  so  done 
in  our  country,  to  give  the  younger  before  the  firstborn.  Fulfil 
her  week,*  and  we  will  give  thee  this  also  for  the  service  which 
thou  shalt  serve  with  me  yet  seven  other  years."  And  Jacob  did 
so,  and  fulfilled  her  week  :  and  he  gave  him  Rachel  his  daughter 
to  wife  also.  And  Laban  gave  to  Rachel  his  daughter  Bilhah  his 
handmaid  to  be  her  maid.  And  he  went  in  also  unto  Rachel,  and 
he  loved  also  Rachel  more  than  Leah,  and  served  with  him  yet 
seven  other  years. 

And  when  the  Lord  saw  that  Leah  was  hated,  he  opened  her 
womb  :  but  Rachel  was  barren.  And  Leah  conceived,  and  bare 
a  son,  and  she  called  his  name  Reuben  :  ^  for  she  said :  "  Surely 
the  Lord  hath  looked  upon  my  affliction  ;  now  therefore  my 
husband  will  love  me."  And  she  conceived  again,  and  bare  a 
son  ;  and  said  :  "  Because  the  Lord  hath  heard  that  I  was  hated, 
he  hath  therefore  given  me  this  son  also  :  "  and  she  called  his 
name  Simeon.^  And  she  conceived  again,  and  bare  a  son  ;  and 
said :  ''  Now  this  time  will  my  husband  be  joined  unto  me,  be- 
cause I  have  borne  him  three  sons  :  "  therefore  was  his  name 
called  Levi.^  And  she  conceived  again,  and  bare  a  son  :  and  she 
said,  "Now  will  I  praise  the  Lord:  "  therefore  she  called  his 
name  Judah  ;  ^  and  left  bearing. 

And  when  Rachel  saw  that  she  bare  Jacob  no  children,  Rachel 
envied  her  sister  ;  and  said  unto  Jacob,  "  Give  me  children,  or 
else  I  die."  And  Jacob's  anger  was  kindled  against  Rachel: 
and  he  said  :  "  Am  I  in  God's  stead,  who  hath  withheld  from 
thee  the  fruit  of  the  womb  ?  "  And  she  said  :  "  Behold  my  maid 
Bilhah,  go  in  unto  her  ;  and  she  shall  bear  upon  my  knees,  that 
I  may  also  have  children  by  her."  And  she  gave  him  Bilhah 
her  handmaid  to  wife :  and  Jacob  went  in  unto  her.  And  Bilhah 
conceived,  and  bare  Jacob  a  son.  And  Rachel  said  :  "  God  hath 
judged  me,  and  hath  also  heard  my  voice,  and  hath  given  me  a 
son  :  "  therefore  called  she  his  name  Dan.'  And  Bilhah  Rachel's 
maid  conceived  again,  and  bare  Jacob  a  second  son.  And  Rachel 

1  week.  The  week  of  wedding  festivities. 

'^Reuben.   'Behold  a  son.'    Simeon.    'Hearing.'    Levi.  'Joined.'    Judah. 
'  Praise.' 
3  Dan.  'Judging.' 


46         THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

said  :  ^'  With  great  wrestlings  have  I  wrestled  with  my  sister,  and 
I  have  prevailed  :  "  and  she  called  his  name  Naphtali.  ^ 

When  Leah  saw  that  she  had  left  bearing,  she  took  Zilpah 
her  maid,  and  gave  her  Jacob  to  wife.  And  Zilpah  Leah's  maid 
bare  Jacob  a  son.  And  Leah  said,  ''  A  troop  cometh  :  "  and  she 
called  his  name  Gad.^  And  Zilpah  Leah's  maid  bare  Jacob  a 
second  son.  And  Leah  said :  "  Happy  am  I,  for  the  daughters 
will  call  me  blessed  :  "  and  she  called  his  name  Asher.' 

And  Reuben  went  in  the  days  of  wheat  harvest,  and  found 
mandrakes  ^  in  the  field,  and  brought  them  nnto  his  mother 
Leah.  Then  Rachel  said  to  Leah,  ^'  Give  me,  I  pray  thee,  of 
thy  son's  mandrakes."  And  she  said  unto  her  :  "  Is  it  a  small 
matter  that  thou  hast  taken  my  husband  ?  and  wouldest  thou 
take  away  my  son's  mandrakes  also  ?"  And  Rachel  said,  "  There- 
fore he  shall  lie  with  thee  to-night  for  thy  son's  mandrakes." 
And  Jacob  came  out  of  the  field  in  the  evening,  and  Leah  went 
out  to  meet  him,  and  said  :  ''  Thou  must  come  in  unto  me  ;  for 
surely  I  have  hired  thee  with  my  son's  mandrakes."  And  he 
lay  with  her  that  night ;  and  God  hearkened  unto  Leah,  and 
she  conceived,  and  bare  Jacob  the  fifth  son.  And  Leah  said : 
"  God  hath  given  me  my  hire,  because  I  have  given  my  maiden 
to  my  husband :  "  and  she  called  his  name  Issachar.^  And  Leah 
conceived  again  and  bare  Jacob  the  sixth  son.  And  Leah  said  : 
*'  God  hath  endued  me  with  a  good  dowry ;  now  will  my  hus- 
band dwell  with  me,  because  I  have  borne  him  six  sons  : "  and 
she  called  his  name  Zebulun.^  And  afterwards  she  bare  a  daugh- 
ter, and  called  her  name  Dinah. 

And  God  remembered  Rachel,  and  God  hearkened  to  her,  and 
opened  her  womb.  And  she  conceived,  and  bare  a  son  ;  and  said, 
"  God  hath  taken  away  my  reproach  :  "  and  she  called  his  name 
Joseph  ;^  and  said,  "  The  Lord  shall  add  to  me  another  son." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Rachel  had  borne  Joseph,  that 
Jacob  said  unto  Laban :  "  Send  me  away,  that  I  may  go  unto 
mine  own  place,  and  to  my  country.  Give  me  my  wives  and 
my  children,  for  whom  I  have  served  thee,  and  let  me  go :  for 
thou  knowest  my  service  which  I  have  done  thee."  And  Laban 

^  Naphtali.  ' My  wrestling.'  Gad.  'Fortune.'  Asher.  'Happy.'  Issachar. 
'There  is  hire.'    Zebulun.    'Dwelling.' 

^mandrakes.  'Love  apples,'  the  small  tomato-like  fruit  of  Mandragora 
vernnlis,  supposed  to  promote  fertility. 

8  Joseph.  Either  '  He  will  add,'  or  '  Taking  away.' 


JACOB  AND  LABAN  47 

said  unto  him  :  ''I  pray  thee,  if  I  have  found  favor  in 
thine  eyes,  tarry  :  for  I  have  learned  by  experience  that  the 
Lord  hath  blessed  me  for  thy  sake."  And  he  said:  ''Appoint 
me  tliy  wages,  and  I  will  give  it."  And  he  said  unto  him  :  "  Thou 
knowest  how  I  have  served  thee,  and  how  thy  cattle  was  with 
me.  For  it  was  little  which  thou  hadst  before  I  came,  and  it  is 
now  increased  unto  a  multitude  ;  and  the  Lord  hath  blessed 
thee  since  my  coming  :  and  now  when  shall  I  provide  for  mine 
own  house  also  ?  "  And  he  said,  ''  What  shall  I  give  thee  ?  " 
And  Jacob  said  :  ''  Thou  shalt  not  give  me  any  thing  :  if  thou 
wilt  do  this  thing  for  me,  I  will  again  feed  and  keep  thy  flock. 
I  will  pass  through  all  thy  flock  today,  removing  from  thence 
all  the  speckled  and  spotted  cattle,  and  all  the  brown  cattle 
among  the  sheep,  and  the  spotted  and  speckled  among  the  goats  : 
and  of  such  shall  be  my  hire.  So  shall  my  righteousness  answer 
for  me  in  time  to  come,  when  it  shall  come  for  my  hire  before 
thy  face  :  every  one  that  is  not  speckled  and  spotted  among  the 
goats,  and  brown  among  the  sheep,  that  shall  be  counted  stolen 
with  me."  And  Laban  said,  "Behold,  I  would  it  might  be  ac- 
cording to  thy  word." 

And  he  removed  that  day  the  he  goats  that  were  ring-streaked 
and  spotted,  and  all  the  she  goats  that  were  speckled  and  spotted, 
and  every  one  that  had  some  white  in  it,  and  all  the  brown 
among  the  sheep,  and  gave  them  into  the  hand  of  his  sons. 
And  he  set  three  days'  journey  betwixt  himself  and  Jacob  :^  and 
Jacob  fed  the  rest  of  Laban's  flocks. 

But  Jacob  took  him  rods  of  green  poplar,  and  of  the  almond 
and  plane-tree  ;  and  peeled  white  streaks  in  them,  and  made  the 
white  appear  wdiich  was  in  the  rods.  And  he  set  the  rods  which 
he  had  peeled  before  the  flocks  in  the  gutters  in  the  watering 
troughs  when  the  flocks  came  to  drink,  that  they  should  conceive 
when  they  came  to  drink.  And  the  flocks  conceived  before  the 
rods,  and  brought  forth  cattle  ringstreaked,  speckled,  and  spotted. 
And  Jacob  did  separate  the  lambs,  and  set  the  faces  of  the  flocks 
toward  the  ringstreaked,  and  all  the  brown  in  the  flock  of  Laban  ; 
and  he  put  his  own  flocks  by  themselves,  and  put  them  not  unto 
Laban's  cattle.  And  it  came  to  pass,  whensoever  the  stronger 
cattle  did  conceive,  that  Jacob  laid  the  rods  before  the  eyes  of 
the  cattle  in  the  gutters,  that  they  might  conceive  among  the 

1  Laban's  purpose  was  evidently  to  prevent  Jacob's  animals  from  breeding 
any  more  spotted  ones  in  his  flock. 


48  THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE   HEBREWS 

rods.  But  when  the  cattle  were  feeble,  he  put  them  not  in  :  so 
the  feebler  were  Laban's  and  the  stronger  Jacob's.  And  the 
man  increased  exceedingly,  and  had  much  cattle,  and  maidser- 
vants, and  menservants,  and  camels,  and  asses.  And  he  heard 
the  words  of  Laban's  sons,  saying  :  "Jacob  hath  taken  away  all 
that  was  our  father's ;  and  of  that  which  was  our  father's  hath 
he  gotten  all  this  glory." 

And  Jacob  beheld  the  countenance  of  Laban,  and  behold,  it 
was  not  toward  him  as  before.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Jacob  : 
^*  Keturn  unto  the  land  of  thy  fathers,  and  to  thy  kindred  ;  and 
I  will  be  with  thee."  And  Jacob  sent  and  called  Rachel  and 
Leah  to  the  field  unto  his  flock,  and  said  unto  them  :  "I  see 
your  father's  countenance,  that  it  is  not  toward  me  as  before; 
but  the  God  of  my  father  hath  been  with  me.  And  ye  know 
that  with  all  my  power  I  have  served  your  father.  And  your 
father  hath  deceived  me,  and  changed  my  wages  ten  times ;  but 
God  suffered  him  not  to  hurt  me.  If  he  said  thus.  The  speckled 
shall  be  thy  wages;  then  all  the  cattle  bare  speckled  :  and  if  he 
said  thus.  The  ringstreaked  shall  be  thy  hire ;  then  bare  all  the 
cattle  ringstreaked.  Thus  God  hath  taken  away  the  cattle  of  your 
father,  and  given  them  to  me.  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  time 
that  the  cattle  conceived,  that  I  lifted  up  mine  eyes,  and  saw  in  a 
dream,  and,  behold,  the  rams  which  leaped  upon  the  cattle  were 
ringstreaked,  speckled,  and  grisled.  And  the  angel  of  God  spake 
unto  me  in  a  dream,  saying,  Jacob:  and  I  said.  Here  am  L 
And  he  said,  Lift  up  now  thine  eyes,  and  see,  all  the  rams  which 
leap  upon  the  cattle  are  ringstreaked,  speckled,  and  grisled  :  for 
I  have  seen  all  that  Laban  doeth  unto  thee.  I  am  the  God  of 
Beth-el,  where  thou  anointedst  the  pillar,  and  where  thou 
vowedst  a  vow  unto  me  :  now  arise,  get  thee  out  from  this  land, 
and  return  unto  the  land  of  thy  kindred." 

And  Rachel  and  Leah  answered  and  said  unto  him :  "  Is 
there  yet  any  portion  or  inheritance  for  us  in  our  father's  house  ? 
Are  we  not  counted  of  him  strangers  ?  for  he  hath  sold  us,  and 
hath  quite  devoured  also  our  money.  For  all  the  riches  which 
God  hath  taken  from  our  father,  that  is  ours,  and  our  children's  ; 
now  then,  whatsoever  God  hath  said  unto  thee,  do." 

Then  Jacob  rose  up,  and  set  his  sons  and  his  wives  upon 
camels  ;  and  he  carried  away  all  his  cattle,  and  all  his  goods 
which  he  had  gotten,  the  cattle  of  his  getting,  which  he  had 
gotten  in  Padan-aram,  for  to  go  to  Isaac  his  father  in  the  land 


JACOB   AND   LABAN  49 

of  Canaan.  Now  Laban  was  gone  to  shear  his  sheep  :  and  Rachel 
stole  the  images  ^  that  were  her  father's.  And  Jacob  stole  away 
unawares  to  Laban  the  Syrian,  in  that  he  told  him  not  that  he 
fled.  So  he  fled  with  all  that  he  had;  and  he  rose  up,  and 
passed  over  the  river, ^  and  set  his  face  toward  the  mount  Gilead. 
And  it  was  told  Laban  on  the  third  day  that  Jacob  was  fled. 
And  he  took  his  brethren  with  him,  and  pursued  after  him 
seven  days'  journey ;  and  they  overtook  him  in  the  mount 
Gilead.  And  God  came  to  Laban  the  Syrian  in  a  dream  by  night, 
and  said  unto  him,  "  Take  heed  that  thou  speak  not  to  Jacob 
either  good  or  bad." 

Then  Laban  overtook  Jacob.  Now  Jacob  had  pitched  his  tent 
in  the  mount :  and  Laban  with  his  brethren  pitched  in  the  mount 
of  Gilead.  And  Laban  said  to  Jacob  :  *'  What  hast  thou  done, 
that  thou  hast  stolen  away  unawares  to  me,  and  carried  away  my 
daughters,  as  captives  taken  with  the  sword  ?  .Wherefore  didst 
thou  flee  away  secretly,  and  steal  away  from  me ;  and  didst  not 
tell  me,  that  I  might  have  sent  thee  away  with  mirth,  and  with 
songs,  with  tabret,  and  with  harp,  and  hast  not  sufi'ered  me  to 
kiss  my  sons  and  my  daughters  ?  Thou  hast  now  done  foolishly 
in  so  doing.  It  is  in  the  power  of  my  hand  to  do  you  hurt : 
but  the  God  of  your  father  spake  unto  me  yesternight,  saying, 
Take  thou  heed  that  thou  speak  not  to  Jacob  either  good  or  bad. 
And  now,  though  thou  wouldest  needs  be  gone,  because  thou 
sore  longedst  after  thy  father's  house,  yet  wherefore  hast  thou 
stolen  my  gods  ?  " 

And  Jacob  answered  and  said  to  Laban :  "  Because  I  was  afraid : 
for  I  said,  Peradventure  thou  wouldest  take  by  force  thy  daugh- 
ters from  me.  With  whomsoever  thou  flndest  thy  gods,  let  him 
not  live  :  before  our  brethren  discern  thou  what  is  thine  with  me, 
and  take  it  to  thee."  For  Jacob  knew  not  that  Rachel  had  stolen 
them. 

And  Laban  went  into  Jacob's  tent,  and  into  Leah's  tent,  and 
into  the  two  maidservants'  tents ;  but  he  found  them  not.  Then 
went  he  out  of  Leah's  tent,  and  entered  into  Rachel's  tent. 
Now  Rachel  had  taken  the  images,  and  put  them  in  the  camel's 
furniture,^  and  sat  upon  them.   And  Laban  searched  all  the  tent, 

1  images.  Teraphim,  or  images  popularly  revered  as  a  kind  of  household  gods 
(somewhat  as  the  Latin  '  penates  '),  and  as  affording  oracles.    See  also  p.  243. 

2  the  river.  Euphrates. 

3  cameVs  furniture.  The  basket-seat  with  which  a  camel  was  saddled. 


50  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

but  found  them  not.  And  she  said  to  her  father :  "  Let  it  not 
displease  my  lord  that  I  cannot  rise  up  before  thee  :  for  the  cus- 
tom of  women  is  upon  me.''  And  he  searched,  but  found  not 
the  images. 

And  Jacob  was  wroth,  and  chode  with  Laban :  and  Jacob  an- 
swered and  said  to  Laban :  "  What  is  my  trespass  ?  what  is  ray 
sin,  that  thou  hast  so  hotly  pursued  after  me  ?  Whereas  thou 
hast  searched  all  my  stuff,  what  hast  thou  found  of  all  thy  house- 
hold stuff?  set  it  here  before  my  brethren  and  thy  brethren,  that 
they  may  judge  betwixt  us  both.  This  twenty  years  have  I  been 
with  thee  ;  thy  ewes  and  thy  she  goats  have  not  cast  their  young, 
and  the  rams  of  thy  flock  have  I  not  eaten.  That  which  was  torn 
of  beasts  I  brought  not  unto  thee ;  I  bare  the  loss  of  it ;  of  my 
hand  didst  thou  require  it,  whether  stolen  by  day,  or  stolen  by 
night.  Thus  I  was  :  in  the  day  the  drought  consumed  me,  and 
the  frost  by  night ;  and  my  sleep  departed  from  mine  eyes.  Thus 
have  I  been  twenty  years  in  thy  house;  I  served  thee  fourteen 
years  for  thy  two  daughters,  and  six  years  for  thy  cattle :  and 
thou  hast  changed  my  wages  ten  times.  Except  the  God  of  my 
father,  the  God  of  Abraham,  and  the  Fear  of  Isaac,  had  been 
with  me,  surely  thou  hadst  sent  me  away  now  empty.  God  hath 
seen  mine  affliction  and  the  labor  of  my  hands,  and  rebuked  thee 
yesternight.'' 

And  Laban  answered  and  said  unto  Jacob :  "  These  daughters 
are  my  daughters,  and  these  children  are  my  children,  and  these 
cattle  are  my  cattle,  and  all  that  thou  seest  is  mine :  and  what 
can  I  do  this  day  unto  these  my  daughters,  or  unto  their 
children  which  they  have  borne  ?  Now  therefore  come  thou,  let 
us  make  a  covenant,  I  and  thou ;  and  let  it  be  for  a  witness  be- 
tween me  and  thee." 

And  Jacob  took  a  stone,  and  set  it  up  for  a  pillar.  And  Jacob 
said  unto  his  brethren,  "  Gather  stones  ;  "  and  they  took  stones, 
and  made  an  heap :  and  they  did  eat  there  upon  the  heap.  And 
Laban  called  it  Jegar-sahadutha  :^  but  Jacob  called  it  Galeed.* 
And  Laban  said  ;  ''  This  heap  is  a  witness  between  me  and  thee 
this  day."  Therefore  was  the  name  of  it  called  Galeed ;  and 
Mizpah  ;  ^  for  he  said  :  "  The  Lord  watch  between  me  and  thee, 
when  we  are  absent  one  from  another.   If  thou  shalt  afflict  my 

1  Jegar-sahadutha  is  Aramaic,  and  Galeed^  Hebrew,  for  'Heap  of  Witness.* 
The  incident  was  later  regarded  as  a  settlement  of  the  boundary  point  between 
Aram  or  Syria  and  Israel.  2  Mizpah.   '  Place  of  outlook.' 


MEETING   OF   JACOB    AND    ESAU  51 

daughters,  or  if  thou  shalt  take  other  wives  beside  my  daughters, 
no  man  is  with  us ;  see,  God  is  witness  betwixt  me  and  thee." 

And  Laban  said  to  Jacob  :  "  Behold  this  heap,  and  behold  this 
pillar,  which  I  have  cast  betwixt  me  and  thee  ;  this  heap  be 
witness,  and  this  pillar  be  witness,  that  I  will  not  pass  over  this 
heap  to  thee,  and  that  thou  shalt  not  pass  over  this  heap  and 
this  pillar  unto  me  for  harm.  The  God  of  Abraham,  and  the  God 
of  Nahor,  the  God  of  their  father,  judge  betwixt  us." 

And  Jacob  sware  by  the  Fear  of  his  father  Isaac.  Then  Jacob 
offered  sacrifice  upon  the  mount,  and  called  his  brethren  to  eat 
bread  :  and  they  did  eat  bread,  and  tarried  all  night  in  the  mount. 
And  early  in  the  morning  Laban  rose  up,  and  kissed  his  sons 
and  his  daughters,  and  blessed  them :  and  Laban  departed,  and 
returned  unto  his  place. 

And  Jacob  went  on  his  way,  and  the  angels  of  God  met  him. 
And  when  Jacob  saw  them,  he  said,  "  This  is  God's  host :  "  and 
he  called  the  name  of  that  place  Mahanaim.^ 

Meeting  of  Jacob  and  Esau  (Gen.  xxxii.  3-xxxiii.  17).  And 
Jacob  sent  messengers  before  him  to  Esau  his  brother  unto  the 
land  of  Seir,  the  country  of  Edom.  And  he  commanded  them, 
saying  :  "  Thus  shall  ye  speak  unto  my  lord  Esau  :  Thy  servant 
Jacob  saith  thus,  I  have  sojourned  with  Laban,  and  stayed  there 
until  now  :  and  I  have  oxen,  and  asses,  flocks,  and  men  servants, 
and  womenservants :  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  also  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  herds,  and  the  camels,  into  two  bands ;  and  said : 
"  If  Esau  come  to  the  one  company,  and  smite  it,  then  the  other 
company  which  is  left  shall  escape."  And  Jacob  said :  "  0  God 
of  my  father  Abraham,  and  God  of  my  father  Isaac,  the  Lord 
which  saidst  unto  me,  Return  unto  thy  country,  and  to  thy 
kindred,  and  I  will  deal  well  with  thee  :  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  bands.  Deliver  me,  I  pray 
thee,  from  the  hand  of  my  brother,  from  the  hand  of  Esau :  for 
^  Mahanaim.    'Companies.' 


52  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

I  fear  him,  lest  he  will  come  and  smite  me,  and  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  same  night ;  and  took  of  that  which 
came  to  his  hand  a  present  for  Esau  his  brother ;  two  hundred 
she  goats,  and  twenty  he  goats,  two  hundred  ewes,  and  twenty 
rams,  thirty  milch  camels  with  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  themselves  ;  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, 
also  he  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 
afterward  I  will  see  his  face  ;  perad venture  he  will  accept  of  me." 
So  went  the  present  over  before  him :  and  himself  lodged  that 
night  in  the  company. 

And  he  rose  up  that  night,  and  took  his  two  wives,  and  his 
two  womenservants,  and  his  eleven  sons,  and  passed  over  the 
ford  Jabbok.  And  he  took  them,  and  sent  them  over  the  brook, 
and  sent  over  that  he  had. 

And  Jacob  was  left  alone ;  and  there  wrestled  a  man  with 
him  until  the  breaking  of  the  day.  And  when  he  saw  that  he 
prevailed  not  against  him,  he  touched  the  hollow  of  his  thigh ; 
and  the  hollow  of  Jacob's  thigh  was  out  of  joint,  as  he  wrestled 
with  him.  And  he  said,  ^' Let  me  go,  for  the  day  breaketh." 
And  he  said,  ^'  I  will  not  let  thee  go,  except  thou  bless  me." 
And  he  said  unto  him,  "  What  is  thy  name  ?  "  And  he  said, 
"  Jacob. "  And  he  said :  "  Thy  name  shall  be  called  no  more 
Jacob,  but  Israel :  *  for  as  a  prince  hast  thou  power  with  God 
and  with  men,  and  hast  prevailed." 

And  Jacob  asked  him,  and  said,  "  Tell  me,  I  pray  thee,  thy 
name."  And  he  said,  *' Wherefore  is  it  that  thou  dost  ask  after 
1  Israel.  '  Perseverer  with  God.' 


MEETING   OF   JACOB   AND   ESAU  53 

my  name  ?  "  And  he  blessed  him  there.  And  Jacob  called  the 
name  of  the  place  Peniel,^  —  "  for  I  have  seen  God  face  to  face, 
and  my  life  is  preserved."  And  as  he  passed  over  Penuel  the 
sun  rose  upon  him,  and  he  halted  upon  his  thigh.  Therefore  the 
children  of  Israel  eat  not  of  the  sinew  which  shrank,  which  is 
upon  the  hollow  of  the  thigh,  unto  this  day  :  because  he  touched 
the  hollow  of  Jacob's  thigh  in  the  sinew  that  shrank. 

And  Jacob  lifted  up  his  eyes,  and  looked,  and  behold,  Esau 
came,  and  with  him  four  hundred  men.  And  he  divided  the 
children  unto  Leah,  and  unto  Rachel,  and  unto  the  two  hand- 
maids. And  he  put  the  handmaids  and  their  children  foremost, 
and  Leah  and  her  children  after,  and  Rachel  and  Joseph  hinder- 
most.  And  he  passed  over  before  them,  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  he  lifted  up  his  eyes,  and 
saw  the  women  and  the  children ;  and  said,  ''  Who  are  those 
with  thee  ?  "  And  he  said,  "  The  children  which  God  hath  gra- 
ciously given  thy  servant."  Then  the  handmaidens  came  near, 
they  and  their  children,  and  they  bowed  themselves.  And  Leah 
also  with  her  children  came  near,  and  bowed  themselves :  and 
after  came  Joseph  near  and  Rachel,  and  they  bowed  themselves. 

And  he  said :  "  What  meanest  thou  by  all  this  drove  which 
I  met  ?  "  And  he  said :  "  These  are  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 :  for  therefore  I  have  seen  thy  face,  as 
though  I  had  seen  the  face  of  God,  and  thou  wast  pleased  with 
me.  Take,  I  pray  thee,  my  blessing  that  is  brought  to  thee  ;  be- 
cause God  hath  dealt  graciously  with  me,  and  because  I  have 
enough."  And  he  urged  him,  and  he  took  it.  And  he  said  :  *'Let 
us  take  our  journey,  and  let  us  go,  and  I  will  go  before  thee." 
And  he  said  unto  him :  '^  My  lord  knoweth  that  the  children 
are  tender,  and  the  flocks  and  herds  with  young  are  with  me  : 
and  if  men  should  overdrive  them  one  day,  all  the  flock  will  die. 
Let  my  lord,  I  pray  thee,  pass  over  before  his  servant :  and  I 
will  lead  on  softly,  according  as  the  cattle  that  goeth  before  me 
and  the  children  be  able  to  endure,  until  I  come  unto  my  lord 
unto  Seir."  And  Esau  said  :  "  Let  me  now  leave  with  thee  some 
1  Peniel.    '  Face  of  God.' 


54  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

of  the  folk  that  are  with  me."  And  he  said:  "What  needeth 
it  ?  let  me  find  grace  in  the  sight  of  my  lord."  So  Esau  returned 
that  day  on  his  way  unto  Seir.  And  Jacob  journeyed  to  Suc- 
coth,  and  built  him  an  house,  and  made  booths  for  his  cattle : 
therefore  the  name  of  the  place  is  called  Succoth.^ 

Dinah  and  Shechem  (Gen.  xxxiii.  17-xxxiv.  31).  And  Jacob 
came  in  peace  to  the  city  of  Shechem,  which  is  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  when  he  came  from  Padan-aram  ;  and  pitched  his  tent  be- 
fore the  city.  And  he  bought  a  parcel  of  a  field,  where  he  had 
spread  his  tent,  at  the  hand  of  the  children  of  Hamor,  Shechem's 
father,  for  an  hundred  pieces  of  money.  And  he  erected  there 
an  altar,  and  called  it  El-elohe-Israel.^ 

And  Dinah  the  daughter  of  Leah,  which  she  bare  unto  Jacob, 
went  out  to  see  the  daughters  of  the  land.  And  when  Shechem 
the  son  of  Hamor  the  Hivite,  prince  of  the  country,  saw  her,  he 
took  her,  and  lay  with  her,  and  defiled  her.  And  his  soul  clave 
unto  Dinah  the  daughter  of  Jacob,  and  he  loved  the  damsel,  and 
spake  kindly  unto  the  damsel.  And  Shechem  spake  unto  his 
father  Hamor,  saying,  "Get  me  this  damsel  to  wife,"  And 
Jacob  heard  that  he  had  defiled  Dinah  his  daughter.  Now  his 
sons  were  with  his  cattle  in  the  field :  and  Jacob  held  his  peace 
until  they  were  come. 

And  Hamor  the  father  of  Shechem  went  out  unto  Jacob  to 
commune  with  him.  And  the  sons  of  Jacob  came  out  of  the 
field  when  they  heard  it :  and  the  men  were  grieved,  and  they 
were  very  wroth,  because  he  had  wrought  folly  in  Israel  ^  in 
lying  with  Jacob's  daughter;  which  thing  ought  not  to  be  done. 
And  Hamor  communed  with  them,  saying :  "  The  soul  of  my 
son  Shechem  longeth  for  your  daughter :  I  pray  you  give  her 
him  to  wife ;  and  make  ye  marriages  with  us,  and  give  your 
daughters  unto  us,  and  take  our  daughters  unto  you.  And  ye 
shall  dwell  with  us :  and  the  land  shall  be  before  you ;  dwell 
and  trade  ye  therein,  and  get  you  possessions  therein."  And 
Shechem  said  unto  her  father  and  unto  her  brethren  :  "  Let  me 
find  grace  in  your  eyes,  and  what  ye  shall  say  unto  me  I  will 
give.  Ask  me  never  so  much  dowry  and  gift,  and  I  will  give  ac- 
cording as  ye  shall  say  unto  me  :  but  give  me  the  damsel  to  wife." 

1  Succoth.   '  Booths.'   FA-elohe- Israel.  '  God  is  tlie  God  of  Israel.' 

2  in  Israel.  The  writer  uses  here  an  expression  of  a  later  age  than  that  of  the 
patriarchal  family. 


DINAH   AND   SHECHEM  55 

And  the  sons  of  Jacob  answered  Shechem  and  Hamor  his 
father  deceitfully,  and  said,  because  he  had  defiled  Dinah  their 
sister :  "  We  cannot  do  this  thing,  to  give  our  sister  to  one  that 
is  uncircumcised ;  for  that  were  a  reproach  unto  us  :  but  in  this 
will  we  consent  unto  you  :  If  ye  will  be  as  we  be,  that  every 
male  of  you  be  circumcised,  then  will  we  give  our  daughters 
unto  you,  and  we  will  take  your  daughters  to  us  ;  and  we  will 
dwell  with  you,  and  we  will  become  one  people.  But  if  ye  will 
not  hearken  unto  us,  to  be  circumcised  ;  then  will  we  take  our 
daughter,  and  we  will  be  gone.'' 

And  their  words  pleased  Hamor,  and  Shechem  Hamor's  son. 
And  the  young  man  deferred  not  to  do  the  thing,  because  he 
had  delight  in  Jacob's  daughter.  And  he  was  more  honorable 
than  all  the  house  of  his  father. 

And  Hamor  and  Shechem  his  son  came  unto  the  gate  of  their 
city,  and  communed  with  the  men  of  their  city,  saying:  ''These 
men  are  peaceable  with  us ;  therefore  let  them  dwell  in  the  land, 
and  trade  therein  ;  for  the  land,  behold,  it  is  large  enough  for 
them ;  let  us  take  their  daughters  to  us  for  wives,  and  let  us 
give  them  our  daughters.  Only  herein  will  the  men  consent 
unto  us  for  to  dwell  with  us,  to  be  one  people,  if  every  male 
among  us  be  circumcised,  as  they  are  circumcised.  Shall  not 
their  cattle  and  their  substance  and  every  beast  of  theirs  be 
ours  ?  Only  let  us  consent  unto  them,  and  they  will  dwell  with 
us." 

And  unto  Hamor  and  unto  Shechem  his  son  hearkened  all 
that  went  out  of  the  gate  of  his  city  ;  and  every  male  was  cir- 
cumcised, all  that  went  out  of  the  gate  of  his  city.  And  it  came 
to  pass  on  the  third  day,  when  they  were  sore,  that  two  of  the 
sons  of  Jacob,  Simeon  and  Levi,  Dinah's  brethren,  took  each 
man  his  sword,  and  came  upon  the  city  boldly,  and  slew  all 
the  males.  And  they  slew  Hamor  and  Shechem  his  son  with  the 
edge  of  the  sword,  and  took  Dinah  out  of  Shechem's  house,  and 
went  out.  The  sons  of  Jacob  came  upon  the  slain,  and  spoiled 
the  city,  because  they  had  defiled  their  sister.  They  took  their 
sheep,  and  their  oxen,  and  their  asses,  and  that  which  was  in 
the  city,  and  that  which  was  in  the  field,  and  all  their  wealth, 
and  all  their  little  ones,  and  their  wives  took  they  captive,  and 
spoiled  even  all  that  was  in  the  house. 

And  Jacob  said  to  Simeon  and  Levi :  "  Ye  have  troubled  me 
to  make  me  to  stink  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  land,  among  the 


56  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE    HEBREWS 

Canaanites  and  the  Perizzites.  And  I  being  few  in  number,  they 
shall  gather  themselves  together  against  me,  and  slay  me ;  and 
I  shall  be  destroyed,  I  and  my  house."  And  they  said,  "  Should 
he  deal  with  our  sister  as  with  an  harlot  ?  " 

Experiences  in  Canaan  (Gen.  xxxv.  1-7,  14,  1&-22,  27-29; 
xxxvi.  6-8).  And  God  said  unto  Jacob  :  ''Arise,  go  up  to  Beth-el, 
and  dwell  there  :  and  make  there  an  altar  unto  God,  that  appeared 
unto  thee  when  thou  fleddest  from  the  face  of  Esau  thy  brother.'^ 
Then  Jacob  said  unto  his  household,  and  to  all  that  were  with 
him  :  "  Put  away  the  strange  ^  gods  that  are  among  you,  and 
be  clean,  and  change  your  garments.  And  let  us  arise,  and  go 
up  to  Beth-el ;  and  I  will  make  there  an  altar  unto  God,  who 
answered  me  in  the  day  of  my  distress,  and  was  with  me  in  the 
way  which  I  went."  And  they  gave  unto  Jacob  all  the  strange 
gods  which  were  in  their  hand,  and  all  their  earrings  ^  which 
were  in  their  ears ;  and  Jacob  hid  them  under  the  oak  which 
was  by  Shechem.  And  they  journeyed  :  and  the  terror  of  God 
was  upon  the  cities  that  were  round  about  them,  and  they  did 
not  pursue  after  the  sons  of  Jacob.  So  Jacob  came  to  Luz, 
which  is  in  the  land  of  Canaan,  that  is,  Beth-el,  he  and  all  the 
people  that  were  with  him.  And  he  built  there  an  altar,  and 
called  the  place  El-beth-el :  because  there  God  appeared  unto  him, 
when  he  fled  from  the  face  of  his  brother.  And  Jacob  set  up  a 
pillar  in  the  place  where  he  had  talked  with  him,  even  a  pillar 
of  stone  :  and  he  poured  a  drink  offering  thereon,  and  he  poured 
oil  thereon. 

And  they  journeyed  from  Beth-el ;  and  there  was  but  a  little 
way  to  come  to  Ephrath :  and  Rachel  travailed,  and  she  had 
hard  labor.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  she  was  in  hard  labor, 
that  the  midwife  said  unto  her  :  "  Fear  not ;  thou  shalt  have  this 
son  also."  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  her  soul  was  in  departing 
(for  she  died),  that  she  called  his  name  Ben-oni :  ^  but  his  father 
called  him  Benjamin.'*  And  Rachel  died,  and  was  buried  in  the 
way  to  Ephrath,  which  is  Beth-lehem.  And  Jacob  set  a  pillar 
upon  her  grave  :  that  is  the  pillar  of  Rachel's  grave  unto  this 
day. 

And  Israel  journeyed,  and  spread  his  tent  beyond  the  tower  of 

1  stranfje.  Foreign. 

2  The  earrings  were  doubtless  those  worn  as  charms. 

8  Ben-oni.   '  Son  of  my  sorrow.'  *  Benjamin.  'Son  of  my  right  hand.' 


JOSEPH   SOLD   INTO   EGYPT  57 

Edar.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Israel  dwelt  in  that  land,  that 
Keuben  went  and  lay  with  Bilhah  his  father's  concubine :  and 
Israel  heard  it. 

And  Jacob  came  unto  Isaac  his  father  unto  Mamre,  unto  the 
city  of  Arbah,  which  is  Hebron,  where  Abraham  and  Isaac  so- 
journed. And  the  days  of  Isaac  were  an  hundred  and  four- 
score years.  And  Isaac  gave  up  the  ghost,  and  died  and  was 
gathered  unto  his  people,  being  old  and  full  of  days:  and  his 
sons  Esau  and  Jacob  buried  him. 

And  Esau  took  his  wives,  and  his  sons  and  his  daughters,  and 
all  the  persons  of  his  house,  and  his  cattle,  and  all  his  beasts, 
and  all  his  substance,  which  he  had  got  in  the  land  of  Canaan ; 
and  went  into  the  country  from  the  face  of  his  brother  Jacob. 
For  their  riches  were  more  than  that  they  might  dwell  together; 
and  the  land  wherein  they  were  strangers  could  not  bear  them 
because  of  their  cattle.  Thus  dwelt  Esau  in  mount  Seir :  Esau  is 
Edom. 

3.  Joseph 

Joseph  Sold  into  Egypt  (Gen.  xxxvii.).  And  Jacob  dwelt  in 
the  land  wherein  his  father  was  a  stranger,  in  the  land  of  Canaan. 

Joseph,  being  seventeen  years  old,  was  feeding  the  flock  with 
his  brethren  ;  and  the  lad  was  with  the  sons  of  Bilhah,  and  with 
the  sons  of  Zilpah,  his  father's  wives :  and  Joseph  brought  unto 
his  father  their  evil  report.  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  colors.^  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  his  brethren  : 
and  they  hated  him  yet  the  more.  And  he  said  unto  them  : 
"  Hear,  I  pray  you,  this  dream  which  I  have  dreamed :  for  be- 
hold, 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  bre- 
thren 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  his  brethren, 
and  said :  ^'  Behold,  I  have  dreamed  a  dream  more ;  and  behold, 

1  coat.  .  .  colors.  Perhaps  more  correctly:  "  a  long  tunic  with  sleeves." 


58  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

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  bre- 
thren indeed  come  to  bow  down  ourselves  to  thee  to  the  earth  ?" 
And  his  brethren  envied  him ;  but  his  father  observed  the  saying. 

And  his  brethren  went  to  feed  their  father's  flock  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, 
I  pray  thee,  see  whether  it  be  well  with  thy  brethren,  and  well 
with  the  flocks ;  and  bring  me  word  again."  So  he  sent  him  out 
of  the  vale  of  Hebron,  and  he  came  to  Shechem.  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 
feed  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  Do- 
than.^ 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,  Some  evil  beast  hath  devoured  him  :  and  we 
shall  see  what  will  become  of  his  dreams." 

And  Keuben  heard  it,  and  he  delivered  him  out  of  their 
hands ;  and  said,  "  Let  us  not  kill  him."  And  Keuben  said  unto 
them :  "  Shed  no  blood,  but  cast  him  into  this  pit  ^  that  is  in  the 
wilderness,  and  lay  no  hand  upon  him;  "  that  he  might  rid  him 
out  of  their  hands,  to  deliver  him  to  his  father  again. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Joseph  was  come  unto  his  bre- 
thren, that  they  stript  Joseph  out  of  his  coat,  his  coat  of  many 
colors  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  company  of  Ishmaelites  came  from 
Gilead  with  their  camels  bearing  spicery  and  balm  and  myrrh, 

1  Dothan,  twelve  miles  north  of  Shechem,  was  on  the  caravan  route  between 
S^'ria  and  Egypt. 

2  pit.  A  bottle-shaped  cistern,  usually  dry  before  the  season  of  rain,  such  a^ 
are  still  found  in  the  region  of  Dothan. 


JOSEPH   AND   POTIPIIAR'S   WIFE  59 

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  our 
flesh/'  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  Reuben  returned  unto  the  pit ;  and  behold,  Joseph  was 
not  in  the  pit;  and  he  rent  his  clothes.  And  he  returned  unto 
his  brethren,  and  said :  "  The  child  is  not ;  and  I,  whither  shall 
I  go  ?  "  And  they  took  Joseph's  coat,  and  killed  a  kid  of  the 
goats,  and  dipped  the  coat  in  the  blood ;  and  they  sent  the  coat 
of  many  colors,  and  they  brought  it  to  their  father ;  and  said : 

''  This  have  we  found :  know  now  whether  it  be  thy  son's 
coat  or  no."  And  he  knew  it,  and  said:  "  It  is  ray  son's  coat; 
an  evil  beast  hath  devoured  him  ;  Joseph  is  without  doubt  rent 
in  pieces."  And  Jacob  rent  his  clothes,  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  into  the  grave 
unto  my  son  mourning."  Thus  his  father  wept  for  him. 

Joseph  and  Potiphar's  Wife  (Gen.  xxxix.).  And  Joseph 
was  brought  down  to  Egypt ;  and  Potiphar,  an  officer  of  Pharaoh,^ 
captain  of  the  guard,  an  Egyptian,  bought  him  of  the  hands  of 
the  Ishmaelites,  which  had  brought  him  down  thither. 

And  the  Lord  was  with  Joseph,  and  he  was  a  prosperous  man; 
and  he  was  in  the  house  of  his  master  the  Egyptian.  And  his 
master  saw  that  the  Lord  was  with  him,  and  that  the  Lord  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  had  made  him  overseer  in  his  house, 
and  over  all  that  he  had,  that  the  Lord  blessed  the  Egyptian's 
house  for  Joseph's  sake  ;  and  the  blessing  of  the  Lord  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. 

1  twenty  pieces  of  silver.  About  twelve  dollars. 

■-  Pharaoh.    The  Egyptian  king's  title,  not  his  name.    It  originally  meant 
'Great  House.'  Cf.  '  Sublime  Porte,'   'Mikado.' 


60  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE    HEBREWS 

And  Joseph  was  a  goodly  person,  and  well  favored.  And  it 
came  to  pass  after  these  things,  that  his  master's  wife  cast  her 
eyes  upon  Joseph ;  and  she  said,  ^'  Lie  with  me."  But  he  re- 
fused, and  said  unto  his  master's  wife :  ^'  Behold,  my  master 
wotteth  not  what  is  with  me  in  the  house,  and  he  hath  com- 
mitted all  that  he  hath  to  my  hand;  there  is  none  greater  in 
this  house  than  I ;  neither  hath  he  kept  back  any  thing  from  me 
but  thee,  because  thou  art  his  wife :  how  then  can  I  do  this  great 
wickedness,  and  sin  against  God  ? ''  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  she 
spake  to  Joseph  day  by  day,  that  he  hearkened  not  unto  her,  to 
lie  by  her,  or  to  be  with  her. 

And  it  came  to  pass  about  this  time,  that  Joseph  went  into 
the  house  to  do  his  business ;  and  there  was  none  of  the  men  of 
the  house  there  within.  And  she  caught  him  by  his  garment, 
saying,  "Lie  with  me:  "  and  he  left  his  garment  in  her  hand, 
and  fled,  and  got  him  out.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  she  saw 
that  he  had  left  his  garment  in  her  hand,  and  was  fled  forth, 
that  she  called  unto  the  men  of  her  house,  and  spake  unto  them, 
saying :  "  See,  he  hath  brought  in  an  Hebrew  unto  us  to  mock 
us ;  he  came  in  unto  me  to  lie  with  me,  and  I  cried  with  a  loud 
voice :  and  it  came  to  pass,  when  he  heard  that  I  lifted  up  my 
voice  and  cried,  that  he  left  his  garment  with  me,  and  fled,  and 
got  him  out."  And  she  laid  up  his  garment  by  her,  until  his 
lord  came  home.  And  she  spake  unto  him,  according  to  these 
words,  saying  :  "The  Hebrew  servant,  which  thou  hast  brought 
unto  us,  came  in  unto  me  to  mock  me :  and  it  came  to  pass,  as  I 
lifted  up  my  voice  and  cried,  that  he  left  his  garment  with  me, 
and  fled  out." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  his  master  heard  the  words  of  his 
wife,  which  she  spake  unto  him,  saying,  "  After  this  manner 
did  thy  servant  to  me ;  "  that  his  wrath  was  kindled.  And 
Joseph's  master  took  him,  and  put  him  into  the  prison,  a  place 
where  the  king's  prisoners  were  bound :  and  he  was  there  in  the 
prison.  ^  But  the  Lord  was  with  Joseph,  and  shewed  him  mercy, 
and  gave  him  favor  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 

1  In  the  Egyptian  "Tale  of  the  Two  Brothers"  (c,  1180  B.C.),  an  elder 
brother,  his  wife,  and  his  younger  brother,  play  the  parts  of  Potiphar,  his 
wife,  and  Joseph. 


JOSEPH  AS   INTERPRETER   OF  DREAMS  61 

any  thing  that  was  under  his  hand  ;  because  the  Lord  was  with 
him,  and  that  which  he  did,  the  Lord  made  it  to  prosper. 

Joseph  as  Interpreter  of  Dreams  (Gen.  xl.  1  -  xli.  45). 
And  it  came  to  pass  after  these  things,  that  the  butler  of  the 
king  of  Egypt  and  his  baker  had  offended  their  lord  the  king  of 
Egypt.  And  Pharaoh  was  wroth  against  two  of  his  officers, 
against  the  chief  of  the  butlers,  and  against  the  chief  of  the  bak- 
ers. And  he  put  them  in  ward  in  the  house  of  the  captain  of  the 
guard,  into  the  prison,  the  place  where  Joseph  was  bound.  And 
the  captain  of  the  guard  charged  Joseph  with  them,  and  he 
served  them  :  and  they  continued  a  season  in  ward. 

And  they  dreamed  a  dream  both  of  them,  each  man  his  dream 
in  one  night,  each  man  according  to  the  interpretation  of  his 
dream,  the  butler  and  the  baker  of  the  king  of  Egypt,  which 
were  bound  in  the  prison.  And  Joseph  came  in  unto  them 
in  the  morning,  and  looked  upon  them,  and  behold,  they  were 
sad.  And  he  asked  Pharaoh's  officers  that  were  with  him  in  the 
ward  of  his  lord's  house,  saying,  "  Wherefore  look  ye  so  sadly 
to-day  ?  "  And  they  said  unto  him :  '^  AVe  have  dreamed  a 
dream,  and  there  is  no  interpreter  of  it."  And  Joseph  said 
unto  them :  "  Do  not  interpretations  belong  to  God  ?  tell  me 
them,  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 
her  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.  Yet  within  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  think  on  me  when  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, 


62         THE  ANCESTOKS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

he  said  unto  Joseph  :  '^  I  also  was  in  my  dream,  and  behold,  I 
had  three  white  baskets  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.  Yet  within  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  birth- 
day, that  he  made  a  feast  unto  all  his  servants  :  and  he  lifted  up 
the  head  of  the  chief  butler  and  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. 

And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  end  of  two  full  years,  that  Pharaoh 
dreamed ;  and  behold,  he  stood  by  the  river.  And  behold,  there 
came  up  out  of  the  river  seven  well  favored  kine  ^  and  fatfleshed ; 
and  they  fed  in  a  meadow.  And  behold,  seven  other  kine  came 
up  after  them  out  of  the  river,  ill  favored  and  leanfleshed;  and 
stood  by  the  other  kine  upon  the  brink  of  the  river.  And  the 
ill  favored  and  leanfleshed  kine  did  eat  up  the  seven  well  fav- 
ored 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,  rank  and  good.  And 
behold,  seven  thin  ears  and  blasted  with  the  east  wind  sprung 
up  after  them.  And  the  seven  thin  ears  devoured  the  seven  rank 
and  full  ears.   And  Pharaoh  awoke,  and  behold,  it  was  a  dream. 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  morning  that  his  spirit  was  trou- 
bled ;  and  he  sent  and  called  for  all  the  magicians  ^  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  re- 
member my  faults  this  day  :  Pharaoh  was  wroth  with  his  ser- 
vants, and  put  me  in  ward  in  the  captain  of  the  guard's  house, 
both  me  and  the  chief  baker.  And  we  dreamed  a  dream  in  one 

1  bakemeats.  Confectionery. 

2  Kine.  Cows;—  for  kyen,  formed  like  oxen  from  the  Old  English  aj  pi.  of 
cu,  cow. 

3  magicians.  The  scrihes,  composing  the  literary  caste  of  Egypt.  They  were 
learned  in  the  interpretation  of  dreams,  omens,  and  the  signs  in  the  heavens. 


JOSEPH    AS   INTERPRETER   OF   DREAMS  63 

night,  I  and  he ;  we  dreamed  each  man  according  to  the  inter- 
pretation of  his  dream.  And  there  was  there  with  us  a  young 
man,  an  Hebrew,  servant  to  the  captain  of  the  guard  ;  and  we 
told  him,  and  he  interpreted  to  us  our  dreams  ;  to  each  man  ac- 
cording to  his  dream  he  did  interpret.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as 
he  interpreted  to  us,  so  it  was ;  me  he  restored  unto  mine  office, 
and  him  he  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 :  "1  have  dreamed  a  dream,  and  there  is  none  that  can 
interpret  it :  and  I  have  heard  say  of  thee,  that  thou  canst  under- 
stand a  dream  to  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  bank  of  the  river :  and  behold,  there  came  up 
out  of  the  river  seven  kine,  fatfleshed  and  well  favored  ;  and  they 
fed  in  a  meadow  :  and  behold,  seven  other  kine  came  up  after 
them,  poor  and  very  ill  favored  and  leanfleshed,  such  as  I  never 
saw  in  all  the  land  of  Egypt  for  badness  :  and  the  lean  and  the  ill 
favored  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  favored,  as  at  the  beginning.  So  I 
awoke.  And  I  saw  in  my  dream,  and  behold,  seven  ears  came 
up  in  one  stalk,  full  and  good :  and  behold,  seven  ears,  with- 
ered, thin,  and  blasted  with  the  east  wind,  sprung  up  after  them. 
And  the  thin  ears  devoured  the  seven  good  ears.  And  I  told 
this  unto  the  magicians ;  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  thin  and  ill  fa- 
vored 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  landj  and  the  plenty  shall  not  be 


64         THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

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  officers 
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  that  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  is,  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  art.  Thou  shalt  be  over  my  house,  and  according  unto  thy 
word  shall  all  my  people  be  ruled :  only  in  the  throne  will  I  be 
greater  than  thou." 

And  Pharaoh  said  unto  Joseph,  "  See,  I  have  set  thee  over 
all  the  land  of  Egypt."  And  Pharaoh  took  off  his  ring  from  his 
hand,  and  put  it  upon  Joseph's  hand,  and  arrayed  him  in  ves- 
tures 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  made  him  ruler  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's  name 
Zaphnath-paaneah ;  ^  and  he  gave  him  to  wife  Asenath  the  daugh- 
ter of  Poti-pherah  priest  of  On.^ 

Joseph  as  Governor  of  Egypt  (Gen.  xli.  46-57).  And  Joseph 
was   thirty  years  old  when  he  stood  before  Pharaoh   king  of 

1  This  Pharaoh  was  perhaps  one  of  the  later  Hyksos  kings,  Asiatic  (perhaps 
Beduiii)  invaders  who  held  Egypt  for  about  100  years  —  until  about  1600  b.  c. 

2  Zaphnath-paaneah.    '  God  spake,  and  he  came  into  life.' 

3  On.  The  native  name  of  Heliopolis,  seven  miles  north-east  of  the  modern 
Cairo.  It  was  the  center  of  the  worship  of  Ra,  the  sun-god.  "Cleopatra's 
Needle,"  in  Central  Park,  New  York,  was  originally  one  of  the  obelisks  erected 
here  in  front  of  the  great  temple  of  Ra,  by  Thutmose  III.  (1479-1447  b.  c). 


JOSEPH   REUNITED   TO   HIS   BROTHERS  65 

Egypt.  And  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  he 
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,  which  Asenath  the  daughter  of  Poti-pherah  priest 
of  On  bare  unto  him.  And  Joseph  called  the  name  of  the  first- 
born Manasseh  ^  —  "  For  God,"  said  he,  "hath  made  me  forget 
all  my  toil,  and  all  my  father's  house,"  and  the  name  of  the 
second  called  he  Ephraim'  —  "  For  God  hath  caused  me  to  be 
fruitful  in  the  land  of  my  affliction." 

And  the  seven  years  of  plenteousness,  that  was  in  the  land  of 
Egypt,  were  ended.  And  the  seven  years  of  dearth  began  to 
come,  according  as  Joseph  had  said  :  and  the  dearth  was  in  all 
lands  ;  but  in  all  the  land  of  Egypt  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  for 
to  buy  corn;  because  that  the  famine  was  so  sore  in  all  lands. ^ 

Joseph  Reunited  to  his  Brothers  (Gen.  xlii.  l-xlvii.  26). 
Now  when  Jacob  saw  that  there  was  corn  in  Egypt,  Jacob  said 
unto  his  sons,  ''Why  do  ye  look  one  upon  another?"  And  he 
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  in 
Egypt.  But  Benjamin,  Joseph's  brother,  Jacob  sent  not  with  his 
brethren ;  for  he  said,  —  "  Lest  peradventure  mischief  befall  him." 

And  the  sons  of  Israel  came  to  buy  corn  among  those  that 
came,  for  the  famine  was  in  the  land  of  Canaan.   And  Joseph 

1  Manasseh.  'Forgetting.'    Ephraim.  'Fruitful.' 

2  Two  inscriptions,  one  of  the  12th,  the  other  of  the  17th  dynasty  (the  latter 
being  perhaps  the  time  of  Joseph)  mention  disbursements  of  food  in  years  of 
famine,  which  have  repeatedly  occurred  when  the  Nile  fails  to  overflow. 


66  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

was  the  governor  over  the  land,  and  he  it  was  that  sold  to  all 
the  people  of  the  land :  and  Joseph's  brethren  came,  and  bowed 
down  themselves  before  him  with  their  faces  to  the  earth. 
And  Joseph  saw  his  brethren,  and  he  knew  them,  but  made 
himself  strange  unto  them,  and  spake  roughly  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  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 :  "  Kay,  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  behold,  the  young- 
est 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  kept  in  prison,  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  ward  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  house  of  your  prison :  go  ye,  carry  corn  for  the 
famine  of  your  houses  :  but  bring  your  youngest  brother  unto 
me ;  so  shall  your  words  be  verified,  and  ye  shall  not  die." 

And  they  did  so.  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  Peuben  answered 
them,  saying  :  "  Spake  I  not  unto  you,  saying.  Do  not  sin 
against  the  child ;  and  ye  would  not  hear  ?  therefore,  behold, 
also  his  blood  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  communed  with  them,  and  took  from  them 
Simeon,  and  bound  him  before  their  eyes. 


JOSEPH   REUNITED    TO    HIS    BROTHERS  07 

Then  Joseph  commanded  to  fill  their  sacks  with  corn,  and 
to  restore  every  man's  money  into  his  sack,  and  to  give  them 
provision  for  the  way  :  and  thus  did  he  unto  them.  And  they 
laded  their  asses  with  the  corn,  and  departed  thence. 

And  as  one  of  them  opened  his  sack  to  give  his  ass  provender 
in  the  inn,  he  espied  his  money  ;  for  behold,  it  was  in  his  sack's 
mouth.  And  he  said  unto  his  brethren  :  ''  My  money  is  restored ; 
and  lo,  it  is  even  in  my  sack :  "  and  their  heart  failed  them,  and 
they  were  afraid,  saying  one  to  another,  "What  is  this  that  God 
hath  done  unto  us  ?  " 

And  they  came  unto  Jacob  their  father  unto  the  land  of 
Canaan,  and  told  him  all  that  befell  unto  them;  saying:  "The 
man  who  is  the  lord  of  the  land,  spake  roughly  to  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  households,  and  be  gone:  and  bring  your  youngest 
brother  unto  me :  then  shall  I  know  that  ye  are  no  spies,  but 
that  ye  are  true  men  :  so  will  I  deliver  you  your  brother,  and  ye 
shall  traffic  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  both 
they  and  their  father  saw  the  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  against  me." 
And  Keuben  spake  unto  his  father,  saying :  "  Slay  my  two  sons, 
if  I  bring  him  not  to  thee  :  deliver  him  into  my  hand,  and  I  will 
bring  him  to  thee  again."  And  he  said  :  "My  son  shall  not  go 
down  with  you  ;  for  his  brother  is  dead,  and  he  is  left  alone :  if 
mischief  befall  him  by  the  way  in  the  which  ye  go,  then  shall 
ye  bring  down  my  gray  hairs  with  sorrow  to  the  grave." 

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  Egypt,  their  father  said  unto  them,  "  Go  again,  buy  us  a  lit- 
tle food."  And  Judah  spake  unto  him,  saying :  "  The  man  did 
solemnly  protest  unto  us,  saying.  Ye  shall  not  see  my  face,  ex- 
cept your  brother  be  with  you.   If  thou  wilt  send  our  brother 


68  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

with  us,  we  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  the  tenor  of  these  words :  could  we  certainly 
know  that  he  would  say.  Bring  your  brother  down  ?  " 

And  Judah  said  unto  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  thee,  and  set  him  before  thee,  then  let  me  bear  the  blame 
for  ever :  for  except  we  had  lingered,  surely  now  we  had  re- 
turned this  second  time."  And  their  father  Israel  said  unto 
them  :  "  If  it  must  be  so  now,  do  this ;  take  of  the  best  fruits  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  al- 
monds :  and  take  double  money  in  your  hand  ;  and  the  money 
that  was  brought  again  in  the  mouth  of  your  sacks,  carry  it  again 
in  your  hand ;  peradventure  it  was  an  oversight :  take  also  your 
brother,  and  arise,  go  again  unto  the  man :  and  God  Almighty 
give  you  mercy  before  the  man,  that  he  may  send  away  your 
other  brother,  and  Benjamin.  If  I  be  bereaved  of  my  children, 
I  am  bereaved." 

And  the  men  took  that  present,  and  they  took  double  money 
in  their  hand,  and  Benjamin  ;  and  rose  up,  and  went  down  to 
Egypt,  and  stood  before  Joseph.  And  when  Joseph  saw  Benja- 
min with  them  he  said  to  the  ruler  of  his  house  :  "  Bring  these 
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  men  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 ;  tljat  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  : 
^'  0  sir,  we  came  indeed  down  at  the  first  time  to  buy  food : 
and  it  came  to  pass,  when  we  came  to  the  inn,  that  we  opened 


JOSEPH   REUNITED   TO   HIS   BROTHERS  69 

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  hands  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  answered:  "  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  saw 
his  brother  Benjamin,  his  mother's  son,  and  said,  "  Is  this 
your  younger  brother,  of  whom  ye  spake  unto  me  ?  "  And  he 
said,  ^*  God  be  gracious  unto  thee,  my  son."  And  Joseph  made 
haste  ;  for  his  bowels  did  yearn  upon  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  refrained  himself,  and 
said,  "  Set  on  bread."  And  they  set  on  for  him  by  himself, 
and  for  them  by  themselves,  and  for  the  Egyptians,  which  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  at  another.  And  he  took  and  sent  messes^ 
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. 

And  he  commanded  the  steward  of  his  house,  saying:  "Fill 
the  men's  sacks  with  food,  as  much  as  they  can  carry,  and  put 

1  Herodotus  mentions  that  they  would  not  use  a  Greek's  knife  or  cooking 
utensil,  lest  it  had  been  used  to  dress  the  flesh  of  a  cow,  the  animal  sacred  to 
Isis. 

2  messes.  Portions  sent  to  guests  as  a  special  mark  of  attention.  At  an  Egyp- 
tian feast,  the  guests  sat,  not  around  a  table,  but  in  rows  of  chairs  facing  a  side- 
board, from  which  the  viands  were  served  to  them. 


70  THE   ANCESTORS   OF  THE   HEBREWS 

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.  Wherefore  have  ye  rewarded  evil  for  good  ?  [Wherefore 
stole  ye  the  silver  cup?]^  Is  not  this  it  in  which  my  lord  drink- 
eth,  and  whereby  indeed  he  divineth  ?  ^  ye  have  done  evil  in  so 
doing." 

And  he  overtook  them,  and  he  spake  unto  them  these  same 
words.  And  they  said  unto  him :  *'  Wherefore  saith  my  lord 
these  words  ?  God  forbid  that  thy  servants  should  do  according 
to  this  thing.  Behold,  the  money,  which  we  found  in  our  sacks' 
mouths,  we  brought  again  unto  thee  out  of  the  land  of  Canaan : 
how  then  should  we  steal  out  of  thy  lord's  house  silver  or  gold? 
With  whomsoever  of  thy  servants  it  be  found,  both  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  servant ;  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  Ben- 
jamin'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 ;  for  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  ? 
wot  ye  not  that  such  a  man  as  I  can  certainly  divine  ?  "  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  ser- 
vants, both  we,  and  he  also  with  whom  the  cup  is  found."  And 
he  said  :   "  God  forbid  that  I  should  do  so :   but  the  man  in 

^  This  sentence  is  missing  in  the  Hebrew,  but  is  preserved  in  the  Greek,  Syriac, 
and  Latin  versions. 

^divineth.  Viz.  by  pouring  in  water,  and  then  throwing  in  gold,  silver,  or 
gems,  and  watching  the  movements  or  appearances  in  the  water;  —  the  prac- 
tice called  hydromancy. 


JOSEPH    REUNITED   TO    HIS   BROTHERS  71 

whose  hand  the  cup  is  found,  he  shall  be  my  servant ;  and  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  word  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  he  alone  is  left  of  his  mother,  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,  and  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  wife  bare  me 
two  sons :  and  the  one  went  out  from  me,  and  I  said.  Surely  he 
is  torn  in  pieces ;  and  I  saw  him  not  since :  and  if  ye  take  this 
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  I  shall  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 


72  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE   HEBREWS 

Egyptians  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  grieved,  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  yet  there  are 
five  years,  in  the  which  there  shall  neither  be  earing  ^  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 
throughout  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  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.  Moreover  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.  Now  thou  art  com- 
manded, this  do  ye ;  take  you  wagons  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt 
for  your  little  ones,  and  for  your  wives,  and  bring  your  father, 
1  earing.  Verbal  noun  of  the  obsolete  ear,  plow. 


JOSEPH   REUNITED    TO   HIS    BROTHERS  73 

and  come.    Also  regard  not  your  stufif;  for  the  good  of  all  the 
land  of  Egypt  is  yours." 

And  the  children  of  Israel  did  so  ;  and  Joseph  gave  them 
wagons,  according  to  the  commandment  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  meat 
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  told  him,  saying :  ''  Joseph  is  yet  alive, 
and  he  is  governor  over  all  the  land  of  Egypt."  And  Jacob's 
heart  fainted,  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  their  father  revived  :  and  Israel  said  :  "  It  is  enough  ; 
Joseph  my  son  is  yet  alive  :  I  will  go  and  see  him  before  I  die.'' 
And  Israel  took  his  journey  with  all  that  he  had,  and  came  to 
Beer-sheba,  and  offered  sacrifices  unto  the  God  of  his  father 
Isaac.  And  God  spake  unto  Israel  in  the  visions  of  the  night, 
and  said,  "  Jacob,  Jacob."  And  he  said,  "  Here  am  I."  And  he 
said :  "  I  am  God,  the  God  of  thy  father :  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  also  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  carry  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  Avith 
him :  his  sons,  and  his  sons'  sons  with  him,  and  his  daughters, 
and  his  sons'  daughters,  and  all  his  seed  brought  he  with  him 
into  Egypt. 

All  the  souls  that  came  with  Jacob  into  Egypt,  which  came 
out  of  his  loins,  besides  Jacob's  sons'  wives,  all  the  souls  were 

1  fall  out  by  the  way.  Reproach  one  another  for  their  past  treatment  of 
Joseph. 

^  put  his  hand,  etc.  —  that  is,  as  a  last  office  to  the  dead. 


74  THE   ANCESTORS   OF   THE    HEBREWS 

threescore  and  six  ;  and  the  sons  of  Joseph,  which  were  borne 
him  in  Egypt,  were  two  souls :  all  the  souls  of  the  house  of 
Jacob,  which  came  into  Egypt,  were  threescore  and  ten. 

And  he  sent  Judah  before  him  unto  Joseph,  to  direct  his  face 
Tinto  Goshen ;  and  they  came  into  the  land  of  Goshen.  And 
Joseph  made  ready  his  chariot,  and  went  up  to  meet  Israel  his 
father,  to  Goshen,  and  presented  himself  unto  him ;  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,  be- 
cause 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  father's  house,  which  were  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  are  come  unto  me  ;  and  the  men  are  shepherds,  for  their 
trade  hath  been  to  feed  cattle ;  and  they  have  brought  their 
flocks,  and  their  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 
also  our  fathers :  that  ye  may  dwell  in  the  land  of  Goshen,  for 
every  shepherd  is  an  abomination  unto  the  Egyptians." 

Then  Joseph  came  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  some  of  his  bre- 
thren, even  five  men,  and  presented  them  unto  Pharaoh.  And 
Pharaoh  said  unto  his  brethren,  "  What  is  your  occupation  ? " 
And  they  said  unto  Pharaoh,  ''  Thy  servants  are  shepherds,  both 
we,  and  also  our  fathers."  They  said  moreover  unto  Pharaoh: 
'^  For  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  spake  unto  Joseph,  say- 
ing :  "  Thy  father  and  thy  brethren  are  come  unto  thee  :  the  land 
of  Egypt  is  before  thee  ;  in  the  best  of  the  land  make  thy  father 
and  brethren  to  dwell.   In  the  land  of  Goshen  let  them  dwell ; 

1  land  of  Goshen.  A  fertile  low-lying  district  from  the  east  of  the  Nile  Delta 
to  the  Isthmus  of  Suez.  "A  letter  of  a  frontier  official,  dated  in  the  reign  of 
Ramses  II. 's  successor  [Merneptah  —  see  note  p.  87],  tells  of  passing  a  body 
of  Edomite  Beduin  through  a  fortress  in  the  Wady  Tumilat,  that  they  might 
pasture  their  herds  by  the  pools  of  Pithom  as  the  Hebrews  had  done  in  the  days 
of  Joseph."  J.  H.  Breasted:  History  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians,  p.  316. 


JOSEPH   REUNITED   TO   HIS   BROTHERS  75 

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  set  him  before 
Pharaoh  :  and  Jacob  blessed  Pharaoh.  And  Pharaoh  said  unto 
Jacob,  ''How  old  art  thou?"  And  Jacob  said  unto  Pharaoh: 
*'  The  days  of  the  years  of  my  pilgrimage  are  an  hundred  and 
thirty  years :  few  and  evil  have  the  days  of  the  years  of  my  life 
been,  and  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  before  Pharaoh. 

And  Joseph  placed  his  father  and  his  brethren,  and  gave 
them  a  possession  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  in  the  best  of  the  land, 
in  the  land  of  Rameses,^  as  Pharaoh  had  commanded.  And 
Joseph  nourished  his  father,  and  his  brethren,  and  all  his  father's 
household,  with  bread,  according  to  their  families. 

And  there  was  no  bread  in  all  the  land ;  for  the  famine  was 
very  sore,  so  that  the  land  of  Egypt  and  all  the  land  of  Canaan 
fainted  by  reason  of  the  famine.  And  Joseph  gathered  up  all  the 
money  that  was  found  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  for  the  corn  which  they  bought :  and  Joseph  brought 
the  money  into  Pharaoh's  house.  And  when  money  failed  in  the 
land  of  Egypt,  and  in  the  land  of  Canaan,  all  the  Egyptians 
came  unto  Joseph,  and  said:  "Give  us  bread:  for  why  should 
we  die  in  thy  presence  ?  for  the  money  faileth."  And  Joseph 
said :  "  Give  your  cattle ;  and  I  will  give  you  for  your  cattle,  if 
money  fail."  And  they  brought  their  cattle  unto  Joseph :  and 
Joseph  gave  them  bread  in  exchange  for  horses,  and  for  the 
flocks,  and  for  the  cattle  of  the  herds,  and  for  the  asses :  and  he 
fed  them  with  bread  for  all  their  cattle  for  that  year.  When 
that  year  was  ended,  they  came  unto  him  the  second  year,  and 
said  unto  him :  "  We  will  not  hide  it  from  my  lord,  how  that 
our  money  is  spent ;  my  lord  also  hath  our  herds  of  cattle  ;  there 
is  not  aught  left  in  the  sight  of  my  lord,  but  our  bodies,  and 
our  lands.  Wherefore  shall  we  die  before  thine  eyes,  both  we 
and  our  land  ?  buy  us  and  our  land  for  bread,  and  we  and  our 
land  will  be  servants  unto  Pharaoli :  and  give  us  seed,  that  we 
may  live,  and  not  die,  that  the  land  be  not  desolate." 

And  Joseph  bought  all  the  land  of  Egypt  for  Pharaoh ;  for 
the  Egyptians  sold  every  man  his  field,  because  the  famine  pre- 

1  land  of  Rfimeses.  Goshen,  in  which  Ramses  II.  (see  note,  p.  80)  built  cities 
and  often  resided.  The  name  is  used  here  by  anticipation. 


76         THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

vailed  over  them  :  so  the  land  became  Pharaoh's.  And  as  for  the 
people,  he  made  bondmen  of  them  from  one  end  of  the  borders 
of  Egypt  even  to  the  other  end  thereof.  Only  the  land  of  the 
priests  bought  he  not ;  for  the  priests  had  a  portion  assigned 
them  of  Pharaoh,  and  did  eat  their  portion  which  Pharaoh  gave 
them:  wherefore  they  sold  not  their  lands. ^ 

Then  Joseph  said  unto  the  people  :  "  Behold,  I  have  bought 
you  this  day  and  your  land  for  Pharaoh.  Lo,  here  is  seed  for 
you,  and  ye  shall  sow  the  land.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass  in 
the  increase,  that  ye  shall  give  the  fifth  part  unto  Pharaoh,  and 
four  parts  shall  be  your  own,  for  seed  of  the  field,  and  for 
your  food,  and  for  them  of  your  households,  and  for  food  for  your 
little  ones."  And  they  said:  "Thou  hast  saved  our  lives:  let 
us  find  grace  in  the  sight  of  my  lord,  and  we  will  be  Pharaoh's 
servants."  And  Joseph  made  it  a  law  over  the  land  of  Egypt 
unto  this  day,  that  Pharaoh  should  have  the  fifth  part ;  except 
the  land  of  the  priests  only,  which  became  not  Pharaoh's. 

Jacob's  Blessing  and  Death  (Gen.  xlvii.  27-xlviii.  22  ;  xlix. 
1,  28-33  ;  1.  1-14).  And  Israel  dwelt  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  in 
the  country  of  Goshen ;  and  they  had  possessions  therein,  and 
grew,  and  multiplied  exceedingly.  And  Jacob  lived  in  the  land 
of  Egypt  seventeen  years  :  so  the  whole  age  of  Jacob  was  an  hun- 
dred forty  and  seven  years.  And  the  time  drew  nigh  that  Israel 
must  die  :  and  he  called  his  son  Joseph,  and  said  unto  him  :  "If 
now  I  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  put,  I  pray  thee,  thy  hand 
under  my  thigh,  and  deal  kindly  and  truly  with  me ;  bury  me 
not,  I  pray  thee,  in  Egypt :  but  I  will  lie  with  my  fathers,  and 
thou  shalt  carry  me  out  of  Egypt,  and  bury  me  in  their  bury- 
ing-place."  And  he  said,  "I  will  do  as  thou  hast  said."  And 
he  said,  "Swear  unto  me."  And  he  sware  unto  him.  And  Israel 
bowed  himself  upon  the  bed's  head. 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  these  things,  that  one  told  Joseph, 
"  Behold,  thy  father  is  sick  :  "  and  he  took  with  him  his  two 
sons,  Manasseh  and  Ephraim.  And  one  told  Jacob,  and  said, 
"Behold,  thy  son  Joseph  cometh  unto  thee;"  and  Israel 
strengthened  himself,  and  sat  upon  the  bed.   And  Jacob  said 

1  Sepulchral  inscriptions  show  that  between  the  12th  and  the  18th  dynasties 
—  that  is,  within  the  Hyksos  period  —  the  landed  estates  had  passed  from  the 
nobles  and  the  governors  of  nomes  (districts)  to  the  crown  and  the  great  tem- 
ples. 


JACOB'S   BLESSING  AND   DEATH  77 

unto  Joseph:  ''God  Almighty  appeared  unto  me  at  Luz  in  the 
land  of  Canaan,  and  blessed  me,  and  said  unto  me,  Behold,  I 
will  make  thee  fruitful,  and  multiply  thee,  and  I  will  make  of 
thee  a  multitude  of  people;  and  will  give  this  land  to  thy  seed 
after  thee  for  an  everlasting  possession.  And  now  thy  two  sons 
Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  which  were  born  unto  thee  in  the  land 
of  Egypt  before  I  came  unto  thee  into  Egypt,  are  mine ;  as  Keu- 
ben  and  Simeon,  they  shall  be  mine.  And  thy  issue,  which  thou 
begettest  after  them,  shall  be  thine,  and  shall  be  called  after  the 
name  of  their  brethren  in  their  inheritance." 

And  Israel  beheld  Joseph's  sons,  and  said,  "  Who  are  these  ?  " 
And  Joseph  said  unto  his  father,  '*They  are  my  sons,  whom 
God  hath  given  me  in  this  place."  And  he  said  :  "Bring  them, 
I  pray  thee,  unto  me,  and  I  will  bless  them."  ISTow  the  eyes  of 
Israel  were  dim  for  age,  so  that  he  could  not  see.  And  he  brought 
them  near  unto  him ;  and  he  kissed  them,  and  embraced  them. 
And  Israel  said  unto  Joseph :  "  I  had  not  thought  to  see  thy 
face :  and  lo,  God  hath  shewed  me  also  thy  seed."  And  Joseph 
brought  them  out  from  between  his  knees,  and  he  bowed  himself 
with  his  face  to  the  earth.  And  Joseph  took  them  both,  Ephraim 
in  his  right  hand  toward  Israel's  left  hand,  and  Manasseh  in 
his  left  hand  toward  Israel's  right  hand,  and  brought  them  near 
unto  him. 

And  Israel  stretched  out  his  right  hand,  and  laid  it  upon 
Ephraim's  head,  who  was  the  younger,  and  his  left  hand  upon 
Manasseh's  head,  guiding  his  hands  wittingly ;  for  Manasseh 
was  the  firstborn.  And  he  blessed  Joseph,  and  said :  "  God,  be- 
fore whom  my  fathers  Abraham  and  Isaac  did  walk,  the  God 
which  fed  me  all  my  life  long  unto  this  day,  the  Angel  which 
redeemed  me  from  all  evil,  bless  the  lads;  and  let  my  name  be 
named  on  them,  and  the  name  of  my  fathers  Abraham  and 
Isaac;  and  let  them  grow  into  a  multitude  in  the  midst  of  the 
earth."  And  when  Joseph  saw  that  his  father  laid  his  right 
hand  upon  the  head  of  Ephraim,  it  displeased  him :  and  he 
held  up  his  father's  hand  to  remove  it  from  Ephraim's  head 
unto  Manasseh's  head.  And  Joseph  said  unto  his  father :  "  Not 
so,  my  father  :  for  this  is  the  firstborn ;  put  thy  right  hand  upon 
his  head."  And  his  father  refused,  and  said:  "I  know  it,  my 
son,  I  know  it:  he  also  shall  become  a  people,  and  he  also  shall 
be  great:  but  truly  his  younger  brother  shall  be  greater  than  he, 
and  his  seed  shall    become  a  multitude  of  nations."   And  he 


78         THE  ANCESTORS  OF  THE  HEBREWS 

blessed  them  that  day,  saying :  —  "In  thee  shall  Israel  bless, 
saying,  God  make  thee  as  Ephraim  and  as  Manasseh : "  and  he 
set  Ephraim  before  Manasseh.  And  Israel  said  unto  Joseph: 
**  Behold,  I  die :  but  God  shall  be  with  you,  and  bring  you  again 
unto  the  land  of  your  fathers.  Moreover  I  have  given  to  thee 
one  portion  above  thy  brethren,  which  I  took  out  of  the  hand 
of  the  Amorite  with  my  sword  and  with  my  bow.'' 

And  Jacob  called  unto  his  sons,  and  blessed  them;  every  one 
according  to  his  blessing  he  blessed  them.  And  he  charged  them, 
and  said  unto  them  :  "  I  am  to  be  gathered  unto  my  people. 
Bury  me  with  my  fathers  in  the  cave  that  is  in  the  field  of  Eph- 
ron  the  Hittite,  in  the  cave  that  is  in  the  field  of  Machpelah, 
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;  there  they  buried  Isaac  and  Rebekah  his  wife;  and  there 
I  buried  Leah.  The  purchase  of  the  field  and  of  the  cave  that 
is  therein  was  from  the  children  of  Heth." 

And  when  Jacob  had  made  an  end  of  commanding  his  sons, 
he  gathered  up  his  feet  into  the  bed,  and  yielded  up  the  ghost, 
and  was  gathered  unto  his  people.  And  Joseph  fell  upon  his 
father's  face,  and  wept  upon  him,  and  kissed  him.  And  Joseph 
commanded  his  servants  the  physicians  to  embalm  his  father: 
and  the  physicians  embalmed  Israel.  And  forty  days  were  ful- 
filled for  him ;  for  so  are  fulfilled  the  days  of  those  which  are  em- 
balmed: 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  have  digged  for  me  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  horse- 
men ;  and  it  was  a  very  great  company.   And  they  came  to  the 


THE   LATER   DAYS    OF   JOSEPH  79 

threshingfloor  of  Atad,  which  is  beyond  Jordan,  and  there  they 
mourned  with  a  great  and  very  sore  lamentation:  and  he  made 
a  mourning  for  his  father  seven  days.  And  when  the  inhabitants 
of  the  land,  the  Canaanites,  saw  the  mourning  in  the  floor  of 
Atad,  they  said,  ''This  is  a  grievous  mourning  to  the  Egyptians :" 
wherefore  the  name  of  it  was  called  Abel-mizraim,^  which  is  be- 
yond Jordan.  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. 

The  Later  Days  of  Joseph  (Gen.  1.  15-26).  And  when 
Joseph's  brethren  saw  that  their  father  was  dead,  they  said  : 
"  Joseph  will  peradventure  hate  us,  and  will  certainly  requite 
us  all  the  evil  which  we  did  unto  him.''  And  they  sent  a  mes- 
senger unto  Joseph,  saying:  "Thy  father  did  command  before 
he  died,  saying,  So  shall  ye  say  unto  Joseph,  Forgive,  I  pray 
thee  now,  the  trespass  of  thy  brethren,  and  their  sin ;  for  they 
did  unto  thee  evil :  and  now,  we  pray  thee,  forgive  the  trespass 
of  the  servants  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  ser- 
vants." And  Joseph  said  unto  them:  "Fear  not:  for  am  I  in 
the  place  of  God  ?  But  as  for  you,  ye  thought  evil  against  me  ; 
but  God  meant  it  unto  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. 

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  brought  up  upon  Joseph's 
knees.  And  Joseph  said  unto  his  brethren :  "  I  die :  and  God 
Avill  surely  visit  you,  and  bring  you  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. 
1  AbeUmizraim,  '  Mourning  of  Egypt ' ;  properly  *  Meadow  of  Egypt.' 


Ill 


THE    EXODUS 


Increase  of  the  Israelites  (Ex.  i.  7-22).  And  the  children  of 
Israel  were  fruitful,  and  increased  abundantly,  and  multiplied,  and 

waxed  exceeding  mighty;  and 
the  land  was  filled  with  them. 
Now  there  arose  up  a  new  king 
over  Egypt,  which  knew  not 
Joseph.  And  he  said  unto  his 
people :  ''  Behold,  the  people  of 
the  children  of  Israel  are  more 
and  mightier  than  we :  come  on, 
let  us  deal  wisely  with  them  ; 
lest  they  multiply,  and  it  come 
to  pass  that,  when  there  fall- 
eth  out  any  war,  they  join  also 
nnto  our  enemies,  and  fight 
against  us,  and  so  get  them  up 
out  of  the  land."  Therefore 
they  did  set  over  them  task- 
masters to  afflict  them  with 
their  burdens.  And  they  built 
for  Pharaoh  treasure  cities,^ 
more  they  afflicted  them,  the 

1  treasure  cities.  Cities  for  storing  grain,  probably  in  order  to  supply  Egypt- 
ian troops  at  the  eastern  frontier.  Excavations  in  1883  have  identified  the  ruins 
of  Pithom.  The  city  was  enclosed  by  a  huge  square  brick  wall,  and  contained 
a  temple  and  numerous  rectangular  brick  chambers,  which  could  be  filled  with 
grain  from  the  top.  Raamses  has  probably  been  located  (by  Professor  Petrie,  in 
1906)  eight  miles  southeast  of  Pithom.  Since  Ramses  II  (about  1292-1225  b.  c.) 
is  named  in  inscriptions  as  the  founder  of  Pithom,  he  is  generally  thought  to  be 
the  Pharaoh  of  the  Oppression.  A  campaign  record  of  his,  however,  gives  Ase7'u 
as  the  name  of  a  district  about  where  the  book  of  Joshua  locates  the  tribe  of 
Asher.  This  fact,  together  with  the  occurrence  in  a  slill  earlier  inscription  of 
Jacoh-eJ  iiud  J oseph-el a?,  (\anaanite  town-names,  and  the  mention  of  a  Canaanite 
people  Ysiraal  in  an  inscription  of  Kamses  II's  successor,  has  raised  the  question 
whether  it  may  not  have  been  only  a  part  of  the  Israelite  clan  that  was  in 
Egypt.   The  mummy  of  Kamses  II  was  found  near  Karnak  in  1881. 


Kamses  II  iu  his  Youth 

Pithom  and  Raamses.   But  the 


THE   YOUTH   OF   MOSES  81 

more  they  multiplied  and  grew.  And  they  were  grieved  because 
of  the  children  of  Israel.  And  the  Egyptians  made  the  children 
of  Israel  to  serve  with  rigor :  and  they  made  their  lives  bitter 
with  hard  bondage,  in  mortar,  and  in  brick,  and  in  all  manner 
of  service  in  the  field:  all  their  service,  wherein  they  made  them 
serve,  was  with  rigor. 

And  the  king  of  Egypt  spake  to  the  Hebrew  midwives,  of 
which  the  name  of  the  one  was  Shiphrah,  and  the  name  of  the 
other  Puah :  and  he  said :  "  When  ye  do  the  office  of  a  midwife 
to  the  Hebrew  women,  and  see  them  upon  the  birth-stool ;  if  it 
be  a  son,  then  ye  shall  kill  him :  but  if  it  be  a  daughter,  then 
she  shall  live."  But  the  midwives  feared  God,  and  did  not  as 
the  king  of  Egypt  commanded  them,  but  saved  the  men  chil- 
dren alive.  And  the  king  of  Egypt  called  for  the  midwives,  and 
said  unto  them :  "  Why  have  ye  done  this  thing,  and  have  saved 
the  men  children  alive  ?  "  And  the  midwives  said  unto  Pharaoh : 
''  Because  the  Hebrew  women  are  not  as  the  Egyptian  women ; 
for  they  are  lively,  and  are  delivered  ere  the  midwives  come  in 
unto  them.''  Therefore  God  dealt  well  with  the  midwives ;  and 
the  people  multiplied,  and  waxed  very  mighty.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  because  the  midwives  feared  God,  that  he  made  them  house- 
holds. And  Pharaoh  charged  all  his  people,  saying :  "  Every  son 
that  is  born  ye  shall  cast  into  the  river,  and  every  daughter  ye 
shall  save  alive." 

The  Youth  of  Moses  (Ex.  ii.).  And  there  went  a  man  of 
the  house  of  Levi,  and  took  to  wife  a  daughter  of  Levi.  And 
the  woman  conceived,  and  bare  a  son :  and  when  she  saw  him 
that  he  was  a  goodly  child,  she  hid  him  three  months.  And 
when  she  could  not  longer  hide  him,  she  took  for  him  an  ark  of 
bulrushes,  and  daubed  it  with  slime  and  with  pitch,  and  put  the 
child  therein ;  and  she  laid  it  in  the  flags  by  the  river's  brink. 
And  his  sister  stood  afar  off,  to  wit  what  would  be  done  to 
him. 

And  the  daughter  of  Pharaoh  came  down  to  wash  herself  at 
the  river ;  and  her  maidens  walked  along  by  the  river's  side ; 
and  when  she  saw  the  ark  among  the  flags,  she  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  to  thee  a 


82  THE   EXODUS 

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  daugh- 
ter 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  she  said, — "Because  I  drew  him  out  of  the 
water."  ^ 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  those  days,  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  bre- 
thren. 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  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  Mid- 
ian  ^  had  seven  daughters :  and  they  came  and  drew  water,  and 
filled  the  troughs  to  water  their  father's  flock.  And  the  shep- 
herds came  and  drove  them  away;  but  Moses  stood  up  and 
helped  them,  and  watered  their  flock.  And  when  they  came  to 
Eeuel  their  father,  he  said,  "  How  is  it  that  ye  are  come  so  soon 
today  ?  "  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.  And  she 
bare  him  a  son,  and  he  called  his  name  Gershom  :^  —  for  he 
said,  "  I  have  been  a  stranger  in  a  strange  land." 

1  The  writer  regards  the  name  as  derived  from  the  Heb.  mSshah,  '  to  draw 
out.' 

2  priest  of  Midian.  The  chief  of  a  nomadic  clan,  such  as  that  of  the  Midian- 
ites,  -would  in  early  limes  perform  priestly  functions.  There  is  some  uncertainty 
as  to  the  name  of  Moses'  father-in-law.    See  pp.  83,  111,  115. 

3  Gershom.  '  A  sojourner  there.' 


MOSES    CALL 


83 


that  the  king  of 


And  it  came  to  pass  in  process  of  time/ 
Egypt  died :  and  the 
children  of  Israel  sighed 
by  reason  of  the  bond- 
age, and  they  cried, 
and  their  cry  came  up 
unto  God,  by  reason  of 
the  bondage.  And  God 
heard  their  groaning, 
and  God  remembered 
his  covenant  with  Abra- 
ham, with  Isaac,  and 
with  Jacob.  And  God 
looked  upon  the  children  of  Israel,  and  God  had  respect  unto 
them. 


Early  Egyptian  Representation  of  a  Semitic  Captive 
among  Slaves  Tilling  the  Field 


Moses'  Call  (Ex.  iii.  1-iv.  17).  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 
God,  even  to  Horeb.  ^  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  ^  appeared 
unto  him  in  a  flame  of  fire  out  of  the  midst  of  a  bush :  and  he 
looked,  and  behold,  the  bush  burned  with  fire,  and  the  bush 
was  not  consumed.  And  Moses  said:  "I  will  now  turn  aside, 
and  see  this  great  sight,  why  the  bush  is  not  burnt."  And  when 
the  Lord  saw  that  he  turned  aside  to  see,  God  called  unto  him 
out  of  the  midst  of  the  bush,  and  said,  "Moses,  Moses."  And 
he  said,  "  Here  am  I."  And  he  said  :  "  Draw  not  nigh  hither. 
Put  off  thy  shoes  from  off  thy  feet,  for  the  place  whereon  thou 
standest  is  holy  ground."  Moreover  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  to 
look  upon  God. 

And  the  Lord  said  :   ''I  have  surely  seen  the  affliction  of  my 

1  in  process  of  time.  Lit.,  'after  those  many  days'  —  possibly  referring  to  the 
fact  that  Ramses  II  reigned  67  years. 

2  Horeb.  See  note,  p.  102. 

3  angel  of  the  Lord.  Here,  as  in  several  other  passages  (see  pp.  24,  192),  the 
"angel  of  the  Lord  "  proves  to  be  not  a  messenger  from  the  Lord,  but  a  mani- 
festation of  Jehovah  himself.  Even  in  these  cases,  however,  the  angel  some- 
times speaks  rather  as  representing  God  than  as  God  in  person,  —as  if  the  fact 
of  manifestation  itself  created  a  distinction  between  the  spiritual  Deity  and  the 
physical  apparition. 


84  THE   EXODUS 

people,  which  are  in  Egypt,  and  have  heard  their  cry  by  reason 
of  their  taskmasters  ;  for  I  know  their  sorrows,  and  I  am  come 
down  to  deliver  them  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Egyptians,  and  to 
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  :  "  Who  am  I,  that  I  should  go 
unto  Pharaoh,  and  'that  I  should  bring  forth  the  children  of 
Israel  out  of  Egypt  ?  "  And  he  said  :  ''  Certainly  I  will  be  with 
thee  ;  and  this  shall  be  a  token  unto  thee,  that  I  have  sent  thee  : 
When  thou  hast  brought  forth  the  people  out  of  Egypt,  ye  shall 
serve  God  upon  this  mountain."  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,  Jehovah,  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,  Jehovah,  the  God  of  your 
fathers,  the  God  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac,  and  of  Jacob,  appeared 
unto  me,  saying,  I  have  surely  visited  you,  and  seen  that  which 
is  done  to  you  in  Egypt.  And  I  have  said,  I  will  bring  you  up 
out  of  the  affliction  of  Egypt,  unto  a  land  flowing  with  milk  and 
honey.  And  they  shall  hearken  to  thy  voice  :  and  thou  shalt 
come,  thou  and  the  elders  of  Israel,  unto  the  king  of  Egypt,  and 
ye  shall  say  unto  him.  The  Lord  God  of  the  Hebrews  hath  met 
with  us  :  and  now  let  us  go,  we  beseech  thee,  three  days'  journey 
into  the  wilderness,  that  we  may  sacrifice  to  the  Lord  our  God. 
And  I  am  sure  that  the  king  of  Egypt  will  not  let  you  go,  no, 
not  by  a  mighty  hand.   And  I  will  stretch  out  my  hand,  and 

1  I  Am.  The  name  of  the  God  of  Israel  is  written  in  Hebrew  Jhvh,  without 
the  vowels.  The  Jews  of  later  times  considered  it  too  sacred  to  be  spoken,  and 
in  reading  replaced  it  with  the  word  AdonCii,  'Lord.'  Its  true  pronunciation  — 
probably  *Yah-weh"  —  thus  became  lost.  In  the  16th  century  the  vowels  of 
Adonai  were  added  to  Jhvh,  giving  it  the  familiar  but  artificial  form  Jehovah. 
The  word  is  in  this  passage  regarded  as  derived  from  the  verb  hawdh,  '  to  be.' 


MOSES'   CALL  86 

smite  Egypt  with  all  my  wonders  which  I  will  do  in  the  midst 
thereof :  and  after  that  he  will  let  you  go.  And  I  will  give  this 
people  favor  in  the  sight  of  the  Egyptians  :  and  it  shall  come  to 
pass  that,  when  ye  go,  ye  shall  not  go  empty  ;  but  every  woman 
shall  borrow  of  her  neighbor,  and  of  her  that  sojourneth  in  her 
house,  jewels  of  silver,  and  jewels  of  gold,  and  raiment.  And  ye 
shall  put  them  upon  your  sons,  and  upon  your  daughters ;  and 
ye  shall  spoil  the  Egyptians.'' 

And  Moses  answered  and  said  :  ''  But  behold,  they  will  not 
believe  me,  nor  hearken  unto  my  voice :  for  they  will  say.  The 
Lord  hath  not  appeared  unto  thee."  And  the  Lord  said  unto 
him,  "  What  is  that  in  thine  hand  ?  "  And  he  said,  "  A  rod." 
And  he  said,  ''Cast  it  on  the  ground."  And  he  cast  it  on  the 
ground,  and  it  became  a  serpent ;  and  Moses  fled  from  before  it. 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  Put  forth  thine  hand,  and 
take  it  by  the  tail,"  (and  he  put  forth  his  hand,  and  caught  it, 
and  it  became  a  rod  in  his  hand)  "  that  they  may  believe  that 
Jehovah,  the  God  of  their  fathers,  the  God  of  Abraham,  the  God 
of  Isaac,  and  the  God  of  Jacob,  hath  appeared  unto  thee." 

And  the  Lord  said  furthermore  unto  him,  "  Put  now  thine 
hand  into  thy  bosom."  And  he  put  his  hand  into  his  bosom : 
and  when  he  took  it  out,  behold,  his  hand  was  leprous  as  snow. 
And  he  said,  "  Put  thine  hand  into  thy  bosom  again."  And  he 
put  his  hand  into  his  bosom  again ;  and  plucked  it  out  of  his 
bosom,  and  behold,  it  was  turned  again  as  his  other  flesh  ;  — 
"  and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  if  they  will  not  believe  thee,  neither 
hearken  to  the  voice  of  the  first  sign,  that  they  will  believe  the 
voice  of  the  latter  sign.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  if  they  will 
not  believe  also  these  two  signs,  neither  hearken  unto  thy  voice, 
that  thou  shalt  take  of  the  water  of  the  river,  and  pour  it  upon 
the  dry  land  :  and  the  water  which  thou  takest  out  of  the  river 
shall  become  blood  upon  the  dry  land." 

And  Moses  said  unto  the  Lord  :  ''  0  my  Lord,  I  am  not  elo- 
quent, neither  heretofore,  nor  since  thou  hast  spoken  unto  thy 
servant  :  but  I  am  slow  of  speech,  and  of  a  slow  tongue."  And 
the  Lord  said  unto  him  :  "  Who  hath  made  man's  mouth  ?  or 
who  maketh  the  dumb,  or  deaf,  or  the  seeing,  or  the  blind  ?  have 
not  I  the  Lord  ?  Now  therefore  go,  and  I  will  be  with  thy 
mouth,  and  teach  thee  what  thou  shalt  say."  And  he  said  :  ''  0 
my  Lord,  send,  I  pray  thee,  by  the  hand  of  him  whom  [soever 
else]  thou  wilt  send."  And  the  anger  of  the  Lord  was  kindled 


86  THE   EXODUS 

against  Moses,  and  he  said :  "  Is  not  Aaron  the  Levite  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  he  shall  be  thy  spokesman  unto  the  people  :  and 
he  shall  be,  even  he  shall  be  to  thee  instead  of  a  mouth,  and  thou 
shalt  be  to  him  instead  of  God.  And  thou  shalt  take  this  rod  in 
thine  hand,  wherewith  thou  shalt  do  signs." 

Mission  of  Moses  and  Aaron  (Ex.  iv.  18-20,  24-26,  21-23, 
27-31  ;  V. ;  vi.  1-4,  9-12  ;  vii.  1,  2,  7-13).  And  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 
Egypt,  and  see  whether  they  be  yet  alive.''  And  Jethro  said  to 
Moses,  "  Go  in  peace."  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  in 
Midian  :  "  Go,  return  into  Egypt ;  for  all  the  men  are  dead  which 
sought  thy  life."  And  Moses  took  his  wife  and  his  sons,  and  set 
them  upon  an  ass,  and  he  returned  to  the  land  of  Egypt :  and 
Moses  took  the  rod  of  God  in  his  hand. 

And  it  came  to  pass  by  the  way  in  the  inn,  that  the  Lord 
met  him,  and  sought  to  kill  him.  Then  Zipporah  took  a  sharp 
stone,  and  cut  off  the  foreskin  of  her  son,  and  cast  it  at  his  feet, 
and  said  :  "  Surely  a  bloody  husband  art  thou  to  me."  So  he  let 
him  go  :  then  she  said  :  —  ''A  bloody  husband  thou  art,  because 
of  the  circumcision."  ^ 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  When  thou  goest  to  return 
into  Egypt,  see  that  thou  do  all  those  wonders  before  Pharaoh, 
which  I  have  put  in  thine  hand :  but  I  will  harden  his  heart, 
that  he  shall  not  let  the  people  go.  And  thou  shalt  say  unto 
Pharaoh,  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Israel  is  my  son,  even  my  first- 
born :  and  I  say  unto  thee.  Let  my  son  go,  that  he  may  serve 
me  :  and  if  thou  refuse  to  let  him  go,  behold,  I  will  slay  thy 
son,  even  thy  firstborn." 

And  the  Lord  said  to  Aaron :  "  Go  into  the  wilderness  to 
meet  Moses."  And  he  went,  and  met  him  in  the  mount  of  God, 
and  kissed  him.  And  Moses  told  Aaron  all  the  words  of  the 
Lord  who  had  sent  him,  and  all  the  signs  which  he  had  com- 

1  Zipporah's  act  is  designed  to  appease  Jehovah  by  conforming  to  the  rite  of 
circumcision.  The  story  is  curious  in  this  place,  and  has  been  explained  as  a 
fragment,  more  ancient  than  tlie  account  of  circumcision  in  Genesis,  intended 
as  the  first  instance  of  applying  circumcision  to  infants.  The  rite  was  common 
to  a  number  of  peoples  in  Asia  and  Africa,  but  was  customarily  performed  at 
the  marriage  period. 


MISSION   OF  MOSES   AND  AARON 


87 


manded  him.  And  Moses  and  Aaron  went  and  gathered  together 
all  the  elders  of  the  children  of  Israel :  and  Aaron  spake  all  the 
words  which  the  Lord  had  spoken  unto  Moses,  and  did  the  signs 
in  the  sight  of  the  people.  And  the  people  believed  :  and  when 
they  heard  that  the  Lord  had  visited  the  children  of  Israel,  and 
that  he  had  looked  upon  their  affliction,  then  they  bowed  their 
heads  and  worshipped. 

And  afterward  Moses  and  Aaron  went  in,  and  told  Pharaoh  ^ 
''Thus  saith  Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel,  Let  my  people  go, 
that  they  may  hold  a  feast  unto  me  in  the  wilderness."  And 
Pharaoh  said :  ''  Who  is  Jehovah, 
that  I  should  obey  his  voice  to  let 
Israel  go?  I  know  not  Jehovah, 
neither  will  I  let  Israel  go."  And 
they  said  :  "  The  God  of  the  He- 
brews hath  met  with  us.  Let  us 
go,  we  pray  thee,  three  days'  jour- 
ney into  the  desert,  and  sacrifice 
unto  the  Lord  our  God ;  lest  he 
fall  upon  us  with  pestilence,  or 
with  the  sword."  And  the  king 
of  Egypt  said  unto  them:  "Where- 
fore do  ye,  Moses  and  Aaron,  let 
the  people  from  their  works  ?  get 
you  unto  your  burdens."  And 
Pharaoh  commanded  the  same  day 
the  taskmasters  of  the  people,  and 
their  officers,  saying  :  "  Ye  shall 
no  more  give  the  people  straw  to 
make  brick,  as  heretofore :  let  them  go  and  gather  straw  for 
themselves.  And  the  tale  of  the  bricks,  which  they  did  make 
heretofore,  ye  shall  lay  upon  them ;  ye  shall  not  diminish  aught 
thereof :  for  they  be  idle ;  therefore  they  cry,  saying,  Let  us  go  and 
sacrifice  to  our  God.  Let  there  more  work  be  laid  upon  the  men, 
that  they  may  labor  therein  ;  and  let  them  not  regard  vain  words." 

And  the  taskmasters  of  the  people  went  out,  and  their  officers, 

1  Pharaoh.  Ramses  II  was  succeeded  by  Merneptah  (about  1225-1215  b.  c), 
who  is  therefore  thought  to  have  been  the  Pharaoh  of  the  Exodus.  The  follow- 
ing verse,  however,  occurs  in  a  song  dating  from  his  reign,  and  celebrating  his 
triumphs  in  Palestine  : 

"Israel  is  desolated,  her  seed  is  not." 


Merneptah.   Granite  Bust  from  his  Tem- 
ple at  Thebes 


88  THE   EXODUS 

and  they  spake  to  the  people,  saying :  "  Thus  saith  Pharaoh,  I 
will  not  give  you  straw.  Go  ye,  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  instead  of  straw.  And  the  taskmasters  hasted 
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  Pha- 
raoh, 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 : 
therefore  ye  say,  Let  us  go  and  do  sacrifice  to  the  Lord.  Go 
therefore  now,  and  work ;  for  there  shall  no  straw  be  given  you, 
yet  shall  ye  deliver  the  tale  of  bricks." 

And  the  officers  of  the  children  of  Israel  did  see  that  they 
were  in  evil  case,  after  it  was  said  :  "  Ye  shall  not  minish  aught 
from  your  bricks  of  your  daily  task."  And  they  met  Moses  and 
Aaron,  who  stood  in  the  way,  as  they  came  forth  from  Pharaoh  : 
and  they  said  unto  them  :  "  The  Lord  look  upon  you,  and  judge; 
because  ye  have  made  our  savor  to  be  abhorred  in  the  eyes  of 
Pharaoh,  and  in  the  eyes  of  his  servants,  to  put  a  sword  in  their 
hand  to  slay  us."  And  Moses  returned  unto  the  Lord,  and  said: 
"  Lord,  wherefore  hast  thou  so  evil  intreated  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." 

Then  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses:  ''Now  shalt  thou  see  what 
I  will  do  to  Pharaoh :  for  with  a  strong  hand  shall  he  let  them 
go,  and  with  a  strong  hand  shall  he  drive  them  out  of  his  land." 
And  God  spake  unto  Moses,  and  said  unto  him:  "I  am  the 
Lord:  and  I  appeared  unto  Abraham,  unto  Isaac,  and  unto 
Jacob,  by  the  name  of  God  Almighty,  but  by  my  name  Jehovah 
was  I  not  known  to  them.  And  I  have  also  established  my  cove- 
nant with  them,  to  give  them  the  land  of  Canaan,  the  land  of 
their  pilgrimage,  wherein  they  were  strangers." 

And  Moses  spake  so  unto  the  children  of  Israel :  but  they 
hearkened  not  unto  Moses  for  anguish  of  spirit,  and  for  cruel 


THE   TEN   PLAGUES  89 

bondage.  And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying:  "Go  in, 
speak  unto  Pharaoh  king  of  Egypt,  that  he  let  the  children  of 
Israel  go  out  of  his  land."  And  jMoses  spake  before  the  Lord, 
saying :  '^  Behold,  the  children  of  Israel  have  not  hearkened 
unto  me ;  how  then  shall  Pharaoh  hear  me,  who  am  of  uncir- 
cumcised  lips  ?  " 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses:  ''See,  I  have  made  thee  a 
god  to  Pharaoh  :  and  Aaron  thy  brother  shall  be  thy  prophet. 
Thou  shalt  speak  all  that  I  command  thee;  and  Aaron  thy  bro- 
ther shall  speak  unto  Pharaoh,  that  he  send  the  cliildren  of  Is- 
rael out  of  his  land." 

And  Moses  was  fourscore  years  old,  and  Aaron  fourscore  and 
three  years  old,  when  they  spake  unto  Pharaoh. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses  and  unto  Aaron,  saying : 
"  When  Pharaoh  shall  speak  unto  you,  saying,  Shew  a  miracle 
for  you  :  then  thou  shalt  say  unto  Aaron,  Take  thy  rod,  and  cast 
it  before  Pharaoh,  and  it  shall  become  a  serpent."  And  ]\[oses  and 
Aaron  went  in  unto  Pharaoh,  and  they  did  so  as  the  Lord  had 
commanded  :  and  Aaron  cast  down  his  rod  before  Pharaoh,  and 
before  his  servants,  and  it  became  a  serpent.  Then  Pharaoh  also 
called  the  wise  men  and  the  sorcerers.  Now  the  magicians  of 
Egypt,  they  also  did  in  like  manner  with  their  enchantments. 
For  they  cast  down  every  man  his  rod,  and  they  became  serpents: 
but  Aaron's  rod  swallowed  up  their  rods.  And  Pharaoh's  heart 
was  hardened,  that  he  hearkened  not  unto  them;  as  the  Lord 
had  said. 

The  Ten  Plagues  (Ex.  vii.  14-18,  20-25;  viii. ;  ix.  1-13,  17, 
18,  22-34;  x.  3-29;  xi.  4-8).  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses: 
"Get  thee  unto  Pharaoh  in  the  morning;  lo,  he  goeth  out  unto 
the  water ;  and  thou  shalt  stand  by  the  river's  brink  against  he 
come;  and  the  rod  which  was  turned  to  a  serpent  shalt  thou 
take  in  thine  hand.  And  thou  shalt  say  unto  him.  The  Lord 
God  of  tlie  Hebrews  hath  sent  me  unto  thee,  saying,  Let  my 
people  go,  that  they  may  serve  me  in  the  wilderness  :  and  be- 
hold, hitherto  thou  wouldest  not  hear.  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  In 
this  thou  shalt  ■  know  that  I  am  the  Lord :  behold,  I  will  smite 
with  the  rod  that  is  in  mine  hand  upon  the  waters  which  are  in 
the  river,  and  they  shall  be  turned  to  blood :  and  the  fish  that  is 
in  the  river  shall  die,  and  the  river  shall  stink;  and  the  Egypt- 
ians shall  loathe  to  drink  of  the  water  of  the  river." 


90  THE   EXODUS 

And  Moses  and  Aaron  did  so,  as  the  Lord  commanded;  and 
he  lifted  up  the  rod,  and  smote  the  waters  that  were  in  the 
river,  in  the  sight  of  Pharaoh,  and  in  the  sight  of  his  servants ; 
and  all  the  waters  that  were  in  the  river  were  turned  to  blood. 
And  the  fish  that  was  in  the  river  died ;  and  the  river  stank, 
and  the  Egyptians  could  not  drink  of  the  water  of  the  river; 
and  there  was  blood  throughout  all  the  land  of  Egypt.  But 
the  magicians  of  Egypt  did  in  like  manner  with  their  enchant- 
ments; so  that  Pharaoh's  heart  was  hardened,  neither  did  he 
hearken  unto  them  ;  as  the  Lord  had  said.  And  Pharaoh  turned 
and  went  into  his  house,  neither  did  he  set  his  heart  to  this  also. 
And  all  the  Egyptians  digged  round  about  the  river  for  water  to 
drink ;  for  they  could  not  drink  of  the  water  of  the  river.  And 
seven  days  were  fulfilled,  after  that  the  Lord  had  smitten  the 
river. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses  :  "  Go  unto  Pharaoh,  and 
say  unto  him.  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Let  my  people  go,  that  thej'- 
may  serve  me.  And  if  thou  refuse  to  let  them  go,  behold,  I  will 
smite  all  thy  borders  with  frogs :  and  the  river  shall  bring  forth 
frogs  abundantly,  which  shall  go  up  and  come  into  thine  house, 
and  into  thy  bedchamber,  and  upon  thy  bed,  and  into  the  house 
of  thy  servants,  and  upon  thy  people,  and  into  thine  ovens,  and 
into  thy  kneadingtroughs :  and  the  frogs  shall  come  up  both  on 
thee,  and  upon  thy  people,  and  upon  all  thy  servants." 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses :  "  Say  unto  Aaron,  Stretch 
forth  thine  hand  with  thy  rod  over  the  streams,  over  the  rivers, 
and  over  the  ponds."  And  Aaron  stretched  out  his  hand  over 
the  waters  of  Egypt ;  and  the  frogs  came  up,  and  covered  the 
land  of  Egypt.  But  the  magicians  did  in  like  manner  with  their 
enchantments,  and  brought  up  frogs  upon  the  land  of  Egypt. 

Then  Pharaoh  called  for  Moses  and  Aaron,  and  said :  "  In- 
treat  the  Lord,  that  he  may  take  away  the  frogs  from  me,  and 
from  my  people ;  and  I  will  let  the  people  go,  that  they  may  do 
sacrifice  unto  the  Lord."  And  Moses  said  unto  Pharaoh  :  ^*  Glory 
over  me:^  when  shall  I  intreat  for  thee  and  for  thy  servants, 
and  for  thy  people,  to  destroy  the  frogs  from  thee  and  thy  houses, 
that  they  may  remain  in  the  river  only?"  And  he  said,  ^'To- 
morrow." And  he  said:  ''Be  it  according  to  thy  word :  that 
thou  mayest  know  that  there  is  none  like  unto  the  Lord  our  God. 
And  the  frogs  shall  depart  from  thee,  and  from  thy  houses,  and 
1  Glory  over  me.  An  expression  of  courtesy  toward  royalty. 


THE    TEX   PLAGUES  91 

from  thy  servants,  and  from  thy  people ;  they  shall  remain  in 
the  river  only."  And  Moses  and  Aaron  went  out  from  Pharaoh : 
aild  Closes  cried  unto  the  Lord  because  of  the  frogs  Avhich  he 
liad  brought  against  Pliaraoh.  And  the  Lord  did  according  to 
the  word  of  Moses ;  and  the  frogs  died  out  of  tlie  houses,  out  of 
the  villages,  and  out  of  the  fields.  And  they  gathered  them  to- 
gether upon  heaps  :  and  the  land  stank.  But  when  Pharaoh  saw 
that  there  was  respite,  he  hardened  his  heart,  and  hearkened  not 
unto  them ;  as  the  Lord  had  said. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  Say  unto  Aaron,  Stretch 
out  thy  rod,  and  smite  the  dust  of  the  land,  that  it  may  become 
lice  throughout  all  the  land  of  Egypt."  And  they  did  so ;  for 
Aaron  stretched  out  his  hand  with  his  rod,  and  smote  the  dust  of 
the  earth,  and  it  became  lice  in  man,  and  in  beast ;  all  the  dust 
of  the  land  became  lice  throughout  all  the  land  of  Egypt,  And 
the  magicians  did  so  with  their  enchantments  to  bring  forth  lice, 
but  they  could  not :  so  there  were  lice  upon  man,  and  upon 
beast.  Then  the  magicians  said  unto  Pharaoh :  "  This  is  the  fin- 
ger of  God :  "  and  Pharaoh's  heart  was  hardened,  and  he  heark- 
ened not  unto  them ;  as  the  Lord  had  said. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  *'  Kise  up  early  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  stand  before  Pharaoh  ;  lo,  he  cometh  forth  to  the  water  ; 
and  say  unto  him.  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Let  my  people  go,  that 
they  may  serve  me.  Else,  if  thou  wilt  not  let  my  people  go, 
behold,  I  will  send  swarms  of  flies  upon  thee,  and  upon  thy 
servants,  and  upon  thy  people,  and  the  houses  of  the  Egyptians 
shall  be  full  of  flies,  and  also  the  ground  whereon  they  are.  And 
I  will  sever  in  that  day  the  land  of  Goshen,  in  which  my  people 
dwell,  that  no  swarms  of  flies  shall  be  there ;  to  the  end  thou 
mayest  know  that  I  am  the  Lord  in  the  midst  of  the  earth.  And 
I  will  put  a  division  between  my  people  and  thy  people  :  to- 
morrow shall  this  sign  be." 

And  the  Lord  did  so  ;  and  there  came  a  grievous  swarm  of 
flies  into  the  house  of  Pharaoh,  and  into  his  servants'  houses, 
and  into  all  the  land  of  Egypt:  the  land  was  corrupted  by  reason 
of  the  swarm  of  flies.  And  Pharaoh  called  for  Moses  and  for 
Aaron,  and  said :  "  Go  ye,  sacrifice  to  your  God  in  the  land." 
And  Moses  said  :  "  It  is  not  meet  so  to  do ;  for  we  shall  sacrifice 
the  abomination  of  the  Egyptians  ^  to  the  Lord  our  God :   lo, 

1  the  abomination  of  the  Egyptians.  That  i<,  animals  such  as  the  cow,  sacred 
to  Isis,  the  sacrifice  of  which  would  be  abhorrent  to  the  Egyptians. 


92  THE   EXODUS 

shall  we  sacrifice  the  abomination  of  the  Egyptians  before  their 
eyes,  and  will  they  not  stone  us  ?  "We  will  go  three  days'  jour- 
ney into  the  wilderness,  and  sacrifice  to  the  Lord  our  God,  as 
he  shall  command  us."  And  Pharaoh' said  :  ''  I  will  let  you  go, 
that  ye  may  sacrifice  to  the  Lord  your  God  in  the  wilderness; 
only  ye  shall  not  go  very  far  away  :  intreat  for  me."  And  Moses 
said :  "  Behold,  I  go  out  from  thee,  and  I  will  intreat  the  Lord 
that  the  swarms  of  flies  may  depart  from  Pharaoh,  from  liis  ser- 
vants, and  from  his  people,  to-morrow :  but  let  not  Pharaoh  deal 
deceitfully  any  more  in  not  letting  the  people  go  to  sacrifice  to 
the  Lord."  And  Moses  went  out  from  Pharaoh,  and  intreated 
the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  did  according  to  the  word  of  Moses ; 
and  he  removed  the  swarms  of  flies  from  Phraaoh,  from  his  ser- 
vants, and  from  his  people  ;  there  remained  not  one.  And  Pha- 
raoh hardened  his  heart  at  this  time  also,  neither  would  he  let 
the  people  go. 

Then  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  '^  Go  in  unto  Pharaoh,  and 
tell  him,  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  the  Hebrews,  Let  my 
people  go,  that  they  may  serve  me.  For  if  thou  refuse  to  let 
them  go,  and  wilt  hold  them  still,  behold,  the  hand  of  the  Lord 
is  upon  thy  cattle  which  is  in  the  field,  upon  the  horses,  upon 
the  asses,  upon  the  camels,  upon  the  oxen,  and  upon  the  sheep: 
there  shall  be  a  very  grievous  murrain.^  And  the  Lord  shall 
sever  between  the  cattle  of  Israel  and  the  cattle  of  Egypt :  and 
there  shall  nothing  die  of  all  that  is  the  children's  of  Israel." 
And  the  Lord  appointed  a  set  time,  saying,  "  To-morrow  the 
Lord  shall  do  this  thing  in  the  land."  And  the  Lord  did  that 
thing  on  the  morrow,  and  all  the  cattle  of  Egypt  died :  but  of 
the  cattle  of  the  children  of  Israel  died  not  one.  And  Pharaoh 
sent,  and,  behold,  there  was  not  one  of  the  cattle  of  the  Israel- 
ites dead.  And  the  heart  of  Pharaoh  was  hardened,  and  he  did 
not  let  the  people  go. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  and  unto  Aaron :  '^  Take  to 
you  handfuls  of  ashes  of  the  furnace,  and  let  Moses  sprinkle  it 
toward  the  heaven  in  the  sight  of  Pharaoh  ;  and  it  shall  become 
small  dust  in  all  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  shall  be  a  boil  breaking 
forth  with  blains  ^  upon  man,  and  upon  beast,  throughout  all  the 
land  of  Egypt."  And  they  took  ashes  of  the  furnace,  and  stood 
before  Pharaoh  ;  and  Moses  sprinkled  it  up  toward  heaven  ;  and 
it  became  a  boil  breaking  forth  with  blains  upon  man,  and  upon 
1  murrain.  Cattle  plague.  2  blains.  Pustules. 


THE   TEN   PLAGUES  93 

beast.  And  the  magicians  could  not  stand  before  Moses  because 
of  the  boils ;  for  the  boil  was  upon  the  magicians,  and  upon  all 
the  Egyptians.  And  tlie  Lord  hardened  the  heart  of  Pharaoh,  and 
he  hearkened  not  unto  them  ;  as  the  Lord  had  spoken  unto  Moses. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Closes :  "  Rise  up  early  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  stand  before  Pharaoh,  and  say  unto  him,  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  God  of  the  Hebrews,  Let  my  people  go,  that  they  may 
serve  me.  As  yet  -exaltest  thou  thyself  against  my  people,  that 
thou  wilt  not  let  them  go  ?  Behold,  to-morrow  about  this  time 
I  will  cause  it  to  rain  a  very  grievous  hail,  such  as  hath  not 
been  in  Egypt  since  the  foundation  thereof  even  until  now."  ^ 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  Stretch  forth  thine  hand 
toward  heaven,  that  there  may  be  hail  in  all  the  land  of  Egypt." 
And  Moses  stretched  forth  his  rod  toward  heaven  :  and  the  Lord 
sent  thunder  and  hail,  and  the  fire  ran  along  upon  the  ground : 
and  the  Lord  rained  hail  upon  the  land  of  Egypt.  So  there  was 
hail;  and  fire  mingled  with  the  hail,  very  grievous,  such  as  there 
was  none  like  it  in  all  the  land  of  Egypt  since  it  became  a 
nation.  And  the  hail  smote  every  herb  of  the  field,  and  brake 
every  tree  of  the  field.  Only  in  the  land  of  Goshen,  where  the 
children  of  Lsrael  were,  was  there  no  hail. 

And  Pharaoh  sent,  and  called  for  Moses  and  Aaron,  and  said 
unto  them  :  "  I  have  sinned  this  time  :  the  Lord  is  righteous, 
and  I  and  my  people  are  wicked.  Intreat  the  Lord  (for  it  is 
enough)  that  there  be  no  more  mighty  thunderings  and  hail ; 
and  I  will  let  you  go,  and  ye  shall  stay  no  longer."  And  Moses 
said  unto  him :  "  As  soon  as  I  am  gone  out  of  the  city,  I  will 
spread  abroad  my  hands  unto  the  Lord  ;  and  the  thunder  vshall 
cease,  neither  shall  there  be  any  more  hail  ;  that  thou  mayest 
know  how  that  the  earth  is  the  Lord's.  But  as  for  thee  and  thy 
servants,  I  know  that  ye  will  not  yet  fear  the  Lord  God." 

1  The  received  version  adds  here: — "'Send  therefore  now,  and  gather  thy 
cattle,  and  all  that  thou  hast  in  the  field;  for  upon  every  man  and  beast  which 
shall  be  found  in  the  field,  and  shall  not  be  brought  home,  the  hail  shall  come 
down  upon  them,  and  they  shall  die.'  He  that  feared  the  word  of  the  Lord 
among  the  servants  of  Pharaoh  made  his  servants  and  his  cattle  flee  into  the 
houses:  and  he  that  regarded  not  the  word  of  the  Lord  left  his  servants  and  his 
cattle  in  the  field." 

In  the  next  paragraphs  also,  it  makes  the  hail  smite  man  and  beast.  Since 
the  Egyptian  cattle  have  already  been  spoken  of  as  destroyed  by  the  murrain, 
some  authorities  take  these  verses  as  representing  a  distinct  tradition  of  this 
plague.  Others,  however,  understand  that  the  murrain  had  destroyed  only  the 
cattle  that  were  not  housed. 


94  THE   EXODUS 

And  the  flax  and  the  barley  was  smitten :  for  the  barley  was 
in  the  ear,  and  the  flax  was  boiled.^  But  the  wheat  and  the  rye 
were  not  smitten,  for  they  were  not  grown  up.  And  Moses  went 
out  of  the  city  from  Pharaoh,  and  spread  abroad  his  hands  unto 
the  Lord :  and  the  thunders  and  hail  ceased,  and  the  rain  was 
not  poured  upon  the  earth.  And  when  Pharaoh  saw  that  the 
rain  and  the  hail  and  the  thunders  were  ceased,  he  sinned  yet 
more,  and  hardened  his  heart,  he  and  his  servants. 

And  Moses  and  Aaron  came  in  unto  Pharaoh,  and  said  unto 
him :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  the  Hebrews,  How  long 
wilt  thou  refuse  to  humble  thyself  before  me  ?  Let  my  people 
go,  that  they  may  serve  me  ;  else,  if  thou  refuse  to  let  my  people 
go,  behold,  to-morrow  will  I  bring  the  locusts  into  thy  coast  ^ : 
and  they  shall  cover  the  face  of  the  earth,  that  one  cannot  be 
able  to  see  the  earth  :  and  they  shall  eat  the  residue  of  that 
which  is  escaped,  which  remaineth  unto  you  from  the  hail,  and 
shall  eat  every  tree  which  groweth  for  you  out  of  the  field  :  and 
they  shall  fill  thy  houses,  and  the  houses  of  all  thy  servants, 
and  the  houses  of  all  the  Egyptians  ;  which  neither  thy  fathers, 
nor  thy  fathers'  fathers  have  seen,  since  the  day  that  they  were 
upon  the  earth  unto  this  day." 

And  he  turned  himself,  and  went  out  from  Pharaoh.  And 
Pharaoh's  servants  said  unto  him  :  "  How  long  shall  this  man 
be  a  snare  unto  us  ?  let  the  men  go,  that  they  may  serve  the 
Lord  their  God  :  knowest  thou  not  yet  that  Egypt  is  destroyed  ?  " 
And  Moses  and  Aa.ron  were  brought  again  unto  Pharaoh  :  and 
he  said  unto  them  :  ''  Go,  serve  the  Lord  your  God  :  but  who 
are  they  that  shall  go  ?  "  And  Moses  said :  "  We  will  go  with 
our  young  and  with  our  old,  with  our  sons  and  with  our  daugh- 
ters, with  our  flocks  and  with  our  herds  will  we  go  ;  for  we  must 
hold  a  feast  unto  the  Lord. "  And  he  said  unto  them  :  "  Let  the 
Lord  be  so  with  you,  as  I  will  let  you  go,  and  your  little  ones : 
look  to  it  ;  for  evil  is  before  you.^  Not  so:  go  now  ye  that  are 
men,  and  serve  the  Lord ;  for  that  ye  did  desire."  And  they 
were  driven  out  from  Pharaoh's  presence. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses:  '^ Stretch  out  thine  hand  over 
the  land  of  Egypt  for  the  locusts,  that  they  may  come  up  upon  the 
land  of  Egypt,  and  eat  every  herb  of  the  land,  even  all  that  the 
hail  hath  left."   And  Moses  stretched  forth  his  rod  over  the  land 

1  boiled.  Podded.  ^  coast.  Border. 

3  evil  is  before  you.  That  is,  you  have  evil  in  mind. 


THE   TEN   PLAGUES  95 

of  Egypt,  and  the  Lord  brought  an  east  wind  upon  the  land  all 
that  day,  and  all  that  night ;  and  when  it  was  morning,  the 
east  wind  brought  the  locusts.  And  the  locusts  went  up  over  all 
the  land  of  Egypt,  and  rested  in  all  the  coasts  of  Egypt :  very 
grievous  were  they ;  before  them  there  were  no  such  locusts  as 
they,  neither  after  them  shall  be  such.  For  they  covered  the 
face  of  the  whole  earth,  so  that  the  land  was  darkened;  and 
they  did  eat  every  herb  of  the  land,  and  all  the  fruit  of  the  trees 
which  the  hail  had  left :  and  there  remained  not  any  green  thing 
in  the  trees,  or  in  the  herbs  of  the  field,  through  all  the  land  of 
Egypt. 

Then  Pharaoh  called  for  Moses  and  Aaron  in  haste ;  and  he 
said :  ''  I  have  sinned  against  the  Lord  your  God,  and  against 
you.  Now  therefore  forgive,  I  pray  thee,  my  sin  only  this  once, 
and  intreat  the  Lord  your  God,  that  he  may  take  away  from  me 
this  death  only."  And  he  went  out  from  Pharaoh,  and  intreated 
the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  turned  a  mighty  strong  west  wind, 
which  took  away  the  locusts,  and  cast  them  into  the  Ked  Sea ; 
there  remained  not  one  locust  in  all  the  coasts  of  Egypt.  But  the 
Lord  hardened  Pharaoh's  heart,  so  that  he  would  not  let  the 
children  of  Israel  go. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  ^'  Stretch  out  thine  hand 
toward  heaven,  that  there  may  be  darkness  over  the  land  of  Egypt, 
even  darkness  which  may  be  felt."  And  Moses  stretched  forth 
his  hand  toward  heaven  ;  and  there  was  a  thick  darkness  in  all 
the  land  of  Egypt  three  days  :  they  saw  not  one  another,  neither 
rose  any  from  his  place  for  three  days :  but  all  the  children  of 
Israel  had  light  in  their  dwellings.  And  Pharaoh  called  unto 
Moses,  and  said  :  ''  Go  ye,  serve  the  Lord ;  only  let  your  flocks 
and  your  herds  be  stayed  :  let  your  little  ones  also  go  with  you." 
And  Moses  said :  "  Thou  must  give  us  also  sacrifices  and  burnt 
offerings,  that  we  may  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  our  God.  Our 
cattle  also  shall  go  with  us ;  there  shall  not  an  hoof  be  left  be- 
hind ;  for  thereof  must  we  take  to  serve  the  Lord  our  God  ;  and 
we  know  not  with  what  we  must  serve  the  Lord,  until  we  come 
thither."  But  the  Lord  hardened  Pharaoh  's  heart,  and  he  would 
not  let  them  go.  And  Pharaoh  said  unto  him  :  "  Get  thee  from 
me,  take  heed  to  thyself,  see  my  face  no  more ;  for  in  that  day 
thou  seest  my  face  thou  shalt  die."  And  Moses  said :  "  Thou 
hast  spoken  well,  I  will  see  thy  face  again  no  more."  And  Moses 
said  :   '^  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  About  midnight  will  I  go  out  into 


96  THE   EXODUS 

the  midst  of  Egypt :  and  all  the  firstborn  in  the  land  of  Egypt 
shall  die,  from  the  firstborn  of  Pharaoh  that  sitteth  upon  his 
throne,  even  unto  the  firstborn  of  the  maid-servant  that  is  be- 
hind the  mill ;  and  all  the  firstborn  of  the  beasts.  And  there 
shall  be  a  great  cry  throughout  all  the  land  of  Egypt,  such  as 
there  was  none  like  it,  nor  shall  be  like  it  any  more.  But 
igainst  any  of  the  children  of  Israel  shall  not  a  dog  move  its 
tongue,  against  man  or  beast :  that  ye  may  know  how  that  the 
Lord  doth  put  a  difference  between  the  Egyptians  and  Israel. 
And  all  these  thy  servants  shall  come  down  unto  me,  and  bow 
down  themselves  unto  me,  saying.  Get  thee  out,  and  all  the 
people  that  follow  thee  :  and  after  that  I  will  go  out.'^  And  he 
went  out  from  Pharaoh  in  a  great  anger. 

Institution  of  the  Passover  (Ex.  xii.  21-36).  Then  Moses 
called  for  all  the  elders  of  Israel,  and  said  unto  them :  "  Draw 
out  and  take  you  a  lamb  according  to  your  families,  and  kill  the 
passover.  And  ye  shall  take  a  bunch  of  hyssop,^  and  dip  it  in 
the  blood  that  is  in  the  basin,  and  strike  the  lintel  and  the  two 
side  posts  with  the  blood  that  is  in  the  basin  ;  and  none  of  you 
shall  go  out  at  the  door  of  his  house  until  the  morning.  For 
the  Lord  will  pass  through  to  smite  the  Egyptians  ;  and  when 
he  seeth  the  blood  upon  the  lintel,  and  on  the  two  side  posts, 
the  Lord  will  pass  over  the  door,  and  will  not  suffer  the  de- 
stroyer to  come  in  unto  your  houses  to  smite  you.  And  ye  shall 
observe  this  thing  for  an  ordinance  to  thee  and  to  thy  sons  for 
ever.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  ye  be  come  to  the  land 
which  the  Lord  will  give  you,  according  as  he  hath  promised, 
that  ye  shall  keep  this  service.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when 
your  children  shall  say  unto  you,  What  mean  ye  by  this  service  ? 
that  ye  shall  say,  It  is  the  sacrifice  of  the  Lord's  passover,  who 
passed  over  the  houses  of  the  children  of  Israel  in  Egypt,  when 
he  smote  the  Egyptians,  and  delivered  our  houses." 

And  the  people  bowed  the  head  and  worshipped.  And  the 
children  of  Israel  went  and  did  so ;  as  the  Lord  had  commanded 
Moses  and  Aaron,  so  did  they.  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  at 
midnight  the  Lord  smote  all  the  firstborn  in  the  land  of  Egypt, 
from  the  firstborn  of  Pharaoh  that  sat  on  his  throne  unto  the 
firstborn  of  the  captive  that  was  in  the  dungeon ;  and  all  the 
firstborn  of  cattle.  And  Pharaoh  rose  up  in  the  night,  he,  and 
1  hyssop.  Probably  wild  marjoram. 


THE   EXODUS  97 

all  his  servants,  and  all  the  Egyptians ;  and  there  was  a  great 
cry  in  Egypt ;  for  there  was  not  a  house  where  there  was  not  one 
dead. 

And  he  called  for  Moses  and  Aaron  by  night,  and  said  :  "  Rise 
up,  and  get  you  forth  from  among  my  people,  both  ye  and  the 
children  of  Israel ;  and  go,  serve  the  Lord,  as  ye  have  said. 
Also  take  your  flocks  and  your  herds,  as  ye  have  said,  and  be 
gone ;  and  bless  me  also."  And  the  Egyptians  were  urgent  upon 
the  people,  that  they  might  send  them  out  of  the  land  in  haste  ; 
for  they  said,  "  We  be  all  dead  men."  And  the  people  took 
their  dough  before  it  was  leavened,  their  kneadingtroughs  be- 
ing bound  up  in  their  clothes  upon  their  shoulders.  And  the 
children  of  Israel  did  according  to  the  word  of  Moses ;  and 
they  borrowed  of  the  Egyptians  jewels  of  silver,  and  jewels  of 
gold,  and  raiment :  and  the  Lord  gave  the  people  favor  in  the 
sight  of  the  Egyptians,  so  that  they  lent  unto  them  such  things 
as  they  required.    And  they  spoiled  the  Egyptians. 

The  Exodus  (Ex.  xii.  37-39;  xiii.  17-22;  xiv.  1-16,  19-31  ; 
XV.  1-4,  20,  21.)  And  the  children  of  Israel  journeyed  from  Ram- 
eses  to  Succoth,  about  six  hundred  thousand  on  foot  that  were 
men,  beside  children.  And  a  mixed  multitude*  went  up  also  with 
them  ;  and  flocks,  and  herds  even  very  much  cattle.  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. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Pharaoh  had  let  the  people  go, 
that  God  led  them  not  through  the  way  of  the  land  of  the  Phi- 
listines, although  that  was  near ;  for  God  said :  "  Lest  perad- 
venture  the  people  repent  when  they  see  war,  and  they  return 
to  Egypt."  But  God  led  the  people  about,  through  the  way  of 
the  wilderness  of  the  Red  Sea:  and  the  children  of  Israel  went 
up  harnessed^  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt.  And  Moses  took  the 
bones  of  Joseph  with  him  :  for  he  had  straitly  sworn  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel,  saying :  "  God  will  surely  visit  you  ;  and  ye 
shall  carry  up  my  bones  away  hence  with  you."  And  they  took 
their  journey  from   Succoth,  and  encamped  in   Etham,  in   the 

1  mixed  multitude.  That  is,  the  non-Israelites  with  whom  the  Hebrews  had 
intermarried,  and  the  children  of  these  marriages. 

2  harnessed.    R.  V.,  armed. 


98  THE   EXODUS 

edge  of  the  wilderness.  And  the  Lord  went  before  them  by 
day  in  a  pillar  of  cloud,  to  lead  them  the  way ;  and  by  night 
in  a  pillar  of  fire/  to  give  them  light ;  to  go  by  day  and  night : 
he  took  not  away  the  pillar  of  cloud  by  day,  nor  the  pillar  of 
fire  by  night,  from  before  the  people. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying  :  ^'  Speak  unto  the 
children  of  Israel,  that  they  turn  and  encamp  before  Pi-hahiroth, 
between  Migdol  and  the  sea,  over  against  Baal-zephon  :  before 
it  shall  ye  encamp  by  the  sea.  For  Pharaoh  will  say  of  the 
children  of  Israel,  They  are  entangled  in  the  land,  the  wilder- 
ness hath  shut  them  in.  And  I  will  harden  Pharaoh's  heart, 
that  he  shall  follow  after  them ;  and  I  will  be  honored  upon 
Pharaoh,  and  upon  all  his  host;  that  the  Egyptians  may  know 
that  I  am  the  Lord.'' 

And  they  did  so.  And  it  was  told  the  king  of  Egypt  that 
the  people  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  chariot,  and  took  his  people  with  him,  and 
all  the  chariots  of  Egypt,  for  the  children  of  Israel  went  out 
with  an  high  hand.^  But  the  Egyptians  pursued  after  them,  all 
the  horses  and  chariots  of  Pharaoh,  and  his  horsemen,  and  his 
army,  and  overtook  them  encamping  by  the  sea,  beside  Pi- 
hahiroth,  before  Baal-zephon. 

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  the  Lord.  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  \vith  us,  to  carry  us 
forth  out  of  Egypt  ?  Is  not  this  the  word  that  we  did  tell  thee 
in  Egypt,  saying.  Let  us  alone,  that  we  may  serve  the  Egypt- 
ians ?  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  the  Lord,  which  he  will  shew  you  to- 
day :  for  the  Egyptians  whom  ye  have  seen  today,  ye  shall  see 

1  It  is  customary  to-day  for  a  caravan  in  the  Arabian  desert  to  have  the  leader 
carry  aloft  a  brazier  of  coals,  so  that  its  smoke  by  day,  and  its  glow  by  night, 
may  be  a  guide  to  stragglers. 

2  with  a  high  hand.  Boldly;  defiantly. 


THE  EXODUS 


99 


them  again  no  more  for  ever.  The  Lord  shall  fight  for  you,  and 
ye  shall  hold  your  peace." 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  Wherefore  criest  thou  unto 
me  ?  speak  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  that  they  go  forward  : 
but  lift  thou  up  thy  rod,  and  stretch  out  thine  hand  over  the 
sea,  and  divide  it :  and  the  children  of  Israel  shall  go  on  dry 
ground  through  the  midst  of  the  sea." 

And  the  angel  of  God,  which  went  before  the  camp  of  Israel, 
removed  and  went  behind  them ;  and  the  pillar  of  cloud  went  from 


Egyptian  Chariot  (Ramses  II  at  the  Battle  of  Kadesh) 

before  their  face,  and  stood  behind  them  :  and  it  came  between 
the  camp  of  the  Egyptians  and  the  camp  of  Israel ;  and  it  was  a 
cloud  and  darkness  to  them,  but  it  gave  light  by  night  to  these  : 
so  that  the  one  came  not  near  the  other  all  the  night.  And  Moses 
stretched  out  his  hand  over  the  sea  ;  and  the  Lord  caused  the  sea 
to  go  back  by  a  strong  east  wind  all  that  night,  and  made  the  sea 
dry  land,  and  the  waters  were  divided.  And  the  children  of  Israel 
went  into  the  midst  of  the  sea  upon  the  dry  ground :  and  the  wa- 
ters were  a  wall  unto  them  on  their  right  hand,  and  on  their  left. 
And  the  Egyptians  pursued,  and  went  in  after  them  to  the  midst  of 
the  sea,  even  all  Pharaoh's  horses,  his  chariots,  and  his  horsemen. 


100  THE   EXODUS 

And  it  came  to  pass,  that  in  the  morning  watch  the  Lord 
looked  unto  the  host  of  the  Egyptians  through  the  pillar  of  fire 
and  of  the  cloud,  and  troubled  the  host  of  the  Egyptians.  And 
he  bound  their  chariot  wheels,  that  they  drave  them  heavily :  so 
that  the  Egyptians  said:  ''Let  us  flee  from  the  face  of  Israel; 
for  the  Lord  fighteth  for  them  against  the  Egyptians/'  And  the 
Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  Stretch  out  thine  hand  over  the  sea, 
that  the  waters  may  come  again  upon  the  Egyptians,  upon  their 
chariots,  and  upon  their  horsemen."  And  Moses  stretched  forth 
his  hand  over  the  sea,  and  the  sea  returned  to  its  strength  when 
the  morning  appeared;  and  the  Egyptians  fled  against  it;  and 
the  Lord  overthrew  the  Egyptians  in  the  midst  of  the  sea.  And 
the  waters  returned,  and  covered  the  chariots,  and  the  horsemen, 
and  all  the  host  of  Pharaoh  that  came  into  the  sea  after  them ; 
there  remained  not  so  much  as  one  of  them. 

Thus  the  Lord  saved  Israel  that  day  out  of  the  hand  of  the 
Egyptians  ;  and  Israel  saw  the  Egyptians  dead  upon  the  sea  shore. 
And  Israel  saw  that  great  w^ork  which  the  Lord  did  upon  the 
Egyptians:  and  the  people  feared  the  Lord,  and  believed  the 
Lord,  and  his  servant  Moses, 

Then  sang  Moses  and  the  children  of  Israel  this  song  unto  the 
Lord,  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 : 
Jehovah  is  his  name. 
Pharaoh's  chariots  and  his  host  hath  he  cast  into 

the  sea." 

And  Miriam  the  prophetess,  the  sister  of  Aaron,  took  a  tim- 
brel in  her  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." 


THE   JOURNEY   TO   SINAI  101 

The  Journey  to  Sinai  (Ex.  xv.  22-xvi.  1).  So  Moses  brought 
Israel  from  the  Red  Sea,  and  they  went  out  into  the  wilderness 
of  Shur ;  and  they  went  three  days  in  the  wilderness,  and  found 
no  water.  And  when  they  came  to  Marah,  they  could  not  drink 
of  the  waters  of  Marah,  for  they  were  bitter :  therefore  the  name 
of  it  was  called  Marah.  And  the  people  murmured  against  Moses, 
saying,  "  What  shall  we  drink  ?  "  And  he  cried  unto  the  Lord  ; 
and  the  Lord  shewed  him  a  tree,  which  when  he  had  cast  into 
the  waters,  the  waters  were  made  sweet.  There  he  made  for 
them  a  statute  and  an  ordinance,  and  there  he  proved  them,  and 
said:  "  If  thou  wilt  diligently  hearken  to  the  voice  of  the  Lord 
thy  God,  and  wilt  do  that  which  is  right  in  his  sight,  and  wilt 
give  ear  to  his  commandments,  and  keep  all  his  statutes,  I  will 
put  none  of  these  diseases  upon  thee,  which  I  have  brought  upon 
the  Egyptians :  for  I  am  the  Lord  that  healeth  thee." 

And  they  came  to  Elim,  where  were  twelve  wells  of  water, 
and  threescore  and  ten  palm  trees :  and  they  encamped  there  by 
the  waters.  And  they  took  their  journey  from  Elim,  and  all  the 
congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel  came  unto  the  wilderness 
of  Sin,  which  is  between  Elim  and  Sinai,  on  the  fifteenth  day 
of  the  second  month  after  their  departing  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt. 


IV 

ISRAEL   AT    SINAI 

The  Commandments  (Ex.  xix.  1-3,  9-20 ;  xx.  1-21 ;  xxiv. 
3-xxv.  9 ;  xxxi.  18).  In  the  third  month,  when  the  children  of 
Israel  were  gone  forth  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  the  same  day 
came  they  into  the  wilderness  of  Sinai ;  and  there  Israel  camped 
before  the  mount.  ^  And  Moses  went  up  unto  God.  And  the 
Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  Lo,  I  come  unto  thee  in  a  thick  cloud, 
that  the  people  may  hear  when  I  speak  with  thee,  and  believe 
thee  for  ever.'' 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses:  '^Go  unto  the  people,  and 
sanctify  them  to-day  and  to-morrow,  and  let  them  wash  their 
clothes,  and  be  ready  against  the  third  day  :  for  the  third  day 
the  Lord  will  come  down  in  the  sight  of  all  the  people  upon 
mount  Sinai.  And  thou  shalt  set  bounds  unto  the  people  round 
about,  saying.  Take  heed  to  yourselves,  that  ye  go  not  up  into 
the  mount,  or  touch  the  border  of  it:  whosoever  toucheth  the 
mount  shall  be  surely  put  to  death:  there  shall  not  an  hand 
touch  it,  but  he  shall  surely  be  stoned,  or  shot  through  ;  whether 
it  be  beast  or  man,  it  shall  not  live.  When  the  trumpet  sound- 
eth  long,  they  shall  come  up  to  the  mount." 

So  Moses  went  down  from  the  mount  unto  the  people,  and 
sanctified  the  people ;  and  they  washed  their  clothes.  And  he 
said  unto  the  people :  "  Be  ready  against  the  third  day  :  come 
not  at  your  wives."  And  it  came  to  pass  on  the  third  day  in 
the  morning,  that  there  were  thunders  and  lightnings,  and  a 
thick  cloud  upon  the  mount,  and  the  voice  of  the  trumpet  ex- 
ceeding loud ;  so  that  all  the  people  that  was  in  the  camp  trem- 

1  the  mount.  Sinai,  which  seemf?  to  be  the  same  as  Horeb,  "the  mountain  of 
God,"  is  by  tradition  identified  Avith  Jebel  Musa  near  the  southern  end  of  the 
triangular  Sinaitic  peninsula.  Certain  recent  investigators,  however,  believe  it 
to  have  been  outside  the  peninsula,  some  favoring  as  the  actual  site  Mt.  Serbal, 
northwest  of  Jebel  Musa;  others,  a  southwestern  peak  of  Mt.  Seir.  The  last- 
named  site  would  accord  with  its  apparent  nearness  to  Kadesh,  and  with  such 
passages  as: 

"Jehovah  came  from  Sinai, 
And  rose  from  Seir  unto  them."  —  Deut.  xxxiii.  2. 


THE   COMMANDMENTS  103 

bled.  And  Moses  brought  forth  the  people  out  of  the  camp  to 
meet  with  God  ;  and  they  stood  at  the  nether  part  of  the  mount. 
And  mount  Sinai  was  altogether  on  a  smoke,  because  the  Lord 
descended  upon  it  in  fire  :  and  the  smoke  thereof  ascended  as 
the  smoke  of  a  furnace,  and  the  whole  mount  quaked  greatly. 

And  when  the  voice  of  the  trumpet  sounded  long,  and  waxed 
louder  and  louder,  Moses  spake,  and  God  answered  him  by  a 
voice.  And  the  Lord  came  down  upon  mount  Sinai,  on  the  top  of 
the  mount:  and  the  Lord  called  Moses  up  to  the  top  of  the  mount ; 
and  Moses  went  up.   And  God  spake  all  these  words,  saying,  — 

''  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  which  have  brought  thee  out  of  the 
land  of  Egypt,  out  of  the  house  of  bondage. 

"  Thou  shalt  have  no  other  gods  before  me. 

"  Thou  shalt  not  make  unto  thee  any  graven  image,  or  any 
likeness  of  any  thing  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  hate  me  ;  and  shewing  mercy  unto  thousands  of 
them  that  love  me,  and  keep  my  commandments. 

''  Thou  shalt  not  take  the  name  of  the  Lord  thy  God  in  vain ; 
for  the  Lord  w^ill  not  hold  him  guiltless  that  taketh  his  name 
in  vain. 

''  Kemember  the  sabbath  day,  to  keep  it  holy.  Six  days  shalt 
thou  labor,  and  do  all  thy  work  :  but  the  seventh  day  is  the 
sabbath  of  the  Lord  thy  God :  in  it  thou  shalt  not  do  any  work, 
thou,  nor  thy  son,  nor  thy  daughter,  thy  manservant,  nor  thy 
maidservant,  nor  thy  cattle,  nor  thy  stranger  that  is  within  thy 
gates  :  for  in  six  days  the  Lord  made  heaven  and  earth,  the  sea, 
and  all  that  in  them  is,  and  rested  the  seventh  day  :  wherefore 
the  Lord  blessed  the  sabbath  day,  and  hallowed  it. 

"  Honor  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  neighbor. 

"  Thou  shalt  not  covet  thy  neighbor's  house  ;  thou  shalt  not 
covet  thy  neighbor's  wife,  nor  his  manservant,  nor  his  maid- 
1  water  under  the  earth.  See  the  diagram,  p.  2. 


104  ISRAEL   AT   SINAI 

servant,  nor  his  ox,  nor  his  ass,  nor  any  thing  that  is  thy  neigh- 
bor's." 

And  all  the  people  saw  the  thunderings,  and  the  lightnings, 
and  the  noise  of  the  trumpet,  and  the  mountain  smoking:  and 
when  the  people  saw  it,  they  removed,  and  stood  afar  off.  And 
they  said  unto  Moses  :  '^  Speak  thou  with  us,  and  we  will  hear: 
but  let  not  God  speak  with  us,  lest  we  die."  And  Moses  said 
unto  the  people  :  "  Fear  not :  for  God  is  come  to  prove  you,  and 
that  his  fear  may  be  before  your  faces,  that  ye  sin  not."  And 
the  people  stood  afar  off,  and  Moses  drew  near  unto  the  thick 
darkness  where  God  was. 

And  Moses  came  and  told  the  people  all  the  words  of  the 
Lord,  and  all  the  judgments:  and  all  the  people  answered  with 
one  voice,  and  said :  "  All  the  words  which  the  Lord  hath  said 
will  we  do."  And  Moses  wrote  all  the  words  of  the  Lord,  and 
rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  builded  an  altar  under  the 
hill,  and  twelve  pillars,  according  to  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel. 
And  he  sent  young  men  of  the  children  of  Israel,  which  offered 
burnt  offerings,  and  sacrificed  peace  offerings  of  oxen  unto  the 
Lord.  And  Moses  took  half  of  the  blood,  and  put  it  in  basins; 
and  half  of  the  blood  he  sprinkled  on  the  altar.  And  he  took 
the  book  of  the  covenant,  and  read  in  the  audience  of  the  peo- 
ple :  and  they  said :  "  All  that  the  Lord  hath  said  will  we  do, 
and  be  obedient."  And  Moses  took  the  blood,  and  sprinkled  it 
on  the  people,  and  said :  ''  Behold  the  blood  of  the  covenant, 
which  the  Lord  hath  made  with  you  concerning  all  these 
words." 

Then  went  up  Moses,  and  Aaron,  Nadab,  and  Abihu,  and 
seventy  of  the  elders  of  Israel :  and  they  saw  the  God  of  Israel  ; 
and  there  was  under  his  feet  as  it  were  a  paved  work  of  a  sap- 
phire stone,  and  as  it  were  the  very  heaven  for  clearness.  And 
upon  the  nobles  of  the  children  of  Israel  he  laid  not  his  hand : 
also  they  saw  God,  and  did  eat  and  drink. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  Come  up  to  me  in  the 
mount,  and  be  there  :  and  I  will  give  thee  tables  of  stone,  and 
a  law,  and  commandments  which  I  have  written  ;  that  tliou 
mayest  teach  them."  And  Moses  rose  up,  and  his  minister 
Joshua :  and  Moses  went  up  into  the  mount  of  God.  And  he 
said  unto  the  elders  :  "  Tarry  ye  here  for  us,  until  we  come 
again  unto  you :  and  behold,  Aaron  and  Hur  are  with  you :  if 
any  man  have  any  matters  to  do,  let  him  come  unto  them."  And 


THE   GOLDEN  CALF  105 

Moses  went  up  into  the  mount,  and  a  cloud  covered  the  mount. 
And  the  glory  of  the  Lord  abode  upon  mount  Sinai,  and  the 
cloud  covered  it  in  six  days  :  and  the  seventh  day  he  called  unto 
Moses  out  of  the  midst  of  the  cloud.  And  the  sight  of  the  glory 
of  the  Lord  was  like  devouring  fire  on  the  top  of  the  mount  in 
the  eyes  of  the  children  of  Israel.  And  Moses  went  into  the 
midst  of  the  cloud,  and  gat  him  up  into  the  mount :  and  Moses 
was  in  the  mount  forty  days  and  forty  nights. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying  :  —  "  Speak  unto  the 
children  of  Israel,  that  they  bring  me  an  offering  :  of  every  man 
that  giveth  it  willingly  with  his  heart  ye  shall  take  my  offering. 

"  And  this  is  the  offering  which  ye  shall  take  of  them  ;  gold, 
and  silver,  and  brass,  and  blue,  and  purple,  and  scarlet,  and  fine 
linen,  and  goats'  hair,  and  rams'  skins  dyed  red,  and  badgers' 
skins,  and  shittim  wood,^  oil  for  the  light,  spices  for  anointing 
oil,  and  for  sweet  incense,  onyx  stones,  and  stones  to  be  set  in 
the  ephod,^  and  in  the  breastplate.  And  let  them  make  me  a 
sanctuary  ;  that  I  may  dwell  among  them.  According  to  all  that  I 
shew  thee,  after  the  pattern  of  the  tabernacle,  and  the  pattern 
of  all  the  instruments  thereof,  even  so  shall  ye  make  it." 

[^Here  follow  detailed  instructions  for  making :  (1)  the 
"ark  of  testimony,"  a  sacred  chest  to  contain  the  stone  tablets 
of  the  law,  and  to  be  surmounted  by  a  "  mercy  seat,"  a  sym- 
bolic throne  for  Jehovah  with  two  golden  cherubim  at  its 
ends  ;  (2)  the  table  of  shewbread  ;  (3)  the  golden  candlestick  ; 
(4)  the  tabernacle ;  (5)  the  altar  of  burnt  offering  ;  (6)  the 
curtained  enclosure  to  surround  the  tabernacle  ;  (7)  the  priestly 
garments  ;  and  (8)  the  altar  of  incense.^ 

And  he  gave  unto  Moses,  when  he  had  made  an  end  of  com- 
muning with  him  upon  mount  Sinai,  two  tables  of  testimony, 
tables  of  stone,  written  with  the  finger  of  God. 

The  Golden  Calf  (Ex.  xxxii.;  xxxiii.  4-6).  And  when  the 
people  saw  that  Moses  delayed  to  come  down  out  of  the  mount, 
the  people  gathered  themselves  together  unto  Aaron,  and  said 
unto  him  :  ''  Up,  make  us  gods,  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 
1  shittim  wood.  Acacia.  2  ephod.  See  note,  p.  214. 


106  ISRAEL   AT   SINAI 

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, 
after  he  had  made  it  a  molten  calf :  and  they  said :  ''  These  be 
thy  gods,  0  Israel,  which  brought  thee  up  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt."  And  when  Aaron  saw  it,  he  built  an  altar  before  it; 
and  Aaron  made  proclamation,  and  said :  "  To-morrow  is  a  feast 
to  the  Lord."  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. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  '^  Go,  get  thee  down ;  for  thy 
people,  which  thou  broughtest  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  have 
corrupted  themselves :  they  have  turned  aside  quickly  out  of  the 
way  which  I  commanded  them ;  they  have  made  them  a  molten 
calf,  and  have  worshipped  it,  and  have  sacrificed  thereunto,  and 
said,  These  be  thy  gods,  0  Israel,  which  have  brought  thee  up 
out  of  the  land  of  Egypt."  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  I 
have  seen  this  people,  and  behold,  it  is  a  stiffnecked  people  : 
now  therefore  let  me  alone,  that  my  wrath  may  wax  hot  against 
them,  and  that  I  may  consume  them :  and  I  will  make  of  thee 
a  great  nation." 

And  Moses  besought  the  Lord  his  God,  and  said :  "  Lord, 
why  doth  thy  wrath  w^ax  hot  against  thy  people,  which  thou 
hast  brought  forth  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt  with  great  power, 
and  with  a  mighty  hand  ?  Wherefore  should  the  Egyptians 
speak  and  say.  For  mischief  did  he  bring  them  out,  to  slay  them 
in  the  mountains,  and  to  consume  them  from  the  face  of  the 
earth  ?  Turn  from  thy  fierce  wrath,  and  repent  of  this  evil 
against  thy  people.  Remember  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Israel,  thy 
servants,  to  whom  thou  swarest  by  thine  own  self,  and  saidst 
unto  them,  I  will  multiply  your  seed  as  the  stars  of  heaven, 
and  all  this  land  that  I  have  spoken  of  will  I  give  unto  your 
seed,  and  they  shall  inherit  it  for  ever."  And  the  Lord  repented 
of  the  evil  which  he  thought  to  do  unto  his  people. 

And  Moses  turned,  and  went  down  from  the  mount,  and  the 
two  tables  of  the  testimony  were  in  his  hand :  the  tables  were 
written  on  both  their  sides ;  on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other 
were  they  written.  And  the  tables  were  the  work  of  God,  and 
the  writing  was  the  writing  of  God,  graven  upon  the  tables. 
And  when  Joshua  heard  the  noise  of  the  people  as  they  shouted, 
he  said  unto  Moses:  "There  is  a  noise  of  war  in  the  camp." 


THE    GOLDEN    CALF  107 

And  he  said :  "  It  is  not  the  voice  of  them  that  shout  for 
mastery,  neither  is  it  the  voice  of  them  that  cry  for  being  over- 
come :  but  the  noise  of  them  that  sing  do  I  hear." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  as  soon  as  he  came  nigh  unto  the  camp, 
that  he  saw  the  calf,  and  the  dancing :  and  ]VIoses'  anger  waxed 
hot,  and  he  cast  the  tables  out  of  his  hands,  and  brake  them 
beneath  the  mount.  And  he  took  the  calf  which  they  had  made, 
and  burnt  it  in  the  fire,  and  ground  it  to  powder,  and  strawed 
it  upon  the  water,  and  made  the  children  of  Israel  drink  of  it. 

And  Moses  said  unto  Aaron  :  ''  What  did  this  people  unto 
thee,  that  thou  hast  brought  so  great  a  sin  upon  them  ?  "  And 
Aaron  said :  "  Let  not  the  anger  of  my  lord  wax  hot :  thou 
knowest  the  people,  that  they  are  set  on  mischief.  For  they  said 
unto  me.  Make  us  gods,  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  I  said  unto  them. 
Whosoever  hath  any  gold,  let  them  break  it  off.  So  they  gave 
it  me  :  then  I  cast  it  into  the  fire,  and  there  came  out  this 
calf." 

And  when  Moses  saw  that  the  people  were  broken  loose  ; 
(for  Aaron  had  let  them  loose  unto  their  shame  among  their 
enemies)  then  Moses  stood  in  the  gate  of  the  camp,  and  said : 
"  Who  is  on  the  Lord's  side  ?  let  him  come  unto  me."  And  all 
the  sons  of  Levi  gathered  themselves  together  unto  him.  And 
he  said  unto  them  :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  Put 
every  man  his  sword  by  his  side,  and  go  in  and  out  from  gate 
to  gate  throughout  the  camp,  and  slay  every  man  his  brother, 
and  every  man  his  companion,  and  every  man  his  neighbor." 
And  the  children  of  Levi  did  according  to  the  word  of  Moses  : 
and  there  fell  of  the  people  that  day  about  three  thousand  men. 
For  Moses  had  said  :  "  Consecrate  yourselves  today  to  the  Lord, 
even  every  man  upon  his  son  ;  and  upon  his  brother ;  that  he 
may  bestow  upon  you  a  blessing  this  day." 

And  it  came  to  pass  on  the  morrow,  that  Moses  said  unto  the 
people  :  "  Ye  have  sinned  a  great  sin  :  and  now  will  I  go  up 
unto  the  Lord  ;  peradventure  I  shall  make  an  atonement  for 
your  sin."  And  Moses  returned  unto  the  Lord,  and  said  :  "  Oh, 
this  people  have  sinned  a  great  sin,  and  have  made  them  gods 
of  gold.  Yet  now,  if  thou  wilt  forgive  their  sin  —  and  if  not, 
blot  me,  I  pray  thee,  out  of  thy  book  which  thou  hast  written." 
And    the   Lord    said   unto    Moses;   ''  Whosoever  hath   sinned 


108  ISRAEL  AT   SINAI 

against  me,  him  will  I  blot  out  of  my  book.  Therefore  now  go, 
lead  the  people  unto  the  place  of  which  I  have  spoken  unto  thee  : 
behold,  mine  angel  shall  go  before  thee.  Nevertheless  in  the  day 
when  I  visit  I  will  visit  their  sin  upon  them."  And  the  Lord 
plagued  the  people,  because  they  made  the  calf,  which  Aaron 
made. 

And  when  the  people  heard  these  evil  tidings,  they  mourned  : 
and  no  man  did  put  on  him  his  ornaments.  For  the  Lord  had  said 
unto  Moses :  "  Say  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  Ye  are  a  stitf- 
necked  people :  I  will  come  up  into  the  midst  of  thee  in  a  mo- 
ment, and  consume  thee  :  therefore  now  put  off  thy  ornaments 
from  thee,  that  I  may  know  what  to  do  unto  thee."  And  the 
children  of  Israel  stripped  them  of  their  ornaments  by  the  mount 
Horeb. 

Renewal  of  the  Covenant  (Ex.  xxxiii.  12-23 ;  xxxiv.  1-4, 

28-33).  And  Moses  said  unto  the  Lord  :  "  See,  thou  say  est  unto 
me,  Bring  up  this  people  :  and  thou  hast  not  let  me  know  whom 
thou  wilt  send  with  me.  Yet  thou  hast  said,  I  know  thee  by 
name,  and  thou  hast  also  found  grace  in  my  sight.  Now  there- 
fore, I  pray  thee,  if  I  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  shew  me 
now  thy  way,  that  I  may  know  thee,  that  I  may  find  grace  in 
thy  sight :  and  consider  that  this  nation  is  thy  people."  And 
he  said  :  '^  My  presence  shall  go  with  thee,  and  I  will  give  thee 
rest."  And  he  said  unto  him  :  "  If  thy  presence  go  not  with 
me,  carry  us  not  up  hence.  For  wherein  shall  it  be  known  here 
that  I  and  thy  people  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight  ?  is  it  not 
in  that  thou  goest  with  us  ?  so  shall  we  be  separated,  I  and  thy 
people,  from  all  the  people  that  are  upon  the  face  of  the  earth." 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  ''I  will  do  this  thing  also  that 
thou  hast  spoken  :  for  thou  hast  found  grace  in  my  sight,  and  I 
know  thee  by  name." 

And  he  said  :  "  I  beseech  thee,  shew  me  thy  glory."  And  he 
said  :  "  I  will  make  all  my  goodness  pass  before  thee,  and  I  will 
proclaim  the  name  of  the  Lord  before  thee  ;  and  will  be  gracious 
to  whom  I  will  be  gracious,  and  will  shew  mercy  on  whom  I  will 
shew  mercy."  And  he  said :  "  Thou  canst  not  see  my  face  :  for 
there  shall  no  man  see  me,  and  live."  And  the  Lord  said  :  "  Be- 
hold, there  is  a  place  by  me,  and  thou  shalt  stand  upon  a  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 


RENEWAL   OF   THE   COVENANT  109 

while  I  pass  by  :  and  I  will  take  away  mine  hand,  and  thou 
shalt  see  my  back  parts:  but  my  face  shall  not  be  seen." 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses:  ''Hew  thee  two  tables  of 
stone  like  unto  the  first :  and  I  will  write  upon  these  tables  the 
words  that  were  in  the  first  tables,  which  thou  brakest.  And  be 
ready  in  the  morning,  and  come  up  in  the  morning  unto  mount 
Sinai,  and  present  thyself  there  to  me  in  the  top  of  the  mount. 
And  no  man  shall  come  up  with  thee,  neither  let  any  man  be 
seen  throughout  all  the  mount ;  neither  let  the  flocks  nor  herds 
feed  before  that  mount." 

And  he  hewed  two  tables  of  stone  like  unto  the  first ;  and 
Moses  rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  went  up  unto  mount 
Sinai,  as  the  Lord  had  commanded  him,  and  took  in  his  hand 
the  two  tables  of  stone.  And  the  Lord  descended  in  the  cloud, 
and  stood  with  him  there,  and  proclaimed  the  name  of  the  Lord. 
And  the  Lord  passed  by  before  him,  and  proclaimed  :  "  Jehovah, 
the  Lord  God,  merciful  and  gracious,  longsuffering,  and  abun- 
dant in  goodness  and  truth,  keeping  mercy  for  thousands,  for- 
giving iniquity  and  transgression  and  sin,  and  that  will  by  no 
means  clear  the  guilty  ;  visiting  the  iniquity  of  the  fathers  upon 
the  children,  and  upon  the  children's  children,  unto  the  third 
and  the  fourth  generation."  And  Moses  made  haste,  and 
bowed  his  head  toward  the  earth,  and  worshipped.  And  he  said  : 
*'  If  now  I  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  0  Lord,  let  my  Lord,  I 
pray  thee,  go  among  us;  for  it  is  a  stiffnecked  people ;  and  pardon 
our  iniquity  and  our  sin,  and  take  us  for  thine  inheritance." 

And  he  said :  ''  Behold,  I  make  a  covenant :  before  all  thy 
people  I  will  do  marvels,  such  as  have  not  been  done  in  all  the 
earth,  nor  in  any  nation  :  and  all  the  people  among  which  thou 
art  shall  see  the  work  of  the  Lord  :  for  it  is  a  terrible  thing 
that  I  will  do  with  thee.  Observe  thou  that  which  I  command 
thee  this  day  :  behold,  I  drive  out  before  thee  the  Amorite,  and 
the  Canaanite,  and  the  Hittite,  and  the  Perizzite,  and  the  Hivite, 
and  the  Jebusite.  Take  heed  to  thyself,  lest  thou  make  a  cov- 
enant with  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  whither  thou  goest,  lest 
it  be  for  a  snare  in  the  midst  of  thee  :  but  ye  shall  destroy  their 
altars,  break  their  images,  and  cut  down  their  Asherim  :  ^   for 

1  {Asherim,  pi.  of  askerah.  A  wooden  post  planted  at  Canaanite  places  of  wor- 
ship near  the  altar  of  a  god.  In  the  Old  Testament  it  is  commonly  associated 
with  the  upright  stone  (mazzebah)  that  represented  a  god  and  served  as  his  altar. 
See  note,  p.  169.) 


110  ISRAEL   AT   SINAI 

thou  shalt  worship  no  other  god :  for  the  Lord,  whose  name  is 
Jealous,  is  a  jealous  God." 

And  he  was  there  with  the  Lord  forty  days  and  forty  nights ; 
he  did  neither  eat  bread,  nor  drink  water.  And  he  wrote  upon 
the  tables  the  words  of  the  covenant,  the  ten  commandments. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Moses  came  down  from  mount 
Sinai  with  the  two  tables  of  testimony  in  Moses'  hand,  when 
he  came  down  from  the  mount,  that  Moses  wist  not  that  the 
skin  of  his  face  shone  ^  while  he  talked  with  him.  And  when 
Aaron  and  all  the  children  of  Israel  saw  Moses,  behold,  the  skin 
of  his  face  shone  ;  and  they  were  afraid  to  come  nigh  him.  And 
Moses  called  unto  them ;  and  Aaron  and  all  the  rulers  of  the 
congregation  returned  unto  him :  and  Moses  talked  with  them. 
And  afterward  all  the  children  of  Israel  came  nigh  :  and  he  gave 
them  in  commandment  all  that  the  Lord  had  spoken  with  him 
in  mount  Sinai.  And  till  Moses  had  done  speaking  with  them, 
he  put  a  veil  on  his  face. 

The  Tabernacle  (Ex.  xxxv.  20,  21;  xl.  17,  33;  Num.  ix. 
15-17;  Ex.  xxxiii.  7-11).  And  all  the  congregation  of  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  departed  from  the  presence  of  Moses.  And  they 
came,  every  one  whose  heart  stirred  him  up,  and  every  one 
whom  his  spirit  made  willing,  and  they  brought  the  Lord's  offer- 
ing to  the  work  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  and  for 
all  his  service,  and  for  the  holy  garments. 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  first  month  in  the  second  year,  on 
the  first  day  of  the  month,  that  the  tabernacle  was  reared  up. 
And  he  reared  up  the  court  round  about  the  tabernacle  and  the 
altar,  and  set  up  the  hanging  of  the  court  gate.  So  Moses  fin- 
ished the  work. 

And  on  the  day  that  the  tabernacle  was  reared  up  the  cloud 
covered  the  tabernacle,  even  the  tent  of  the  testimony  :  and  at 
even  there  was  upon  the  tabernacle  as  it  were  the  appearance 
of  fire,  until  the  morning.  So  it  was  alway  :  the  cloud  covered 
it  by  day,  and  the  appearance  of  fire  by  night.  And  when  the 
cloud  was  taken  up  from  the  tabernacle,  then  after  that  the 
children  of  Israel  journeyed:  and  in  the  place  where  the  cloud 
abode,  there  the  children  of  Israel  pitched  their  tents. 

1  shone.  The  Hebrew  word  here  is  related  to  the  word  for  'horn,'  and  the 
Latin  Vulgate  renders  it  cornuta,  '  horned.'  This  accounts  for  the  early  repr«- 
sentations  of  Moses  with  horns,  as  in  Michael  Angelo's  statue. 


JETHRO'S   ADVICE  111 

And  Moses  took  the  tabernacle,  and  pitched  it  without  the 
camp,  afar  off  from  the  camp,  and  called  it  the  tabernacle  of  the 
congregation.  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  every  one  that  sought 
the  Lord  went  out  unto  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation, 
which  was  witliout  the  camp. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Moses  went  out  unto  the  taber- 
nacle, that  all  the  people  rose  up,  and  stood  every  man  at  his 
tent  door,  and  looked  after  Moses,  until  he  was  gone  into  the 
tabernacle.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  Moses  entered  into  the  taber- 
nacle, the  cloudy  pillar  descended,  and  stood  at  the  door  of  the 
tabernacle,  and  the  Lord  talked  with  Moses.  And  all  the  people 
saw  the  cloudy  pillar  stand  at  the  tabernacle  door  :  and  all  the 
people  rose  up  and  worshipped,  every  man  at  his  tent  door.  And 
the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses  face  to  face,  as  a  man  speaketh  unto 
his  friend.  And  he  turned  again  into  the  camp;  but  his  servant 
Joshua,  the  son  of  Nun,  a  young  man,  departed  not  out  of  the 
tabernacle. 

Jethro's  Advice  (Ex.  xviii.).  When  Jethro,  the  priest  of 
Midian,  Moses'  father  in  law,  heard  of  all  that  God  had  done 
for  Moses,  and  for  Israel  his  people,  and  that  the  Lord  had 
brought  Israel  out  of  Egypt ;  then  Jethro,  Moses'  father  in  law, 
took  Zipporah,  Moses'  wife,  after  he  had  sent  her  back,  and  her 
two  sons;  of  which  the  name  of  the  one  was  Gershom ;  '^for, '^ 
he  said,  "  I  have  been  an  alien  in  a  strange  land  :  "  and  the  name 
of  the  other  was  Eliezer ;  ^  ''for  the  God  of  my  father,"  said  he, 
^'  was  mine  help,  and  delivered  me  from  the  sword  of  Pharaoh.'' 
And  Jethro,  Moses'  father  in  law,  came  with  his  sons  and  his 
wife  unto  Moses  into  the  wilderness,  where  he  encamped  at  the 
mount  of  God.  And  he  said  unto  Moses :  "  I  thy  father  in  law 
Jethro  am  come  unto  thee,  and  thy  wife,  and  her  two  sons  with 
her."  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  the  Lord  had  done 
unto  Pharaoh  and  to  the  Egyptians  for  Israel's  sake,  and  all  the 
travail  that  had  come  upon  them  by  the  way,  and  how  the  Lord 
delivered  them.  And  Jethro  rejoiced  for  all  the  goodness  which 
the  Lord  had  done  to  Israel,  whom  he  had  delivered  out  of  the 
hand  of  the  Egyptians.  And  Jethro  said  :  "  Blessed  be  the  Lord, 
1  Eliezer,  'My  God  is  a  help.' 


112  ISRAEL   AT   SINAI 

who  hath  delivered  you  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Egyptians,  and 
rOut  of  the  hand  of  Pharaoh.  Now  I  know  that  the  Lord  is 
greater  than  all  gods :  for  in  the  thing  wherein  they  dealt 
proudly  he  was  above  them."  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  by  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  by  thee  from  morning  unto  even  ?  "  And  Moses 
said  unto  his  father  in  law  :  "  Because  the  people  come  unto  me 
to  enquire  of  God :  when  they  have  a  matter  they  come  unto 
me ;  and  I  judge  between  one  and  another,  and  I  do  make  them 
know  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  shall  be 
with  thee :  Be  thou  for  the  people  to  God-ward,  that  thou  may- 
est  bring  the  causes  unto  God :  and  thou  shalt  teach  them  ordi- 
nances and  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,  and  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 :  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  shall  also  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  thou- 
sands, rulers  of  hundreds,  rulers  of  fifties,  and  rulers  of  tens. 
And  they  judged  the  people  at  all  seasons  :  the  hard  causes  they 


JEALOUSY    OF   MIRIAM   AND   AARON  113 

brought  unto  Moses,  but  every  small  matter  they  judged  them- 
selves. And  Moses  let  his  father  in  law  depart :  and  he  went 
his  way  into  his  own  land. 

Appointment  of  Seventy  Elders  (Num.  xi.  16,  17,  24-29). 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  IMoses  :  ''  Gather  unto  me  seventy 
men  of  the  elders  of  Israel,  whom  thou  knowest  to  be  the  elders 
of  the  people,  and  officers  over  them ;  and  bring  them  unto  the 
tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  that  they  may  stand  there  with 
thee.  And  I  will  come  down  and  talk  with  thee  there  :  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 
thou  bear  it  not  thyself  alone." 

And  Moses  went  out,  and  told  the  people  the  words  of  the 
Lord,  and  gathered  the  seventy  men  of  the  elders  of  the  peo- 
ple, and  set  them  round  about  the  tabernacle.  And  the  Lord 
came  down  in  a  cloud,  and  spake  unto  him,  and  took  of  the 
spirit  that  was  upon  him,  and  gave  it  unto  the  seventy  elders  : 
and  it  came  to  pass  that,  when  the  spirit  rested  upon  them, 
they  prophesied,  and  did  not  cease.  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  of  them  tliat  were  written,  but  went  not  out 
unto  the  tabernacle  :  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  servant  of  Moses,  one  of  his  young  men,  answered  and  said, 
^'  My  lord  Moses,  forbid  them."  And  Moses  said  unto  him  : 
''  Enviest  thou  for  my  sake  ?  would  God  that  all  the  Lord's 
people  were  prophets,  and  that  the  Lord  would  put  his  spirit 
upon  them ! " 

Jealousy  of  Miriam  and  Aaron  (Num.  xii.  1-15).  And 
Miriam  and  Aaron  spake  against  Moses  because  of  the  Ethiopian 
woman  whom  he  had  married  :  for  he  had  married  an  Ethiopian 
woman.  And  they  said :  "  Hath  the  Lord  indeed  spoken  only 
by  Moses  ?  hath  he  not  spoken  also  by  us  ?  "  And  the  Lord 
heard  it.  Now  the  man  Moses  was  very  meek,  above  all  the 
men  which  were  upon  the  face  of  the  earth.  And  the  Lord 
spake  suddenly  unto  Moses,  and  unto  Aaron,  and  unto  Miriam  : 
"  Come  out  ye  three  unto  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation." 


114  ISRAEL   AT   SINAI 

And  they  three  came  out.  And  the  Lord  came  down  in  the 
pillar  of  the  cloud,  and  stood  in  the  door  of  the  tabernacle,  and 
called  Aaron  and  Miriam  :  and  they  both  came  forth.  And  he 
said :  ''  Hear  now  my  words  :  If  there  be  a  prophet  among  you, 
I  the  Lord  will  make  myself  known  unto  him  in  a  vision,  and 
will  speak  unto  him  in  a  dream.  My  servant  Moses  is  not  so, 
who  is  faithful  in  all  mine  house.  With  him  will  I  speak  mouth 
to  mouth,  even  manifestly,  and  not  in  dark  speeches;  and  the 
similitude  of  the  Lord  shall  he  behold  :  wherefore  then  were 
ye  not  afraid  to  speak  against  my  servant  Moses  ?  "  And  the 
anger  of  the  Lord  was  kindled  against  them  ;  and  he  departed. 
And  the  cloud  departed  from  off  the  tabernacle  ;  and  behold, 
Miriam  became  leprous,  white  as  snow :  and  Aaron  looked  upon 
Miriam,  and  behold,  she  was  leprous.  And  Aaron  said  unto 
Moses :  ^'  Alas,  my  lord,  I  beseech  thee,  lay  not  the  sin  upon 
us,  wherein  we  have  done  foolishly,  and  wherein  we  have  sinned. 
Let  her  not  be  as  one  dead,  of  whom  the  flesh  is  half  con- 
sumed when  he  cometh  out  of  his  mother's  womb.''  And  Moses 
cried  unto  the  Lord,  saying,  "  Heal  her  now,  0  God,  I  beseech 
thee."  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  If  her  father  had  but 
spit  in  her  face,  should  she  not  be  ashamed  seven  days  ?  let 
her  be  shut  out  from  the  camp  seven  days,  and  after  that  let 
her  be  received  in  again."  And  Miriam  was  shut  out  from  the 
camp  seven  days :  and  the  people  journeyed  not  till  Miriam  was 
brought  in  again. 


ISRAEL    IN    THE    WILDERNESS 

Departure  from  Sinai  (Num.  x.  11,  12,  29-36).  And  it  came 
to  pass  on  the  twentieth  day  of  the  second  month,  in  the  second 
year,  that  the  cloud  was  taken  up  from  off  the  tabernacle  of  the 
testimony.  And  the  children  of  Israel  took  their  journeys  out 
of  the  wilderness  of  Sinai ;  and  the  cloud  rested  in  the  wilder- 
ness of  Paran. 

And  Moses  said  unto  Hobab,  the  son  of  Raguel  the  Midian- 
ite,  Moses'  father  in  law  :  ^  "  We  are  journeying  unto  the  place 
of  which  the  Lord  said,  I  will  give  it  you :  come  thou  with  us, 
and  we  will  do  thee  good :  for  the  Lord  hath  spoken  good  con- 
cerning Israel."  And  he  said  unto  him  :  "  I  will  not  go  ;  but  I 
will  depart  to  mine  own  land,  and  to  my  kindred."  And  he 
said  :  "  Leave  us  not,  I  pray  thee ;  forasmuch  as  thou  knowest 
how  we  are  to  encamp  in  the  wilderness,  and  thou  mayest  be  to 
us  instead  of  eyes.  And  it  shall  be,  if  thou  go  with  us,  yea,  it 
shall  be,  that  what  goodness  the  Lord  shall  do  unto  us,  the  same 
will  we  do  unto  thee." 

And  they  departed  from  the  mount  of  the  Lord  three  days' 
journey  :  and  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  went  before 
them  in  the  three  days'  journey,  to  search  out  a  resting  place 
for  them.  And  the  cloud  of  the  Lord  was  upon  them  by  day, 
when  they  went  out  of  the  camp. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  ark  set  forward,  that  Moses 
said:  "Rise  up,  Lord,  and  let  thine  enemies  be  scattered;  and 
let  them  that  hate  thee  flee  before  thee."  And  when  it  rested, 
he  said:  ''Return,  0  Lord,  unto  the  many  thousands  of  Israel." 

The  Manna  and  the  Quails  (Ex.  xvi.  2,  3,  9-30 ;  Num.  xi. 
7-9  ;  Ex.  xvi.  32-xvii.  1  ;  Num.  xi.  4-6,  10-15,  18-23,  30-35 ; 
XX.  1).  And  the  whole  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel 
murmured  against  Moses  and  Aaron  in  the  wilderness  :  and  the 
children  of  Israel  said  unto  them  :  "  Would  to  God  we  had  died 
by  the  hand  of  the  Lord  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  when  we  sat  by 
1  See  note,  p.  82. 


116  ISRAEL  IN   THE   WILDERNESS 

the  flesh  pots,  and  when  we  did  eat  bread  to  the  full ;  for  ye 
have  brought  us  forth  into  this  wilderness,  to  kill  this  whole 
assembly  with  hunger." 

And  Moses  spake  unto  Aaron  :  ''  Say  unto  all  the  congrega- 
tion of  the  children  of  Israel,  Come  near  before  the  Lord :  for 
he  hath  heard  your  murmurings."  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  Aaron 
spake  unto  the  whole  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel,  that 
they  looked  toward  the  wilderness,  and  behold,  the  glory  of  the 
Lord  appeared  in  the  cloud.  And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses, 
saying  :  "  I  have  heard  the  murmurings  of  the  children  of  Israel : 
speak  unto  them,  saying,  In  the  morning  ye  shall  be  filled  with 
bread  ;  and  ye  shall  know  that  I  am  the  Lord  your  God." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  that  in  the  morning  the  dew  lay  round 
about  the  host.  And  when  the  dew  that  lay  was  gone  up,  be- 
hold, upon  the  face  of  the  wilderness  there  lay  a  small  round 
thing,  as  small  as  the  hoar  frost  on  the  ground.  And  when  the 
children  of  Israel  saw  it,  they  said  one  to  another :  ^'  It  is 
manna  :  "  ^  for  they  wist  not  what  it  was.  And  Moses  said  unto 
them :  "  This  is  the  bread  which  the  Lord  hath  given  you  to 
eat.  This  is  the  thing  which  the  Lord  hath  commanded.  Gather 
of  it  every  man  according  to  his  eating,  an  omer  ^  for  every  man, 
according  to  the  number  of  your  persons  j  take  ye  every  man  for 
them  which  are  in  his  tents." 

And  the  children  of  Israel  did  so,  and  gathered,  some  more, 
some  less.  And  when  they  did  mete  ^  it  with  an  omer,  he  that 
gathered  much  had  nothing  over,  and  he  that  gathered  little  had 
no  lack;  they  gathered  every  man  according  to  his  eating. 

And  Moses  said,  "  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  worms,  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 
bread,  two  omers  for  one  man :  and  all  the  rulers  of  the  congre- 
gation came  and  told  Moses.  And  he  said  unto  them  :  "  This 
is  that  which  the  Lord  hath  said,  To-morrow  is  the  rest  of  the 
holy  sabbath  unto  the  Lord :   bake  that  which  ye  will  bake  to- 

1  It  is  manna.  The  Hebrew  means,  '  What  is  it  ? ' 

2  omer.  A  measure  amounting  to  a  little  over  seven  pints. 
8  mete.  Measure. 


THE   MANNA   AND   THE   QUAILS  117 

day,  and  seethe  tliat  ye  will  seethe;  and  that  which  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-day ;  for  to-day  is  a  sabbath  unto  the  Lord :  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,  that  there  went  out  some  of  the  people 
on  the  seventh  day  for  to  gather,  and  they  found  none.  And  the 
Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  ''  How  long  refuse  ye  to  keep  my  com- 
mandments and  my  laws  ?  See,  for  that  the  Lord  hath  given  you 
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  manna  was  as  coriander  seed,  and  the  color  thereof 
as  the  color  of  bdellium.  And  the  people  went  about,  and  gath- 
ered it,  and  ground  it  in  mills,  or  beat  it  in  a  mortar,  and  baked 
it  in  pans,  and  made  cakes  of  it :  and  the  taste  of  it  was  as  the 
taste  of  fresh  oil.  And  when  the  dew  fell  upon  the  camp  in  the 
night,  the  manna  fell  upon  it.  And  Moses  said :  ''  This  is  the 
thing  which  the  Lord  commandeth,  Fill  an  omer  of  it  to  be  kept 
for  your  generations ;  that  they  may  see  the  bread  wherewith  I 
have  fed  you  in  the  wilderness,  when  I  brought  you  forth  from 
the  land  of  Egypt."  And  Moses  said  unto  Aaron  :  *'  Take  a  pot 
and  put  an  omer  full  of  manna  therein,  and  lay  it  up  before  the 
Lord,  to  be  kept  for  your  generations."  As  the  Lord  commanded 
Moses,  so  Aaron  laid  it  up  before  the  Testimony,  to  be  kept. 
And  the  children  of  Israel  did  eat  manna  forty  years,  until  they 
came  to  the  land  inhabited  ;  they  did  eat  manna,  until  they  came 
unto  the  borders  of  the  land  of  Canaan.  And  all  the  congrega- 
tion of  the  children  of  Israel  journeyed  from  the  wilderness  of 
Sin,  after  their  journeys,  according  to  the  commandment  of  the 
Lord,  and  pitched  in  Rephidim. 

And  the  mixed  multitude  that  was  among  them  fell  a  lusting  : 
and  the  children  of  Israel  also  wept  again,  and  said  :  "  Who  shall 
give  us  flesh  to  eat  ?  We  remember  the  fish,  which  we  did  eat 
in  Egypt  freely  ;  the  cucumbers,  and  the  melons,  and  the  leeks, 
and  the  onions  and  the  garlic  :  but  now  our  soul  is  dried  away  : 
there  is  nothing  at  all,  beside  this  manna,  before  our  eyes." 

Then  Moses  heard  the  people  weep  throughout  their  families, 


118  ISRAEL   IN   THE   WILDERNESS 

every  man  in  the  door  of  his  tent :  and  the  anger  of  the  Lord 
was  kindled  greatly ;  Moses  also  was  displeased.  And  Moses 
said  unto  the  Lord  :  "  Wherefore  hast  thou  afflicted  thy  servant  ? 
and  wherefore  have  I  not  found  favor  in  thy  sight,  that  thou 
layest  the  burden  of  all  this  people  upon  me  ?  Have  I  conceived 
all  this  people  ?  have  I  begotten  them,  that  thou  shouldest  say 
unto  me,  Carry  them  in  thy  bosom,  as  a  nursing  father  bear- 
eth  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  if  thou  deal  thus  with  me,  kill  me,  I 
pray  thee,  out  of  hand,  if  I  have  found  favor  in  thy  sight ;  and 
let  me  not  see  my  wretchedness." 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  Say  thou  unto  the  people, 
Sanctify  yourselves  against  to-morrow,  and  ye  shall  eat  flesh  : 
for  ye  have  wept  in  the  ears  of  the  Lord,  saying.  Who  shall 
give  us  flesh  to  eat  ?  for  it  was  well  with  us  in  Egypt :  there- 
fore the  Lord  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  even  a  whole  month,  until  it  come  out  at  your 
nostrils,  and  it  be  loathsome  unto  you  :  because  that  ye  have  de- 
spised the  Lord  which  is  among  you,  and  have  wept  before  him, 
saying.  Why  came  we  forth  out  of  Egypt  ?  " 

And  Moses  said :  "  The  people,  among  whom  I  am,  are  six 
hundred  thousand  footmen  ;  and  thou  hast  said,  I  will  give  them 
flesh,  that  they  may  eat  a  whole  month.  Shall  the  flocks  and 
the  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  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  Is  the  Lord's  hand  waxed 
short  ?  Thou  shalt  see  now  whether  my  word  shall  come  to  pass 
unto  thee  or  not." 

And  Moses  gat  him  into  the  camp,  he  and  the  elders  of  Israel. 
And  there  went  forth  a  wind  from  the  Lord,  and  brought  quails 
from  the  sea,  and  let  them  fall  by  the  camp,  as  it  were  a  day's 
journey  on  this  side,  and  as  it  were  a  day's  journey  on  the  other 
side,  round  about  the  camp,  and  as  it  were  two  cubits  high  upon 
the  face  of  the  earth.  And  the  people  stood  up  all  that  day, 
and  all  that  night,  and  all  the  next  day,  and  they  gathered 
the  quails :  he  that  gathered  least  gathered  ten  homers  :  ^  and 
1  A  homer  is  about  ten  bushels. 


WATER   FROM   THE   ROCK  119 

they  spread  them  all  abroad  for  themselves  round  about  the 
camp.  And  while  the  flesh  was  yet  between  their  teeth,  ere  it 
was  chewed,  the  wrath  of  the  Lord  was  kindled  against  the 
people,  and  the  Lord  smote  the  people  with  a  very  great  plague. 
And  he  called  the  name  of  that  place  Kibroth-hattaavah  :  ^  be- 
cause there  they  buried  the  people  that  lusted.  And  the  people 
journeyed  from  Kibroth-hattaavah  unto  Hazeroth  ;  and  abode 
at  Hazeroth. 

Then  came  the  children  of  Israel,  even  the  whole  congrega- 
tion, into  the  desert  of  Zin  in  the  first  month  :  and  the  people 
abode  in  Kadesh;  and  Miriam  died  there,  and  was  buried  there. 

Water  from  the  Rock  (Num.  xx.  2-13).  And  there  was 
no  water  for  the  congregation  :  and  they  gathered  themselves  to- 
gether against  Moses  and  against  Aaron.  And  the  people  chode 
with  Moses,  and  spake,  saying  :  *'  Would  God  that  we  had  died 
when  our  brethren  died  before  the  Lord !  And  why  have  ye 
brought  up  the  congregation  of  the  Lord  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  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  Moses  and  Aaron 
went  from  the  presence  of  the  assembly  unto  the  door  of  the 
tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  and  they  fell  upon  their  faces : 
and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  appeared  unto  them. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Closes,  saying  :  "  Take  the  rod,  and 
gather  thou  the  assembly  together,  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." 

And  Moses  took  the  rod  from  before  the  Lord,  as  he  com- 
manded him.  And  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  with  his  rod  he  smote  the  rock 
twice  :  and  the  water  came  out  abundantly,  and  the  congrega- 
tion drank,  and  their  beasts  also. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses  and  Aaron:  '^Because  ye 
believed  me  not,  to  sanctify  me  in  the  eyes  of  the  children  of 
1  Kibroth-hattaavah .  'The  graves  of  lusting.' 


120  ISRAEL  IN   THE   WILDERNESS 

Israel,  therefore  ye  shall  not  bring  this  congregation  into  the 
land  which  I  have  given  them."  This  is  the  water  of  Meribah  ;  ^ 
because  the  children  of  Israel  strove  with  the  Lord,  and  he  was 
sanctified  in  them. 

The  Fight  with  Amalek  (Ex.  xvii.  8-16).  Then  came  Ama- 
lek,^  and  fought  with  Israel  in  K-ephidim.  And  Moses  said  unto 
Joshua:  "Choose  us  out  men,  and  go  out,  fight  with  Amalek: 
to-morrow  I  will  stand  on  the  top  of  the  hill  with  the  rod  of 
God  in  mine  hand."  So  Joshua  did  as  Moses  had  said  to  him, 
and  fought  with  Amalek :  and  Moses,  Aaron,  and  Hur  went  up 
to  the  top  of  the  hill.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Moses  held 
up  his  hand,  that  Israel  prevailed :  and  when  he  let  down  his 
hand,  Amalek  prevailed.  But  Moses'  hands  were  heavy  ;  and 
they  took  a  stone,  and  put  it  under  him,  and  he  sat  thereon ; 
and  Aaron  and  Hur  stayed  up  his  hands,  the  one  on  the  one 
side,  and  the  other  on  the  other  side  ;  and  his  hands  were  steady 
until  the  going  down  of  the  sun.  And  Joshua  discomfited 
Amalek  and  his  people  with  the  edge  of  the  sword. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  "  Write  this  for  a  memorial 
in  a  book,  and  rehearse  it  in  the  ears  of  Joshua :  for  I  w^ill  ut- 
terly put  out  the  remembrance  of  Amalek  from  under  heaven." 
And  Moses  built  an  altar ;  and  called  the  name  of  it  Jehovah- 
nissi:^  for  he  said:  '^Because  the  Lord  hath  sworn  that  the  Lord 
will  have  war  with  Amalek  from  generation  to  generation." 

Discouragement  at  the  Report  of  the  Spies  (Num.  xiii.  1, 
2,  17-33 ;  xiv.  1-10,  25-45).  And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,* 
saying :  ''  Send  thou  men,  that  they  may  search  the  land  of 
Canaan,  which  I  give  unto  the  children  of  Israel :  of  every  tribe 
of  their  fathers  shall  ye  send  a  man,  every  one  a  ruler  among 
them." 

And  Moses  sent  them  to  spy  out  the  land  of  Canaan,  and  said 
unto  them:  "Get  you  up  this  way  southward,  and  go  up  into 
the  hill  country  :  and  see  the  land,  what  it  is ;  and  the  people 
that  dwelleth  therein,  whether  they  be  strong  or  weak,  few  or 

1  Meribah.  '  Strife.' 

2  Amalek.  The  Anialekites,  a  nomadic  tribe  on  the  southern  borders  of  Canaan, 
would  naturally  dispute  their  occupation  of  the  pasture  lands  about  Kadesh. 

3  Jehovah-nissi.  '  Jehovah  my  banner.' 

*  In  Deut.  i.  22  the  proposal  to  send  spies  into  Canaan  is  recounted  as  having 
come  from  the  people. 


DISCOURAGEMENT   AT   THE   REPORT   OF  THE   SPIES      121 

many  ;  and  what  the  land  is  that  they  dwell  in,  whether  it  be 
good  or  bad  ;  and  what  cities  they  be  that  they  dwell  in,  whether 
in  tents,  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. 

So  they  went  up,  and  searched  the  land  from  the  wilderness 
of  Zin  unto  Rehob,  to  the  entrance  of  Hamath.  And  they  as- 
cended by  the  south,  and  came  unto  Hebron;  where  Ahiman, 
Sheshai,  and  Talmai,  the  children  of  Anak,  w^ere.  And  they  came 
unto  the  valley  of  Eshcol,  and  cut  down  from  thence  a  branch 


Amorites.    Keliefs  from  the  Kameseum,  of  about  1300  b.  c. 


•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  from  searching  of  the  land  after  forty 
days.  And  they  went  and  came  to  Moses,  and  to  Aaron,  and  to 
all  the  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel,  unto  the  wilder- 
ness of  Paran,  to  Kadesh  ;  and  brought  back  word  unto  them, 
and  unto  all  the  congregation,  and  shewed  them  the  fruit  of  the 
land.  And  they  told  him,  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  be 
strong  that  dwell  in  the  land,  and  the  cities  are  walled,  and  very 
great :  and  moreover  we  saw  the  children  of  Anak  there.  The 
Amalekites  dwell  in  the  land  of  the  south :  and  the  Hittites, 
and  the  Jebusites,  and  the  Amorites,  dwell  in  the  mountains : 
1  Eshcol.  'Grape-cluster.'  The  district  is  still  noted  for  its  vineyards. 


122  ISRAEL   IN   THE   WILDERNESS 

and  the  Canaanites  dwell  by  the  sea,  and  by  the  coast  of  Jor- 
dan." ^ 

And  Caleb  stilled  the  people  before  Moses,  and  said :  ''  Let 
lis  go  up  at  once,  and  possess  it ;  for  we  are  well  able  to  over- 
come it."  But  the  men  that  went  up  with  him  said  :  ''  We  be 
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  giants,  the 
sons  of  Anak,  which  come  of  the  giants :  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  hath  the  Lord  brought  us  unto 
this  land,  to  fall  by  the  sword,  that  our  wives  and  our  children 

1  The  spies  passed  through  the  whole  length  of  Canaan,  which  is  about  180 
miles  from  south  to  north,  and  about  40  miles  in  its  av^erage  breadth  between 
the  Mediterranean  and  the  river  Jordan.  Physically  this  country  may  be  viewed 
as  made  up  of  three  distinct  strips,  running  north  and  south:  (1)  the  fertile  sea- 
coast  plain;  (2)  the  "hill  country,"  a  backbone  of  limestone  mountains,  rising 
from  foot-hills  on  the  side  of  the  plain,  but  on  the  east  dropping  abruptly  to  (3) 
the  valley  of  the  Jordan,  beyond  which  rise  the  highlands  of  Moab  and  Gilead. 
Politically,  the  condition  of  Canaan  in  the  14th  century  b.  c. — that  is,  not 
long  before  the  conquest  —  has  now  been  made  known  by  the  famous  Amarna 
letters,  a  collection  of  clay  tablets,  written  in  cuneiform  script,  discovered  in 
1887  in  a  royal  record-chamber  at  Tel  el-Amarna  in  Egypt.  These  tablets  con- 
tain correspondence  addressed  by  the  kings  of  Babylonia  and  other  states  of 
western  Asia,  and  especially  by  vassal-kings  and  Elgyptian  officials  in  Pales- 
tine to  the  court  of  Amenhotep  III  and  IV,  who  reigned  about  b.  c.  1411-1358, 
Centuries  before  this  time  Canaan  had  been  subject  to  Babylonia,  and  the  let- 
ters show  that  Babylonian  was  still  the  language  of  diplomacy  throughout  the 
region.  But  at  this  time  Canaan  was  at  least  nominally  subject  to  Egypt.  It 
was  peopled  chiefly  by  Semites,  descendants  of  early  invaders  from  the  desert 
such  as  the  Hebrews  themselves  were.  The  Canaanites  Avere  divided  by  the 
broken  hilly  country  into  numerous  little  city  kingdoms,  often  at  war  with  one 
another,  and,  at  the  time  of  the  letters,  only  slackly  held  in  vassalage  by 
Egypt.  The}-  had  a  well-developed  civilization.  Their  artisans  were  proficient  in 
metal  working  and  weaving,  and  a  busy  traffic  passed  between  town  and  town. 
A  fact  of  special  interest  revealed  by  the  letters  is  that  the  country  was  already 
harassed  with  invasion  by  a  Beduin  people  called  Khabiri. 

*  eateth  vp  the  inhabitants.  That  is,  by  their  continual  warfare. 


DISCOURAGEMENT   AT   THE   REPORT   OF   THE   SPIES      123 

should  be  a  prey  ?  were  it  not  better  for  us  to  return  into 
Egypt  ?  "  And  they  said  one  to  another :  "  Let  us  make  a  cap- 
tain, and  let  us  return  into  Egypt." 

Then  Moses  and  Aaron  fell  on  their  faces  before  all  the  as- 
sembly of  the  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel.  And 
Joshua  the  son  of  Nun,  and  Caleb  the  son  of  Jephunneh,  which 
were  of  them  that  searched  the  land,  rent  their  clothes  :  and 
they  spake  unto  all  the  company  of  the  children  of  Israel,  say- 
ing :  "  The  land,  which  we  passed  through  to  search  it,  is  au 
exceeding  good  land.  If  the  Lord  delight  in  us,  then  he  will 
bring  us  into  this  land,  and  give  it  us ;  a  land  which  floweth 
with  milk  and  honey.  Only  rebel  not  ye  against  "the  Lord, 
neither  fear  ye  the  people  of  the  land  ;  for  they  are  bread  for 
us:  their  defence  is  departed  from  them,  and  the  Lord  is  with 
us  :  fear  them  not." 

But  all  the  congregation  bade  stone  them  with  stones.  And  the 
glory  of  the  Lord  appeared  in  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation 
before  all  the  children  of  Israel. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses  and  unto  Aaron,  saying  : 
"  How  long  shall  I  bear  with  this  evil  congregation,  which 
murmur  against  me  ?  I  have  heard  the  murmurings  of  the 
children  of  Israel,  which  they  murmur  against  me.  Say  unto 
them.  As  I  live,  saith  the  Lord,  as  ye  have  spoken  in  mine 
ears,  so  will  I  do  to  you  ;  your  carcasses  shall  fall  in  this  wilder- 
ness ;  and  all  that  were  numbered  of  you,  according  to  your 
whole  number,  from  twenty  years,  old  and  upward,  which  have 
murmured  against  me,  surely  ye  shall  not  come  into  the  land, 
concerning  which  I  sware  to  make  you  dwell  therein,  save  Caleb 
the  son  of  Jephunneh,  and  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun.  But  your 
little  ones,  which  ye  said  should  be  a  prey,  them  will  I  bring 
in,  and  they  shall  know  the  land  which  ye  have  despised. 

"  And  your  children  shall  wander  in  the  wilderness  forty  years, 
and  bear  your  whoredoms,  until  your  carcasses  be  wasted  in  the 
wilderness.  After  the  number  of  the  days  in  which  ye  searched 
the  land,  even  forty  days,  each  day  for  a  year,  shall  ye  bear 
your  iniquities,  even  forty  years,  and  ye  shall  know  my  aliena- 
tion. Tomorrow  turn  you,  and  get  you  into  the  wilderness  by 
the  way  of  the  Red  Sea." 

And  the  men  which  Moses  sent  to  search  the  land,  who  re- 
turned, and  made  all  the  congregation  to  murmur  against  him, 
by  bringing  up  a  slander  upon  the  land,  even   those  men   that 


124  ISKAEL  IN   THE   WILDERNESS 

did  bring  up  the  evil  report  upon  the  land,  died  by  the  plague 
before  the  Lord.  But  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun,  and  Caleb  the  son 
of  Jephunneh,  which  were  of  the  men  that  went  to  search  the 
land,  lived  still. 

And  Moses  told  these  sayings  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  top  of  the  mountain,  saying : 
*'  Lo,  we  be  here,  and  will  go  up  unto  the  place  which  the  Lord 
hath  promised :  for  we  have  sinned.'^  And  Moses  said:  ''Where- 
fore now  do  ye  transgress  the  commandment  of  the  Lord  ?  but 
it  shall  not  prosper.  Go  not  up,  for  the  Lord  is  not  among  you  ; 
that  ye  be  not  smitten  before  your  enemies.  For  the  Amalek- 
ites  and  the  Canaanites  are  there  before  you,  and  ye  shall  fall 
by  the  sword  :  because  ye  are  turned  away  from  the  Lord,  there- 
fore the  Lord  will  not  be  with  you.'' 

But  they  presumed  to  go  up  unto  the  hill  top :  nevertheless 
the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord,  and  Moses,  departed  not 
out  of  the  camp.  Then  the  Amalekites  came  down,  and  the 
Canaanites  which  dwelt  in  that  hill,  and  smote  them,  and  dis- 
comfited them,  even  unto  Hormah. 

Revolt  of  Da  than  and  Abiram  (Kum.  xvi.  l,  2,  12-15, 
25-34).  Then  Da  than  and  Abiram,  the  sons  of  Eliab  the  son 
of  Pallu,  son  of  Reuben,  took  men  :  and  they  rose  up  before 
Moses. 

And  Moses  sent  to  call  Dathan  and  Abiram,  the  sons  of 
Eliab;  which  said  :  ''We  will  not  come  up  :  is  it  a  small  thing 
that  thou  hast  brought  us  up  out  of  a  land  that  floweth  with 
milk  and  honey,  to  kill  us  in  the  wilderness,  but  thou  must 
needs  make  thyself  also  a  prince  over  us  ?  Moreover  thou  hast 
not  brought  us  into  a  land  that  floweth  with  milk  and  honey, 
or  given  us  inheritance  of  fields  and  vineyards  :  wilt  thou  put 
out  the  eyes  ^  of  these  men  ?  we  will  not  come  up." 

And  Moses  was  very  wroth,  and  said  unto  the  Lord  :  "  Ke- 
spect  not  thou  their  offering :  I  have  not  taken  one  ass  from 
them,  neither  have  I  hurt  one  of  them.'' 

And  .Moses  rose  up  and  went  unto  Dathan  and  Abiram ;  and 

the  elders   of  Israel  followed  him.     And  he   spake  unto  the 

congregation,  saying  :  "  Depart,  I  pray  you,  from  the  tents  of 

these  wicked  men,  and  touch  nothing  of  theirs,  lest  ye  be  con- 

'^put  out  the  eyes.    That  is,  "  throw  dust  in  the  eyes." 


KORAH   PUNISHED   FOR  CLAIMING   PRIESTLY   RIGHTS      125 

sumed  in  all  their  sins."  And  Dathan  and  Abiram  came  out, 
and  stood  in  the  door  of  their  tents,  and  their  wives,  and  their 
sons,  and  their  little  children.  And  Moses  said  :  •'  Hereby  ye 
shall  know  that  the  Lord  hath  sent  me  to  do  all  these  works ; 
for  I  have  not  done  them  of  mine  own  mind.  If  these  men  die 
the  common  death  of  all  men,  or  if  they  be  visited  after  the 
visitation  of  all  men  ;  then  the  Lord  hath  not  sent  me.  But  if 
the  Lord  make  a  new  thing,  and  the  earth  open  her  mouth,  and 
swallow  them  up,  with  all  that  appertain  unto  them,  and  they 
go  down  quick  ^  into  the  pit ;  then  shall  ye  understand  that 
these  men  have  provoked  the  Lord." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  as  he  had  made  an  end  of  speaking  all  these 
words,  that  the  ground  clave  asunder  that  was  under  them :  and 
the  earth  opened  her  mouth,  and  swallowed  them  up,  and  their 
houses.  They,  and  all  that  appertained  to  them,  went  down 
alive  into  the  pit,  and  the  eartli  closed  upon  them. 

And  all  Israel  that  were  round  about  them  fled  at  the  cry  of 
them :  for  they  said,  "  Lest  the  earth  swallow  us  up  also." 

Korah  Punished  for  Claiming  Priestly  Rights  (Num.  xvi. 
1-7,  19-24,  27,  35).  i^ow  Korah,  with  certain  of  the  children  of 
Israel,  two  hundred  and  fifty  princes  of  the  assembly  —  famous 
in  the  congregation,  men  of  renown  —  gathered  themselves  to- 
gether against  Moses  and  against  Aaron,  and  said  unto  them : 
"  Ye  take  too  much  upon  you,  seeing  all  the  congregation  are 
holy,  every  one  of  them,  and  the  Lord  is  among  them  :  where- 
fore then  lift  ye  up  yourselves  above  the  congregation  of  the 
Lord?" 

And  when  Moses  heard  it,  he  fell  upon  his  face  :  and  he  spake 
unto  Korah  and  unto  all  his  company,  saying:  "Even  to-mor- 
row the  Lord  will  shew  who  are  his,  and  who  is  holy  ;  and  will 
cause  him  to  come  near  unto  him  :  even  him  whom  he  hath 
chosen  will  he  cause  to  come  near  unto  him.  This  do  ;  Take  you 
censers,  Korah,  and  all  his  company  ;  and  put  fire  therein,  and 
put  incense  in  them  before  the  Lord  to-morrow :  and  it  shall  be 
that  the  man  whom  the  Lord  doth  choose,  he  shall  be  holy." 

So  Korah  gathered  all  the  congregation  against  them  unto  the 

door  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation  :  and  the  glory  of  the 

Lord  appeared  unto  all  the  congregation.  And  the  Lord  spake 

unto    Moses   and    unto   Aaron,  saying :    *'  Separate   yoursslves 

1  quick.  Alive. 


126  ISRAEL   IN   THE   WILDERNESS 

from  among  this  congregation,  that  I  may  consume  them  in  a 
moment." 

And  they  fell  upon  their  faces,  and  said  :  "0  God,  the  God 
of  the  spirits  of  all  flesh,  shall  one  man  sin,  and  wilt  thou  be 
wroth  with  all  the  congregation  ?  "  And  the  Lord  spake  unto 
Moses,  saying  :  "  Speak  unto  the  congregation,  saying.  Get  you 
up  from  about  the  tabernacle."  So  they  gat  them  up  from  the 
tabernacle,  on  every  side.  And  there  came  out  a  fire  from  the 
Lord,  and  consumed  the  two  hundred  and  fifty  men  that  ofi'ered 


The  Plague  and  the  Budding  of  Aaron's  Rod  (Num.  xvi. 
41-xvii.  11).  But  on  the  morrow  all  the  congregation  of  the 
children  of  Israel  murmured  against  Moses  and  against  Aaron, 
saying :  "  Ye  have  killed  the  people  of  the  Lord." 

1  The  story  of  Korah's  punishment  for  asserting  the  claim  that  all  Israel 
should  share  the  privileges  of  Levi,  is  in  the  received  text  expanded  so  as  to 
further  represent  Korah  as  a  Levite  claiming  that  all  the  Levites  should  share 
in  the  priesthood  of  the  house  of  Aaron.  For  the  sake  of  clearness,  the  passages 
that  show  this  further  view  of  the  story  are  here  given  separately  :  — 

And  Moses  said  unto  Korah  :  "  Hear,  I  pray  you,  ye  sons  of  Levi  :  seemeth  it 
but  a  small  thing  unto  you,  that  the  God  of  Israel  hath  separated  you  from  the 
congregation  of  Israel,  to  bring  you  near  to  himself  to  do  the  service  of  the  tab- 
ernacle of  the  Lord,  and  to  stand  before  the  congregation  to  minister  unto  them  ? 
And  he  hath  brought  thee  near  to  him,  and  all  thy  brethren  the  sons  of  Levi 
with  thee  :  and  seek  ye  the  priesthood  also  ?  For  which  cause  both  thou  and  all 
thy  company  are  gathered  together  against  the  Lord  :  and  what  is  Aaron,  that 
ye  murmur  against  him  ?  " 

And  Moses  said  unto  Korah  :  "  Be  thou  and  all  thy  company  before  the  Lord, 
thou,  and  they,  and  Aaron,  to-morrow  :  and  take  every  man  his  censer,  and  put 
incense  in  them,  and  bring  ye  before  the  Lord  every  man  his  censer,  two 
hundred  and  fifty  censers  ;  thou  also,  and  Aaron,  each  of  you  his  censer."  And 
they  took  every  man  his  censer,  and  put  fire  in  them,  and  laid  incense  thereon, 
and  stood  in  the  door  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation  with  Moses  and 
Aaron. 

[The  fire  from  the  Lord  then  destroys  Korah  and  his  company.] 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying  :  "  Speak  unto  Eleazar  the  son  of 
Aaron  the  priest,  that  he  take  up  the  censers  out  of  the  burning,  and  scatter 
thou  the  fire  3'onder  ;  for  they  are  hallowed.  The  censers  of  these  sinners 
against  their  own  souls,  let  them  make  them  broad  plates  for  a  covering  of  the 
altar  :  for  they  offered  them  before  the  Lord,  therefore  they  are  hallowed  :  and 
they  shall  be  a  sign  unto  the  children  of  Israel." 

And  Eleazar  the  priest  took  the  brazen  censers,  wherewith  they  that  were 
burnt  had  offered  ;  and  they  were  made  broad  plates  for  a  covering  of  the  altar  : 
to  be  a  memorial  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  that  no  stranger,  which  is  not  of 
the  fieed  of  Aaron,  come  near  to  offer  incense  before  the  Lord  ;  that  he  be  not 
as  Korah,  and  as  his  company  :  as  the  Lord  said  to  him  by  the  hand  of  Moses. 


THE   PLAGUE   AND   THE    BUDDING   OF   AARON's    ROD     127 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  congregation  was  gathered 
against  Moses  and  against  Aaron,  that  they  looked  toward  the 
tabernacle  of  the  congregation  :  and  beliold,  the  cloud  covered 
it,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  appeared.  And  Moses  and  Aaron 
came  before  the  tabernacle  of-  the  congregation.  And  the  Lord 
spake  unto  Moses,  saying:  "Get  you  up  from  among  this  con- 
gregation, that  I  may  consume  them  as  in  a  moment."  And  they 
fell  upon  their  faces^  And  Moses  said  unto  Aaron  :  "  Take  a 
censer,  and  put  fire  therein  from  off  the  altar,  and  put  on  in- 
cense, and  go  quickly  unto  the  congregation,  and  make  an  atone- 
ment for  them :  for  there  is  wrath  gone  out  from  the  Lord ;  the 
plague  is  begun."  And  Aaron  took  as  Moses  commanded,  and 
ran  into  the  midst  of  the  congregation ;  and  behold,  the  plague 
was  begun  among  the  people  :  and  he  put  on  incense,  and  made 
an  atonement  for  the  people.  And  he  stood  between  the  dead 
and  the  living ;  and  the  plague  was  stayed.  Now  they  that  died 
in  the  plague  were  fourteen  thousand  and  seven  hundred,  beside 
them  that  died  about  the  matter  of  Korah.  And  Aaron  returned 
unto  Moses  unto  the  door  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation  : 
and  the  plague  was  stayed. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying :  "  Speak  unto  the 
children  of  Israel,  and  take  of  every  one  of  them  a  rod,  a  rod 
for  each  father's  house,  of  all  their  princes  according  to  the 
house  of  their  fathers  twelve  rods  :  write  thou  every  man's  name 
upon  his  rod.  And  thou  shalt  write  Aaron's  name  upon  the  rod 
of  Levi :  for  one  rod  shall  be  for  the  head  of  the  house  of  their 
fathers.  And  thou  shalt  lay  them  up  in  the  tabernacle  of  the 
congregation  before  the  testimony,  where  I  will  meet  with  you. 
And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  the  man's  rod,  whom  I  shall 
choose,  shall  blossom  :  and  I  will  make  to  cease  from  me  the 
murmurings  of  the  children  of  Israel,  whereby  they  murmur 
against  you." 

And  Moses  spake  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  and  every  one 
of  their  princes  gave  him  a  rod  apiece,  for  each  prince  one,  ac- 
cording to  their  fathers'  houses,  even  twelve  rods  :  and  the  rod 
of  Aaron  was  among  their  rods.  And  Moses  laid  up  the  rods 
before  the  Lord  in  the  tabernacle  of  witness.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  that  on  the  morrow  Moses  went  into  the  tabernacle  of 
witness ;  and  behold,  the  rod  of  Aaron  for  the  house  of  Levi 
was  budded,  and  brought  forth  buds,  and  bloomed  blossoms,  and 
yielded  almonds.  And  Moses  brought  out  all  the  rods  from  be- 


128 


ISRAEL   IN   THE   WILDERNESS 


fore  the  Lord  unto  all  the  children  of  Israel :  and  they  looked, 
and  took  every  man  his  rod.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses : 
"  Bring  Aaron's  rod  again  before  the  testimony,  to  be  kept  for 
a  token  against  the  rebels ;  and  thou  shalt  quite  take  away  their 
murmurings  from  me,  that  they  die  not."  And  Moses  did  so: 
as  the  Lord  commanded  him,  so  did  he. 


Canaanlte  Woman  from  Ashkelon, 
as  sculptured  on  the  Temple  of 
Ramses  II  at  Karnak. 


VI 

FROM  KADESH  TO  THE  EAST  OF  JORDAN 

The  Edomites  Refuse  Israel  Passage  (Num.  xx.  14-21). 
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  have  dwelt  in  Egypt  a  long  time  ;  and  the  Egypt- 
ians vexed  us,  and  our  fathers  :  and  when  we  cried  unto  the 
Lord,  he  heard  our  voice,  and  sent  an  angel,  and  hath  brought 
us  forth  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 
will  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  by  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  I  will  pay  for  it :  I  will  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 :  where- 
fore Israel  turned  away  from  him. 

Death  of  Aaron  (Num.  xx.  22-xxi.  4).  And  the  children  of 
Israel,  even  the  whole  congregation,  journeyed  from  Kadesh, 
and  came  unto  mount  Hor.  And  the  Lord  spake  unto  jNloses 
and  Aaron  in  mount  Hor,  by  the  coast  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  water  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  the  Lord  commanded : 


130  FROM    KADESH   TO   THE    EAST   OF   JORDAN 

and  they  went  up  into  mount  Hor  in  the  sight  of  all  the  congre- 
gation. 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 
mourned  for  Aaron  thirty  days,  even  all  the  house  of  Israel. 

And  when  king  Arad  the  Canaanite,  which  dwelt  in  the 
south,  heard  tell  that  Israel  came  by  the  way  of  Atharim,  then 
he  fought  against  Israel,  and  took  some  of  them  prisoners.  And 
Israel  vowed  a  vow  unto  the  Lord,  and  said  :  "  If  thou  wilt  in- 
deed deliver  this  people  into  my  hand,  then  I  will  utterly  de- 
stroy their  cities."  ^ 

And  they  journeyed  from  mount  Hor  by  the  way  of  the  Eed 
Sea,^  to  compass  the  land  of  Edom :  and  the  soul  of  the  people 
was  much  discouraged  because  of  the  way. 

The  Brazen  Serpent  (Num.  xxi.  5-20).  And  the  people 
spake  against  God,  and  against  Moses :  "  Wherefore  have  ye 
brought  us  up  out  of  Egypt  to  die  in  the  wilderness  ?  for  there 
is  no  bread,  neither  is  there  any  water ;  and  our  soul  loatheth 
this  light  bread."  And  the  Lord  sent  fiery  serpents  among  the 
people,  and  they  bit  the  people  ;  and  much  people  of  Israel 
died.  Therefore  the  people  came  to  Moses,  and  said  :  "  We  have 
sinned,  for  we  have  spoken  against  the  Lord,  and  against  thee ; 
pray  unto  the  Lord,  that  he  take  away  the  serpents  from  us." 
And  Moses  prayed  for  the  people.  And  the  Lord  said  unto 
Moses  :  ^'  Make  thee  a  fiery  serpent,  and  set  it  upon  a  pole : 
and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  every  one  that  is  bitten,  when 
he  looketh  upon  it,  shall  live."  And  Moses  made  a  serpent  of 
brass,  and  put  it  upon  a  pole,  and  it  came  to  pass,  that  if  a  ser- 
pent had  bitten  any  man,  when  he  beheld  the  serpent  of  brass, 
he  lived. ^ 

And  the  children  of  Israel  set  forward,  and  pitched  in  Oboth. 
And  they  journeyed  from  Oboth,  and  pitched  at  lye-abarim, 
in  the  wilderness  which  is  before  Moab,  toward  the  sunrising. 
From  thence  they  removed,  and  pitched  in  the  valley  of  Zared. 

1  For  the  fulfilment  of  this  vow  see  the  note  on  JTormah,  p.  165. 

2  Red  Sea.   That  is,  the  Gulf  of  Akaba. 

8  ''Apollonius  of  TA'ana  is  said  to  have  freed  Antioch  from  scorpions  by 
making  a  bronze  image  of  a  scorpion,  and  burying  it  under  a  small  pillar  in 
the  middle  of  the  city."    J.  G.  Frazer  {The  Golden  Bough).  See  also  p.  219. 


DEFEAT   OF   SIHON   AND   OG  131 

From  thence  they  removed,  and  pitched  on  the  other  side  ^  of 
Anion,  which  is  in  the  wilderness  that  cometh  out  of  the  coasts  ^ 
of  the  Amorites :  for  Arnon  is  the  border  of  Moab,  between 
Moab  and  the  Amorites.  Wherefore  it  is  said  in  the  book  of  the 
wars  of  the  Lord  :  ^ 

"  Vaheb  in  Suphah  [we  passed]. 
And  the  valleys  of  the  Arnon, 
And  the  slope  of  the  valleys 
That  inclineth  toward  the  dwelling  of  Ar, 
And  leaneth  upon  the  border  of  Moab." 

And  from  thence  they  went  to  Beer :  that  is  the  well  whereof 
the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses :  "  Gather  the  people  together,  and 
I  will  give  them  water."  Then  Israel  sang  this  song  :  — 

''  Spring  up,  0  well,  sing  ye  unto  it : 
The  well  which  the  princes  digged, 
Which  the  nobles  of  the  people  delved, 
With  the  sceptre,  and  with  their  staves." 

And  from  the  wilderness  they  went  to  Mattanah  :  and  from 
Mattanah  to  Xahaliel :  and  from  Nahaliel  to  Bamoth :  and  from 
Bamoth  to  the  valley  that  is  in  the  country  of  Moab,  to  the  top 
of  Pisgah,  which  looketh  down  upon  the  desert. 

Defeat  of  Sihon  and  Og  (ISTum.  xxi.  21-xxii.  1).  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  waters  of  the  well : 
but  we  will  go  along  by  the  king's  high  way,  until  we  be  past 
thy  borders."  And  Sihon  would  not  suffer  Israel  to  pass  through 
his  borders :  but  Sihon  gathered  all  his  people  together,  and 
went  out  against  Israel  into  the  wilderness :  and  he  came  to 
Jahaz,  and  fought  against  Israel.  And  Israel  smote  him  with 
the  edge  of  the  sword,  and  possessed  his  land  from  Arnon  unto 
Jabbok,  even  unto  the  children  of  Ammon  :  for  the  border  of 
the  children  of  Ammon  was  strong.  And  Israel  took  all  these 
cities  :   and   Israel   dwelt    in  all  the  cities  of  the  Amorites,  in 

1  the  other  side.  The  southern  side,  the  writer's  point  of  view  being  that  of 
one  living  in  Canaan. 

^coasts.   Borderlands;  boundaries. 

8  book  of  the  wars  of  the  Lord.  Probably  a  collection  of  traditional  songs 
recounting  battles  won  by  national  heroes  with  the  help  of  Jehovah. 


132  FROM    KADESH   TO   THE    EAST    OF    JORDAN 

Heshbon,  and  in  all  the  villages  thereof.  For  Heshbon  was  the 
city  of  Sihon  the  king  of  the  Amorites,  who  had  fought  against 
the  former  king  of  Moab,  and  taken  all  his  land  out  of  his 
hand,  even  unto  Arnon.  Wherefore  they  speak  in  proverbs,  say- 
ing :  ^  — 

'^  Come  ye  to  Heshbon, 
Let  the  city  of  Sihon  be  built  and  established  : 

For  a  fire  is  gone  out  of  Heshbon, 

A  flame  from  the  city  of  Sihon  : 

It  hath  devoured  Ar  of  Moab, 

The  lords  of  the  high  places  of  the  Arnon. 

Woe  to  thee,  Moab  ! 

Thou  art  undone,  0  people  of  Chemosh,^ 

He  hath  given  his  sons  as  fugitives. 

And  his  daughters  to  captivity, 

Unto  Sihon,  king  of  the  Amorites. 

We  have  shot  at  them ;   Heshbon  is  perished 

even  unto  Dibon, 
And  we  have  laid  waste  even  unto  Nophah 

which  reacheth  unto  Medeba." 

Thus  Israel  dwelt  in  the  land  of  the  Amorites.  And 
they  turned  and  went  up  by  the  way  of  Bashan:  and  Og 
the  king  of  Bashan  ^  went  out  against  them,  he  and  all  his 
people,  to  the  battle  at  Edrei.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses : 
*'  Fear  him  not :  for  I  have   delivered  him  into  thy  hand,  and 

1  They  speak  .  .  .  saying.  Lit.,  "the  reciters  of  meshalim  (odes  or  ballads ; 
here,  'taunt  songs')  say."  Two  explanations  have  been  given  for  the  some- 
what obscure  ode  here  quoted  :  — 

i.  The  Israelites  first  address  the  newly  defeated  Amorites,  mockingly  bid- 
ding them  rebuild  their  demolished  stronghold.  They  then  address  the  Moab- 
ites,  who  had  previously  been  subjected  by  the  Amorites.  Finally,  they  again 
address  the  Amorites,  whom  Israel  has  now  defeated  in  their  turn. 

ii.  The  Israelites  throughout  the  ode  are  exulting  over  Moab.  In  this  view 
the  line  "  Unto  Sihon,  king  of  the  Amorites,"  is  rejected  as  a  gloss. 

2  Chemosh.  The  national  deity  of  Moab. 

8  "  For  only  Og  king  of  Bashan  remained  of  the  remnant  of  giants  ;  behold, 
his  bedstead  was  a  bedstead  of  iron  ;  is  it  not  in  Rabbath  of  the  children  of 
Ammon  ?  nine  cubits  was  the  length  thereof,  and  four  cubits  the  breadth  of  it, 
after  the  cubit  of  a  man."  Deut.  lii.  11. 


BALAK    AND   BALAAM  133 

all  his  people,  and  his  land ;  and  thou  shalt  do  to  him  as  thou 
didst  unto  Sihon  king  of  the  Amorites,  which  dwelt  at  Hesh- 
bon."  So  they  smote  him,  and  his  sons,  and  all  his  people,  until 
there  was  none  left  him  alive  :  and  they  povssessed  his  land.  And 
the  children  of  Israel  set  forward,  and  pitched  in  the  plains  of 
Moab  on  this  side  Jordan  by  Jericho. 

Balak  and  Balaam  (Num.  xxii.  2-xxiv.  25).  And  Balak  the 
son  of  Zippor  saw  all  that  Israel  had  done  to  the  Amorites.  And 
Moab  was  sore  afraid  of  the  people,  because  they  were  many: 
and  Moab  was  distressed  because  of  the  children  of  Israel.  And 
jMoab  said  unto  the  elders  of  Midian  :  '^Kow  shall  this  company 
lick  up  all  that  are  round  about  us,  as  the  ox  licketh  up  the 
grass  of  the  field."  And  Balak  the  son  of  Zippor  was  king  of 
the  Moabites  at  that  time.  He  sent  messengers  therefore  unto 
Balaam  the  son  of  Beor  to  Pethor,  which  is  by  the  river,^  the 
land  of  the  children  of  his  people,  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  cursest  is 
cursed." 

And  the  elders  of  Moab  and  the  elders  of  Midian  departed 
■with  the  rewards  of  divination  in  their  hand ;  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  the  Lord  shall  speak  unto  me."  And  the  princes 
of  Moab  abode  with  Balaam. 

And  God  came  unto  Balaam,  and  said,  '^  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  now,  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  princes  of  Balak  :  "  Get  you  into 
your  land  :  for  the  Lord  refuseth  to  give  me  leave  to  go  with 
1  the  river.  Euphrates. 


134  FKOM   KADESH   TO   THE   EAST   OF   JORDAN 

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  honorable 
than  they.  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  honor,  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,  tarry  ye  also  here  this  night, 
that  I  may  know  what  the  Lord  will  say  unto  me  more." 

And  God  came  unto  Balaam  at  night,  and  said  unto  him  : 
".If  the  men  come  to  call  thee,  rise  up,  and  go  with  them ;  but 
yet  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  God's  anger  was  kindled  because  he  went :  and  the  angel 
of  the  Lord  stood  in  the  way  for  an  adversary  against  him.  Now 
he  was  riding  upon  his  ass,  and  his  two  servants  were  with  him. 
And  the  ass  saw  the  angel  of  the  Lord  standing  in  the  way,  and 
his  sword  drawn  in  his  hand  :  and  the  ass  turned  aside  out  of 
the  way,  and  went  into  the  field  :  and  Balaam  smote  the  ass,  to 
turn  her  into  the  way.  But  the  angel  of  the  Lord  stood  in  a 
path  of  the  vineyards,  a  wall  being  on  this  side,  and  a  wall  on 
that  side.  And  when  the  ass  saw  the  angel  of  the  Lord,  she 
thrust  herself  unto  the  wall,  and  crushed  Balaam's  foot  against 
the  wall :  and  he  smote  her  again.  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord 
went  further,  and  stood  in  a  narrow  place,  where  was  no  way  to 
turn  either  to  the  right  hand  or  to  the  left.  And  when  the  ass  saw 
the  angel  of  the  Lord,  she  fell  down  under  Balaam  :  and  Balaam's 
anger  was  kindled,  and  he  smote  the  ass  with  a  staff.  And  the 
Lord  opened  the  mouth  of  the  ass,  and  she  said  unto  Balaam  : 
"What  have  I  done  unto  thee,  that  thou  hast  smitten  me  these 
three  times?"  And  Balaam  said  unto  the  ass:  "Because  thou 
hast  mocked  me  :  I  would  there  were  a  sword  in  mine  hand,  for 
now  would  I  kill  thee."  And  the  ass  said  unto  Balaam  :  "  Am 
not  I  thine  ass,  upon  which  thou  hast  ridden  ever  since  I  was 
thine  unto  this  day  ?  was  I  ever  wont  to  do  so  unto  thee  ?  " 
And  he  said,  "  Nay."  Then  the  Lord  opened  the  eyes  of  Balaam, 


EALAK   AND   BALAAM  135 

and  he  saw  the  angel  of  the  Lord  standing  in  the  way,  and  his 
sword  drawn  in  his  hand:  and  he  bowed  down  his  head,  and 
fell  flat  on  his  face.  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  him : 
*'  Wherefore  hast  thou  smitten  thine  ass  these  three  times  ?  be- 
hold, I  went  out  to  withstand  thee,  because  thy  way  is  perverse 
before  me  :  and  the  ass  saw  me,  and  turned  from  me  these  three 
times  :  unless  she  had  turned  from  me,  surely  now  also  I  had 
slain  thee,  and  saved  her  alive." 

And  Balaam  said  unto  the  angel  of  the  Lord :  ''  I  have  sinned  ; 
for  I  knew  not  that  thou  stoodest  in  the  way  against  me :  now 
therefore,  if  it  displease  thee,  I  will  get  me  back  again."  And 
the  angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  Balaam  :  ''  Go  with  the  men : 
but  only  the  word  that  I  shall  speak  unto  thee,  that  thou  shalt 
speak."   So  Balaam  went  with  the  princes  of  Balak. 

And  when  Balak  heard  that  Balaam  was  come,  he  went  out 
to  meet  him  unto  a  city  of  Moab,  which  is  in  the  border  of  Arnon, 
which  is  in  the  utmost  coast.  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  honor  ?  " 
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  put- 
teth  in  my  mouth,  that  shall  I  speak." 

And  Balaam  went  with  Balak,  and  they  came  unto  Kirjath- 
huzoth.  And  Balak  offered  oxen  and  sheep,  and  sent  to  Balaam, 
and  to  the  princes  that  were  with  him.  And  it  came  to  pass  on  the 
morrow,  that  Balak  took  Balaam,  and  brought  him  up  into  the 
high  places  of  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  oxen  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  :  "  Stand  by  thy  burnt  offering,  and  I  will  go  :  per- 
adventure  the  Lord  will  come  to  meet  me :  and  whatsoever  he 
sheweth  me  I  will  tell  thee." 

And  he  went  to  an  high  place.  And  God  met  Balaam  :  and  he 
said  unto  him  :  "  I  have  prepared  seven  altars  and  I  have  offered 
upon  every  altar  a  bullock  and  a  ram."  And  the  Lord  put  a  word 
in  Balaam's  mouth,  and  said:  "Return  unto  Balak,  and  thus 
thou  shalt  speak."  And  he  returned  unto  him,  and  lo,  he  stood 
by  his  burnt  sacrifice,  he  and  all  the  princes  of  Moab. 
1  Baal.  See  note,  p.  167. 


136  FROM   KADESH   TO   THE   EAST   OF   JOKDAN 

And  he  took  up  his  parable  and  said: 

* '  From  Aram  hath  Balak  brought  me, 
The  king  of  Moab  from  the  mountains  of  the  East : 
[Saying,]  Come,  curse  me  Jacob, 
And  come,  defy  Israel. 

How  shall  I  curse,  whom  God  hath  not  cursed  ? 
Or  how  shall  I  defy,  whom  the  Lord  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  shall  not  be  reckoned  among  the  nations. 
Who  can  count  the  dust  of  Jacob  ? 
Or  number  the  fourth  part  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  the  Lord  hath  put  in  my 
mouth  ? '' 

And  Balak  said  unto  him  :  "  Come,  I  pray  thee,  with  me  unto 
another  place,  from  whence  thou  may  est  see  them  (thou  shalt  see 
but  the  utmost  part  of  them,  and  shalt  not  see  them  all),  and 
curse  me  them  from  thence."  And  he  brought  him  into  the  held 
of  Zophim,  to  the  top  of  Pisgah,  and  built  seven  altars,  and 
offered  a  bullock  and  a  ram  on  every  altar.  And  he  said,  unto 
Balak  :  "  Stand  here  by  thy  burnt  offering,  while  I  meet  the  Lord 
yonder."  And  the  Lord  met  Balaam,  and  put  a  word  in  his  mouth 
and  said :  ^'  Go  again  unto  Balak,  and  say  thus."  And  when  he 
came  to  him,  behold,  he  stood  by  his  burnt  offering,  and  the 
princes  of  Moab  with  him.  And  Balak  said  unto  him:  "What 
hath  the  Lord  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  he  hath  blessed  ;   and  I  cannot  reverse  it. 


BALAK   AND   BALAAM  137 

He  hath  not  beheld  iniquity  in  Jacob, 

Neither  hath  he  seen  perverseness  in  Israel : 

The  Lord  his  God  is  with  him, 

And  the  shout  of  a  king  is  among  them. 

God  brought  them  out  of  Egypt; 

He  hath  as  it  were  the  strength  of  the  wild  ox,* 

Surely  there  is  no  enchantment  against  Jacob, 

Neither  is  there  any  divination  against  Israel : 

According  to  this  time  it  shall  be  said  of  Jacob  and  of 

Israel, 
What  hath  God  wrought ! 

Behold,  the  people  shall  rise  up  as  a  great  lion, 
And  as  a  young  lion  shalt  he  lift  himself  up: 
He  shall  not  lie  down  until  he  eat  of  the  prey, 
And  drink  the  blood  of  the  slain." 

And  Balak  said  unto  Balaam :  "  Neither  curse  them  at  all, 
nor  bless  them  at  all."  But  Balaam  answered  and  said  unto  Ba- 
lak:  "Told  not  I  thee,  saying.  All  that  the  Lord  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  may  est  curse  me  them  from  thence."  And  Balak 
brought  Balaam  unto  the  top  of  Peor,  that  looketh  toward  Jeshi- 
mon.  And  Balaam  said  unto  Balak  :  '^  Build  me  here  seven  altars, 
and  prepare  me  here  seven  bullocks  and  seven  rams."  And  Ba- 
lak did  as  Balaam  had  said,  and  offered  a  bullock  and  a  ram  on 
every  altar. 

And  when  Balaam  saw  that  it  pleased  the  Lord  to  bless  Is- 
rael, he  went  not,  as  at  other  times,  to  seek  for  enchantments, 
but  he  set  his  face  toward  the  wilderness.  And  Balaam  lifted 
up  his  eyes,  and  he  saw  Israel  abiding  in  his  tents  according  to 
their  tribes  ;  and  the  spirit  of  God  came  upon  him.  And  he  took 
up  his  parable,  and  said  : 

''  Balaam  the  son  of  Beor  saith, 
And  the  man  whose  eyes  are  open  saith, 
He  saith,  which  heareth  the  words  of  God, 
Which  seeth  the  vision  of  the  Almighty, 
Falling  into  a  trance,  and  having  his  eyes  open : 
How  goodly  are  thy  tents,  0  Jacob, 

1  rcild  ox.  A  large  bovine  species,  now  extinct,  hunted  by  the  Assyrian  kings. 
The  Hebrews  regarded  it  as  tierce  and  untamable. 


138  FROM   KADESH   TO   THE   EAST   OF  JORDAN 

And  thy  tabernacles,  0  Israel ! 

As  valleys  are  they  spread  forth, 

As  gardens  by  the  river's  side, 

As  the  trees  of  lign-aloes  ^  which  the  Lord  hath  planted, 

As  cedar  trees  beside  the  waters. 

Water  shall  flow  from  his  buckets, 

And  his  seed  shall  be  in  many  waters : 

And  his  king  shall  be  higher  than  Agag, 

And  his  kingdom  shall  be  exalted. 

God  brought  him  forth  out  of  Egypt ; 

He  hath  as  it  were  the  strength  of  the  wild  ox ; 

He  shall  eat  up  the  nations  his  enemies, 

And  shall  break  their  bones  in  pieces. 

And  pierce  them  through  with  his  arrows. 

He  couched,  he  lay  down  as  a  lion, 

And  as  a  lioness  :   who  shall  stir  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  honor ;  but  lo,  the 
Lord  hath  kept  thee  back  from  honor."  And  Balaam  said  unto 
Balak  :  *' Spake  I  not  also  to  thy  messengers  which  thou  sentest 
unto  me,  saying.  If  Balak  would  give  me  his  house  full  of  silver 
and  gold,  I  cannot  go  beyond  the  commandment  of  the  Lord,  to 
do  either  good  or  bad  of  mine  own  mind ;  but  what  the  Lord 
saith,  that  will  I  speak  ?  And  now,  behold,  I  go  unto  my  peo- 
ple :  come  therefore,  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  eyes  are  open  saith: 
He  saith,  which  heareth  the  words  of  God, 
And  knoweth  the  knowledge  of  the  Most  High, 
Which  seeth  the  vision  of  the  Almighty, 
Falling  into  a  trance,  but  having  his  eyes  open : 
I  shall  see  him,  but  not  now  : 
1  The  lifjn-aloe  (i.  e.  wood  aloe  —  Lat.  lignum,  wood)  is  a  large  spreading  tree. 


MOABITES   AND   MIDIANITES   COERUPT  ISRAEL  139 

I  shall  behold  him,  but  not  nigh  : 

There  shall  come  a  star  out  of  Jacob, 

And  a  sceptre  shall  rise  out  of  Israel, 

And  shall  smite  through  the  corners  of  Moab, 

And  break  down  all  the  sons  of  tumult. 

And  Edom  shall  be  a  possession, 

Seir  also  shall  be  a  possession  who  were  his  enemies, 

And  Israel  shall  do  valiantly. 

Out  of  Jacob  shall  come  he  that  shall  have  dominion  : 

And  shall  destroy  the  remnant  from  the  city." 

And  when  he  looked  on  Amalek,  he  took  up  his  parable,  and 
said : 

"  Amalek  was  the  first  of  the  nations ; 
But  his  latter  end  shall  be  that  he  perish  for  ever." 

And  he  looked  on  the  Kenites,  and  took  up  his  parable,  and 
said  : 

"  Strong  is  thy  dwelling  place, 
And  thou  puttest  thy  nest  in  a  rock. 
Nevertheless,  the  Kenite  shall  be  wasted, 
Until  Asshur  ^   shall  carry  thee  away  captive." 

And  he  took  up  his  parable,  and  said : 

''  Alas,  who  shall  live  when  God  doeth  this ! 
And  ships  shall  come  from  the  coast  of  Kittim,* 
And  they  shall  afflict  Asshur,  and  shall  afflict  Eber,* 
And  he  also  shall  perish  forever." 

And  Balaam  rose  up,  and  went  and  returned  to  his  place  :  and 
Balak  also  went  his  way. 

Moabites  and  Midianites  corrupt  Israel  (Num.  xxv.).  And 
Israel  abode  in  Shittim,  and  the  people  began  to  commit  whore- 
dom with  the  daughters  of  Moab.  And  they  called  the  people 
unto  the  sacrifices  of  their  gods  :  and  the  people  did  eat,  and 
bowed  down  to  their  gods.  And  Israel  joined  himself  unto  Baal- 
peor :-  and  the  anger  of  the  Lord  was  kindled  against  Israel. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  ''  Take  all  the  chiefs  of  the 

1  Asshur,  Assyria;  Kittim,  probably  the  Macedonians;  Eber,  probably  those 
dwelling  beyond  the  Euphrates. 

2  Baal-peor.  The  Baal  of  Mt.  Peor.  See  note,  p.  167. 


140  FROM   KADESH   TO   THE   EAST   OF   JORDAN 

people,  and  hang  them  up  before  the  Lord  against  the  sun,  that 
the  fierce  anger  of  the  Lord  may  be  turned  away  from  Israel.'' 
And  Moses  said  unto  the  judges  of  Israel;  "Slay  ye  every 
one  his  men  that  were  joined  unto  Baal-peor."  And  behold, 
one  of  the  children  of  Israel  came  and  brought  unto  his  bre- 
thren a  Midianitish  woman  in  the  sight  of  Moses,  and  in  the 
sight  of  all  the  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel,  who  were 
weeping  before  the  door  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation. 
And  when  Phinehas,  the  son  of  Eleazer,  the  son  of  Aaron 
the  priest,  saw  it,  he  rose  up  from  among  the  congregation, 
and  took  a  javelin  in  his  hand  ;  and  he  went  after  the  man 
of  Israel  into  the  tent,  and  thrust  both  of  them  through,  the 
man  of  Israel,  and  the  woman  through  her  belly.  So  the  plague 
was  stayed  from  the  children  of  Israel.  And  those  that  died  in 
the  plague  were  twenty  and  four  thousand. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying  :  "  Phinehas,  the  son 
of  Aaron  the  priest,  hath  turned  my  wrath  away  from  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel,  while  he  was  zealous  for  my  sake  among  them, 
that  I  consumed  not  the  children  of  Israel  in  my  jealousy. 
Wherefore  say.  Behold,  I  give  unto  hira  my  covenant  of  peace  : 
and  he  shall  have  it,  and  his  seed  after  him,  even  the  covenant 
of  an  everlasting  priesthood ;  because  he  was  zealous  for  his 
God,  and  made  an  atonement  for  the  children  of  Israel." 

Now  the  name  of  the  Israelite  that  was  slain,  even  that  was 
slain  with  the  Midianitish  woman,  was  Zimri,  the  son  of  Salu,  a 
prince  of  a  chief  house  among  the  Simeonites.  And  the  name 
of  the  Midianitish  woman  that  was  slain  was  Cozbi,  the  daughter 
of  Zur :  he  was  head  of  the  people  of  a  fathers'  house  in  Midian. 
And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying  :  "  Vex  the  Midianites, 
and  smite  them :  for  they  vex  you  with  their  wiles,  wherewith 
they  have  beguiled  you  in  the  matter  of  Peor,  and  in  the  mat- 
ter of  Cozbi,  the  daughter  of  a  prince  of  Midian,  their  sister, 
which  was  slain  in  the  day  of  the  plague  for  Peor's  sake." 

Joshua  appointed  Moses'  Successor  (Num.  xxvii.  12-23). 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses :  '^  Get  thee  up  into  this  mount 
Abarim,^  and  see  the  land  which  I  have  given  unto  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel.  And  when  thou  hast  seen  it,  thou  also  shalt  be 
gathered  unto  thy  people,  as  Aaron  thy  brother  was  gathered. 
For  ye  rebelled  against  my  commandment  in  the  desert  of  Zin, 
1  Abnrim.  The  same  as  Pisgah. ; 


SETTLEMENT  OF  REUBEN  AND  GAD        141 

in  the  strife  of  the  congregation,  to  sanctify  me  at  the  water  be- 
fore their  eyes." 

And  ]\Ioses  spake  unto  the  Lord,  saying :  "  Let  the  Lord, 
the  God  of  the  spirits  of  all  flesh,  set  a  man  over  the  congrega- 
tion, which  may  go  out  before  them,  and  which  may  go  in  be- 
fore them,  and  which  may  lead  them  out,  and  which  may  bring 
them  in  ;  that  the  congregation  of  the  Lord  be  not  as  sheep  which 
have  no  shepherd."  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  :  "  Take  thee 
Joshua  the  son  of  Xun,  a  man  in  whom  is  the  spirit,  and  lay 
thine  hand  upon  him  ;  and  set  him  before  Eleazar  the  priest,  and 
before  all  the  congregation  ;  and  give  him  in  charge  in  their  sight. 
And  thou  shalt  put  some  of  thine  honor  upon  him,  that  all  the 
congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel  may  be  obedient.  And 
he  shall  stand  before  Eleazar  the  priest,  who  shall  ask  counsel 
for  him  after  the  judgment  of  Urim  ^  before  the  Lord:  at  his 
word  shall  they  go  out,  and  at  his  word  they  shall  come  in,  both 
he,  and  all  the  children  of  Israel  with  him,  even  all  the  congre- 
gation." 

And  Moses  did  as  the  Lord  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  the  Lord  commanded  by  the  hand  of  j\Ioses. 

Settlement  of  Reuben  and  Gad  (^^um.  xxxii.  1-9,  13-25, 
33  ;  xxxiii.  1,  2).  Now  the  children  of  Keuben  and  the  children 
of  Gad  had  a  very  great  multitude  of  cattle  :  and  when  they 
saw  the  land  of  Jazer,  and  the  land  of  Gilead,  that  behold, 
the  place  was  a  place  for  cattle;  the  children  of  Gad  and  the 
children  of  Reuben  came  and  spake  unto  Moses,  and  to  Eleazar 
the  priest,  and  unto  the  princes  of  the  congregation,  saying : 
"  Ataroth,   and  Dibon,  and  Jazer,  and  Nimrah,  and  Heshbon, 

1  The  Urim  and  the  Tkummim,  mentioned  in  Ex.  xxviii.  30  as  something 
already  familiar  to  Moses  and  the  people,  are  nowhere  described  in  the  Old 
Testament.  They  were  probably  two  objects  used  as  lots  that  were  cast  in  order 
to  obtain  an  oracular  answer,  "yes"  or  "no,"  from  the  Deity.  Their  nature 
may  be  suggested  by  the  Tablets  of  Destiny  of  primitive  Babylonian  mythol- 
ogy. These  were  worn  on  the  breasts  of  certain  gods  who  acted  as  messengers 
or  mediators  between  the  other  gods  and  men,  just  as  the  Urim  and  Thum- 
mim  are  worn  on  the  breast  of  the  high  priest.  Thus  Marduk,  wearing  the  Tab- 
lets of  Destiny,  presided  at  the  assembly  of  the  gods  when  the  lot  was  cast  for 
the  fate  of  a  king  or  nation.  The  use  of  Urim  and  Thummim  is  mentioned  on 
pp.  230,  260;  but  no  instance  of  it  is  recorded  as  taking  place  after  the  death  of 
David,  when  it  doubtless  gave  way  to  the  higher  medium  of  inspired  prophecy. 


142  FROM   KADESH   TO   THE   EAST   OF   JORDAN 

and  Elealeh,  and  Shebam,  and  Nebo,  and  Beon,  even  the  coun- 
try which  the  Lord  smote  before  the  congregation  of  Israel,  is 
a  land  for  cattle,  and  thy  servants  have  cattle  :  wherefore," 
said  they,  "  if  we  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  let  this  land 
be  given  unto  thy  servants  for  a  possession,  and  bring  us  not 
over  Jordan." 

And  Moses  said  unto  the  children  of  Gad  and  to  the  children 
of  Reuben :  "  Shall  your  brethren  go  to  war,  and  shall  ye  sit 
here  ?  And  wherefore  discourage  ye  the  heart  of  the  children  of 
Israel  from  going  over  into  the  land  which  the  Lord  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. 

"  And  the  Lord's  anger  was  kindled  against  Israel,  and  he  made 
them  wander  in  the  wilderness  forty  years,  until  all  the  gener- 
ation, that  had  done  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  was  consumed. 
And  behold,  ye  are  risen  up  in  your  fathers'  stead,  an  increase 
of  sinful  men,  to  augment  yet  the  fierce  anger  of  the  Lord 
toward  Israel.  For  if  ye  turn  away  from  after  him,  he  will  yet 
again  leave  them  in  the  wilderness  ;  and  ye  shall  destroy  all  this 
people." 

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  inhabitants 
of  the  land.  We  will  not  return  unto  our  houses,  until  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  have  inherited  every  man  his  inheritance.  For  we 
will  not  inherit  with  them  on  yonder  side  Jordan,  or  forward  ; 
because  our  inheritance  is  fallen  to  us  on  this  side  Jordan  east- 
ward." 

And  Moses  said  unto  them :  ''  If  ye  will  do  this  thing,  if  ye 
will  go  armed  before  the  Lord  to  war,  and  will  go  all  of  you 
armed  over  Jordan  before  the  Lord,  until  he  hath  driven  out 
his  enemies  from  before  him,  and  the  land  be  subdued  :  then 
afterward  ye  shall  return,  and  be  guiltless  before  the  Lord,  and 
before.  Israel ;  and  this  land  shall  be  your  possession.  But  if  ye 
"will  not  do  so,  behold,  ye  have  sinned  against  the  Lord  :  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 


DEATH    OF   MOSES  143 

out  of  your  mouth."  And  the  children  of  Gad  and  the  children 
of  Eeuben  answered,  saying  :  '' As  the  Lord  hath  said  unto  thy 
servants,  so  will  we  do." 

And  Moses  gave  unto  them,  even  to  the  children  of  Gad, 
and  to  the  children  of  Reuben,  and  unto  half  the  tribe  of 
Manasseh  the  son  of  Joseph,  the  kingdom  of  Sihon  king  of  the 
Amorites,  and  the  kingdom  of  Og  king  of  Bashan,  the  land,  with 
the  cities  thereof  with  their  borders,  even  the  cities  of  the  country 
round  about. 

These  are  the  journeys  of  the  children  of  Israel,  which  went 
forth  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt  with  their  armies  under  the  hand 
of  Moses  and  Aaron.  And  Moses  wrote  their  goings  out  accord- 
ing to  their  journeys  by  the  commandment  of  the  Lord. 

Death  of  Moses  (Deut.  xxxii.  48-52 ;  xxxiv.  1-10).  And  the 
Lord  spake  unto  Moses  that  selfsame  day,  saying  :  "  Get  thee 
up  into  this  mountain  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  Meri- 
hah-Kadesh,  in  the  wilderness  of  Zin ;  because  ye  sanctified  me 
not  in  the  midst  of  the  children  of  Israel.  Yet  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  went  up  from  the  plains  of  Moab  unto  the  moun- 
tain of  iS'ebo,  to  the  top  of  Pisgah,  that  is  over  against  Jericho. 
And  the  Lord  shewed  him  all  the  land  of  Gilead,  unto  Dan, 
and  all  Xaphtali,  and  the  land  of  Ephraim,  and  ]Manasseh,  and 
all  the  land  of  Judah,  unto  the  utmost  sea,  and  the  south,  and 
the  plain  of  the  valley  of  Jericho,  the  city  of  palm  trees,  unto 
Zoar.  And  the  Lord  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  the  Lord  died  there  in  the  land  of  Moab,  according  to  the 
word  of  the  Lord.  And  he  buried  him  in  a  valley  in  the  land 
of  Moab,  over  against  Beth-peor  :  but  no  man  knoweth  of  his 
sepulchre  unto  this  day. 


144  FROM   KADESH   TO   THE   EAST   OF   JORDAN 

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  ;  for  Moses  had  laid  his  hands  upon  him :  and 
the  children  of  Israel  hearkened  unto  him,  and  did  as  the  Lord 
commanded    Moses. 

And  there  arose  not  a  prophet  since  in  Israel  like  unto 
Moses,  whom  the  Lord  knew  face  to  face. 


VII 

THE   INVASION    OF    CANAAN 

The  Summons  to  Conquest  (Josh.  i.  1-5,  10,  11).  Now 
after  the  death  of  ]\Ioses  the  servant  of  the  Lord  it  came  to  pass, 
that  the  Lord  spake  unto  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun,  Moses'  min- 
ister, saying  :  "  Moses  my  servant  is  dead  ;  now  therefore  arise, 
go  over  this  Jordan,  thou,  and  all  this  people,  unto  the  land 
which  I  do  give  to  them,  even  to  the  children  of  Israel.  Every 
place  that  the  sole  of  your  foot  shall  tread  upon,  that  have  I 
given  unto  you,  as  I  said  unto  Moses.  From  the  wilderness  and 
this  Lebanon  even  unto  the  great  river,  the  river  Euphrates,  all 
the  land  of  the  Hittites,  and  unto  the  great  sea  toward  the  go- 
ing down  of  the  sun,  shall  be  your  coast.  There  shall  not  any 
man  be  able  to  stand  before  thee  all  the  days  of  thy  life  :  as  I 
was  with  Moses,  so  I  will  be  with  thee :  I  will  not  fail  thee,  nor 
forsake  thee. " 

Then  Joshua  commanded  the  officers  of  the  people,  saying: 
"  Pass  through  the  host,  and  command  the  people,  saying.  Pre- 
pare you  victuals ;  for  within  three  days  ye  shall  pass  over  this 
Jordan,  to  go  in  to  possess  the  land,  which  the  Lord  your  God 
giveth  you  to  possess  it." 

Rahab  and  the  Spies  (Josh.  ii.  l-iii.  1).  And  Joshua  the  son 
of  Nun  sent  out  of  Shittim  two  men  to  spy  secretly,  saying  : 
"  Go  view  the  land,  even  Jericho."  ^  And  they  went,  and  came 
into  an  harlot's  house,  named  Kahab,  and  lodged  there. 

And  it  was  told  the  king  of  Jericho,  saying  :  "  Behold,  there 
came  men  in  hither  to-night  of  the  children  of  Israel  to  search 
out  the  country."  And  the  king  of  Jericho  sent  unto  Kahab, 
saying  :  "  Bring  forth  the  men  that  are  come  to  thee,  which  are 
entered  into  thine  house  :  for  they  be  come  to  search  out  all  the 

1  German  excavations  in  1908  unearthed  the  -walls  of  ancient  Jericho,  as  well 
as  the  northern  part  of  its  fortified  citadel.  Outside  the  walls  were  found  many 
remains  of  Canaanite  houses,  some  of  which  were  built  apainst  the  city  wall. 
A  group  of  Israelite  houses  was  also  found,  dating  from  about  700  b.  c,  and 
containing  numerous  articles  of  household  use  :  dishes,  pots,  stone  corn-mills, 
lamps,  etc. 


146     •  THE   INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

country."  And  the  woman  took  the  two  men,  and  hid  them, 
and  said  thus :  "  There  came  men  unto  me,  but  I  wist  not 
whence  they  were  :  and  it  came  to  pass  about  the  time  of  shut- 
ting of  the  gate,  when  it  was  dark,  that  the  men  went  out. 
Whither  the  men  went  I  wot  not :  pursue  after  them  quickly ; 
for  ye  shall  overtake  them."  But  she  had  brought  them  up  to 
the  roof  of  the  house,  and  hid  them  with  the  stalks  of  flax, 
which  she  had  laid  in  order  upon  the  roof. 

And  the  men  pursued  after  them  the  way  to  Jordan  unto 
the  fords:  and  as  soon  as  they  which  pursued  after  them  were 
gone  out,  they  shut  the  gate. 

And  before  they  were  laid  down,  she  came  up  unto  them 
upon  the  roof  ;  and  she  said  unto  the  men  :  ''I  know  that  the 
Lord  hath  given  you  the  land,  and  that  your  terror  is  fallen 
upon  us,  and  that  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  faint  because 
of  you.  For  we  have  heard  how  the  Lord  dried  up  the  water  of 
the  Ked  Sea  for  you,  when  ye  came  out  of  Egypt;  and  what 
ye  did  unto  the  two  kings  of  the  Amorites,  that  were  on  the 
other  side  Jordan,  Sihon  and  Og,  whom  ye  utterly  destroyed. 
And  as  soon  as  we  had  heard  these  things,  our  hearts  did  melt, 
neither  did  there  remain  any  more  courage  in  any  man,  because 
of  you  ;  for  the  Lord  your  God,  he  is  God  in  heaven  above,  and 
in  earth  beneath.  Now  therefore,  I  pray  you,  swear  unto  me  by 
the  Lord,  since  I  have  shewed  you  kindness,  tliat  ye  will  also 
shew  kindness  unto  my  father's  house,  and  give  me  a  true  token  : 
and  that  ye  will  save  alive  my  father,  and  my  mother,  and  my 
brethren,  and  my  sisters,  and  all  that  they  have,  and  deliver  our 
lives  from  death." 

And  the  men  answered  her :  "  Our  life  for  yours,  if  ye  utter 
not  this  our  business.  And  it  shall  be,  when  the  Lord  hath 
given  us  the  land,  that  we  will  deal  kindly  and  truly  with  thee." 
Then  she  let  them  down  by  a  cord  through  the  window :  for 
her  house  was  upon  the  town  wall,  and  she  dwelt  upon  the 
wall.  And  she  said  unto  them :  "  Get  you  to  the  mountain,  lest 
the  pursuers  meet  you ;  and  hide  yourselves  there  three  days, 
until  the  pursuers  be  returned  :  and  afterward  may  ye  go  your 
way." 

And  the  men  said  unto  her :  "  We  will  be  blameless  of  this 
thine  oath  which  thou  hast  made  us  swear.  Lehold,  when  we 
come  into  the  land,  thou  shalt  bind  this  line  of  scarlet  thread 
in  the  window  which  thou  didst  let  us  down  by  :  and  thou  shalt 


PASSAGE   OF  THE   JORDAN  147 

bring  thy  father,  and  thy  mother,  and  thy  brethren,  and  all  thy 
father's  household,  home  unto  thee.  And  it  shall  be,  that  who- 
soever shall  go  out  of  the  doors  of  thy  house  into  the  street,  his 
blood  shall  be  upon  his  head,  and  we  will  be  guiltless :  and  who- 
soever shall  be  with  thee  in  the  house,  his  blood  shall  be  on  our 
head,  if  any  hand  be  upon  him.  And  if  thou  utter  this  our  busi- 
ness, then  we  will  be  quit  of  thine  oath  which  thou  hast  made 
us  to  swear.''  And  she  said,  "According  unto  your  words,  so  be 
it."  And  she  sent  them  away,  and  they  departed  :  and  she  bound 
the  scarlet  line  in  the  window.  And  they  went,  and  came  unto 
the  mountain,  and  abode  there  three  days,  until  the  pursuers 
were  returned  :  and  the  pursuers  sought  them  throughout  all  the 
way,  but  found  them  not. 

So  the  two  men  returned,  and  descended  from  the  mountain, 
and  passed  over,  and  came  to  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun,  and  told 
him  all  things  that  befell  them :  and  they  said  unto  Joshua : 
"Truly  the  Lord  hath  delivered  into  our  hands  all  the  land  ;  for 
even  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  do  faint  because  of  us." 
And  Joshua  rose  early  in  the  morning ;  and  they  removed  from 
Shittim,  and  came  to  Jordan,  he  and  all  the  children  of  Israel, 
and  lodged  there  before  they  passed  over. 

Passage  of  the  Jordan  (Josh.  iii.  2-17 ;  iv.  1-9,  15-24  ;  v.  1). 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  three  days,  that  the  officers  went 
through  the  host;  and  they  commanded  the  people,  saying: 
"  When  ye  see  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  your  God, 
and  the  priests  the  Levites  bearing  it,  then  ye  shall  remove  from 
your  place,  and  go  after  it.  Yet  there  shall  be  a  space  between 
you  and  it,  about  two  thousand  cubits  ^  by  measure :  come  not 
near  unto  it,  that  ye  may  know  the  way  by  which  ye  must  go : 
for  ye  have  not  passed  this  way  heretofore."  And  Joshua  said 
unto  the  people:  "Sanctify  yourselves:  for  to-morrow  the  Lord 
will  do  wonders  among  you." 

And  Joshua  spake  unto  the  priests,  saying :  "  Take  up  the 
ark  of  the  covenant,  and  pass  over  before  the  people."  And  they 
took  up  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  and  went  before  the  people. 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  Joshua:  "This  day  will  I  begin  to  mag- 
nify thee  in  the  sight  of  all  Israel,  tliat  they  may  know  that,  as 
I  was  with  Moses,  so  I  will  be  with  thee.  And  thou  shalt  com- 
mand the  priests  that  bear  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  saying,  When 
1  two  thousand  cubits.  3000  feet. 


148  THE   INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

ye  are  come  to  the  brink  of  the  water  of  Jordan,  ye  shall  stand 
still  in  Jordan." 

And  Joshua  said  unto  the  children  of  Israel :  "  Come  hither, 
and  hear  the  words  of  the  Lord  your  God."  And  Joshua  said : 
*'  Hereby  ye  shall  know  that  the  living  God  is  among  you,  and 
that  he  will  without  fail  drive  out  from  before  you  the  Canaan- 
ites,  and  the  Hittites,  and  the  Hivites,  and  the  Perizzites,  and 
the  Girgashites,  and  the  Amorites,  and  the  Jebusites.  Behold, 
the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  of  all  the  earth  passeth  over 
before  you  into  Jordan.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  as  soon  as 
the  soles  of  the  feet  of  the  priests  that  bear  the  ark  of  the  Lord 
shall  rest  in  the  waters  of  Jordan,  that  the  waters  of  Jordan 
shall  be  cut  off  from  the  waters  that  come  down  from  above  ;  and 
they  shall  stand  upon  an  heap." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  people  removed  from  their 
tents,  to  pass  over  Jordan,  and  the  priests  bearing  the  ark  of  the 
covenant  before  the  people,  and  as  they  that  bare  the  ark  were 
come  unto  Jordan,  and  the  feet  of  the  priests  that  bare  the  ark 
were  dipped  in  the  brim  of  the  water,  (for  Jordan  overfloweth 
all  its  banks  all  the  time  of  harvest)  that  the  waters  which 
came  down  from  above  stood  and  rose  up  upon  an  heap  very  far 
from  the  city  Adam,  that  is  beside  Zaretan  :  and  those  that  came 
down  toward  the  sea  of  the  plain,  even  the  Salt  Sea,  failed,  and 
were  cut  off:  and  the  people  passed  over  right  against  Jericho. 
And  the  priests  that  bare  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord 
stood  firm  on  dry  ground  in  the  midst  of  Jordan,  and  all  the 
Israelites  passed  over  on  dry  ground,  until  all  the  poople  were 
passed  clean  over  Jordan. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  all  the  people  were  clean  passed 
over  Jordan,  that  the  Lord  spake  unto  Joshua,  saying,  "Take 
you  twelve  men  out  of  the  people,  out  of  every  tribe  a  man,  and 
command  ye  them,  saying,  Take  you  hence  out  of  the  midst 
of  Jordan,  out  of  the  place  where  the  priests'  feet  stood  firm, 
twelve  stones,  and  ye  shall  carry  them  over  with  you,  and  leave 
them  in  the  lodging  place,  where  ye  shall  lodge  this  night." 
Then  Joshua  called  the  twelve  men,  whom  he  had  prepared  of 
the  children  of  Israel,  out  of  every  tribe  a  man  :  and  Joshua 
said  unto  them :  "  Pass  over  before  the  ark  of  the  Lord  your 
God  into  the  midst  of  Jordan,  and  take  you  up  every  man  of  you 
a  stone  upon  his  shoulder,  according  unto  the  number  of  the 
tribes  of  the  children  of  Israel :  and  these  stones  shall  be  for  a 


CIRCUMCISION   AT   GILGAL  149 

memorial  unto  the  children  of  Israel  for  ever/'  And  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  did  so  as  Joshua  commanded,  and  took  up  twelve 
stones  out  of  the  midst  of  Jordan,  as  the  Lord  spake  unto  Joshua, 
according  to  the  number  of  the  tribes  of  the  children  of  Israel, 
and  carried  them  over  with  them  unto  the  place  where  they 
lodged,  and  laid  thern  down  there. 

And  Joshua  set  up  twelve  stones  in  the  midst  of  Jordan,  in 
the  place  where  the  feet  of  the  priests  which  bare  the  ark  of  the 
covenant  stood:   and  they  are  there  unto  this  day. 

And  the  Lord  spake  unto  Joshua,  saying :  "  Command  the 
priests  that  bear  the  ark  of  the  testimony,  that  they  come  up 
out  of  Jordan."  Joshua  therefore  commanded  the  priests,  say- 
ing :  ''  Come  ye  up  out  of  Jordan."  And  it  came  to  pass,  when 
the  priests  that  bare  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  were 
come  up  out  of  the  midst  of  Jordan,  and  the  soles  of  the  priests' 
feet  were  lifted  up  unto  the  dry  land,  that  the  waters  of  Jordan 
returned  unto  their  place,  and  flowed  over  all  its  banks,  as  they 
did  before. 

And  the  people  came  up  out  of  Jordan  on  the  tenth  day  of 
the  first  month,  and  encamped  in  Gilgal,  in  the  east  border  of 
Jericho.  And  those  twelve  stones,  which  they  took  out  of  Jor- 
dan, did  Joshua  pitch  in  Gilgal.  And  he  spake  unto  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel,  saying :  '^  When  your  children  shall  ask  their 
fathers  in  time  to  come,  saying,  What  mean  these  stones  ?  then 
ye  shall  let  your  children  know,  saying,  Israel  came  over  this 
Jordan  on  dry  land.  For  the  Lord  your  God  dried  up  the  waters 
of  Jordan  from  before  you,  until  ye  were  passed  over,  as  the 
Lord  your  God  did  to  the  Red  Sea,  which  he  dried  up  from 
before  us,  until  we  were  gone  over  :  that  all  the  people  of 
the  earth  might  know  the  hand  of  the  Lord,  that  it  is  mighty : 
that  ye  might  fear  the  Lord  your  God  forever." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  all  the  kings  of  the  Amorites, 
■which  were  on  the  side  of  Jordan  westward,  and  all  the  kings 
of  the  Canaanites,  which  were  by  the  sea,  heard  that  the  Lord 
had  dried  up  the  waters  of  Jordan  from  before  the  children  of 
Israel,  until  we  were  passed  over,  that  their  heart  melted,  neither 
was  there  spirit  in  them  any  more,  because  of  the  children  of 
Israel. 

Circumcision  at  Gilgal  (Josh.  v.  2-12).  At  that  time  the 
Lord  said  unto  Joshua:   "Make  thee  knives  of  flint,  and  cir- 


150  THE    INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

cumcise  again  the  children  of  Israel  the  second  time."  And 
Joshua  made  him  knives  of  flint,  and  circumcised  the  children 
of  Israel  at  the  Hill  of  the  Foreskins.  And  this  is  the  cause 
why  Joshua  did  circumcise :  All  the  people  that  came  out  of 
Egypt,  that  were  males,  even  all  the  men  of  war,  died  in  the 
wilderness  by  the  way,  after  they  came  out  of  Egypt.  Now  all 
the  people  that  came  out  were  circumcised  :  but  all  the  people 
that  were  born  in  the  wilderness  by  the  way  as  they  came  forth 
out  of  Egypt,  them  they  had  not  circumcised.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  they  had  done  circumcising  all  the  people,  that  they 
abode  in  their  places  in  the  camp  till  they  were  whole.  And  the 
Lord  said  unto  Joshua  :  *'  This  day  have  I  rolled  away  the  re- 
proach of  Egypt  from  off  you."  Wherefore  the  name  of  the  place 
is  called  GilgaP  unto  this  day. 

And  the  children  of  Israel  encamped  in  Gilgal,  and  kept  the 
passover  on  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  month  at  even  in  the 
plains  of  Jericho.  And  they  did  eat  of  the  old  corn  of  the  land 
on  the  morrow  after  the  passover,  unleavened  cakes,  and  parched 
corn  in  the  self-same  day.  And  the  manna  ceased  on  the  mor- 
row after  they  had  eaten  of  the  old  corn  of  the  land ;  neither 
had  the  children  of  Israel  manna  any  more;  but  they  did  eat  of 
the  fruit  of  the  land  of  Canaan  that  year. 

The  Fall  of  Jericho  (Josh.  v.  3-v.  27).  And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  Joshua  was  by  Jericho,  that  he  lifted  up  his  eyes  and 
looked,  and  behold,  there  stood  a  man  over  against  him  with 
his  sword  drawn  in  his  hand :  and  Joshua  went  unto  him,  and 
said  unto  him,  ^^  Art  thou  for  us,  or  for  our  adversaries  ?  "  And 
he  said,  "  Nay ;  but  as  captain  of  the  host  of  the  Lord  am  I 
now  come."  And  Joshua  fell  on  his  face  to  the  earth,  and  did 
worship,  and  said  unto  him,  ''What  saith  my  lord  unto  his 
servant  ?  "  And  the  captain  of  the  Lord's  host  said  unto  Joshua : 
"  Loose  thy  shoe  from  off  thy  foot ;  for  the  place  whereon  thou 
standest  is  holy."  And  Joshua  did  so. 

Now  Jericho  was  straitly  shut  up  because  of  the  children  of 
Israel :  none  went  out,  and  none  came  in.  And  the  Lord  said 
unto  Joshua :  ''  See,  I  have  given  into  thine  hand  Jericho,  and 
the  king  thereof,  and  the  mighty  men  of  valor.  And  ye  shall 
compass  the  city,  all  ye  men  of  war,  and  go  round  about  the 
city  once.  Thus  shalt  thou  do  six  days.  And  seven  priests  shall 
1  Gilgal.  '  Rolling.' 


THE   FALL    OF   JERICHO  151 

bear  before  the  ark  seven  trumpets  of  rams''  horns :  and  the 
seventh  day  ye  shall  compass  the  city  seven  times,  and  the 
priests  shall  blow  with  the  trumpets.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass, 
that  when  they  make  a  long  blast  with  the  ram's  horn,  and 
when  ye  hear  the  sound  of  the  trumpet,  all  the  people  shall 
shout  with  a  great  shout ;  and  the  wall  of  the  city  shall  fall 
down  flat,  and  the  people  shall  ascend  up  every  man  straight 
before  him," 

And  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun  called  the  priests,  and  said  unto 
them :  "  Take  up  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  and  let  seven  priests 
bear  seven  trumpets  of  rams'  horns  before  the  ark  of  the  Lord." 
And  he  said  unto  the  people:  "Pass  on,  and  compass  the  city, 
and  let  him  that  is  armed  pass  on  before  the  ark  of  the  Lord. 
Let  the  seven  priests  bearing  the  seven  trumpets  of  rams'  horns 
pass  on  before  the  Lord,  and  blow  with  the  trumpets,  the  ark 
of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  following  them,  and  the  armed  men 
going  before  the  prisets  that  blow  with  the  trumpets,  and  the 
rearward  coming  after  the  ark."  And  Joshua  had  commanded 
the  people,  saying:  ''Ye  shall  not  shout,  nor  make  any  noise 
with  your  voice,  neither  shall  any  word  proceed  out  of  your 
mouth,  until  the  day  I  bid  you  shout;  then  shall  ye  shout."  So 
the  ark  of  the  Lord  compassed  the  city,  going  about  it  once  :  and 
they  came  into  the  camp,  and  lodged  in  the  camp. 

And  Joshua  rose  early  in  the  morning,  and  the  priests  took 
up  the  ark  of  the  Lord.  And  seven  priests  bearing  seven  trum- 
pets of  ranis'  horns  before  the  ark  of  the  Lord  went  on  continu- 
ally, and  blew  with  the  trumpets :  and  the  armed  men  went  be- 
fore them ;  but  the  rearward  came  after  the  ark  of  the  Lord. 
And  the  second  day  they  compassed  the  city  once,  and  returned 
into  the  camp  :  so  they  did  six  days. 

And  it  came  to  pass  on  the  seventh  day,  that  they  rose  early 
about  the  dawning  of  the  day,  and  compassed  the  city  after  the 
same  manner :  only  on  that  day  they  compassed  the  city  seven 
times.  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  seventh  time,  when  the  priests 
blew  with  the  trumpets,  Joshua  said  unto  the  people :  ''  Shout ; 
for  the  Lord  hath  given  you  the  city.  And  the  city  shall  be  de- 
voted,^ even  it,  and  all  that  are  therein,  to  the  Lord :  only  Rahab 

1  devoted.  The  idea  is  analogous  to  that  of  the  Polynesian  taboo.  Anything 
'devoted  *  (that  is,  to  Jehovah)  was  thereby  withdrawn  from  the  uses  of  com- 
mon life.  'Devoted'  men  and  animals  were  killed  ;  'devoted'  things  were 
either  burned  or  made  over  to  the  sanctuarv. 


152  THE   INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

the  harlot  shall  live,  she  and  all  that  are  with  her  in  the  house, 
because  she  hid  the  messengers  that  we  sent.  And  ye,  in  any 
wise  keep  yourselves  from  the  devoted  thing,  lest  ye  make 
yourselves  devoted,  when  ye  take  of  the  devoted  thing,  and 
make  the  camp  of  Israel  devoted,  and  trouble  it.  But  all  the 
silver,  and  gold,  and  vessels  of  brass  and  iron,  are  consecrated 
unto  the  Lord :  they  shall  come  into  the  treasury  of  the  Lord." 

And  it  came  to  pass  when  the  people  heard  the  sound  of  the 
trumpet,  the  people  shouted  with  a  great  shout,  and  the  wall 
fell  down  flat,  so  that  the  people  went  up  into  the  city,  every 
man  straight  before  him,  and  they  took  the  city.  And  they  utterly 
destroyed  all  that  was  in  the  city,  both  man  and  woman,  young 
and  old,  and  ox,  and  sheep,  and  ass,  with  the  edge  of  the  sword. 
But  Joshua  had  said  unto  the  two  men  that  had  spied  out  the 
country  :  ''  Go  into  the  harlot's  house,  and  bring  out  thence  the 
woman,  and  all  that  she  hath,  as  ye  sware  unto  her."  And  the 
young  men  that  were  spies  went  in,  and  brought  out  Rahab,  and 
her  father,  and  her  mother,  and  her  brethren,  and  all  that  she 
had ;  and  they  brought  out  all  her  kindred,  and  left  them  with- 
out the  camp  of  Israel.  And  they  burnt  the  city  with  fire,  and  all 
that  was  therein  :  only  the  silver,  and  the  gold,  and  the  vessels 
of  brass  and  of  iron,  they  put  into  the  treasury  of  the  house  of 
the  Lord.  And  Joshua  saved  Rahab  the  harlot  alive,  and  her 
father's  household,  and  all  that  she  had  ;  and  she  dwelleth  in 
Israel  even  unto  this  day ;  because  she  hid  the  messengers, 
which  Joshua  sent  to  spy  out  Jericho. 

And  Joshua  adjured  them  at  that  time,  saying  :  ^'  Cursed  be 
the  man  before  the  Lord,  that  riseth  up  and  buildeth  this  city 
Jericho :  he  shall  lay  the  foundation  thereof  in  his  firstborn, 
and  in  his  youngest  son  shall  he  set  up  the  gates  of  it." 

So  the  Lord  was  with  Joshua  ;  and  his  fame  was  noised 
through  the  country. 

The  Sin  of  Achan  (Josh.  vii.  2-26).  And  Joshua  sent  men 
from  Jericho  to  Ai,  which  is  beside  Beth-aven,  on  the  east  side 
of  Beth-el,  and  spake  unto  them,  saying,  "  Go  up  and  view  the 
country."  And  the  men  went  up  and  viewed  Ai.  And  they  re- 
turned to  Joshua,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Let  not  all  the  people 
go  up;  but  let  about  two  or  three  thousand  men  go  up  and  smite 
Ai ;  and  make  not  all  the  people  to  labor  thither ;  for  they  are 
but  few."   So  there  went  up  thither  of  the  people  about  three 


THE   SIN   OF   ACHAN  153 

thousand  men :  and  they  fled  before  the  men  of  Ai.  And  the 
men  of  Ai  smote  of  them  about  thirty  and  six  men :  for  they 
chased  them  from  before  the  gate  even  unto  Shebarim,  and 
smote  them  in  the  going  down  :  wherefore  the  hearts  of  the 
people  melted,  and  became  as  water. 

And  Joshua  rent  his  clothes,  and  fell  to  the  earth  upon  his 
face  before  the  ark  of  the  Lord  until  the  eventide,  he  and  the 
elders  of  Israel,  and  put  dust  upon  their  heads.  And  Joshua 
said:  ''Alas,  0  Lord  God,  wherefore  hast  thou  at  all  brought 
this  people  over  Jordan,  to  deliver  us  into  the  hand  of  the 
Amorites,  to  destroy  us  ?  would  to  God  we  had  been  content, 
and  dwelt  on  the  other  side  Jordan!  0  Lord,  what  shall  I  say, 
when  Israel  turneth  their  backs  before  their  enemies !  For  the 
Canaanites  and  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  shall  hear  of  it, 
and  shall  environ  us  round,  and  cut  off  our  name  from  the  earth: 
and  what  wilt  thou  do  unto  thy  great  name  ?  " 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Joshua  :  "  Get  thee  up ;  wherefore 
liest  thou  thus  upon  thy  face?  Israel  hath  sinned,  and  they 
have  also  transgressed  my  covenant  which  I  commanded  them : 
for  they  have  even  taken  of  the  devoted  thing,  and  have  also 
stolen,  and  dissembled  also,  and  they  have  put  it  even  among 
their  own  stulf.  Therefore  the  children  of  Israel  could  not 
stand  before  their  enemies,  but  turned  their  backs  before  their 
enemies,  because  they  are  become  devoted :  neither  will  I  be 
with  you  any  more,  except  ye  destroy  the  devoted  thing  from 
among  you.  Up,  sanctify  the  people,  and  say.  Sanctify  your- 
selves against  to-morrow  :  for  thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  Israel, 
There  is  a  devoted  thing  in  the  midst  of  thee,  0  Israel :  thou 
canst  not  stand  before  thine  enemies,  until  ye  take  away  the 
devoted  thing  from  among  you.  In  the  morning  therefore  ye 
shall  be  brought  according  to  your  tribes  :  and  it  shall  be,  that 
the  tribe  which  the  Lord  taketh  shall  come  according  to  the 
families  thereof;  and  the  family  which  the  Lord  shall  take 
shall  come  by  households  ;  and  the  household  which  the  Lord 
shall  take  shall  come  man  by  man.  And  it  shall  be,  that  he 
that  is  taken  with  the  devoted  thing  shall  be  burnt  with  fire, 
he  and  all  that  he  hath :  because  he  hath  transgressed  the 
covenant  of  the  Lord,  and  because  he  hath  wrought  folly  in 
Israel." 

So  Joshua  rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  brought  Israel 
by  their  tribes;  and  the  tribe  of  Judah  was  taken:     and   he 


154  THE   INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

brought  the  family  of  Judah ;  and  he  took  the  family  of  the 
Zarhites  :  and  he  brought  the  family  of  the  Zarhites  man  by 
man ;  and  Zabdi  was  taken :  and  he  brought  his  household 
man  by  man ;  and  Achan  was  taken.  And  Joshua  said  unto 
Achan :  "  My  son,  give,  I  pray  thee,  glory  to  the  Lord  God 
of  Israel,  and  make  confession  unto  him ;  and  tell  me  now 
what  thou  hast  done;  hide  it  not  from  me/'  And  Achan  an- 
swered Joshua,  and  said  :  ^'  Indeed  I  have  sinned  against  the 
Lord  God  of  Israel,  and  thus  and  thus  have  I  done :  when  I 
saw  among  the  spoils  a  goodly  Babylonish  garment,  and  two 
hundred  shekels  of  silver,  and  a  wedge  of  gold  of  fifty  shekels 
weight,  then  I  coveted  them,  and  took  them  ;  and  behold,  they 
are  hid  in  the  earth  in  the  midst  of  my  tent,  and  the  silver 
under  it." 

So  Joshua  sent  messengers,  and  they  ran  unto  the  tent ;  and 
behold,  it  was  hid  in  his  tent,  and  the  silver  under  it.  And  they 
took  them  out  of  the  midst  of  the  tent,  and  brought  them  unto 
Joshua,  and  unto  all  the  children  of  Israel,  and  laid  them  out 
before  the  Lord.  And  Joshua,  and  all  Israel  with  him,  took 
Achan  the  son  of  Zerah,  and  the  silver,  and  the  garment,  and  the 
wedge  of  gold,  and  his  sons,  and  his  daughters,  and  his  oxen, 
and  his  asses,  and  his  sheep,  and  his  tent,  and  all  that  he  had  : 
and  they  brought  them  unto  the  valley  of  Achor.  And  Joshua 
said :  "  Why  hast  thou  troubled  us  ?  the  Lord  shall  trouble 
thee  this  day."  And  all  Israel  stoned  him  -with  stones,  and 
burned  them  with  fire,  after  they  had  stoned  them  with  stones. 
And  they  raised  over  him  a  great  heap  of  stones  unto  this  day. 
So  the  Lord  turned  from  the  fierceness  of  his  anger.  Wherefore 
the  name  of  that  place  was  called,  The  valley  of  Achor,  ^  unto 
this  day. 

Ai  Taken  by  Ambuscade  (Josh.  viii.  1-29).  And  the  Lord 
said  unto  Joshua :  "  Fear  not,  neither  be  thou  dismayed  :  take 
all  the  people  of  war  with  thee,  and  arise,  go  up  to  Ai :  see,  I 
have  given  into*  thy  hand  the  king  of  Ai,  and  his  people,  and 
his  city,  and  his  land  :  and  thou  shalt  do  to  Ai  and  her  king  as 
thou  didst  unto  Jericho  and  her  king :  only  the  spoil  thereof, 
and  the  cattle  thereof,  shall  ye  take  for  a  prey  unto  yourselves : 
lay  thee  an  ambush  for  the  city  behind  it." 

So  Joshua  arose,  and  all  the  people  of  war,  to  go  up  against 
1  Achor.  'Trouble.' 


AI   TAKEN   BY  AMBUSCADE  155 

Ai :  and  Joshua  chose  out  thirty  thousand  mighty  men  of  valor, 
and  sent  them  away  by  night.  And  he  commanded  them,  saying  : 
"  Behold,  ye  shall  lie  in  wait  against  the  city,  even  behind  the 
city  :  go  not  very  far  from  the  city,  but  be  ye  all  ready  :  and  I, 
and  all  the  people  that  are  with  me,  will  approach  unto  the  city  : 
and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  they  come  out  against  us,  as  at 
the  first,  that  we  will  flee  before  them,  and  they  will  come  out 
after  us  till  we  have  drawn  them  from  the  city ;  for  they  will 
say.  They  flee  before  us,  as  at  the  first.  Then  ye  shall  rise  up 
from  the  ambush,  and  seize  upon  the  city  :  for  the  Lord  your 
God  will  deliver  it  into  your  hand.  And  it  shall  be,  when  ye 
have  taken  the  city,  that  ye  shall  set  the  city  on  fire  :  according 
to  the  commandment  of  the  Lord  shall  ye  do.  See,  I  have  com- 
manded you." 

Joshua  therefore  sent  them  forth :  and  they  went  to  lie  in 
ambush,  and  abode  between  Beth-el  and  Ai,  on  the  west  side  of 
Ai :  but  Joshua  lodged  that  night  among  the  people. 

And  Joshua  rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  numbered  the 
people,  and  went  up,  he  and  the  elders  of  Israel,  before  the  peo- 
ple to  Ai.  And  all  the  people,  even  the  people  of  war  that  were 
with  him,  went  up,  and  drew  nigh,  and  came  before  the  city, 
and  pitched  on  the  north  side  of  Ai :  now  there  was  a  valley  be- 
tween them  and  Ai.  ^ 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  king  of  Ai  saw  it,  that  they 
hasted  and  rose  up  early,  and  the  men  of  the  city  went  out 
against  Israel  to  battle,  he  and  all  his  people,  at  a  time  appointed, 
before  the  plain  ;  but  he  wist  not  that  there  were  Hers  in  ambush 
against  him  behind  the  city.  And  Joshua  and  all  Israel  made 
as  if  they  were  beaten  before  them,  and  fled  by  the  way  of  the 
wilderness.  And  all  the  people  that  were  in  Ai  were  called  to- 
gether to  pursue  after  them  :  and  they  pursued  after  Joshua,  and 
were  drawn  away  from  the  city.  And  there  was  not  a  man  left 
in  Ai  or  Beth-el,  that  went  not  out  after  Israel :  and  they  left 
the  city  open,  and  pursued  after  Israel. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Joshua :  "  Stretch  out  the  spear  that 
is  in  thy  hand  toward  Ai ;  for  I  will  give  it  into  thine  hand." 
And  Joshua  stretched  out  the  spear  that  he  had  in  his  hand 
toward  the  city.   And  the  ambush  arose  quickly  out  of  their 

1  The  text  here  adds:  "And  he  took  about  five  thousand  men,  and  sent  them 
to  lie  in  ambush  between  Bethel  and  Ai,  on  the  west  side  of  the  city."  This 
5000  has  been  understood  as  a  detachment  of  the  30,000  already  detailed.  But 
the  passage  may  represent  a  different  version  of  the  ambush. 


156  THE  INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

place,  and  they  ran  as  soon  as  he  had  stretched  out  his  hand : 
and  they  entered  into  the  city,  and  took  it,  and  hasted  and  set 
the  city  on  fire.  And  when  the  men  of  Ai  looked  behind  them, 
they  saw,  and  behold,  the  smoke  of  the  city  ascended  up  to 
heaven,  and  they  had  no  power  to  flee  this  way  or  that  way  : 
and  the  people  that  fled  to  the  wilderness  turned  back  upon  the 
pursuers.  And  when  Joshua  and  all  Israel  saw  that  the  ambush 
had  taken  the  city,  and  that  the  smoke  of  the  city  ascended,  then 
they  turned  again,  and  slew  the  men  of  Ai.  And  the  other  issued 
out  of  the  city  against  them  ;  so  they  were  in  the  midst  of  Israel, 
some  on  this  side,  and  some  on  that  side :  and  they  smote  them, 
so  that  they  let  none  of  them  remain  or  escape.  And  the  king 
of  Ai  they  took  alive,  and  brought  him  to  Joshua. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Israel  had  made  an  end  of  slaying 
all  the  inhabitants  of  Ai  in  the  field,  in  the  wilderness  wherein 
they  chased  them,  that  all  the  Israelites  returned  unto  Ai,  and 
smote  it  with  the  edge  of  the  sword.  And  so  it  was,  that  all  that 
fell  that  day,  both  of  men  and  women,  were  twelve  thousand, 
even  all  the  men  of  Ai.  For  Joshua  drew  not  his  hand  back, 
wherewith  he  stretched  out  the  spear,  until  he  had  utterly  de- 
stroyed all  the  inhabitants  of  Ai.  Only  the  cattle  and  the  spoil 
of  that  city  Israel  took  for  a  prey  unto  themselves,  according 
unto  the  word  of  the  Lord  which  he  commanded  Joshua.  And 
Joshua  burnt  Ai,  and  made  it  an  heap  for  ever,  even  a  desola- 
tion unto  this  day.  And  the  king  of  Ai  he  hanged  on  a  tree 
until  eventide:  and  as  soon  as  the  sun  was  down,  Joshua  com- 
manded that  they  should  take  his  carcass  down  from  the  tree, 
and  cast  it  at  the  entering  of  the  gate  of  the  city,  and  raise 
thereon  a  great  heap  of  stones,  that  remaineth  unto  this  day. 

The  Gibeonites  Secure  a  Treaty  (Josh.  ix.  3-27).  And 
when  the  inhabitants  of  Gibeon  heard  what  Joshua  had  done 
unto  Jericho  and  to  Ai,  they  did  work  wilily,  and  went  and 
made  as  if  they  had  been  ambassadors,  and  took  old  sacks  upon 
their  asses,  and  wineskins,  old,  and  rent,  and  bound  up ;  and 
old  shoes  and  clouted  *  upon  their  feet,  and  old  garments  upon 
them ;  and  all  the  bread  of  their  provision  was  dry  and  moldy. 
And  they  went  to  Joshua  unto  the  camp  at  Gilgal,  and  said 
unto  him,  and  to  the  men  of  Israel :  "  We  be  come  from  a  far 
country :  now  therefore  make  ye  a  league  with  us." 
1  clouted.  Mended  with  clouts,  patched. 


THE    GIBEONITES   SECURE    A   TREATY  157 

And  the  men  of  Israel  said  unto  the  Hivites  :  '^  Peradventure 
ye  dwell  among  us ;  and  how  shall  we  make  a  league  with 
you?"  And  they  said  unto  Joshua:  "  We  are  thy  servants." 
And  Joshua  said  unto  them  **  Who  are  ye  ?  and  from  whence 
come  ye  ?  "  And  they  said  unto  him  :  ''From  a  very  far  country 
thy  servants  are  come  because  of  the  name  of  the  Lord  thy  God  : 
for  we  have  heard  the  fame  of  him,  and  all  that  he  did  in 
Egypt,  and  all  that  he  did  to  the  two  kings  of  the  Amorites, 
that  were  beyond  Jordan,  to  Sihon  king  of  Heshbon,  and  to  Og 
king  of  Bashan,  which  were  at  Ashtaroth.  Wherefore  our  elders 
and  all  the  inhabitants  of  our  country  spake  to  us,  saying,  Take 
victuals  with  you  for  the  journey,  and  go  to  meet  them,  and 
say  unto  them.  We  are  your  servants :  therefore  now  make  ye  a 
league  with  us.  This  our  bread  we  took  hot  for  our  provision 
out  of  our  houses  on  the  day  we  came  forth  to  go  unto  you ;  but 
now,  behold,  it  is  dry,  and  it  is  moldy  :  and  these  skins  of  wine, 
which  we  filled,  were  new ;  and  behold,  they  be  rent :  and 
these  our  garments  and  our  shoes  are  become  old  by  reason  of 
the  very  long  journey." 

And  the  men  took  of  their  victuals  and  asked  not  counsel  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Lord.  And  Joshua  made  peace  with  them,  and 
made  a  league  with  them,  to  let  them  live  :  and  the  princes  of 
the  congregation  sware  unto  them.  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the 
end  of  three  days  after  they  had  made  a  league  with  them,  that 
they  heard  that  they  were  their  neighbors,  and  that  they  dwelt 
among  them.  And  the  children  of  Israel  journeyed,  and  came 
unto  their  cities  on  the  third  day.  Now  their  cities  were  Gibeon, 
and  Chephirah,  and  Beeroth,  and  Kirjath-jearim.  And  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  smote  them  not,  because  the  princes  of  the  congre- 
gation had  sworn  unto  them  by  the  Lord  God  of  Israel. 

And  all  the  congregation  murmured  against  the  princes.  But 
all  the  princes  said  unto  all  the  congregation  :  "  We  have  sworn 
unto  them  by  the  Lord  God  of  Israel :  now  therefore  we  may 
not  touch  them.  This  we  will  do  to  them ;  we  will  even  let 
them  live,  lest  wrath  be  upon  us,  because  of  the  oath  which 
we  sware  unto  them.  Let  them  live  ;  but  let  them  be  hewers 
of  wood  and  drawers  of  water  unto  all  the  congregation."  And 
Joshua  called  for  them,  and  he  spake  unto  them,  saying: 
^'  Wherefore  have  ye  beguiled  us,  saying.  We  are  very  far  from 
you ;  when  ye  dwell  among  us  ?  Now  therefore  ye  are  cursed, 
and  there  shall  none  of  you  be  freed  from  being  bondmen,  and 


158  THE  INVASION   OF  CANAAN 

hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water  for  the  house  of  my  God." 
And  they  answered  Joshua,  and  said  :  "  Because  it  was  certainly 
told  thy  servants,  how  that  the  Lord  thy  God  commanded  his 
servant  Moses  to  give  you  all  the  land,  and  to  destroy  all  the 
inhabitants  of  the  land  from  before  you,  therefore  we  were  sore 
afraid  of  our  lives  because  of  you,  and  have  done  this  thing. 
And  now,  behold,  we  are  in  thine  hand  :  as  it  seemeth  good 
and  right  unto  thee  to  do  unto  us,  do.'^ 

And  so  did  he  unto  them,  and  delivered  them  out  of  the 
hand  of  the  children  of  Israel,  that  they  slew  them  not.  And 
Joshua  made  them  that  day  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of 
water  for  the  congregation,  and  for  the  altar  of  the  Lord,  even 
unto  this  day,  in  the  place  which  he  should  choose. 

Defeat  of  Five  Amorite  Kings  (Josh.  x.  1-27).  Kow  it 
came  to  pass,  when  Adoni-zedek  king  of  Jerusalem  had  heard 
how  Joshua  had  taken  Ai,  and  had  utterly  destroyed  it;  and 
how  the  inhabitants  of  Gibeon  had  made  peace  with  Israel,  and 
were  among  them;  that  they  feared  greatly,  because  Gibeon 
was  a  great  city,  as  one  of  the  royal  cities,^  and  because  it  was 
greater  than  Ai,  and  all  the  men  thereof  were  mighty.  Where- 
fore Adoni-zedek  king  of  Jerusalem  sent  unto  Hoham  king  of 
Hebron,  and  unto  Piram  king  of  Jarmuth,  and  unto  Japhia 
king  of  Lachish,  and  unto  Debir  king  of  Eglon,  saying :  "  Come 
up  unto  me,  and  help  me,  that  we  may  smite  Gibeon  :  for  it 
hath  made  peace  with  Joshua  and  with  the  children  of  Israel." 

Therefore  the  five  kings  of  the  Amorites,  the  king  of  Jeru- 
salem, the  king  of  Hebron,  the  king  of  Jarmuth,  the  king  of 
Lachish,  the  king  of  Eglon,  gathered  themselves  together,  and 
went  up,  they  and  all  their  hosts,  and  encamped  before  Gibeon 
and  made  war  against  it.  And  the  men  of  Gibeon  sent  unto 
Joshua  to  the  camp  to  Gilgal,  saying  :  "  Slack  not  thy  hand  from 
thy  servants ;  come  up  to  us  quickly,  and  save  us,  and  help  us : 
for  all  the  kings  of  the  Amorites  that  dwell  in  the  mountains 
are  gathered  together  against  us."  So  Joshua  ascended  from 
Gilgal,  he,  and  all  the  people  of  war  with  him,  and  all  the 
mighty  men  of  valor. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Joshua  :  "  Fear  them  not :  for  I  have 
delivered  them  into  thine  hand ;  there  shall  not  a  man  of  them 
stand  before  them."  Joshua  therefore  came  unto  them  suddenly, 
1  royal  cities.  That  is,  cities  with  smaller  dependent  towns. 


DEFEAT   OF   FIVE   AMORITE    KINGS  159 

and  went  up  from  Gilgal  all  night.  And  the  Lord  discomfited 
them  before  Israel,  and  slew  them  with  a  great  slaughter  at 
Gibeon,  and  chased  them  along  the  way  that  goeth  up  to  Beth- 
horon,  and  smote  them  to  Azekah,  and  unto  Makkedah.  And 
it  came  to  pass,  as  they  fled  from  before  Israel,  and  were  in  the 
going  down  to  Beth-horon,  that  the  Lord  cast  down  great  stones 
from  heaven  upon  them  unto  Azekah,  and  they  died :  they  were 
more  which  died  with  hailstones  than  they  whom  the  children 
of  Israel  slew  with  the  sword. 

Then  spake  Joshua  to  the  Lord  in  the  day  when  the  Lord 
delivered  up  the  Amorites  before  the  children  of  Israel,  and  he 
said  in  the  sight  of  Israel : 

"  Sun,  stand  thou  still  upon  Gibeon ; 
And  thou,  Moon,  in  the  valley  of  Aijalon. 
And  the  sun  stood  still,  and  the  moon  stayed, 
Until  the  people  had  avenged  themselves  upon  their 
enemies." 

(Is  not  this  written  in  the  book  of  Jasher  ?  )  ^  So  the  sun  stood 
still  in  the  midst  of  heaven,  and  hasted  not  to  go  down  about 
a  whole  day.  And  there  was  no  day  like  that  before  it  or  after 
it,  that  the  Lord  hearkened  unto  the  voice  of  a  man  :  for  the 
Lord  fought  for  Israel. 

And  Joshua  returned,  and  all  Israel  with  him,  unto  the  camp 
to  Gilgal.  But  these  five  kings  fled,  and  hid  themselves  in  a 
cave  at  Makkedah.  And  it  was  told  Joshua,  saying,  ''The  five 
kings  are  found  hid  in  a  cave  at  Makkedah."  And  Joshua  said: 
^'  Roll  great  stones  upon  the  mouth  of  the  cave,  and  set  men  by 
it  for  to  keep  them :  and  stay  ye  not,  but  pursue  after  your 
enemies,  and  smite  the  hindmost  of  them;  suffer  them  not  to 
enter  into  their  cities :  for  the  Lord  your  God  hath  delivered 
them  into  your  hand."  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Joshua  and 
the  children  of  Israel  had  made  an  end  of  slaying  them  with  a 
very  great  slaughter,  till  they  were  consumed,  that  the  rest  which 
remained  of  them  entered  into  fenced  cities.  And  all  the  people 
returned  to  the  camp  to  Joshua  at  Makkedah  in  peace  :  none 
moved  his  tongue  against  any  of  the  children  of  Israel. 

Then  said  Joshua :  "  Open  the  mouth  of  the  cave,  and  bring 

1  book  of  Jasher.  A  collection  of  national  heroic  lays.  Jasher,  '  Upright,' 
may  be  either,  like  Jeshurun,  a  poetic  title  of  Israel,  or  a  collective  name  for 
'heroes.* 


160  THE   INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

out  those  five  kings  unto  me  out  of  tlie  cave."  And  they  did  so, 
and  brought  forth  those  five  kings  unto  him  out  of  the  cave,  the 
king  of  Jerusalem,  the  king  of  Hebron,  the  king  of  Jarmuth, 
the  king  of  Lachish,  and  the  king  of  Eglon.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  they  brought  out  those  kings  unto  Joshua,  that 
Joshua  called  for  all  the  men  of  Israel,  and  said  unto  the  cap- 
tains of  the  men  of  war  which  went  with  him:  "  Come  near,  put 
your  feet  upon  the  necks  of  these  kings."  And  they  came  near, 
and  put  their  feet  upon  the  necks  of  them.  And  Joshua  said 
unto  them  :  "  Fear  not,  nor  be  dismayed,  be  strong  and  of  good 
courage :  for  thus  shall  the  Lord  do  to  all  your  enemies  against 
whom  ye  fight."  And  afterward  Joshua  smote  them,  and  slew 
them,  and  hanged  them  on  five  trees:  and  they  were  hanging 
upon  the  trees  until  the  evening.  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the 
time  of  the  going  down  of  the  sun,  that  Joshua  commanded,  and 
they  took  them  down  off  the  trees,  and  cast  them  into  the  cave 
wherein  they  had  been  hid,  and  laid  great  stones  in  the  cave's 
mouth,  which  remain  until  this  very  day. 

Allotments  of  Land  to  the  Tribes  (Josh.  xiii.  1,  7;  xiv. 
6-15;  XV.  14-19;  xviii.  1-10;  xix.  49,  50).  Now  Joshua  was  old 
and  stricken  in  years;  and  the  Lord  said  unto  him:  *' Thou  art 
old  and  stricken  in  years ;  and  there  remaineth  yet  very  much 
land  to  be  possessed.  Now  therefore  divide  this  land  for  an 
inheritance  unto  the  nine  tribes,  and  the  half  tribe  of  Manas- 
seh." 

Then  the  children  of  Judah  came  unto  Joshua  in  Gilgal : 
and  Caleb  the  son  of  Jephunneh  the  Kenezite  said  unto  him: 
"  Thou  knowest  the  thing  that  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses  the 
man  of  God  concerning  me  and  thee  in  Kadesh-barnea.  Forty 
years  old  was  I  when  Moses  the  servant  of  the  Lord  sent  me 
from  Kadesh-barnea  to  espy  out  the  land ;  and  I  brought  him 
word  again  as  it  was  in  mine  heart.  Nevertheless  my  brethren 
that  went  up  with  me  made  the  heart  of  the  people  melt:  but 
I  wholly  followed  the  Lord  my  God.  And  Moses  sware  on  that 
day,  saying.  Surely  the  land  whereon  thy  feet  have  trodden 
shall  be  thine  inheritance,  and  thy  children's  for  ever,  because 
thou  hast  wholly  followed  the  Lord  my  God.  And  now,  behold, 
the  Lord  hath  kept  me  alive,  as  he  said,  these  forty  and  five 
years,  ever  since  the  Lord  spake  this  word  unto  Moses,  while  the 
children  of  Israel  wandered  in  the  wilderness :  and  now,  lo,  I 


ALLOTMENTS    OF   LAND    TO   THE    TRIBES  161 

am  this  day  fourscore  and  five  years  old.  As  yet  I  am  as  strong 
this  day  as  I  was  in  the  day  that  Moses  sent  me  :  as  my  strength 
was  then,  even  so  is  my  strength  now,  for  war,  both  to  go  out, 
and  to  come  in.  ISTow  therefore  give  me  this  mountain,  whereof 
the  Lord  spake  in  that  day  ;  for  thou  heardest  in  that  day  how 
the  Anakini  were  there,  and  that  the  cities  were  great  and 
fenced  :  if  so  be  the  Lord  will  be  with  me,  then  I  shall  be  able 
to  drive  them  out,  as  the  Lord  said." 

And  Joshua  blessed  him,  and  gave  unto  Caleb  the  son  of 
Jephunneh  Hebron  for  an  inheritance.  Hebron  therefore  be- 
came the  inheritance  of  Caleb  the  son  of  Jephunneh .  the  Ke- 
nezite  unto  this  day,  because  that  he  wholly  followed  the  Lord 
God  of  Israel.  And  the  name  of  Hebron  before  was  Kirjath- 
arba ;  which  Arba  was  a  great  man  among  the  Anakim.  And 
Caleb  drove  thence  the  three  sons  of  Anak,  Sheshai,  and  Ahi- 
man,  and  Talmai,  the  children  of  Anak. 

And  he  went  up  thence  to  the  inhabitants  of  Debir:  and  the 
name  of  Debir  before  was  Kirjath-sepher.  And  Caleb  said  :  "  He 
that  smiteth  Kirjath-sepher,  and  taketh  it,  to  him  will  I  give 
Achsah  my  daughter  to  wife."  And  Othniel  the  son  of  Kenaz, 
the  brother  of  Caleb,  took  it:  and  he  gave  him  Achsah  his 
daughter  to  wife.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  she  came  unto  him, 
that  she  moved  him  to  ask  of  her  father  a  field :  and  she  lighted 
off  her  ass  ;  and  Caleb  said  unto  her,  "  What  wouldest  thou  ?  " 
Who  answered:  ''  Give  me  a  blessing;  for  thou  hast  given  me 
the  south  land ;  give  me  also  springs  of  water."  And  he  gave 
her  the  upper  springs,  and  the  nether  springs. 

And  the  whole  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel  assem- 
bled together  at  Shiloh,  and  set  up  the  tabernacle  of  the  congre- 
gation there.  And  the  land  was  subdued  before  them.  And 
there  remained  among  the  children  of  Israel  seven  tribes,  which 
had  not  yet  received  their  inheritance.  And  Joshua  said  unto  the 
children  of  Israel :  "  How  long  are  ye  slack  to  go  to  possess  the 
land,  which  the  Lord  God  of  your  fathers  hath  given  you? 
Give  out  from  among  you  three  men  for  each  tribe  :  and  I  will 
send  them,  and  they  shall  rise,  and  go  through  the  land,  and 
describe  it  according  to  the  inheritance  of  them  ;  and  they  shall 
come  again  to  me.  And  they  shall  divide  it  into  seven  parts : 
Judah  shall  abide  in  their  coast  on  the  south,  and  the  house  of 
Joseph  shall  abide  in  their  coasts  on  the  north.  Ye  shall  therefore 
describe  the  land  into  seven  parts,  and   bring   the  description 


162  THE   INVASION  OF  CANAAN 

hither  to  me,  that  I  may  cast  lots  for  you  here  before  the  Lord 
our  God.  But  the  Levites  have  no  part  among  you ;  for  the 
priesthood  of  the  Lord  is  their  inheritance :  and  Gad,  and  Reu- 
ben, and  half  the  tribe  of  Manasseh,  have  received  their  inherit- 
ance beyond  Jordan  on  the  east,  which  Moses  the  servant  of  the 
Lord  gave  thee.'' 

And  the  men  arose,  and  went  away ;  and  Joshua  charged 
them  that  went  to  describe  the  land,  saying :  "  Go  and  walk 
through  the  land,  and  describe  it,  and  come  again  to  me  that  I 
may  here  cast  lots  for  you  before  the  Lord  in  Shiloh."  And 
the  men  went  and  passed  through  the  land,  and  described  it  by 
cities  into  seven  parts  in  a  book,  and  came  again  to  Joshua  to 
the  host  at  Shiloh.  And  Joshua  cast  lots  for  them  in  Shiloh  be- 
fore the  Lord  :  and  there  Joshua  divided  the  land  unto  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  according  to  their  divisions. 

When  they  had  made  an  end  of  dividing  the  land  for  inherit- 
ance by  their  coasts,  the  children  of  Israel  gave  an  inheritance 
to  Joshua  the  son  of  Nun  among  them  :  according  to  the  word 
of  the  Lord  they  gave  him  the  city  which  he  asked,  even  Tim- 
nath-serah  in  mount  Ephraim :  and  he  built  the  city,  and  dwelt 
therein. 

Joshua's  Farewell  (Josh.  xxiv.  1-15,  24-33).  And  Joshua 
gathered  all  the  tribes  of  Israel  to  Shechem,  and  called  for  the 
elders  of  Israel,  and  for  their  heads,  and  for  their  judges,  and 
for  their  officers;  and  they  presented  themselves  before  God. 
And  Joshua  said  unto  all  the  people  : 

"Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  Your  fathers  dwelt  on 
the  other  side  of  the  flood  ^  in  old  time,  even  Terah,  the  father 
of  Abraham,  and  the  father  of  Nahor :  and  they  served  other 
gods.  And  I  took  your  father  Abraham  from  the  other  side  of 
the  flood,  and  led  him  throughout  all  the  land  of  Canaan,  and 
multiplied  his  seed,  and  gave  him  Isaac.  And  I  gave  unto  Isaac 
Jacob  and  Esau :  and  I  gave  unto  Esau  mount  Seir,  to  possess 
it:  but  Jacob  and  his  children  went  down  into  Egypt.  I  sent 
Moses  also  and  Aaron,  and  I  plagued  Egypt,  according  to  that 
which  I  did  among  them  :  and  afterward  I  brought  you  out.  And 
I  brought  your  fathers  out  of  Egypt :  and  ye  came  unto  the  sea ; 
and  the  Egyptians  pursued  after  your  fathers  with  chariots  and 
horsemen  unto  the  Red  Sea.  And  when  they  cried  unto  the  Lord, 
1  the  flood.  The  river  Euphrates. 


JOSHUA'S   FAREWELL  163 

he  put  darkness  between  you  and  the  Egyptians,  and  brought 
the  sea  upon  them,  and  covered  them  ;  and  your  eyes  have  seen 
what  I  have  done  in  Egypt:  and  ye  dwelt  in  the  wilderness  a 
long  season.  And  I  brought  you  into  the  land  of  the  Amorites, 
which  dwelt  on  the  other  side  Jordan;  and  they  fought  with 
you  :  and  I  gave  them  into  your  hand,  that  ye  might  possess 
their  land;  and  I  destroyed  them  from  before  you.  Then  Balak 
the  son  of  Zippor,  king  of  Moab,  arose  and  warred  against  Israel, 
and  sent  and  called  Balaam  the  son  of  Beor  to  curse  you:  but  I 
would  not  hearken  unto  Balaam ;  therefore  he  blessed  you  still : 
so  I  delivered  you  out  of  his  hand.  And  ye  went  over  Jordan, 
and  came  unto  Jericho:  and  the  men  of  Jericho  fought  against 
you,  the  Amorites,  and  the  Perizzites,  and  the  Canaanites,  and 
the  Hittites,  and  the  Girgashites,  the  Hivites,  and  the  Jebusites ; 
and  I  delivered  them  into  your  hand.  And  I  sent  the  hornet 
before  you,  which  drave  them  out  from  before  you,  even  the 
two  kings  of  the  Amorites ;  but  not  with  thy  sword,  nor  with 
thy  bow.  And  I  have  given  you  a  land  for  which  ye  did  not 
labor,  and  cities  which  ye  built  not,  and  ye  dwell  in  them; 
of  the  vineyards  and  oliveyards  which  ye  planted  not  do  ye 
eat. 

"Now  therefore  fear  the  Lord,  and  serve  him  in  sincerity  and 
in  truth :  and  put  away  the  gods  which  your  fathers  served  on 
the  other  side  of  the  flood,  and  in  Egypt ;  and  serve  ye  the  Lord. 
And  if  it  seem  evil  unto  you  to  serve  the  Lord,  choose  you  this 
day  whom  ye  will  serve ;  whether  the  gods  which  your  fathers 
served  that  were  on  the  other  side  of  the  flood,  or  the  gods  of 
the  Amorites,  in  whose  land  ye  dwell :  but  as  for  me  and  my 
house,  we  will  serve  the  Lord.'' 

And  the  people  said  unto  Joshua :  "  The  Lord  our  God  will 
we  serve,  and  his  voice  will  we  obey." 

So  Joshua  made  a  covenant  with  the  people  that  day,  and 
set  them  a  statute  and  an  ordinance  in  Shechem.  And  Joshua 
wrote  these  words  in  the  book  of  the  law  of  God,  and  took  a 
great  stone,  and  set  it  up  there  under  an  oak,  that  was  by  the 
sanctuary  of  the  Lord.  And  Joshua  said  unto  all  the  people : 
"  Behold,  this  stone  shall  be  a  witness  unto  us  ;  for  it  hath  heard 
all  the  words  of  the  Lord  which  he  spake  unto  us :  it  shall  be 
therefore  a  witness  unto  you,  lest  ye  deny  your  God."  So  Joshua 
let  the  people  depart,  every  man  unto  his  inheritance. 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  these  things,  that  Joshua  the  son 


164  THE   INVASION   OF   CANAAN 

of  Nun,  the  servant  of  the  Lord,  died,  being  an  hundred  and 
ten  years  old.  And  they  buried  him  in  the  border  of  his  inherit- 
ance in  Timnath-serah,  which  is  in  mount  Ephraim,  on  the 
north  side  of  the  hill  of  Gaash.  And  Israel  served  the  Lord  all 
the  days  of  Joshua,  and  all  the  days  of  the  elders  that  overlived 
Joshua,  and  which  had  known  all  the  works  of  the  Lord,  that 
he  had  done  for  Israel. 

And  the  bones  of  Joseph,  which  the  children  of  Israel  brought 
up  out  of  Egypt,  buried  they  in  Shechem,  in  a  parcel  of  ground 
which  Jacob  bought  of  the  sons  of  Hamor  the  father  of  Shechem 
for  an  hundred  pieces  of  silver :  and  it  became  the  inheritance 
of  the  children  of  Joseph. 

And  Eleazar  the  son  of  Aaron  died ;  and  they  buried  him  in 
a  hill  that  pertained  to  Phinehas  his  son,  which  was  given  him 
in  mount  Ephraim. 

The  Conquest  Incomplete  (Judg.  i.  1-7;  Josh.  xv.  63; 
Judg.  i.  9,  16-19,  22-36;  ii.  1-5).  Now  after  the  death  of 
Joshua  it  came  to  pass,  that  the  children  of  Israel  asked  the 
Lord,  saying :  "  Who  shall  go  up  for  us  against  the  Canaanites 
first,  to  fight  against  them  ?  "  And  the  Lord  said  :  "  Judah  shall 
go  up :  behold,  I  have  delivered  the  land  into  his  hand."  And 
Judah  said  unto  Simeon  his  brother :  "  Come  up  with  me  into 
my  lot,  that  we  may  fight  against  the  Canaanites ;  and  I  likewise 
will  go  with  thee  into  thy  lot."  So  Simeon  went  with  him. 
And  Judah  went  up ;  and  they  found  Adoni-bezek  in  Bezek : 
and  they  fought  against  him,  and  they  slew  the  Canaanites  and 
the  Perizzites.  But  Adoni-bezek  fled ;  and  they  pursued  after  him, 
and  caught  him,  and  cut  off  his  thumbs  and  his  great  toes.  And 
Adoni-bezek  said  :  "  Threescore  and  ten  kings,  having  their 
thumbs  and  their  great  toes  cut  off",  gathered  their  meat  under 
my  table  :  as  I  have  done,  so  God  hath  requited  me."  And  they 
brought  him  to  Jerusalem,  and  there  he  died.  As  for  the  Jebu- 
sites  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem,  the  children  of  Judah  could 
not  drive  them  out :  but  the  Jebusites  dwell  with  the  children 
of  Judah  at  Jerusalem  unto  this  day.  And  afterward  the  chil- 
dren of  Judah  went  down  to  fight  against  the  Canaanites,  that 
dwelt  in  the  mountain,  and  in  the  south,  and  in  the  valley. 

And  the  children  of  the  Kenite,  Moses'  father  in  law,  went 
up  out  of  the  city  of  palm  trees  ^  with  the  children  of  Judah 
1  city  of  palm  trees.  Jericho,  which  was  once  famous  for  its  palms. 


THE   CONQUEST  INCOMPLETE  165 

into  the  wilderness  of  Judah,  which  lieth  in  the  south  of  Arad  ; 
and  they  went  and  dwelt  among  the  people. 

And  Judah  went  with  Simeon  his  brother,  and  they  slew  the 
Canaanites  that  inhabited  Zephath,  and  utterly  destroyed  it, 
And  the  name  of  the  city  was  called  Hormah.^  And  the  Lord 
was  with  Judah;  and  he  drave  out  the  inhabitants  of  the  hill 
country  ;  but  could  not  drive  out  the  inhabitants  of  the  valley, 
because  they  had  chariots  of  iron. 

And  the  house  of  Joseph,  they  also  went  up  against  Beth-el ; 
and  the  Lord  was  with  them.  And  the  house  of  Joseph  sent  to 
descry  Beth-el.  (Now  the  name  of  the  city  before  was  Luz.) 
And  the  spies  saw  a  man  come  forth  out  of  the  city,  and  they 
said  unto  him  :  ''  Shew  us,  we  pray  thee,  the  entrance  into  the 
city,  and  we  will  shew  thee  mercy. '^  And  when  he  shewed  them 
the  entrance  into  the  city,  they  smote  the  city  with  the  edge  of 
the  sword  ;  but  they  let  go  the  man  and  all  his  family.  And 
the  man  went  into  the  land  of  the  Hittites,  and  built  a  city,  and 
called  the  name  thereof  Luz  :  which  is  the  name  thereof  unto 
this  day. 

Neither  did  jNIanasseh  drive  out  the  inhabitants  of  Beth-shean 
and  her  towns,  nor  Taanach  and  her  towns,  nor  the  inhabitants 
of  Dor  and  her  towns,  nor  the  inhabitants  of  Ibleam  and  her 
towns,  nor  the  inhabitants  of  Megiddo  and  her  towns;  but  the 
Canaanites  would  dwell  in  that  land.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when 
Israel  was  strong,  that  they  put  the  Canaanites  to  tribute,  and 
did  not  utterly  drive  them  out.  Neither  did  Ephraim  drive  out 
the  Canaanites  that  dwelt  in  Gezer;  but  the  Canaanites  dwelt  in 
Gezer  among  them.  Neither  did  Zebulun  drive  out  the  inhab- 
itants of  Kitron,  nor  the  inhabitants  of  Nahalol ;  but  the  Ca- 
naanites dwelt  among  them,  and  became  tributaries.  Neither 
did  Asher  drive  out  the  inhabitants  of  Accho,  nor  the  inhab- 
itants of  Zidon,  nor  of  Ahlab,  nor  of  4chzib,  nor  of  Helbah, 
nor  of  Aphik,  nor  of  Rehob:  but  the  Asherites  dwelt  among  the 
Canaanites,  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  :  for  they  did  not  drive 
them  out.  Neither  did  Naphtali  drive  out  the  inhabitants  of 
Beth-sheraesh,  nor  the  inhabitants  of  Beth-anath  ;  but  he  dwelt 
among  the  Canaanites,  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  :  neverthe- 
less the  inhabitants  of  Beth-shemesh  and  of  Beth-anath  became 
tributaries  unto  them.  And  the  Amorites  forced  the  children 
of  Dan  into  the  hill  country  :  for  they  would  not  suffer  them  to 
1  Hormah.  'Devoted  to  Destruction,'  —  viz.,  by  the  vow  recorded  on  p.  130. 


166  THE   INVASION  OF   CANAAN 

come  down  to  the  valley  :  but  the  Amorites  would  dwell  in 
mount  Heres  in  Aijalon,  and  in  Shaalbim :  yet  the  hand  of  the 
house  of  Joseph  prevailed,  so  that  they  became  tributaries.  And 
the  coast  of  the  Amorites  was  from  the  going  up  to  Akrabbim, 
from  the  rock,^  and  upward. 

And  an  angel  of  the  Lord  came  up  from  Gilgal  to  Bochim, 
and  said  :  "  I  made  you  to  go  up  out  of  Egypt,  and  have  brought 
you  unto  the  land  which  I  sware  unto  your  fathers :  and  I  said, 
I  will  never  break  my  covenant  with  you.  And  ye  shall  make 
no  league  with  the  inhabitants  of  this  land ;  ye  shall  throw  down 
their  altars ;  but  ye  have  not  obeyed  my  voice  :  why  have  ye 
done  this  ?  Wherefore  I  also  said,  I  will  not  drive  them  out 
from  before  you ;  but  they  shall  be  as  thorns  in  your  sides,  and 
their  gods  shall  be  a  snare  unto  you.'^  And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  the  angel  of  the  Lord  spake  these  words  unto  all  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel,  that  the  people  lifted  up  their  voice  and  wept. 
And  they  called  the  name  of  that  place  Bochim :  ^  and  they 
sacrificed  there  unto  the  Lord. 

1  the  rock.  Perhaps  Petra  in  Edom,  an  ancient  rock-cut  city,  which  has  re- 
cently (in  1908)  been  successfully  excavated  for  early  remains. 

2  Bochim.  'Weepers.' 


VIII 


THE    JUDGES 


Explanation  of  Israel's  For- 
tunes during  the  Period  of 
Settlement  (Judg.  ii.  ll-iii.  6). 
And  the  children  of  Israel  did 
evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and 
served  Baalim  :^  and  they  for- 
sook the  Lord  God  of  their  fa- 
thers, which  brought  them  out 
of  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  followed 
other  gods,  of  the  gods  of  the 
people  that  were  round  about 
them,  and  bowed  themselves  unto 
them,  and  provoked  the  Lord 
to  anger.  And  they  forsook  the 
Lord,  and  served  Baal  and  Ash- 
taroth.  ^  And  the  anger  of  the 
Lord  was  hot  against  Israel,  and 
he  delivered  them  into  the  hands 
of  spoilers  that  spoiled  them,  and 
he  sold  them  into  the  hands  of 
their  enemies  round  about,  so 
that  they  could  not  any  longer 
stand     before     their     enemies. 

Whithersoever     they     went     out,      Ashtart :   Terra-cotta  figure  from  Cyprus. 
.1       -I  7      r   ,,       T        1  •      i.         fFrom  Perrot  and  Chiplez:  Histoirede 

the  hand  oi  the  Lord  was  agamst      rartdansrantiguun 

1  Baalim.  PI,  of  Baal,  which  means  literally  'Possessor.'  A  Baal  was  a  local 
Canaanite  divinity,  thought  of  as  possessing  the  soil  and  controlling  its  fertility. 
Each  agricultural  settlement  had  its  Baal,  which  at  stated  festivals  it  worshipped 
in  conjunction  with  Ashtart  (see  next  note).  Since  the  special  gift  of  these 
deities  was  fertility,  their  festivals  were  made  the  occasion  of  immoral  indul- 
gence. As  the  Hebrews  settled  among  the  Canaanites,  they  readily  fell  in  with 
this  native  worship,  especially  in  northern  Israel,  where  agriculture  was  more 
general  than  in  the  south.  Jehovah  himself,  at  the  popular  high  places  (see 
note,  p.  223),  was  apt  to  be  worshipped  with  Baalish  rites. 

2  Ashtaroth.  PI.  of  the  name  of  a  widely  worshipped  Semitic  goddess,  here 
denoting  the  goddess  in  her  various  local  representations.  In  Assyria  and  Baby- 


168  THE    JUDGES 

them  for  evil,  as  the  Lord  had  said,  and  as  the  Lord  had  sworn 
unto  them  :  and  they  were  greatly  distressed. 

Nevertheless  the  Lord  raised  up  judges,^  which  delivered 
them  out  of  the  hand  of  those  that  spoiled  them.  And  yet  they 
would  not  hearken  unto  their  judges,  but  they  went  a  whoring 
after  other  gods,  and  bowed  themselves  unto  them.  And  when 
the  Lord  raised  them  up  judges,  then  the  Lord  was  with  the 
judge,  and  delivered  them  out  of  the  hand  of  their  enemies  all 
the  days  of  the  judge  :  for  it  repented  the  Lord  because  of  their 
groanings  by  reason  of  them  that  oppressed  them  and  vexed 
them.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  judge  was  dead,  that  they 
returned,  and  corrupted  themselves  more  than  their  fathers,  in 
following  other  gods  to  serve  them,  and  to  bow  down  unto  them  ; 
they  ceased  not  from  their  own  doings,  nor  from  their  stubborn 
way. 

And  the  anger  of  the  Lord  was  hot  against  Israel ;  and  he 
said  :  ''  Because  that  this  people  hath  transgressed  my  covenant 
which  I  commanded  their  fathers,  and  have  not  hearkened  unto 
my  voice;  I  also  will  not  henceforth  drive  out  any  from  before 
them  of  the  nations  which  Joshua  left  when  he  died :  that 
through  them  I  may  prove  Israel,  whether  they  will  keep  the 
way  of  the  Lord  to  walk  therein,  as  their  fathers  did  keep  it, 
or  not."  Therefore  the  Lord  left  those  nations,  without  driving 
them  out  hastily. 

Now  these  are  the  nations  which  the  Lord  left,  to  prove 
Israel  by  them,  even  as  many  of  Israel  as  had  not  known  all 
the  wars  of  Canaan ;  only  that  the  generations  of  the  children  of 
Israel  might  know,  to  teach  them  war,  at  the  least  such  as  be- 
fore knew  nothing  thereof ;  namely,  five  lords  of  the  Philistines,^ 

Ionia  she  was  called  Iphtar;  in  Phoenicia,  Ashtart.  The  latter  name,  more  fa- 
miliarly known  in  its  Greek  form  Astarte,  is  bv  the  Old  Testament  writers  ren- 
dered 'Ashtoreth,'  in  order  to  stigmatize  it  by  making  it  suggest  the  word 
bosheth,  '  shameful  thing.'  (See  note  on  p.  265.)  Ashtart  is  commonly  goddess  of 
fertility  and  reproduction,  though  as  the  tutelary  divinity  of  a  city  she  often 
appears  in  a  warlike  character.  Through  Phoenician  traders  the  cult  of  Ashtart 
helped  to  form  the  Greek  conception  of  Aphrodite. 

1  judges.  The  heroes  whose  exploits  are  told  in  the  book  of  Judges  are  pri- 
marily deliverers  rather  than  magistrates,  men  who  had  vindicated  the  rights  of 
Israel  in  battle.  By  a  '  judge,'  the  Hebrews  originally  meant  one  who  delivered 
oracles,  especially'in  matters  of  dispute;  but  the  duty  of  administering  justice 
fell  naturally  to  a  chief  who  had  gained  prestige  in  war,  and  in  later  times  was 
often  performed  by  the  king. 

2  Jive  lords  of  the  Philistines.  See  note.  p.  191.  By  Canaanites  are  here  meant 


OTHNIEL 


169 


and  all  the  Canaanites,  and  the  Sidonians,  and  the  Hivites  that 
dwelt  in  mount  Lebanon,  from  mount  Baal-hermon  unto  the 
entering  in  of  Hamath.  And  they  were  to  prove  Israel  by  them, 
to  know  whether  they  would  hearken  unto  the  commandmentvS 
of  the  Lofd,  which  he  commanded  their  fathers  by  the  hand  of 
Moses.  And  the  children  of  Israel  dwelt  among  the  Canaanites, 
Hittites,  and  Amorites,  and  Perizzites,  and  Hivites,  and  Jebu- 
sites :  and  they  took  their  daughters  to  be  their  wives,  and  gave 
their  daughters  to  their  sons,  and  served  their  gods. 

Othniel   (Judg.  iii.    7-11).  And   the  children  of  Israel  did 
evil  in  the  sight  of  the   Lord,  and   forgat  the  Lord   their  God, 


Impression  from  an  ancient  cylinder-seal  showing  a  Sacred  Tree 
and  Asherah 

and  served  the  Baalim  and  the  Asheroth.^  Therefore  the  anger 
of  the  Lord  was  hot  against  Israel,  and  he  sold  them  into  the 
hand  of  Cushan-rishathaim  ^  king  of  Mesopotamia :  and  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  served  Cushan-rishathaim  eight  years.  And  when 
the  children  of  Israel  cried  unto  the  Lord,  the  Lord  raised  up 
a  deliverer  to  the  children  of  Israel,  who  delivered  them,  even 
Othniel  the  son  of  Kenaz,  Caleb's  younger  brother.  And  the 
Spirit  of  the  Lord  came  upon   him,  and   he  judged   Israel,  and 


the  lowlanders  of  the  southwest.  The  entering  in  of  Hamath  is  the  opening 
between  Lebanon  and  anti-Lebanon  some  thirty  miles  south  of  Hamath,  —  the 
modern  Hama. 

1  Asheroth.  PL  of  asherah,  which  in  the  old  Testament  commonly  denotes  a 
sacred  pole  planted  beside  the  altar  and  mazzebah  at  every  Canaanite  high 
place.  There  was,  however,  an  ancient  Canaanite  goddess  Asherah,  whose 
worship  as  goddess  of  fertility  became  associated  with  that  of  Baal,  until  it 
gave  place  to  that  of  Ashtart.  The  wooden  pole  was  thus  doubtless  originally 
a  symbol  of  her,  as  the  stone  pillar  was  of  Baal. 

2  The  name  Cushan-rishathaim  '  Cushite  of  double  wickedness,'  conceals  the 
real  name  of  this  oppressor.  For  Aram  (rendered  '  Mesopotamia '  in  the  text) 
we  should  probably  read  Edom,  the  two  words  in  Hebrew  being  closely 
alike. 


170  THE   JUDGES 

went  out  to  war  :  and  the  Lord  delivered  Cushan-rishathaim 
king  of  Mesopotamia  into  his  hand ;  and  his  hand  prevailed 
against  Cushan-rishathaim.  And  the  land  had  rest  forty  years. 
And  Othniel  the  son  of  Kenaz  died. 

Ehud,  Deliverer  from  Eglon  the  Moabite  (Judg.  iii.  12-31). 
And  the  children  of  Israel  did  evil  again  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord:  and  the  Lord  strengthened  Eglon  the  king  of  Moab 
against  Israel,  because  they  had  done  evil  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord.  And  he  gathered  unto  him  the  children  of  Ammon  and 
Amalek,  and  went  and  smote  Israel,  and  possessed  the  city  of 
palm  trees.  ^  So  the  children  of  Israel  served  Eglon  the  king  of 
Moab  eighteen  years.  But  when  the  children  of  Israel  cried  unto 
the  Lord,  the  Lord  raised  them  up  a  deliverer,  Ehud  the  son  of 
Gera,  a  Benjamite,  a  man  lefthanded:  and  by  him  the  children 
of  Israel  sent  a  present  unto  Eglon  the  king  of  Moab.  And  Ehud 
made  him  a  dagger  which  had  two  edges,  of  a  cubit  length ;  and 
he  did  gird  it  under  his  raiment  upon  his  right  thigh.  And  he 
brought  the  present  unto  Eglon  king  of  Moab :  now  Eglon  was 
a  very  fat  man.  And  when  he  had  made  an  end  to  offer  the  pre- 
sent, he  sent  away  the  people  that  bare  the  present.  But  he 
himself  turned  again  from  the  sculptured  stones  that  were  by 
Gilgal,  and  said :  "  I  have  a  secret  errand  unto  thee,  0  king ;  " 
who  said,  ''  Keep  silence."  And  all  that  stood  by  him  went  out 
from  him.  And  Ehud  came  unto  him ;  and  he  was  sitting  in  a 
summer  parlor,  which  he  had  for  himself  alone.  And  Ehud  said, 
"  I  have  a  message  from  God  unto  thee."  And  he  arose  out  of 
his  seat.  And  Ehud  put  forth  his  left  hand,  and  took  the  dagger 
from  his  right  thigh,  and  thrust  it  into  his  belly  :  and  the  haft 
also  went  in  after  the  blade  ;  and  the  fat  closed  upon  the  blade, 
so  that  he  could  not  draw  the  dagger  out  of  his  belly-  and  the 
dirt  came  out.  Then  Ehud  went  forth  through  the  porch,  and 
shut  the  doors  of  the  parlor  upon  him,  and  locked  them.  When 
he  was  gone  out,  his  servants  came ;  and  when  they  saw  that, 
behold,  the  doors  of  the  parlor  were  locked,  they  said:  "Surely 
he  covereth  his  feet  in  his  summer  chamber."  And  they  tarried 
till  they  were  ashamed :  and  behold,  he  opened  not  the  doors 
of  the  parlor ;  therefore  they  took  a  key,  and  opened  them :  and 
behold,  their  lord  was  fallen  down  dead  on  the  earth. 

And  Ehud  escaped  while  they  tarried,  and  passed  beyond  the 
1  city  of  palm  trees.  See  note,  p.  164. 


DEBORAH   AND   BARAK  171 

sculptured  stones,  and  escaped  unto  Seirath.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  he  was  come,  that  he  blew  a  trumpet  in  the  hill  coun- 
try of  Ephraim,  and  the  children  of  Israel  went  down  with  him 
from  the  hill  country,  and  he  before  them.  And  he  said  unto 
them  :  "  Follow  after  me  :  for  the  Lord  hath  delivered  your  ene- 
mies the  Moabites  into  your  hand."  And  they  went  down  after 
him,  and  took  the  fords  of  Jordan  toward  Moab,  and  suffered 
not  a  man  to  pass  over.  And  they  slew  of  Moab  at  that  time 
about  ten  thousand  men,  all  lusty,  and  all  men  of  valor;  and 
there  escaped  not  a  man.  So  Moab  was  subdued  that  day  under 
the  hand  of  Israel.   And  the  land  had  rest  fourscore  years. 

And  after  him  was  Sharagar  the  son  of  Anath,  which  slew 
of  the  Philistines  six  hundred  men  with  an  ox  goad  :  and  he  also 
delivered  Israel. 

Deborah  and  Barak,  Deliverers  from  Sisera  (Judg.  iv.,  v.). 
And  the  children  of  Israel  again  did  evil  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord,  when  Ehud  was  dead.  And  the  Lord  sold  them  into  the 
hand  of  Jabin  king  of  Canaan,  that  reigned  in  Hazor ;  ^  the  cap- 
tain of  whose  host  was  Sisera,  which  dwelt  in  Harosheth  of  the 
Gentiles.  And  the  children  of  Israel  cried  unto  the  Lord :  for 
he  had  nine  hundred  chariots  of  iron  ;  and  twenty  years  he 
mightily  oppressed  the  children  of  Israel. 

And  Deborah  a  prophetess,  the  wife  of  Lapidoth,  she  judged 
Israel  at  that  time.  And  she  dwelt  under  the  palm  tree  of  De- 
borah between  Eamah  and  Beth-el  in  the  hill  country  of  Eph- 
raim :  and  the  children  of  Israel  came  up  to  her  for  judgment. 
And  she  sent  and  called  Barak  the  son  of  Abinoam  out  of  Ke- 
desh-naphtali,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Hath  not  the  Lord  God  of 
Israel  commanded,  saying,  Go  and  draw  toward  mount  Tabor, 
and  take  with  thee  ten  thousand  men  of  the  children  of  Xaph- 
tali,  and  of  the  children  of  Zebulun  ?  And  I  will  draw  unto  thee, 
to  the  river  Kishon,  Sisera,  the  captain  of  Jabin's  army,  with 
his  chariots  and  his  multitude  ;  and  I  will  deliver  him  into  thine 
hand." 

And  Barak  said  unto  her :  "  If  thou  wilt  go  with  me,  then  I 
will  go:  but  if  thou  wilt  not  go  with  me,  then  I  will  not  go." 
And  she  said  :  "  I  will  surely  go  with  thee  :  notwithstanding  the 
journey  that  thou  takest  shall  not  be  for  thine  honor;   for  the 

1  Josh.  xi.  1-11  recounts  that  a  'Jabin  king  of  Hazor,'  at  tlie  head  of  aleague 
of  northern  Canaanite  kings,  was  defeated  by  Joshua  at  the  waters  of  Merom. 


172  THE   JUDGES 

Lord  shall  sell  Sisera  into  the  hand  of  a  woman."  And  Deborah 
arose,  and  went  with  Barak  to  Kedesh.  And  Barak  called  Zebu- 
lun  and  Naphtali  to  Kedesh  ;  and  he  went  up  with  ten  thousand 
men  at  his  feet :  and  Deborah  went  up  with  him.  Now  Heber 
the  Kenite,  which  was  of  the  children  of  Hobab  the  father  in 
law  of  Moses,  had  severed  himself  from  the  Kenites,  and  pitched 
his  tent  unto  the  plain  of  Zaanaim,  which  is  by  Kedesh. 

And  they  shewed  Sisera  that  Barak  the  son  of  Abinoam  was 
gone  up  to  mount  Tabor.  And  Sisera  gathered  together  all  his 
chariots,  even  nine  hundred  chariots  of  iron,  and  all  the  people 
that  were  with  him,  from  Harosheth  of  the  Gentiles  unto  the 
river  of  Kishon.  And  Deborah  said  unto  Barak  :  "  Up  ;  for  this 
is  the  day  in  which  the  Lord  hath  delivered  Sisera  into  thine 
hand :  is  not  the  Lord  gone  out  before  thee  ?  "  So  Barak  went 
down  from  mount  Tabor  and  ten  thousand  men  after  him.  And 
the  Lord  discomfited  Sisera,  and  all  his  chariots,  and  all  his  host, 
with  the  edge  of  the  sword  before  Barak  ;  so  that  Sisera  lighted 
down  off  his  chariot,  and  fled  away  on  his  feet.  But  Barak  pur- 
sued after  the  chariots,  and  after  the  host,  unto  Harosheth  of 
the  Gentiles :  and  all  the  host  of  Sisera  fell  upon  the  edge  of 
the  sword  ;   and  there  was  not  a  man  left. 

Howbeit  Sisera  fled  away  on  his  feet  to  the  tent  of  Jael  the 
wife  of  Heber  the  Kenite :  for  there  was  peace  between  Jabin 
the  king  of  Hazor  and  the  house  of  Heber  the  Kenite.  And 
Jael  went  out  to  meet  Sisera,  and  said  unto  him :  "  Turn  in, 
my  lord,  turn  in  to  me  ;  fear  not."  And  when  he  had  turned 
in  unto  her  into  the  tent,  she  covered  him  with  a  mantle.  And 
he  said  unto  her :  "  Give  me,  I  pray  thee,  a  little  water  to 
drink  ;  for  I  am  thirsty."  And  she  opened  a  bottle  of  milk,  and 
gave  him  drink,  and  covered  him.  Again  he  said  unto  her  : 
*'  Stand  in  the  door  of  the  tent,  and  it  shall  be,  when  any  man 
doth  come  and  enquire  of  thee,  and  say.  Is  there  any  man  here  ? 
that  thou  shalt  say.  No."  Then  Jael  Heber's  wife  took  a  nail 
of  the  tent,  and  took  an  hammer  in  her  hand,  and  went  softly 
unto  him,  and  smote  the  nail  into  his  temples,  and  fastened  it 
into  the  ground :  for  he  was  fast  asleep  and  weary.  So  he  died. 
And  behold,  as  Barak  pursued  Sisera,  Jael  came  out  to  meet 
him,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Come,  and  I  will  shew  thee  the  man 
whom  thou  seekest."  And  when  he  came  into  her  tent,  behold, 
Sisera  lay  dead,  and  the  nail  was  in  his  temples.  So  God  sub- 
dued on  that  day  Jabin  the  king  of  Canaan  before  the  children 
of  Israel. 


DEBORAH   AND   BARAK  173 

Then  sang  Deborah  and  Barak  the  son  of  Abinoam  on  that 
day,  saying  :  — 

For  that  the  leaders  took  the  lead  in  Israel, 
For  that  the  people  offered  themselves  willingly, 
Bless  ye  Jehovah, 

Hear,  0  ye  kings ;   give  ear,  0  ye  princes  ; 
I,  even  I,  will  sing  unto  Jehovah, 
I  will  sing  praise  to  Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel. 
Lord,  when  thou  wentest  forth  out  of  Seir, 
When  thou  raarchedst  out  of  the  field  of  Edom, 
The  earth  trembled,  and  the  heavens  dropped, 
The  clouds  also  dropped  water. 
The  mountains  quaked  at  the  presence  of  the  Lord, 
Even  yon  Sinai  at  the  presence  of  Jehovah,  the  God  of 
Israel. 

In  the  days  of  Shamgar  the  son  of  Anath, 

In  the  days  of  Jael,  the  highways  were  unoccupied, 

And  the  travellers  walked  through  byways. 

The  inhabitants  of  the   villages  ceased ;  they  ceased  in 

Israel, 
Until  that  thou  Deborah  arose,  thou  arose  a  mother  in 

Israel. 
They  chose  new  gods  ;  ^ 
Then  was  war  in  the  gates  : 
Was  there  a  shield  or  spear  seen 
Among  forty  thousand  in  Israel? 

My  heart  is  toward  the  governors  of  Israel, 

That  offered  themselves  willingly  among  the  people. 

Bless  ye  the  Lord. 

Tell  of  it,  ye  that  ride  on  white  asses. 

Ye  that  sit  upon  carpets, 

Ye  too  that  but  walk  by  the  way. 

Far  from  the  noise  of  archers,  in  the  places  of  drawing 

water. 
There  shall  they  rehearse  the  righteous  acts  of  the  Lord, 
Even  the  righteous  acts  of  his  rule  in  Israel. 
Then  came  down  to  the  gates  the  people  of  the  Lord. 

1  The  sense  of  this  obscure  verse  is  disputed. 


174  THE   JUDGES 

Awake,  awake,  Deborah; 

Awake,  awake,  utter  a  song : 

Arise,  Barak,  and  lead  away  thy  captives,  thou  son  of 

Abinoani. 
Then  came  down  a  remnant  of  the  nobles  and  the  people, 
Jehovah  came  down  for  me  against  the  mighty. 
Out  of  Ephraim  came  down  they  whose  root  is  in  Ama- 

lek; 
After  thee,  Benjamin,  among  thy  peoples ; 
Out  of  Machir  ^  came  down  governors, 
And  out  of  Zebulun  they  that  handle  the  marshal's  staff. 
And  the  princes  of  Issachar  were  with  Deborah; 
As  was  Issachar,  so  was  Barak; 
Into  the  valley  they  rushed  forth  at  his  feet. 
By  the  watercourses  of  E-euben  were  there  great  resolves 

of  heart. 
Why  abodest  thou  among  the  sheepfolds 
To  hear  the  pipings  for  the  flocks  ? 
At  the  watercourses  of  Beuben  were  there  great  search- 

ings  of  heart. 
Gilead  abode  beyond  Jordan ; 
And  why  did  Dan  ^  remain  in  ships  ? 
Asher  sat  still  at  the  shore  of  the  sea, 
And  abode  by  his  creeks. 
Zebulun  were  a  people  that  jeoparded  their  lives  unto 

the  death. 
And  Naphtali  upon  the  high  places  of  the  field. 

The  kings  came  and  fought ; 

Then  fought  the  kings  of  Canaan, 

In  Taanach  by  the  waters  of  Megiddo ; 

They  took  no  gain  of  money. 

They  fought  from  heaven, 

The  stars  in  their  courses  fought  against  Sisera. 

The  river  Kishon  swept  them  away. 

That  ancient  river,  the  river  Kishon. 

O  my  soul,  march  on  with  strength ! 

Then  did  the  horsehoofs  stamp, 

1  Machir.  A  clan  of  Manasseh. 

2  Dan.  The  tribe  seems  here  to  be  already  connected  with  the  seafaring  Phoe* 
nicians.  Its  migration  to  the  north  is  recounted  on  p.  199  ff. 


GIDEON,   DELIVERER   FROM   THE   MIDIANITES  175 

By  reason  of  the  prancings,  the  prancings  of  their  mighty 

ones. 
Curse  ye  Meroz,  said  the  angel  of  the  Lord, 
Curse  ye  bitterly  the  inhabitants  thereof ; 
Because  they  came  not  to  the  help  of  the  Lord, 
To  the  help  of  the  Lord  against  the  mighty. 

Blessed  above  women  be  Jael, 

The  wife  of  Heber  the  Kenite, 

Blessed  shall  she  be  above  women  in  the  tent. 

He  asked  water,  and  she  gave  him  milk ; 

She  brought  forth  butter  ^  in  a  lordly  dish. 

She  put  her  hand  to  the  nail, 

And  her  right  hand  to  the  workmen's  hammer ; 

And  with  the  hammer  she  smote  Sisera, 

She  smote  through  his  head, 

Yea,  she  pierced  and  struck  through  his  temples. 

At  her  feet  he  bowed,  he  fell,  he  lay ; 

At  her  feet  he  bowed,  he  fell : 

Where  he  bowed,  there  he  fell  down  dead. 

Through  the  window  she  looked  forth,  and  cried, 

The  mother  of  Sisera  cried  through  the  lattice  : 

Why  is  his  chariot  so  long  in  coming  ? 

Why  tarry  the  wheels  of  his  chariots  ? 

Her  wise  ladies  answered  her. 

Yea,  she  returned  answer  to  herself, 

Have  they  not  found,  have  they  not  divided  the  spoil  : 

A  damsel,  two  damsels  to  every  man ; 

To  Sisera,  a  spoil  of  dyed  garments, 

A  spoil  of  dyed  garments  embroidered. 

Of  dyed  garments  embroidered  on  both  sides,   on  the 

necks  of  the  spoil  ? 
So  let  all  thine  enemies  perish,  0  Lord: 
But  let  them  that  love  him  be  as  the  sun  when  he  goeth 

forth  in  his  might. 

And  the  land  had  rest  forty  years. 

Gideon,  Deliverer  from  the  Midianites  (Judg.  vi.  l.-viii. 
32).     And  the  children  of  Israel  did  evil  in  the  sight  of  the 

1  butter.  Sour  milk  or  curds. 


176  THE   JUDGES 

Lord :  and  the  Lord  delivered  them  into  the  hand  of  Midian 
seven  years.  And  the  hand  of  Midian  prevailed  against  Israel : 
and  because  of  the  Midianites  the  children  of  Israel  made  tliem 
the  dens  which  are  in  the  mountains,  and  caves,  and  strong  holds. 
And  so  it  was,  when  Israel  had  sown,  that  the  Midianites  came 
up,  and  the  Amalekites,  and  the  children  of  the  east,  even  they 
came  up  against  them  ;  and  they  encamped  against  them,  and 
destroyed  the  increase  of  the  earth,  till  thou  come  unto  Gaza, 
and  left  no  sustenance  for  Israel,  neither  sheep,  nor  ox,  nor  ass. 
For  they  came  up  with  their  cattle  and  their  tents,  and  they  came 
as  grasshoppers  for  multitude ;  for  both  they  and  their  camels 
were  without  number  :  and  they  entered  into  the  land  to  destroy 
it.  And  Israel  was  greatly  impoverished  because  of  the  Midian- 
ites ;  and  the  children  of  Israel  cried  unto  the  Lord. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  children  of  Israel  cried  unto 
the  Lord  because  of  the  Midianites,  that  the  Lord  sent  a  prophet 
unto  the  children  of  Israel,  which  said  unto  them  :  *'  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  I  brought  you  up  from  Egypt,  and  brought 
you  forth  out  of  the  house  of  bondage ;  and  I  delivered  you  out 
of  the  hand  of  the  Egyptians,  and  out  of  the  hand  of  all  that 
oppressed  you,  and  drave  them  out  from  before  you,  and  gave 
you  their  land ;  and  I  said  unto  you,  I  am  the  Lord  your  God ; 
fear  not  the  gods  of  the  Amorites,  in  whose  land  ye  dwell :  but 
ye  have  not  obeyed  my  voice." 

And  there  came  an  angel  of  the  Lord,  and  sat  under  an  oak 
which  was  in  Ophrah,  that  pertained  unto  Joash  the  Abi-ezrite  : 
and  his  son  Gideon  threshed  wheat  in  the  winepress,^  to  hide  it 
from  the  Midianites.  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  unto 
him,  and  said  unto  him  ;  "  The  Lord  is  with  thee,  thou  mighty 
man  of  valor.'*  And  Gideon  said  unto  him:  ''Oh  my  Lord,  if 
the  Lord  be  with  us,  why  then  is  all  this  befallen  us  ?  and  where 
be  all  his  miracles  which  our  fathers  told  us  of,  saying,  Did  not 
the  Lord  bring  us  up  from  Egypt  ?  but  now  the  Lord  hath  for- 
saken us,  and  delivered  us  into  the  hands  of  the  Midianites.'' 

And  the  Lord  looked  upon  him,  and  said  :  ''  Go  in  this  thy 
might,  and  thou  shalt  save  Israel  from  the  hand  of  the  Midian- 
ites :  have  not  I  sent  thee  ?  "  And  he  said  unto  him  :  "  Oh  my 
Lord,  wherewith  shall  I  save  Israel  ?  behold,  my  family  is  poor 
in  Manasseh,  and  I  am  the  least  in  my  father's  house."   And  the 

1  The  winepress  was  a  shallow  pit  from  which  the  grape-juice  was  pressed  out 
into  deeper  vats. 


GIDEON,   DELIVERER   FROM   THE    MIDIANITES  177 

Lord  said  unto  him  :  ''  Surely  I  will  be  with  thee,  and  thou 
shall  smite  the  Midianites  as  one  man."  And  he  said  unto  him  : 
*'  If  now  I  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  then  shew  me  a  sign 
that  thou  talkest  with  me.  Depart  not  hence,  I  pray  thee,  until 
I  come  unto  thee,  and  bring  forth  my  present,  and  set  it  before 
thee."  And  he  said :    "  I  will  tarry  until  thou  come  again." 

And  Gideon  went  in,  and  made  ready  a  kid,  and  unleavened 
cakes  of  an  ephah  ^  of  flour :  the  flesh  he  put  in  a  basket,  and 
he  put  the  broth  in  a  pot,  and  brought  it  out  unto  him  under 
the  oak,  and  presented  it.  And  the  angel  of  God  said  unto  him  : 
''Take  the  flesh  and  the  unleavened  cakes,  and  lay  them  upon 
this  rock,  and  pour  out  the  broth."  And  he  did  so.  Then  the 
angel  of  the  Lord  put  forth  the  end  of  the  stafi"  that  was  in  his 
hand,  and  touched  the  flesh  and  the  unleavened  cakes  ;  and  there 
rose  up  fire  out  of  the  rock,  and  consumed  the  flesh  and  the 
unleavened  cakes.  And  when  Gideon  perceived  that  he  was  an 
angel  of  the  Lord,  Gideon  said :  "  Alas,  0  Lord  God !  for  be- 
cause I  have  seen  an  angel  of  the  Lord  face  to  face."  And  the 
Lord  said  unto  him  :  "  Peace  be  unto  thee  ;  fear  not :  thou  shalt 
not  die."  Then  the  angel  of  the  Lord  departed  out  of  his 
sight. 

Then  Gideon  built  an  altar  there  unto  the  Lord,  and  called 
it  Jehovah-shalom :  ^  unto  this  day  it  is  yet  in  Ophrah  of  the 
Abi-ezrites. 

And  it  came  to  pass  the  same  night,  that  the  Lord  said  unto 
him  :  ''  Take  thy  father's  young  bullock,  even  the  second  bul- 
lock of  seven  years  old,  and  throw  down  the  altar  of  Baal  that 
thy  father  hath,  and  cut  down  the  Asherah  that  is  by  it :  and 
build  an  altar  unto  the  Lord  thy  God  upon  the  top  of  this 
rock,  in  the  ordered  place,  and  take  the  second  bullock,  and  ofi'er 
a  burnt  sacrifice  with  the  wood  of  the  Asherah  which  thou  shalt 
cut  down."  Then  Gideon  took  ten  men  of  his  servants,  and  did 
as  the  Lord  had  said  unto  him  :  and  so  it  was,  because  he  feared 
his  father's  household,  and  the  men  of  the  city,  that  he  could 
not  do  it  by  day,  that  he  did  it  by  night.  And  when  the  men  of 
the  city  arose  early  in  the  morning,  behold,  the  altar  of  Baal 
was  cast  down,  and  the  Asherah  was  cut  down  that  was  by  it, 
and  the  second  bullock  was  offered  upon  the  altar  that  was  built. 
And  they  said  one  to  another,  "Who  hath  done  this  thing?" 

1  ephah.  About  a  bushel. 

2  Jehovah-shalom.  'Jehovah  is  peace.' 


178  THE   JUDGES 

And  when  they  enquired  and  asked,  they  said :  "  Gideon  the 
son  of  Joash  hath  done  this  thing."  Then  the  men  of  the  city 
said  unto  Joash :  "  Bring  out  thy  son,  that  he  may  die  :  because 
he  hath  cast  down  the  altar  of  Baal,  and  because  he  hath  cut 
down  the  Asherah  that  was  by  it."  And  Joash  said  unto  all  that 
stood  against  him,  "  Will  ye  plead  for  Baal  ?  will  ye  save  him  ? 
he  that  will  plead  for  him,  let  him  be  put  to  death  whilst  it  is 
yet  morning :  if  he  be  a  god,  let  him  plead  for  himself,  because 
one  hath  cast  down  his  altar."  Therefore  on  that  day  he  called 
him  Jerubbaal,^  saying :  "  Let  Baal  plead  against  him,  because 
he  hath  thrown  down  his  altar." 

Then  all  the  Midianites  and  the  Amalekites  and  the  children 
of  the  east  were  gathered  together,  and  went  over,  and  pitched 
in  the  valley  of  Jezreel.  But  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  came  upon 
Gideon,  and  he  blew  a  trumpet;  and  Abi-ezer  was  gathered  after 
him.  And  he  sent  messengers  throughout  all  Manasseh ;  who 
also  was  gathered  after  him  :  and  he  sent  messengers  unto  Asher, 
and  unto  Zebulun,  and  unto  Naphtali ;  and  they  came  up  to 
meet  them. 

And  Gideon  said  unto  God :  ^'  If  thou  wilt  save  Israel  by 
mine  hand,  as  thou  hast  said,  behold  I  will  put  a  fleece  of  wool 
in  the  floor ;  and  if  the  dew  be  on  the  fleece  only,  and  it  be  dry 
upon  all  the  earth  beside,  then  shall  I  know  that  thou  wilt  save 
Israel  by  mine  hand,  as  thou  hast  said."  And  it  was  so  :  for  he 
rose  up  early  on  the  morrow,  and  thrust  the  fleece  together,  and 
wringed  the  dev7  out  of  the  fleece,  a  bowl  full  of  water.  And 
Gideon  said  unto  God  :  "  Let  not  thine  anger  be  hot  against  me, 
and  I  will  speak  but  this  once :  let  me  prove,  I  pray  thee,  but 
this  once  with  the  fleece  ;  let  it  now  be  dry  only  upon  the  fleece, 
and  upon  all  the  ground  let  there  be  dew."  And  God  did  so  that 
night:  for  it  was  dry  upon  the  fleece  only,  and  there  was  dew 
on  all  the  ground. 

Then  Jerubbaal,  who  is  Gideon,  and  all  the  people  that  were 
with  him,  rose  up  early,  and  pitched  beside  the  well  of  Harod : 
so  that  the  host  of  the  Midianities  were  on  the  north  side  of 
them,  by  the  hill  of  Moreh,  in  the  valley.  And  the  Lord  said 
unto  Gideon :  "  The  people  that  are  with  thee  are  too  many  for 
me  to  give  the  Midianites  into  their  hands,  lest  Israel  vaunt 
themselves  against  me,  saying,  mine  own  hand  hath  saved  me. 

1  Jerubbaal  '  Let  Baal  contend.'  It  means  more  accurately  '  Baal  estab- 
lishes.' 


GIDEON,   DELIVERER    FROM   THE   MIDIANITES  179 

Now  therefore  go  to,  proclaim  in  tlie  ears  of  the  people,  saying, 
Whosoever  is  fearful  and  afraid,  let  him  return. '^  And  Gideon 
separated  them  so  that  there  returned  of  the  people  twenty  and 
two  thousand  ;   and  there  remained  ten  thousand. 

And  the  Lord  said  unto  Gideon :  "  The  people  are  yet  too 
many  ;  bring  them  down  unto  the  water,  and  I  will  try  them 
for  thee  there ;  and  it  shall  be,  that  of  whom  I  say  unto  thee, 
This  shall  go  with  thee,  the  same  shall  go  with  thee  ;  and  of 
whomsoever  I  say  unto  thee.  This  shall  not  go  with  thee,  the 
same  shall  not  go.''  So  he  brought  down  the  people  unto  the 
water:  and  the  Lord  said  unto  Gideon:  "Every  one  that 
lappeth  of  the  water  with  his  tongue,  as  a  dog  lappeth,  him 
shalt  thou  set  by  himself  ;  likewise  every  one  that  boweth  down 
upon  his  knees  to  drink."  And  the  number  of  them  that 
lapped,  putting  their  hand  to  their  mouth,  were  three  hundred 
men  :  but  all  the  rest  of  the  people  bowed  down  upon  their 
knees  to  drink  water.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Gideon  :  By 
the  three  hundred  men  that  lapped  will  I  save  you,  and  deliver 
the  Midianites  into  thine  hand  :  and  let  all  the  other  people 
go  every  man  unto  his  place." 

So  the  people  took  victuals  in  their  hand,  and  their  trumpets  : 
and  he  sent  all  the  rest  of  Israel  every  man  unto  his  tent,  and 
retained  those  three  hundred  men:  and  the  host  of  Midian  was 
beneath  him  in  the  valley. 

And  it  came  to  pass  the  same  night,  that  the  Lord  said  unto 
him  :  ''  Arise,  get  thee  down  unto  the  host  ;  for  I  have  deliv- 
ered it  into  thine  hand.  But  if  thou  fear  to  go  down,  go  thou 
with  Phurah  thy  servant  down  to  the  host :  and  thou  shalt  hear 
what  they  say  ;  and  afterwards  shall  thine  hands  be  strengthened 
to  go  down  unto  the  host." 

Then  went  he  down  with  Phurah  his  servant  unto  the  out- 
side of  the  armed  men  that  were  in  the  host.  And  the  Midian- 
ites and  the  Amalekites  and  all  the  children  of  the  east  lay 
along  in  the  valley  like  grasshoppers  for  multitude  ;  and  their 
camels  were  without  number,  as  the  sand  by  the  sea  side  for  multi- 
tude. And  when  Gideon  was  come,  behold,  there  was  a  man  that 
told  a  dream  unto  his  fellow,  and  said  :  "  Behold,  I  dreamed  a 
dream,  and  lo,  a  cake  of  barley  bread  tumbled  into  the  host  of 
Midian,  and  came  unto  a  tent,  and  smote  it  that  it  fell,  and  over- 
turned it,  that  the  tent  lay  along."  And  his  fellow  answered  and 
said  :   "  This  is  nothing  else  save  the  sword  of  Gideon  the  son  of 


180  THE   JUDGES 

Joash,  a  man  of  Israel :  for  into  his  hand  hath  God  delivered 

Midian,  and  all  the  host." 

And  it  was  so,  when  Gideon  heard  the  telling  of  the  dream, 
and  the  interpretation  thereof,  that  he  worshipped,  and  returned 
into  the  host  of  Israel,  and  said :  "  Arise ;  for  the  Lord  hath 
delivered  into  your  hand  the  host  of  Midian."  And  he  divided 
the  three  hundred  men  into  three  companies,  and  he  put  a 
trumpet  in  every  man's  hand,  with  empty  pitchers,  and  torches 
within  the  pitchers.  And  he  said  unto  them :  "  Look  on  me, 
and  do  likewise :  and  behold,  when  I  come  to  the  outside  of 
the  camp,  it  shall  be  that,  as  I  do,  so  shall  ye  do.  When  I  blow 
with  a  trumpet,  I  and  all  that  are  with  me,  then  blow  ye  the 
trumpets  also  on  every  side  of  all  the  camp,  and  say,  The 
sword  of  the  Lord,  and  of  Gideon." 

So  Gideon,  and  the  hundred  men  that  were  with  him,  came 
unto  the  outside  of  the  camp  in  the  beginning  of  the  middle 
watch  ;  and  they  had  but  newly  set  the  watch :  and  they  blew 
the  trumpets,  and  brake  the  pitchers  that  were  in  their  hands. 
And  the  three  companies  blew  the  trumpets,  and  brake  the 
pitchers,  and  held  the  torches  in  their  left  hands,  and  the  trum- 
pets in  their  right  hands  to  blow  withal :  and  they  cried : 
"The  sword  of  the  Lord,  and  of  Gideon."  And  they  stood 
every  man  in  his  place  round  about  the  camp :  and  all  the  host 
ran,  and  cried,  and  fled.  And  the  three  hundred  blew  the  trum- 
pets, and  the  Lord  set  every  man's  sword  against  his  fellow, 
even  throughout  all  the  host :  and  the  host  fled  to  Beth-shittah 
in  Zererath,  and  to  the  border  of  Abel-meholah,  unto  Tab- 
bath. 

And  the  men  of  Israel  gathered  themselves  together  out  of 
Naphtali,  and  out  of  Asher,  and  out  of  all  Manasseh,  and  pur- 
sued after  the  Midianites.  And  Gideon  sent  messengers  through- 
out all  mount  Ephraim,  saying:  ^'  Come  down  against  the  Mid- 
ianites, and  take  before  them  the  waters  unto  Beth-barah  and 
Jordan."  Then  all  the  men  of  Ephraim  gathered  themselves 
together,  and  took  the  waters  unto  Beth-barah  and  Jordan.  And 
they  took  two  princes  of  the  Midianites,  Oreb  and  Zeeb; 
and  they  slew  Oreb  upon  the  rock  Oreb,  and  Zeeb  they  slew 
at  the  winepress  of  Zeeb,  and  pursued  Midian,  and  brought  the 
heads  of  Oreb  and  Zeeb  to  Gideon  on  the  other  side  Jordan. 

And  the  men  of  Ephraim  said  unto  him :  "  Why  hast  thou 
served  us  thus,  that  thou  calledst  us  not,  when  thou  wentest  to 


GIDEON,   DELIVERER   FROM   THE   MIDIANITES  181 

fight  with  the  Midianites  ?  "  And  they  did  chide  with  him 
sharply.  And  he  said  unto  them  :  ''  What  have  I  done  now  in 
comparison  of  you  ?  Is  not  the  gleaning  of  the  grapes  of  Eph- 
raim  better  than  the  vintage  of  Abi-ezer  ?  God  hath  delivered 
into  your  hands  the  princes  of  JMidian,  Oreb  and  Zeeb  :  and 
what  was  I  able  to  do  in  comparison  of  you  ?  "  Then  their 
anger  was  abated  toward  him,  when  he  had  said  that. 

And  Gideon  came  to  Jordan,  and  passed  over,  he,  and  the 
three  hundred  men  that  were  with  him,  faint,  yet  pursuing  them. 
And  he  said  unto  the  men  of  Succoth  :  "  Give,  I  pray  you, 
loaves  of  bread  unto  the  people  that  follow  me ;  for  they  be 
faint,  and  I  am  pursuing  after  Zebah  and  Zalmunna,  kings  of 
Midian."  And  the  princes  of  Succoth  said :  "  Are  the  hands  of 
Zebah  and  Zalmunna  now  in  thine  hand,  that  we  should  give 
bread  unto  thine  army?  "  And  Gideon  said  :  "  Therefore  when 
the  Lord  hath  delivered  Zebah  and  Zalmunna  into  mine  hand, 
then  I  will  tear  your  flesh  with  the  thorns  of  the  wilderness  and 
with  briers." 

And  he  went  up  thence  to  Penuel,  and  spake  unto  them  like- 
wise :  and  the  men  of  Penuel  answered  him  as  the  men  of  Suc- 
coth had  answered  him.  And  he  spake  also  unto  the  men  of 
Penuel,  saying:  "When  I  come  again  in  peace,  I  will  break 
down  this  tower," 

Now  Zebah  and  Zalmunna  were  in  Karkor,  and  their  hosts 
with  them,  about  fifteen  thousand  men,  all  that  were  left  of  all 
the  hosts  of  the  children  of  the  east :  for  there  fell  an  hundred 
and  twenty  thousand  men  that  drew  sword.  And  Gideon  went 
up  by  the  way  of  them  that  dwelt  in  tents  on  the  east  of  Nobah 
and  Jogbehah,  and  smote  the  host :  for  the  host  was  secure. 
And  when  Zebah  and  Zalmunna  fled,  he  pursued  after  tliem,  and 
took  the  two  kings  of  Midian,  Zebah  and  Zalmunna,  and  discom- 
fited all  the  host. 

And  Gideon  the  son  of  Joash  returned  from  battle  before  the 
sun  was  up,  and  caught  a  young  man  of  the  men  of  Succoth, 
and  enquired  of  him  :  and  he  described  unto  him  the  princes  of 
Succoth,  and  the  elders  thereof,  even  threescore  and  seventeen 
men.  And  he  came  unto  the  men  of  Succoth,  and  said  :  "  Behold 
Zebah  and  Zalmunna,  with  whom  ye  did  upbraid  me,  saying,  Are 
the  hands  of  Zebah  and  Zalmunna  now  in  thine  hand,  that  we 
should  give  bread  unto  thy  men  that  are  weary  ?  "  And  he  took 
the  elders  of  the  city,  and  thorns  of  the  wilderness  and  briers,  and 


182  THE   JUDGES 

with  them  he  taught  *  the  men  of  Succoth.  And  he  beat  down 
the  tower  of  Peniiel,  and   slew  the  men  of  the  city. 

Then  said  he  unto  Zebah  and  Zahnunna  :  ''  What  manner  of 
men  were  they  whom  ye  slew  at  Tabor  ?  "  And  they  answered: 
"As  thou  art,  so  were  they;  each  one  resembled  the  children 
of  a  king."  And  he  said :  ''  They  were  my  brethren,  even  the 
sons  of  my  mother :  as  the  Lord  liveth,  if  ye  had  saved  them 
alive,  I  would  not  slay  you."  And  he  said  unto  Jether  his  lirst- 
born,  ''  Up,  and  slay  them."  But  the  youth  drew  not  his  sword  : 
for  he  feared,  because  he  was  yet  a  youth.  Then  Zebah  and 
Zahnunna  said  :  *'  Eise  thou,  and  fall  upon  \is :  for  as  the  man 
is,  so  is  his  strength."  And  Gideon  arose,  and  slew  Zebah  and 
Zahnunna,  and  took  away  the  ornaments  that  Avere  on  their 
camels'  necks. 

Then  the  men  of  Israel  said  unto  Gideon :  '•  Kule  thou  over  us, 
both  thou,  and  thy  son,  and  thy  son's  son  also:  for  thou  hast 
delivered  us  from  the  hand  of  Midian."  And  Gideon  said  unto 
them  :  "  I  will  not  rule  over  you,  neither  shall  my  son  rule  over 
you  :  the  Lord  shall  rule  over  you."  And  Gideon  said  unto 
them :  "  I  would  desire  a  request  of  you,  that  ye  would  give 
me  every  man  the  earrings  of  his  prey."  (For  they  had  golden 
earrings,  because  they  were  Ishmaelites.)  And  they  answered  : 
"We  will  willingly  give  them."  And  they  spread  a  garment, 
and  did  cast  therein  every  man  the  earrings  of  his  prey.  And 
the  weight  of  the  golden  earrings  that  he  requested  was  a  thou- 
sand and  seven  hundred  shekels  ^  of  gold  ;  beside  ornaments, 
and  collars,  and  purple  raiment  that  was  on  the  kings  of  Mid- 
ian, and  beside  the  chains  that  were  about  their  camels'  necks. 
And  Gideon  made  an  ephod  ^  thereof,  and  put  it  in  his  city, 
even  in  Ophrah  :  and  all  Israel  went  thither  a  whoring  after  it : 
Avhich  thing  became  a  snare  unto  Gideon,  and  to  his  house. 
Thus  was  Midian  subdued  before  the  children  of  Israel,  so  that 
they  lifted  up  their  heads  no  more.  And  the  country  was  in 
quietness  forty  years  in  the  days  of  Gideon. 

And  Jerubbaal  the  son  of  Joash  went  and  dwelt  in  his  own 
house.  And  Gideon  had  threescore  and  ten  sons  of  his  body  be- 
gotten :   for  he  had  many  wives.   And  his  concubine  that  was 

1  taught.  Ironical  for  '  threshed  '  or  *  carded.'  The  victims  were  thrown  down 
upon  tlie  thorns,  and  then  trampled  upon,  somewhat  as  grain  is  treated  b}'  the 
oriental  threshing  sledge. 

2  a  thousand  .  .  .  shekels.  About  70  lbs. 
8  ephod.  See  note,  p.  214. 


ABIMELECH  183 

in  Shechem,  ^  she  also  bare  him  a  son,  whose  name  he  called 
Abimelech.  And  Gideon  the  son  of  Joash  died  in  a  good  old 
age,  and  was  buried  in  the  sepulchre  of  Joash  his  father,  in 
Ophrah  of  the  Abi-ezrites. 

Abimelech  (Judg.  viii.  33-x.  5).  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  soon 
as  Gideon  was  dead,  that  the  children  of  Israel  turned  again, 
and  went  a  whoring  after  the  Baalim,  and  made  Baal-berith  ^ 
their  God.  And  the  children  of  Israel  remembered  not  the  Lord 
their  God,  who  had  delivered  them  out  of  the  hands  of  all  their 
enemies  on  every  side  :  neither  shewed  they  kindness  to  the 
house  of  Jerubbaal,  namely  Gideon,  according  to  all  the  good- 
ness which  he  had  shewed  unto  Israel. 

And  Abimelech  the  son  of  Jerubbaal  went  to  Shechem  unto 
his  mother's  brethren,  and  communed  with  them,  and  with  all 
the  family  of  the  house  of  his  mother's  father,  saying  :  '^  Speak, 
I  pray  you,  in  the  ears  of  all  the  men  of  Shechem,  Whether  is 
better  for  you,  either  that  all  the  sons  of  Jerubbaal,  which  are 
threescore  and  ten  persons,  reign  over  you,  or  that  one  reign 
over  you  ?  Remember  also  that  I  am  your  bone  and  your  flesh." 
And  his  mother's  brethren  spake  of  him  in  the  ears  of  all  the 
men  of  Shechem  all  these  words :  and  their  hearts  inclined  to 
follow  Abimelech;  for  they  said,  "He  is  our  brother."  And 
they  gave  him  threescore  and  ten  pieces  of  silver  out  of  the 
house  of  Baal-berith,  wherewith  Abimelech  hired  vain  and  light 
persons,  which  followed  him.  And  he  went  unto  his  father's 
house  at  Ophrah,  and  slew  his  brethren  the  sons  of  Jerubbaal, 
being  threescore  and  ten  persons,  upon  one  stone :  ^  notwith- 
standing yet  Jotham  the  youngest  son  of  Jerubbaal  was  left ; 
for  he  hid  himself. 

And  all  the  men  of  Shechem  gathered  together,  and  all  the 
house  of  Millo,  and  went,  and  made  Abimelech  king,  by  the  oak 
of  the  pillar*  that  was  in  Shechem.   And  when  they  told  it  to 

1  For  the  form  of  marriage  here  referred  to,  see  note,  p,  193. 

2  Baal-berith .  '  Lord  of  the  Covenant '  —  perhaps  that  between  the  Canaanites 
and  the  Israelites.  On  p.  186  he  is  called  El-berith. 

3  upon  one  stone.  He  slew  them  like  sacrificial  animals,  doubtless  in  order  to 
dispose  properly  of  their  blood,  which  according  to  the  animism  of  the  time 
was  thought  of  as  containing  their  life.  Without  this  precaution,  they  might 
still  trouble  him. 

**  pillar.  The  mazzehah  or  erect  stone  such  as  stood  beside  the  altar  at  every 
Canaanite  sanctuary,  — under  the  sacred  tree.  See  note,  p.  43,  and  the  note  and 
illustration  on  p.  223. 


184  THE   JUDGES 

Jotham,  he  went  and  stood  in  the  top  of  mount  Gerizim,  and 
lifted  up  his  voice,  and  cried,  and  said  unto  them : 

"Hearken  unto  me,  ye  men  of  Shechem,  that  God  may 
hearken  unto  you.  The  trees  went  forth  on  a  time  to  anoint  a 
king  over  them;  and  they  said  unto  the  olive  tree,  Eeign  thou 
over  us.  But  the  olive  tree  said  unto  them.  Should  I  leave  my 
fatness,  wherewith  by  me  they  honor  God  and  man,  and  go  to 
be  promoted  over  the  trees  ?  And  the  trees  said  to  the  fig  tree, 
Come  thou,  and  reign  over  us.  But  the  fig  tree  said  unto  them. 
Should  I  forsake  my  sweetness,  and  my  good  fruit,  and  go  to  be 
promoted  over  the  trees?  Then  said  the  trees  unto  the  vine, 
Come  thou,  and  reign  over  us.  And  the  vine  said  unto  them, 
Should  I  leave  my  wine,  which  cheereth  God  and  man,  and  go 
to  be  promoted  over  the  trees  ?  Then  said  all  the  trees  unto  the 
bramble.  Come  thou,  and  reign  over  us.  And  the  bramble  said 
unto  the  trees.  If  in  truth  ye  anoint  me  king  over  you,  then 
come  and  put  your  trust  in  my  shadow :  and  if  not,  let  fire  come 
out  of  the  bramble,  and  devour  the  cedars  of  Lebanon.  Now 
therefore,  if  ye  have  done  truly  and  sincerely,  in  that  ye  have 
made  Abimelech  king,  and  if  ye  have  dealt  well  with  Jerubbaal 
and  his  house,  and  have  done  unto  him  according  to  the  deserv- 
ing of  his  hands ;  if  ye  then  have  dealt  truly  and  sincerely  with 
Jerubbaal  and  with  his  house  this  day,  then  rejoice  ye  in  Abime- 
lech, and  let  him  also  rejoice  in  you :  but  if  not,  let  fire  come 
out  from  Abimelech,  and  devour  the  men  of  Shechem,  and  the 
house  of  Millo ;  and  let  fire  come  out  from  the  men  of  Shechem, 
and  from  the  house  of  Millo,  and  devour  Abimelech." 

And  Jotham  ran  away,  and  fled,  and  went  to  Beer,  and  dwelt 
there,  for  fear  of  Abimelech  his  brother. 

When  Abimelech  had  reigned  three  years  over  Israel,^  then 
God  sent  an  evil  spirit  between  Abimelech  and  the  men  of  She- 
chem ;  and  the  men  of  Shechem  dealt  treacherously  with  Abime- 
lech :  that  the  cruelty  done  to  the  threescore  and  ten  sons  of 
Jerubbaal  might  come,  and  their  blood  be  laid  upon  Abimelech 
their  brother,  which  slew  them,  and  upon  the  men  of  Shechem, 
which  aided  him  in  the  killing  of  his  brethren.  And  the  men 
of  Shechem  set  Hers  in  wait  for  him  in  the  top  of  the  mountains, 
and  they  robbed  all  that  came  along  that  way  by  them :  and  it 
was  told  Abimelech. 

1  Not  all  Israel  :  probably  only  the  Manassites  in  the  neighborhood  of  She- 
chem. 


ABIMELECH  185 

And  Gaal  the  son  of  Ebed  came  with  his  brethren,  and  went 
over  to  Shechem  :  and  the  men  of  Shechem  put  their  confidence 
in  him.  And  they  Went  out  into  the  fields,  and  gathered  their 
vineyards,  and  trode  the  grapes,  and  made  merry,  and  went  into 
the  house  of  their  god,  and  did  eat  and  drink,  and  cursed  Abime- 
lech.  And  Gaal  the  son  of  Ebed  said  :  "  Who  is  Abimelech,  and 
who  is  Shechem,  that  we  should  serve  him  ?  is  not  he  the  son 
of  Jerubbaal  ?  and  Zebul  his  officer  ?  Serve  the  men  of  Hamor 
the  father  of  Shechem :  for  why  should  we  serve  him  ?  ^  And 
would  to  God  this  people  were  under  my  hand !  then  would  I 
remove  Abimelech."  And  he  said  to  Abimelech, ''  Increase  thine 
army,  and  come  out." 

And  when  Zebul  the  ruler  of  the  city  heard  the  words  of 
Gaal  the  son  of  Ebed,  his  anger  was  kindled.  And  he  sent 
messengers  unto  Abimelech  privily,  saying :  '^  Behold,  Gaal 
the  son  of  Ebed  and  his  brethren  be  come  to  Shechem ;  and 
behold,  they  fortify  the  city  against  thee.  Now  therefore  up  by 
night,  thou  and  the  people  that  is  with  thee,  and  lie  in  wait  in 
the  field :  and  it  shall  be,  that  in  the  morning,  as  soon  as  the 
sun  is  up,  thou  shalt  rise  early,  and  set  upon  the  city :  and 
behold,  when  he  and  the  people  that  is  with  him  come  out 
against  thee,  then  mayest  thou  do  to  them  as  thou  shalt  find 
occasion." 

And  Abimelech  rose  up,  and  all  the  people  that  were  with 
him,  by  night,  and  they  laid  wait  against  Shechem  in  four 
companies.  And  Gaal  the  son  of  Ebed  went  out,  and  stood  in 
the  entering  of  the  gate  of  the  city  :  and  Abimelech  rose  up, 
and  the  people  that  were  with  him,  from  lying  in  wait.  And 
when  Gaal  saw  the  people,  he  said  to  Zebul:  '' Behold,  there 
come  people  down  from  the  top  of  the  mountains."  And  Zebul 
said  unto  him  :  "  Thou  seest  the  shadow  of  the  mountains  as  if 
they  were  men."  And  Gaal  spake  again  and  said  :  *'  See,  there 
come  people  down  by  the  middle  of  the  land,  and  another  com- 
pany Cometh  along  by  the  oak  of  Meonenim."  Then  said  Zebul 
unto  him :  "  Where  is  now  thy  mouth,  wherewith  thou  saidst, 
Who  is  Abimelech,  that  we  should  serve  him  ?  is  not  this  the 
people  that  thou  hast  despised  ?  go  out,  I  pray  now,  and  fight 
with  them." 

1  is  not  he  the  son  ...  we  serve  him.  Better  perhaps  :  '  Were  not  the  son  of 
Jerubbaal  and  Zebul  his  officer  once  subjects  of  the  men  of  Hamor  abi-She- 
chem  ?  Why  then  should  we  now  be  subject  to  him  ?  ' 


186  THE   JUDGES 

And  Gaal  went  out  before  the  men  of  Shechem,  and  fought 
with  Abimelech.  And  Abimelech  chased  him,  and  he  fled  be- 
fore him,  and  many  were  overthrown  and  wounded,  even  unto 
the  entering  of  the  gate.  And  Abimelech  dwelt  at  Arumah : 
and  Zebul  thrust  out  Gaal  and  his  brethren,  that  they  should 
not  dwell  in  Shechem. 

And  it  came  to  pass  on  the  morrow,  that  the  people  went 
out  into  the  field  ;  and  they  told  Abimelech.  And  he  took  the 
people,  and  divided  them  into  three  companies,  and  laid  wait 
in  the  field,  and  looked,  and  behold,  the  people  were  come 
forth  out  of  the  city ;  and  he  rose  up  against  them,  and  smote 
them.  And  Abimelech,  and  the  company  that  was  with  him, 
rushed  forward,  and  stood  in  the  entering  of  the  gate  of  the 
city  :  and  the  two  other  companies  ran  upon  all  the  people  that 
were  in  the  fields,  and  slew  them.  And  Abimelech  fought 
against  the  city  all  that  day;  and  he  took  the  city,  and  slew 
the  people  that  was  therein,  and  beat  down  the  city,  and  sowed 
it  with  salt.^ 

And  when  all  the  men  of  the  tower  of  Shechem  ^  heard  that, 
they  entered  into  an  hold  of  the  house  of  El-berith.  And  it 
was  told  Abimelech,  that  all  the  men  of  the  tower  of  Shechem 
were  gathered  together.  And  Abimelech  gat  him  up  to  mount 
Zalmon,  he  and  all  the  people  that  were  with  him  ;  and  Abime- 
lech took  an  axe  in  his  hand,  and  cut  down  a  bough  from  the 
trees,  and  took  it,  and  laid  it  on  his  shoulder,  and  said  unto 
the  people  that  were  with  him :  ''  What  ye  have  seen  me  do, 
make  haste,  and  do  as  I  have  done."  And  all  the  people  like- 
wise cut  down  every  man  his  bough,  and  followed  Abimelech, 
and  put  them  to  the  hold,  and  set  the  hold  on  fire  upon  them ; 
so  that  all  the  men  of  the  tower  of  Shechem  died  also,  about  a 
thousand  men  and  women. 

Then  went  Abimelech  to  Thebez,  and  encamped  against  The- 
bez,  and  took  it.  But  there  was  a  strong  tower  within  the  city, 
and  thither  fled  all  the  men  and  women,  and  all  they  of  the 
city,  and  shut  it  to  them,  and  gat  them  up  to  the  top  of  the 
tower.  And  Abimelech  came  unto  the  tower,  and  fought  against 
it,  and  went  hard  unto  the  door  of  the  tower  to  burn  it  with 
fire.  And  a  certain  woman  cast  an  upper  millstone  upon  Abime- 

1  To  sow  a  place  with  salt  was  to  consign  it,  s3'mbolically,  to  perpetual  deso- 
lation. 

2  The  tower  of  Shechem  was  a  place  near  Shechem. 


JEPHTHAH,   DELIVERER  FROM   THE   AMMONITES         187 

lech's  head,  and  all  tobrake  ^  his  skull.  Then  he  called  hastily 
unto  the  young  man  his  armorbearer,  and  said  unto  him : 
''Draw  thy  sword,  and  slay  me,  that  men  say  not  of  me,  A 
woman  slew  him."  And  his  young  man  thrust  him  through, 
and  he  died.  And  when  the  men  of  Israel  saw  that  Abimelech 
was  dead,  they  departed  every  man  unto  his  place. 

Thus  God  rendered  the  wickedness  of  Abimelech,  which  he 
did  unto  his  father,  in  slaying  his  seventy  brethren :  and  all 
the  evil  of  the  men  of  Shechem  did  God  render  upon  their 
heads:  and  upon  them  came  the  curse  of  Jotham  the  son  of 
Jerubbaal. 

And  after  Abimelech  there  arose  to  defend  Israel  Tola  the  son 
of  Puah,  the  son  of  Dodo,  a  man  of  Issachar ;  and  he  dwelt  in 
Shamir  in  mount  Ephraim.  And  he  judged  Israel  twenty  and 
three  years,  and  died,  and  was  buried  in  Shamir. 

And  after  him  arose  Jair,  a  Gileadite,  and  judged  Israel  twenty 
and  two  years.  And  he  had  thirty  sons  that  rode  on  thirty  ass 
colts,  and  they  had  thirty  cities,  which  are  called  Havvoth-jair 
unto  this  day,  which  are  in  the  land  of  Gilead.  And  Jair  died, 
and  was  buried  in  Kamon. 

Jephthah,  Deliverer  from  the  Ammonites  (Judg.  x.  6-18 ; 
xi.  1-11,  29-40;  xii.).  And  the  children  of  Israel  did  evil  again 
in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and  served  Baalim,  and  Ashtaroth,  and 
the  gods  of  Syria,  and  the  gods  of  Zidon,  and  the  gods  of  Moab, 
and  the  gods  of  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  the  gods  of  the' 
Philistines,  and  forsook  the  Lord,  and  served  not  him.  And  the 
anger  of  the  Lord  was  hot  against  Israel,  and  he  sold  them  into 
the  hands  of  the  Philistines,  and  into  the  hands  of  the  children 
of  Ammon.  And  that  year  they  vexed  and  oppressed  the  children 
of  Israel :  eighteen  years,  all  the  children  of  Israel  that  were  on 
the  other  side  Jordan  in  the  land  of  the  Amorites,  which  is  in 
Gilead.  Moreover  the  children  of  Ammon  passed  over  Jordan 
to  fight  also  ai^ainst  Judah,  and  against  Benjamin,  and  against 
the  house  of  Ephraim  ;  so  that  Israel  was  sore  distressed. 

And  the  children  of  Israel  cried  unto  the  Lord,  saying  :  "  We 
have  sinned  against  thee,  both  because  we  have  forsaken  our 
God,  and  also  served  the  Baalim."  And  the  Lord  said  unto  the 
children  of  Israel :  "  Did  not  I  deliver  you  from  the  Egyptians, 
and  from  the  Amorites,  from  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  from 
1  all  tobrake.  •  Smashed.'  to  —  is  the  old  English  intensive  prefix. 


188  THE    JUDGES 

the  Philistines  ?  The  Zidonians  also,  and  the  Amalekites,  and  the 
Maonites,  did  oppress  you  ;  and  ye  cried  to  me,  and  I  delivered 
you  out  of  their  hand.  Yet  ye  have  forsaken  me,  and  served 
other  gods  :  wherefore  I  will  deliver  you  no  more.  Go  and  cry 
unto  the  gods  which  ye  have  chosen  ;  let  them  deliver  you  in  the 
time  of  your  tribulation.^' 

And  the  children  of  Israel  said  unto  the  Lord :  "  We  have 
sinned :  do  thou  unto  us  whatsoever  seemeth  good  unto  thee  ; 
deliver  us  only,  we  pray  thee,  this  day."  And  they  put  away  the 
strange  gods  from  among  them,  and  served  the  Lord;  and  his 
soul  was  grieved  for  the  misery  of  Israel. 

Then  the  children  of  Ammon  were  gathered  together,  and  en- 
camped in  Gilead.  And  the  children  of  Israel  assembled  them- 
selves together,  and  encamped  in  Mizpeh.  And  the  people  and 
princes  of  Gilead  said  one  to  another:  "What  man  is  he  that 
will  begin  to  fight  against  the  children  of  Ammon  ?  he  shall  be 
head  over  all  the  inhabitants  of  Gilead.'^ 

Now  Jephthah  the  Gileadite  was  a  mighty  man  of  valor,  and 
he  was  the  son  of  a  harlot :  and  Gilead  begat  Jephthah.  And 
Gilead's  wife  bare  him  sons ;  and  his  wife's  sons  grew  up,  and 
they  thrust  out  Jephthah,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Thou  shalt  not 
inherit  in  our  father's  house ;  for  thou  art  the  son  of  a  strange 
woman."  Then  Jephthah  fled  from  his  brethren,  and  dwelt  in 
the  land  of  Tob:  and  there  were  gathered  vain  men  ^  to  Jephthah, 
and  went  out  with  him. 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  process  of  time,  that  the  children  of 
Ammon  made  war  against  Israel.  And  it  was  so,  that  when  the 
children  of  Ammon  made  war  against  Israel,  the  elders  of  Gilead 
went  to  fetch  Jephthah  out  of  the  land  of  Tob :  and  they  said 
unto  Jephthah :  "  Come,  and  be  our  captain,  that  we  may  fight 
with  the  children  of  Ammon." 

And  Jephthah  said  unto  the  elders  of  Gilead  :  *'  Did  not  ye 
hate  me,  and  expel  me  out  of  my  father's  house  ?  and  why  are 
ye  come  unto  me  now  when  ye  are  in  distress  ?  "  And  the  elders 
of  Gilead  said  unto  Jephthah :  "  Therefore  we  turn  again  to 
thee  now,  that  thou  mayest  go  with  us,  and  fight  against  the 
children  of  Ammon,  and  be  our  head  over  all  the  inhabitants  of 
Gilead."  And  Jephthah  said  unto  the  elders  of  Gilead  :  "  If  ye 
bring  me  home  again  to  fight  against  the  children  of  Ammon, 
and  the  Lord  deliver  them  before  me,  shall  I  be  your  head  ?  " 
1  vain  men.  That  is,  irresponsible  bravos. 


JEPHTHAH,   DELIVERER   FROM   THE   AMMONITES         189 

And  the  elders  of  Gilead  said  unto  Jephthah :  "The  Lord  be  wit- 
ness between  us,  if  we  do  not  so  according  to  thy  words."  Then 
Jephthah  went  with  the  elders  of  Gilead,  and  the  people  made 
him  head  and  captain  over  them  :  and  Jephthah  uttered  all  his 
words  before  the  Lord  in  jVIizpeh. 

Then  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  came  upon  Jephthah,  and  he 
passed  over  Gilead,  and  jVIanasseh,  and  passed  over  Mizpeh  of 
Gilead,  and  from  Mizpeh  of  Gilead  he  passed  over  unto  the 
children  of  Ammon.  And  Jephthah  vowed  a  vow  unto  the  Lord, 
and  said  :  ''If  thou  shalt  without  fail  deliver  the  children  of 
Ammon  into  mine  hands,  then  it  shall  be,  that  whatsoever  com- 
eth  forth  of  the  doors  of  my  house  to  meet  me,  when  I  return 
in  peace  from  the  children  of  Ammon,  shall  surely  be  the  Lord's, 
and  I  will  offer  it  up  for  a  burnt  offering."  ^  So  Jephthah  passed 
over  unto  the  children  of  Ammon  to  fight  against  them;  and  the 
Lord  delivered  them  into  his  hands.  And  he  smote  them  from 
Aroer,  even  till  thou  come  to  Minnith,  even  twenty  cities,  and 
unto  the  plain  of  the  vineyards,  with  a  very  great  slaughter. 
Thus  the  children  of  Ammon  were  subdued  before  the  children 
of  Israel. 

And  Jephthah  came  to  Mizpeh  unto  his  house,  and  behold, 
his  daughter  came  out  to  meet  him  with  timbrels  and  with 
dances :  and  she  was  his  only  child ;  beside  her  he  had  neither 
son  nor  daughter.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  he  saw  her,  that 
he  rent  his  clothes,  and  said  :  "  Alas,  my  daughter !  thou  hast 
brought  me  very  low,  and  thou  art  one  of  them  that  trouble  me : 
for  I  have  opened  my  mouth  unto  the  Lord,  and  I  cannot  go 
back. "  And  she  said  unto  him  :  "My  father,  if  thou  hast  opened 
thy  mouth  unto  the  Lord,  do  to  me  according  to  that  which  hath 
proceeded  out  of  thy  mouth  ;  forasmuch  as  the  Lord  hath  taken 
vengeance  for  thee  of  thine  enemies,  even  of  the  children  of 
Ammon."  And  she  said  unto  her  father :  "Let  this  thing  be 
done  for  me:  let  me  alone  two  months,  that  I  may  go  up  and 
down  upon  the  mountains,  and  bewail  my  virginity,  I  and  my 
fellows."  And  he  said,  "  Go."  And  he  sent  her  away  for  two 
months  :  and  she  went  with  her  companions,  and  bewailed  her 
virginity  upon  the  mountains.  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  end 
of  two  months,  that  she  returned  unto  her  father,  who  did  with 

1  The  wording  in  the  Hebrew  makes  it  evident  that  Jephthah  intended  a 
human  sacrifice.  Several  other  passages  show  that  child-sacrifice  was  not  un- 
known in  Israel. 


190  THE   JUDGES 

her  according  to  his  vow  which  he  had  vowed :  and  she  knew 
no  man.  And  it  was  a  custom  in  Israel,  that  the  daughters  of 
Israel  went  yearly  to  lament  the  daughter  of  Jephthah  the  Gilead- 
ite  four  days  in  a  year. 

And  the  men  of  Ephraim  gathered  themselves  together,  and 
went  northward,  and  said  unto  Jephthah  :  "  Wherefore  passedst 
thou  over  to  fight  against  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  didst  not 
call  us  to  go  with  thee  ?  We  will  burn  thine  house  upon  thee 
with  fire."  And  Jephthah  said  unto  them  :  ''I  and  my  people 
were  at  great  strife  Avith  the  children  of  Ammon;  and  when  I 
called  you,  ye  delivered  me  not  out  of  their  hands.  And  when 
I  saw  that  ye  delivered  me  not,  I  put  my  life  in  my  hands,  and 
passed  over  against  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  the  Lord  de- 
livered them  into  my  hand  :  wherefore  then  are  ye  come  up  unto 
me  this  day,  to  fight  against  me  ?  " 

Then  Jephthah  gathered  together  all  the  men  of  Gilead,  and 
fought  with  Ephraim :  and  the  men  of  Gilead  smote  Ephraim. 
And  the  Gileadites  took  the  passages  of  Jordan  before  the  Eph- 
raimites  :  and  it  was  so,  that  when  those  Ephraimites  which  were 
escaped  said,  ^'  Let  me  go  over ;  "  that  the  men  of  Gilead  said 
unto  him,  "  Art  thou  an  Ephraimite  ?  "  If  he  said,  "  Nay ;  " 
then  said  they  unto  him,  ''Say  now.  Shibboleth  :  "  and  he  said 
"  Sibboleth  :  "  for  he  could  not  frame  to  pronounce  it  right;  then 
they  took  him,  and  slew  him  at  the  passages  of  Jordan  :  and  there 
fell  at  that  time  of  the  Ephraimites  forty  and  two  thousand. 

And  Jephthah  judged  Israel  six  years.  Then  died  Jephthah 
the  Gileadite,  and  was  buried  in  one  of  the  cities  of  Gilead. 

And  after  him  Ibzan  of  Beth-lehem  judged  Israel.  And  he 
had  thirty  sons,  and  thirty  daughters,  whom  he  sent  abroad,  and 
took  in  thirty  daughters  from  abroad  for  his  sons.  And  he  judged 
Israel  seven  years.  Then  died  Ibzan,  and  was  buried  at  Beth- 
lehem. 

And  after  him  Elon,  a  Zebulonite,  judged  Israel ;  and  he 
judged  Israel  ten  years.  And  Elon  the  Zebulonite  died,  and 
was  buried  in  Aijalon  in  the  country  of  Zebulun. 

And  after  him  Abdon  the  son  of  Hillel,  a  Pirathonite,  judged 
Israel.  And  he  had  forty  sons  and  thirty  nephews,  that  rode  on 
threescore  and  ten  ass  colts  :  and  he  judged  Israel  eight  years, 
And  Abdon  the  son  of  Hillel  the  Pirathonite  died,  and  was 
buried  in  Pirathon  in  the  land  of  Ephraim,  in  the  mount  of  the 
Amalekites. 


SAMSON    AND    THE    PHILISTINES 


191 


Samson  and  the  Philistines  (Judg.  xiii-xvi).  And  the 
children  of  Israel  did  evil  again  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  ;  and  the 
Lord  delivered  them  into  the  hand  of  the  Philistines  ^  forty  years. 

And  there  was  a  certain  man  of  Zorah,  of  the  family  of  the 
Danites,  whose  name  was  Manoah  ;  and  his  wife  was  barren, 
and  bare  not.  And  the  angel 
of  the  Lord  appeared  unto 
the  woman,  and  said  unto 
her:  "Behold  now,  thou  art 
barren,  and  bearest  not:  but 
now  beware,  I  pray  thee,  and 
drink  not  wine  nor  strong 
drink,  and  eat  not  any  un- 
clean thing ;  for  lo,  thou 
shalt  conceive,  and  bear  a 
son  ;  and  no  razor  shall  come 
on  his  head:  for  the  child 
shall  be  a  jSTazarite  ^  unto 
God  from  the  womb:  and 
he  shall  begin  to  deliver 
Israel  out  of  the  hand  of 
the  Philistines." 

Then  the  woman  came  and  told  her  husband,  saying :  "  A 
man  of  God  came  unto  me,  and  his  countenance  was  like  the 
countenance  of  an  angel  of  God,  very  terrible  :  but  I  asked  him 
not  whence  he  was,  neither  told  he  me  his  name  :  but  he  said 
unto  me.  Behold,  thou  shalt  conceive,  and  bear  a  son  ;  and  now 
drink  no  wine  nor  strong  drink,  neither  eat  any  unclean  thing: 

1  Philistines.  A  non-Semitic  people  from  Crete  or  the  coast  region  of  south- 
ern Asia  Minor  that  had  forced  a  settlement  in  the  fertile  maritime  plain  of 
southwestern  Palestine.  They  are  mentioned,  with  other  invading  "sea-peo- 
ples," in  inscriptions  of  Ramses  III  about  1190  b.  c,  and  probably  established 
themselves,  in  successive  pirate  bands,  during  the  following  half-century. 
The  Cherethites,  who  were  a  Philistine  clan,  are  in  the  Septuagint  called  Cre- 
tans. The  five  chief  cities  of  the  Philistines  —  Ashdod,  Gaza,  Ashkelon,  Gath, 
Ekron  —  formed  a  confederacy.  Their  religion  and  civilization  seem  very  early 
to  have  become  Canaanite. 

2  Nazdrite.  One  devoted  to  Jehovah  by  a  special  vow.  The  Xazarite  was 
bound:  (1)  to  abstain  from  the  fruit  of  the  vine,  which  was  associated  with  the 
worship  of  the  Canaanite  nature-gods;  (2)  to  avoid  pollution  either  by  touch- 
ing the  dead  or  by  eating  tabooed  kinds  of  food;  (3)  to  leave  his  hair  uncut, 
both  as  being  itself  consecrated  and  as  marking  him  as  a  devotee.  One  who 
became  Nazarite  for  a  certain  period  only  would  at  its  close  sacrifice  his  hair 
at  the  sanctuarv. 


Contemporary  Egyptian  Relief  of  a  Philistine 


192  THE    JUDGES 

for  the  child  shall  be  a  Nazarite  to  God  from  the  womb  to  the 
day  of  his  death." 

Then  Manoah  intreated  the  Lord,  and  said  :  "  0  my  Lord,  let 
the  man  of  God  which  thou  didst  send  come  again  unto  us,  and 
teach  us  what  we  shall  do  unto  the  child  that  shall  be  born." 

And  God  hearkened  to  the  voice  of  Manoah  ;  and  the  angel 
of  God  came  again  unto  the  woman  as  she  sat  in  the  field  :  but 
Manoah  her  husband  was  not  with  her.  And  the  woman  made 
haste,  and  ran,  and  shewed  her  husband,  and  said  unto  him : 
"  Behold,  the  man  hath  appeared  unto  me,  that  came  unto  me 
the  other  day."  And  Manoah  arose,  and  went  after  his  wife, 
and  came  to  the  man,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Art  thou  the  man 
that  spakest  unto  the  woman?"  And  he  said,  "lam."  And 
Manoah  said  :  ''  Now  let  thy  words  come  to  pass.  How  shall  we 
order  the  child,  and  how  shall  we  do  unto  him  ? "  And  the 
angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  Manoah  :  "Of  all  that  I  said  unto 
the  woman  let  her  beware.  She  may  not  eat  of  any  thing  that 
cometh  of  the  vine,  neither  let  her  drink  wine  or  strong  drink, 
nor  eat  any  unclean  thing:  all  that  I  commanded  her  let  her 
observe." 

And  Manoah  said  unto  the  angel  of  the  Lord  :  "  I  pray  thee,  let 
us  detain  thee,  until  we  have  made  ready  a  kid  for  thee."  And 
the  angel  of  the  Lord  said  unto  Manoah  :  "  Though  thou  detain 
me,  I  will  not  eat  of  thy  bread :  and  if  thou  wilt  offer  a  burnt 
offering,  thou  must  offer  it  unto  the  Lord."  For  Manoah  knew 
not  that  he  was  an  angel  of  the  Lord.  And  Manoah  said  unto 
the  angel  of  the  Lord  :  "  What  is  thy  name,  that  when  thy  say- 
ings come  to  pass  we  may  do  thee  honor  ?  "  And  the  angel  of 
the  Lord  said  unto  him  :  "  Why  askest  thou  thus  after  my  name, 
seeing  it  is  secret  ?  " 

So  Manoah  took  a  kid  with  a  meal  offering,  and  offered  it 
upon  a  rock  unto  Jehovah,  the  Wonder-worker.  And  it  came 
to  pass,  when  the  flame  went  up  toward  heaven  from  off  the  altar, 
that  the  angel  of  the  Lord  ascended  in  the  flame  of  the  altar. 
And  Manoah  and  his  wife  looked  on  it,  and  fell  on  their  faces 
to  the  ground.  But  the  angel  of  the  Lord  did  no  more  appear 
to  Manoah  and  to  his  wife.  Then  Manoali  knew  that  he  was 
an  angel  of  the  Lord.  And  Manoah  said  unto  his  wife  :  "  We 
shall  surely  die,  because  we  have  seen  God."  But  his  wife  said 
unto  him  :  "  If  the  Lord  were  pleased  to  kill  us,  he  would  not 
have  received  a  burnt  offering  and  a  meal  offering  at  our  hands, 


SAMSON   AND   THE    PHILISTINES  198 

neither  would  he  have  shewed  us  all  these  things,  nor  would  as 
at  this  time  have  told  us  such  things  as  these/' 

And  the  woman  bare  a  son,  and  called  his  name  Samson  :  and 
the  child  grew,  and  the  Lord  blessed  him.  And  the  Spirit  of  the 
Lord  began  to  move  him  at  times  in  Mahaneh-Dan,  between 
Zorah  and  Eshtaol. 

And  Samson  went  down  to  Timnath,  and  saw  a  woman  in 
Timnath  of  the  daughters  of  the  Philistines.  And  he  came  up, 
and  told  his  father  and  his  mother,  and  said  :  "  I  have  seen  a 
woman  in  Timnath  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  uncircumcised  Philistines?"  And 
Samson  said  unto  his  father:  ''  Get  her  for  me;  for  she  pleaseth 
me  well."  But  his  father  and  his  mother  knew  not  that  it  was 
of  the  Lord,  that  he  sought  an  occasion  against  the  Philistines  ; 
for  at  that  time  the  Philistines  had  dominion  over  Israel. 

Then  went  Samson  down  to  Timnath,  and  came  to  the  vine- 
yards of  Timnath:  and  behold,  a  young  lion  roared  against  him. 
And  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  came  mightily  upon  him,  and  he  rent 
him  as  he  would  have  rent  a  kid,  and  he  had  nothing  in  his 
hand.  And  he  went  down,  and  talked  with  the  woman  ;  and  she 
pleased  Samson  well.  And  after  a  time  he  returned,  and  he 
turned  aside  to  see  the  carcass  of  the  lion :  and  behold,  there 
was  a  swarm  of  bees  and  honey  in  the  carcass  of  the  lion.  ^  And 
he  took  thereof  in  his  hands,  and  went  on  eating,  and  came  to 
his  father  and  mother,  and  he  gave  them,  and  they  did  eat :  but 
he  told  not  them  that  he  had  taken  the  honey  out  of  the  carcass 
of  the  lion. 

So  Samson  went  down  unto  the  woman,  and  made  there  a 
feast;  for  so  used  the  young  men  to  do.^  And  it  came  to  pass, 
when  they  saw  him,  that  they  brought  thirty  companions  to  be 
with  him.  And  Samson  said  unto  them  :  ''  I  will  now  put  forth 
a  riddle  unto  you  :   if  ye  can  certainly  declare  it  me  within  the 

^  In  the  Georgics,  bk.  iv.  vs.  299  ff.,  Vergil  describes  the  breeding  of  bees  in 
the  carcass  of  a  steer. 

2  The  facts:  that  Samson  gives  the  feast  at  the  bride's  home;  that  he  takes  a 
company  of  young  Philistines  in  place  of  the  kinsmen  who  would  have  attended 
him  in  an  ordinary  marriage;  and  that  he  later  visits  his  wife  with  a  present, 
show  that  he  here  contracts  what  is  called  a  sadika  marriage,  in  which  the  wife 
remains  in  her  father's  house,  and  the  children  belong  to  her  tribe. 


194  THE   JUDGES 

seven  days  of  the  feast,  and  find  it  out,  then  I  will  give  you 
thirty  sheets  and  thirty  changes  of  garments :  but  if  ye  cannot 
declare  it  me,  then  shall  ye  give  me  thirty  sheets  and  thirty 
changes  of  garments."  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  expound  the  riddle.  And 
it  came  to  pass  on  the  seventh  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  take  that  we  have  ?  "  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  peo- 
ple, and  hast  not  told  it  me."  And  he  said  unto  her :  "  Behold, 
I  have  not  told  it  my  father  nor  my  mother,  and  shall  I  tell  it 
thee  ?  "  And  she  wept  before  him  the  seven  days,  while  their 
feast  lasted :  and  it  came  to  pass  on  the  seventh  day,  that  he 
told  her,  because  she  lay  sore  upon  him  :  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  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  came  upon  him,  and  he  went  down 
to  Ashkelon,  and  slew  thirty  men  of  them,  and  took  their  spoil, 
and  gave  changes  of  garments  unto  them  which  expounded  the 
riddle.  And  his  anger  was  kindled,  and  he  went  up  to  his 
father's  house.  But  Samson's  wife  was  given  to  his  companion, 
whom  he  had  used  as  his  friend. 

But  it  came  to  pass  within  a  while  after,  in  the  time  of  wheat 
harvest,  that  Samson  visited  his  wife  with  a  kid ;  and  he  said : 
"I  will  go  in  to  my  wife  into  the  chamber."  But  her  father 
would  not  suffer  him  to  go  in.  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 
concerning  them  :   ^'  Now  shall  I  be  blameless  in  regard  of  the 


SAMSON   AND   THE   PHILISTINES  195 

Philistines,  when  I  do  them  a  mischief."  And  Samson  went  and 
caught  three  hundred  foxes,  and  took  firebrands,  and  turned  tail 
to  tail,  and  put  a  firebrand  in  the  midst  between  two  tails.  And 
when  he  had  set  the  brands  on  fire,  he  let  them  go  into  the 
standing  corn  of  the  Philistines,  and  burnt  up  both  the  shocks, 
and  also  the  standing  corn,  with  the  vineyards  and  olives.  Then 
the  Philistines  said,  ''  Who  hath  done  this  ?  "  And  they  an- 
swered :  ''  Samson,  the  son  in  law  of  the  Timnite,  because  he 
had  taken  his  wife,  and  given  her  to  his  companion."  And  the 
Philistines  came  up,  and  burnt  her  and  her  father  with  fire. 

And  Samson  said  unto  them:  "Though  ye  have  done  this, 
yet  will  I  be  avenged  of  you,  and  after  that  I  will  cease."  And 
he  smote  them  hip  and  thigh  with  a  great  slaughter :  and  he 
went  down  and  dwelt  in  the  cleft  of  the  rock  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  answered  :  "  To  bind 
Samson  are  we  come  up,  to  do  to  him  as  he  hath  done  to  us." 
Then  three  thousand  men  of  Judah  went  to  the  cleft  of  the 
rock  Etam,  and  said  to  Samson :  ^'  Knowest  thou  not  that  the 
Philistines  are  rulers  over  us  ?  what  is  this  that  thou  hast  done 
unto  us?"  And  he  said  unto  them:  "As  they  did  unto  me, 
so  have  I  done  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  rock. 

And  when  he  came  unto  Lehi,  the  Philistines  shouted  against 
him :  and  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  came  mightily  upon  him,  and 
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  it,  and  slew  a  thousand  men  therewith.   And  Samson  said : 

"  With  the  jawbone  of  an  ass,  heaps  upon  heaps, 
With  the  jaw  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  called  that 


196  THE   JUDGES 

place  Ramath-lehi.  ^  And  he  was  sore  athirst,  and  called  on  the 
Lord,  and  said  :  ''  Thou  hast  given  this  great  deliverance  into 
the  hand  of  thy  servant :  and  now  shall  I  die  for  thirst,  and 
fall  into  the  hand  of  the  uncircumcised  ?  "  But  God  clave  the 
hollow  place  that  is  in  Lehi,  and  there  came  water  thereout ; 
and  when  he  had  drunk,  his  spirit  came  again,  and  he  revived : 
wherefore  he  called  the  name  thereof  En-hakkore,^  which  is  in 
Lehi  unto  this  day.  And  he  judged  Israel  in  the  days  of  the 
Philistines  twenty  years. 

Then  went  Samson  to  Gaza,  and  saw  there  an  harlot,  and 
went  in  unto  her.  And  it  was  told  the  Gazites,  saying,  *'  Sam- 
son 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  took  the  doors  of  the  gate  of  the  city,  and  the  two  posts, 
and  went  away  with  them,  bar  and  all,  and  put  them  upon  his 
shoulders,  and  carried  them  up  to  the  top  of  an  hill  that  is  be- 
fore 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  prevail  against  him,  that  we  may  bind  him  to  afflict 
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  afflict  thee."  And  Samson  said  unto  her:  "If  they 
bind  me  with  seven  green  withs^  that  were  never  dried,  then 
shall  I  be  weak,  and  be  as  another  man."  Then  the  lords  of 
the  Philistines  brought  up  to  her  seven  green  withs  which  had 
not  been  dried,  and  she  bound  him  with  them.  Now  there  were 
men  lying  in  wait,  abiding  with  her  in  the  chamber.  And  she 
said  unto  him:  "The  Philistines  be  upon  thee,  Samson."  And 
he  brake  the  withs,  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 

1  Jinmath-leki.  Here  taken  as  meaning  'Throwing  of  the  Jawbone.' 

2  En-hakkore.  'Spring  of  the  Caller.' 
2  green  withs.  Fresh  gut  bowstrings. 


SAMSON   AND   THE   PHILISTINES  197 

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  that  never  were  occupied,^  then  shall  I  be 
weak,  and  be  as  another  man."  Delilah  therefore  took  new  ropes, 
and  bound  him  therewith,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  The  Philistines 
be  upon  thee,  Samson."  And  there  were  liers  in  wait  abiding 
in  the  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  beatest  it  up  with  the  pin,  my  strength 
will  go  from  me,  and  I  shall  be  like  any  other  man."  So  while 
he  slept  Delilah  took  the  seven  locks  of  his  head,  and  wove  them 
into  the  -web,^  and  she  fastened  it  with  the  pin,  and  said  unto 
him  :  "  The  Philistines  be  upon  thee,  Samson."  And  he  awaked 
out  of  his  sleep,  and  went  away  with  the  beam,  and  with  the 
web. 

And  she  said  unto  him  :  "  How  canst  thou  say,  I  love  thee, 
when  thine  lieart  is  not  witli  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,  so  that  his  soul  was  vexed  unto  death ; 
that  he  told  her  all  his  heart,  and  said  unto  her :  "  There  hath 
not  come  a  razor  upon  mine  head ;  for  I  have  been  a  ISTazarite 
unto  God  from  my  mother's  womb :  if  I  be  shaven,  then  my 
strength  will  go  from  me,  and  I  shall  become  weak,  and  be  like 
any  other  man."  And  when  Delilah  saw  that  he  had  told  her 
all  his  heart,  she  sent  and  called  for  the  lords  of  the  Philis- 
tines, 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  money  in  their  hand.  And  she  made  him  sleep 
upon  her  knees;  and  she  called  for  a  man,  and  she  caused  him 
to  shave  off  the  seven  locks  of  his  head ;  and  she  began  to 
afflict  him,  and  his  strength  went  from  him.  And  she  said: 
"  The  Philistines  be  upon  thee,  Samson."   And  he  awoke  out  of 

1  occupied.  Used. 

2  Several  clauses  missing  in  the  Hebrew  are  here  supplied  from  the  Greek. 
The  loom  was  an  upright  frame  with  its  posts  planted  in  the  earth.  Seated  be- 
fore it  with  Samson's  head  in  her  lap,  Delilah  wove  his  long  hair  into  the  stand- 
ing warp,  beating  it  up  tight  with  a  wooden  pin. 


198  THE   JUDGES 

his  sleep,  and  said :  "  I  will  go  out  as  at  other  times  before, 
and  shake  myself.'^  And  he  wist  not  that  the  Lord  was  departed 
from  him.  But  the  Philistines  took  him,  and  put  out  his  eyes, 
and  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. 

Then  the  lords  of  the  Philistines  gathered  them  together  for 
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  hands 
our  enemy,  and  the  destroyer  of  our  country,  which  slew  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  the  Lord, 
and  said :  "  0  Lord  God,  remember  me,  I  pray  thee,  and 
strengthen  me,  I  pray  thee,  only  this  once,  0  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  on  which  it  was  borne  up,  of  the  one  with  his  right  hand,  and 
of  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. 
And  he  judged  Israel  twenty  years. 

1  Darjon.  The  principal  deity  amonpj  the  Philistines.  He  is  usually  supposed 
to  have  been  a  fish-f^od  or  personification  of  the  ocean,  and  associated  with  cer- 
tain Assyrian  representations  of  a  hoiiii^  part  fish  and  part  man.  Recent  autlior- 
ities,  however,  regard  this  description  as  mistaken  or  doubtful,  since  he  seems 
to  have  been  originally  a  god  of  husbandry. 


micah's  idols  and  the  migration  of  the  danites    199 

Micah's  Idols  and  the  Migration  of  the  Danites  (Judg. 
xvii.,  xviii.).  And  there  was  a  man  of  the  hill  country  of  Eph- 
raim,  whose  name  was  Micah.  And  he  said  unto  his  mother : 
"  The  eleven  hundred  shekels  of  silver  that  were  taken  from 
thee,  about  which  thou  cursedst,  and  spakest  of  also  in  mine 
ears,  behold,  the  silver  is  with  me;  I  took  it:  now  therefore  I 
will  restore  it  unto  thee,"  And  his  mother  said :  "  Blessed  be 
thou  of  the  Lord,  my  son."  And  he  restored  the  eleven  hundred 
shekels  of  silver  to  his  mother,  and  his  mother  said  :  "  I  verily 
dedicate  the  silver  unto  the  Lord  from  my  hand  for  my  son,  to 
make  a  graven  and  molten  image."  And  when  he  restored  the 
money  unto  his  mother,  his  mother  took  two  hundred  shekels 
of  silver,  and  gave  them  to  the  founder,  who  made  thereof  a 
graven  and  molten  image  :  and  it  was  in  the  house  of  Micah. 
And  the  man  Micah  had  an  house  of  gods,  and  made  an  ephod, 
and  teraphim,  and  consecrated  one  of  his  sons,  who  became  his 
priest.  In  those  days  there  was  no  king  in  Israel,  but  every  man 
did  that  which  was  right  in  his  own  eyes. 

And  there  was  a  young  man  out  of  Beth-lelrem-judah,  of  the 
family  of  Judah,  who  was  a  Levite,^  and  he  sojourned  there.  And 
the  man  departed  out  of  the  city  from  Beth-lehem-judah  to  so- 
journ where  he  could  find  a  place  :  and  he  came  to  the  hill  coun- 
try of  Ephraim  to  the  house  of  Micah,  as  he  journeyed.  And 
Micah  said  unto  him,  "  AYhence  comest  thou  ?  "  And  he  said 
unto  him:  "I  am  a  Levite  of  Beth-lehem-judah,  and  I  go  to 
sojourn  where  I  may  find  a  place."  And  jMicah  said  unto  him: 
"Dwell  with  me,  and  be  unto  me  a  father  and  a  priest,  and  I 
will  give  thee  ten  shekels  of  silver  by  the  year,  and  a  suit  of 
apparel,  and  thy  victuals."  So  the  Levite  was  content  to  dwell 
with  the  man  ;  and  the  young  man  was  unto  him  as  one  of  his 
sons.  And  Micah  consecrated  the  Levite  ;  and  the  young  man. 
became  his  priest,  and  was  in  the  house  of  Micah.  Then  said 
Micah :  "  Now  know  I  that  the  Lord  will  do  me  good,  seeing  I 
have  a  Levite  to  my  priest." 

In  those  days  the  tribe  of  the  Danites  sought  them  an  inher- 
itance to  dwell  in  ;  for  unto  that  day  all  their  inheritance  had  not 
fallen  unto  them  among  the  tribes  of  Israel.   And  the  children  of 

1  Levite.  The  word  denotes  his  calling,  not  his  tribe.  It  was  probably  not 
until  later  times  that  all  Levites  were  thought  to  be  descended  from  one  ances- 
tor, Levi,  So  Samuel,  who  is  brought  up  as  a  priest  at  Shiloh,  belongs  not  to 
Levi,  but  to  Ephraim. 


200  THE   JUDGES 

Dan  sent  of  their  family  five  men  from  their  coasts,  men  of  valor, 
from  Zorah,  and  from  Eshtaol,  to  spy  out  the  land,  and  to  search 
it ;  and  they  said  unto  them,  "  Go,  search  the  land  :  "  who  when 
they  came  to  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim,  to  the  house  of  Micah, 
they  lodged  there. 

When  they  were  by  the  house  of  Micah,  they  knew  the  voice 
of  the  young  man  the  Levite  :  and  they  turned  in  thither,  and 
said  unto  him:  ^' Who  brought  thee  hither?  and  what  doest 
thou  in  this  place  ?  and  what  hast  thou  here  ?  "  And  he  said 
unto  them :  "  Thus  and  thus  dealeth  Micah  with  me,  and  hath 
hired  me,  and  I  am  his  priest."  And  they  said  unto  him  :  ''Ask 
counsel,  we  pray  thee,  of  God,  that  we  may  know  whether  our 
way  which  we  go  shall  be  prosperous."  And  the  priest  said  unto 
them  :  "Go  in  peace :  before  the  Lord  is  your  way  wherein  ye 
go." 

Then  the  five  men  departed,  and  came  to  Laish,  and  saw  the 
people  that  were  therein,  how  they  dwelt  careless,  after  the  man- 
ner of  the  Zidonians,  quiet  and  secure ;  and  they  were  far  from 
the  Zidonians,  and  had  no  business  with  any  man.  And  they 
came  unto  their  brethren  to  Zorah  and  Eshtaol :  and  their  bre- 
thren said  unto  them,  "  What  say  ye  ?  "  And  they  said  :  "  Arise, 
that  we  may  go  up  against  them :  for  we  have  seen  the  land, 
and  behold,  it  is  very  good :  and  are  ye  still  ?  be  not  slothful 
to  go,  and  to  enter  to  possess  the  land.  When  ye  go,  ye  shall 
come  upon  a  people  secure,  and  to  a  large  land :  for  God  hath 
given  it  into  your  hands ;  a  place  where  there  is  no  want  of  any 
thing  that  is  in  the  earth." 

And  there  went  from  thence  of  the  family  of  the  Danites,  out 
of  Zorah  and  out  of  Eshtaol,  six  hundred  men  appointed  with 
weapons  of  war.  And  they  went  up,  and  pitched  in  Kirjath- 
jearim,  in  Judah :  wherefore  they  called  that  place  Mahaneh-dan  ^ 
unto  this  day :  behold,  it  is  behind  Kirjath-jearim.  And  they 
passed  thence  unto  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim,  and  came  unto 
the  house  of  Micah. 

Then  answered  the  five  men  that  went  to  spy  out  the  country 
of  Laish,  and  said  unto  their  brethren  :  "  Do  ye  know  tliat  there 
is  in  these  houses  an  ephod,  and  teraphim,  and  a  graven  and 
molten  image  ?  now  therefore  consider  what  ye  have  to  do. "  And 
they  turned  thitherward,  and  came  to  the  house  of  the  young 
man  the  Levite,  even  unto  the  house  of  Micah,  and  saluted  him. 
1  Mahaneh-dan.  'Camp  of  Dan.' 


micah's  idols  and  the  migration  of  the  danites    201 

And  the  priest  stood  in  the  entering  of  the  [village]  gate  with 
the  six  hundred  men  that  were  appointed  with  weapons  of  war. 
And  these  [the  five  men]  went  into  Micah's  house,  and  fetched 
the  carved  image,  the  ephod,  and  the  teraphim,  and  the  molten 
image.  Then  said  the  priest  unto  them,  "  What  do  ye  ?  "  And 
they  said  unto  him:  "  Hold  thy  peace,  lay  thine  hand  upon  thy 
mouth,  and  go  with  us,  and  be  to  us  a  father  and  a  priest :  is  it 
better  for  thee  to  be  a  priest  unto  the  house  of  one  man,  or  that 
thou  be  a  priest  unto  a  tribe  and  a  family  in  Israel  ?''  And  the 
priesVs  heart  was  glad,  and  he  took  the  ephod,  and  the  tera- 
phim, and  the  graven  image,  and  went  in  the  midst  of  the  people. 

So  they  turned  and  departed,  and  put  the  little  ones  and  the 
cattle  and  the  carriage  ^  before  them.  And  when  they  were  a 
good  way  from  the  house  of  Micah,  the  men  that  were  in  the 
houses  near  to  Micah's  house  were  gathered  together,  and  over- 
took the  children  of  Dan.  And  they  cried  unto  the  children  of 
Dan.  And  they  turned  their  faces,  and  said  unto  Micah :  "  What 
aileth  thee,  that  thou  comest  with  such  a  company  ?  "  And  he 
said :  "  Ye  have  taken  away  my  gods  which  I  made,  and  the 
priest,  and  ye  are  gone  away:  and  what  have  I  more  ?  and  what 
is  this  that  ye  say  unto  me.  What  aileth  thee  ?  ^'  And  the  chil- 
dren of  Dan  said  unto  him :  "  Let  not  thy  voice  be  heard  among 
us,  lest  angry  fellows  run  upon  thee,  and  thou  lose  thy  life,  with 
the  lives  of  thy  household."  And  the  children  of  Dan  went 
their  way :  and  when  Micah  saw  that  they  were  too  strong  for 
him,  he  turned  and  went  back  unto  his  house. 

And  they  took  the  things  which  Micah  had  made,  and  the 
priest  which  he  had,  and  came  unto  Laish,  unto  a  people  that 
were  at  quiet  and  secure  :  and  they  smote  them  with  the  edge 
of  the  sword,  and  burnt  the  city  with  fire.  And  there  was  no 
deliverer,  because  it  was  far  from  Zidon,  and  they  had  no  busi- 
ness with  any  man  ;  and  it  was  in  the  valley  that  lieth  by  Beth- 
rehob.  And  they  built  a  city,  and  dwelt  therein.  And  they 
called  the  name  of  the  city  Dan,  after  the  name  of  Dan  their 
father,  who  was  born  unto  Israel :  howbeit  the  name  of  the  city 
was  Laish  at  the  first.  And  the  children  of  Dan  set  up  the 
graven  image  :  and  Jonathan,  the  son  of  Gershom,  the  son  of 
Moses,  he  and  his  sons  were  priests  to  the  tribe  of  Dan  until  the 
day  of  the  captivity  of  the  land.^  And  they  set  them  up  IMicah's 

1  the  carriage.  What  is  carried;  the  goods. 

2  By  Tiglatii-pileser  iu  73-i  b.  c. 


202  THE   JUDGES 

graven  image,  which  he  made,  all  the  time  that  the  house  of  God 
was  in  Shiloh. 

The  Outrage  at  Gibeah  (Judg.  xix.).  And  it  came  to  pass  in 
those  days,  when  there  was  no  king  in  Israel,  that  there  was  a 
certain  Levite  sojourning  on  the  side  of  the  hill  country  of  Eph- 
raim,  who  took  to  him  a  concubine  out  of  Beth-lehem-judah. 
And  his  concubine  played  the  whore  against  him,^  and  went 
away  from  him  unto  her  father's  house  to  Beth-lehem-judah,  and 
was  there  four  whole  months.  And  her  husband  arose,  and  went 
after  her,  to  speak  friendly  unto  her,  and  to  bring  her  again, 
having  his  servant  with  him,  and  a  couple  of  asses :  and  she 
brought  him  into  her  father's  house  :  and  when  the  father  of  the 
damsel  saw  him,  he  rejoiced  to  meet  him.  And  his  father  in  law, 
the  damsel's  father,  retained  him ;  and  he  abode  with  him  three 
days :  so  they  did  eat  and  drink,  and  lodged  there.  And  it  came 
to  pass  on  the  fourth  day,  when  they  arose  early  in  the  morning, 
that  he  rose  up  to  depart :  and  the  damsel's  father  said  unto  his 
son  in  law :  "  Comfort  thine  heart  with  a  morsel  of  bread,  and 
afterward  go  your  way."  And  they  sat  down,  and  did  eat  and 
drink  both  of  them  together :  for  the  damsel's  father  had  said 
unto  the  man :  ''  Be  content,  I  pray  thee,  and  tarry  all  night, 
and  let  thine  heart  be  merry."  And  when  the  man  rose  up  to 
depart,  his  father  in  law  urged  him :  therefore  he  lodged  there 
again.  And  he  arose  early  in  the  morning  on  the  fifth  day  to  de- 
part r  and  the  damsel's  father  said  :  "  Comfort  thine  heart,  I  pray 
thee."  And  they  tarried  until  afternoon,  and  they  did  eat  both 
of  them.  And  when  the  man  rose  up  to  depart,  he,  and  his  con- 
cubine, and  his  servant,  his  father  in  law,  the  damsel's  father, 
said  unto  him  :  "  Behold,  now  the  day  draweth  toward  evening, 
I  pray  you  tarry  all  night :  behold,  the  day  groweth  to  an  end, 
lodge  here,  that  thine  heart  may  be  merry ;  and  to-morrow  get 
you  early  on  your  way,  that  thou  mayest  go  home."  But  the 
man  would  not  tarry  that  night,  but  he  rose  up  and  departed, 
and  came  over  against  Jebus,  which  is  Jerusalem  ;  and  there 
were  with  him  two  asses  saddled ;  his  concubine  also  was  with 
him. 

And  when  they  were  by  Jebus,  the  day  was  far  spent;  and 
the  servant  said  unto  his  master  :  "  Come,  I  pray  thee,  and  let 

1  played  .  .  .  arjainst  him.  The  older  Greek  version  reads:  'became  angered 
with  him,'  which  suits  the  context  better. 


THE   OUTRAGE   AT   GIBEAH  203 

US  turn  in  into  this  city  of  the  Jebusites,  and  lodge  in  it." 
And  his  master  said  unto  him:  "  We  will  not  turn  aside  hither 
into  the  city  of  a  stranger,  that  is  not  of  the  children  of  Israel; 
we  will  pass  over  to  Gibeah."  And  he  suid  unto  his  servant: 
''  Come,  and  let  us  draw  near  to  one  of  these  places  to  lodge 
all  night,  in  Gibeah,  or  in  Ramah."  And  they  passed  on  and 
went  their  way ;  and  the  sun  went  down  upon  them  when  they 
were  by  Gibeah,  which  belongeth  to  Benjamin. 

And  they  turned  aside  thither,  to  go  in  and  to  lodge  in  Gib- 
eah :  and  when  he  went  in,  he  sat  him  down  in  a  street  of  the 
city:  for  there  was  no  man  that  took  them  into  his  house  to 
lodging.  And  behold,  there  came  an  old  man  from  his  work 
out  of  the  field  at  even,  which  was  also  of  the  hill  country  of 
Ephraim ;  and  he  sojourned  in  Gibeah :  but  the  men  of  the 
place  were  Benjamites.  And  when  he  had  lifted  up  his  eyes,  he 
saw  a  wayfaring  man,  in  the  street  of  the  city  :  and  the  old  man 
said  :  *'  Whither  goest  thou  ?  and  whence  comest  thou  ?  "  And 
he  said  unto  him :  "  We  are  passing  from  Beth-lehem-judah 
unto  the  farther  side  of  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim  ;  from 
thence  am  I:  and  I  went  to  Beth-lehem-judah,  but  I  am  now 
going  to  my  home  ;  and  there  is  no  man  that  receiveth  me  to 
house.  Yet  there  is  both  straw  and  provender  for  our  asses ; 
and  there  is  bread  and  wine  also  for  rae,  and  for  thy  handmaid, 
and  for  the  young  man  which  is  with  thy  servants:  there  is  no 
want  of  any  thing."   And  the  old  man  said  : 

"  Peace  be  with  thee ;  howsoever  let  all  thy  wants  lie  upon 
rae;  only  lodge  not  in  the  street."  So  he  brought  him  into  his 
house,  and  gave  provender  unto  the  asses :  and  they  washed 
their  feet,  and  did  eat  and  drink. 

Now  as  they  were  making  their  hearts  merry,  behold,  the 
men  of  the  city,  certain  sons  of  Belial,^  beset  the  house  round 
about,  and  beat  at  the  door,  and  spake  to  the  master  of  the 
house,  the  old  man,  saying:  ''Bring  forth  the  man  that  came 
into  thine  house,  that  we  may  know  him."  And  the  man,  the 
master  of  the  house,  went  out  unto  them,  and  said  unto  them : 
"Nay,  my  brethren,  nay,  I  pray  you,  do  not  so  wickedly  ;  see- 
ing that  this  man  is  come  into  mine  house,  do  not  this  folly." 
But  the  men  would  not  hearken  to  him:  so  the  man  took  his 
concubine,  and  brought  her  forth  unto  them ;  and  they  knew 

1  Belial,  *  worthlessness,'  is  not  a  proper  noun  in  Hebrew.  It  was  not  until 
later  times  used  as  a  name  for  Satan. 


204  THE   JUDGES 

her,  and  abused  her  all  the  night  until  the  morning  :  and  when 
the  day  began  to  spring,  they  let  her  go. 

Then  came  the  woman  in  the  dawning  of  the  day,  and  fell 
down  at  the  door  of  the  man's  house  where  her  lord  was,  till  it 
was  light.  And  her  lord  rose  up  in  the  morning,  and  opened 
the  doors  of  the  house,  and  went  out  to  go  his  way  :  and  be- 
hold, the  woman  his  concubine  was  fallen  down  at  the  door  of 
the  house,  and  her  hands  were  upon  the  threshold.  And  he 
said  unto  her,  "Up,  and  let  us  be  going."  But  none  answered. 
Then  the  man  took  her  up  upon  an  ass,  and  the  man  rose  up, 
and  gat  him  unto  his  place.  And  when  he  was  come  into  his 
house,  he  took  a  knife,  and  laid  hold  on  his  concubine,  and  di- 
vided her,  together  with  her  bones,  into  twelve  pieces,  and  sent 
her  into  all  the  coasts  of  Israel.  And  he  commanded  the  men 
whom  he  sent  out :  Thus  shall  ye  say  to  all  the  men  of  Israel : 
"  Did  ever  such  a  thing  happen  from  the  day  that  the  Israelites 
came  up  out  of  Egypt  to  this  day  ?  Consider  of  it,  take  advice, 
and  speak  your  minds."  And  it  was  so,  that  all  that  saw  it 
said :  "  There  was  no  such  deed  done  nor  seen  from  the  day 
that  the  children  of  Israel  came  up  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt 
unto  this  day.'' 

Punishment  of  the  Benjamites  (Judg.  xx.  1-8,  14,  19, 
29,  31,  36-47;  xxi.  15-23).  Then  all  the  children  of  Israel  went 
out  unto  the  Lord  in  Mizpeh.  Then  said  the  children  of  Israel : 
"  Tell  us,  how  was  this  wickedness  ?  " 

And  the  Levite,  the  husband  of  the  woman  that  was  slain, 
answered  and  said  :  "  I  came  into  Gibeah  that  belongeth  to  Ben- 
jamin, I  and  my  concubine,  to  lodge.  And  the  men  of  Gibeah 
rose  against  me,  and  beset  the  house  round  about  upon  me  by 
night,  and  thought  to  have  slain  me  :  and  my  concubine  have 
they  forced,  that  she  is  dead.  And  I  took  my  concubine,  and  cut 
her  in  pieces,  and  sent  her  throughout  all  the  country  of  the  in- 
heritance of  Israel :  for  they  have  committed  lewdness  and  folly 
in  Israel.  Behold,  ye  are  all  children  of  Israel ;  give  here  your 
advice  and  counsel." 

And  all  the  people  arose  as  one  man,  saying  :  "We  will  not 
any  of  us  go  to  his  tent,  neither  will  we  any  of  us  turn  into  his 
house  [until  we  have  avenged  this  deed]." 

Now  the  children  of  Benjamin  heard  that  the  children  of 
Israel  were  gone  up  to  Mizpeh  ;  but  the  children  of  Benjamin 


PUNISHMENT   OF   THE   BENJAMITES  205 

gathered  themselves  together  out  of  the  cities  unto  Gibeah,  to  go 
out  to  battle  against  the  children  of  Israel.  And  the  children  of 
Israel  rose  up  in  the  morning,  and  encamped  against  Gibeah. 
And  Israel  set  liers  in  wait  round  about  Gibeah.  And  the  chil- 
dren of  Benjamin  went  out  against  the  people,  and  were  drawn 
away  from  the  city  ;  for  the  men  of  Israel  gave  place  to  the  Ben- 
jamites,  because  they  trusted  unto  the  liers  in  wait  which  they 
had  set  beside  Gibeah.  And  the  liers  in  wait  hasted,  and  rushed 
upon  Gibeah.  Now  there  was  an  appointed  sign  between  the 
men  of  Israel  and  the  liers  in  wait,  that  they  should  make  a  great 
flame  with  smoke  rise  up  out  of  the  city.  And  when  the  men  of 
Israel  retired  in  the  battle,  Benjamin  began  to  smite  and  kill  of 
the  men  of  Israel  about  thirty  persons :  for  they  said:  '^  Surely 
they  are  smitten  down  before  us."  But  when  the  flame  began  to 
arise  up  out  of  the  city  with  a  pillar  of  smoke,  the  Benjamites 
looked  behind  them,  and  behold,  the  flame  of  the  city  ascended 
up  to  heaven.  And  when  the  men  of  Israel  turned  again,  the 
men  of  Benjamin  were  amazed  :  for  they  saw  that  evil  was  come 
upon  them.  Therefore  they  turned  their  backs  before  the  men  of 
Israel  unto  the  way  of  the  wilderness  ;  but  the  battle  overtook 
them  ;  and  they  which  came  out  of  the  cities  destroyed  them  in 
the  midst  thereof.  Thus  they  cut  the  Benjamites  to  pieces  over 
against  Gibeah  toward  the  sunrising.  And  there  fell  of  Benjamin 
eighteen  thousand  men.  But  six  hundred  men  turned  and  fled 
to  the  wilderness  unto  the  rock  Kimmon,  and  abode  in  the  rock 
Eimmon  four  months. 

Now  the  men  of  Israel  had  sworn  in  Mizpeh,  saying :  "  There 
shall  not  any  of  us  give  his  daughter  unto  Benjamin  to  wife.'' 
And  the  people  repented  them  for  Benjamin,  because  that  the 
Lord  had  made  a  breach  in  the  tribes  of  Israel ;  for  the  women 
had  been  destroyed  out  of  Benjamin.  And  they  said :  "  There 
must  be  an  inheritance  for  them  that  be  escaped  of  Benjamin, 
that  a  tribe  be  not  destroyed  out  of  Israel.  Howbeit  we  may  not 
give  them  wives  of  our  daughters :  for  the  children  of  Israel  have 
sworn,  saying.  Cursed  be  he  that  giveth  a  wife  to  Benjamin." 
Then  they  said:  "Behold,  there  is  a  feast  of  the  Lord  yearly  in 
Shiloh,  which  is  on  the  north  side  of  Beth-el,  on  the  east  side 
of  the  highway  that  goeth  up  from  Beth-el  to  Shechem,  and  on 
the  south  of  Lebonah."  Therefore  they  commanded  the  children 
of  Benjamin,  saying  :  "Go  and  lie  in  wait  in  the  vineyards  ;  and 
see,  and  behold,  if  the  daughters  of  Shiloh  come  out  to  dance 


206  THE   JUDGES 

in  dances,  then  come  ye  out  of  the  vineyards,  and  catch  you 
every  man  his  wife  of  the  daughters  of  Shiloh,  and  go  to  the 
land  of  Benjamin.  And  it  shall  be,  when  their  fathers  or  their 
brethren  come  unto  us  to  complain,  that  we  will  say  :  Grant 
them  unto  them,  for  ye  did  not  give  them  unto  them ;  else 
would  ye  now  be  guilty."  And  the  children  of  Benjamin  did 
so,  and  took  them  wives,  according  to  their  number,  of  them 
that  danced,  whom  they  caught :  and  they  went  and  returned 
unto  their  inheritance,  and  repaired  the  cities,  and  dwelt  in 
them. 

Ruth  the  Moabitess  (Ruth  i.-iv.).  Now  it  came  to  pass  in 
the  days  when  the  judges  ruled,  that  there  was  a  famine  in  the 
land.  And  a  certain  man  of  Beth-lehem-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,  Eph- 
rathites  ^  of  Beth-lehem-judah.  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  Chi- 
lion died  also  both  of  them ;  and  the  woman  was  left  of  her  two 
sons  and  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  coun- 
try of  Moab  how  that  the  Lord  had  visited  his  people  in  giving 
them  bread.  Wherefore  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  mo- 
ther's house:  the  Lord  deal  kindly  with  you,  as  ye  have  dealt 
with  the  dead,  and  with  me.  The  Lord  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 :  "  Surely  we  will  return  with  thee  unto  thy  peo- 
ple." 

And  Naomi  said :  "  Turn  again,  my  daughters  :  why  will  ye 
go  with  me  ?  are  there  yet  any  more  sons  in  my  womb,  that  they 
1  Ephrathah  was  perhaps  the  name  for  the  district  of  Bethlehem. 


RUTH   THE   MOABITESS  207 

may  be  your  husbands  ?  ^  Turn  again,  my  daughters,  go  your 
way ;  for  I  am  too  old  to  have  an  husband.  If  I  should  say,  I 
have  hope,  if  I  should  have  an  husband  also  to-night,  and  should 
also  bear  sons;  would  ye  tarry  for  them  till  they  were  grown? 
would  ye  stay  for  them  from  having  husbands  ?  nay,  my  daugh- 
ters ;  for  it  grieveth  me  much  for  your  sakes  that  tl^e  hand  of 
the  Lord  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, 
and  unto  her  gods :  return  thou  after  thy  sister  in  law."  And 
Ruth  said:  "  Intreat  me  not  to  leave  thee,  or  to  return  from 
following  after  thee  :  for  whither  thou  goest,  I  will  go  ;  and 
where  thou  lodgest,  I  will  lodge  :  thy  people  shall  be  my  people, 
and  thy  God  my  God  :  where  thou  diest,  will  I  die,  and  there 
will  I  be  buried :  the  Lord  do  so  to  me,^  and  more  also,  if 
aught  but  death  part  thee  and  me." 

When  she  saw  that  she  was  stedfastly  minded  to  go  with 
her,  then  she  left  speaking  unto  her.  So  they  two  went  until 
they  came  to  Beth-lehem.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  they  were 
come  to  Beth-lehem,  that  all  the  city  was  moved  about  them, 
and  they  said,  "  Is  this  Naomi  ?  "  And  she  said  unto  them : 
^'  Call  me  not  Naomi, ^  call  me  Mara  :  ^  for  the  Almighty  hath 
dealt  very  bitterly  with  me.  I  went  out  full,  and  the  Lord  hath 
brought  me  home  again  empty  :  why  then  call  ye  me  Naomi, 
seeing  the  Lord  hath  testified  against  me,  and  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  Beth-lehem  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 

1  Cf.  Deut.  XXV.  5  and  6:  "If  brethren  dwell  together,  and  one  of  them  die, 
and  have  no  child,  the  wife  of  the  dead  shall  not  marry  without  unto  a  stran- 
ger :  her  husband's  brother  shall  ^o  in  unto  her,  and  take  her  to  him  to  wife, 
and  perform  the  duty  of  an  husband's  brother  unto  her.  And  it  shall  be,  that 
the  firstborn  which  she  beareth  shall  succeed  in  the  name  of  his  brother  which 
is  dead,  that  his  name  be  not  put  out  of  Israel." 

2  See  note  p.  216. 

8  Naomi,  *  Sweetness  '  ;  Mara  *  Bitterness.* 


208  THE   JUDGES 

grace."  And  she  said  unto  her,  "  Go,  my  daughter."  And  she 
went,  and  came,  and  gleaned  in  the  Held  after  the  reapers:  ^ 
and  her  hap  was  to  light  on  a  part  of  the  field  belonging  unto 
Boaz,  who  was  of  the  kindred  of  Elimelech. 

And  behold,  Boaz  came  from  Beth-lehem,  and  said  unto  the 
reapers,  "The  Lord  be  with  you."  And  they  answered  him, 
"  The  Lord  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,  that  she 
tarried  a  little  in  the  house." 

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  have  drawn."  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  knowledge  of  me, 
seeing  I  am  a  stranger  ?  "  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.  The  Lord  recompense  thy  work,  and  a  full 
reward  be  given  thee  of  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  under  whose 
winps  thou  art  come  to  trust." 

Then  she  said:  "Let  me  find  favor  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  Boaz  said  unto  her  :  "At  mealtime 
come  thou  hither,  and  eat  of  the  bread,  and  dip  thy  morsel  in 
the  vinegar."   And  she  sat  beside  the  reapers:   and  he  reached 

1  Cf.  Levit.  xxiii,  22  :  "And  -when  ye  reap  the  harvest  of  3'our  land,  thou 
shalt  not  make  clean  riddance  of  the  corners  of  thy  field  when  thou  reapest, 
neither  shalt  thou  gather  any  gleaning  of  thy  harvest  :  thou  shalt  leave  them 
^unto  the  poor,  and  to  the  stranger  :  I  am  the  Lord  your  God." 


RUTH   THE   MOABITESS  209 

her  parched  corn,  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,  and  leave  them,  that  she  may  glean  them,  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  brought  forth,  and  gave  to  her 
that  she  had  reserved  after  she  was  sufficed.  And  her  mother 
in  law  said  unto  her :  "  Where  thou  hast  gleaned  to-day  ?  and 
where  wroughtest  thou  ?  blessed  be  he  that  did  take  knowledge 
of  thee." 

And  she  shewed  her  mother  in  law  with  whom  she  had 
wrought,  and  said :  "  The  man's  name  with  whom  I  wrought 
to-day  is  Boaz."  And  Naomi  said  unto  her  daughter  in  law : 
"  Blessed  be  he  of  the  Lord,  who  hath  not  left  off  his  kindness 
to  the  living  and  to  the  dead."  And  Naomi  said  unto  her: 
^^  The  man  is  near  of  kin  unto  us,  one  of  our  next  kinsmen." 
And  Buth  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  Buth  her  daughter  in  law  :  *'It 
is  good,  my  daughter,  that  thou  go  out  with  his  maidens,  that 
they  meet  thee  not  in  any  other  field."  So  she  kept  fast  by  the 
maidens  of  Boaz  to  glean  unto  the  end  of  barley  harvest  and  of 
wheat  harvest ;  and  dwelt  with  her  mother  in  law. 

Then  Naomi  her  mother  in  law  said  unto  her  :  '^  My  daugh- 
ter, 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  thresh- 
ing-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 


210  THE   JUDGES 

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  afraid,  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 ;  for  thou  art  a  near  kinsman."  ^  And  he  said : 
"  Blessed  be  thou  of  the  Lord,  my  daughter :  for  thou  hast 
shewed  more  kindness  in  the  latter  end  than  at  the  beginning, 
inasmuch  as  thou  foUowedst  not  young  men,  whether  poor  or 
rich.  And  now,  my  daughter,  fear  not ;  I  will  do  to  thee  all 
that  thou  requirest:  for  all  the  gate  ^  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  will  I  do  the  part  of  a  kinsman  to  thee,  as  the  Lord 
liveth :  lie  down  until  the  morning." 

And  she  lay  at  his  feet  until  the  morning :  and  she  rose  up 
before  one  could  know  another.  And  he  said :  "  Let  it  not  be 
known  that  a  woman  came  into  the  floor."  Also  he  said  :  "  Bring 
the  vail  that  thou  hast  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  of 
barley  gave  he  me  ;  for  he  said  to  me.  Go  not  empty  unto  thy 
mother  in  law."  Then  said  she:  "Sit  still,  my  daughter,  until 
thou  know  how  the  matter  will  fall:  for  the  man  will  not  be  in 
rest,  until  he  have  finished  the  thing  this  day." 

Then  went  Boaz  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 

1  spread  therefore  thy  skiy^t.  .  .  kinsman.  That  is,  '  Do  the  duty  of  a  near 
kinsman  by  marrying  me.' 

2  The  city  gate  was  a  place  of  public  resort,  where  "the  talk  of  the  town" 
was  carried  on. 

8  six  measures.   Three-fifths  of  a  bushel. 


RUTH   THE   MOABITESS  211 

the  elders  of  the  city,  and  said:  ''Sit  ye  down  here."  And  they 
sat  down.  And  he  said  unto  the  kinsman  :  "  Naomi,  that  is 
come  again  out  of  the  country  of  Moab,  selleth  a  parcel  of  land, 
which  was  our  brother  Elimelech's  :  and  I  thought  to  advertise 
thee,  saying,  Buy  it  before  the  inhabitants,  and  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  kinsman  said:  ''I  cannot  redeem  it  for 
myself,  lest  I  mar  mine  own  inheritance :  redeem  thou  my  right 
to  thyself ;  for  I  cannot  redeem  it." 

Now  this  was  the  manner  in  former  time  in  Israel  concerning 
redeeming  and  concerning  changing,  for  to  confirm  all  things ;  a 
man  plucked  off  his  shoe,  and  gave  it  to  his  neighbor :  and  this 
was  a  testimony  in  Israel.  Therefore  the  kinsman  said  unto  Boaz, 
*'Buy  it  for  thee."  So  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  Elime- 
lech's, and  all  that  was  Chilion's  and  Mahlon's,  of  the  hand  of 
Naomi.  Moreover  Buth  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.  The  Lord  make  the 
woman  that  is  come  into  thine  house  like  Bachel  and  like  Leah, 
which  two  did  build  the  house  of  Israel :  and  do  thou  worthily 
in  Ephratah,  and  be  famous  in  Beth-lehem :  and  let  thy  house 
be  like  the  house  of  Pharez,  whom  Tamar  bare  unto  Judah,  of 
the  seed  which  the  Lord  shall  give  thee  of  this  young  woman." 

So  Boaz  took  Ruth,  and  she  was  his  wife  :  and  when  he  went 
in  unto  her,  the  Lord  gave  her  conception,  and  she  bare  a  son. 

1  Cf.  Lev,  XXV.  25  :  "If  thy  brother  be  waxen  poor,  and  hath  sold  away 
some  of  his  possession,  and  if  any  of  his  kin  come  to  redeem  it,  then  shall  he 
redeem  that  which  his  brother  sold."  Elimelech's  land  had  already  been  sold  ; 
but  since  its  purchaser  held  it  subject  to  a  kinsman's  claim,  the  kinsman  was 
now  thought  of  as  buying  it  from  Naomi. 


212  THE    JUDGES 

And  the  women  said  unto  Naomi :  "  Blessed  be  the  Lord,  which 
hath  not  left  thee  this  day  without  a  kinsman,  that  his  name 
may  be  famous  in  Israel.  And  he  shall  be  unto  thee  a  restorer 
of  thy  life,  and  a  nourisher  of  thine  old  age  :  for  thy  daughter 
in  law,  which  loveth  thee,  which  is  better  to  thee  than  seven 
sons,  hath  borne  him." 

And  Naomi  took  the  child,  and  laid  it  in  her  bosom,  and  be- 
came nurse  unto  it.  And  the  women  her  neighbors  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. 

Birth  and  Consecration  of  Samuel  (l  Sam.  i.,  ii.  ll).  Now 

there  was  a  certain  man  of  Ramathaim-zophim,  of  the  hill  coun- 
try of  Ephraim,  and  his  name  was  Elkanah,  the  son  of  Jeroham, 
the  son  of  Elihu,  the  son  of  Tohu,  the  son  of  Zuph,  an  Ephra- 
thite :  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  child.  And  this  man  went  up  out  of  his 
city  yearly  to  worship  and  to  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  of  hosts  in 
Shiloh.  And  Eli  and  his  two  sons,  Hophni  and  Phinehas,  the 
priests  of  the  Lord,  were  there. 

And  when  the  time  was  that  Elkanah  offered,  he  gave  to  Pen- 
innah his  wife,  and  to  all  her  sons  and  her  daughters,  portions: 
but  unto  Hannah  he  gave  a  single  portion,  though  he  loved 
Hannah :  but  the  Lord  had  shut  up  her  womb.  And  her  adver- 
sary also  provoked  her  sore,  for  to  make  her  fret,  because  the 
Lord  had  shut  up  her  womb.  And  as  he  did  so  year  by  year, 
when  she  went  up  to  the  house  of  the  Lord,  so  she  provoked 
her  ;  therefore  she  wept,  and  did  not  eat.  Then  said  Elkanah  her 
husband  to  her :  '•  Hannah,  why  weepest  thou  ?  and  why  eatest 
thou  not  ?  and  why  is  thy  heart  grieved  ?  am  not  I  better  to 
thee  than  ten  sons  ?  " 

So  Hannah  rose  up  after  they  had  eaten  in  Shiloh,  and  stood 
before  the  Lord.  Now  Eli  the  priest  sat  upon  a  seat  by  a  post 
of  the  temple  of  the  Lord.  And  she  was  in  bitterness  of  soul, 
and  prayed  unto  the  Lord,  and  wept  sore.  And  she  vowed  a 
vow,  and  said  :  "  0  Lord  of  hosts,  if  thou  wilt  indeed  look  on 
the  affliction  of  thine  handmaid,  and  remember  me,  and  not  for- 
ged thine  liandmaid,  but  wilt  give  unto  thine  handmaid  a  man 
child,  then  I  will  give  him  unto  the  Lord  all  the  days  of  his  life, 
and  there  shall  no  razor  come  upon  his  head." 


BIRTH   AND   CONSECRATION   OF   SAMUEL  213 

And  it  came  to  pass,  as  she  continued  praying  before  the  Lord, 
that  Eli  marked  her  mouth.  Now  Hannah,  she  spake  in  her 
heart;  only  her  lips  moved,  but  her  voice  was  not  heard  :  there- 
fore Eli  thought  she  had  been  drunken.  And  Eli  said  unto  her : 
"  How  long  wilt  thou  be  drunken  ?  put  away  thy  wine,  and  go 
from  the  presence  of  Jehovah."  And  Hannah  answered  and  said : 
"  jSTo,  my  lord,  I  am  a  woman  of  a  sorrowful  spirit :  I  have  drunk 
neither  wine  nor  strong  drink,  but  have  poured  out  my  soul  be- 
fore the  Lord.  Count  not  thine  handmaid  for  a  daughter  of  Belial : 
for  out  of  the  abundance  of  my  complaint  and  grief  have  I  spoken 
hitherto."  Then  Eli  answered  and  said  :  '^  Go  in  peace  :  and  the 
God  of  Israel  grant  thee  thy  petition  that  thou  hast  asked  of 
him."  And  she  said  :  "Let  thine  handmaid  find  grace  in  thy 
sight."  So  the  woman  went  her  way,  and  did  eat,  and  her  coun- 
tenance was  no  more  sad. 

And  they  rose  up  in  the  morning  early,  and  worshipped  be- 
fore the  Lord,  and  returned,  and  came  to  their  house  to  Kamah  : 
and  Elkanah  knew  Hannah  his  wife  ;  and  the  Lord  remembered 
her.  Wherefore  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  time  was  come  about 
after  Hannah  had  conceived,  that  she  bare  a  son,  and  called  his 
name  Samuel,^  saying,  "Because  I  have  asked  him  of  the 
Lord." 

And  the  man  Elkanah,  and  all  his  house,  went  up  to  offer 
unto  the  Lord  the  yearly  sacrifice,  and  his  vow.  But  Hannah 
went  not  up;  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  the  Lord,  and  there  abide  forever."  And 
Elkanah  her  husband  said  unto  her :  "  Do  what  seemeth  thee 
good ;  tarry  until  thou  have  weaned  him  ;  only  the  Lord  estab- 
lish thy  word." 

So  the  woman  abode,  and  gave  her  son  suck  until  she  weaned 
him.  And  when  she  had  weaned  him,  she  took  him  up  with 
her,  with  three  bullocks,  and  one  ephah  of  flour,  and  a  skin  of 
wine,  and  brought  him  unto  the  house  of  the  Lord  in  Shiloh. 
And  they  slew  a  bullock,  and  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  the  Lord.  For 
this  child  I  prayed ;  and  the  Lord  hath  given  me  my  petition 
which  I  asked  of  him  :  therefore  also  I  have  lent  him  to  the 
Lord  ;  as  long  as  he  liveth  he  shall  be  lent  to  the  Lord." 
1  Samuel.  Here  taken  as  meaning  '  Asked  of  God.' 


214  THE    JUDGES 

And  Elkanah  went  to  Ramah  to  his  house.  And  the  child 
did  minister  unto  the  Lord  before  Eli  the  priest. 

Eli's  Wicked  Sons  (l  Sam.  ii.  12-36).  Now  the  sons  of  Eli 
were  sons  of  Belial;  they  regarded  not  the  Lord,  nor  the  priest's 
due  from  the  people.  When  any  man  offered  sacrifice,  the  priest's 
servant  came,  while  the  flesh  was  in  seething,  with  a  fleshhook 
of  three  teeth  in  his  hand ;  and  he  struck  it  into  the  pan,  or 
kettle,  or  caldron,  or  pot ;  all  that  the  fleshhook  brought  up 
the  priest  took  for  himself.  So  they  did  in  Shiloh  unto  all  the 
Israelites  that  came  thither.  Also  before  they  burnt  the  fat,  the 
priest's  servant  came,  and  said  to  the  man  that  sacrificed  :  "  Give 
flesh  to  roast  for  the  priest ;  for  he  will  not  have  sodden  flesh 
of  thee,  but  raw.''  And  if  the  man  said  unto  him:  ''  Let  them 
not  fail  to  burn  the  fat  presently,  and  then  take  as  much  as  thy 
soul  desireth  ;  "  then  he  would  answer  him  :  "Nay  ;  but  thou 
shalt  give  it  me  now:  and  if  not,  I  will  take  it  by  force." 
Wherefore  the  sin  of  the  young  men  was  very  great  before  the 
Lord :   for  men  abhorred  the  offering  of  the  Lord. 

But  Samuel  ministered  before  the  Lord,  being  a  child,  girded 
with  a  linen  ephod.^  Moreover,  his  mother  made  him  a  little 
coat,  and  brought  it  to  him  from  year  to  year,  when  she  came 
up  with  her  husband  to  offer  the  yearly  sacrifice.  And  Eli 
blessed  Elkanah  and  his  wife,  and  said :  "  The  Lord  give  thee 
seed  of  this  woman  for  the  loan  which  is  lent  to  the  Lord." 
And  they  went  unto  their  own  home.  And  the  Lord  visited 
Hannah,  so  that  she  conceived,  and  bare  three  sons  and  two 
daughters.   And  the  child  Samuel  grew  before  the  Lord. 

Now  Eli  was  very  old,  and  heard  all  that  his  sons  did  unto  all 
Israel.  And  he  said  unto  them  :  ''  Why  do  ye  such  things  ? 
for  I  hear  of  your  evil  dealings  by  all  this  people.  Nay,  my 
sons ;  for  it  is  no  good  report  that  I  hear :  ye  make  the  Lord's 
people  to  transgress.  If  one  man  sin  against  another,  the  judge 
shall  judge  him  :   but  if  a  man  sin  against  the  Lord,  who  shall 

1  The  ephod  was  perhaps  originally  a  simple  loin-cloth,  such  being  doubtless 
the  garment  worn  by  Samuel,  and  by  David  (p.  273).  The  priest's  ephod  may 
have  been  a  developed  form  of  the  loin-cloth,  viz.  an  apron,  described  in 
J^x.  xxviii.  as  having  shoulder-straps  fastened  by  brooches  to  the  robe.  It  is 
more  popularly  understood,  however,  to  have  been  a  short  tunic.  As  made  b}' 
Gideon  and  Micah,  the  ephod  was  perhaps  the  gold  casing  of  an  image  before 
which  oracles  were  taken,  althougli  the  language  suggests  that  it  was  some  sort 
of  image  itself.  See  pp.  234,  250,  for  its  use  in  connection  with  the  sacred  lot. 


THE   CALL   OF   SAMUEL  215 

intreat  for  him  ?  ''  Notwithstanding  they  hearkened  not  unto 
the  voice  of  their  father,  because  the  Lord  wouhl  sLiy  them. 
And  the  chihl  Samuel  grew  on,  and  was  in  favor  both  with  the 
Lord,  and  also  with  men. 

And  there  came  a  man  of  God  unto  Eli,  and  said  unto  liim  : 
**  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  I  did  plainly  appear  unto  the  house  of 
thy  father,  when  they  were  in  Egypt  in  bondage  to  Pharaoh's 
house.  And  I  did  choose  him  out  of  all  the  tribes  of  Israel  to 
be  my  priest,  to  offer  upon  mine  altar,  to  burn  incense,  to  wear 
an  ephod  before  me,  and  I  did  give  unto  the  house  of  thy 
father  for  food  all  the  offerings  made  by  fire  of  the  children  of 
Israel.  Wherefore  kick  ye  at  my  sacrifice  and  at  mine  offering 
which  I  have  commanded  in  my  habitation ;  and  honorest  thy 
sons  above  me  to  make  yourselves  fat  with  the  chiefest  of  all 
the  offerings  of  Israel  my  people?  Wherefore  the  Lord  God  of 
Israel  saith,  I  said  indeed  that  thy  house,  and  the  house  of  thy 
father,  should  walk  before  me  for  ever :  but  now  the  Lord  saith, 
Be  it  far  from  me ;  for  them  that  honor  me  I  will  honor,  and 
they  that  despise  me  shall  be  lightly  esteemed.  Behold,  the 
days  come,  that  I  will  cut  off  thine  arm,  and  the  arm  of  thy 
fatiier's  house,  and  there  shall  not  be  an  old  man  in  thine  house 
for  ever.  And  the  man  of  thine,  whom  I  shall  not  cut  off  from 
mine  altar,  shall  be  to  consume  thine  eyes,  and  to  grieve  thine 
heart :  and  all  the  increase  of  thine  house  shall  die  in  the  flower 
of  their  age.  And  this  shall  be  a  sign  unto  thee,  that  shall  come 
upon  thy  two  sons,  on  Hophni  and  Phinehas ;  in  one  day  they 
shall  die  both  of  them.  And  I  will  raise  me  up  a  faithful  priest,* 
that  shall  do  according  to  that  which  is  in  mine  heart  and  in 
my  mind :  and  I  will  build  him  a  sure  house ;  and  he  shall 
walk  before  mine  anointed  for  ever.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass, 
that  every  one  that  is  left  in  thine  house  shall  come  and  crouch 
to  him  for  a  piece  of  silver  and  a  morsel  of  bread,  and  shall  say, 
Put  me,  I  pray  thee,  into  one  of  the  priests'  offices,  that  I  may 
eat  a  piece  of  bread." 

The  Call  of  Samuel  (1  Sam.  iii.  1-iv.  1).  And  the  child 
Samuel  ministered  unto  the  Lord  before  Eli.  And  the  word  of  the 
Lord  was  rare  in  those  days ;  there  was  no  open  vision.  And  it 
came  to  pass  at  that  time,  when  Eli  was  laid  down  in  his  place 

1  Faithful  priest.  Zadok,  whom  Solomon  made  priest  in  place  of  Eli's  great- 
grandson  Abiathar.  See  p.  311. 


216  THE   JUDGES 

(now  his  eyes  began  to  wax  dim,  that  he  could  not  see),  and  ere 
the  lamp  of  God  went  out  in  the  temple  of  the  Lord,  where  the 
ark  of  God  was,  and  Samuel  was  laid  down  to  sleep ;  that  the 
Lord  called  Samuel:  and  he  answered,  "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  the  Lord  called  yet  again:  "  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;  lie 
down  again."  Now  Samuel  did  not  yet  know  the  Lord,  neither 
was  the  word  of  the  Lord  yet  revealed  unto  him.  And  the 
Lord  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  the  Lord  had  called  the  child.  There- 
fore 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  the  Lord  came,  and  stood,  and  called  as  at  other  times, 
"Samuel,  Samuel."  Then  Samuel  answered:  "Speak;  for  thy 
servant  heareth."  And  the  Lord  said  to  Samuel:  "Behold,  I 
will  do  a  thing  in  Israel,  at  which  both  the  ears  of  every  one 
that  heareth  it  shall  tingle.  In  that  day  I  will  perform  against 
Eli  all  things  which  I  have  spoken  concerning  his  house,  from 
the  beginning  even  unto  the  end.  For  I  have  told  him  that  I 
will  judge  his  house  for  ever  for  the  iniquity  which  he  knoweth  ; 
because  his  sons  made  themselves  vile,  and  he  restrained  them 
not.  And  therefore  I  have  sworn  unto  the  house  of  Eli,  that 
the  iniquity  of  Eli's  house  shall  not  be  purged  with  sacrifice  nor 
offering  for  ever." 

And  Samuel  lay  until  the  morning,  and  opened  the  doors  of 
the  house  of  the  Lord.  And  Samuel  feared  to  shew  Eli  the 
vision.  Then  Eli  called  Samuel,  and  said,  "  Samuel,  my  son." 
And  he  answered,  "  Here  am  I."  And  he  said  :  "  What  is  the 
thing  that  the  Lord  hath  said  unto  thee  ?  I  pray  thee  hide  it 
not  from  me  :  God  do  so  to  thee,^  and  more  also,  if  thou  hide 
any  thing  from  me  of  all  the  things  that  he  said  unto  thee." 
And  Samuel  told  him  every  whit,  and  hid  nothing  from  him. 
And  he  said :  "  It  is  the  Lord :  let  him  do  what  seemeth  him 
good." 

1  The  formula  :   God  do  so  to  thee  was  one  used  in  the  ceremony  of  slaying 
an  animal  to  solemnize  an  oath. 


THE   ARK   AMONG  THE   PHILISTINES  217 

And  Samuel  grew,  and  the  Lord  was  with  him,  and  did  let 
none  of  his  words  fall  to  the  ground.  And  all  Israel  from  Dan 
even  to  Beer-Sheba  knew  that  Samuel  was  established  to  be  a 
prophet  of  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  appeared  again  in  Shiloh : 
for  the  Lord  revealed  himself  to  Samuel.  And  the  word  of 
Samuel  came  to  all  Israel. 

The  Ark  among  the  Philistines  (l  Sam.  iv.  2-vii.  2).  Now 
Israel  went  out  against  the  Philistines  to  battle,  and  pitched 
beside  Eben-ezer:  and  the  Philistines  pitched  in  Aphek.  And 
the  Philistines  put  themselves  in  array  against  Israel :  and  when 
they  joined  battle,  Israel  was  smitten  before  the  Philistines  : 
and  they  slew  of  the  army  in  the  field  about  four  thousand 
men.  And  when  the  people  were  come  into  the  camp,  the  elders 
of  Israel  said :  "  Wherefore  hath  the  Lord  smitten  us  to-day 
before  the  Philistines  ?  Let  us  fetch  the  ark  of  the  Lord  out  of 
Shiloh  unto  us,  that,  when  it  cometh  among  us,  it  may  sav§  us 
out  of  the  hand  of  our  enemies." 

So  the  people  sent  to  Shiloh,  that  they  might  bring  from 
thence  the  ark  of  the  Lord  of  hosts,  which  dwelleth  between 
the  cherubim  :  and  the  two  sons  of  Eli,  Hophni  and  Phinehas, 
were  there  with  the  ark  of  God.  And  when  the  ark  of  the 
Lord  came  into  the  camp,  all  Israel  shouted  with  a  great  shout, 
so  that  the  earth  rang  again.  And  when  the  Philistines  heard 
the  noise  of  the  shout,  they  said :  "  What  meaneth  the  noise  of 
this  great  shout  in  the  camp  of  the  Hebrews  ? "  And  they 
understood  that  the  ark  of  the  Lord  was  come  into  the  camp. 
And  the  Philistines  were  afraid,  for  they  said,  ''  God  is  come 
into  the  camp."  And  they  said:  ^^Woe  unto  us!  for  there 
hath  not  been  such  a  thing  heretofore.  Woe  unto  us !  who  shall 
deliver  us  out  of  the  hand  of  these  mighty  Gods  ?  these  are 
the  Gods  that  smote  the  Egyptians  with  all  the  plagues  in  the 
wilderness.  Be  strong,  and  quit  yourselves  like  men,  0  ye 
Philistines,  that  ye  be  not  servants  unto  the  Hebrews,  as  they 
have  been  to  you :   quit  yourselves  like  men,  and  fight." 

And  the  Philistines  fought,  and  Israel  was  smitten,  and  they 
fled  every  man  into  his  tent :  and  there  was  a  very  great 
slaughter;  for  there  fell  of  Israel  thirty  thousand  footmen. 
And  the  ark  of  God  was  taken  ;  and  the  two  sons  of  Eli,  Hophni 
and  Phinehas,  were  slain. 

And  there  ran  a  man  of  Benjamin  out  of  the  array,  and  came 


218  THE   JUDGES 

to  Sliiloh  the  same  day  with  his  clothes  rent,  and  with  earth 
upon  his  head.  And  when  he  came,  lo,  Eli  sat  upon  a  seat  by 
the  gate  watching  the  road :  for  his  heart  trembled  for  the  ark 
of  God.  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  said  unto  Eli :  *'  I  am  he  that  came 
out  of  the  army,  and  I  fled  to-day  out  of  the  army."  And  he 
said :  ^'  What  is  there  done,  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  the  ark 
of  God  is  taken."  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  he  made  mention 
of  the  ark  of  God,  that  he  fell  from  off  the  seat  backward  by 
the  side  of  the  gate,  and  his  neck  brake,  and  he  died :  for  he 
was  an  old  man,  and  heavy.  And  he  had  judged  Israel  forty 
years. 

And  his  daughter  in  law,  Phinehas'  wife,  was  with  child, 
near  to  be  delivered  :  and  when  she  heard  the  tidings  that  the 
ark  of  God  was  taken,  and  that  her  father  in  law  and  her  hus- 
band were  dead,  she  bowed  herself  and  travailed ;  for  her  pains 
came  upon  her.  And  about  the  time  of  her  death  the  women 
that  stood  by  her  said  unto  her:  ^'Fear  not;  for  thou  hast 
borne  a  son."  But  she  answered  not,  neither  did  she  regard  it. 
And  they  named  the  child  I-chabod,^  saying:  *'The  glory  is 
departed  from  Israel :  "  because  the  ark  of  God  was  taken,  and 
because  of  her  father  in  law  and  her  husband. 

And  the  Philistines  took  the  ark  of  God,  and  brought  it 
from  Eben-ezer  unto  Ashdod,  into  the  house  of  Dagon  and  set 
it  by  Dagon.  And  when  they  of  Ashdod  arose  early  on  the 
morrow,  behold,  Dagon  was  fallen  upon  his  face  to  the  earth 
before  the  ark  of  the  Lord.  And  they  took  Dagon,  and  set  him 
in  his  place  again.  And  when  they  arose  early  on  the  morrow 
morning,  behold,  Dagon  was  fallen  upon  his  face  to  the  ground 
before  the  ark  of  the  Lord;  and  the  head  of  Dagon  and  both 
the  palms  of  his  hands  were  cut  off  upon  the  threshold;  only 
the  stump  of  Dagon  was  left  to  him.  Therefore  neither  the 
priests  of  Dagon,  nor  any  that  come  into  Dagon's  house,  tread 
on  the  threshold  of  Dagon  in  Ashdod  unto  this  day.  But  the 
hand  of  the  Lord  was  heavy  upon  them  of  Ashdod,  and  he 
1  Ichabod.  'No  glory.' 


THE   ARK   AMONG  THE   PHILISTINES  219 

destroyed  them,  and  smote  them  with  emerods/  even  Ashdod 
and  the  coasts  thereof.  And  when  the  men  of  Ashdod  saw  that 
it  was  so,  they  said :  "  The  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  shall  not 
abide  with  us :  for  his  hand  is  sore  upon  us,  and  upon  Dagon 
our  god."  They  sent  therefore  and  gathered  all  the  lords  of  the 
Philistines  unto  them,  and  said :  "  What  shall  we  do  with  the 
ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  ?  "  And  they  answered  :  "  Let  the 
ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  be  carried  about  unto  Gath."  And 
they  carried  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  about  thither.  And 
it  was  so,  that,  after  they  had  carried  it  about,  the  hand  of  the 
Lord  was  against  the  city  with  a  very  great  destruction :  and 
he  smote  the  men  of  the  city,  both  small  and  great,  and  they 
had  emerods  in  their  secret  parts.  Therefore  they  sent  the  ark 
of  God  to  Ekron.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  the  ark  of  God  came 
to  Ekron,  that  the  Ekronites  cried  out,  saying :  "  They  have 
brought  about  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel  to  us,  to  slay  us 
and  our  people."  So  they  sent  and  gathered  together  all  the 
lords  of  the  Philistines,  and  said :  "  Send  away  the  ark  of  the 
God  of  Israel,  and  let  it  go  again  to  its  own  place,  that  it  slay 
us  not,  and  our  people  :  "  for  there  was  a  deadly  destruction 
throughout  all  the  city ;  the  hand  of  God  was  very  heavy  there. 
And  the  men  that  died  not  were  smitten  with  the  emerods  : 
and  the  cry  of  the  city  went  up  to  heaven. 

And  the  ark  of  the  Lord  was  in  the  country  of  the  Philistines 
seven  months.^  And  the  Philistines  called  for  the  priests  and 
the  diviners,  saying  :  "  What  shall  we,  do  to  the  ark  of  the  Lord  ? 
tell  us  wherewith  we  shall  send  it  to  its  place."  And  they  said: 
"  If  ye  send  away  the  ark  of  the  God  of  Israel,  send  it  not 
empty ;  but  in  any  wise  return  him  a  trespass  offering :  then  ye 
shall  be  healed,  and  it  shall  be  known  to  you  why  his  hand  is 
not  removed  from  you."  Then  said  they  :  ''What  shall  be  the 
trespass  offering  which  we  shall  return  to  him  ?  "  They  an- 
swered :  "  Five  golden  emerods,  and  five  golden  mice,  according 
to  the  number  of  the  lords  of  the  Philistines  :  for  one  plague  was 
on  you  all,  and  on  your  lords ;  ^  and  ye  shall  give  glory  unto  the 

1  emerods.  Hemorrhoids,  here  very  likely  the  tumors  of  bubonic  plague. 

2  The  Greek  here  adds:  "  and  their  land  swarmed  with  mice."  But  the  "five 
golden  mice,"  mentioned  later,  may  be  merely  symbols  of  pestilence.  Mice  were 
certainly  so  regarded  by  the  Ecryptians.  The  Greek  in  two  of  the  passages  just 
ahead  omits  mention  of  the  gold  hemorrhoids. 

3  A  clause  here  following:  "  Wherefore  ye  shall  make  images  of  your  eme- 
rods, and  images  of  your  mice  that  mar  the  land  "  is  thought  to  be  a  gloss.  But 


220  THE    JUDGES 

God  of  Israel :  peradventure  he  will  lighten  his  hand  from  off  you, 
and  from  off  your  gods,  and  from  off  your  land.  Wherefore  then 
do  ye  harden  your  hearts,  as  the  Egyptians  and  Pharaoh  hard- 
ened their  hearts  ?  when  he  had  wrought  wonderfully  among 
them,  did  they  not  let  the  people  go,  and  they  departed  ?  Now 
therefore  make  a  new  cart,  and  take  two  milch  kine,  on  which 
there  hath  come  no  yoke,^  and  tie  the  kine  to  the  cart,  and  bring 
their  calves  home  from  them :  and  take  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  and 
lay  it  upon  the  cart ;  and  put  the  jewels  of  gold,  which  ye  return 
him  for  a  trespass  offering,  in  a  coffer  by  the  side  thereof ;  and 
send  it  away,  that  it  may  go.  And  see,  if  it  goeth  up  by  the  way 
of  his  own  coast  to  Beth-shemesh,  then  he  hath  done  us  this 
great  evil :  but  if  not,  then  we  shall  know  that  it  is  not  his  hand 
that  smote  us;  it  was  a  chance  that  happened  to  us." 

And  the  men  did  so ;  and  took  two  milch  kine,  and  tied  them 
to  the  cart,  and  shut  up  their  calves  at  home:  and  they  laid  the 
ark  of  the  Lord  upon  the  cart,  and  the  coffer  with  the  mice  of 
gold  and  the  images  of  their  emerods.  And  the  kine  took  the 
straight  way  by  the  way  to  Beth-shemesh,  and  went  along  the 
highway,  lowing  as  they  went,  and  turned  not  aside  to  the  right 
hand  or  to  the  left :  and  the  lords  of  the  Philistines  went  after 
them  unto  the  border  of  Beth-shemesh. 

And  they  of  Beth-shemesh  were  reaping  their  wheat  harvest 
in  the  valley  :  and  they  lifted  up  their  eyes  and  saw  the  ark,  and 
rejoiced  to  see  it.  And  the  cart  came  into  the  field  of  Joshua,  a 
Beth-shemite,  and  stood  tljere,  where  there  was  a  great  stone : 
and  they  clave  the  wood  of  the  cart,  and  offered  the  kine  a  burnt 
offering  unto  the  Lord.  And  when  the  five  lords  of  the  Philis- 
tines had  seen  it,  they  returned  to  Ekron  the  same  day.  A  wit- 
ness is  the  great  stone,  whereon  they  set  down  the  ark  of  the 
Lord :  which  stone  remaineth  unto  this  day  in  the  field  of  Joshua 
the  Beth-shemite. 

But  the  sons  of  Jeconiah  did  not  rejoice  with  the  men  of 
Beth-shemesh,  when  they  looked  upon  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  and 
he  smote  of  them  threescore  and  ten  men :  and  the  people  la- 
mented, because  the  Lord  had  smitten  many  of  the  people  with 

its  writer  evidently  understood  that  there  was  a  plague  of  mice.  The  passage 
suggests  the  symbolic  magic  by  which  superstitious  people  believe  that  if  the 
image  of  a  person  or  thing  be  subjected  to  hurt  with  fitting  spells,  its  original 
will  take  harm. 

1  The  cart  and  kine  would  have  been  profaned  by  previous  use. 


THE    ARK    AMONG   THE    PHILISTINES  221 

a  great  slaughter.  And  the  men  of  Beth-shemesh  said  :  "  Who  is 
able  to  stand  before  this  holy  Lord  God  ?  and  to  whom  shall  he 
go  up  from  us  ?  "  And  they  sent  messengers  to  the  inhabit- 
ants of  Kirjatli-jearim,  saying :  "The  Philistines  have  brought 
again  the  ark  of  the  Lord  ;  come  ye  down,  and  fetch  it  up  to 
you/'  And  the  men  of  Kirjath-jearim  came,  and  fetched  up  the 
ark  of  the  Lord,  and  brought  it  into  the  house  of  Abinadab  in 
the  hill,  and  sanctified  Eleazar  his  son  to  keep  the  ark  of  the 
Lord.  And  it  came  to  pass,  while  the  ark  abode  in  Kirjath- 
jearim,^  that  the  time  was  long;  for  it  was  twenty  years. 

1  Shiloh  had  perhaps  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Philistines.  It  does  not 
appear  again  as  a  national  meeting-place. 


IX 

THE    EARLY    MONARCHY 

1.   Saul 

Saul  Anointed  by  Samuel  (i  Sam.  ix. ;  x.  1-16 ;  xi.  1-11,15). 

Now  there  was  a  man  of  Gibeah,  whose  name  was  Kish,  the  son 
of  Abiel,  the  son  of  Zeror,  the  son  of  Bechorath,  the  son  of 
Aphiah,  a  Benjamite,  a  man  well  to  do.  And  he  had  a  son,  whose 
name  was  Saul,  a  choice  young  man,  and  a  goodly  :  and  there 
was  not  among  the  children  of  Israel  a  goodlier  person  than  he: 
from  his  shoulders  and  upward  he  was  higher  than  any  of  the 
people. 

And  the  asses  of  Kish  Saul's  father  were  lost.  And  Kish  said 
to  Saul  his  son:  "Take  now  one  of  the  servants  with  thee,  and 
arise,  go  seek  the  asses."  And  they  passed  through  the  hill  coun- 
try of  Ephraim,  and  passed  through  the  land  of  Shalisha,  but 
they  found  them  not :  then  they  passed  through  the  land  of  Sha- 
lim,  and  there  they  were  not :  and  they  passed  through  the  land 
of  the  Benjamites,  but  they  found  them  not.  When  they  were 
come  to  the  land  of  Zeph,  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  he  is  an  honorable  man ;  all  that  he  saith  com- 
eth  surely  to  pass  :  now  let  us  go  thither ;  peradventure  he  can 
shew  us  our  way  that  we  should  go."  Then  said  Saul  to  his  ser- 
vant :  "  But,  behold,  if  we  go,  what  shall  M^e  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  here  at  hand 
tlie  fourth  part  of  a  shekel  of  silver :  that  shalt  thou  give  to  the 
man  of  God,  to  tell  us  our  way."  (Beforetime  in  Israel,  when  a 
man  went  to  enquire  of  God,  thus  he  spake  :  "  Come,  and  let  us 
go  to  the  seer :  "  for  he  that  is  now  called  a  prophet  was  before- 
time  called  a  seer.)  Then  said  Saul  to  his  servant :  "Well  said; 
come,  let  us  go. "  So  they  went  unto  the  city  where  the  man  of 
God  was. 


SAUL   ANOINTED   BY    SAMUEL 


223 


And  as  they  went 
up  the  hill  to  the 
city,  they  found 
young  maidens  go- 
ing out  to  draw  wa- 
ter, and  said  unto 
them,  "  Is  the  seer 
here  ?  "  And  they 
answered  them,  and 
said  :  "  He  is  ;  be- 
hold, he  is  before 
you :  make  haste 
now,  for  he  came 
to-day  to  the  city; 
for  there  is  a  sacri- 
fice 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  peo- 
ple will  not  eat  un- 
til he  come,  because 

he  doth  bless  the  sacrifice ;  and  afterwards  they  eat  that  be  bid- 
den.2  Now  therefore  get  you  up;  for  about  this  time  ye  shall 
find  him."  And  they  went  up  into  the  city :  and  when  they  were 
come  into  the  city,  behold,  Samuel  came  out  against  them,  for  to 
go  up  to  the  high  place. 

Now  the  Lord  had  told  Samuel  in  his  ear  a  day  before  Saul 
came,  saying :   "  To-morrow  about  this  time  I  will  send  thee  a 

1  high  place.  Beginning  as  a  natural  place  for  burnt-offerings,  the  barren  hill- 
top above  a  town  would  in  time  become  its  sanctuary.  Every  Canaanite  town 
had  such  a  spot  for  the  worship  of  its  Baal  and  Ashtart,  fitted  up  with  altar, 
pillar-stones  or  mazzebahs  and  sacred  poles  or  asherahs.  With  the  Hebrew  set- 
tlement of  Canaan  these  local  sanctuaries  were  taken  over  almost  without 
change  and  became  the  regular  places  of  Jehovah  worship.  But  since  their  rites 
almost  inevitably  retained  features  of  the  old  heathen  cults,  they  were  finally 
attacked  by  Hosea  and  other  eighth-century  prophets  as  seats  of  idolatry. 

2  It  was  part  of  the  sacrificial  rite  to  eat  the  victim's  flesh,  after  its  blood  and 
fat  had  been  offered. 


Pillar-stones  (mazzebahs)  unearthed  in  the  High  Place  at 
Taanach 


224  THE    EARLY    MONARCHY 

man  out  of  the  land  of  Benjamin,  and  tliou  shalt  anoint  him  to 
be  captain  over  my  people  Israel,  that  he  may  save  my  people 
out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines :  for  I  have  looked  upon  my 
people,  because  their  cry  is  come  unto  me."  ^  And  when  Samuel 

1  Chapters  vii.,  viii.,  and  xii.  present  a  view  of  the  kingship  so  different  from 
that  expressed  here,  and  give  Samuel  so  much  more  prominent  a  position  before 
Israel,  that  it  is  better  to  take  their  account  as  a  distinct  whole  :  — 

And  Samuel  judged  Israel  all  the  days  of  his  life.  And  he  went  from  year  to 
year  in  circuit  to  Beth-el,  and  Gilgal,  and  Mizpeh,  and  judged  Israel  in  all  those 
places.  And  his  return  was  to  Ramah  ;  for  there  was  his  house ;  and  there  he 
judged  Israel;  and  there  he  built  an  altar  unto  the  Lord. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Samuel  was  old,  that  he  made  his  sons  judges  over 
Israel.  Now  the  name  of  his  tirstborn  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  judgment.  Then 
all  the  elders  of  Israel  gathered  themselves  together,  and  came  to  Samuel  unto 
Ramah,  and  said  unto  him:  "  Behold,  thou  art  old,  and  thy  sons  walk  not  in  thy 
wa^'s:  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  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Samuel: 
"Hearken  unto  the  voice  of  the  people  in  all  that  they  say  unto  thee:  for  thej' 
have  not  rejected  thee,  but  they  have  rejected  me,  that  I  should  not  reign  over 
them.  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  the  Lord  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  for  himself,  for  his  chariots,  and 
to  be  his  horsemen;  and  some  shall  run  before  his  chariots.  And  he  will  appoint 
him  captains  over  thousands,  and  captains  over  fifties;  and  will  set  them  to  ear 
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  vine- 
3'ards,  and  your  oliveyards,  even  the  best  of  them,  and  give  them  to  his  ser- 
vants. And  he  will  take  the  tenth  of  your  seed,  and  of  your  vineyards,  and  give 
to  his  officers,  to  his  servants.  And  he  will  take  your  menservants,  and  your 
maidservants,  and  your  goodliest  cattle,  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  which  ye  shall  have  chosen 
you;  and  the  Lord  will  not  hear  you  in  that  day."  Nevertheless  the  people  re- 
fused to  obey  the  voice  of  Samuel;  and  the}'  said:  "Nay;  but  we  will  have  a 
king  over  us;  that  we  also  maybe  like  all  the  nations  ;  and  that  our  kings  may 
judge  us,  and  go  out  before  us,  and  fight  our  battles." 

And  Samuel  heard  all  the  words  of  the  people,  and  he  rehearsed  them  in  the 
ears  of  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  said  to  Samuel:  "  Hearken  unto  their  voice,  and 
make  them  a  king."  And  Samuel  said  unto  the  men  of  Israel:  "Go  ye  every 
man  unto  his  city." 

And  Samuel  called  the  people  together  unto  the  Lord  to  Mizpeh;  and  said 
unto  the  children  of  Israel:  "Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  I  brought  up 
Israel  out  of  Egypt,  and  delivered  you  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Egyptians,  and 
out  of  (he  hand  of  all  the  kingdoms  that  oppressed  you:  and  ye  have  this  day 
rejected  your  God,  who  himself  saved  you  out  of  all  your  adversities  and  j'our 


SAUL   ANOINTED   BY   SAMUEL  225 

saw  Saul,  the  Lord  said  unto  him  :  "  Behold  the  man  whom  I 
spake  to  thee  of  !  this  same  shall  reign  over  my  people."   Then 

tribulations;  and  ye  have  said  unto  him,  Nay,  but  seta  king  over  us.  Now 
therefore  present  yourselves  before  the  Lord  by  your  tribes,  and  by  your  thou- 
sands." And  when  Samuel  had  caused  all  the  tribes  of  Israel  to  come  near,  the 
tribe  of  Benjamin  was  taken.  When  he  had  caused  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  to 
come  near  by  their  families,  the  family  of  Matri  was  taken;  and  Saul  the  son 
of  Kish  was  taken. 

And  when  they  sought  him,  he  could  not  be  found.  Therefore  they  enquired 
of  the  Lord  further.  Did  the  man  come  thither  ?  And  the  Lord  answered,  "Be- 
hold, he  hath  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  the  Lord  hath  chosen,  that  there  is  none  like  him  among 
all  the  people  ?  "  And  all  the  people  shouted,  and  said,  "  God  save  the  king." 

And  Samuel  said  unto  all  Israel:  "  Behold,  I  have  hearkened  unto  your  voice 
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  grayheaded;  and  behold,  my 
sons  are  with  you:  and  I  have  walked  before  you  from  my  childhood  unto  this 
day.  Behold,  here  I  am:  witness  against  me  before  the  Lord,  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  received  any 
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:  "The  Lord  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:  "Now  therefore  behold  the  king  whom  ye  have  chosen! 
and  behold,  the  Lord  hath  set  a  king  over  you.  If  3'e  will  fear  the  Lord,  and 
serve  him,  and  obey  his  voice,  and  not  rebel  against  the  commandment  of  the 
Lord,  then  shall  both  ye  and  also  the  king  that  reigneth  over  you  continue  fol- 
lowing the  Lord  your  God:  but  if  ye  will  not  obey  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  but 
rebel  against  the  commandment  of  the  Lord,  then  shall  the  hand  of  the  Lord  be 
against  you,  and  against  your  king.  Now  therefore  stand  and  see  this  great 
thing,  which  the  Lord  will  do  before  your  eyes.  Is  it  not  wheat  harvest  to-day  ?i 
I  will  call  unto  the  Lord,  and  he  shall  send  thunder  and  rain;  that  ye  may  per- 
ceive and  see  that  your  wickedness  is  great,  which  ye  have  done  in  the  sight  of 
the  Lord,  in  asking  you  a  king." 

So  Samuel  called  unto  the  Lord;  and  the  Lord  sent  thunder  and  rain  that  day: 
and  all  the  people  greatly  feared  the  Lord  and  Samuel.  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  the  Lord,  but  serve  the  Lord  with  all  your  heart;  and  turn 
ye  not  aside  after  vain  things,  which  cannot  profit  nor  deliver;  for  they  are 
vain.  For  the  Lord  will  not  forsake  his  people  for  his  great  name's  sake :  be- 
cause it  hath  pleased  the  Lord  to  make  you  his  people.  Moreover  as  for  me,  God 
forbid  that  I  should  sin  against  the  Lord  in  ceasing  to  pray  for  you:  but  I  will 
teach  yon  the  good  and  the  right  way:  only  fear  the  Lord,  ami  serve  him  in 
truth  with  all  your  heart:  for  consider  how  great  things  he  hath  done  for  you. 
1  About  the  end  of  May,  when  rain  is  so  rare  that  a  thunderatorm  would  be  a  miracle. 


22G  THE    EARLY    MONARCHY 

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  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  on  whom  is  all  the  desire  of 
Israel?  Is  it  not  on  thee,  and  on  thy  father's  house?"  And 
Saul  answered  and  said :  "  Am  not  I  a  Benjamite,  of  the  small- 
est 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  parlor,^  and  made  them  sit  in  the  chiefest  place  among 
them  that  were  bidden,  which  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  shoulder,  and 
that  which  was  upon  it,  and  set  it  before  Saul.  And  Samuel 
said :  "  Behold  that  which  is  before  thee,  and  eat :  for  unto  this 
time  have  we  waited  for  thee  to  eat  with  the  people." 

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 
Saul  to  the  top  of  the  house,  saying :  "  Up,  that  I  may  send 
thee  away."  And  Saul  arose,  and  they  went  out,  he  and  Sam- 
uel, abroad.  And  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  shew  thee  the  word  of 
God." 

Then  Samuel  took  a  vial  of  oil,  and  poured  it  upon  his  head, 

But  if  ye  shall  stiil  do  wickedly,  ye  shall  be  consumed,  both  ye  and  your 
king." 

Then  Samuel  told  the  people  the  manner  of  the  kingdom,  and  wrote  it  in  a 
book,  and  laid  it  up  before  the  Lord.  And  Samuel  sent  all  the  people  away, 
every  man  to  his  house.  And  Saul  also  went  home  to  Gibeah;  and  there  went 
with  him  the  men  of  valor  whose  hearts  God  had  touched.  But  the  children 
of  Hclial  said,  "How  shall  this  man  save  us?"  And  they  despised  him,  and 
brought  him  no  presents.  But  he  held  his  peace. 

1  parlor.  Rather,  the  *  dining-hall '  adjoining  the  sanctuary,  where  the  sac- 
rificial meal  was  eaten. 


SAUL   ANOINTED    BY  SAMUEL  227 

and  kissed  him,  and  said :  ''  Is  it  not  because  the  Lord  hath 
anointed  thee  to  be  prince  over  his  inheritance  ?  And  thou  shalt 
reign  over  the  Lord's  people,  and  shalt  save  them  from  the  hand 
of  their  enemies  round  about.  And  this  shall  be  the  sign  that 
Jehovah  hath  anointed  thee  to  be  prince  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  at 
Zelzah  ;  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  sorroweth  for  you,  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  three 
men  going  up  to  God  to  Beth-el,  one  carrying  three  kids,  and 
another  carrying  three  loaves  of  bread,  and  another  carrying  a 
skin  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  garrison  of  the 
Philistines  :  and  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  thou  art  come 
thither  to  the  city,  that  thou  shalt  meet  a  company  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  prophesy : 
and  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  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  God  is  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  thither  to  Gibeah,  be- 
hold, a  company  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  ?  " 

And  one  of  the  same  place  answered  and  said,  '^  But  who  is 

1  The  prophets,  here  appearing  for  the  first  time  as  an  established  order  in 
Israel,  are  religious  zealots,  whose  practices  suggest  those  of  the  modern  der- 
vishes. Such  "prophesying"  was  already  found  in  the  old  Canaanitish  reli- 
gion, and  doubtless  began  in  ecstatic  dancing  about  the  altar  as  an  expression  of 
religious  feeling.  Samuel  is  shown  as  a  prophet  in  the  later  sense,  —  a  revealer 
of  the  will  of  God. 

2  psaltery,  tabret.    See  note,  p.  273. 


228  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

their  father  ?  "  ^  Therefore  it  became  a  proverb,  *'  Is  Saul  also 
among  the  prophets  ?  " 

And  when  he  had  made  an  end  of  prophesying,  he  came  to 
the  high  place.  And  Saul's  uncle  said  unto  him  and  to  his  serv- 
ant, "  Whither  went  ye  ?  "  And  he  said,  "  To  seek  the  asses  : 
and  when  we  saw  that  they  were  no  where,  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. 

Then  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  answered  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  the  coasts  of  Israel :  and 
then,  if  there  be  no  man  to  save  us,  we  will  come  out  to  thee." 

Then  came  the  messengers  to  Gibeah  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  tidings,  and  his  anger  was  kindled  greatly.  And  he  took 
a  yoke  of  oxen,  and  hewed  them  in  pieces,  and  sent  them 
throughout  all  the  coasts  of  Israel  by  the  hands  of  messengers, 
saying:  "Whosoever  cometh  not  forth  after  Saul  and  after 
Samuel,  so  shall  it  be  done  unto  his  oxen."  And  the  fear  of  the 
Lord  fell  on  the  people,  and  they  came  out  with  one  consent. 
And  they  said  unto  the  messengers  that  came  :  "  Thus  shall  ye 
say  unto  the  men  of  Jabesh-gilead,  To-morrow,  by  that  time  the 
sun  be  hot,  ye  shall  have  help."  And  the  messengers  came  and 
shewed  it  to  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." 

1  who  is  their  father?  The  question  has  been  explained  (1)  as  meaning,  Is 
prophecy  a  matter  of  parentage  ?  (2)  as  expressing  surprise  that  the  son  of  a 
■w'cU-to-do  man  of  good  standing  should  be  found  with  a  band  of  fanatics  — 
men  of  no  'family.' 

'■^  The  episode  suggests  the  story  of  Cincinnatus. 


THE   DELIVERANCE   FROM   THE    PHILISTINES  229 

And  it  was  so  on  the  morrow,  that  Saul  put  the  people  in  three 
companies ;  and  they  came  into  the  midst  of  the  host  in  the 
morning  watch,  and  slew  the  Ammonites  until  the  heat  of  the 
day  :  and  it  came  to  pass,  that  they  which  remained  were  scat- 
tered, so  that  two  of  them  were  not  left  together.^ 

And  all  the  people  went  to  Gilgal ;  and  there  they  made 
Saul  king  before  the  Lord  in  Gilgal;  and  there  they  sacrificed 
sacrifices  of  peace  offerings  before  the  Lord ;  and  there  Saul  and 
all  the  men  of  Israel  rejoiced  greatly. 

The  Deliverance  from  the  Philistines  ^  (1  Sam.  x.  8;  xiii. ; 
xiv.  1-46,  52).   [Now  Samuel  said  unto  Saul :]  "  Thou  shalt  go 

1  As  the  text  stands,  here  follows  an  allusion  to  the  other  story  of  Saul's  es- 
tablishment as  king  :  —  "And  the  people  said  unto  Samuel  :  *  Who  is  he  that 
said,  Shall  Saul  reign  over  us  ?  bring  the  men,  that  we  may  put  them  to  death.' 
Ajid  Saul  said  :  '  There  shall  not  a  man  be  put  to  death  this  day  :  for  to-day 
the  Lord  hath  wrought  salvation  in  Israel.'  " 

2  Another  story  of  deliverance  from  the  Philistines  (1  Sam.  vii.  2-14)  con- 
tinues the  representation  (see  pp.  224-226  bottom)  of  Samuel  as  the  real 
head  of  Israel  :  — 

And  all  the  house  of  Israel  turned  unto  the  Lord.  And  Samuel  spake  unto 
all  the  house  of  Israel,  saying:  "  If  ye  do  return  unto  the  Lord  with  all  your 
hearts,  then  put  away  the  strange  gods  and  the  Ashtaroth  from  among  you, 
and  prepare  your  hearts  unto  the  Lord,  and  serve  him  only:  and  he  will  deliver 
you  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines."  Then  the  children  of  Israel  did  put  away 
the  Baalim  and  the  Ashtaroth,  and  served  the  Lord  only. 

And  Samuel  said:  "  Gather  all  Israel  to  Mizpeh,  and  I  will  pray  for  you  unto 
the  Lord."  And  they  gathered  together  to  Mizpeh,  and  drew  water,  and  poured 
it  out  before  the  Lord,  and  fasted  on  that  da}',  and  said  there:  "  We  have  sinned 
against  the  Lord."  And  Samuel  judged  the  children  of  Israel  in  Mizpeh. 

And  when  the  Philistines  heard  that  the  children  of  Israel  were  gathered  to- 
gether to  Mizpeh,  the  lords  of  the  Philistines  went  up  against  Israel.  And  when 
the  children  of  Israel  heard  it,  they  were  afraid  of  the  Philistines.  And  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  said  to  Samuel :  "  Cease  not  to  cry  unto  the  Lord  our  God  for  us, 
that  he  will  save  us  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines."  And  Samuel  took  a 
sucking  lamb,  and  offered  it  for  a  burnt  offering  wholly  unto  the  Lord:  and 
Samuel  cried  unto  the  Lord  for  Israel;  and  the  Lord  heard  him.  And  as  Samuel 
was  offering  up  the  burnt  offering,  the  Philistines  drew  near  to  battle  against 
Israel:  but  the  Lord  thundered  with  a  great  thunder  on  that  day  upon  the  Phi- 
listines, and  discomfited  them ;  and  they  were  smitten  before  Israel.  And  the  men 
of  Israel  went  out  of  Mizpeh,  and  pursued  the  Philistines,  and  smote  them, 
until  they  came  under  Beth-car.  Then  Samuel  took  a  stone,  and  set  it  between 
Mizpeh  and  Shen,  and  called  the  name  of  it  Eben-ezer,  saying:  "  Hitherto  hath 
the  Lord  helped  us." 

So  the  Philistines  were  subdued,  and  they  came  no  more  into  the  coast  of 
Israel :  and  the  hand  of  the  Lord  was  against  the  Philistines  all  the  days  of  Sam- 
uel. And  the  cities  which  the  Philistines  had  taken  from  Israel  were  restored  to 
Israel,  from  Ekron  even  unto  Gath;  and  the  coasts  thereof  did  Israel  deliver 
out  of  the  hands  of  the  Philistines.  And  there  was  peace  between  Israel  and  the 
Amorites. 


230  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

down  before  me  to  Gilgal :  and  behold,  I  will  come  down  unto 
thee,  to  offer  burnt  offerings,  and  to  sacrifice  sacrifices  of  peace 
offerings :  seven  days  shalt  thou  tarry,  till  I  come  to  thee,  and 
shew  thee  what  thou  shalt  do."  Saul  chose  him  three  thousand 
men  of  Israel ;  whereof  two  thousand  were  with  Saul  in  Mich- 
mash  and  in  mount  Beth-el,  and  a  thousand  were  with  Jonathan 
his  son  in  Geba  of  Benjamin :  and  the  rest  of  the  people  he 
sent  every  man  to  his  tent. 

And  Jonathan  smote  the  garrison  ^  of  the  Philistines  that  was 
in  Gibeah,  and  the  Philistines  heard  it  said  :  ",The  Hebrews 
have  revolted."  And  Saul  blew  the  trumpet  throughout  all  the 
land.  And  all  Israel  heard  say  that  Saul  had  smitten  a  garrison 
of  the  Philistines,  and  that  Israel  also  was  had  in  abomination 
with  the  Philistines.  And  the  people  were  called  together  after 
Saul  to  Gilgal.  And  the  Philistines  gathered  themselves  together 
to  fight  with  Israel,  three  thousand  chariots,  and  six  thousand 
horsemen,  and  people  as  the  sand  which  is  on  the  sea  shore  in 
multitude :  and  they  came  up,  and  pitched  in  Michmash,  east- 
ward from  Beth-aven. 

When  the  men  of  Israel  saw  that  they  were  in  a  strait  (for 
the  people  were  distressed),  then  the  people  did  hide  themselves 
in  caves,  and  in  thickets,  and  in  rocks,  and  in  high  places,  and  in 
pits.  And  some  of  the  Hebrews  went  over  Jordan  to  the  land  of 
Gad  and  Gilead.  As  for  Saul,  he  was  yet  in  Gilgal,  and  all  the 
people  followed  him  trembling. 

And  he  tarried  seven  days,  according  to  the  set  time  that 
Samuel  had  appointed  :  but  Samuel  came  not  to  Gilgal;  and  the 
people  were  scattered  from  him.  And  Saul  said  :  "  Bring  hither 
a  burnt  ofifering  to  me,  and  peace  offerings,"  And  he  offered  the 
burnt  offering.  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  as  soon  as  he  had  made 
an  end  of  ofifering  the  burnt  offering,  behold,  Samuel  came ;  and 
Saul  went  out  to  meet  him,  that  he  might  salute  him.  And  Sam- 
uel said  :  "  What  hast  thou  done  ?  "  And  Saul  said  :  "  Because 
I  saw  that  the  people  were  scattered  from  me,  and  that  thou 
camest  not  within  the  days  appointed,  and  that  the  Philistines 
gather  themselves  together  at  Michmash  ;  therefore  said  I,  The 
Philistines  will  come  down  now  upon  me  to  Gilgal,  and  I  have 
not  made  supplication  unto  the  Lord :  I  forced  myself,  there- 
fore, and  offered  a  burnt  offering."  And  Samuel  said  to  Saul: 

1  Itwa3  probabl}'  not  the  garrison,  but  the  Resident,  an  officer  stationed  there 
to  collect  the  tribute. 


THE   DELIVERANCE   FROM   THE    PHILISTINES  231 

"  Thou  hast  done  foolishly :  thou  hast  not  kept  the  command- 
ment of  the  Lord  thy  God,  which  he  commanded  thee ;  for  now 
would  the  Lord  have  established  thy  kingdom  upon  Israel  for 
ever.  But  now  thy  kingdom  shall  not  continue  :  the  Lord  hath 
sought  him  a  man  after  his  own  heart,  and  the  Lord  hath  com- 
manded him  to  be  captain  over  his  people,  because  thou  hast  not 
kept  that  which  the  Lord  commanded  thee."  ^ 

^  A  second  story  of  Saul's  rejection  by  Samuel  is  told  in  1  Sam.  xv.:  — 

And  Samuel  said  unto  Saul:  "The  Lord  sent  me  to  anoint  thee  to  be  king 
over  his  people,  over  Israel:  now  therefore  hearken  thou  unto  the  voice  of  the 
words  of  the  Lord.  Thus  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts,  I  remember  that  which  Ama- 
lek  did  to  Israel,  how  he  laid  wait  for  him  in  the  way,  when  he  came  up  from 
Egypt.  Now  go  and  smite  Amalek,  and  utterly  destroy  all  that  they  have,  and 
spare  them  not;  but  slay  both  man  and  woman,  infant  and  suckling;  ox  and 
sheep,  camel  and  ass." 

And  Saul  gathered  the  people  together,  and  numbered  them  in  Telaim,  two 
hundred  thousand  footmen,  and  ten  thousand  men  of  Judah.  And  Saul  came 
to  a  city  of  Amalek,  and  laid  wait  in  the  valley.  And  Saul  said  unto  the  Ken- 
ites:  "Go,  depart,  get  you  down  from  among  the  Amalekites,  lest  I  destroy 
you  with  them:  for  ye  shewed  kindness  to  all  the  children  of  Israel,  when  they 
came  up  out  of  Egypt."  So  the  Kenites  departed  from  among  the  Amalekites. 
And  Saul  smote  the  Amalekites  from  Havilah  until  thou  comest  to  Shur,  that 
is  over  against  Egypt.  And  he  took  Agag  the  king  of  the  Amalekites  alive,  and 
utterly  destroyed  all  the  people  with  the  edge  of  the  sword.  But  Saul  and  the 
people  spared  Agag,  and  the  best  of  the  sheep,  and  of  the  oxen,  and  of  the  fat- 
lings,  and  the  lambs,  and  all  that  was  good,  and  would  not  utterly  destroy  them: 
but  every  thing  that  was  vile  and  refuse,  that  they  destroyed  utterly. 

Then  came  the  word  of  the  Lord  unto  Samuel,  saying:  "  It  repentethme  that 
I  have  set  up  Saul  to  be  king:  for  he  is  turned  back  from  following  me,  and  hath 
not  performed  my  commandments."  And  it  grieved  Samuel;  and  he  cried  unto 
the  Lord  all  night.  And  when  Samuel  rose  early  to  meet  Saul  in  the  morning, 
it  was  told  Samuel,  saj'ing:  "  Saul  came  to  Carmel,  and  behold,  he  set  him  up 
a  monument,  and  is  gone  about,  and  passed  on,  and  gone  down  to  Gilgal."  And 
Samuel  came  to  Saul:  and  Saul  said  unto  him:  "  Blessed  be  thou  of  the  Lord: 
I  have  performed  the  commandment  of  the  Lord."  And  Samuel  said:  "What 
meaneth  then  this  bleating  of  the  sheep  in  mine  ears,  and  the  lowing  of  the  oxen 
which  I  hear?"  And  Saul  said:  "They  have  brought  them  from  the  Amalek- 
ites: for  the  people  spared  the  best  of  the  sheep  and  of  the  oxen,  to  sacrifice 
unto  the  Lord  thy  God;  aud  the  rest  we  have  utterly  destroyed." 

Then  Samuel  said  unto  Saul:  "  Stay,  and  I  will  tell  thee  what  the  Lord  hath 
said  to  me  this  night."  And  he  said  unto  him,  "Say  on."  And  Samuel  said: 
"When  thou  wast  little  in  thine  own  sight,  wast  thou  not  made  the  head  of  the 
tribes  of  Israel,  and  the  Lord  anointed  thee  king  over  Israel?  And  the  Lord  sent 
thee  on  a  journey,  and  said,  Go  and  utterly  destroy  the  sinners  the  Amalekites, 
and  fight  against  them  until  they  be  consumed.  Wherefore  then  didst  thou  not 
obey  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  but  didst  fly  upon  the  spoil,  and  didst  evil  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord?"  And  Saul  said  unto  Samuel:  "  Yea,  I  have  obeyed  the  voice 
of  the  Lord,  and  have  gone  the  way  which  the  Lord  sent  me,  and  have  brought 
Agag  the  king  of  Amalek,  and  have  utterly  destroyed  the  Amalekites.  But  the 
people  took  of  the  spoil,  sheep  and  oxen,  the  chief  of  the  things  which  should 


232  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

And  Samuel  arose,  and  gat  him  up  from  Gilgal  and  went  his 
way.  And  the  remnant  of  the  people  went  up  after  Saul  to  join 
the  men  of  war ;  and  when  they  were  come  from  Gilgal  unto 
Gibeah  of  Benjamin,  Saul  numbered  the  people  that  were  pre- 
sent with  him,  about  six  hundred  men.  And  Saul,  and  Jonathan 
his  son,  and  the  people  that  were  present  with  them,  abode  in 
Geba  of  Benjamin  :  but  the  Philistines  encamped  in  Michmash. 
And  the  spoilers  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  company  turned  to 
the  way  of  the  hill  that  looketh  to  the  valley  of  Zeboim  toward 
the  wilderness. 

Now  there  was  no  smith  found  throughout  all  the  land  of 
Israel :  for  the  Philistines  said,  "  Lest  the  Hebrews  make  them 
swords  or  spears :  "  but  all  the  Israelites  went  down  to  the 
Philistines,  to  sharpen  every  man  his  share,  and  his  coulter, 
and  his  axe,  and  his  mattock.  So  it  came  to  pass  in  the  day  of 
battle,  that  there  was  neither  sword  nor  spear  found  in  the  hand 

have  been  utterly  destroyed,  to  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  thy  God  in  Gilgal." 
And  Samuel  said:  "  Hath  the  Lord  as  great  delight  in  burnt  offerings  and  sac- 
rices,  as  in  obeying  the  voice  of  the  Lord?  Behold,  to  obey  is  better  than  sacri- 
fice, and  to  hearken  than  the  fat  of  rams.  For  rebellion  is  as  the  sin  of  witch- 
craft, and  stubbornness  is  as  the  iniquity  of  teraphim.  Because  thou  hast  rejected 
the  word  of  the  Lord,  he  hath  also  rejected  thee  from  being  king." 

And  Saul  said  unto  Samuel :  "  I  have  sinned  :  for  I  have  transgressed  the  com- 
mandment of  the  Lord,  and  thy  words:  because  I  feared  the  people,  and  obeyed 
their  voice.  Now  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  pardon  my  sin,  and  turn  again  with  me, 
that  I  may  worship  the  Lord."  And  Samuel  said  unto  Saul:  "  I  will  not  return 
with  thee:  for  thou  hast  rejected  the  word  of  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  hath  re- 
jected thee  from  being  king  over  Israel."  And  as  Samuel  turned  about  to  go 
away,  he  laid  hold  upon  the  skirt  of  his  mantle,  and  it  rent.  And  Samuel  said  unto 
him:  "  The  Lord  hath  rent  the  kingdom  of  Israel  from  thee  this  day,  and  hath 
given  it  to  a  neighbor  of  thine,  that  is  better  than  thou.  And  also  the  Strength 
of  Israel  will  not  lie  nor  repent:  for  he  is  not  a  man,  that  he  should  repent." 

Then  he  said:  "I  have  sinned:  yet  honor  me  now,  I  pray  thee,  before  the 
elders  of  my  people,  and  before  Israel,  and  turn  again  with  me,  that  I  may  wor- 
ship the  Lord  th}' God."  So  Samuel  turned  again  after  Saul;  and  Saul  wor- 
shipped the  Lord.  Then  said  Samuel:  *'  Bring  ye  hither  to  me  Agag  the  king 
of  the  Amalekites."  And  Agag  came  unto  him  delicately.  And  Agag  said, 
"Surely  the  bitterness  of  death  is  past."  And  Samuel  said:  "  As  thy  sword 
hath  made  women  childless,  so  shall  thy  mother  be  childless  among  women." 
And  Samuel  hewed  Agag  in  pieces  before  the  Lord  in  Gilgal. 

Then  Samuel  went  to  Ramah;  and  Saul  went  up  to  his  house  to  Gibeah  of 
Saul.  And  Samuel  came  no  more  to  see  Saul  until  the  day  of  his  death:  never- 
theless Samuel  mourned  for  Saul. 


THE   DELIVERANCE  FROM  THE   PHILISTINES  233 

of  any  of  the  people  that  were  with  Saul  and  Jonathan  :  but 
with  Saul  and  with  Jonathan  his  son  was  there  found.  And  the 
garrison  of  the  Philistines  went  out  to  the  passage  of  Mich- 
mash. 

Now  it  came  to  pass  upon  a  day,  that  Jonathan  the  son  of 
Saul  said  unto  the  young  man  that  bare  his  armor :  "  Come,  and 
let  us  go  over  to  the  Philistines'  garrison,  that  is  on  the  other 
side."  But  he  told  not  his  father.  And  Saul  tarried  in  the  ut- 
termost part  of  Geba  under  a  pomegranate  tree  which  is  in  the 
threshing-floor  :  and  the  people  that  were  with  him  were  about 
six  hundred  men ;  and  Ahijah,  the  son  of  Ahitub,  I-chabod's 
brother,  the  son  of  Phinehas,  the  son  of  Eli,  the  Lord's  priest 
in  Shiloh,  bearing  an  ephod.  And  the  people  knew  not  that  Jon- 
athan was  gone. 

And  between  the  passages,  by  which  Jonathan  sought  to  go 
over  unto  the  Philistines'  garrison,  there  was  a  sharp  rock  on 
the  one  side,  and  a  sharp  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  northward  over  against  Mich- 
mash,  and  the  other  southward  over  against  Geba.  And  Jona- 
than said  to  the  young  man  that  bare  his  armor :  "  Come,  and 
let  us  go  over  unto  the  garrison  of  these  uncircumcised :  it  may 
be  that  the  Lord  will  work  for  us  :  for  there  is  no  restraint  to 
the  Lord  to  save  by  many  or  by  few."  And  his  armorbearer 
said  unto  him :  "  Do  all  that  is  in  thine  heart :  behold,  I  am 
with  thee ;  my  heart  is  as  thy  heart."  Then  said  Jonathan  : 
"  Behold,  we  will  pass  over  unto  these  men,  and  we  will  dis- 
cover 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  the  Lord  hath  delivered  them  into  our 
hand :  and  this  shall  be  a  sign  unto  us." 

And  both  of  them  discovered  themselves  unto  the  garrison  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  garrison  answered  Jonathan  and  his  armor- 
bearer,  and  said  :  "  Come  up  to  us,  and  we  will  shew  you  a 
thing."  And  Jonathan  said  unto  his  armorbearer:  "Come  up 
after  me  :  for  the  Lord  hath  delivered  them  into  the  hand  of 
Israel."  And  Jonathan  climbed  up  upon  his  hands  and  upon 
his  feet,  and  his  armorbearer  after  him  :  and  they  fell  before 


234  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

Jonathan;  and  his  armorbearer  slew  after  him.  And  that  first 
slaughter,  which  Jonathan  and  his  armorbearer  made,  was  about 
twenty  men.  And  there  was  trembling  in  the  host,  in  the  field, 
and  among  all  the  people :  the  garrison,  and  the  spoilers,  they 
also  trembled,  and  the  earth  quaked :  so  it  was  a  trembling, 
sent  of  God. 

And  the  watchmen  of  Saul  in  Geba  of  Benjamin  looked ;  and 
behold  the  camp  moved  in  tumult  hither  and  thither.  Then 
said  Saul  unto  the  people  that  were  with  him :  ''  Number  now, 
and  see  who  is  gone  from  us.'^  And  when  they  had  numbered, 
behold,  Jonathan  and  his  armorbearer  were  not  there.  And 
Saul  said  unto  Ahijah,  "Bring  hither  the  ephod;"  for  he  bore 
the  ephod  at  that  time  before  Israel.  And  it  came  to  pass,  while 
Saul  talked  unto  the  priest,  that  the  noise  that  was  in  the  host 
of  the  Philistines  went  on  and  increased  :  and  Saul  said  unto  the 
priest,  ''  Withdraw  thine  hand."  ^  And  Saul  and  all  the  people 
that  were  with  him  assembled  themselves,  and  they  came  to  the 
battle :  and  behold,  every  man's  sword  was  against  his  fellow, 
and  there  was  a  very  great  discomfiture.  Moreover  the  Hebrews 
that  were  with  the  Philistines  before  that  time,  which  went  up 
with  them  into  the  camp,  even  they  also  turned  to  be  with  the 
Israelites  that  were  with  Saul  and  Jonathan.  Likewise  all  the 
men  of  Israel  which  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  the  Lord  saved 
Israel  that  day  :  and  the  battle  passed  over  unto  Beth-horon. 

So  Israel  was  with  Saul,  about  ten  thousand  men,  and  the 
fighting  was  scattered  over  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim.  And 
Saul  vowed  a  vow  on  that  day,  and  adjured  the  people,  saying: 
"  Cursed  be  the  man  that  eateth  any  food  until  evening,  that  I 
may  be  avenged  on  mine  enemies."  ^  So  none  of  the  people 
tasted  any  food.  Now  there  was  honey  upon  the  ground,  and  when 
the  people  came  to  the  honeycomb,  behold  the  honey  dropped ; 
but  no  man  put  his  hand  to  his  mouth  :  for  the  people  feared  the 
oath.   But  Jonathan  heard  not  when  his  father  charged  the  peo- 

1  Withdraw  thine  hand.  That  is,  from  taking  the  sacred  lot.  See  note  on 
Urim  and  Thummim,  p.  141. 

2  Saul's  purpose  was  to  secure  the  continued  assistance  of  Jehovah,  who, 
according  to  the  religious  ideas  of  the  time,  would  he  propitiated  by  their  self- 
denial,  especially  since  the  taboo  on  food  would  ensure  the  offering  to  Him  of 
the  first-fruits  of  the  spoil. 


THE   DELIVERANCE   FROM   THE   PHILISTINES  235 

pie  with  the  oath :  wherefore  he  put  forth  the  end  of  the  rod 
that  was  in  his  hand,  and  dipped  it  in  an  honeycomb,  and  put 
his  hand  to  his  mouth  ;  and  his  eyes  were  enlightened.  Then 
answered  one  of  the  people,  and  said :  *'  Thy  father  straitly 
charged  the  people  with  an  oath,  saying,  Cursed  be  the  man  that 
eateth  any  food  this  day."  Then  said  Jonathan :  "  My  father 
hath  troubled  the  land  :  see,  I  pray  you,  how  mine  eyes  have  been 
enlightened,  because  I  tasted  a  little  of  this  honey.  If  haply  the 
people  had  eaten  freely  to-day  of  the  spoil  of  their  enemies 
which  they  found,  had  there  not  been  now  a  much  greater 
slaughter  among  the  Philistines  ?  " 

And  they  smote  the  Philistines  that  day  from  Michmash  to 
Aijalon:  and  the  people  were  very  faint.  And  the  people  flew 
upon  the  spoil,  and  took  sheep,  and  oxen,  and  calves,  and  slew 
them  on  the  ground :  and  the  people  did  eat  them  with  the 
blood.  Then  they  told  Saul,  saying:  *' Behold,  the  people  sin 
against  the  Lord,  in  that  they  eat  with  the  blood."  ^  And  he 
said:  "Ye  have  transgressed:  roll  a  great  stone  unto  me  this 
day."  And  Saul  said :  "  Disperse  yourselves  among  the  people, 
and  say  unto  them,  Bring  me  hither  every  man  his  ox,  and 
every  man  his  sheep,  and  slay  them  here,  and  eat ;  and  sin  not 
against  the  Lord  in  eating  with  the  blood."  And  all  the  people 
brought  every  man  his  ox  with  him  that  night,  and  slew  them 
there.  And  Saul  built  an  altar  unto  Jehovah  :  the  same  was  the 
first  altar  that  he  built  unto  the  Lord. 

And  Saul  said  :  *'  Let  us  go  down  after  the  Philistines  by 
night,  and  spoil  them  until  the  morning  light,  and  let  us  not 
leave  a  man  of  them."  And  they  said :  "  Do  whatsoever 
seemeth  good  unto  thee."  Then  said  the  priest :  "  Let  us  draw 
near  hither  unto  God."  And  Saul  asked  counsel  of  God : 
"  Shall  I  go  down  after  the  Philistines?  wilt  thou  deliver  them 
into  the  hand  of  Israel  ?  "  But  he  answered  him  not  that  day. 
And   Saul  said  ,    ^'  Draw  je  near  hither,  all  the  chief  of  the 

1  "Sacrificial  blood,  which  contained  the  life,  gradually  came  to  be  consid- 
ered as  something  too  sacred  to  be  eaten,  and  in  most  sacrifices  it  was  entirely 
made  over  to  the  god  at  the  altar.  As  all  slaughter  of  domestic  animals  for  food 
was  originally  sacrificial  among  the  Arabs  as  well  as  among  the  Hebrews,  this 
carried  with  it  the  disuse  of  blood  as  an  article  of  ordinary  food;  and  even  when 
slaughter  ceased  to  involve  a  formal  sacrifice,  it  was  still  thought  necessary  to 
slay  the  victim  in  the  name  of  a  god,  and  pour  the  blood  on  the  ground.  Among 
the  Hebrews  this  practice  soon  gave  rise  to  an  absolute  prohibition  of*blood-eat- 
ing."  "W.  Robertson  Smith:  Religion  of  the  Semites,  p.  234. 


236  THE    EAKLY   MONARCHY 

people  :  and  know  and  see  wherein  this  sin  hath  been  this  day. 
For,  as  the  Lord  liveth,  which  saveth  Israel,  though  it  be  in 
Jonathan  my  son,  he  shall  surely  die."  But  there  was  not  a 
man  among  all  the  people  that  answered  him.  Then  said  he 
unto  all  Israel :  ''  Be  ye  on  one  side,  and  I  and  Jonathan  my 
son  will  be  on  the  other  side."  And  the  people  said  unto  Saul, 
"  Do  what  seemeth  good  unto  thee."  Therefore  Saul  said  :  ''  O 
Lord  God  of  Israel,  why  hast  thou  not  answered  thy  servant 
this  day  ?  If  the  guilt  be  in  me  or  in  my  son  Jonathan,  Lord 
God  of  Israel,  give  Urim  ;  but  if  thou  sayest  thus  :  The  guilt  is 
in  my  people  Israel,  give  Thummim."  And  Saul  and  Jonathan 
were  taken:  but  the  people  escaped.  And  Saul  said:  ''Cast 
lots  between  me  and  Jonathan  my  son,  and  whom  Jehovah 
shall  take,  he  shall  die."  And  the  people  said  to  Saul,  "  It 
shall  not  be  so."  But  Saul  prevailed  over  the  people,  and  they 
cast  between  him  and  his  son  Jonathan  ;  and  Jonathan  was 
taken. 

Then  Saul  said  to  Jonathan,  ''  Tell  me  what  thou  hast  done." 
And  Jonathan  told  him,  and  said:  "I  did  indeed  taste  a  little 
honey  with  the  end  of  the  rod  that  was  in  mine  hand.  Lo,  I  am 
ready  to  die."  And  Saul  answered:  ''God  do  so  to  me  and 
more  also :  for  thou  shalt  surely  die,  Jonathan."  And  the 
people  said  unto  Saul :  "  Shall  Jonathan  die,  who  hath  wrought 
this  great  salvation  in  Israel  ?  God  forbid  :  as  the  Lord  liveth, 
there  shall  not  one  hair  of  his  head  fall  to  the  ground ;  for  he 
hath  wrought  with  God  this  day."  So  the  people  rescued  Jona- 
than, that  he  died  not.  Then  Saul  went  up  from  following 
the  Philistines :  and  the  Philistines  went  to  their  own  place. 
And  there  was  sore  war  against  the  Philistines  all  the  days  of 
Saul :  and  when  Saul  saw  any  strong  man,  or  any  valiant  man, 
he  took  him  unto  him. 

David  Anointed  by  Samuel  (l  Sam.  xv.  35 ;  xvi.  1-13). 
And  the  Lord  repented  that  he  had  made  Saul  king  over  Israel. 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  Samuel :  "  How  long  wilt  thou  mourn 
for  Saul,  seeing  I  have  rejected  him  from  reigning  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  the  Lord  said :  "  Take  an  heifer  with  thee,  and 
say,  I  am  come  to  sacrifice  to  the  Lord.  And  call  Jesse  to  the 


DAVID    AS   SAUL'S   HAKPER  237 

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  the  Lord  spake,  and  came  to 
Beth-lehem.  And  the  elders  of  the  town  trembled  at  his  coming, 
and  said,  "  Comest  thou  peaceably?"  And  he  said:  ''Peace- 
ably :  I  am  come  to  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord :  sanctify  yourselves, 
and  come  with  me  to  the  sacrifice."  And  he  sanctified  Jesse 
and  his  sons,  and  called  them  to  the  sacrifice.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  they  were  come,  that  he  looked  on  Eliab,  and  said, 
''  Surely  the  Lord's  anointed  is  before  him."  But  the  Lord  said 
unto  Samuel :  "Look  not  on  his  countenance,  or  on  the  height 
of  his  stature  ;  because  I  have  refused  him :  for  the  Lord  seeth 
not  as  man  seeth ;  for  man  looketh  on  the  outward  appearance, 
but  the  Lord  looketh  on  the  heart."  Then  Jesse  called  Abina- 
dab,  and  made  him  pass  before  Samuel.  And  he  said,  "  jS^either 
hath  the  Lord  chosen  this."  Then  Jesse  made  Shammah  to  pass 
by.  And  he  said,  ''Keither  hath  the  Lord  chosen  this."  And 
Jesse  made  seven  of  his  sons  to  pass  before  Samuel.  And  Samuel 
said  unto  Jesse,  "The  Lord  hath  not  chosen  these."  And  Sam- 
uel said  unto  Jesse,  "  Are  here  all  thy  children  ?  "  And  he  said : 
"  There  remaineth  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  withal  of  a  beautiful 
countenance,  and  goodly  to  look  to.  And  the  Lord  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  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  came  upon  David  from  that  day  forth.  So  Samuel 
rose  up,  and  went  to  Ramah. 

David  as  Saul's  Harper  (l  Sam.  xvi.  14-23).  But  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  departed  from  Saul,  and  an  evil  spirit  from  the 
Lord  troubled  him.  And  Saul's  servants  said  unto  him :  "  Be- 
hold now,  an  evil  spirit  from  God  troubleth  thee.  Let  our  Lord 
now  command  thy  servants,  which  are  before  thee,  to  seek  out 
a  man,  who  is  a  cunning  player  on  an  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  servants, 
and  said  :   ''  Behold,  I  have  seen  a  son  of  Jesse  the  Beth-lehem- 


238  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

ite,  that  is  cunning  in  playing,  and  a  mighty  valiant  man,  and 
a  man  of  war,  and  prudent  in  matters,  and  a  comely  person, 
and  the  Lord  is  with  him."  Wherefore  Saul  sent  messengers 
unto  Jesse,  and  said,  "Send  me  David  thy  son,  which  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  armorbearer.  And  Saul 
sent  to  Jesse,  saying:  "Let  David,  I  pray  thee,  stand  before 
me;  for  he  hath  found  favor  in  my  sight."  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  the  evil  spirit  from  God  was  upon  Saul,  that  David 
took  an  harp,  and  played  with  his  hand  :  so  Saul  was  refreshed, 
and  was  well,  and  the  evil  spirit  departed  from  him. 

David  and  Goliath  (1  Sam.  xvii.  1-54).  Now  the  Philistines 
gathered  together  their  armies  to  battle,  and  were  gathered  to- 
gether at  Shochoh,  which  belonged  to  Judah,  and  pitched 
between  Shochoh  and  Azekah,  in  Ephes-dammim.  And  Saul 
and  the  men  of  Israel  were  gathered  together,  and  pitched  by 
the  valley  of  Elah,  and  set  the  battle  in  array  against  the 
Philistines.  And  the  Philistines  stood  on  a  mountain  on  the  one 
side,  and  Israel  stood  on  a  mountain  on  the  other  side :  and 
there  was  a  valley  between  them.  And  there  went  out  a  cham- 
pion out  of  the  camp  of  the  Philistines,  named  Goliath,  of  Gath, 
whose  height  was  six  cubits  and  a  span.^  And  he  had  an  hel- 
met of  brass  upon  his  head,  and  he  was  armed  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  javelin 
of  brass  between  his  shoulders.  And  the  staff  of  his  spear  was 
like  a  weaver's  beam  ;  and  his  spear's  head  Aveighed  six  hundred 
shekels  ^  of  iron  :  and  one  bearing  a  shield  went  before  him. 
And  he  stood  and  cried  unto  the  armies  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  serv- 
ants, and  serve  us."  And  the  Philistine  said :  "  I  defy  the 
armies  of  Israel  this  day  ;   give  me  a  man,  that  we  may  fight 

1  six  cubits  and  a^an,  about  ten  feet  ;  Jive  thousand  shekels,  about  150  lbs.  ; 
six  hundred  shekels,  about  18  lbs. 


DAVID    AND   GOLIATH  239 

together."  When  Saul  and  all  Israel  heard  those  words  of  the 
Philistine,  they  were  dismayed,  and  greatly  afraid.^ 

But  David  said  to  Saul :  "  Let  not  my  Lord's  heart  fail 
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  hut  a  youth,  and  he 
a  man  of  war  from  his  youth."  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 

1  Verses  12-31  here  do  not  appear  in  the  Greek.  The}'  introduce  Jesse  and  his 
sons  as  if  for  the  first  time  ;  and  since  the  story  is  complete  and  consistent  with- 
out them,  they  are  here  given  (without  their  introductory  matter)  as  represent- 
ing a  distinct  account  :  — 

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  carrv  these  ten  cheeses  unto  the  captain  of  their  thousand,  and  look  how 
thy  brethren  fare,  and  take  their  pledge." 

Xow  Saul,  and  they,  and  all  the  men  of  Israel,  were  in  the  valley  of  Elah, 
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  trench,  as  the  host  was  going  forth  to  the  fight,  and  shouted 
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  into  the  army,  and  came  and  saluted  his  brethren.  And 
as  he  talked  with  them,  behold,  there  came  up  the  champion,  the  Philistine  of 
Gath,  Goliath  by  name,  out  of  the  armies  of  the  Philistines,  and  spake  accord- 
ing to  the  same  words:  and  David  heard  them.  And  all  the  men  of  Israel,  when 
they  saw  the  man,  fled  from  him,  and  were  sore  afraid. 

And  the  men  of  Israel  said:  "Have  ye  seen  this  man  that  is  come  up? 
surely  to  defy  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  make  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  Philistine,  and  taketh  away  the  reproach  from  Israel  ?  for  who  is  this  un- 
circuracised  Philistine,  that  he  should  defy  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  camest  thou  down 
hither  ?  and  with  whom  hast  thou  left  those  few  sheep  in  the  wilderness  ?  I 
know  thy  pride,  and  the  naughtiness  of  thine  heart ;  for  thou  art  come  down 
that  thou  mightest  see  the  battle."  And  David  said :  "  What  have  I  now  done? 
Is  not  there  a  cause  ?  "  And  he  turned  from  him  toward  another,  and  spake 
aftor  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. 


240  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

smote  him,  and  slew  him.  Thy  servant  slew  both  the  lion  and 
the  bear:  and  this  uncircumcised  Philistine  shall  be  as  one  of 
them,  seeing  he  hath  defied  the  armies  of  the  living  God.'' 
David  said  moreover :  "  The  Lord  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  the  Lord  be  with  thee." 

And  Saul  armed  David  with  his  armor,  and  he  put  an  helmet 
of  brass  upon  his  head  ;  also  he  armed  him  with  a  coat  of  mail. 
And  David  girded  his  sword  upon  his  armor,  and  he  assayed  to 
go  ;  for  he  had  not  proved  it.  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  his 
scrip  ;^  and  his  sling  was  in  his  hand  :  and  he  drew  near  to  the 
Philistine.  And  when  the  Philistine  looked  about,  and  saw 
David,  he  disdained  him :  for  he  was  but  a  youth.  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  shield :  but  I  come  to  thee  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
of  hosts,  the  God  of  the  armies  of  Israel,  whom  thou  hast  de- 
fied. This  day  will  the  Lord  deliver  thee  into  mine  hand ;  and 
I  will  smite  thee,  and  take  thine  head  from  thee  ;  and  I  will 
give  the  carcasses  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  the  Lord  saveth  not  with  sword  and 
spear :  for  the  battle  is  the  Lord'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  hasted,  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  sunk  into  his  forehead  ; 
and  he  fell  upon  his  face  to  the  earth.  Then  David  ran,  and 
stood  upon  the  Philistine,  and  took  his  sword  and  slew  him, 
1  scrip.  The  ammunition  bag  of  a  slinger. 


SAUL'S   JEALOUSY   OF  DAVID  241 

and  cut  ofif  his  head  therewith.  And  when  the  Philistines  saw 
their  champion  was  dead,  they  fled.  And  the  men  of  Israel  and 
of  Judah  arose,  and  shouted,  and  pursued  the  Philistines,  until 
thou  come  to  the  valley,  and  to  the  gates  of  Ekron.  And  the 
wounded  of  the  Philistines  fell  down  by  the  way  to  Shaaraim, 
even  unto  Gath,  and  unto  Ekron.  And  the  children  of  Israel 
returned  from  chasing  after  the  Philistines,  and  they  spoiled 
their  tents.  And  David  took  the  head  of  the  Philistine,  and 
brought  it  to  Jerusalem ;  ^  but  he  put  his  armor  in  his  tent.^ 

Saurs  Jealousy  of  David  (l  Sam.  xviii.  6-9,  12-16,  20-29 ; 
xix.  1-17).  And  the  women  came  out  of  all  the  cities  of  Israel, 
singing  and  dancing,  to  meet  king  Saul,  with  tabrets,  with  joy, 
with  instruments  of  music.  And  the  women  answered  one  an- 
other as  they  played,  and  said,  — 

*^Saul  hath  slain  his  thousands, 
And  David  his  ten  thousands.'' 

And  Saul  was  very  wroth,  and  the  saying  displeased  him  ;  and 
he  said :  "  They  have  ascribed  unto  David  ten  thousands,  and 
to  me  they  have  ascribed  but  thousands."  And  Saul  eyed  David 
from  that  day  and  forward.  And  Saul  was  afraid  of  David; 

1  Jerusalem,  was  not  yet  a  Hebrew  city.  Perhaps  we  should  read  Saul,  as 
Cheyne  suggests. 

2  The  passage  xvii,  55-xviii.  5  does  not  appear  in  the  Greek.  Since  it  makes 
Saul  as  yet  ignorant  of  David's  family,  it  is  probably  part  of  that  version  of 
David's  exploit  which  began  with  the  passage  on  p.  239  below.  It  is  as  follows:  — 

And  when  Saul  saw  David  go  forth  against  the  Philistine,  he  said  unto  Ab- 
ner,  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,  "Enquire 
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  and  David  made  a  covenant,  be- 
cause 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  garments,  even  to  his  sword, 
and  to  his  bow,  and  to  his  girdle.  And  David  went  out  whithersoever  Saul  sent 
him,  and  behaved  himself  wisely  :  and  Saul  set  him  over  the  men  of  war,  and 
he  was  accepted  in  the  sight  of  all  the  people,  and  also  in  the  sight  of  Saul's 
servants. 


242  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

wherefore  Saul  removed  him  from  him,  and  made  him  his  cap- 
tain over  a  thousand ;  and  he  went  out  and  came  in  before  the 
people.  And  David  behaved  himself  wisely  in  all  his  ways  ;  and 
the  Lord  was  with  him.  Wherefore  when  Saul  saw  that  he  be- 
haved himself  very  wisely,  he  was  afraid  of  him.  But  all  Israel  and 
Judah  loved  David,  because  he  went  out  and  came  in  before  them. 

And  Michal  ^  Saul's  daughter  loved  David :  and  they  told 
Saul,  and  the  thing  pleased  him.  And  Saul  said :  "  I  will  give 
him  her,  that  she  may  be  a  snare  to  him,  and  that  the  hand  of 
the  Philistines  may  be  against  him."  And  Saul  commanded  his 
servants,  saying :  ^'  Commune  with  David  secretly,  and  say,  Be- 
hold, the  king  hath  delight  in  thee,  and  all  his  servants  love 
thee  :  now  therefore  be  the  king's  son  in  law."  And  Saul's  serv- 
ants spake  those  words  in  the  ears  of  David.  And  David  said : 
"  Seemeth  it  to  you  a  light  thing  to  be  a  king's  son  in  law,  see- 
ing 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  foreskins  of  the  Philis- 
tines, to  be  avenged  of  the  king's  enemies."  But  Saul  thought 
to  make  David  fall  by  the  hand  of  the  Philistines.  And  when 
his  servants  told  David  these  words,  it  pleased  David  well  to  be 
the  king's  son  in  law.  Wherefore  David  arose  and  went,  he  and 
his  men,  and  slew  of  the  Philistines  a  hundred  men  ;  and  David 
brought  their  foreskins,  and  they  gave  them  in  full  to  the  king, 
that  he  might  be  the  king's  son  in  law.  And  Saul  gave  him 
Michal  his  daughter  to  wife.  And  Saul  saw  and  knew  that  the 
Lord  was  with  David,  and  that  all  Israel  loved  him.  And  Saul 
was  yet  the  more  afraid  of  David. 

And  Saul  spake  to  Jonathan  his  son,  and  to  all  his  servants, 
that  they  should  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  until  the  morning,  and  abide  in  a  secret  place,  and 

1  Another  tradition  makes  Merab  the  daughter  offered:  — 
And  Saul  said  to  David:  "  Behold  my  elder  daughter  Merab,  her  will  I  give 
thee  to  wife:  only  be  thou  valiant  for  me,  and  fight  the  Lord's  battles."  For 
Saul  said:  "Let  not  mine  hand  be  upon  him,  but  let  the  hand  of  the  Philistines 
be  upon  him."  And  David  said  unto  Saul :  "  Who  am  I  ?  and  what  is  my  life, 
or  my  father's  family  in  Lsrael,  that  I  should  be  son  m  law  to  the  king  ?  "  But 
it  came  to  pass  at  the  time  when  Merab  Saul's  daughter  should  have  been  given 
to  David,  that  she  was  given  unto  Adriel  the  Meholathite  to  wife. 


DAVID    AND    JONATHAN  243 

hide  thyself :  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 ;  be- 
cause 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  the  Lord  wrought  a  great 
salvation  for  all  Israel :  thou  sawest  it,  and  didst  rejoice  ;  where- 
fore then  wilt  thou  sin  against  innocent  blood,  to  slay  David 
without  a  cause  ?  '^  And  Saul  hearkened  unto  the  voice  of  Jona- 
than :  and  Saul  sware  :  "  As  the  Lord  liveth,  he  shall  not  be 
slain."  And  Jonathan  called  David,  and  Jonathan  shewed  him 
all  those  things.  And  Jonathan  brought  David  to  Saul,  and  he 
was  in  his  presence,  as  in  times  past. 

And  there  was  war  again  :  and  David  went  out,  and  fought 
with  the  Philistines,  and  slew  them  with  a  great  slaughter ;  and 
they  fled  from  him.  And  the  evil  spirit  from  God  came  upon 
Saul,  as  he  sat  in  his  house  with  his  javelin  in  his  hand :  and 
David  played  with  his  hand,  as  at  other  times.  And  Saul  sought 
to  smite  David  even  to  the  wall  with  the  javelin.  But  he  slipped 
away  out  of  Saul's  presence,  and  he  smote  the  javelin  into  the 
wall :  and  David  fled,  and  escaped.  And  that  night  Saul  sent  mes- 
sengers unto  David's  house,  to  watch  him,  and  to  slay  him  in 
the  morning :  and  Michal  David's  wife  told  him,  saying :  ''  If 
thou  save  not  thy  life  to-night,  to-morrow  thou  shalt  be  slain." 
So  Michal  let  David  down  through  a  window :  and  he  went,  and 
fled,  and  escaped.  And  Michal  took  the  teraphim,  and  laid  it  in 
the  bed,  and  put  a  pillow  of  goats'  hair  at  the  head  thereof,  and 
covered  it  with  the  clothes.  And  when  Saul  sent  messengers  to 
take  David,  she  said  :  "  He  is  sick."  And  Saul  sent  the  messen- 
gers again  to  see  David,  saying :  "  Bring  him  up  to  me  in  the 
bed,  that  I  may  slay  him."  And  when  the  messengers  were  come 
in,  behold,  there  was  the  teraphim  in  the  bed,  with  a  pillow  of 
goats'  hair  at  the  head  thereof.  And  Saul  said  unto  Michal : 
^'  Why  hast  thou  deceived  me  so,  and  sent  away  mine  enemy, 
that  he  is  escaped  ? "  And  Michal  answered  Saul :  ''  He  said 
unto  me.  Let  me  go ;  why  should  I  kill  thee  ?  " 

David  and  Jonathan  (l  Sam.  xx.).  And  David  came  and 
said  before  Jonathan :    ''  What   have  I   done  ?  what   is   mine 


244  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

iniquity  ?  and  what  is  my  sin  before  thy  father,  that  he  seeketh 
my  life  ?  ''  And  he  said  unto  him :  ^'  God  forbid ;  thou  shalt  not 
die  :  behold,  my  father  will  do  nothing  either  great  or  small,  but 
that  he  will  shew  it  me ;  and  why  should  my  father  hide  this 
thing  from  me  ?  it  is  not  so."  And  David  answered  and  said : 
"  Thy  father  certainly  knoweth  that  I  have  found  grace  in  thine 
eyes ;  and  he  saith,  Let  not  Jonathan  know  this,  lest  he  be 
grieved :  but  truly  as  the  Lord  liveth,  and  as  thy  soul  liveth, 
there  is  but  a  step  between  me  and  death. '^ 

Then  said  Jonathan  unto  David  :  "  Whatsoever  thy  soul  de- 
sireth,  I  will  even  do  it  for  thee."  And  David  said  unto  Jona- 
than:  ''Behold,  to-morrow  is  the  new  moon,^  and  I  should  not 
fail  to  sit  with  the  king  at  meat :  but  let  me  go,  that  I  may  hide 
myself  in  the  field  until  even.  If  thy  father  at  all  miss  me,  then 
say,  David  earnestly  asked  leave  of  me  that  he  might  run  to 
Beth-lehem  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  very  wroth,  then  be  sure  that  evil  is  deter- 
mined by  him.  Therefore  thou  shalt  deal  kindly  with  thy  ser- 
vant ;  for  thou  hast  brought  thy  servant  into  a  covenant  of  the 
Lord  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  knew  cer- 
tainly 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  ?  or  what 
if  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  the  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  then  send  unto  thee  and  disclose  it 
unto  thee  ?  The  Lord  do  so  and  much  more  to  Jonathan,  if  it 
please  my  father  to  do  thee  evil,  and  I  disclose  it  not  to  thee, 
and  send  thee  away,  that  thou  mayest  go  in  peace.  And  the 
Lord  be  with  thee,  as  he  hath  been  with  my  father.  And  thou 
shalt  not  only  while  yet  I  live  shew  me  the  kindness  of  the 
Lord  :  but  if  I  die,  thou  shalt  not  cut  off  thy  kindness  from  my 
house  for  ever  :  and  if,  when  the  Lord  hath  cut  off  the  enemies 

1  The  day  of  the  new  moon  was  from  earliest  times  a  religious  festival  in  Pal- 
estine. In  several  Old  Testament  passages  it  is  associated  with  the  Sabbath. 


DAVID   AND   JONATHAN  245 

of  David  every  one  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  the  name  of  Jon- 
athan be  cut  off  by  the  house  of  David,  the  Lord  even  require 
it  at  the  hand  of  David's  enemies."  And  Jonathan  sware  again 
to  David,  by  his  love  toward  him :  for  he  loved  him  as  he  loved 
his  own  soul. 

Then  Jonathan  said  to  David  :  ''  To-morrow  is  the  new  moon : 
and  thou  shalt  be  missed,  because  thy  seat  will  be  empty.  And 
when  thou  hast  stayed  three  days,  then  thou  shalt  go  down 
quickly,  and  come  to  the  place  where  thou  didst  hide  thyself 
when  the  business  was  in  hand,  and  shalt  remain  by  yonder 
mound.  And  I  will  shoot  three  arrows  on  the  side  thereof,  as 
though  I  shot  at  a  mark.  And  behold,  I  will  send  a  lad,  saying, 
Go,  find  out  the  arrows.  If  I  expressly  say  unto  the  lad.  Be- 
hold, the  arrow  is  on  this  side  of  thee,  take  it;  then  come  thou: 
for  there  is  peace  to  thee,  and  no  hurt ;  as  the  Lord  liveth.  But 
if  I  say  thus  unto  the  young  man,  Behold,  the  arrow  is  beyond 
thee ;  go  thy  way :  for  the  Lord  hath  sent  thee  away.  And  as 
touching  the  matter  which  thou  and  I  have  spoken  of,  behold, 
the  Lord  be  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  a  seat  by  the 
wall :  and  Jonathan  sat  opposite,  and  Abner  sat  by  SauPs  side, 
and  David's  place  was  empty.  Nevertheless  Saul  spake  not  any 
thing  that  day  :  for  he  thought :  "'  Something  hath  befallen  him, 
he  is  not  clean  ;  for  he  hath  not  been  cleansed."  And  it  came  to 
pass  on  the  morrow,  which  was  the  second  day  of  the  month, 
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  commanded  me  to  be  there  :  and 
now,  if  I  have  found  favor  in  thine  eyes,  let  me  get  away,  I 
pray  thee,  and  see  my  brethren.  Therefore  he  cometh  not  unto 
the  king's  table."  Then  Saul's  anger  was  kindled  against  Jona- 
than, and  he  said  unto  him  :  "  Thoii  son  of  a  perverse  rebellious 
woman,  do  not  I  know  that  thou  hast  chosen  the  son  of  Jesse  to 
thine  own  confusion,  and  unto  the  confusion  of  thy  mother's 
nakedness  ?  For  as  long  as  the  son  of  Jesse  liveth  upon  the 
ground,  thou    shalt    not    be    established,  nor    thy    kingdom. 


246  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

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  dune  ?  " 
And  Saul  cast  a  javelin  at  him  to  smite  him :  whereby  Jona- 
than knew  that  it  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,  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  with  David,  and  a  little  lad 
with  him.  And  he  said  unto  his  lad :  *'  Run,  find  out  now  the 
arrows  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  Jona- 
than's lad  gathered  up  the  arrows,  and  came  to  his  master.  But 
the  lad  knew  not  any  thing  :  only  Jonathan  and  David  knew  the 
matter.  And  David  arose  and  departed  :  and  Jonathan  went  into 
the  city. 

David  a  Fugitive  (l  Sam.  xxi.  1-7 ;  xxii.  1-5).  Then  came 
David  to  Nob  to  Ahimelech  the  priest :  ^  and  Ahimelech  was 
afraid  at  the  meeting  of  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  busi- 

1  Ahimelech  was  son  of  Ahitiib,  and  great-grandson  of  Eli.  Another  passage 
makes  David  take  refuge  with  Samuel:  — 

So  David  fled,  and  escaped,  and  came  to  Samuel  to  Ramah,  and  told  him  all 
that  Saul  had  done  to  him.  And  he  and  Samuel  went  and  dwelt  in  Naioth.  And 
it  was  told  Saul,  saying,  "  Behold,  David  is  at  Naioth  in  Ramah."  And  Saul 
sent  messengers  to  take  David  :  and  when  they  saw  the  company  of  the  pro- 
phets prophesying,  and  Samuel  standing  as  appointed  over  them,  the  Spirit  of 
God  was  upon  the  messengers  of  Saul,  and  they  also  prophesied.  And  when  it 
was  told  Saul,  he  sent  other  messengers,  and  they  prophesied  likewise.  And 
Saul  sent  messengers  again  the  third  time,  and  they  prophesied  also.  Then 
Saul  was  exceeding  angry,  and  went  himself  also  to  Ramah,  and  came  to  the 
well  of  the  threshing-floor  which  is  on  the  height:  and  he  asked  and  said, 
"  Where  are  Samuel  and  David  ?"  And  one  said,  "  Behold,  they  be  at  Naioth 
in  Ramah."  And  he  went  thither  to  Naioth  in  Ramah  :  and  the  Spirit  of  God 
was  upon  him  also,  and  he  went  on,  and  prophesied,  until  he  came  to  Naioth  in 
Kauiah.  And  he  stripped  off  his  clothes  also,  and  prophesied  before  Samuel  in 
like  manner,  and  lay  down  naked  all  that  day  and  all  that  night.  Wherefore 
they  say  :  "  Is  Saul  also  among  the  prophets  ?  " 


DAVID   A  FUGITIVE  247 

ness,  and  hath  said  unto  me,  Let  no  man  know  anything  of  tlie 
business  whereabout  I  send  thee,  and  what  I  have  commanded 
thee  :  and  I  have  appointed  my  servants  to  such  and  such  a 
place.  Now  therefore  what  is  under  thine  hand  ?  give  me  five 
loaves  of  bread  in  mine  hand,  or  what  there  is  present.''  And 
the  priest  answered  David,  and  said :  "  There  is  no  common 
bread  under  mine  hand,  but  there  is  hallowed  bread,  ^  —  if  only 
the  young  men  have  kept  themselves  from  women."  And  David 
answered  the  priest,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Of  a  truth  women  have 
been  kept  from  us,  as  in  former  days,  when  I  went  forth,  and 
the  vessels  of  the  young  men  were  holy,  though  it  was  but  a 
common  journey  ;  how  much  more  then  to-day  shall  their  vessels 
be  holy."  ^  So  the  priest  gave  him  hallowed  bread;  for  there  was 
no  bread  there  but  the  shewbread,  that  was  taken  from  before 
the  Lord,  to  put  hot  bread  in  the  day  when  it  was  taken  away. 

Now  a  certain  man  of  the  servants  of  Saul  was  there  that 
day,  detained  before  the  Lord ;  and  his  name  was  Doeg,  an 
Edomite,  the  chiefest  of  the  herdmen  that  belonged  to  Saul. 

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  sword  of  Goliath 
the  Philistine,  whom  thou  slewest  in  the  valley  of  Elah,  behold, 
it  is  here  wrapped  in  a  cloth  behind  the  ephod :  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." 

David  therefore  departed  thence,  and  escaped  to  the  strong- 
hold of  Adullam :  ^  and  wher.  his  brethren  and  all  his  father's 

1  hallowed  bread.  Bread  consecrated  by  being  set  before  Jehovah  in  the  sanc- 
tuary. The  custom  was  practised  (perhaps  originally)  by  the  Babylonians.  In 
later  Israel  the  shew  bread  could  be  eaten  only  by  the  priests,  and  in  the  sanc- 
tuary. 

2  "  In  the  Old  Testament,  war  and  warriors  are  often  spoken  of  as  consecrated, 
—  a  phrase  which  seems  to  be  connected,  not  merely  with  the  use  of  sacred 
ceremonies  at  the  opening  of  a  campaign,  but  with  the  idea  that  war  is  a  holy 
function.  .  .  .  That  the  taboo  on  sexual  intercourse  applied  to  warriors  in  old 
Israel  cannot  be  positively  affirmed,  but  is  probable.  ...  In  this  passage  David 
says,  '  Xay,  but  women  are  forbidden  to  us,  as  has  ahvays  been  my  rule  when 
I  go  on  an  expedition,  so  that  the  gear  (clothes,  arms,  etc.)  of  the  young  men 
is  holy  even  when  it  is  a  common  (not  a  sacred)  journey  ;  how  much  more  so 
when  to-day  they  will  be  consecrated,  gear  and  all."  W.  Robertson  Smith: 
Relifjion  of  the  Semites,  p.  455.  David  thus  hints  that  a  formal  consecration  will 
take  place  as  soon  as  he  joins  his  men. 

3  stronghold  of  Adullam.  The  rendering  'cave  of  Adullam,'  which  has  be- 
come a  popular  expression,  was  due  to  a  scribal  error. 


248  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

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,  be  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  Mizpeh ;  depart,  and  get 
thee  into  the  land  of  Judah."  Then  David  departed,  and  came 
into  the  forest  of  Hareth. 

Saul's  Revenge  on  the  Priests  of  Nob  (l  Sam.  xxii.  6-23). 
When  Saul  heard  that  David  was  discovered,  and  the  men  that 
were  with  him  (now  Saul  was  sitting  in  Gibeah  under  the  tam- 
arisk tree  on  the  height,  having  his  spear  in  his  hand,  and  all 
his  servants  were  standing  about  him)  then  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  hun- 
dreds ;  that  all  of  you  have  conspired  against  me,  and  there  is 
none  that  sheweth  me  that  my  son  hath  made  a  league  with  the 
son  of  Jesse,  and  there  is  none  of  you  that  is  sorry  for  me,  or 
sheweth  unto  me  that  my  son  hath  stirred  up  my  servant  to  be 
an  enemy  against  me,  as  at  this  day  ?  "  Then  answered  Doeg  the 
Edomite,  which  was  set  over  the  servants  of  Saul,  and  said: 
^'  I  saw  the  son  of  Jesse  coming  to  Nob,  to  Ahimelech  the  son  of 
Ahitub.  And  he  enquired  of  the  Lord  for  him,  and  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  father'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  thou  hast  given 
him  bread,  and  a  sword,  and  hast  enquired  of  God  for  him,  that 
he  should  rise  against  me,  as  at  this  day  ?  "  Then  Ahimelech 
answered  the  king,  and  said :  "  And  who  is  so  faithful  among 
all  thy  servants  as  David,  which  is  the  king's  son  in  law,  and 


DAVID   SPARES   SAUL'S   LIFE  249 

captain  over  thy  bodyguard,  and  is  honorable  in  thine  house  ? 
Did  I  then  begin  to  enquire  of  God  for  him  ?  be  it  far  from 
me:  let  not  the  king  impute  any  thing  unto  his  servant,  nor  to 
all  the  house  of  my  father :  for  thy  servant  knew  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  footmen  ^  that  stood  about  him :  ''  Turn,  and  slay  the 
priests  of  the  Lord ;  because  their  hand  also  is  with  David,  and 
because  they  knew  when  he  fled,  and  did  not  shew  it  to  me." 
But  the  servants  of  the  king  would  not  put  forth  their  hand  to 
fall  upon  the  priests  of  the  Lord.  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  slew  on  that  day 
fourscore  and  five  persons  that  did  wear  a  linen  ephod.  And  one 
of  the  sons  of  Ahimelech  the  son  of  Ahitub,  named  Abiathar, 
escaped,  and  fled  after  David.  And  Abiathar  shewed  David  that 
Saul  had  slain  the  Lord's  priests.  And  David  said  unto 
Abiathar :  ^'  I  knew  it  that  day,  when  Doeg  the  Edomite  was 
there,  that  he  would  surely  tell  Saul.  I  have  occasioned  the 
death  of  all  the  persons  of  thy  father's  house.  Abide  thou  with 
me,  fear  not :  for  he  that  seeketh  thy  life  seeketh  my  life :  for 
with  me  thou  shalt  be  in  safeguard." 

David  Spares  Saul's  Life  (l  Sam.  xxiii.  11-14;  xxvi.). 
Then  they  told  David,  saying :  "  Behold,  the  Philistines  fight 
against  Keilah,  and  they  rob  the  threshing-floors."  Therefore 
David  enquired  of  the  Lord,^  saying,  ''  Shall  I  go  and  smite 
these  Philistines  ?  "  And  the  Lord  said  unto  David :  "  Go, 
and  smite  the  Philistines,  and  save  Keilah."  And  David's  men 
said  unto  him  :  "  Behold,  we  be  afraid  here  in  Judah :  how 
much  more  then  if  we  come  to  Keilah  against  the  armies  of  the 
Philistines  ? "  Then  David  enquired  of  the  Lord  yet  again. 
And  the  Lord  answered  him  and  said  :  ''  Arise,  go  down  to  Kei- 
lah ;  for  I  will  deliver  the  Philistines  into  thine  hand."  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 

1  footmen.  The  runners  who  went  before  the  king's  chariot. 

2  "  When  Abiathar  the  son  of  Ahimelech  fled  to  David  to  Keilah,  he  came 
down  with  an  ephod  in  his  hand."  vs.  6. 


250  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

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  knew  that 
Saul  devised  mischief  against  him  ;  and  he  said  to  Abiathar 
the  priest,  ''Bring  hither  the  ephod."  Then  said  David:  ''0 
Lord  God  of  Israel,  thy  servant  hath  certainly  heard  that  Saul 
seeketh  to  come  to  Keilah,  to  destroy  the  city  for  my  sake. 
Will  Saul  come  down,  as  thy  servant  hath  heard  ?  0  Lord  God 
of  Israel,  I  beseech  thee,  tell  thy  servant."  And  the  Lord  said, 
''He  will  come  down."  Then  said  David:  "Will  the  men  of 
Keilah  deliver  me  and  my  men  into  the  hand  of  Saul  ?  "  And 
the  Lord  said,  "They  will  deliver  thee  up."  Then  David  and 
his  men,  which  were  about  six  hundred,  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  forbare 
to  go  forth.  And  David  abode  in  the  wilderness  in  strong  holds, 
and  remained  in  a  mountain  in  the  wilderness  of  Ziph. 

And  the  Ziphites  came  unto  Saul  to  Gibeah,  saying:  "Doth 
not  David  hide  himself  in  the  hill  of  Hachilah,  which  is  before 
Jeshimon  ?  "  Then  Saul  arose,  and  went  down  to  the  wilderness 
of  Ziph,  having  three  thousand  chosen  men  of  Israel  with  him, 
to  seek  David  in  the  wilderness  of  Ziph.^  And  Saul  pitched  in 

1  A  second  account  of  David's  magnanimity  to  Saul  is  preserved  (chap, 
xxiv.):  — 

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  in  to  cover  his  feet: 
and  David  and  his  men  remained  in  the  sides  of  the  cave.  And  the  men  of 
David  said  unto  him:  "Behold  the  day  of  which  the  Lord  said  unto  thee,  Be- 
hold, I  will  deliver  thine  enemy  into  thine  hand,  that  thou  mayest  do  to  him  as 
it  shall  seem  good  unto  thee."  And  he  said  unto  his  men  :  "The  Lord  forbid 
that  I  should  do  this  thing  unto  my  master,  the  Lord's  anointed,  to  stretch  forth 
mine  hand  against  him,  seeing  he  is  the  anointed  of  the  Lord."  So  David 
stayed  his  servants  with  these  words,  and  suffered  them  not  to  rise  against  Saul. 

Then  David  arose,  and  cut  off  the  skirt  of  Saul's  robe  privily.  And  it  came 
to  pass  afterward,  that  David's  heart  smote  him,  because  he  had  cut  off  Saul's 
skirt.  But  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  the  Lord  had  delivered  thee  to-day  into  mine  hand  in  the  cave:  and  some 
bade  me  kill  thee:  but  mine  eye  spared  thee;  and  I  said,  I  will  not  put  forth 


DAVID   SPARES   SAUL's   LIFE  251 

the  hill  of  Hachilah,  which  is  before  Jeshimon,  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, 
atid  understood  that  Saul  was  come  from  Keilah.  And  David 
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  Saul  lay  in  the  trench,  and 
the  people  pitched  round  about  him. 

Then  answered  David  and  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  Abi- 
shai came  to  the  people  by  night :  and  behold,  Saul  lay  sleeping 
within  the  trench,  and  his  spear  stuck  in  the  ground  at  his 
bolster :  ^  but  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  one  stroke,  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 
the  Lord's  anointed,  and  be  guiltless  ?  "  David  said  further- 
more :  ''As  the  Lord  liveth,  the  Lord  shall  smite  him;  or  his 
day  shall  come  to  die ;  or  he  shall  descend  into  battle,  and 
perish.  The  Lord  forbid  that  I  should  stretch  forth  mine  hand 
against  the  Lord's  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  took  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  waked:  for  they  were  all  asleep;  because  a 
deep  sleep  from  the  Lord  was  fallen  upon  them. 

Then  David  went  over  to  the  other  side,  and  stood  on  the  top 
of  an  hill  afar  off ;  a  great  space  being  between  them  :  and  David 
cried  to  the  people,  and  to  Abner  the  son  of  Ner,  saying,  "  An- 
swerest  thou  not,  Abner  ?  "  Then  Abner  answered  and  said, 

mine  hand  against  my  lord;  for  he  is  the  Lord's  anointed.  Moreover,  my  father, 
see,  yea,  see  the  skirt  of  thy  robe  in  my  hand:  for  in  that  I  cut  off  the  skirt  of 
thy  robe,  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  hunt- 
est  my  soul  to  take  it." 

1  According  to  2  Chron.  ii.  16,  Zeruiah  was  David's  sister. 

2  A  spear  standing  upright  in  the  ground  is  still  the  sign  of  the  sheikh's  tent 
in  a  Beduin  camp. 


252  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

*^  Who  art  thou  that  criest  ?  "  And  David  said  to  Abner :  "  Art 
not  thou  a  valiant  man  ?  and  who  is  like  to  thee  in  Israel  ? 
wherefore  then  hast  thou  not  kept  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  the  Lord  liveth,  ye  are 
worthy  to  die,  because  ye  have  not  kept  your  master,  the  Lord's 
anointed.  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.'^  And  he  said:  "  Wherefore  doth  my  lord  thus  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.  If  the  Lord  have  stirred  thee  up  against  me,  let 
him  accept  an  offering  :  but  if  they  be  the  children  of  men,  cursed 
be  they  before  the  Lord ;  for  they  have  driven  me  out  this  day 
from  abiding  in  the  inheritance  of  the  Lord,  saying,  Go  serve 
other  gods.  Now  therefore,  let  not  my  blood  fall  to  the  earth 
away  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord :  for  the  king  of  Israel  is 
come  out  to  seek  my  life,  as  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  soul  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. 
The  Lord  render  to  every  man  his  righteousness  and  his  faith- 
fulness: for  the  Lord  delivered  thee  into  my  hand  to-day,  but  I 
would  not  stretch  forth  mine  hand  against  the  Lord'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  the  Lord,  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  on  his  way,  and 
Saul  returned  to  his  place. 

David  and  Abigail  (1  Sam.  xxv.).  And  David  arose,  and 
went  down  to  the  wilderness  of  Paran.  And  there  was  a  man  in 
Maon,  whose  possessions  were  in  Carmel ;  and  the  man  was 
very  great,  and  he  had  three  thousand  sheep,  and  a  thousand 
goats  :  and  he  was  shearing  his  sheep  in  Carmel.   Now  the  name 


DAVID   AND   ABIGAIL  253 

of  the  man  was  Nabal ;  and  the  name  of  his  wife  Abigail  :  and 
she  was  a  woman  of  good  understanding,  and  of  a  beautiful 
countenance  :  but  the  man  was  churlish  and  evil  in  his  doings; 
and  he  was  of  the  house  of  Caleb.  And  David  heard  in  the  wil- 
derness that  Nabal  did  shear  his  sheep.  And  David  sent  out  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  my  brother :  Peace  be  both  to  thee,  and 
peace  be  to  thine  house,  and  peace  be  unto  all  that  thou  hast.  And 
now  I  have  heard  that  thou  hast  shearers :  now  thy  shepherds 
which  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  favor  in  thine  eyes :  for  we  come  in  a  good  day :  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  ac- 
cording 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  water,  and  my  flesh  that  I  have  killed  for  my 
shearers,  and  give  it  unto  men  whom  I  know  not  whence  they 
be  ?  "  So  David's  young  men  turned  their  way,  and  went  again, 
and  came  and  told  him  all  those  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,  KabaFs  wife,  say- 
ing :  "  Behold,  David  sent  messengers  out  of  the  wilderness  to 
salute  our  master;  and  he  railed  on  them.  But  the  men  were 
very  good  unto  us,  and  we  were  not  hurt,  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  day, 
all  the  while  we  were  with  them  keeping  the  sheep.  Now  there- 
fore know  and  consider  what  thou  wilt  do  ;  for  evil  is  deter- 
mined against  our  master,  and  against  all  his  household  :  for  he 
is  such  a  son  of  Belial,  that  a  man  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 


254  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

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  servants  :  "  Go  on  before  me  ;  behold,  I  come 
after  you.'^  But  she  told  not  her  husband  Nabal.  And  it  was 
so,  as  she  rode  on  the  ass,  that  she  came  down  by  the  covert 
of  the  hill,  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.  So  and  more  also  do  God  unto 
David,  if  I  leave  of  all  that  pertain  to  him  by  the  morning  light 
so  much  as  one  man  child." 

And  when  Abigail  saw  David,  she  hasted,  and  lighted  off 
the  ass,  and  fell  before  David  on  her  face,  and  bowed  herself  to 
the  ground,  and  fell  at  his  feet,  and  said  :  "  Upon  me  let  this  in- 
iquity be  :  and  let  thine  handmaid,  I  pray  thee,  speak  in  thine 
audience,  and  hear  the  words  of  thine  handmaid.  Let  not  my 
lord,  I  pray  thee,  regard  this  man  of  Belial,  even  Nabal :  for 
as  his  name  is,  so  is  he  ;  '  Nabal '  is  his  name,  and  folly  is  with 
him :  but  I  thine  handmaid  saw  not  the  young  men  of  my  lord, 
whom  thou  didst  send.  Now  therefore,  my  lord,  as  the  Lord 
liveth,  and  as  thy  soul  liveth,  seeing  the  Lord  hath  withholden 
thee  from  coming  to  shed  blood,  and  from  avenging  thyself 
with  thine  own  hand,  now  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  :  for  the  Lord  will  certainly 
make  my  lord  a  sure  house ;  because  my  lord  fighteth  the  battles 
of  the  Lord,  and  evil  hath  not  been  found  in  thee  all  thy  days. 
Yet  a  man  is  risen  to  pursue  thee,  and  to  seek  thy  soul:  but 
the  soul  of  my  lord  shall  be  bound  in  the  bundle  of  the  living 
with  the  Lord  thy  God  ;  and  the  souls  of  thine  enemies,  them 
shall  he  sling  out,  as  out  of  the  middle  of  a  sling.  And  it  shall 
come  to  pass,  when  the  Lord  shall  have  done  to  my  lord  accord- 
ing 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  :  but  when  the  Lord  shall  have  dealt  well  with  my  lord, 
then  remember  thine  handmaid." 

^  Jive  measures.  One  and  two-thirds  bushels. 


DAVID   AMONG   THE    PHILISTINES  255 

And  David  said  to  Abigail :  ^'  Blessed  be  the  Lord  God  of 
Israel,  which  sent  thee  this  day  to  meet  me :  and  blessed  be 
thy  advice,  and  blessed  be  thou,  which  hast  kept  ine  this  day 
from  coming  to  shed  blood,  and  from  avenging  myself  with 
mine  own  hand.  For  in  very  deed,  as  the  Lord  God  of  Israel 
liveth,  which  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  man  child." 
So  David  received  of  her  hand  that  which  she  had  brought  him, 
and  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  Nabal's  heart  was  merry 
within  him,  for  he  was  very  drunken :  wherefore  she  told  him 
nothing,  less  or  more,  until  the  morning  light.  But  it  came  to 
pass  in  the  morning,  when  the  wine  was  gone  out  of  Nabal, 
and  his  wife  had  told  these  things,  that  his  heart  died  within 
him,  and  he  became  as  a  stone.  And  it  came  to  pass  about  ten 
days  after,  that  the  Lord  smote  Nabal,  that  he  died. 

And  when  David  heard  that  Nabal  was  dead,  he  said : 
''  Blessed  be  the  Lord,  that  hath  pleaded  the  cause  of  my  re- 
proach from  the  hand  of  Nabal,  and  hath  kept  his  servant  from 
evil :  for  the  Lord  hath  returned  the  wickedness  of  Nabal  upon 
his  own  head." 

And  David  sent  and  communed  with  Abigail,  to  take  her  to 
him  to  wife.  And  when  tlie  servants  of  David  were  come  to 
Abigail  to  Carmel,  they  spake  unto  her,  saying :  "  David  sent 
us  unto  thee,  to  take  thee  to  him  to  wife."  And  she  arose,  and 
bowed  herself  on  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  went  after  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  Phalti  the  son  of  Laish,  which  was  of  Gallim. 

David  among  the  Philistines  ^  (l  Sam.  xxvii.  l-xxviii.  2 ; 

1  Another  story  of  David  at  the  court  of  Achish  was  current,   perhaps  as 
seeming:  less  unpatriotic  than  tliat  given  above:  — 
And  David  arose,  and  fled  that  day  for  fear  of  Saul,  and  went  to  Achish  the 


256  THE    EAKLY   MONARCHY 

xxix.).  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  speedily  escape  into  the  land  of  the  Philistines ; 
and  Saul  shall  despair  of  me,  to  seek  me  any  more  in  any  coast 
of  Israel :  so  shall  I  escape  out  of  his  hand.''  And  David  arose, 
and  he  passed  over  with  the  six  hundred  men  that  were  with 
him  unto  Achish,  Ihe  son  of  Maoch,  king  of  Gath.  And  David 
dwelt  with  Achish  at  Gath,  he  and  his  men,  every  man  with  his 
household,  even  David  with  his  two  wives,  Ahinoam  the  Jez- 
reelitess,  and  Abigail  the  Carmelitess,  Nabal's  wife.  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  I  have  now  found  grace  in 
thine  eyes,  let  them  give  me  a  place  in  some  town  in  the  coun- 
try, 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.  And  David 
and  his  men  went  up,  and  invaded  the  Geshurites,  and  the  Gez- 
rites,  and  the  Amalekites  :  for  those  nations  were  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  land,  which  is  from  Telam,  as  thou  goest  to  Shur, 
even  unto  the  land  of  Egypt.  And  David  smote  the  land,  and 
left  neither  man  nor  woman  alive,  and  took  away  the  sheep,  and 
the  oxen,  and  the  asses,  and  the  camels,  and  the  apparel,  and 
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  tidings  to  Gath,  saying:  ^^  Lest  they 
should  tell  on  us."  So  did  David,  and  such  was  his  manner 

king  of  Gath.  And  the  servants  of  Achish  said  unto  him:  "Is  not  this  David 
the  king  of  the  land  ?  did  they  not  sing  one  to  another  of  him  in  dances  saying, 

"  Saul  hath  slain  his  thousands, 
And  David  his  ten  thousands  ?  " 

And  David  laid  up  these  words  in  his  heart,  and  was  sore  afraid  of  Achish  the 
king  of  Gath.  And  he  changed  his  behavior  before  them,  and  feigned  himself 
mad  in  their  hands,  and  scrabbled  on  the  doors  of  the  gate,  and  let  his  spittle 
fall  down  upon  his  beard.  Then  said  Achish  unto  his  servants:  "  Lo,  ye  see  the 
man  is  mad:  wherefore  then  have  ye  brought  him  to  me  ?  Have  I  need  of  mad 
men,  that  ye  have  brought  this  fellow  to  play  the  mad  man  in  my  presence  ? 
shall  this  fellow  come  into  mv  house  ?"  1  Sam.  xxi.  10-15. 


DAVID    AMONG   THE    PHILISTINES  257 

all  the  while  he  dwelt  in  the  country  of  the  Philistines.  And 
Achish  believed  David,  saying :  "  He  hath  made  his  people  Is- 
rael utterly  to  abhor  him  ;  therefore  he  shall  be  my  servant  for 
ever." 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  those  days,  that  the  Philistines  gath- 
ered their  armies  together  for  warfare,  to  fight  with  Israel.  And 
Achish  said  unto  David  :  ''  Know  thou  assuredly,  that  thou  shalt 
go  out  with  me  to  battle,  thou  and  thy  men."  And  David  said 
to  Achish,  "  Surely  thou  shalt  know  what  thy  servant  can  do.'* 
And  Achish  said  to  David  :  "  Therefore  will  I  make  thee  keeper 
of  mine  head  ^  for  ever." 

Now  the  Philistines  gathered  together  all  their  armies  to 
Aphek :  and  the  Israelites  pitched  by  a  fountain  which  is  in 
Jezreel.  And  the  lords  of  the  Philistines  passed  on  by  hundreds, 
and  by  thousands  :  but  David  and  his  men  passed  on  in  the  rear- 
ward with  Achish.  Then  said  the  princes  of  the  Philistines, 
"What  do  these  Hebrews  here  ?"  And  Achish  said  unto  the 
princes  of  the  Philistines :  "  Is  not  this  David,  the  servant  of 
Saul  the  king  of  Israel,  which  hath  been  with  me  these  two 
years,  and  I  have  found  no  fault  in  him  since  he  fell  away  unto 
me  unto  this  day  ?  "  And  the  princes  of  the  Philistines  were 
wroth  with  him ;  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Make  this  fellow  return, 
that  he  may  -go  again  to  his  place  which  thou  hast  appointed 
him,  and  let  him  not  go  down  with  us  to  battle,  lest  in  the  bat- 
tle he  be  an  adversary  to  us :  for  wherewith  should  he  reconcile 
himself  unto  his  master  ?  should  it  not  be  with  the  heads  of 
these  men  ?  Is  not  this  David,  of  whom  they  sang  one  to  an- 
other in  dances,  saying, 

*'Saul  slew  his  thousands. 
And  David  his  ten  thousands  ?  " 

Then  Achish  called  David,  and  said  unto  him  :  "  Surely,  as 
the  Lord  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  favor  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 
1  keeper  of  mine  head.  '  Captain  of  my  bodyguard.' 


258  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

tight  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  go  to  the  place  where  I 
have  stationed  thee,  and  put  no  evil  design  in  thy  heart,  for  thou 
art  good  in  my  sight :  as  soon  as  ye  be  up  early  in  the  morning, 
and  have  light,  depart.''  So  David  and  his  men  rose  up  early  to 
depart  in  the  morning,  to  return  into  the  land  of  the  Philistines. 
And  the  Philistines  went  up  to  Jezreel. 

David  and  the  Amalekite  Raid  (l  Sam.  xxx.).  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  Zik- 
lag, and  smitten  Ziklag,  and  burned  it  with  fire  ;  and  had  taken 
the  women  captives,  that  were  therein  :  they  slew  not  any,  either 
great  or  small,  but  carried  them  away,  and  went  on  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  cap- 
tives, Ahinoam  the  Jezreelitess,  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 
encouraged  himself  in  the  Lord  his  God.  And  David  said  to 
AV)iathar  the  priest,  Ahimelech's  son,  ''  I  pray  thee,  bring  me 
hither  the  ephod."  And  Abiathar  brought  thither  the  ephod  to 
David.  And  David  enquired  of  the  Lord,  saying:  ''  Shall  I  pur- 
sue after  this  troop  ?  shall  I  overtake  them  ?  "  And  he  answered 
him  :  *' Pursue  :  for  thou  shalt  surely  overtake  them,  and  without 
fail  recover  all." 

So  David  went,  he  and  the  six  hundred  men  that  were  with 
him,  and  came  to  the  brook  Besor,  where  those  that  were  left 
behind  stayed.  But  David  pursued,  he  and  four  hundred  men  : 
for  two  hundred  abode  behind,  which  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  made  him  drink  water ;  and  they  gave  him 


DAVID   AND   THE    AMALEKITE    RAID  259 

a  piece  of  a  cake  of  tigs,  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,  serv- 
ant to  an  Amalekite  ;  and  my  master  left  me,  because  three  days 
agone  I  fell  sick.  We  made  an  invasion  upon  the  south  of  the 
Cherethites,  and  upon  the  coast  which  belongeth  to  Judah,  and 
upon  the  south  of  Caleb  ;  and  we  burned  Ziklag  with  fire.''  And 
David  said  to  him,  ''  Canst  thou  bring  me  down  to  this  com- 
pany ?  "  And  he  said:  "Swear  unto  me  by  God,  that  thou  wilt 
neither  kill  me,  nor  deliver  me  into  the  hands  of  my  master,  and 
I  will  bring  thee  down  to  this  company." 

And  when  he  had  brought  him  down,  behold,  they  were 
spread  abroad  upon  all  the  earth,  eating  and  drinking,  and  danc- 
ing, 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  twilight  even  unto  the  evening  :  and 
there  escaped  not  a  man  of  them,  save  four  hundred  young  men, 
which  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 
David  took  all  the  flocks  and  the  herds,  w^hich  they  drave  be- 
fore those  other  cattle,  and  they  said,  "This  is  David's  spoil.'' 

And  David  came  to  the  two  hundred  men,  which  were  so 
faint  that  they  could  not  follow  David,  whom  he  had  made  also 
to  abide  at  the  brook  Besor  :  and  they  went  forth  to  meet  David, 
and  to  meet  the  people  that  were  with  him  :  and  they  came  near 
to  the  people,  and  saluted  them.  Then  answered  all  the  wicked 
men  and  men  of  Belial,  of  those  that  went  with  David,  and  said : 
"  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,  after  that 
the  Lord  hath  wrought  for  us,  and  hath  preserved  us,  and  de- 
livered the  company  that  came  against  us  into  our  hand.  For 
who  will  hearken  unto  you  in  this  matter  ?  but  as  his  part  is 
that  goeth  down  to  the  battle,  so  shall  his  part  be  that  tarrieth 
by  the  stuff:   they  shall  part  alike."  And  it  was  so  from  that 


260  THE   EARLY    MONARCHY 

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  pre- 
sent for  you  of  the  spoil  of  the  enemies  of  the  Lord:"  to  them 
which  were  in  Beth-el,  and  to  them  which  were  in  south  Ra- 
moth,  and  to  them  which  were  in  Jattir,  and  to  them  which 
were  in  Aroer,  and  to  them  which  were  in  Siphmoth,  and  to 
them  which  were  in  Eshtemoa,  and  to  them  which  were  in  Car- 
mel,  and  to  them  which  were  in  the  cities  of  the  Jerahmeelites, 
and  to  them  which  were  in  the  cities  of  the  Kenites,  and  to  them 
which  were  in  Hormah,  and  to  them  which  were  in  Beer-sheba, 
and  to  them  which  were  in  Athach,  and  to  them  which  were  in 
Hebron,  and  to  all  the  places  where  David  himself  and  his  men 
were  wont  to  haunt. 

Saul  and  the  Witch  of  En-dor  (l  Sam.  xxviii.  3-25).  Now 
Samuel  was  dead,  and  all  Israel  had  lamented  him,  and  buried 
him  in  Eamah,  even  in  his  own  city.  And  Saul  had  put  away 
those  that  had  familiar  spirits,  and  the  wizards,  out  of  the  land. 
And  the  Philistines  gathered  themselves  together,  and  came 
and  pitched  in  Shunem  :  and  Saul  gathered  all  Israel  together, 
and  they  pitched  in  Gilboa.  And  when  Saul  saw  the  host  of  the 
Philistines,  he  was  afraid,  and  his  heart  greatly  trembled.  And 
when  Saul  enquired  of  the  Lord,  the  Lord  answered  him  not, 
neither  by  dreams,  nor  by  Urim,  nor  by  prophets.  Then  said 
Saul  unto  his  servants  :  "  Seek  me  a  woman  that  hath  a  familiar 
spirit,  that  I  may  go  to  her,  and  enquire  of  her."  And  his  serv- 
ants said  to  him  :  ''  Behold,  there  is  a  woman  that  hath  a  famil- 
iar spirit  at  En-dor." 

And  Saul  disguised  himself,  and  put  on  other  raiment,  and 
he  went,  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,  how  he  hath  cut  off  those  that  have  famil- 
iar spirits,  and  the  wizards,  out  of  the  land  :  wherefore  then  lay- 
est  thou  a  snare  for  my  life,  to  cause  me  to  die  ?  "  And  Saul 
sware  to  her  by  the  Lord,  saying:  "As  the  Lord  liveth,  there 
shall  no  punishment  happen  to  thee  for  this  thing."  Then  said 
1  In  Num.  xxxi.  27  ff.,  this  statute  is  ascribed  to  Moses. 


THE  DEATH  OF  SAUL  AND  JONATHAN        261 

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 :  for  what  sawest  thou  ?  " 
And  the  woman  said  unto  Saul,  ^'  I  saw  a  god  ascending  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."  Then  said  Samuel :  "  Where- 
fore then  dost  thou  ask  of  me,  seeing  the  Lord  is  departed  from 
thee,  and  is  become  thine  enemy  ?  and  to-morrow  shalt  thou  and 
thy  sons  be  with  me :  the  Lord  also  shall  deliver  the  host  of 
Israel  into  the  hand  of  the  Philistines." 

Then  Saul  fell  straightway  all  along  on  the  earth,  and  was 
sore  afraid,  because  of  the  words  of  Samuel:  and  there  was  no 
strength  in  him  ;  for  he  had  eaten  no  bread  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,  "  I  will  not  eat."  But  his  serv- 
ants, together  with  the  woman,  compelled  him  ;  and  he  heark- 
ened unto  their  voice.  So  he  arose  from  the  earth,  and  sat  upon 
the  bed.  And  the  woman  had  a  fat  calf  in  the  house ;  and  she 
hasted,  and  killed  it,  and  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  and  Jonathan  (l  Sam.  xxxi.).  Now 
the  Philistines  fought  against  Israel :  and  the  men  of  Israel  fled 


262  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

from  before  the  Philistines,  and  fell  down  slain  in  mount 
Gilboa.  And  the  Philistines  followed  hard  upon  Saul  and  upon 
his  sons ;  and  the  Philistines  slew  Jonathan  and  Abinadab,  and 
Melchishua,  Saul's  sons.  And  the  battle  went  sore  against  Saul, 
and  the  archers  hit  him ;  and  he  was  sore  M'ounded  of  the 
archers.  Then  said  Saul  unto  his  armorbearer :  "  Draw  thy 
sword,  and  thrust  me  through  therewith  :  lest  these  uncircum- 
cised  come  and  abuse  me."  But  his  armorbearer  would  not; 
for  he  was  sore  afraid.  Therefore  Saul  took  a  sword,  and  fell 
upon  it.  And  when  his  armorbearer  saw  that  Saul  was  dead, 
he  fell  likewise  upon  his  sword,  and  died  with  him.  So  Saul 
died,  and  his  three  sons,  and  his  armorbearer,  that  same  day 
together. 

And  when  the  men  of  Israel  that  were  on  the  other  side  of 
the  valley  saw  that  the  men  of  Israel  fled,  and  that  Saul  and 
his  sons  were  dead,  they  forsook  the  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  armor,  and  sent  into  the  land  of  the  Philistines  round 
about,  to  publish  it  to  their  idols  and  among  the  people.  And 
they  put  his  armor  in  the  house  of  the  Ashtaroth  :  and  they 
fastened  his  body  to  the  wall  of  Beth-shan.  And  when  the  in- 
habitants 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  came  to  Jabesh,  and  burnt 
them  there.  And  they  took  their  bones,  and  buried  them  under 
a  tree  at  Jabesh,  and  fasted  seven  days. 

David's  Lament  for  Saul  and  Jonathan  (2  Sam.  i.).  Now 
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 :  "  That  the  people  are 


DAVID'S   LAMENT   FOR   SAUL   AND   JONATHAN  263 

fled  from  the  battle,  and  many  of  the  people  also  are  fallen ; 
and  Saul  and  Jonathan  his  son  are  dead  also." 

And  David  said  unto  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 :  '•  As  I  happened  by  chance 
upon  mount  Gilboa,  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.  He  said  unto 
me  again.  Stand,  I  pray  thee,  upon  me,  and  slay  me :  for  an- 
guish is  come  upon  me,  because  my  life  is  yet  whole  in  me.  So 
I  stood  upon  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.'' 

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  people  of  the  Lord,  and  for  the  house  of  Israel; 
because  they  were  fallen  by  the  sword. 

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  stretch  forth  thine  hand  to  destroy  the  Lord's  an- 
ointed ?  "  And  David  said  unto  him:  "  Thy  blood  be  upon  thy 
head ;  for  thy  mouth  hath  testified  against  thee,  saying,  I  have 
slain  the  Lord's  anointed."  And  David  called  one  of  the  young 
men,  and  safd,  ''Go  near,  and  fall  upon  him."  And  he  smote 
him  that  he  died. 

And  David  lamented  with  this  lamentation  over  Saul  and 
over  Jonathan  his  son  (behold  it  is  written  in  the  Book  of 
Jasher),  and  he  said  : 

*'Thy  glory,  0  Israel,  is  slain  upon  thy  high  places! 
How  are  the  mighty  fallen !  ^ 

1  The  text  of  this  passage,  and  of  others  in  the  poem,  is   badly  corrupted. 
See  H.  P   Smith:  Samuel  (in  the  International  Critical  Commentary),  pp.  258- 
265.  The  opening  lines  were  probably  somewhat  as  follows: 
"Weep,  O  Judah! 
Grieve,  0  Israel ! 
On  thy  heights  are  the  slain ; 
How  are  the  mighty  fallen!  " 


264  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

Tell  it  not  in  Gath, 

Publish  it  not  in  the  streets  of  Askelon ; 

Lest  the  daughters  of  the  Philistines  rejoice, 

Lest  the  daughters  of  the  uncircumcised  triumph. 

Ye  mountains  of  Gilboa, 

Let  there  be  no  dew,  neither  let  there  be  rain,  upon 

you,  ye  fields  of  death : 
For  there  the  shield  of  the  mighty  is  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,  with  other  delights, 
"Who  put  on  ornaments  of  gold  upon  your  apparel. 
How  are  the  mighty  fallen  in  the  midst  of  the  battle ! 

0  Jonathan.   .   .   ^ 

1  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!" 

1  This  distich  should  be  rendered:  — 

*'  Saul  and  Jonathan,  the  beloved  and  the  lovely. 
In  life  and  in  death  they  were  not  divided." 

2  This  line  is  hopelessly  mutilated. 


CIVIL  WAR  265 

2.  David 

David  King  at  Hebron ;  Ishbaal  at  Mahanaim  (2  Sam.  ii. 
1-10).  And  it  came  to  pass  aftfer  this,  that  David  enquired  of  the 
Lord,  saying,  '^  Shall  I  go  up  into  any  of  the  cities  of  Judah?'^ 
And  the  Lord  said  unto  him,  "Go  up."  And  David  said, 
"  Whither  shall  I  go  up  ?  "  And  he  said,  "  Unto  Hebron."  So 
David  ^vent  up  thither,  and  his  two  wives  also,  Ahinoam  the 
Jezreelitess,  and  Abigail  Nabal's  wife  the  Carmelite.  And  his 
men  that  were  with  him  did  David  bring  up,  every  man  with 
his  household  :  and  they  dwelt  in  the  cities  of  Hebron.  And 
the  men  of  Judah  came,  and  there  they  anointed  David  king 
over  the  house  of  Judah. 

And  they  told  David,  saying,  ''  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  the  Lord,  that  ye  have  shewed  this  kindness  unto  your  lord, 
even  unto  Saul,  and  have  buried  him.  And  now  the  Lord  shew 
kindness  and  truth  unto  you :  and  I  also  will  requite  you  the 
kindness,  because  ye  have  done  this  thing.  Therefore  now  let 
your  hands  be  strengthened,  and  be  ye  valiant :  for  your  master 
Saul  is  dead,  and  also  the  house  of  Judah  have  anointed  me 
king  over  them." 

But  Abner  the  son  of  Ner,  captain  of  Saul's  host,  took  Ish- 
baal ^  the  son  of  Saul,  and  brought  him  over  to  Mahanaim  ;  and 
made  him  king  over  Gilead,  and  over  the  Asherites,  and  over 
Jezreel,  and  over  Ephraim,  and  over  Benjamin,  and  over  all 
Israel.   But  the  house  of  Judah  followed  David. 

Civil  War  (2  Sam.  ii.  12-iii.  1).  And  Abner  the  son  of  Xer, 
and  the  servants  of  Ishbaal  the  son  of  Saul,  went  out  from 
Mahanaim  to  Gibeon.  And  Joab  the  son  of  Zeruiah,  and  the 
servants  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  now  arise,  and  play  before 
us."    And  Joab  said,  "Let  them  arise."   Then  there  arose  and 

1  Ishbaal  was  throughout  this  passage  changed  to  Ishbosketh  by  the  later 
scribes,  who  disliked  the  heathen  associations  ol-baal,  and  hence  substituted  for 
\t-hdsheth,  'shameful  thing.'  In  Saul's  time,  however,  6a'a/, 'lord'  was  applied 
quite  innocently  to  Jehovah. 


266  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

went  over  by  number  twelve  of  Benjamin,  which  pertained  to 
Ishbaal  the  son  of  Saul,  and  twelve  of  the  servants  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  Helkath-hazzurim,^  which  is  in 
Gibeon. 

And  there  was  a  very  sore  battle  that  day  ;  and  Abner  was 
beaten,  and  the  men  of  Israel,  before  the  servants  of  David. 
And  there  were  three  sons  of  Zeruiah  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  armor."  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  with  the  hinder  end  of  the  spear  smote  him 
under  the  fifth  rib,  that  the  spear  came  out  behind  him;  and 
he  fell  down  there,  and  died  in  the  same  place.  Joab  also  and 
Abishai  pursued  after  Abner :  and  the  sun  went  down  when 
they  were  come  to  the  hill  of  Ammah,  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  troop,  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,  unless  thou  hadst  spoken,  surely  then 
in  the  morning  the  people  had  gone  up  every  one  from  follow- 
ing his  brother."  So  Joab  blew  a  trumpet,  and  all  the  people 
stood  still,  and  pursued  after  Israel  no  more,  neither  fought 
they  aUy  more.  And  Abner  and  his  men  walked  all  that  night 
through  the  plain,  and  passed  over  Jordan,  and  went  through 
all  Bithron,  and  they  came  to  Mahanaim.  And  Joab  returned 
from  following  Abner  :   and  when  he  had  gathered  all  the  people 

i  Helkath-hazzurim.   '  Field  of  the  Enemies  '  or  '  Field  of  Sharp  Knives.' 


ABNER'S  DEFECTION  AND  DEATH  267 

together,  there  lacked  of  David's  servants  nineteen  men  and 
Asahel.  But  the  servants  of  David  had  smitten  of  Benjamin 
and  of  Abner's  men  three  hundred  and  threescore  men.  And 
they  took  up  Asahel,  and  buried  him  in  the  sepulchre  of  his 
father,  which  was  in  Beth-lehem.  And  Joab  and  his  men  went 
all  night,  and  they  came  to  Hebron  at  break  of  day. 

Now  there  was  long  war  between  the  house  of  Saul  and  the 
house  of  David :  but  Davfd  waxed  stronger  and  stronger,  and  the 
house  of  Saul  waxed  weaker  and  weaker. 

Abner^s  Defection  and  Death  (2  Sam.  iii.  6-39).  And  it 
came  to  pass,  while  there  was  war  between  the  house  of  Saul 
and  the  house  of  David,  that  Abner  made  himself  strong  for 
the  house  of  Saul.  And  Saul  had  a  concubine,  whose  name 
was  Rizpah,  the  daughter  of  Aiah :  and  Abner  took  her.  And 
Ishbaal  said  to  Abner,  "  Wherefore  hast  thou  gone  in  unto  my 
father's  concubine  ? "  Then  was  Abner  very  wroth  for  the 
words  of  Ishbaal,  and  said;  "Am  I  a  dog's  head,  that  I  do 
shew  kindness  this  day  unto  the  house  of  Saul  thy  father,  to 
his  brethren,  and  to  his  friends,  and  have  not  delivered  thee  into 
the  hand  of  David,  and  yet  thou  chargest  me  to-day  with  a  fault 
concerning  a  woman  ?  So  do  God  to  Abner,  and  more  also,  ex- 
cept, as  the  Lord  hath  sworn  to  David,  even  so  I  do  to  him ; 
to  translate  the  kingdom  from  the  house  of  Saul,  and  to  set  up 
the  throne  of  David  over  Israel  and  over  Judah,  from  Dan 
even  to  Beer-sheba."  And  he  could  not  answer  Abner  a  word 
again,  because  he  feared  him. 

And  Abner  sent  messengers  to  David  on  his  behalf,  saying : 
^'Make  thy  league  with  me,  and  behold,  my  hand  shall  be  with 
thee,  to  bring  about  all  Israel  unto  thee."  And  he  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,  Saul's  daughter,  when  thou  comest  to  see  my  face."  And 
David  sent  messengers  to  Ishbaal  Saul's  son,  saying,  "  Deliver 
me  my  wife  Michal,  which  I  espoused  to  me  for  an  hundred 
foreskins  of  the  Philistines."  And  Ishbaal  sent,  and  took  her 
from  her  husband,  even  from  Phaltiel  the  son  of  Laish.  And 
her  husband  went  with  her  along  weeping  behind  her  to  Bahu- 
rim.  Then  said  Abner  unto  him,  "  Go,  return."  And  he  re- 
turned. 

And  Abner  had  communication  with  the  elders  of    Israel, 


268  THE  EARLY   MONARCHY 

saying:  "Ye  sought  for  David  in  times  past  to  be  king  over 
you :  now  then  do  it :  for  the  Lord  hath  spoken  of  David,  say- 
ing, By  the  hand  of  my  servant  David  I  will  save  my  people 
Israel  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Philistines,  and  out  of  the  hand 
of  all  their  enemies."  And  Abneralso  spake  in  the  ears  of  Ben- 
jamin :  and  Abner  went  also  to  speak  in  the  ears  of  David  in 
Hebron  all  that  seemed  good  to  Israel,  and  that  seemed  good  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  mayesfc  reign  over  all 
that  thine  heart  desire th."  And  David  sent  Abner  away  ;  and 
he  went  in  peace. 

And  behold,  the  servants  of  David  and  Joab  came  from  a 
foray,  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  ?  Knowest  thou  not 
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,  which  brought  him  again  from  the  well 
of  Sirah :  but  David  knew  it  not.  And  when  Abner  was  re- 
turned to  Hebron,  Joab  took  him  apart  to  the  side  of  the  gate 
to  speak  with  him  quietly,  and  smote  him  there  under  the  fifth 
rib,  that  he  died,  for  the  blood  of  Asahel  his  brother. 

And  afterward  when  David  heard  it,  he  said  :  "  I  and  my 
kingdom  are  guiltless  before  the  Lord  for  ever  from  the  blood 
of  Abner  the  son  of  Ner :  let  it  rest  on  the  head  of  Joab,  and 
on  all  his  father's  house ;  and  let  there  not  fail  from  the  house 
of  Joab  one  that  hath  an  issue,  or  that  is  a  leper,  or  that  leaneth 
on  a  staff,*  or  that  falleth  on  the  sword,  or  that  lacketh  bread." 
And  David  said  to  Joab  and  to  all  the  people  that  were  with 
him  :  "  Kend  your  clothes,  and  gird  you  with  sackcloth,  and 
1  leaneth  on  a  staff.  Better  :  'holdeth  the  spindle  ; '  i.  e.,  is  effeminate. 


MURDER  OF   ISHBAAL  269 

mourn  before  Abner."  And  king  David  himself  followed  the 
bier.  And  they  buried  Abner  in  Hebron :  and  the  king  lifted 
up  his  voice,  and  wept  at  the  grave  of  Abner ;  and  all  the 
people  wept.  And  the  king  lamented  over  Abner,  and  said, 

^'  Should  Abner  die  as  a  fool  dieth  ? 
Thy  hands  were  not  bound, 

Xor  tliy  feet  put  into  fetters  : 
As  a  man  falleth  before  wicked  men,  so  fellest  thou.'' 

And  all  the  people  wept  again  over  him.  And  when  all  the 
people  came  to  cause  David  to  eat  meat  while  it  was  yet  day, 
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.  For  all  the  people  and  all  Israel 
understood  that  day  that  it  was  not  of  the  king  to  slay  Abner 
the  son  of  Xer.  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  :  the  Lord 
shall  reward  the  doer  of  evil  according  to  his  wickedness." 

Murder  of  Ishbaal  (2  Sam.  iv.).  And  when  Saul's  son  heard 
that  Abiier  was  dead  in  Hebron,  his  hands  were  feeble,  and  all 
the  Israelites  were  troubled.  And  Saul's  son  had  two  men  that 
were  captains  of  bands :  the  name  of  the  one  was  Baanah,  and 
the  name  of  the  other  Kechab,  the  sons  of  Rimraon  a  Beero- 
thite,  of  the  children  of  Benjamin.  And  Rechab  and  Baanah 
went,  and  came  about  the  heat  of  the  day  to  the  house  of  Ish- 
baal who  lay  on  a  bed  at  noon.  And  behold,  the  woman  that 
kept  the  door  of  the  house  was  winnowing  wheat,  and  she 
slumbered  ^  and  slept;  and  the  brethren,  Rechab  and  Baanah, 
went  privily  into  the  house,  as  he  lay  on  his  bed  in  his  bed- 
chamber, and  they  smote  him,  and  slew  him,  and  beheaded 
him,  and  took  his  head,  and  gat  them  away  through  the  Arabah 
all  night.  And  they  brought  the  head  of  Ishbaal  unto  David  to 
Hebron,  and  said  to  the  king :  "  Behold  the  head  of  Ishbaal 
the  son  of  Saul  thine  enemy,  which  sought  thy  life;  and  the 
Lord  hath  avenged  my  lord  the  king  this  day  of  Saul,  and  of 
his  seed."  And  David  answered  Rechab  and  Baanah  his  brother, 
1  slumbered.  In  the  old  sense  of  'drowsed.' 


270  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

the  sons  of  Rimmon  the  Beerothite,  and  said  unto  them :  *'  As 
the  Lord  liveth,  who  hath  redeemed  my  soul  out  of  all  adver- 
sity, when  one  told  me,  saying,  Behold,  Saul  is  dead,  thinking 
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  therefore  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 
over  the  pool  in  Hebron.  But  they  took  the  head  of  Ishbaal, 
and  buried  it  in  the  sepulchre  of  Abner  in  Hebron. 

David  made  King  of  Israel  (2  Sam.  v.  1-5).  Then  came  all 
the  tribes  of  Israel  to  David  unto  Hebron,  and  spake,  saying : 
**  Behold,  we  are  thy  bone  and  thy  flesh.  Also  in  time  past, 
when  Saul  was  king  over  us,  thou  wast  he  that  leddest  out  and 
broughtest  in  Israel :  and  the  Lord  said  to  thee.  Thou  shalt 
feed  my  people  Israel,  and  thou  shalt  be  a  captain  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  the 
Lord :   and  they  anointed  David  king  over  Israel. 

David  was  thirty  years  old  when  he  began  to  reign,  and  he 
reigned  forty  years.  In  Hebron  he  reigned  over  Judah  seven 
years  and  six  months:  and  in  Jerusalem  he  reigned  thirty  and 
three  years  over  all  Israel  and  Judah. 

War  with  the  Philistines  (2  Sam.  v.  17;  xxiii.  13-17;  v. 
18-25;  xxi.  15-22;  viii.  1).  But  when  the  Philistines  heard 
that  they  had  anointed  David  king  over  Israel,  all  the  Philistines 
came  up  to  seek  David;  and  David  heard  of  it  and  went  down 
to  the  hold. 

And  three  of  the  Thirty  *  went  down,  and  came  to  the  rock 
to  David,  unto  the  hold  of  Adullam:  and  the  troop  of  the  Phil- 
istines pitched  in  the  valley  of  Bephaim.  And  David  was  then 
in  the  hold,  and  the  garrison  was  then  at  Beth-lehem.  And 
David  longed,  and  said :  "  Oh,  that  one  would  give  me  drink 
of  the  water  of  the  well  of  Beth-lehem,  which  is  by  the  gate!  " 
And  the  three  mighty  men  brake  through  the  host  of  the  Phil- 
istines, and  drew  water  out  of  the  well  of  Beth-lehem,  that  was 
1  the  Thirty.  See  p.  276. 


WAR   WITH   THE   PHILISTINES  271 

by  the  gate,  and  took  it,  and  brought  it  to  David  :  but  David 
would  not  drink  thereof,  but  poured  it  out  unto  the  Lord.  And 
he  said :  "  Be  it  far  from  me,  0  Lord,  that  I  should  do  this : 
is  not  this  the  blood  of  the  men  that  went  in  jeopardy  of  their 
lives  ?  "   therefore  he  would  not  drink  it. 

Now  the  Philistines  had  come  and  spread  themselves  in  the 
valley  of  Rephaim.  And  David  enquired  of  the  Lord,  saying: 
"  Shall  I  go  up  to  the  Philistines  ?  wilt  thou  deliver  them  into 
mine  hand  ?  "  And  the  Lord  said  unto  David  :  ''  Go  up  :  for  I 
will  doubtless  deliver  the  Philistines  into  thine  hand."  And 
David  came  to  Baal-perazim,  and  David  smote  them  there,  and 
said :  "  The  Lord  hath  broken  forth  upon  mine  enemies  before 
me,  as  the  breach  of  waters."  Therefore  he  called  the  name  of 
that  place  Baal-perazim.^  And  there  they  left  their  gods,  and 
David  and  his  men  took  them  away. 

And  the  Philistines  came  up  yet  again,  and  spread  themselves 
in  the  valley  of  Rephaim.  And  when  David  enquired  of  the 
Lord,  he  said:  "Thou  shalt  not  go  up;  but  fetch  a  compass 
behind  them,  and  come  upon  them  over  against  the  mulberry 
trees.  And  let  it  be,  when  thou  hearest  the  sound  of  a  going  in 
the  tops  of  the  mulberry  trees,  that  then  thou  shalt  bestir  thy- 
self :  2  for  then  shall  the  Lord  go  out  before  thee,  to  smite  the 
host  of  the  Philistines."  And  David  did  so,  as  the  Lord  had 
commanded  him;  and  smote  the  Philistines  from  Geba  until 
thou  come  to  Gezer. 

Moreover  the  Philistines  had  yet  war  again  with  Israel ;  and 
David  went  down,  and  his  servants  with  him,  and  fought  against 
the  Philistines :  and  David  waxed  faint.  And  Ishbi-benob,  which 
was  of  the  sons  of  the  giant,^  the  weight  of  whose  spear  weighed 
three  hundred  shekels  ^  of  brass,  he  being  girded  with  a  new 
sword,  thought  to  have  slain  David.  But  Abishai  the  son  of 
Zeruiah  succored  him,  and  smote  the  Philistine,  and  killed  him. 
Then  the  men  of  David  sware  unto  him,  saying :  "  Thou  shalt 
go  no  more  out  with  us  to  battle,  that  thou  quench  not  the  light 
of  Israel." 

1  Banl-perazim.   'Lord  of  the  breakinj^s  forth.' 

2  Belief  in  omens  from  trees  was  not  confined  to  the  early  Semites.  At 
Dodona,  the  most  ancient  oracle  in  Greece,  the  priests  interpreted  the  will  of 
Zeus  from  the  rustlinpr  of  the  wind  in  lofty  oaks. 

8  the  giant.  Heb.  Raphah,  a  collective  singular  denoting  a  prehistoric  people 
in  Canaan  of  exceptional  stature. 

4  three  hundred  shekels.  About  thirteen  pounds. 


272  THE   EAKLY   MONARCHY 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  this,  that  there  was  again  a  battle 
with  the  Philistines  at  Gob  :  then  Sibbechai  the  Hushathite  slew 
Saph,  which  was  of  the  sons  of  the  giant.  And  there  was  again 
a  battle  in  Gob  with  the  Philistines,  where  Elhanan  the  son  of 
Jair,  a  Beth-lehemite,  slew  Goliath  the  Gittite,  the  staff  of  whose 
spear  was  like  a  weaver's  beam.  And  there  was  yet  a  battle  in 
Gath,  where  was  a  man  of  great  stature,  that  had  on  every  hand 
six  fingers,  and  on  every  foot  six  toes,  four  and  twenty  in  num- 
ber ;  and  he  also  was  born  to  the  giant.  And  when  he  defied 
Israel,  Jonathan  the  son  of  Shimeah  the  brother  of  David  slew 
him.  These  four  were  born  to  the  giant  in  Gath,  and  fell  by  the 
hand  of  David,  and  by  the  hand  of  his  servants.  And  after  this 
David  smote  the  Philistines,  and  subdued  them  :  and  David  took 
Gath  and  her  towns  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Philistines. 

Capture  of  Jerusalem  (2  Sam.  v.  6-13).  And  the  king  and 
his  men  went  to  Jerusalem  against  the  Jebusites,  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  land  :  which  spake  unto  David,  saying  :  "  Thou  shalt 
not  come  in  hither,  but  the  blind  and  the  lame  shall  turn  thee 
away."  Nevertheless  David  took  the  strong  hold  of  Zion.^  And 
David  said  on  that  day  :  "  Whosoever  smiteth  the  Jebusites,  let 
him  get  up  to  the  watercourse,  and  as  for  the  lame  and  the  blind 

that  are  hated  of  David's  soul "  ^  So  David  dwelt  in  the 

fort,  and  called  it  the  city  of  David.  ^  And  David  built  round 
about  from  Millo  and  inward.  And  David  went  on,  and  grew 
great,  and  the  Lord  God  of  hosts  was  with  him. 

And  Hiram  king  of  Tyre  sent  messengers  to  David,  and  cedar 
trees,  and  carpenters,  and  masons  :  and  they  built  David  an 
house.  And  David  perceived  that  the  Lord  had  established  him 
king  over  Israel,  and  that  he  had  exalted  his  kingdom  for  his 
people  Israel's  sake.  And  David  took  him  more  concubines  and 
wives  out  of  Jerusalem,  after  he  was  come  from  Hebron :  and 
there  were  yet  sons  and  daughters  born  to  David. 

1  Zion  was  the  eastern  of  the  two  ridejes  upon  which  modern  Jerusalem  is 
built.  The  'city  '  of  David  is  here  simply  its  citadel.  At  a  later  time  'Zion' 
became  the  poetic  name  for  Jerusalem  itself.  The  meaning  and  location  of  Millo 
are  unknown. 

2  The  text  here  is  hopelessly  mutilated.  In  the  received  version,  it  includes 
what  must  have  been  a  later  note,  connecting  with  this  incident  the  law  (Lev. 
xxi.  18)  excluding  the  blind  and  the  lame  from  the  temple.  1  Chron.  xi.  6  has 
"'Whosoever  smiteth  the  Jebusites  first  shall  be  chief  and  captain.'  So  Joab 
the  son  of  Zeruiah  went  first  up,  and  was  chief." 


THE    ARK    BROUGHT   TO    JERUSALEM  273 

The  Ark  brought  to  Jerusalem  (2  Sam.  vi. ).  Again,  David 
gathered  together  all  the  chosen  men  of  Israel,  thirty  thousand. 
And  David  arose,  and  went  with  all  the  people  that  were  with 
him  from  Baale-Judah,^  to  bring  up  from  thence  the  ark  of  God, 
which  is  called  by  the  name  of  the  Lord  of  hosts  that  dwelleth 
between  the  cherubim.  And  they  set  the  ark  of  God  upon  a  new 
cart,  and  brought  it  out  of  the  house  of  Abinadab  that  was  in 
the  hill :  and  Uzzah  and  Ahio,  the  sons  of  Abinadab,  drave  the 
new  cart.  And  Uzzah  walked  beside  the  ark  of  God  :  and  Ahio 
went  before  the  ark.  And  David  and  all  the  house  of  Israel 
played  before  the  Lord  with  all  their  might,  even  with  songs, 
and  harps,  and  psalteries,  and  timbrels,  and  castanets,^  and  cym- 
bals. 

And  when  they  came  to  Nachon's  threshing-floor,  Uzzah  put 
forth  his  hand  to  the  ark  of  God,  and  took  hold  of  it ;  for  the 
oxen  stumbled.  And  the  anger  of  the  Lord  was  kindled  against 
Uzzah;  and  God  smote  him  there  for  his  error;  and  there  he 
died  by  the  ark  of  God.  And  David  was  displeased,  because  the 
Lord  had  made  a  breach  upon  Uzzah  :  and  he  called  the  name 
of  the  place  Perez-uzzah  ^  to  this  day.  And  David  was  afraid  of 
the  Lord  that  day,  and  said :  "  How  shall  the  ark  of  the  Lord 
come  to  me  ?  "  So  David  would  not  remove  the  ark  of  the  Lord 
unto  him  into  the  city  of  David :  but  carried  it  aside  into  the 
house  of  Obed-edom  the  Gittite. 

And  the  ark  of  the  Lord  continued  in  the  house  of  Obed-edom 
the  Gittite  three  months :  and  the  Lord  blessed  Obed-edom,  and 
all  his  household.  And  it  was  told  king  David,  saying :  ''  The 
Lord  hath  blessed  the  house  of  Obed-edom,  and  all  that  pertain- 
eth  unto  him,  because  of  the  ark  of  God."  So  David  went  and 
brought  up  the  ark  of  God  from  the  house  of  Obed-edom  into 
the  city  of  David  with  gladness.  And  it  was  so,  that  when  they 
that  bare  the  ark  of  the  Lord  had  gone  six  paces,  he  sacrificed 
an  ox  and  a  fatling.  And  David  danced  before  the  Lord  with 
all  his  might ;  and  David  was  girded  with  a  linen  ephod.  So 
David  and  all  the  house  of  Israel  brought  up  the  ark  of  the 

'  Baale-Judah  is  another  name  for  Kirjath-jearim. 

2  Harp  and  psaltery  in  the  English  Old  Testament  render  inaccurately  kinndr 
and  nebel,  of  which  the  first  was  a  lyre-like  instrument,  probably  struck  with  a 
plectrum,  while  the  second  was  a  large,  portable  harp.  The  timbrel  or  tabret  was 
a  small  hand-drum.  Castanet  here  means  a  jingling  instrument  consisting  of 
metal  disks,  through  which  were  passed  rods,  tipped  with  loose  metal  rings. 

8  Perez-uzzah.  'Breach  of  Uzzah.' 


274  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

Lord  with  shouting,  and  with  the  sound  of  the  trumpet.  And 
as  the  ark  of  the  Lord  came  into  the  city  of  David,  Michal  Saul's 
daughter  looked  through  a  window,  and  saw  king  David  leap- 
ing and  dancing  before  the  Lord ;  and  she  despised  him  in  her 
heart. 

And  they  brought  in  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  and  set  it  in  its 
place,  in  the  midst  of  the  tent  that  David  had  pitched  for  it : 
and  David  offered  burnt  offerings  and  peace  offerings  before  the 
Lord.  And  as  soon  as  David  had  made  an  end  of  offering  burnt 
offerings  and  peace  offerings,  he  blessed  the  people  in  the  name 
of  the  Lord  of  hosts.  And  he  dealt  among  all  the  people,  even 
among  the  whole  multitude  of  Israel,  as  well  to  the  women  as 
men,  to  every  one  a  cake  of  bread,  and  a  good  piece  of  flesh,  and 
a  cake  of  raisins. 

Then  David  returned  to  bless  his  household.  And  Michal 
the  daughter  of  Saul  came  out  to  meet  David,  and  said :  "  How 
glorious  was  the  king  of  Israel  to-day,  who  uncovered  himself 
to-day  in  the  eyes  of  the  handmaids  of  his  servants,  as  one  of 
the  vain  fellows  shamelessly  uncovereth  himself!"  And  David 
said  unto  Michal :  "  It  was  before  the  Lord,  which  chose  me 
before  thy  father,  and  before  all  his  house,  to  appoint  me  ruler 
over  the  people  of  the  Lord,  over  Israel :  therefore  will  I  play 
before  the  Lord.  And  I  will  yet  be  more  vile  than  thus,  and 
will  be  base  in  thine  eyes  :  and  of  the  maidservants  which  thou 
hast  spoken  of,  of  them  shall  I  be  had  in  honor."  Therefore 
Michal  the  daughter  of  Saul  had  no  child  unto  the  day  of  her 
death. 

David's  Dynasty  Assured  (2  Sam.  vii.  1-20).  And  it  came 
to  pass,  when  the  king  sat  in  his  house,  and  the  Lord  had 
given  him  rest  round  about  from  all  his  enemies,  that  the  king 
said  unto  Nathan  the  prophet :  "  See  now,  I  dwell  in  an  house 
of  cedar,  but  the  ark  of  God  dwelleth  within  curtains."  And 
Nathan  said  to  the  king:  "Go,  do  all  that  is  in  thine  heart ;  for 
the  Lord  is  with  thee."  And  it  came  to  pass  that  night,  that 
the  word  of  God  came  unto  Nathan,  saying :  — 

"Go  and  tell  my  servant  David,  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Shalt 
thou  build  me  an  house  for  me  to  dwell  in  ?  whereas  I  have  not 
dwelt  in  any  house  since  the  time  that  I  brought  up  the  chil- 
dren of  Israel  out  of  Egypt,  to  this  day,  but  have  walked  in  a 
tent  and  in  a  tabernacle.    In  all  the  places  wherein    I  have 


DAVID'S  COURT   AND   CHIEF   WARRIORS  275 

walked  with  all  the  children  of  Israel  spake  I  a  word  to  any  of 
the  judges  of  Israel,  whom  I  commanded  to  feed  my  people 
Israel,  saying,  Why  build  ye  not  me  an  house  of  cedar?  Now 
therefore  so  shalt  thou  say  unto  my  servant  David,  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  of  hosts,  I  took  thee  from  the  sheepcote,  from  follow- 
ing the  sheep,  to  be  ruler  over  my  people,  over  Israel :  and  I 
was  with  thee  whithersoever  thou  wentest,  and  have  cut  otf  all 
thine  enemies  out  of  thy  sight,  and  have  made  thee  a  name, 
like  unto  the  name  of  the  great  men  that  are  in  the  earth. 
Moreover  I  will  appoint  a  place  for  my  people  Israel,  and  will 
plant  them,  that  they  may  dwell  in  a  place  of  their  own,  and 
move  no  more  ;  neither  shall  the  children  of  wickedness  afflict 
them  any  more,  as  beforetime,  even  from  the  time  that  I  com- 
manded judges  to  be  over  my  people  Israel.  I  will  cause  them 
to  rest  from  all  their  enemies.  Also  the  Lord  telleth  thee  that 
he  will  make  thee  an  house.  And  when  thy  days  be  fulfilled, 
and  thou  shalt  sleep  with  thy  fathers,  I  will  set  up  thy  seed 
after  thee,  which  shall  proceed  out  of  thy  bowels,  and  I  will 
establish  his  kingdom.  He  shall  build  an  house  for  my  name,  and 
I  will  establish  the  throne  of  his  kingdom  forever.  I  will  be  his 
father,  and  he  shall  be  my  son.  If  he  commit  iniquity,  I  will 
chasten  him  with  the  rod  of  men,  and  with  the  stripes  of  the 
children  of  men.  But  I  will  not  take  my  mercy  away  from  him, 
as  I  took  it  from  him  that  was  before  thee.  And  thine  house 
and  thy  kingdom  shall  be  established  for  ever  before  thee :  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  went  king  David  in,  and  sat  before  the  Lord,  and  he  said: 
"  Who  am  I,  0  Lord  God  ?  and  what  is  my  house,  that  thou 
hast  brought  me  hitherto  ?  And  this  was  yet  a  small  thing  in 
thy  sight,  0  Lord  God ;  but  thou  hast  spoken  also  of  thy  ser- 
vant's house  for  a  great  while  to  come.  And  what  can  David  say 
more  unto  thee  ?  for  thou,  Lord  God,  knowest  thy  servant." 

David's  Court  and  Chief  Warriors  (2  Sam.  viii.  15-18; 
xxiii.  8-12,  18-23).  And  David  reigned  over  all  Israel ;  and 
David  executed  judgment  and  justice  unto  all  his  people.  And 
Joab  the  son  of  Zeruiah  was  over  the  host ;  and  Jehoshaphat 
the  son  of  Ahilud  was  recorder ;  and  Abiathar  the  son  of  Ahime- 
lech  the  son  of  Ahitub,  and  Zadok  were  the  priests ;  and  Seraiah 


276  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

was  the  scribe ;  and  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada  was  over  the 
Cherethites  and  the  Pelethites;  and  David's  sons  were  priests.^ 

These  be  the  names  of  the  mighty  men  whom  David  had : 
Ishbaal  the  Hachmonite,  chief  among  the  Three  :  he  lift  up  his 
spear  against  eight  hundred,  whom  he  slew  at  one  time.  And 
after  him  was  Eleazar  the  son  of  Dodo  the  Ahohite.  He  was 
with  David  at  Pas-dammim,  when  the  Philistines  were  there 
gathered  together  to  battle.  And  the  men  of  Israel  were  gone 
away  :  but  he  arose,  and  smote  the  Philistines  until  his  hand 
was  weary,  and  his  hand  clave  unto  the  sword  :  and  the  Lord 
wrought  a  great  victory  that  day  ;  and  the  people  returned  after 
him  only  to  spoil.  And  after  him  was  Shammah  the  son  of 
Agee  the  Hararite.  And  the  Philistines  were  gathered  together 
at  Lehi,  where  was  a  piece  of  ground  full  of  lentils :  and  the 
people  fled  from  the  Philistines.  But  he  stood  in  the  midst  of 
the  ground,  and  defended  it,  and  slew  the  Philistines:  and  the 
Lord  wrought  a  great  victory. 

And  Abishai,  the  brother  of  Joab,  the  son  of  Zeruiah,  was 
chief  of  the  Thirty.  And  he  lifted  up  his  spear  against  three 
hundred,  and  slew  them,  and  had  a  name  like  that  of  the  Three. 
Behold,  he  was  more  honorable  than  the  Thirty,  and  became 
their  captain,  but  unto  the  Three  did  he  not  attain. 

And  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada,  was  a  valiant  man  of 
Kabzeel,  who  had  done  mighty  acts ;  he  slew  the  two  sons  of 
Ariel  of  Moab.  He  went  down  also  and  slew  a  lion  in  the 
midst  of  a  pit  in  time  of  snow :  and  he  slew  an  Egyptian,  a 
goodly  man  :  and  the  Egyptian  had  a  spear  in  his  hand ;  but  he 
went  down  to  him  with  a  staff,  and  plucked  the  spear  out  of 
the  Egyptian's  hand,  and  slew  him  with  his  own  spear.  These 
things  did  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada,  and  had  the  name  like 
that  of  the  Three.  He  was  more  honorable  than  the  Thirty,  but 
he  attained  not  to  the  first  Three.  And  David  set  him  over  his 
guard. 

Execution  of  SauPs  Sons  (2  Sam.  xxi.  1-14).  Then  there 
was  a  famine  in  the  days  of  David  three  years,  year  after  year ; 

1  The  recorder  was  the  "king's  remembrancer,"  who  kept  him  informed  of 
the  course  of  state  business.  The  scribe  probably  had  the  drafting  and  custody 
of  documents,  and  may  have  served  as  court  annalist.  The  Cherethites  and 
Pelethites  were  a  royal  bodyguard  of  foreign  mercenaries,  probably  Philistines 
(see  note,  p.  191).  Chap.  xx.  24  adds  to  this  list  Adoram  (or  Adoniram)  who  had 
charge  of  the  corvee  or  forced  labor. 


EXECUTION   OF   SAUL's   SONS  277 

and  David  enquired  of  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  answered : 
"  Upon  Saul  and  upon  his  house  there  is  blood-guilt,  because 
he  slew  the  Gibeonites."  Now  the  Gibeonites  were  not  of  the 
children  of  Israel,  but  of  the  remnant  of  the  Amorites ;  and  the 
children  of  Israel  had  sworn  unto  them  :  ^  and  Saul  sought  to 
slay  them  in  his  zeal  to  the  children  of  Israel  and  Judah. 
Wherefore  David  said  unto  the  Gibeonites:  ''What  shall  I  do 
for  you  ?  and  wherewith  shall  I  make  the  atonement,  that  ye 
may  bless  the  inheritance  of  the  Lord  ? "  And  the  Gibeonites 
said  unto  him  :  ''We  will  have  no  silver  nor  gold  of  Saul,  nor 
of  his  house ;  neither  for  us  shalt  thou  kill  any  man  in  Israel." 
And  he  said,  "  What  ye  shall  say,  that  will  I  do  for  you."  And 
they  answered  the  king:  "The  man  that  consumed  us,  and  that 
devised  against  us  that  we  should  be  destroyed  from  remaining 
in  any  of  the  coasts  of  Israel,  let  seven  men  of  his  sons  be  de- 
livered unto  us,  and  we  will  hang  them  up  unto  the  Lord  in 
Gibeon  in  the  mount  of  Jehovah."  And  the  king  said,  "  I  will 
give  them."  2  So  the  king  took  the  two  sons  of  Rizpah  the 
daughter  of  Aiah,  whom  she  bare  unto  Saul,  Armoni  and  Merib- 
baal;  and  the  five  sons  of  Merab  the  daughter  of  Saul,  whom 
she  brought  up  for  Adriel  the  son  of  Barzillai  the  Meholathite : 
and  he  delivered  them  into  the  hands  of  the  Gibeonites,  and 
they  hanged  them  in  the  hill  before  the  Lord :  and  they  fell  all 
seven  together,  and  were  put  to  death  in  the  days  of  harvest, 
in  the  first  days,  in  the  beginning  of  barley  harvest.* 

And  Rizpah  the  daughter  of  Aiah  took  sackcloth,  and  spread 
it  for  her  upon  the  rock,  from  the  beginning  of  harvest  until 
water  dropped  upon  them  out  of  heaven,  and  suffered  neither 
the  birds  of  the  air  to  rest  on  them  by  day,  nor  the  beasts  of 
the  field  by  night.  And  it  was  told  David  what  Rizpah  the 
daughter  of  Aiah,  the  concubine  of  Saul,  had  done.  And  David 
went  and  took  the  bones  of  Saul  and  the  bones  of  Jonathan  his 
son  from  the  men  of  Jabesh-gilead,  which  had  stolen  them  from 
the  street  of  Beth-shan,  where  the  Philistines  had  hanged  them, 
when  the  Philistines  had  slain  Saul  in  Gilboa :  and  he  brought 
up  from  thence  the  bones  of  Saul  and  the  bones  of  Jonathan  his 
son ;  and  they  gathered  the  bones  of  them  that  were  hanged. 

1  See  p.  156. 

2  A  note  is  here  added:  "But  the  king  spared  Meribbaal  the  son  of  Jona- 
than the  son  of  Saul,  because  of  the  Lord's  oath  that  was  between  them, 
between  David  and  Jonathan  the  son  of  Saul." 

3  The  time  was  about  the  end  of  April. 


278  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

And  the  bones  of  Saul  and  Jonathan  his  son  buried  they  in  the 
country  of  Benjamin  in  Zelah,  in  the  sepulchre  of  Kish  his 
father :  and  they  performed  all  that  the  king  commanded.  And 
after  that  God  was  intreated  for  the  land. 

David^s  Kindness  to  Meribbaal  (2  Sam.  ix.).  And  David 
said :  "  Is  there  yet  any  that  is  left  of  the  house  of  Saul,  that  I 
may  shew  hira  kindness  for  Jonathan's  sake  ?  "  And  there  was 
of  the  house  of  Saul  a  servant  whose  name  was  Ziba.  And  when 
they  had  called  him  unto  David,  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,  which  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." 

Then  king  David  sent,  and  fetched  him  out  of  the  house  of 
Machir,  the  son  of  Ammiel,  from  Lo-debar.  Now  when  Merib- 
baal, the  son  of  Jonathan,  the  son  of  Saul,  was  come  unto  David, 
he  fell  on  his  face,  and  did  reverence.  And  David  said,  "Me- 
ribbaal." 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  father  ;  and  thou  shalt  eat  bread  at  my  table  con- 
tinually." And  he  bowed  himself,  and  said:  "What  is  thy  ser- 
vant, 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  all  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  food  to  eat :  but  Merib- 
baal thy  master'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  hath  com- 
manded his  servant,  so  shall  thy  servant  do." 

1  "  He  was  five  years  old  when  the  tidings  came  of  Saul  and  Jonathan, 
out  of  Jezreel,  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  Mephi- 
bosheth."  (2  Sam.  iv.  4.)  The  form  Mej^hibosheth,  'who  puffs  at  the  shameful 
thing,'  was  piously  substituted  for  Meribiial,  '  Baal  the  warrior,'  which  was  his 
real  name,  as  preserved  in  Chronicles.     St 9  note,  p.  268. 


David's  census  and  its  consequences  279 

So  Meribbaal  did  eat  at  David'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. 

David's  Census  and  its  Consequences  (2  Sam.  xxxiv.).  And 
again  the  anger  of  the  Lord  was  kindled  against  Israel,  and  he  ^ 
moved  David  against  them,  saying :  "  Go,  number  Israel  and 
Judah."  So  the  king  said  to  Joab  and  the  captains  of  the  host, 
which  were  with  him:  "  Go  now  through  all  the  tribes  of  Israel, 
from  Dan  even  to  Beer-sheba,  and  number  ye  the  people,  that  I 
may  know  the  number  of  the  people."  And  Joab  said  unto  the 
king:  ''Now  the  Lord  thy  God  add  unto  the  people,  how  many 
soever  they  be,  an  hundredfold,  and  that  the  eyes  of  my  lord  the 
king  may  see  it :  but  why  doth  my  lord  the  king  delight  in  this 
thing  ? "  Notwithstanding  the  king's  word  prevailed  against 
Joab,  and  against  the  captains  of  the  host.  And  Joab  and  the 
captains  of  the  host  went  out  from  the  presence  of  the  king,  to 
number  the  people  of  Israel. 

And  they  passed  over  Jordan,  and  began  from  Aroer,  and 
from  the  city  that  lieth  in  the  midst  of  the  valley  towards  the 
Gadites,  and  on  to  Jazer:  then  they  came  to  Gilead,  and  to 
the  land  of  the  Hittites  towards  Kadesh ;  and  they  came  to 
Dan,  and  about  towards  Zidon,  and  came  to  the  strong  hold  of 
Tyre,  and  to  all  the  cities  of  the  Hivites,  and  of  the  Canaanites : 
and  they  went  out  to  the  south  of  Judah,  even  to  Beer-sheba. 
So  when  they  had  gone  through  all  the  land,  they  came  to  Jeru- 
salem at  the  end  of  nine  months  and  twenty  days.  And  Joab 
gave  up  the  sum  of  the  number  of  the  people  unto  the  king : 
and  there  were  in  Israel  eight  hundred  thousand  valiant  men 
that  drew  the  sword;  and  the  men  of  Judah  were  five  hundred 
thousand  men. 

And  David's  heart  smote  him  after  that  he  had  numbered  the 
people.  And  David  said  unto  the  Lord  :  "  I  have  sinned  greatly 
in  that  I  have  done :  and  now,  I  beseech  thee,  0  Lord,  take 
away  the  iniquity  of  thy  servant;  for  I  have  done  very  fool- 
ishly." 

1  In  1  Chron.  xxi.  it  is  Satan  that  moves  David  to  take  the  census.  It  is  a 
primitive  belief  that  it  is  sinful  presumption  for  a  mere  mortal  to  get  possession 
of  a  secret  —  such  as  the  number  of  people  in  the  country  —  which  belongs  to 
the  Deity. 


280  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

And  when  David  rose  up  in  the  morning,  the  word  of  the 
Lord  came  unto  the  prophet  Gad,  David's  seer,  saying  :  "  Go 
and  say  unto  David,  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  I  offer  thee  three 
things;  choose  thee  one  of  them,  that  I  may  do  it  unto  thee." 
So  Gad  came  to  David,  and  told  him,  and  said  unto  him : 
"  Shall  three  years  of  famine  come  unto  thee  in  thy  land  ?  or 
wilt  thou  flee  three  months  before  thine  enemies,  while  they 
pursue  thee  ?  or  that  there  be  three  days'  pestilence  in  thy  land  ? 
now  advise,  and  see  what  answer  I  shall  return  to  him  that  sent 
me."  And  David  said  unto  Gad  :  "  I  am  in  a  great  strait :  let 
us  fall  now  into  the  hand  of  the  Lord ;  for  his  mercies  are 
great :  and  let  me  not  fall  into  the  hand  of  man." 

So  David  chose  the  pestilence ;  and  it  was  the  time  of  wheat 
harvest  when  the  pestilence  began  among  the  people,  and  there 
died  of  the  people  from  Dan  even  to  Beer-sheba  seventy  thousand 
men.  And  when  the  angel  stretched  out  his  hand  upon  Jerusa- 
lem to  destroy  it,  the  Lord  repented  him  of  the  evil,  and  said 
to  the  angel  that  destroyed  the  people  :  "  It  is  enough :  stay 
now  thine  hand."  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  was  by  the  thresh- 
ing-place of  Araunah  the  Jebusite.* 

And  Gad  came  that  day  to  David,  and  said  unto  him  :  *'  Go 
up,  rear  an  altar  unto  the  Lord  in  the  threshing-floor  of  Arau- 
nah the  Jebusite."  And  David,  according  to  the  saying  of  Gad, 
went  up  as  the  Lord  commanded.  And  Araunah  looked,  and 
saw  the  king  and  his  servants  coming  on  toward  him:  and 
Araunah  went  out,  and  bowed  himself  before  the  king  on  his 
face  upon  the  ground.  And  Araunah  said :  ^'  Wherefore  is  my 
lord  the  king  come  to  his  servant  ? "  And  David  said :  "  To 
buy  the  threshing-floor  of  thee,  to  build  an  altar  unto  the  Lord, 
that  the  plague  may  be  stayed  from  the  people."  And  Arau- 
nah said  unto  David  :  "  Let  my  lord  the  king  take  and  off'er  up 
what  seemeth  good  unto  him  :  behold,  here  be  oxen  for  burnt 
sacrifice,   and  threshing  instruments  and  other  instruments  of 

1  The  parallel  account  in  1  Chron.  xxi.  gives  at  this  point  :  —  "And  David 
lifted  up  his  eyes,  and  saw  the  angel  of  the  Lord  stand  between  the  earth  and 
the  heaven,  having  a  drawn  sword  in  his  hand  stretched  out  over  Jerusalem. 
Then  David  and  the  elders  of  Lsrael,  who  were  clothed  in  sackcloth,  fell  upon 
their  faces.  And  David  said  unto  God:  '  Is  it  not  I  that  commanded  the  people 
to  be  numbered  ?  even  I  it  is  that  have  sinned  and  done  evil  indeed;  but  as  for 
these  sheep,  what  have  they  done  ?  let  thine  hand,  I  pray  thee,  0  Lord  my 
God,  be  on  me,  and  on  my  father's  house;  but  not  on  thy  people,  that  they 
should  be  plagued.*  " 


DAVID'S    WARS   OF   CONQUEST  281 

the  oxen  for  wood.  All  this,  0  king,  doth  thy  servant  give  unto 
the  king."  And  Araunah  said  unto  the  king:  "The  Lord  thy 
God  accept  thee."  And  the  king  said  unto  Araunah :  "  Nay  ; 
but  I  will  surely  buy  it  of  thee  at  a  price  :  neither  will  I  offer 
burnt  offerings  unto  the  Lord  my  God  of  that  which  doth  cost 
me  nothing."  So  David  bought  the  threshing-floor  and  the  oxen 
for  fifty  shekels  of  silver.^  And  David  built  there  an  altar  unto 
the  Lord,  and  offered  burnt  oflerings  and  peace  offerings.^  So 
the  Lord  was  intreated  for  the  land,  and  the  plague  was  stayed 
from  Israel. 

David^s  Wars  of  Conquest  (2  Sam.  viii.  1, 2  ;  x. ;  viii.  3-14;  xi. 
1;  xii.  26-31).  And  after  this  it  came  to  pass,  that  David  smote 
Moab,  and  measured  them  with  a  line,  making  them  to  lie  down 
on  the  ground ;  even  with  two  lines  measured  he  to  put  to  death, 
and  with  one  full  line  to  keep  alive.  And  so  the  Moabites  be- 
came David's  servants,  and  brought  gifts. 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  this,  that  the  king  of  the  children 
of  Ammon  difed,  and  Hanun  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead.  Then 
said  David :  ''  I  will  shew  kindness  unto  Hanun  the  son  of 
Nahash,^  as  his  father  shewed  kindness  unto  me."  And  David 
sent  to  comfort  him  by  the  hand  of  his  servants  for  his  father. 
So  David's  servants  came  into  the  land  of  the  children  of  Am- 
mon. But  the  princes  of  the  children  of  Ammon  said  unto 
Hanun  their  lord  :  "  Thinkest  thou  that  David  doth  honor  thy 
father,  that  he  hath  sent  comforters  unto  thee  ?  hath  not  David 
rather  sent  his  servants  unto  thee,  to  search  the  city,  and  to  spy 
it  out,  and  to  overthrow  it  ?  "  AVheref ore  Hanun  took  David's 
servants,  and  shaved  off  the  one  half  of  their  beards,  and  cut  off 
their  garments  in  the  middle,  even  to  their  buttocks,  and  sent 
them  away. 

Then  there  went  certain,  and  told  David  how  the  men  were 
served.    And   he   sent   to   meet   them,    because    the   men  were 

1  If  the  shekel  here  used  was  the  heavy  Phoenician  unit  for  silver  of  224.J  grains 
troy,  which  at  the  ratio  of  13^  :  1  would  correspond  to  ^  shekel  of  gold  (72j 
cents),  David  gave  bullion  worth  about  $36.25.  Its  purchasing  power,  of  course, 
was  then  many  times  greater.   As  a  coin,  the  shekel  does  not  appear  until  139 

B.  C. 

2  It  is  believed  that  the  site  of  David's  altar  was  the  same  as  that  of  Solo- 
mon's great  altar  of  burnt  offering.  It  is  now  covered  by  the  famous  mosque 
'Dome  of  the  Rock.' 

8  Nahash.  See  p.  228.  The  occasion  of  his  showing  kindness  to  David  is  not 
recorded. 


282  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

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  stank  before 
David,  the  children  of  Ammon  sent  and  hired  the  Syrians  of 
Beth-rehob,  and  the  Syrians  of  Zoba,  twenty  thousand  footmen, 
and  the  king  of  Maacah  with  a  thousand  men,  and  the  men  of 
Tob  twelve  thousand  men.  And  when  David  heard  of  it,  he 
sent  Joab,  and  all  the  host  of  the  mighty  men.  And  the  chil- 
dren of  Ammon  came  out,  and  put  the  battle  in  array  at  the  en- 
tering in  of  the  gate :  and  the  Syrians  of  Zoba,  and  of  Rehob, 
and  the  men  of  Tob  and  Maacah,  were  by  themselves  in  the 
field.  When  Joab  saw  that  the  front  of  the  battle  was  against 
him  before  and  behind,  he  chose  of  all  the  choicest  men  of  Israel, 
and  put  them  in  array  against  the  Syrians :  and  the  rest  of  the 
people  he  delivered  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  the  cities  of  our 
God :  and  the  Lord  do  that  which  seemeth  him  good."  So  Joab 
drew  nigh,  and  the  people  that  were  with  him,  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  re- 
turned from  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  came  to  Jerusalem. 

And  when  the  Syrians  saw  that  they  were  put  to  the  worse 
before  Israel,  they  gathered  themselves  together.  And  Hadad- 
ezer  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.  And  when  it  was  told 
David,  he  gathered  all  Israel  together,  and  passed  over  Jor- 
dan, and  came  to  Helam.  And  the  Syrians  set  themselves  in 
array  against  David,  and  fought  with  him.  And  the  Syrians  fled 
before  Israel. 

Thus  David  smote  Hadadezer,  the  son  of  Kehob,  king  of  Zo- 
bah,  as  he  went  to  recover  his  dominion  at  the  river  Euphrates. 
And  David  took  from  him  a  thousand  chariots,  and  seven  hun- 
dred horsemen,  and  twenty  thousand  footmen  :  and  David 
houghed  all  the  chariot  horses,  but  reserved  of  them  for  an  hun- 
i  the  River.  Euphrates. 


DAVID'S    WARS    OF   CONQUEST  283 

dred  chariots.  And  when  the  Syrians  of  Damascus  came  to  suc- 
cor Hadadezer  king  of  Zobah,  David  slew  of  the  Syrians  two 
and  twenty  thousand  men.  Then  David  put  garrisons  in  Syria 
of  Damascus  :  and  the  Syrians  became  servants  to  David,  and 
brought  gifts.  Thus  the  Lord  preserved  David  whithersoever 
he  went.  And  David  took  the  shields  of  gold  that  were  on  the 
servants  of  Hadadezer,  and  brought  them  to  Jerusalem.  And 
from  Tibhath,  and  from  Berothai,  cities  of  Hadadezer,  king 
David  took  exceeding  much  brass. 

When  Tou  king  of  Hamath  heard  that  David  had  smitten  all 
the  host  of  Hadadezer,  then  Tou  sent  Hadoram  his  son  unto 
king  David,  to  salute  him,  and  to  bless  him,  because  he  had 
fought  against  Hadadezer,  and  smitten  him  :  for  Hadadezer  had 
wars  with  Tou.  And  Hadoram  brought  with  him  vessels  of 
silver,  and  vessels  of  gold,  and  vessels  of  brass  :  which  also  king 
David  did  dedicate  unto  the  Lord,  with  the  silver  and  gold  that 
he  had  dedicated  of  all  nations  which  he  subdued  ;  of  Edom, 
and  of  j\Ioab,  and  of  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  of  the  Philis- 
tines, and  of  Amalek,  and  of  the  spoil  of  Hadadezer,  son  of 
Kehob,  king  of  Zobah. 

And  David  gat  him  a  name  when  he  returned  from  smiting 
of  the  Syrians,  in  that  he  smote  Edom  in  the  valley  of  salt, 
even  eighteen  thousand  men.  And  he  put  garrisons  in  Edom  ; 
and  all  they  of  Edom  became  David's  servants.  And  the  Lord 
preserved  David  whithersoever  he  went. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  at  the  return  of  the  year,  at  the  time 
when  kings  go  forth  to  battle,  that  Joab  led  forth  the  power  of 
the  army,  and  wasted  the  country  of  the  children  of  Ammon,  and 
came  and  besieged  Rabbah.    But  David  tarried  still  at  Jerusalem. 

And  Joab  fought  against  Kabbah  of  the  children  of  Ammon, 
and  took  the  water  city.^  And  Joab  sent  messengers  to  David, 
and  said:  "I  have  fought  against  Kabbah,  and  have  taken  the 
city  of  waters.  Now  therefore  gather  the  rest  of  the  people  to- 
gether, and  encamp  against  the  city,  and  take  it :  lest  I  take  the 
city,  and  it  be  called  after  my  name."  And  David  gathered  all 
the  people  together,  and  went  to  Kabbah,  and  fought  against  it, 
and  took  it.   And  he  took  the  crown  of  ^Nlilcom  ^  from  off  his 

1  water-city.  The  citadel  or  outlyinj?  work  defending  the  water  supply.  An- 
tiochus  Epiphanes  in  b.  c.  218  compelled  the  surrender  of  Rabbath-Ammon, 
by  stopping  its  water  supply. 

2  Miicom.  The  chief  god  of  the  Ammonites.  Since  the  idol's  crown  weighed 
at  least  54  lbs.,  it  must  have  been  the  jewel  in  it  that  David  wore. 


284  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

head,  the  weight  whereof  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  put  them  to  saws,  and  har- 
rows of  iron,  and  axes  of  iron,  and  made  them  labor  at  the  brick- 
moulds  :  and  thus  did  he  unto  all  the  cities  of  the  children  of 
Ammon.   So  David  and  all  the  people  returned  unto  Jerusalem. 

David  and  Bathsheba  (2  Sam.  xi.  2-xii.  25).  And  it  came 
to  pass  in  an  eveningtide,  that  David  arose  from  off  his  bed,  and 
walked  upon  the  roof  of  the  king's  house :  and  from  the  roof  he 
saw  a  woman  washing  herself ;  and  the  woman  was  very  beauti- 
ful to  look  upon.  And  David  sent  and  enquired  after  the  woman. 
And  one  said :  "  Is  not  this  Bath-sheba,  the  daughter  of  Eliam, 
the  wife  of  Uriah  the  Hittite  ?  "  And  David  sent  messengers, 
and  took  her ;  and  she  came  in  unto  him,  and  he  lay  with  her ; 
for  she  was  purified  from  her  uncleanness  :  and  she  returned  unto 
her  house.  And  the  woman  conceived,  and  sent  and  told  David, 
and  said,  "  I  am  with  child." 

And  David  sent  to  Joab,  saying,  "  Send  me  Uriah  the  Hit- 
tite." And  Joab  sent  Uriah  to  David.  And  when  Uriah  was 
come  unto  him,  David  demanded  of  him  how  Joab  did,  and  how 
the  people  did,  and  how  the  war  prospered.  And  David  said  to 
Uriah,  "  Go  down  to  thy  house,  and  wash  thy  feet."  And  Uriah 
departed  out  of  the  king's  house,  and  there  followed  him  a  mess 
of  meat  from  the  king.  But  Uriah  slept  at  the  door  of  the  king's 
house  with  all  the  servants  of  his  lord,  and  went  not  down  to 
his  house.  And  when  they  had  told  David,  saying,  "  Uriah  went 
not  down  unto  his  house,"  David  said  unto  Uriah :  "  Camest 
thou  not  from  thy  journey  ?  why  then  didst  thou  not  go  down 
unto  thine  house?"  And  Uriah  said  unto  David:  ''The  ark, 
and  Israel,  and  Judah,  abide  in  tents ;  and  my  lord  Joab,  and 
the  servants  of  my  lord,  are  encamped  in  the  open  fields;  shall 
I  then  go  into  mine  house,  to  eat  and  to  drink,  and  to  lie  with 
my  wife  ?  as  Jehovah  liveth,  and  as  thy  soul  liveth,  I  will  not 
do  this  thing."  And  David  said  to  Uriah :  "  Tarry  here  to-day 
also,  and  to-morrow  I  will  let  thee  depart."  So  Uriah  abode  in 
Jerusalem  that  day.  And  on  the  morrow  when  David  had  called 
him,  he  did  eat  and  drink  before  him  ;  and  he  made  him  drunk  ; 
and  at  even  he  went  out  to  lie  on  his  bed  with  the  servants  of 
his  lord,  but  went  not  down  to  his  house. 


DAVID    AND    BATHSHEBA  285 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  morning,  that  David  wrote  a  letter 
to  Joab,  and  sent  it  by  the  hand  of  Uriah.  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,  when  Joab  observed  the  city,  that  he  as- 
signed 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  people  of  the  servants  of  David;  and 
Uriah  the  Hittite  died  also. 

Then  Joab  sent  and  told  David  all  the  things  concerning  the 
war  ;  and  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.  Where- 
fore approached  ye  so  nigh  unto  the  city  when  ye  did  fight  ? 
knew  ye  not  that  they  would  shoot  from  the  wall  ?  who  smote 
Abimelech  the  son  of  Jerubbaal  ?  ^  did  not  a  woman  cast  a  piece 
of  a  millstone  upon  him  from  the  wall,  that  he  died  in  Thebez  ? 
why  went  ye  nigh  the  wall  ?  then  say  thou,  Thy  servant  Uriah 
the  Hittite  is  dead  also."  So  the  messenger  went,  and  came  and 
shewed  David  all  that  Joab  had  sent  him  for.  And  the  messen- 
ger said  unto  David  :  "  Surely  the  men  prevailed  against  us,  and 
came  out  unto  us  into  the  field,  and  we  were  upon  them  even 
unto  the  entering  of  the  gate.  And  the  shooters  shot  from  off 
the  wall  upon  thy  servants;  and  some  of  the  king's  servants  be 
dead,  and  thy  servant  Uriah  the  Hittite  is  dead  also."  Then 
David  said  unto  the  messenger:  ^'  Thus  shalt  thou  say  unto  Joab, 
Let  not  this  thing  displease  thee,  for  the -sword  devoureth  one 
as  well  as  another  :  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  mourn- 
ing was  past,  David  sent  and  fetched  her  to  his  house,  and  she 
became  his  wife,  and  bare  him  a  son. 

But  the  thing  that  David  had  done  displeased  the  Lord.  And 
the  Lord  sent  Nathan  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 

1  Jerubbaal.  The  text  here  has  the  disguised  form  '  Jerubbesheth.'  See  note, 
p.  265.    For  the  incideat,  see  p.  186. 


286  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

together  with  him,  and  with  his  children ;  it  did  eat  of  his  own 
meat,  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  the  Lord  liveth  the  man  that  hath  done 
this  thing  is  worthy  to  die  :  and  he  shall  restore  the  lamb  four- 
fold, because  he  did  this  thing,  and  because  he  had  no  pity." 

And  Nathan  said  to  David :  "  Thou  art  the  man.  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  I  anointed  thee  king  over  Israel,  and  I 
delivered  thee  out  of  the  hand  of  Saul ;  and  I  gave  thee  thy 
master's  house,  and  thy  master's  wives  into  thy  bosom,^  and  gave 
thee  the  house  of  Israel  and  of  Judah ;  and  if  that  had  been  too 
little,  I  would  moreover  have  given  unto  thee  such  and  such 
things.  Wherefore  hast  thou  despised  the  commandment  of  the 
Lord,  to  do  evil  in  his  sight  ?  thou  hast  killed  Uriah  the  Hittite 
with  the  sword,  and  hast  taken  his  wife  to  be  thy  wife,  and  hast 
slain  him  with  the  sword  of  the  children  of  Ammon." 

And  David  said  unto  Nathan,  "I  have  sinned  against  the 
Lord."  And  Nathan  said  unto  David:  "  The  Lord  also  hath  put 
away  thy  sin ;  thou  shalt  not  die.  Howbeit,  because  by  this  deed 
thou  hast  despised  the  Lord,  the  child  also  that  is  born  unto 
thee  shall  surely  die."   And  Nathan  departed  unto  his  house. 

And  the  Lord  struck  the  child  that  Uriah's  wife  bare  unto 
David,  and  it  was  very  sick.  David  therefore  besought  God  for 
the  child ;  and  David  fasted,  and  went  in,  and  lay  all  night  upon 
the  earth.  And  the  elders  of  his  house  arose,  and  went  to  him, 
to  raise  him  up  from  the  earth :  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  will  he  then  vex  himself,  if 
"w^e  tell  him  that  the  child  is  dead?"  But  when  David  saw  that 
his   servants  whispered,  David   perceived    that   the  child   was 

1  The  custom  by  which  a  king's  harem  was  passed  on  to  his  successor  gave 
point  to  Ishbaal's  indignation  with  Abner  (p.  267),  Solomon's  with  Adonijah 
(p.  310),  and  to  Ahithophel's  advice  to  Absalom  (p.  2'J6). 


ABSALOM    REVENGES    TAMAR  287 

dead:  therefore  David  said  unto  his  servants,  "Is  the  child 
dead?"  And  they  said,  ''He  is  dead."  Then  David  arose  from 
the  earth,  and  washed,  and  anointed  himself,  and  changed  his 
apparel,  and  came  into  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  worshipped: 
then  he  came  to  his  own  house;  and  when  he  required,  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,  W^ho  can  tell  whether  God  will  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." 

And  David  comforted  Bath-sheba  his  wife,  and  went  in  unto 
her,  and  lay  with  her:  and  she  bare  a  son,  and  he  called  his 
name  Solomon.  xVnd  the  Lord  loved  him,  and  he  sent  by  the 
hand  of  Nathan  the  prophet ;  and  he  called  his  name  Jedidiah, 
by  the  word  of  the  Lord. 

Absalom  Revenges  Tamar  (2  Sam.  xiii.).  And  it  came  to 
pass  after  this,  that  Absalom  the  son  of  David  had  a  fair  sister, 
whose  name  was  Tamar;  and  Amnon  the  son  of  David  loved 
her.^  And  Amnon  was  so  vexed,  that  he  fell  sick  for  his  sister 
Tamar;  for  she  was  a  virgin;  and  Amnon  thought  it  hard  for 
him  to  do  anything  to  her.  But  Amnon  had  a  friend,  whose 
name  was  Jonadab,  the  son  of  Shimeah  David's  brother:  and 
Jonadab  was  a  very  subtle  man.  And  he  said  unto  him :  "  Why 
art  thou,  being  the  king's  son,  lean  from  day  to  day  ?  wilt  thou 
not  tell  me  ?"  And  Amnon  said  unto  him,  "I  love  Tamar,  my 
brother  Absalom's  sister."  And  Jonadab  said  unto  him:  "Lay 
thee  down  on  thy  bed,  and  make  thyself  sick:  and  when  thy 
father  cometh  to  see  thee,  say  unto  him,  I  pray  thee,  let  my 
sister  Tamar  come,  and  give  me  bread,  and  dress  the  food  in 
my  sight,  that  I  may  see  it,  and  eat  it  at  her  hand." 

So  Amnon  lay  down,  and  made  himself  sick  :  and  when  the 
king  was  come  to  see  him,  Amnon  said  unto  the  king:  "I  pray 
thee,  let  Tamar  my  sister  come,  and  make  me  a  couple  of  cakes 
in  my  sight,  that  I  may  eat  at  her  hand." 

1  Amnon  was  the  son  of  Ahinoam  the  Jezreelitess;  Absalom  and  Tamar  were 
children  of  Maachah,  daughter  of  the  king  of  Geshur. 


288  THE    EAELY   MONARCHY 

Then  David  sent  home  to  Tamar,  saying:  ''Go  now  to  thy 
brother  Amnon's  house,  and  dress  him  food."  So  Tamar  went 
to  her  brother  Amnon's  house :  and  he  was  laid  down.  And 
she  took  flour,  and  kneaded  it,  and  made  cakes  in  his  sight,  and 
did  bake  the  cakes.  And  she  took  a  pan,  and  poured  them  out 
before  him;  but  he  refused  to  eat.  And  Amnon  said,  ''Have 
out  all  men  from  me."  And  they  went  out  every  man  from  him. 
And  Amnon  said  unto  Tamar,  "  Bring  the  food  into  the  cham- 
ber, that  I  may  eat  of  thine  hand."  And  Tamar  took  the  cakes 
which  she  had  made,  and  brought  them  into  the  chamber  to 
Amnon  her  brother.  And  when  she  had  brought  them  unto  him 
to  eat,  he  took  hold  of  her,  and  said  unto  her,  "Come  lie  with 
me,  my  sister."  And  she  answered  him:  ''Nay,  my  brother, 
do  not  force  me;  for  no  such  thing  ought  to  be  done  in  Israel: 
do  not  thou  this  folly.  And  I,  whither  shall  I  cause  my  shame 
to  go?  and  as  for  thee,  thou  shalt  be  as  one  of  the  fools  in 
Israel.  Now  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  speak  unto  the  king;  for 
he  will  not  withhold  me  from  thee."  Howbeit  he  would  not 
hearken  unto  her  voice:  but,  being  stronger  than  she,  forced 
her,  and  lay  with  her. 

Then  Amnon  hated  her  exceedingly ;  so  that  the  hatred 
wherewith  he  hated  her  was  greater  than  the  love  wherewith 
he  had  loved  her.  And  Amnon  said  unto  her,  "Arise,  be  gone." 
And  she  said  unto  him:  "Not  so,  my  brother;  this  evil  in 
sending  me  away  is  greater  than  the  other  that  thou  didst  unto 
me."  But  he  would  not  hearken  unto  her.  Then  he  called  his 
servant  that  ministered  unto  him,  and  said,  "Put  now  this 
woman  out  from  me,  and  bolt  the  door  after  her. "  Then  his 
servant  brought  her  out,  and  bolted  the  door  after  her.  And 
Tamar  put  ashes  on  her  head,  and  rent  her  garment  of  divers 
colors  that  was  on  her,  and  laid  her  hand  on  her  head,  and 
went  on  crying.  And  Absalom  her  brother  said  unto  her: 
''Hath  Amnon  thy  brother  been  with  thee?  but  hold  now  thy 
peace,  my  sister:  he  is  thy  brother;  regard  not  this  thing." 
So  Tamar  remained  desolate  in  her  brother  Absalom's  house. 
But  when  king  David  heard  of  all  these  things,  he  was  very 
wroth,  yet  did  he  not  vex  the  soul  of  Amnon  his  son,  for  he 
loved  him,  because  he  was  his  first-born.  And  Absalom  spake 
unto  his  brother  Amnon  neither  good  nor  bad:  for  Absalom 
hated  Amnon,  because  he  had  forced  his  sister  Tamar. 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  two  full  years,  that  Absalom  had 


ABSALOM   REVENGES   TAMAR  289 

sheepshearers  in  Baal-hazor,  which  is  beside  Ephraim  :  and  Absa- 
lom invited  all  the  king's  sons.  And  Absalom  came  to  the  king, 
and  said:  ''  Behold  now,  thy  servant  hath  sheepshearers;  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 
now  go,  lest  we  be  burdensome  unto  thee."  And  he  pressed  him : 
howbeit  he  would  not  go,  but  blessed  him.  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.  Now  Absalom  had  made  a  feast  like  the  feast  of 
a  king.  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  serv- 
ants 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  tare  his  garments,  and  lay  on  the  earth ; 
and  all  his  servants  stood  by  with  their  clothes  rent.  And  Jona- 
dab,  the  son  of  Shimeah  David's  brother,  answered  and  said : 
"  Let  not  my  lord  suppose  that  they  have  slain  all  the  young 
men  the  king's  sons ;  for  Amnon  only  is  dead :  for  by  the  ap- 
pointment of  Absalom  this  hath  been  determined  from  the  day 
that  he  forced  his  sister  Tamar.  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  by  the  way  of 
the  hill  side  behind  him.  And  Jonadab  said  unto  the  king : 
*' Behold,  the  king's  sons  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  Ammihud, 
king  of  Geshur,  and  was  there  three  years.  And  the  soul  of  king 
David  longed  to  go  forth  unto  Absalom  :  for  he  was  comforted 
concerning  Amnon,  seeing  he  was  dead. 


290  THE    EAKLY   MONARCHY 

The  Pardon  of  Absalom  (2  Sam.  xiv.).  Now  Joab  the  son 

of  Zeruiali  perceived  that  the  king's  heart  was  toward  Absalom. 
And  Joab  sent  to  Tekoah,  and  fetched  thence  a  wise  woman,  and 
said  unto  her:  "I  pray  thee,  feign  thyself  to  be  a  mourner,  and 
put  on  now  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  Te- 
koah came  to  the  king,  she  fell  on  her  face  to  the  ground,  and 
did  obeisance,  and  said,  ^'  Help,  0  king."  And  the  king  said 
unto  her,  "  What  aileth  thee  ?  "  And  she  answered:  ''  I  am  in- 
deed a  widow  woman,  and  mine  husband  is  dead.  And  thy  hand- 
maid 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 ;  and  we  will  destroy  the  heir  also  :  and  so  they  shall 
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  charge 
concerning  thee."  And  the  woman  of  Tekoah  said  unto  the  king: 
"  My  lord,  0  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 
wouldest  not  suffer  the  revengers  of  blood  to  destroy  any  more, 
lest  they  destroy  my  son."  And  he  said  :  "  As  the  Lord  liveth, 
there  shall  not  one  hair  of  thy  son  fall  to  the  earth." 

Then  the  woman  said :  "  Let  thine  handmaid,  I  pray  thee, 
speak  one  word  unto  my  lord  the  king."  And  he  said,  "  Say 
on."  And  the  woman  said  :  "  Wherefore  then  hast  thou  thought 
such  a  thing  against  the  people  of  God  ?  for  the  king  doth  speak 
this  thing  as  one  which  is  faulty,  in  that  the  king  doth  not  fetch 
home  again  his  banished.  For  we  must  needs  die,  and  are  as 
water  spilt  on  the  ground,  which  cannot  be  gathered  up  again ; 
but  God  will  not  take  away  the  life  of  him  who  deviseth  means 
whereby  one  that  is  banished  may  not  remain  expelled  from  him. 
Now  therefore  that  I  am  come  to  speak  of  this  thing  unto  my 
lord  the  king,  it  is  because  the  people  have  made  me  afraid  :  and 


THE    PARDON   OF   ABSALOM  291 

thy  handmaid  said,  I  will  now  speak  unto  the  king ;  it  may  be 
that  the  king  will  perform  the  request  of  his  handmaid.  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  in- 
heritance of  God.  Then  thine  handmaid  said.  The  word  of  my 
lord  the  king  shall  now  be  comfortable  :  for  as  an  angel  of  God, 
so  is  my  lord  the  king  to  discern  good  and  bad :  therefore  the 
Lord  thy  God  will  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  this  matter  hath  thy  serv- 
ant 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." 

And  the  king  said  unto  Joab :  "  Behold  now,  I  have  done 
this  thing:  go  therefore,  bring  the  young  man  Absalom  again." 
And  Joab  fell  to  the  ground  on  his  face,  and  bowed  himself,  and 
thanked  the  king  :  and  Joab  said  :  "  To-day  thy  servant  knoweth 
that  I  have  found  grace  in  thy  sight,  my  lord,  0  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,  and  let  him  not 
see  my  face."  So  Absalom  returned  to  his  own  house,  and  saw 
not  the  king's  face. 

But  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  (for  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  hundred  shekels  after 
the  king's  weight.^  And  unto  Absalom  there  were  born  three 

1  polled.  Clipped  closely. 

2  The  specifying  of  the  king's  weight  shows  that  Babylonian  weights  and 
measures  were  current  in  Palestine.  Professor  Kennedy  estimates  the  200 
shekels  here  as  amounting  to  3?  lbs. 


292  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

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  saw  not 
the  king's  face.  Therefore  Absalom  sent  for  Joab,  to  have  sent 
him  to  the  king ;  but  he  would  not  come  to  him :  and  when  he 
sent  again  the  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  serv- 
ants set  the  field  on  fire.  Then  Joab  arose,  and  came  unto  Absa- 
lom unto  his  house,  and  said  unto  him,  "  Wherefore  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  any  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. 

Absalom's  Rebellion  (2  Sam.  xv.-xviii. ;  xix.  1-8).  And  it 
came  to  pass  after  this,  that  Absalom  prepared  him  chariots  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  judg- 
ment, 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  which  hath  any  suit  or  cause  might 
come  unto  me,  and  I  would  do  him  justice  !  "  And  it  w^as  so, 
that  when  any  man  came  nigh  to  him  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  judg- 
ment :  so  Absalom  stole  the  hearts  of  the  men  of  Israel. 

And  it  came  to  pass  after  four  years,  that  Absalom  said  unto 
the  king  :  "  I  pray  thee,  let  me  go  and  pay  my  vow,  which  I 
have  vowed  unto  the  Lord  in  Hebron.  For  thy  servant  vowed 
a  voM'  while  I  abode  at  Geshur  in  Syria,  saying,  If  the  Lord 
shall  bring  me  again  indeed  to  Jerusalem,  then  I  will  serve  the 


ABSALOM'S    KEBELLIOX  293 

Lord  in  Hebron."  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  invited ; 
and  they  went  in  their  simplicity,  and  they  knew  not  any  thing. 
And  Absalom  sent  for  Ahitliophel  the  Gilonite,  David's  coun- 
sellor, from  his  city,  even  from  Giloh,  while  he  offered  sacrifices. 
And  the  conspiracy  was  strong ;  for  the  people  increased  con- 
tinually 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  we  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  servants 
are  ready  to  do  whatsoever  my  lord  the  king  shall  appoint." 
And  the  king  went  forth,  and  all  his  household  after  him.  And 
the  king  left  ten  women,  which  were  concubines,  to  keep  the 
house.  And  the  king  went  forth,  and  all  his  servants  after  him, 
and  tarried  in  a  place  that  was  far  off.  And  all  the  people 
passed  on  beside  him  ;  and  all  the  Cherethites,  and  all  the  Pele- 
thites,  and  the  men  of  Ittai  the  Gittite,  six  hundred  men  which 
came  after  him  from  Gath,  passed  on  before  the  king.  Then  said 
the  king  to  Ittai  the  Gittite :  "  Wherefore  goest  thou  also  with 
us  ?  return  to  thy  place,  and  abide  with  the  king :  for  thou  art 
a  stranger,  and  also  an  exile.  Whereas  thou  earnest  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  :  mercy 
and  truth  be  with  thee."  And  Ittai  answered  the  king,  and 
said  :  "  As  the  Lord  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  over."  And  Ittai  the  Gittite  passed  over, 
and  all  his  men,  and  all  the  little  ones  that  were  with  him. 
And  all  the  country  wept  with  a  loud  voice  as  they  passed  over  : 
but    the  king  stood    in  the  valley  of    the    Kidron,  while  all 

1  Hebron,  the  old  capital  of  Judah,  had  doubtless  always  resented  David's 
transfer  of  the  seat  of  government  to  Jerusalem. 


294  THE    EARLY    MONARCHY 

the  people  passed  over,  toward  the  olive  tree  in  the  wilder- 
ness. 

And  lo,  Zadok  and  Abiathar  were  with  him,  bearing  the  ark 
of  God  :  and  they  set  down  the  ark  of  God  until  all  the  people 
had  done  passing  out  of  the  city.  And  the  king  said  unto  Za- 
dok and  Abiathar  :  "  Carry  back  the  ark  of  God  into  the  city  : 
if  I  shall  find  favor  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  he  will  bring  me 
again,  and  shew  me  both  it,  and  his  habitation  :  but  if  he  thus 
say,  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  Za- 
dok and  Abiathar  the  priests  :  ''  See  now,  return  into  the  city 
in  peace,  and  your  two  sons  with  you,  Ahimaaz  thy  son,  and 
Jonathan  the  son  of  Abiathar.  See,  I  will  tarry  in  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  mount  Olivet,  and  wept 
as  he  went  up,  and  had  his  head  covered,  and  he  went  barefoot : 
and  all  the  people  that  was  with  him  covered  every  man  his 
head,  and  they  went  up,  ^veeping  as  they  went. 

And  one  told  David,  saying,  "Ahithophel  is  among  the  con- 
spirators with  Absalom."  And  David  said,  "  0  Lord,  I  pray 
thee,  turn  the  counsel  of  Ahithophel  into  foolishness."  And  it 
came  to  pass,  that  when  David  was  come  to  the  top  of  the 
mount,  where  God  was  worshipped,  behold,  Hushai  the  Archite 
came  to  meet  him  with  his  coat  rent,  and  earth  upon  his  head : 
unto  whom  David  said  :  ^^  If  thou  passest  on  with  me,  then  thou 
shalt  be  a  burden  unto  me  :  but  if  thou  return  to  the  city,  and 
say  unto  Absalom,  I  will  be  thy  servant,  0  king ;  as  I  have 
been  thy  father's  servant  hitherto,  so  will  I  now  also  be  thy 
servant :  then  may  est  thou  for  me  defeat  the  counsel  of  Ahitho- 
phel. 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  Abiathar  the  priests.  Behold,  they  have  there  with  them 
their  two  sons,  Ahimaaz  Zadok's  son,  and  Jonathan  Abiathar'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 


ABSALOM'S  KEBELLION  295 

saddled,  and  upon  them  two  hundred  loaves  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  household  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  are  all  that  pertained  unto  Merib- 
baal."  And  Ziba  said,  "  I  humbly  beseech  thee  that  I  may  find 
grace  in  thy  sight,  my  lord,  0  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  forth,  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  :  "  Come  out,  come  out,  thou  bloody  man,  and  thou  man 
of  Belial :  the  Lord  hath  returned  upon  thee  all  the  blood  of  the 
house  of  Saul,  in  whose  stead  thou  hast  reigned ;  and  the  Lord 
hath  delivered  the  kingdom  into  the  hand  of  Absalom  thy  son : 
and  behold,  thou  art  taken  in  thy  mischief,  because  thou  art  a 
bloody  man."  Then  said  Abishai  the  son  of  Zeruiah  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  with  you,  ye  sons  of  Zeruiah  ?  so  let  him 
curse,  because  the  Lord  hath  said  unto  him,  Curse  David.  Who 
shall  then  say,  Wherefore  hast  thou  done  so  ?  "  And  David 
said  to  Abishai,  and  to  all  his  servants :  "  Behold,  my  son, 
which  came  forth  of  my  bowels,  seeketh  my  life  :  how  much 
more  now  may  this  Benjamite  do  it  ?  let  him  alone,  and  let  him 
curse  ;  for  the  Lord  hath  bidden  him.  It  may  be  that  the  Lord 
will  look  on  mine  affliction,  and  that  the  Lord  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's  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  refreshed  themselves  there. 

1  to  the  Jordan.  This  phrase,  found  in  Lucian's  Greek  version,  seems  prob- 
able. The  name  of  the  place  has  dropped  out  of  the  Hebrew  text. 


296  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

And  Absalom,  and  all  the  men  of  Israel,  came  to  Jerusalem, 
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  the  Lord,  and 
this  people,  and  all  the  men  of  Israel,  choose,  his  will  I  be,  and 
with  him  will  I  abide.  And  again,  whom  should  I  serve  ?  should 
I  not  serve  in  the  presence  of  his  son  ?  as  I  have  served  in  thy 
father's  presence,  so  will  I  be  in  thy  presence." 

Then  said  Absalom  to  Ahithophel,  ''  Give  counsel  among  you 
what  we  shall  do."  And  Ahithophel  said  unto  Absalom  :  "  Go 
in  unto  thy  father's  concubines,  which  he  hath  left  to  keep  the 
house  ;  and  all  Israel  shall  hear  that  thou  art  abhorred  of  thy 
father  :  then  shall  the  hands  of  all  that  are  with  thee  be  strong." 
So  they  spread  Absalom  a  tent  upon  the  top  of  the  house  ;  and 
Absalom  went  in  unto  his  father's  concubines  in  the  sight  of  all 
Israel. 

And  the  counsel  of  Ahithophel,  which  he  counselled  in  those 
days,  was  as  if  a  man  had  enquired  at  the  oracle  of  God :  so 
was  all  the  counsel  of  Ahithophel  both  with  David  and  with 
Absalom. 

Moreover  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  to  her  husband;  thou  seekest  the  life  of  but  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 :  "  Ahithophel 
hath  spoken  after  this  manner  :  shall  we  do  after  his  saying  ?  if 
not ;  speak  thou." 

And  Hushai  said  unto  Absalom :  ^'  The  counsel  that  Ahitho- 
phel 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  be  chafed  in  their  minds,  as  a  bear  robbed  of  her 


Absalom's  rebellion  297 

whelps  in  the  fields :  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 
the  people  be  overthrown  at  the  first,  that  whosoever  heareth  it 
will  say.  There  is  a  slaughter  among  the  people  that  follow 
Absalom.  And  he  also  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  which  be  with  him  are  valiant 
men.  Therefore  I  counsel  that  all  Israel  be  generally  gathered 
unto  thee,  from  Dan  even  to  Beer-sheba,  as  the  sand  that  is  by 
the  sea  for  multitude ;  and  that  thou  go  to  battle  in  thine  own 
person.  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 
there  shall  not  be  left  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  the  Lord  had  appointed  to  defeat  the  good  counsel  of  Ahith- 
ophel,  to  the  intent  that  the  Lord  might  bring  evil  upon  Absa- 
lom. 

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  En-rogel ;  for  they  might 
not  be  seen  to  come  into  the  city  :  and  a  wench  went  and  told 
them  ;  and  they  went  and  told  king  David.  Nevertheless  a  lad 
saw  them,  and  told  Absalom  :  but  they  went  both  of  them  away 
quickly,  and  came  to  a  man's  house  in  Bahurim,  which  had  a 
well  in  his  court ;  whither  they  went  down.  And  the  woman 
took  and  spread  a  covering  over  the  well's  mouth,  and  spread 
ground  corn  thereon  ;  and  the  thing  was  not  known.  And  when 
Absalom's  servants  came  to  the  woman  to  the  house,  they  said, 
"  Where  are  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 


298  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

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  said  unto  David  :  "  Arise,  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  to  his  house,  to  his  city, 
and  put  his  household  in  order,  and  hanged  himself,  and  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  of  the  host  instead  of  Joab :  which  Amasa 
was  a  man's  son,  whose  name  was  Jether,  an  Ishmaelite  that 
went  in  to  Abigail  the  daughter  of  Nahash,  sister  to  Zeruiah 
Joab's  mother.  So  Israel  and  Absalom  pitched  in  the  land  of 
Gilead.  And  it  came  to  pass,  w^hen  David  was  come  to  Maha- 
naim, that  Shobi  the  son  of  ISTahash  of  Rabbah  of  the  children 
of  Ammon,  and  Machir  the  son  of  Ammiel  of  Lo-debar,  and 
Barzillai  the  Gileadite  of  Rogelim,  brought  beds,  and  basins, 
and  earthen  vessels,  and  wheat,  and  barley,  and  flour,  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  the  people  into  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 
answered :  ''  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  us :  but  now  thou  art  worth  ten  thousand  of  us :  therefore 
now  it  is  better  that  thou  succor  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  commanded 
Joab  and  Abishai  and  Ittai,  saying,  "Deal  gently  for  my  sake 


ABSALOM'S    REBELLION  299 

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  wood  of  Ephraim ;  ^  where  the  people 
of  Israel  were  slain  before  the  servants  of  David,  and  there  was 
there  a  great  slaughter  that  day  of  twenty  thousand  men.  For  the 
battle  was  there  scattered  over  the  face  of  all  the  country :  and 
the  wood  devoured  more  people  that  day  than  the  sword  devoured. 

And  Absalom  met  the  servants  of  David.  And  Absalom  rode 
upon  a  mule,  and  the  mule  went  under  the  thick  boughs  of  a 
great  oak,  and  his  head  caught  fast  in  the  oak,  and  he  was 
taken  up  between  the  heaven  and  the  earth ;  and  the  mule  that 
was  under  him  went  away.  And  a  certain  man  saw  it,  and  told 
Joab,  and  said,  *' Behold,  I  saw  Absalom  hanged  in  an  oak." 
And  Joab  said  unto  the  man  that  told  him:  "And  behold, 
thou  sawest  him,  and  why  didst  thou  not  smite  him  there  to 
the  ground  ?  and  I  would  have  given  thee  ten  shekels  of  silver, 
and  a  girdle."  And  the  man  said  unto  Joab:  ''Though  I  should 
receive  a  thousand  shekels  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. 
Beware  that  none  touch  the  young  man  Absalom.  Otherwise  I 
should  have  wrought  falsehood  against  mine  own  life  :  for  there 
is  no  matter  hid  from  the  king,  and  thou  thyself  wouldest  have 
set  thyself  against  me."  Then  said  Joab,  "  I  may  not  tarry 
thus  with  thee."  And  he  took  three  darts  in  his  hand,  and 
thrust  them  through  the  heart  of  Absalom,  and  while  he  was 
yet  alive  in  the  midst  of  the  oak,  ten  young  men  that  bare 
Joab's  armor  compassed  about  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. 

Now  Absalom  in  his  lifetime  bad  taken  and  reared  up  for 
himself  a  pillar,  which  is  in  the  king's  dale  :  for  he  said,  "  I 
have  no  son  to  keep  my  name  in  remembrance :  "  and  he  called 
the  pillar  after  his  own  name  :  and  it  is  called  unto  this  day, 
Absalom's  monument. 

1  The  wood  of  Ephraim  was  probably  a  rocky  wilderness  overgrown  with 
thickets. 


300  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

Then  said  Ahimaaz  the  son  of  Zadok :  '^  Let  me  now  run, 
and  bear  the  king  tidings,  how  that  the  Lord  hath  avenged 
him  of  his  enemies."  And  Joab  said  unto  him :  "  Thou  shalt 
not  bear  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."  And  the  Cushite  bowed  himself 
unto  Joab,  and  ran.  Then  said  Ahimaaz  the  son  of  Zadok  yet 
again  to  Joab,  ''  But  howsoever,  let  me,  I  pray  thee,  also  run 
after  the  Cushite."  And  Joab  said:  *' Wherefore  wilt  thou  run, 
my  son,  seeing  that  thou  wilt  receive  no  pay  for  thy  tidings  ?  " 
"  But  howsoever,"  said  he,  "  let  me  run."  And  he  said  unto 
him,  "  Run."  Then  Ahimaaz  ran  by  the  way  of  the  plain,  and 
overran  the  Cushite. 

And  David  sat  between  the  two  gates :  and  the  watchman 
went  up  to  the  roof  over  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  upon  the  gate  called  and  said,  "  Behold  an- 
other man  running  alone."  And  the  king  said,  "  He  also  bring- 
eth  tidings."  And  the  watchman  said  :  "  Methinketh  the  run- 
ning 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  called,  and  said  unto  the  king, 
"  Peace !  "  And  he  fell  down  to  the  earth  upon  his  face  before 
the  king,  and  said :  "  Blessed  be  the  Lord  thy  God,  which  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  serv- 
ant, I  saw  a  great  tumult,  but  I  knew  not  what  it  was."  And 
the  king  said  unto  him,  "  Turn  aside,  and  stand  here."  And 
he  turned  aside,  and  stood  still. 

And  behold,  the  Cushite  came ;  and  the  Cushite  said :  "  Tid- 
ings, my  lord  the  king :  for  the  Lord  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  hurt,  be  as  that  young  man 
is."  And  the  king  was  much  moved,  and  went  up  to  the  cham- 


DAVID'S   RETURN  301 

ber  over  the  gate,  and  wept :  and  as  he  wept,  thus  he  said :  ''  0 
my  son  Absalom,  my  son,  my  son  Absalom !  would  God  I  had 
died  for  thee,  0  Absalom,  my  son,  my  son  ! " 

And  it  was  told  Joab,  "  Behold,  the  king  weepeth  and  mourn- 
eth  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  people  gat  them 
by  stealth  that  day  into  the  city,  as  people  being  ashamed  steal 
away  when  they  flee  in  battle. 

But  the  king  covered  his  face,  and  the  king  cried  with  a  loud 
voice,  "  0  my  son  Absalom,  0  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,  which  this 
day  have  saved  thy  life,  and  the  lives  of  thy  sons  and  of  thy 
daughters,  and  the  lives  of  thy  wives,  and  the  lives  of  thy  con- 
cubines ;  in  that  thou  lovest  thine  enemies,  and  hatest  thy 
friends.  For  thou  hast  declared  this  day,  that  thou  regardest 
neither  princes  nor  servants :  for  this  day  I  perceive,  that  if 
Absalom  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  I  swear  by  the  Lord,  if  thou 
go  not  forth,  there  will  not  tarry  one  with  thee  this  night :  and 
that  will  be  worse  unto  thee  than  all  the  evil  that  befell  thee 
from  thy  youth  until  now."  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. 

David's  Return  (2  Sam.  xix.  8-43).  ISTow  Israel  had  fled  every 
man  to  his  tent.  And  all  the  people  were  at  strife  throughout 
all  the  tribes  of  Israel,  saying  :  "  The  king  saved  us  out  of  the 
hands  of  our  enemies,  and  he  delivered  us  out  of  the  hand  of 
the  Philistines  ;  and  now  he  is  fled  out  of  the  land  for  Absalom. 
And  Absalom,  whom  we  anointed  over  us,  is  dead  in  battle. 
Now  therefore  why  speak  ye  not  a  word  of  bringing  the  king 
back  ?  "  And  the  speech  of  all  Israel  came  to  the  king. 

And  king  David  sent  to  Zadok  and  to  Abiathar  the  priests, 
saying :  "  Speak  unto  the  elders  of  Judah,  saying,  Why  are  ye 
the  last  to  bring  the  king  back  to  his  house  ?  Ye  are  my  bre- 
thren, ye  are  my  bones  and  my  flesh  :  wherefore  then  are  ye  the 
last  to  bring  back  the  king  ?  And  say  ye  to  Amasa,  Art  thou 


302  THE    EARLY   MONARCHY 

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  Amasa  bowed  the  heart  of  all  the 
men  of  Judah,  even  as  the  heart  of  one  man  ;  so  that  they  sent 
this  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,  a  Benjamite,  which  was  of  Ba- 
hurim,  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  fif- 
teen sons  and  his  twenty  servants  with  him,  went  over  Jordan 
before  the  king,  and  they  kept  crossing  the  ford  to  carry  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  come 
over  Jordan ;  and  said  unto  the  king :  ''  Let  not  my  lord  im- 
pute 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  the  first  this  day  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  the  Lord's  anointed  ?  "  And  David  said  : 
*' What  have  I  to  do  with  you,  ye  sons  of  Zeruiah,  that  ye  should 
this  day  be  adversaries  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  ?  "  Therefore  the  king  said  unto  Shimei, 
"  Thou  shalt  not  die."  And  the  king  sware  unto  him. 

And  Meribbaal  the  son  of  Saul  came  down  to  meet  the  king, 
and  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  was 
come  from  Jerusalem  to  meet  the  king,  that  the  king  said  unto 
him,  ''  Wherefore  wentest  not  thou  with  me,  Meribbaal  ?  "  And 
he  answered:  ''My  lord,  0  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  of  my  father's  house  were  but  dead  men  before  my 


DAVID'S   RETURN  303 

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  of  thy  matters  ?  I  have  said,  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  again 
in  peace  unto  his  own  house." 

And  Barzillai  the  Gileadite  came  down  from  Rogelim,  and 
passed  on  with  the  king,  to  conduct  him  to  the  Jordan.  Now 
Barzillai  was  a  very  aged  man,  even  fourscore  years  old  :  and 
he  had  provided  the  king  of  sustenance  while  he  lay  at  Maha- 
naim  ;  for  he  was  a  very  great  man.  And  the  king  said  unto  Bar- 
zillai, '-'  Come  thou  over  with  me,  and  I  will  feed  thee  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  ;  and  can  I  discern  between 
good  and  evil  ?  can  thy  servant  taste  what  I  eat  or  what  I  drink  ? 
can  I  hear  any  more  the  voices  of  singing  men  and  singing  women  ? 
wherefore  then  should  thy  servant  be  yet  a  burden  unto  my  lord 
the  king  ?  Thy  servant  will  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,  and  be  buried  by  the  grave  of  my  father  and  of  my  mother. 
But  behold  thy  servant  Chimham ;  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  went  over  Jordan,  but  the  king  stood  still. 
And  the  king  kissed  Barzillai,  and  blessed  him ;  and  he  re- 
turned unto  his  own  place. 

Then  the  king  went  on  to  Gilgal,  and  Chimham  went  on 
with  him :  and  all  the  people  of  Judah  conducted  the  king,  and 
also  half  the  people  of  Israel.  And  behold,  all  the  men  of  Israel 
came  to  the  king,  and  said  unto  the  king  :  "  Why  have  our 
brethren  the  men  of  Judah  stolen  thee  away,  and  have  brought 
the  king,  and  his  household  over  Jordan,  when  all  of  David's 
men  are  his  people  ?  "  And  all  the  men  of  Judah  answered  the 
men  of  Israel :  "  Because  the  king  is  near  of  kin  to  us  :  where- 
fore then  be  ye  angry  for  this  matter  ?  have  we  eaten  at  all  of 
the  king's  cost  ?  or  hath  he  given  us  any  gift  ?  "  And  the  men 


304  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

of  Israel  answered  the  men  of  Judah,  and  said :  ''  I  have  ten 
parts  in  the  king,  and  I  am  also  the  first  born  rather  than  thou : 
why  then  didst  thou  despise  me  ?  Was  not  my  advice  first  to 
bring  back  our  king  ?  "  And  the  words  of  the  men  of  Judah 
were  fiercer  than  the  words  of  the  men  of  Israel. 

Sheba's  Revolt  (Sam.  xx.  1-22).  And  there  happened  to 
be  there  a  man  of  Belial,  whose  name  was  Sheba,  the  son  of 
Bichri,  a  Benjamite  :  and  he  blew  a  trumpet,  and  said :  ^'  We 
have  no  part  in  David,  neither  have  we  inheritance  in  the  son 
of  Jesse  :  every  man  to  his  tents,  0  Israel.'^  So  every  man  of 
Israel  went  up  from  after  David,  and  followed  Sheba  the  son  of 
Bichri :  but  the  men  of  Judah  clave  unto  their  king,  from  Jor- 
dan even  to  Jerusalem. 

And  David  came  to  his  house  at  Jerusalem ;  and  the  king 
took  the  ten  women  his  concubines,  whom  he  had  left  to  keep 
the  house,  and  put  them  in  ward,  and  fed  them,  but  went  not 
in  unto  them.  So  they  were  shut  up  unto  the  day  of  their  death, 
living  in  widowhood. 

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  he  had  appointed  him.  And  David  said  to 
Abishai :  "  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  escape  us.''  And 
there  went  out  after  Abishai  Joab  and  the  Cherethites,  and  the 
Pelethites,  and  all  the  mighty  men :  and  they  went  out  of  Jeru- 
salem, 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  as  for  Joab,  a  sword  was  in  his  hand 
beneath  his  apparel  of  war,  and  upon  it  a  girdle  with  a  sword 
fastened  upon  his  loins  in  the  sheath  thereof ;  and  as  he  went 
forth  it  fell  out.  And  Joab  said  to  Amasa  :  "  Art  thou  in  health, 
my  brother  ?  '^  And  Joab  took  Amasa  by  the  beard  with  the 
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 
fifth  rib,  and  shed  out  his  bowels  to  the  ground,  and  struck  him 
not  again;  and  he  died.  So  Joab  and  Abishai  his  brother  pur- 
sued after  Sheba  the  son  of  Bichri.  And  one  of  Joab's  men 
stood  by  him,  and  said :   "  He  that  favoreth  Joab,  and  he  that 


ADONIJAH'S   INTRIGUE    FOR   THE    SUCCESSION  305 

is  for  David,  let  him  go  after  Joab."  And  Aniasa  wallowed  in 
blood  in  the  midst  of  the  highway.  And  when  the  man  saw  that 
all  the  people  stood  still,  he  removed  Amasa  out  of  the  highway 
into  the  field,  and  cast  a  cloth  upon  him.  When  he  was  removed 
out  of  the  highway,  all  the  people  went  on  after  Joab,  to  pur- 
sue after  Sheba  the  son  of  Bichri.  And  he  [Sheba]  went  through 
all  the  tribes  of  Israel  unto  Abel  beth-maachah.  And  all  the 
Bichrites  were  gathered  together  and  went  also  after  him.  And 
they  came  and  besieged  him  in  Abel  beth-maachah,  and  they 
cast  up  a  mound  against  the  city,  and  it  stood  even  with  the 
rampart :  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  when  he  was  come  near  unto  her,  the  woman 
said,  '^  Art  thou  Joab  ?  "  And  he  answered,  "  I  am  he."  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.  Ask  in  Abel  and  in  Dan 
whether  aught  has  ceased  to  be,  which  the  faithful  in  Israel 
established ;  but  thou  seekest  to  destroy  a  city  and  a  mother  in 
Israel :  why  wilt  thou  swallow  up  the  inheritance  of  the  Lord  ?  " 
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  mount  Ephraim,  Sheba  the  son  of  Bichri  by  name, 
hath  lifted  up  his  hand  against  the  king,  even  against  David : 
deliver  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  went  into  the  city  and 
spake  unto  all  the  people  in  her  wisdom.  And  they  cut  oflf  the 
head  of  Sheba  the  son  of  Bichri,  and  cast  it  out  to  Joab.  And 
he  blew  a  trumpet,  and  they  retired  from  the  city,  every  man 
to  his  tent.   And  Joab  returned  to  Jerusalem  unto  the  king. 

Adonijah*s  Intrigue  for  the  Succession  (l  Kings  i.).  ISTow 
king  David  was  old  and  stricken  in  years ;  and  they  covered 
him  with  clothes,  but  he  gat  no  heat.  Wherefore  his  servants 
said  unto  him :  "  Let  there  be  sought  for  my  lord  the  king  a 
young  virgin :  and  let  her  stand  before  the  king,  and  let  her 
cherish  him,  and  let  her  lie  in  thy  bosom,  that  my  lord  the  king 
may  get  heat."   So  they  sought  for  a  fair  damsel  throughout  all 


306  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

the  coasts  of  Israel,  and  found  Abishag  a  Shunammite,  and 
brought  her  to  the  king.  And  the  damsel  was  very  fair,  and 
cherished  the  king,  and  ministered  to  him :  but  the  king  knew 
her  not. 

Then  Adonijah  the  son  of  Haggith  exalted  himself,  saying, 
"  I  will  be  king : "  and  he  prepared  him  chariots  and  horse- 
men, and  fifty  men  to  run  before  him.  And  his  father  had  not 
displeased  him  at  any  time  in  saying,  "  Why  hast  thou  done 
so  ? ''  and  he  also  was  a  very  goodly  man ;  and  his  mother 
bare  him  after  Absalom.  And  he  conferred  with  Joab  the  son 
of  Zeruiah,  and  with  Abiathar  the  priest :  and  they  following 
Adonijah  helped  him.  But  Zadok  the  priest,  and  Benaiah  the 
son  of  Jehoiada,  and  Nathan  the  prophet,  and  Shimei,  and  Rei, 
and  the  mighty  men  which  belonged  to  David,  were  not  with 
Adonijah.  And  Adonijah  slew  sheep  and  oxen  and  fat  cattle 
by  the  stone  of  Zoheleth,^  which  is  by  En-rogel,  and  called  all 
his  brethren  the  king's  sons,  and  all  the  men  of  Judah  the 
king's  servants:  but  Nathan  the  prophet,  and  Benaiah,  and  the 
mighty  men,  and  Solomon  his  brother,  he  called  not.  Where- 
fore Nathan  spake  unto  Bath-sheba  the  mother  of  Solomon,  say- 
ing: "Hast  thou  not  heard  that  Adonijah  the  son  of  Haggith 
doth  reign,  and  David  our  lord  knoweth  it  not  ?  Now  therefore 
come,  let  me,  I  pray  thee,  give  thee  counsel,  that  thou  mayest 
save  thine  own  life,  and  the  life  of  thy  son  Solomon.  Go  and 
get  thee  in  unto  king  David,  and  say  unto  him.  Didst  not  thou, 
my  lord  0  king,  swear  unto  thine  handmaid,  saying,  Assuredly 
Solomon  thy  son  shall  reign  after  me,  and  he  shall  sit  upon  my 
throne  ?  why  then  doth  Adonijah  reign  ?  Behold,  while  thou 
yet  talkest  there  with  the  king,  I  also  will  come  in  after  thee, 
and  confirm  thy  words." 

And  Bath-sheba  went  in  unto  the  king  into  the  chamber: 
and  the  king  was  very  old ;  and  Abishag  the  Shunammite  min- 
istered unto  the  king.  And  Bath-sheba  bowed,  and  did  obeisance 
unto  the  king.  And  the  king  said,  "  What  wouldest  thou  ?  "  And 
she  said  unto  him,  "My  lord,  thou  swarest  by  the  Lord  thy 
God  unto  thine  handmaid,  saying,  Assuredly  Solomon  thy  son 
shall  reign  after  me,  and  he  shall  sit  upon  my  throne.  And 
now,  behold,  Adonijah  reigneth  ;    and  thou,  my  lord  the  king, 

1  stone  of  Zoheleth.  'Serpent's  Stone.'  En-rogel  was  probably  the  "Well  of 
Job"  at  the  junction  of  the  valleys  of  Kidron  and  Hinnom.  The  stone  and 
well  were  sacred. 


307 

knowest  it  not :  and  he  hath  slain  oxen  and  fat  cattle  and  sheep 
in  abundance,  and  hath  called  all  the  sons  of  the  king,  and 
Abiathar  the  priest,  and  Joab  the  captain  of  the  host:  but 
Solomon  thy  servant  hath  he  not  called.  And  now,  my  lord, 
0  king,  the  eyes  of  all  Israel  are  upon  thee,  that  thou  shouldest 
tell  them  who  shall  sit  on  the  throne  of  my  lord  the  king  after 
him.  Otherwise  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when  my  lord  the  king 
shall  sleep  with  his  fathers,  that  I  and  my  son  Solomon  shall 
be  counted  offenders." 

And  lo,  while  she  yet  talked  with  the  king,  Nathan  the 
prophet  also  came  in.  And  they  told  the  king,  saying,  "  Behold 
Nathan  the  prophet."  And  Mhen  he  was  come  in  before  the 
king,  he  bowed  himself  before  the  king  with  his  face  to  the 
ground.  And  Xathan  said:  "My  lord,  O  king,  hast  thou  said, 
Adonijah  shall  reign  after  me,  and  he  shall  sit  upon  my  throne  ? 
For  he  is  gone  down  this  day,  and  hath  slain  oxen  and  fat 
cattle  and  sheep  in  abundance,  and  hath  called  all  the  king's 
sons,  and  Joab,  captain  of  the  host,  and  Abiathar  the  priest; 
and  behold,  they  eat  and  drink  before  him,  and  say,  God  save 
king  Adonijah.  But  me,  even  me  thy  servant,  and  Zadok  the 
priest,  and  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada,  and  thy  servant  Solo- 
mon, hath  he  not  called.  Is  this  thing  done  by  my  lord  the  king, 
and  thou  hast  not  shewed  it  unto  thy  servant,  who  should  sit  on 
the  throne  of  my  lord  the  king  after  him  ?  " 

Then  King  David  answered  and  said,  "Call  me  Bath-sheba.'' 
And  she  came  into  the  king's  presence,  and  stood  before  the 
king.  And  the  king  sware,  and  said  :  "  As  the  Lord  liveth,  that 
hath  redeemed  my  soul  out  of  distress,  even  as  I  sware  unto 
thee  by  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  saying.  Assuredly  Solomon  thy 
son  shall  reign  after  me,  and  he  shall  sit  upon  my  throne  in 
my  stead ;  even  so  will  I  certainly  do  this  day."  Then  Bath- 
sheba  bowed  with  her  face  to  the  earth,  and  did  reverence  to 
the  king,  and  said,  "  Let  my  lord  king  David  live  for  ever." 
And  king  David  said  :  "  Call  me  Zadok  the  priest,  and  Nathan 
the  prophet,  and  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada."  And  they 
came  before  the  king.  The  king  also  said  unto  them :  "  Take 
with  you  the  servants  of  your  lord,  and  cause  Solomon  my  son 
to  ride  upon  mine  own  mule,  and  bring  him  down  to  Gihon  :  ^ 
and  let  Zadok  the   priest  and  Xathan  the  prophet  anoint  him 

1  Gihon  was  probably  the  Virgin's  Spring  in  the  Kidron  valley.  It  was  an 
ancient  sanctuary. 


308  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

there  king  over  Israel :  and  blow  ye  with  the  trumpet,  and  say, 
God  save  king  Solomon.  Then  ye  shall  come  up  after  him,  that 
he  may  come  and  sit  upon  my  throne  ;  for  he  shall  be  king  in 
my  stead:  and  I  have  appointed  him  to  be  ruler  over  Israel 
and  over  Judah.''  And  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada  answered 
the  king,  and  said  :  "  Amen  :  may  the  Lord  confirm  the  words 
of  my  lord  the  king.  As  the  Lord  hath  been  with  my  lord  the 
king,  even  so  be  he  with  Solomon,  and  make  his  throne  greater 
than  the  throne  of  my  lord  king  David.'' 

So  Zadok  the  priest,  and  Nathan  the  prophet,  and  Benaiah 
the  son  of  Jehoiada,  and  the  Cherethites,  and  the  Pelethites, 
went  down,  and  caused  Solomon  to  ride  upon  king  David's 
mule,  and  brought  him  to  Gihon.  And  Zadok  the  priest  took 
an  horn  of  oil  out  of  the  tabernacle,  and  anointed  Solomon.  And 
they  blew  the  trumpet ;  and  all  the  people  said,  "  God  save  king 
Solomon."  And  all  the  people  came  up  after  him,  and  the,  people 
piped  with  pipes,  and  rejoiced  with  great  joy,  so  that  the  earth 
rent  with  the  sound  of  them.  And  Adonijah  and  all  the  guests 
that  were  with  him  heard  it  as  they  had  made  an  end  of  eating. 
And  when  Joab  heard  the  sound  of  the  trumpet,  he  said, 
*^  Wherefore  is  this  noise  of  the  city  being  in  an  uproar  ?  "  And 
while  he  yet  spake,  behold,  Jonathan  the  son  of  Abiathar  the 
priest  came  :  and  Adonijah  said  unto  him,  "  Come  in ;  for  thou 
art  a  valiant  man,  and  bringest  good  tidings."  And  Jonathan 
answered  and  said  to  Adonijah :  "  Verily  our  lord  king  David 
hath  made  Solomon  king.  And  the  king  hath  sent  with  him 
Zadok  the  priest,  and  Nathan  the  proJDhet,  and  Benaiah  the  son 
of  Jehoiada,  and  the  Cherethites,  and  the  Pelethites,  and  they 
have  caused  him  to  ride  upon  the  king's  mule  :  and  Zadok  the 
priest  and  Nathan  the  prophet  have  anointed  him  king  in 
Gihon :  and  they  are  come  up  from  thence  rejoicing,  so  that  the 
city  rang  again.  This  is  the  noise  that  ye  have  heard.  And  also 
Solomon  sitteth  on  the  throne  of  the  kingdom.  And  moreover 
the  king's  servants  came  to  bless  our  lord  king  David,  saying, 
God  make  the  name  of  Solomon  better  than  thy  name,  and 
make  his  throne  greater  than  thy  throne.  And  the  king  bowed 
himself  upon  the  bed.  And  also  thus  said  the  king,  Blessed  be 
the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  which  hath  given  one  to  sit  on  my 
throne  this  day,  mine  eyes  even  seeing  it." 

And  all  the  guests  that  were  with  Adonijah  were  afraid,  and 
rose  up,  and  went  every  man  his  way.   And  Adonijah  feared 


DEATH   OF   DAVID  309 

because  of  Solomon,  and  arose,  and  went,  and  caught  hold  on 
the  horns  of  the  altar.  And  it  was  told  Solomon,  saying:  "  Be- 
hold, Adonijah  feareth  king  Solomon  :  for  lo,  he  hath  caught 
hold  on  the  horns  of  the  altar,  saying,  Let  king  Solomon  swear 
unto  me  to-day  that  he  will  not  slay  his  servant  with  the  sword." 
And  Solomon  said :  "If  he  will  shew  himself  a  worthy  man, 
there  shall  not  an  hair  of  him  fall  to  the  earth  :  but  if  wicked- 
ness shall  be  found  in  him,  he  shall  die."  So  king  Solomon 
sent,  and  they  brought  him  down  from  the  altar.  And  he  came 
and  bowed  himself  to  king  Solomon :  and  Solomon  said  unto 
him,  '^  Go  to  thine  house." 

Death  of  David  (l  Kings  ii.  1-11).  Now  the  days  of  David 
drew  nigh  that  he  should  die ;  and  he  charged  Solomon  his 
son,  saying  :  ''  I  go  the  way  of  all  the  earth  :  be  thou  strong 
therefore,  and  shew  thyself  a  man  ;  and  keep  the  charge  of  the 
Lord  thy  God,  to  walk  in  his  ways. 

"  Moreover  thou  knowest  also  what  Joab  the  son  of  Zeruiah 
did  to  me,  and  what  he  did  to  the  two  captains  of  the  hosts  of 
Israel,  unto  Abner  the  son  of  Ner,  and  unto  Amasa  the  son  of 
Jether,  whom  he  slew,  and  avenged  the  blood  of  war  in  peace, 
and  put  innocent  blood  upon  his  girdle  that  was  about  his  loins, 
and  in  his  shoes  that  were  on  his  feet.  Do  therefore  according 
to  thy  wisdom,  and  let  not  his  hoar  head  go  down  to  the  grave 
in  peace. 

*'But  shew  kindness  unto  the  sons  of  Barzillai  the  Gileadite, 
and  let  them  be  of  those  that  eat  at  thy  table  :  for  so  they  came 
to  me  when  I  fled  because  of  Absalom  thy  brother. 

'^  And  behold,  thou  hast  with  thee  Shimei  the  son  of  Gera,  a 
Benjamite  of  Bahurim,  which  cursed  me  with  a  grievous  curse 
in  the  day  when  I  went  to  Mahanaim :  but  he  came  down  to 
meet  me  at  Jordan,  and  I  sware  to  him  by  the  Lord,  saying,  I 
will  not  put  thee  to  death  with  the  sword.  Now  therefore  hold 
him  not  guiltless  :  for  thou  art  a  wise  man,  and  knowest  what 
thou  oughtest  to  do  unto  him  ;  but  his  hoar  head  bring  thou 
down  to  the  grave  with  blood."  ^ 

So  David  slept  with  his  fathers,  and  was  buried  in  the  city 

1  The  Chronicler  (1  Chron.  xxviii.  and'xxix.)  makes  David's  farewell  the 
occasion  of  a  preat  assembly,  at  which  the  people  make  lavish  offerings  for  the 
temple,  and  David  gives  Solomon  explicit  directions  for  its  building  and  fur- 
nishing. 


310  THE    EARLY    MONARCHY 

of  David.  And  the  days  that  David  reigned  over  Israel  were 
forty  years  :  seven  years  reigned  he  in  Hebron,  and  thirty  and 
three  years  reigned  he  in  Jerusalem. 

3.   Solomon 

The  Removal  of  Solomon's  Opponents  (l  Kings  ii.  12-46). 
Then  sat  Solomon  upon  the  throne  of  David  his  father  ;  and 
his  kingdom  was  established  greatly.  And  Adonijah  the  son  of 
Haggith  came  to  Bath-sheba  the  mother  of  Solomon.  And  she 
said,  "  Comest  thou  peaceably?"  And  he  said,  '*  Peaceably." 
He  said  moreover,  "  I  have  somewhat  to  say  unto  thee,"  And 
she  said,  "Say  on."  And  he  said:  ''Thou  knowest  that  the 
kingdom  was  mine,  and  that  all  Israel  set  their  faces  on  me, 
that  I  should  reign :  howbeit  the  kingdom  is  turned  about,  and 
is  become  my  brother's :  for  it  was  his  from  the  Lord.  And 
now  I  ask  one  petition  of  thee,  deny  me  not."  And  she  said 
unto  him,  "  Say  on."  And  he  said :  ''Speak,  I  pray  thee,  unto 
Solomon  the  king  (for  he  will  not  say  thee  nay),  that  he  give 
me  Abishag  the  Shunammite  to  wife."  And  Bath-sheba  said, 
"  Well ;  I  will  speak  for  thee  unto  the  king. "  Bath-sheba  there- 
fore went  unto  king  Solomon,  to  speak  unto  him  for  Adonijah. 
And  the  king  rose  up  to  meet  her,  and  bowed  himself  unto  her, 
and  sat  down  on  his  throne,  and  caused  a  seat  to  be  set  for  the 
king's  mother ;  and  she  sat  on  his  right  hand.  Then  she  said : 
"  I  desire  one  small  petition  of  thee  ;  I  pray  thee,  say  me  not  nay." 
And  the  king  said  unto  her,  "  Ask  on,  my  mother  :  for  I  will  not 
say  thee  nay."  And  she  said,  "Let  Abishag  the  Shunammite  be 
given  to  Adonijah  thy  brother  to  wife."  And  king  Solomon 
answered  and  said  unto  his  mother  :  "  And  why  dost  thou  ask 
Abishag  the  Shunammite  for  Adonijah  ?  ask  for  him  the  king- 
dom also ;  for  he  is  mine  elder  brother,  and  on  his  side  are 
Abiathar  the  priest,  and  Joab  the  son  of  Zeruiah."  Then  king 
Solomon  sware  by  the  Lord,  saying :  "  God  do  so  to  me,  and 
more  also,  if  Adonijah  have  not  spoken  this  word  against  his 
own  life.  Now  therefore,  as  the  Lord  liveth,  which  hath  es- 
tablished me,  and  set  me  on  the  throne  of  David  my  father, 
and  who  hath  made  me  an  house,  as  he  promised,  Adonijah 
shall  be  put  to  death  this  day."  And  king  Solomon  sent  by  the 
hand  of  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada  ;  and  he  fell  upon  him 
that  he  died. 

And  unto  Abiathar  the  priest  said  the  king :   "  Get  thee  to 


THE  REMOVAL   OF   SOLOMON'S   OPPONENTS  311 

Anathoth,  unto  thine  own  fields  ;  for  thou  art  this  day  worthy 
of  death  :  but  I  will  not  put  thee  to  death,  because  thou  barest 
the  ark  of  the  Lord  God  before  David  my  father,  and  because 
thou  hast  been  afflicted  in  all  wherein  my  father  was  afflicted." 
So  Solomon  thrust  out  Abiathar  from  being  priest  unto  the  Lord ; 
that  he  might  fulfil  the  word  of  the  Lord  which  he  spake  con- 
cerning the  house  of  Eli  in  Shiloh. 

Then  tidings  came  to  Joab  :  for  Joab  had  turned  after  Adoni- 
jah,  though  he  turned  not  after  Absalom.  And  Joab  fled  unto 
the  tabernacle  of  the  Lord,  and  caught  hold  on  the  horns  of  the 
altar.  And  it  was  told  king  Solomon  :  "  Joab  is  fled  unto  the 
tabernacle  of  the  Lord  ;  and  behold,  he  is  by  the  altar."  Then 
Solomon  sent  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada,  saying,  "Go,  fall 
upon  him."  And  Benaiah  came  to  the  tabernacle  of  the  Lord, 
and  said  unto  him,  "  Thus  saith  the  king.  Come  forth."  And 
he  said,  "  Nay  ;  but  I  will  die  here."  And  Benaiah  brought 
the  king  word  again,  saying  :  "  Thus  saith  Joab,  and  thus  he 
answered  me."  And  the  king  said  unto  him  :  "  Do  as  he  hath 
said,  and  fall  upon  him,  and  bury  him  ;  that  thou  mayest  take 
away  the  innocent  blood,  which  Joab  shed,  from  me,  and  from 
the  house  of  my  father.  And  the  Lord  shall  return  his  blood 
upon  his  own  head,  who  fell  upon  two  men  more  righteous  and 
better  than  he,  and  slew  them  with  the  sword,  my  father  David 
not  knowing  thereof,  to  wit,  Abner  the  son  of  Xer,  captain  of 
the  host  of  Israel,  and  Amasa  the  son  of  Jether,  captain  of  the 
host  of  Judah.  Their  blood  shall  therefore  return  upon  the 
head  of  Joab,  and  upon  the  head  of  his  seed  for  ever  :  but  upon 
David,  and  upon  his  seed,  and  upon  his  house,  and  upon  his 
throne,  shall  there  be  peace  for  ever  from  the  Lord." 

So  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada  went  up,  and  fell  upon  him, 
and  slew  him :  and  he  was  buried  in  his  own  house  in  the  wil- 
derness. And  the  king  put  Benaiah  the  son  of  Jehoiada  in  his 
room  over  the  host  :  and  Zadok  the  priest  did  the  king  put  in 
the  room  of  Abiathar. 

And  the  king  sent  and  called  for  Shimei,  and  said  unto  him : 
"  Build  thee  an  house  in  Jerusalem,  and  dwell  there,  and  go 
not  forth  thence  any  whither.  For  it  shall  be^  that  on  the  day 
thou  goest  out,  and  passest  over  the  brook  Kidron,  know  thou 
for  certain  that  thou  shalt  surely  die :  thy  blood  shall  be  upon 
thine  own  head."  And  Shimei  said  unto  the  king :  ''  The  say- 
ing is  good :  as  my  lord  the  king  hath  said,  so  will  thy  servant 


312  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

do."  And  Shimei  dwelt  in  Jerusalem  many  days.  And  it  came 
to  pass  at  the  end  of  three  years,  that  two  of  the  servants  of 
Shimei  ran  away  unto  Achish  son  of  Maachah  king  of  Gath. 
And  they  told  Shimei,  saying,  "  Behold,  thy  servants  be  in  Gath." 
And  Shimei  arose,  and  saddled  his  ass,  and  went  to  Gath  to 
Achish  to  seek  his  servants :  and  Shimei  went,  and  brought  his 
servants  from  Gath.  And  it  was  told  Solomon  that  Shimei  had 
gone  from  Jerusalem  to  Gath,  and  was  come  again.  And  the 
king  sent  and  called  for  Shimei,  and  said  unto  him  :  *'  Did  I 
not  make  thee  to  swear  by  the  Lord,  and  protested  unto  thee, 
Know  for  a  certain,  on  the  day  thou  goest  out,  and  walkest 
abroad  any  whither,  that  thou  shalt  surely  die  ?  and  thou  saidst 
unto  me.  The  word  that  I  have  heard  is  good.  Why  then  hast 
thou  not  kept  the  oath  of  the  Lord,  and  the  commandment  that 
I  have  charged  thee  with  ?  "  The  king  said  moreover  to  Shimei : 
*'  Thou  knowest  all  the  wickedness  which  thine  heart  is  privy 
to,  that  thou  didst  to  David  my  father  :  therefore  the  Lord  shall 
return  thy  wickedness  upon  thine  own  head  ;  and  king  Solomon 
shall  be  blessed,  and  the  throne  of  David  shall  be  established 
before  the  Lord  for  ever."  So  the  king  commanded  Benaiah  the 
son  of  Jehoiada  ;  which  went  out,  and  fell  upon  him,  that  he 
died.  And  the  kingdom  was  established  in  the  hand  of  Solomon. 

Solomon's  Wisdom  (1  Kings  iii.  2-28;  iv.  29-34).  And 
Solomon  loved  the  Lord,  walking  in  the  statutes  of  David  his 
father :  only  he  sacrificed  and  burnt  incense  ^  in  high  places. 
The  people  also  sacrificed  in  high  places,  because  there  was  no 
house  built  unto  the  Lord,  until  those  days.  And  the  king 
went  to  Gibeon  to  sacrifice  there  ;  for  that  was  the  great  high 
place  :  a  thousand  burnt  offerings  did  Solomon  offer  upon  that 
altar. 2  In  Gibeon  the  Lord  appeared  to  Solomon  in  a  dream  by 
night :  and  God  said,  "  Ask  what  I  shall  give  thee."  And  Sol- 
omon said :  "  Thou  hast  shewed  unto  thy  servant  David  my 
father  great  mercy.  And  now,  0  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  to  come  in.  And 
thy  servant  is  in  the  midst  of    thy  people  which   thou   hast 

1  burnt  incense.  More  correct!}':  'turned  into  sacrificial  smoke  or  savor.' 
Incense  was  probably  not  yet  used  in  the  ritual. 

2  The  Chronicler  explains  his  f!;o\ng  to  Gibeon  by  mentioning  that  Moses' 
tabernacle  and  brazen  altar  were  there. 


Solomon's  wisdom  313 

chosen,  a  great  people,  that  cannot  be  numbered  nor  counted 
for  multitude.  Give  therefore  thy  servant  an  understanding 
heart  to  judge  thy  people,  that  I  may  discern  between  good 
and  bad:   for  who  is  able  to  judge  this  thy  so  great  a  people?  " 

And  the  speech  pleased  the  Lord,  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  thyself,  nor  hast  asked  the  life  of  thine 
enemies;  but  hast  asked  for  thyself  understanding  to  discern 
judgment;  behold,  I  have  done  according  to  thy  words:  lo,  I 
have  given  thee  a  wise  and  an  understanding  heart;  so  that 
there  was  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  honor :  so  that 
there  shall  not  be  any  among  the  kings  like  unto  thee  all  thy 
days." 

And  Solomon  awoke ;  and  behold,  it  was  a  dream.  And  he 
came  to  Jerusalem,  and  stood  before  the  ark  of  the  covenant 
of  the  Lord,  and  offered  up  burnt  offerings,  and  offered  peace 
offerings,  and  made  a  feast  to  all  his  servants. 

Then  came  there  two  women,  that  were  harlots,  unto  the 
king,  and  stood  before  him.  And  the  one  woman  said:  "0  my 
lord,  I  and  this  woman  dwell  in  one  house;  and  I  was  delivered 
of  a  child  with  her  in  the  house.  And  it  came  to  pass  the  third 
day  after  that  I  was  delivered,  that  this  woman  was  delivered 
also  :  and  we  were  together ;  there  was  no  stranger  with  us  in 
the  house,  save  we  two  in  the  house.  And  this  woman's  child 
died  in  the  night,  because  she  overlaid  it.  And  she  arose  at 
midnight,  and  took  my  son  from  beside  me,  while  thine  hand- 
maid slept,  and  laid  it  in  her  bosom,  and  laid  her  dead  child  in 
my  bosom.  And  when  I  rose  in  the  morning  to  give  my  child 
suck,  behold  it  was  dead:  but  when  I  had  considered  it  in  the 
morning,  behold  it  was  not  my  son,  which  I  did  bear."  And 
the  other  woman  said:  "Nay;  but  the  living  is  my  son,  and 
the  dead  is  thy  son.  And  this  saith :  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 


314  THE   EAELY  MONARCHY 

to  the  one,  and  half  to  the  other."  Then  spake  the  woman 
whose  the  living  child  was  unto  the  king,  for  her  bowels 
yearned  upon  her  son,  and  she  said:  "0  my  lord,  give  her  the 
living  child,  and  in  no  Avise  slay  it."  But  the  other  said:  ''Let 
it  be  neither  mine  nor  thine,  but  divide  it."  Then  the  king 
answered  and  said :  ''  Give  her  the  living  child,  and  in  no  wise 
slay  it:  she  is  the  mother  thereof.  "  ^  And  all  Israel  heard  of 
the  judgment  which  the  king  had  judged;  and  they  feared  the 
king :  for  they  saw  that  the  wisdom  of  God  was  in  him,  to  do 
judgment. 

And  God  gave  Solomon  wisdom  and  understanding  exceeding 
much,  and  largeness  of  hearty  even  as  the  sand  that  is  on  the 
sea  shore.  And  Solomon's  wisdom  excelled  the  wisdom  of  all 
the  children  of  the  east  country,  and  all  the  wisdom  of  Egypt. 
For  he  was  wiser  than  all  men;  than  Ethan  the  Ezrahite,  and 
Heman,  and  Chalcol,  and  Darda,  the  sons  of  Mahol:^  and  his 
fame  was  in  all  nations  round  about.  And  he  spake  three  thou- 
sand proverbs  :  and  his  songs  were  a  thousand  and  five.  And  he 
spake  of  trees,  from  the  cedar  tree  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  people  to  hear  the  wisdom  of  Solomon,  from  all  kings  of 
the  earth,  which  had  heard  of  his  wisdom. 

Prosperity  of  the  Kingdom  (1  Kings  iv.  1-7,  27,  28,  20-25 ; 
iii.  1).  So  king  Solomon  was  king  over  all  Israel.  And  these 
were  the  princes  which  he  had  ;  Azariah  the  son  of  Zadok  was 
the  priest,  Elihoreph  and  Ahiah,  the  sons  of  Shisha,  scribes : 
Jehoshaphat  the  son  of  Ahilud,  the  recorder.  And  Benaiah  the 
son  of  Jehoiada  was  over  the  host :  and  Azariah  the  son  of 
Nathan  was  over  the  officers :  and  Zabud  the  son  of  Nathan  was 
principal  officer,  and  the  king's  friend  :  and  Ahishar  was  over 
the  household  :  and  Adoniram  the  son  of  Abda  was  over  the 
tribute. 

1  In  Diodorus  Siculus  a  parallel  incident  is  recorded:  The  Thracian  king, 
Ariopharnes,  having  to  decide  which  of  three  pretenders  Avas  really  the  son  of 
the  dead  king  of  the  Cimmerians,  ordered  them  to  pierce  the  father's  body  with 
a  spear,  — whereupon  the  true  son  refused. 

2  Nothing  is  known  of  these  four  sages. 

8  What  is  doubtless  meant  here  is  that  Solomon  drew  on  observation  of  plants 
and  animals  for  comparisons  with  which  to  point  his  maxims.  Of.  "  Go  to  the 
ant,  thou  sluggard,"  etc.  Prov.  vi.  6-8. 


THE   BUILDING   OF  THE   TEMPLE  315 

And  Solomon  had  twelve  officers  over  all  Israel,  which  pro- 
vided victuals  for  the  king  and  his  household :  each  man  his 
month  in  a  year  made  provision.  And  those  officers  provided 
victual  for  king  Solomon,  and  for  all  that  came  unto  king  Sol- 
omon's table,  every  man  in  his  month  :  they  lacked  nothing. 
Barley  also  and  straw  for  the  horses  and  dromedaries  brought 
they  unto  the  place  where  it  should  be,  every  man  according  to 
his  charge. 

And  Solomon  reigned  over  all  kingdoms  from  the  River  unto 
the  land  of  the  Philistines,  and  unto  the  border  of  Egypt :  they 
brought  presents,  and  served  Solomon  all  the  days  of  his  life. 
And  Solomon's  provision  for  one  day  was  thirty  measures  of 
fine  flour,  and  threescore  measures  of  meal,  ten  fat  oxen,  and 
twenty  oxen  out  of  the  pastures,  and  an  hundred  sheep,  besides 
harts,  and  roebucks,  and  fallowdeer,  and  fatted  fowl.  And  Judah 
and  Israel  dwelt  safely,  every  man  under  his  vine  and  under  his 
fig  tree,  from  Dan  even  to  Beer-sheba,  all  the  days  of  Solomon. 
Judah  and  Israel  were  many,  as  the  sand  which  is  by  the  sea  in 
multitude,  eating  and  drinking,  and  making  merry. 

And  Solomon  made  affinity  with  Pharaoh  ^  king  of  Egypt, 
and  took  Pharaoh's  daughter,  and  brought  her  into  the  city  of 
David,  until  he  had  made  an  end  of  building  his  own  house, 
and  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  the  wall  of  Jerusalem  round 
about. 

The  Building  of  the  Temple  (l  Kings  v. ;  vi.  1-10,  15-19, 
23,  24,  27,  28,  31-33,  36,  11-14,  37,  38).  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  tliat  David  my  father  could  not 
build  an  house  unto  the  name  of  the  Lord  his  God  for  the  wars 
which  were  about  him  on  every  side,  until  the  Lord  put  them 
under  the  soles  of  his  feet.  But  now  the  Lord  my  God  hath 
given  me  rest  on  every  side,  so  that  there  is  neither  adversary 
nor  evil  occurrent.  And  behold,  I  purpose  to  build  an  house 
unto  the  name  of  the  Lord  my  God,  as  the  Lord  spake  unto 
David  my  father,  saying.  Thy  son,  whom  I  will  set  upon  thy 

1  This  Pharaoh  must  have  been  an  immediate  predecessor  of  the  Shishak 

mentioned  on  p.  382. 

2  Hiram  /,  who  reigned  about  968-935  b.  c. 


316  THE    EAELY   MONARCHY 

throne  in  thy  room,  he  shall  build  an  house  unto  my  name. 
Now  therefore  command  thou  that  they  hew  me  cedar  trees  out 
of  Lebanon  ;  and  my  servants  shall  be  with  thy  servants :  and 
unto  thee  will  I  give  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  Sidoni- 
ans/' 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Hiram  heard  the  words  of  Solo- 
mon, that  he  rejoiced  greatly,  and  said :  ''  Blessed  be  the  Lord 
this  day,  which  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 :  and  I  will 
do  all  thy  desire  concerning  timber  of  cedar,  and  concerning 
timber  of  fir.  My  servants  shall  bring  them  down  from  Leba- 
non unto  the  sea :  and  I  will  make  them  into  rafts  to  go  by  sea 
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  cedar  trees  and  fir  trees  according  to 
all  his  desire.  And  Solomon  gave  Hiram  twenty  thousand  mea- 
sures of  wheat  for  food  to  his  household,  and  twenty  measures 
of  pure  oil ;  thus  gave  Solomon  to  Hiram  year  by  year.  And 
the  Lord  gave  Solomon  wisdom,  as  he  promised  him :  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  Leba- 
non, 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  ,  be- 
side the  chief  of  Solomon's  officers  which  were  over  the  work, 
three  thousand  and  three  hundred,  which  ruled  over  the  people 
that  wrought  in  the  work.  And  the  king  commanded,  and  they 
brought  great  stones,  costly  stones,  and  hewed  stones,  to  lay  the 
foundation  of  the  house.  And  Solomon's  builders  and  Hiram's 
builders  did  hew  them,  and  the  stonesquarers :  so  they  prepared 
timber  and  stones  to  build  the  house. 

1  can.  In  the  early  transitive  sense  :  '  to  have  mental  command  of  ;  *  *  to  un- 
derstand.' 

2  The  levy  was  the  *  corvee  '  or  institution  of  forced  labor. 


THE   BUILDING   OF   THE   TEMPLE 


317 


And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  four  hundred  and  eightieth  year 
after  the  children  of  Israel  were  come  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,^ 
in  the  fourth  year  of  Solomon's  reign  over  Israel,  in  the  month 
Zif,  which  is  the  second  month,  that  he  began  to  build  the  house 
of  the  Lord.^  And  the  house  which  king  Solomon  built  for  the 
Lord,  the  length  thereof  was  threescore  cubits,  and  the  breadth 
thereof  twenty  cubits,  and  the  height  thereof  thirty  cubits.^  And 
the  porch  before  the  temple  of  the  house,  ^  twenty  cubits  was  the 
length  thereof,  according  to  the  breadth  of  the  house  ;  and  ten 


W\^fV\/\\\r>,\r\f\\\rv\f\^'\A^W\\\\^\\ 


Longitudinal  Section  of  Solomon's  Temple,  according  to  Stade's  Restoration. 
a  Porch;  b  Hall;  c  Oracle;  d  Side-chambers;  w  Windows. 


p  Pillar ; 


cubits  was  the  breadth  thereof  before  the  house.   And  for  the 
house  he  made  windows  of  narrow  lights. 

And  against  the  wall  of  the  house  he  built  stories  round  about 
the  temple  and  the  oracle:  and  he  made  side-chambers  round 
about:  the  nethermost  chamber  was  five  cubits  broad,  and  the 
middle  was  six  cubits  broad,  and  the  third  was  seven  cubits 
broad :  for  without  in  the  wall  of  the  house  he  made  narrowed 
rests  round  about,  that  the  beams  should  not  be  fastened  in  the 
walls  of  the  house.  And  the  house,  when  it  was  in  building, 
was  built  of  stone  made  ready  at  the  quarry  ;  so  that  there  was 
neither  hammer  nor  axe  nor  any  tool  of  iron  heard  in  the  liouse, 

1  This  480  years  is  evidently  part  of  a  chronolopjical  scheme.  The  4-30  years 
assigned  to  the  reigns  of  the  kings  of  Judah,  plus  the  50  years  of  exile,  give  an- 
other 480  years  from  the  foundation  of  the  temple  to  the  return  from  captivity. 

2  "  Then  Solomon  began  to  build  the  house  of  the  Lord  at  Jerusalem  in  mount 
Moriah,  where  the  Lord  appeared  unto  David  his  father,  in  the  place  that  David 
had  prepared  in  the  threshingfloor  of  Oman  [Araunah]  the  Jebusite."  2  Chron. 
lii.  1. 

3  These  figures  give  roughly  100  ft.  x  33 i  ft.  x  50  ft.  for  the  inner  dimen- 
sions of  the  building. 

4  the  temple  of  the  house.  The  great  hall  of  the  temple,  as  distinguished  from 
the  inner  shrine,  here  called  the  oracle. 


318  THE  EARLY  MONARCHY 

while  it  was  in  building.  The  door  for  the  lowest  side-chambers 
was  in  the  right  side  of  the  house  :  and  they  went  up  with  wind- 
ing stairs  into  the  middle  chambers,  and  out  of  the  middle  into 
the  third.  So  he  built  the  house,  and  finished  it ;  and  roofed  the 
house  with  cedar.  And  then  he  built  the  stories  against  all  the 
house,  [each]  five  cubits  high :  and  they  rested  on  the  house  with 
timber  of  cedar.  And  he  built  the  walls  of  the  house  within 
with  boards  of  cedar ;  from  the  floor  of  the  house  to  the  beams 
of  the  ceiling  he  overlaid  them  on  the  inside  with  wood ;  and  he 
covered  the  floor  of  the  house  with  boards  of  cypress.  And  the 
twenty  cubits  from  the  hinder  part  of  the  house  he  built  for  an 
oracle.  And  the  temple  before  the  oracle  was  forty  cubits  long. 
And  within,  the  oracle  was  twenty  cubits  in  length,  and  twenty 
cubits  in  breadth,  and  twenty  cubits  in  the  height  thereof;  and 
he  made  an  altar  of  cedar  before  the  oracle.^ 

And  within  the  oracle  he  made  two  cherubim  of  olive  tree, 
each  ten  cubits  high.  And  five  cubits  was  the  one  wing  of  the 
cherub,  and  five  cubits  the  other  wing  of  the  cherub.  And  he 
set  the  cherubim  within  the  inner  house  :  and  they  stretched 
forth  their  wings  so  that  the  wing  of  the  one  touched  the  one 
wall,  and  the  wing  of  the  other  cherub  touched  the  other  wall ; 
and  their  wings  touched  one  another  in  the  midst  of  the  house. ^ 
And  he  overlaid  the  cherubim  with  gold. 

And  for  the  entering  of  the  oracle  he  made  doors  of  olive 
tree :  the  lintel  and  side  posts  were  a  fifth  part.  ^  The  two  doors 
also  were  of  olive  tree.  So  also  made  he  for  the  door  of  the 
temple  posts  of  olive  tree,  a  fourth  part.  And  the  two  doors 
were  of  cypress :  the  two  leaves  of  the  one  door  were  folding, 
and  the  two  leaves  of  the  other  door  were  folding.  And  he  built 
the  inner  court  with  three  rows  of  hewed  stones,  and  a  row  of 
cedar  beams. 

And  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  to  Solomon,  saying :  ^^  Con- 
cerning this  house  which  thou  art  in  building,  if  thou  wilt  walk 
in  my  statutes,  and  execute  my  judgments,  and  keep  all  my 
commandments  to  walk  in  them  ;  then  will  I  perform  my  word 
with  thee,  which  I  spake  unto  David  thy  father  :   and  I  will 

1  The  'oracle,^  like  theKaabaat  Mecca,  is  cube-shaped.  The  ^  altar  of  cedar  * 
is  the  table  for  shew-bread. 

2  "And  they  stood  on  their  feet,  and  their  faces  were  inward."    2  Chron.  iii. 
13.  The  exact  form  of  these  cherubim  is  not  known. 

3  the  lintel  .  .  .  f/th  part.  This  probably  means  that  the  door  was  of  penta- 
gonal shape,  whereas  the  door  of  the  great  hall  was  square. 


THE   TEMPLE   FURNISHINGS  319 

dwell  among  the  children  of  Israel,  and  will  not  forsake  my 
people  Israel." 

So  Solomon  built  the  house,  and  finished  it.  In  the  fourth 
year  was  the  foundation  of  the  house  of  the  Lord  laid,  in  the 
month  Zif  :  ^  and  in  the  eleventh  year,  in  the  month  Bui/  which 
is  the  eighth  month,  was  the  house  finished  throughout  all  the 
parts  thereof,  and  according  to  all  the  fashion  of  it.  So  was  he 
seven  years  in  building  it. 

The  Temple  Furnishings  (l  Kings  vii.  13-27,  38-51).  And 
king  Solomon  sent  and  fetched  Huram-abi  out  of  Tyre.  He 
was  a  widow's  son  of  the  tribe  of  Naphtali,  and  his  father  was 
a  man  of  Tyre,  a  worker  in  brass  :  and  he  was  filled  with  wis- 
dom, and  understanding,  and  cunning  to  work  all  w^orks  in 
brass.  And  he  came  to  king  Solomon,  and  wrought  all  his 
work.  For  he  cast  two  pillars  of  brass.  Eighteen  cubits  was  the 
height  of  one  pillar,  and  a  line  of  twelve  cubits  compassed  it 
about,  and  the  thickness  of  the  pillar  was  four  finger-breadths. 
It  -vvas  hollow ;  and  the  second  pillar  was  like  unto  it.  And  he 
made  two  chapiters^  of  molten  brass,  to  set  upon  the  tops  of 
the  pillars  :  the  height  of  the  one  chapiter  was  five  cubits,  and 
the  height  of  the  other  chapiter  was  five  cubits :  and  nets  (of 
checker  work,  chainwork)  for  the  chapiters  which  were  upon 
the  top  of  the  pillars.  And  he  made  the  pomegranates,  and 
that  in  two  rows  upon  the  one  network  ;  and  the  pomegranates 
were  two  hundred,  in  rows  round  about  the  one  chapiter :  and 
so  he  made  for  the  other  chapiter. 

And  he  set  up  the  pillars  in  the  porch  of  the  temple  :  and  he 
set  up  the  right  pillar,  and  called  the  name  thereof  Jachin :  and 
he  set  up  tbe  left  pillar,  and  called  the  name  thereof  Boaz.^ 
And  upon  the  top  of  the  pillars  was  lily  work :  so  was  the  work 
of  the  pillars  finished. 

And  he  made  a  molten  sea,  ten  cubits  from  the  one  brim  to  the 

1  In  the  old  Hebrew  calendar  Ziv,  the  '  flower  month  '  was  the  second  month, 
and  fell  within  April-May;  Bui,  the  'rainy  month  '  fell  within  Oct. -Nov. 

2  chapiters.  Capitals. 

8  The  meanings  of  Jachin  and  Boaz  are  not  certainly  known.  Jachin  occurs 
as  a  name  of  deit}'  in  a  Photnician  inscription.  A  glass  dish  (3d  or  4th  cent.) 
found  in  1882  shows  the  temple  of  Jerusalem  with  these  pillars  standing  free  in 
front  of  the  building.  They  may  have  symbolized  the  presence  of  Jehovah, 
representing,  in  this  function,  the  mazzebahs  or  sacred  stones  that  in  the  more 
primitive  religion  had  been  thought  of  as  the  abode  of  the  deity.  Herodotus 
(ii.  44)  mentions  that  two  such  pillars  stood  in  the  temple  of  Melkarth  at  Tyre. 


320  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

other :  it  was  round  all  about,  and  its  height  was  five  cubits : 
and  a  line  of  thirty  cubits  did  compass  it  round  about.  It  stood 
upon  twelve  oxen,  three  looking  toward  the  north,  and  three 
looking  toward  the  west,  and  three  looking  toward  the  south, 
and  three  looking  toward  the  east :  and  the  sea  was  set  above 
upon  them,  and  all  their  hinder  parts  were  inward.  And  it  was  an 
hand  breadth  thick,  and  the  brim  thereof  was  wrought  like  the 
brim  of  a  cup,  with  flowers  of  lilies :  it  contained  two  thousand 
baths.i 

And  he  made  the  ten  bases ^  of  brass;  then  made  he  ten 
lavers  of  brass  :  one  laver  contained  forty  baths :  and  every 
laver  was  four  cubits  :  and  upon  every  one  of  the  ten  bases  one 
laver.  And  he  put  five  bases  on  the  right  side  of  the  house,  and 
five  on  the  left  side  of  the  house :  and  he  set  the  sea  on  the 
right  side  of  the  house  eastward  over  against  the  south.  And 
Huram-abi  made  the  pots,  and  the  shovels,  and  the  basins. 

So  Huram-abi  made  an  end  of  doing  all  the  work  that  he  made 
king  Solomon  for  the  house  of  the  Lord :  the  two  pillars,  and 
the  two  bowls  of  the  chapiters  that  were  on  the  top  of  the  two 
pillars  ;  and  four  hundred  pomegranates  for  the  two  networks,  to 
cover  the  two  bowls  of  the  chapiters  ^  that  were  upon  the  pil- 
lars ;  and  the  ten  bases,  and  ten  lavers  on  the  bases  ;  and  one  sea, 
and  twelve  oxen  under  the  sea;  and  the  pots,  and  the  shovels, 
and  the  basins  :  and  all  these  vessels,  which  Huram-abi  made  to 
king  Solomon  for  the  house  of  the  Lord,  were  of  bright  brass. 
In  the  plain  of  Jordan  did  he  cast  them,  in  the  clay  ground  be- 
tween Succoth  and  Zarethan.  And  Solomon  left  all  the  vessels 
which  he  had  made  in  the  house  of  the  Lord.  So  was  ended 
all  the  work  that  king  Solomon  made  for  the  house  of  the 
Lord.  And  Solomon  brought  in  the  things  which  David  his 
father  had  dedicated ;  even  the  silver,  and  the  gold,  and  the 
vessels,  did  he  put  among  the  treasures  of  the  house  of  the 
Lord. 

Dedication  of  the  Temple  (l  Kings  viii.  1-13).  Then  Solo- 
mon assembled  the  elders  of  Israel  unto  Jerusalem,  to  bring  up 
the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  out  of  the  city  of  David 
(which  is  Zion),  in  the  month  Ethanim  (which  is  the  seventh 

^  two  thousand  baths.  Over  16,000  gallons. 

2  bases.  Movable  carriages  for  supporting  the  lavers. 

8  bowls  of  the  chapiters.  The  bowl-shaped  '  bells  '  of  the  capitals. 


SOLOMON'S   PALACE  321 

month).  And  all  the  elders  of  Israel  came,  and  they  brought 
up  the  ark  of  the  Lord.  And  king  Solomon,  and  all  Israel, 
went  before  the  ark,  sacrificing  sheep  and  oxen,  that  could  not 
be  told  nor  numbered  for  multitude.  And  the  priests  brought 
in  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  unto  its  place,  into  the 
oracle  of  the  house,  even  under  the  wings  of  the  cherubim.  For 
the  cherubim  spread  forth  their  two  wings  over  the  place  of  the 
ark,  and  the  cherubim  covered  the  ark  and  the  staves  thereof 
above.  And  they  drew  out  the  staves,  that  the  ends  of  the  staves 
were  seen  from  the  holy  place  before  the  oracle,  and  they  were 
not  seen  without :  and  there  they  are  unto  this  day.  There  was 
nothing  in  the  ark  save  the  two  tables  of  stone,  which  Moses 
put  there  at  Horeb,  when  the  Lord  made  a  covenant  with  all  the 
children  of  Israel,  when  they  came  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  priests  were  come  out  of  the 
holy  place,  that  the  cloud  filled  the  house  of  the  Lord,  so  that 
the  priests  could  not  stand  to  minister  because  of  the  cloud :  for 
the  glory  of  the  Lord  had  filled  the  house  of  the  Lord. 

Then  spake  Solomon  :  — 

* '  The   Lord  said  that  he   would  dwell  in  the  thick 
darkness. 
I  have  surely  built  thee  an  house  to  dwell  in, 
A  settled  place  for  thee  to  abide  in  for  ever."  ^ 

Solomon's  Palace  (l  Kings  vii.  1,  2,  6-8  ;  ix.  24  ;  vii.  9-12). 
But  Solomon  was  building  his  own  house  thirteen  years.  And 
he  built  the  house  of  the  forest  of  Lebanon  ;  ^  the  length  thereof 
was  an  hundred  cubits,  and  the  breadth  thereof  fifty  cubits,  and 
the  height  thereof  thirty  cubits,  upon  three  rows  of  cedar  pil- 
lars, with  cedar  beams  upon  the  pillars.  And  he  made  a  porch 
of  pillars ;  the  length  thereof  was  fifty  cubits,  and  the  breadth 
thereof  thirty  cubits  :  and  a  porch  before  them  :  and  pillars  and 
a  threshold  before  them.   Then  he  made  a  porch  for  the  throne 

1  The  text  of  Solomon's  dedicatory  verses  should  be  restored  by  help  of 
the  Greek  version,  from  which  it  is  further  gathered  that  they  occurred  in  the 
Book  of  Jasher  (see  note,  p.  159).  They  probably  formed  a  quatrain,  as  follows :  — 

"Jehovah  hath  set  the  sun  in  the  heavens. 
But  himself  hath  willed  to  dwell  in  thick  darkness  : 
Wherefore  have  I  built  thee  an  house  to  dwell  in, 
A  place  for  thee  to  abide  in  forever." 

2  house  of  the  forest  of  Lebanon.  So  called  from  the  appearance  of  the  great 
hall  with  its  numerous  pillars  of  cedar  from  Lebanon. 


322  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

where  he  might  judge,  even  the  porch  of  judgment :  and  it  was 
covered  with  cedar  from  floor  to  ceiling.  And  his  house  where 
he  dwelt  in  another  court  farther  within  from  the  porch,  was 
of  the  like  work.  Solomon  made  also  an  house  for  Pharaoh's 
daughter,  whom  he  had  taken  to  wife,  like  unto  this  porch.  And 
Pharaoh's  daughter  came  up  out  of  the  city  of  David  unto  her 
house  which  Solomon  had  built  for  her. 

All  these  were  of  costly  stones,  according  to  the  measures  of 
hewed  stones,  sawed  with  saws,  within  and  without,  even  from 
the  foundation  unto  the  coping,  and  so  on  the  outside  towards 
the  great  court.  And  the  great  court  round  about  had  three 
rows  of  hewn  stones,  and  a  row  of  cedar  beams,  round  about 
the  inner  court  of  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  the  court  of  the 
porch  of  the  house. 

Solomon's  Resources  and  Wealth  (l  Kings  ix.  10-23,  26- 
28 ;  X.  11,  12,  14-29).  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  end  of  twenty 
years,  when  Solomon  had  built  the  two  houses,  the  house  of 
the  Lord,  and  the  king's  house,  that  then  king  Solomon  gave 
Hiram  twenty  cities  in  the  land  of  Galilee.^  And  Hiram  came 
out  from  Tyre  to  see  the  cities  which  Solomon  had  given  him ; 
and  they  pleased  him  not.  And  he  said  :  "  What  cities  are  these 
which  thou  hast  given  me,  my  brother  ?  "  And  he  called  them 
the  land  of  Cabul  unto  this  day.  And  Hiram  sent  to  the  king 
sixscore  talents  of  gold. 

And  this  is  the  reason  of  the  levy  which  king  Solomon  raised; 
for  to  build  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  his  own  house,  and  the 
Millo,  and  the  wall  of  Jerusalem,  and  Hazor,  and  Megiddo, 
and  Gezer.  For  Pharaoh  king  of  Egypt  had  gone  up,  and  taken 
Gezer,^  and  burnt  it  with  fire,  and  slain  the  Canaanites  that 
dwelt  in  the  city,  and  given  it  for  a  present  unto  his  daughter, 
Solomon's  wife.  And  Solomon  built  Gezer,  and  Beth-horon  the 
nether,  and  Baalath,  and  Tamar  in  the  wilderness,  and  all  the 
cities  of  store  that  Solomon  had,  and  cities  for  his  chariots,  and 

1  According^  to  the  Chronicler,  Solomon  at  this  time  built  and  settled  "the 
cities  which  Hiram  had  restored  to  Solomon." 

2  Gezer  is  repeatedly  mentioned  in  Egyptian  records,  the  earliest  of  about 
1475  B.  c.  Since  1902  its  site  has  been  excavated  with  important  resulting  dis- 
coveries. Among  these  are  terra-cotta  plaques  with  relief  figures  of  the  goddess 
Ashtart;  a  very  complete  'high  place,'  with  eight  (originally  ten)  large  maz- 
2e6a/«s  or  standing  stones;  and  a  great  number  of  buried  jars  containing  the 
bones  of  new-born  infants  —  possibly  of  sacrificed  first-born. 


SOLOMON'S   KESOUKCES   AND   WEALTH  323 

cities  for  his  horsemen,  and  that  which  Solomon  desired  to 
build  in  Jerusalem,  and  in  Lebanon,  and  in  all  the  land  of  his 
dominion.  And  all  the  people  that  were  left  of  the  Amorites, 
Hittites,  Perizzites,  Hivites,  and  Jebusites,  which  were  not  of 
the  children  of  Israel,  their  children  that  were  left  after  them 
in  the  land,  whom  the  children  of  Israel  also  were  not  able 
utterly  to  destroy,  upon  those  did  Solomon  levy  a  tribute  of 
bondservice  unto  this  day.  But  of  the  children  of  Israel  did 
Solomon  make  no  bondmen  :  but  they  were  men  of  war,  and 
his  servants,  and  his  princes,  and  his  captains,  and  rulers  of 
his  chariots,  and  his  horsemen.  These  were  the  chief  of  the 
officers  that  were  over  Solomon's  work,  five  hundred  and  fifty, 
which  bare  rule  over  the  people  that  wrought  in  the  work. 

And  king  Solomon  made  a  navy  of  ships  in  Ezion-geber, 
which  is  beside  Eloth,  on  the  shore  of  the  Red  Sea,  in  the 
land  of  Edom.  And  Hiram  sent  in  the  navy  his  servants,  ship- 
men  that  had  knowledge  of  the  sea,  with  the  servants  of  Solo- 
mon. And  they  came  to  Ophir,  and  fetched  from  thence  gold, 
four  hundred  and  twenty  talents,  and  brought  it  to  king  Solo- 
mon. And  the  navy  also  of  Hiram,  that  brought  gold  from 
Ophir,  brought  in  from  Ophir  great  plenty  of  almug  trees,*  and 
precious  stones.  And  the  king  made  of  the  almug  trees  pillars 
for  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  for  the  king's  house,  harps  also 
and  psalteries  for  singers :  there  came  no  such  almug  trees,  nor 
were  seen  unto  this  day. 

Now  the  weight  of  gold  that  came  to  Solomon  in  one  year 
was  six  hundred  threescore  and  six  talents  of  gold,  beside  that 
he  had  of  the  merchantmen,  and  of  the  traffic  of  the  spice  mer- 
chants, and  of  all  the  kings  of  Arabia,  and  of  the  governors  of 
the  country.  And  king  Solomon  made  two  hundred  targets  of 
beaten  gold:  six  hundred  shekels  of  gold  went  to  one  target.^ 
And  he  made  three  hundred  shields  of  beaten  gold;  three 
pound  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  the  best  gold.  The 
throne  had  six  steps,  and  the  top  of  the  throne  was  round  be- 
hind: and  there  were  stays  on  either  side  by  the  place  of  the 
seat,  and  two  lions  stood  beside  the  stays.   And  twelve  lions 

1  almug  trees.    Supposed  (floubtfully)  to  have  been  red  sandal  wood.   Col.  C. 
R.  Conder  suggests  that  almufj  rnay  represent  a  word  for  'precious  wood.' 

2  target.  The  Heb.  denotes  a  large  oblong  shield.  600  shekels  =  about  20  lbs. 


324  THE   EARLY   MONARCHY 

stood  on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other  upon  the  six  steps : 
there  was  not  the  like  made  in  any  kingdom.  And  all  king  Solo- 
mon'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  a  navy  of  Tarshish^  with  the  navy  of 
Hiram :  once  in  three  years  came  the  navy  of  Tarshish,  bring- 
ing gold,  and  silver,  ivory,  and  apes,  and  peacocks. 

So  king  Solomon  exceeded  all  the  kings  of  the  earth  for  riches 
and  for  wisdom.  And  all  the  earth  sought  to  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 
garments,  and  armor,  and  spices,  horses,  and  mules,  a  rate  year 
by  year.  And  Solomon  gathered  together  chariots  and  horsemen : 
and  he  had  a  thousand  and  four  hundred  chariots,  and  twelve 
thousand  horsemen,  whom  he  bestowed  in  the  cities  for  chariots, 
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  syco- 
more  trees  that  are  in  the  vale,  for  abundance.  And  Solomon 
had  horses  brought  out  of  Muzri  and  Kue  :  the  king's  merchants 
brought  them  from  Kue  at  a  price.  And  a  chariot  came  up  and 
went  out  of  Muzri  for  six  hundred  shekels  of  silver,  and  an 
horse  for  an  hundred  and  fifty  :  and  so  brought  they  out  horses 
for  all  the  kings  of  the  Hittites,  and  for  the  kings  of  Syria,  by 
their  means. 

Visit  of  the  Queen  of  Sheba  (1  Kings  x.  1-10,  13).  And 

when  the  queen  of  Sheba  heard  of  the  fame  of  Solomon  concern- 
ing the  name  of  the  Lord,^  she  came  to  prove  him  with  hard 
questions.  And  she  came  to  Jerusalem  with  a  very  great  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  told  her  all  her 
questions  :  there  was  not  any  thing  hid  from  the  king,  which  he 
told  her  not.  And  when  the  queen  of  Sheba  had  seen  all  Solo- 
mon's wisdom,  and  the  house  that  he  had  built,  and  the  meat 
of  his  table,  and  the  sitting  of  his  servants,  and  the  attendance 

1  navy  of  Tarshish.  A  fleet  of  sea-j^oing  ships,  such  as  those  in  which  the 
Phoenicians  made  their  voyap^es  to  Tartessus  in  Spain. 

2  concerning  .  .  .  Lord.  Klostermann  suggests  that  the  text  is  here  a  defec- 
tive reading  for  :  "  [and  the  fame  of  the  house  which  he  had  huilt]  to  the  name 
of  the  Lord." 


SOLOMON'S   APOSTASY  325 

of  his  niinisters,  and  their  apparel,  and  his  cupbearers,  and  liis 
burnt  ofifering  which  he  offered  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  ;  there 
was  no  more  spirit  in  her.  And  she  said  to  the  king  :  ''  It  was 
a  true  report  that  1  heard  in  mine  own  land  of  thy  acts  and  of 
thy  wisdom.  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  wives!  happy  are  these  thy  servants, 
which  stand  continually  before  thee,  and  that  hear  thy  wisdom ! 
Blessed  be  the  Lord  thy  God,  which  delighted  in  thee,  to  set 
thee  on  the  throne  of  Israel !  because  the  Lord  loved  Israel  for 
ever,  therefore  made  he  thee  king,  to  do  judgment  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  which  the  queen  of 
Sheba  gave  to  king  Solomon.  And  king  Solomon  gave  unto  the 
queen  of  Sheba  all  her  desire,  whatsoever  she  asked,  beside  that 
which  Solomon  gave  her  of  his  royal  bounty.  So  she  turned  and 
went  to  her  own  country,  she  and  her  servants. 

Solomon's  Apostasy  (l  Kings  xi.  1-13).  But  king  Solomon 
loved  many  strange  women,  together  with  the  daughter  of  Pha- 
raoh, women  of  the  Moabites,  Ammonites,  Edomites,  Zidonians, 
and  Hittites;  of  the  nations  concerning  which  the  Lord  said 
unto  the  children  of  Israel :  "  Ye  shall  not  go  in  to  them,  neither 
shall  they  come  in  unto  you :  for  surely  they  will  turn  away 
your  heart  after  their  gods ;  '^  Solomon  clave  unto  these  in  love. 
And  he  had  seven  hundred  wives,  princesses,  and  three  hundred 
concubines  :  ^  and  it  came  to  pass,  when  Solomon  was  old,  that 
his  wives  turned  away  his  heart  after  other  gods :  and  his  heart 
was  not  perfect  with  the  Lord  his  God,  as  was  the  heart  of 
David  his  father.  For  Solomon  went  after  Ashtoreth  the  god- 
dess of  the  Zidonians,  and  after  Milcom  the  god  of  the  Ammon- 
ites. Then  did  Solomon  build  an  high  place  for  Chemosh,  the 
god  of  ]\roab,  in  the  hill  that  is  before  Jerusalem,  and  for  Mo- 
lech,  the  god  of  the  children  of  Amnion.   And  likewise  did  he 

1  Many  of  Solomon's  marriages  were  doubtless  for  political  alliance,  which 
would  involve  a  mutual  recognition  of  gods  between  the  allied  peoples.  The 
proportion  of  wives  to  concubines  would  be  more  in  accord  with  custom,  if  we 
read  (with  Klostermann)  '^seventy  wives  and  three  hundred  conciihines,"  al- 
though even  then  the  concubines  must  have  been  reckoned  as  including  all  the 
female  slaves  of  the  harem. 


326  THE   EARLY  MONARCHY 

for  all  his  strange  wives,  burning  incense  and  sacrificing  unto 
their  gods.  Wherefore  the  Lord  said  unto  Solomon :  "Forasmuch 
as  this  is  done  of  thee,  and  thou  hast  not  kept  my  covenant  and 
my  statutes,  which  I  have  commanded  thee,  I  will  surely  rend 
the  kingdom  from  thee,  and  will  give  it  to  thy  servant.  Not- 
withstanding in  thy  days  I  will  not  do  it,  for  David  thy  father's 
sake :  but  I  will  rend  it  out  of  the  hand  of  thy  son.  Howbeit  I 
will  not  rend  away  all  the  kingdom;  but  will  give  one  tribe  to 
thy  son  for  David  my  servant's  sake,  and  for  Jerusalem's  sake 
which  I  have  chosen.'^ 

Solomon's  Enemies  and  Death  (1  Kings  xi.  14-31,  40-43). 

And  the  Lord  stirred  up  an  adversary  unto  Solomon,  Hadad  the 
Edomite  :  he  was  of  the  king's  seed  in  Edom.  For  it  came  to 
pass,  when  David  was  in  Edom,  and  Joab  the  captain  of  the 
host  was  gone  up  to  bury  the  slain,  after  he  had  smitten  every 
male  in  Edom  (for  six  months  did  Joab  remain  there  with  all 
Israel,  until  he  had  cut  off  every  male  in  Edom)  ;  that  Hadad 
fled,  he  and  certain  Edomites  of  his  father's  servants  with  him, 
to  go  into  Egypt ;  Hadad  being  yet  a  little  child.  And  they 
arose  out  of  Midian,  and  came  to  Paran :  and  they  took  men 
with  them  out  of  Paran,  and  they  came  to  Egypt,  unto  Pharaoh 
king  of  Egypt;  which  gave  him  an  house,  and  appointed  him 
victuals,  and  gave  him  land.  And  Hadad  found  great  favor  in 
the  sight  of  Pharaoh,  so  that  he  gave  him  to  wife  the  sister  of 
his  own  wife,  the  sister  of  Tahpenes  the  queen.  And  the  sister 
of  Tahpenes  bare  him  Genubath  his  son,  whom  Tahpenes  weaned 
in  Pharaoh's  house :  and  Genubath  was  in  Pharaoh's  house- 
hold among  the  sons  of  Pharaoh.  And  when  Hadad  heard  in 
Egypt  that  David  slept  with  his  fathers,  and  that  Joab  the 
captain  of  the  host  was  dead,  Hadad  said  to  Pharaoh :  "•  Let 
me  depart,  that  I  may  go  to  mine  own  country."  Then  Pharaoh 
said  unto  him :  "  But  what  hast  thou  lacked  with  me,  that 
behold,  thou  seekest  to  go  to  thine  own  country  ?  "  And  he  an- 
swered :  '^  Nothing  :  howbeit  let  me  go  in  any  wise."  This  is 
the  evil  that  Hadad  did ;  and  he  abhorred  Israel,  and  reigned 
in  Edom. 

And  God  stirred  him  up  another  adversary,  Kezon  the  son  of 
Eliadah,  which  fled  from  his  lord  Hadadezer  king  of  Zobah  :  and 
he  gathered  men  unto  him,  and  became  captain  over  a  band. 
And  they  went  to  Damascus,  and  dwelt  therein,  and  reigned  in 


SOLOMON'S   ENEMIES   AND   DEATH  327 

Damascus.  And  he  was  an  adversary  to  Israel  all  the  days  of 
Solomon,  beside  the  mischief  that  Hadad  did. 

And  Jeroboam  the  son  of  Xebat,  an  Ephrathite  of  Zereda, 
Solomon's  servant,  the  son  of  a  widow  woman,  even  he  lifted 
up  his  hand  against  the  king.  And  this  was  the  cause  that  he 
lifted  up  his  hand  against  the  king :  Solomon  built  the  Millo, 
and  repaired  the  breach  of  the  city  of  David  his  father.  And 
the  man  Jeroboam  was  a  mighty  man  of  valor :  and  Solomon 
seeing  the  young  man  that  he  was  industrious,  made  him  ruler 
over  all  the  charge  ^  of  the  house  of  Joseph. 

And  it  came  to  pass  at  that  time  when  Jeroboam  went  out 
of  Jerusalem,  that  the  prophet  Ahijah  the  Shilonite  found  him 
in  the  way  and  turned  him  aside  ;  and  Ahijah  had  clad  himself 
with  a  new  garment;  and  they  two  were  alone  in  the  field  :  and 
Ahijah  caught  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,  the  God  of  Israel,  Behold,  I  will  rend 
the  kingdom  out  of  the  hand  of  Solomon,  and  will  give  ten 
tribes  to  thee." 

Solomon  sought  therefore  to  kill  Jeroboam.  And  Jeroboam 
arose,  and  fled  into  Egypt,  unto  Shishak  ^  king  of  Egypt,  and 
was  in  Egypt  until  the  death  of  Solomon. 

And  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  Solo- 
mon ?  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  Kehoboam 
his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

1  charge.  Forced  labor. 

2  Shishak.  See  note,  p.  382. 


CHRONOLOGY  OF    THE  DIVIDED  KINGDOMS 


B.C. 

JUDAH                                                   ISRAEL 

B.C. 

937 

937 

Rehoboam.  Division  of  the  kingdom     Jeroboam  I 

932 

Shoshenls  I  (Shisliak)  of  Egypt  invades  Judah  and  Israel 

932 

920 

Abijah 

917 

Asa 

Nadab 

915 

900 

Baasha 

913 
900 

889 

Asa  purchases  help  of  Ben-hadad  of 

Elah 

Damascus  against  Baasha 

Zimri ;  Omri  founds  a  new  dynasty : 
capital  at  Samaria 

887 

876 

Jehoshaphat 

Ahab          ^  Conflict  between   Baal 
1      and  Jehovah  parties 

875 

ELIJAH    Shalmaneser  II  defeats 

854 

Alliance  with  Ahab  against  Damascus 

Ahaziah 

Ahab  and  Ben-hadad 

853 

851 

Joram 

Jehoram 

851 

843 

Ahaziah 

842 

Athaliah's  usurpation 

Jehu          ::   Jehu  pays  tribute  to  As- 

842 

Syria.   Mesha  of  Moab 

836 

Joash 

regains  independence 

ELISHA 

Oppression  of  Israel  by 

810 

Joash  pays  tribute  to  Hazael 

Jehoabaz 

Damascus 

814 

800 
796 

800 
797 

Amaziah 

jehoash 

Judah  defeated  by  Israel 

^  Defeat  of  Damascus  by 

782 

Uzziah 

Zakar 

Jeroboam  II 

781 

AMOS 

751 

JOtham  (Regent) 

4-         HOSEA 

Zechariah,  Shallum,   i  Menahem, 

740 

737 

Death  of  Uzziah  f 
Ahaz                      1 

Pekahiah,  Pekah      4^ 

735 

Hoshea 

734 

732 

Damascus  taken  by  Tiglath-pileser : 
Ahaz  becomes  his  vassal 

Samaria  taken  by  Sargon  of  Assyria 

722 

715 

Hezekiah            I 

Captivity  of  Israel 

ISAIAH  Judah  invaded  by  Sennacherib 

701 

700 

MICAH 

700 

686 

Manasseh          i 

Manasseh  pays  tribute  to  Assyria  :  (1)  under  Esarhaddon  (d.  668) 

(2)  under  Ashurbaaipal 

Religious  reaction  against  the  pro- 

(Assyrians conquer  Egypt) 

670 

phetic  party 

641 

Ammon 

639 

Josiah 

ZEPHANIAH                                       t 

620 

The  great  reformation           jebemiah 

NAHUM     HABAKKUK 

608 

Jehoiakim,  vassal  to  Necho  II 
of  Egypt 

(Nineveh  taken  by  the  Babylonians 
and  Medes) 

607 

605 

Nebuchadrezzar   defeats    Necho    at    Carchemish  and  makes  Judah  trib- 

600 

597 

utary 

600 

jehoiachin,  Zedekiah.     First 

Captivity  of  Judah 

586 

Destruction  of  Jerusalem:  Final 

Captivity                          t           4' 

561 

The  Babylonian  Exile 
Jehoiachin  released,    ezekiel 

■I    OBADIAH 

(Evil-merodach) 

562 

538 

Cyrus'  edict  concerning  the  Temple 
Zerubbabel,  governor  of  Judah 

(Conquest  of  Babylon  by  Cyrus) 

538 

530 

Jews  at  Elephantine  build  a  temple 

Period  of  Persian  Rule 

520 

Beginning    of    rebuilding    Temple 

HAGGAI    and    ZECHARIAH 

(Darius  I) 

521 

r.16 

Completion  of  the  Temple 

500 

500 

NORTHERN    ISRAEL   TO    THE    FALL    OF    SAMARIA 

Revolt  of  the  Northern  Tribes  (l  Kings  xii.  1-24).  And  it 
came  to  pass,  when  Jeroboam  the  son  of  Xebat,  who  was  yet  in 
Egypt,  heard  of  it  [Solomon's  death]  —  for  he  was  fled  from  the 
presence  of  king  Solomon,  and  dwelt  in  Egypt  —  he  returned 
and  went  to  his  city  Zereda  which  is  in  mount  Ephraim. 

And  Rehoboam  went  to  Shechem,  for  all  Israel  were  come  to 
Shechem  to  make  him  king.  And  they  spake  unto  Rehoboam, 
saying :  ''  Thy  father  made  our  yoke  grievous  :  now  therefore 
ease  thou  somewhat  the  grievous  servitude  of  thy  father,  and  his 
heavy  yoke  which  he  put  upon  us,  and  we  will  serve  thee." 
And  he  said  unto  them :  "  Depart  for  three  days,  then  come 
again  to  me."  And  the  people  departed. 

And  king  Rehoboam  consulted  with  the  old  men,  that  stood 
before  Solomon  his  father  while  he  yet  lived,  and  said :  "  How 
do  ye  advise  that  I  may  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,  and  which  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  which  thy  father  did 
put  upon  us  lighter  ?  "  And  the  young  men  that  were  grown  up 
with  him  spake  unto  him,  saying  :  ''  Thus  shalt  thou  speak  unto 
this  people  that  spake  unto  thee,  saying.  Thy  father  made  our 
yoke  heavy,  but  make  thou  it  lighter  unto  us ;  thus  shalt  thou 
say  unto  them.  My  little  finger  shall  be  thicker  than  my  father's 
loins.  For  whereas  my  father  did  lade  you  with  a  heavy  yoke, 
I  will  add  to  your  yoke :  my  father  hath  chastised  you  with 
whips,  but  I  will  chastise  you  with  scorpions."  * 

So  all  Israel  came  to  Rehoboam  the  third  day,  as  the  king 
had  appointed,  saying  :  "  Come  to  me  again  the  third  day."  And 
1  scorpions.  Scourges. 


330         NORTHERN  ISRAEL   TO   THE  FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

the  king  answered  the  people  roughly,  and  forsook  the  old  men's 
counsel  that  they  gave  him  ;  and  spake  to  them  after  the  counsel 
of  the  young  men,  saying  :  ''  My  father  made  your  yoke  heavy, 
and  I  will  add  to  your  yoke  :  my  father  also  chastised  you  with 
whips,  but  I  will  chastise  you  with  scorpions.''  So  the  king 
hearkened  not  unto  the  people ;  for  the  cause  was  from  the 
Lord,  that  he  might  perform  his  saying,  which  the  Lord  spake 
by  Ahijah  the  Shilonite  unto  Jeroboam  the  son  of  Nebat.  So 
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,  0  Israel :  now  see  to  thine  own  house,  David  ! " 

So  Israel  departed  unto  their  tents.  Then  king  Eehoboam 
sent  Adoniram,  who  was  over  the  tribute  ;  ^  and  all  Israel  stoned 
him  with  stones,  that  he  died.  Therefore  king  Eehoboam  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  come 
again,  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. 

And  when  Eehoboam  was  come  to  Jerusalem,  he  assembled 
all  the  house  of  Judah,  with  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  an  hundred 
and  fourscore  thousand  chosen  men,  which  were  warriors,  to 
fight  against  the  house  of  Israel,  to  bring  the  kingdom  again  to 
Eehoboam  the  son  of  Solomon.  But  the  word  of  God  came  unto 
Shemaiah  the  man  of  God,  saying  :  ''  Speak  unto  Eehoboam,  the 
son  of  Solomon,  king  of  Judah,  and  unto  all  the  house  of  Judah 
and  Benjamin,  and  to  the  remnant  of  the  people,  saying,  Thus 
saith  the  Lord,  Ye  shall  not  go  up,  nor  fight  against  your 
brethren  the  children  of  Israel :  return  every  man  to  his  house ; 
for  this  thing  is  from  me."  They  hearkened  therefore  to  the 
word  of  the  Lord,  and  returned  and  went  their  way,  according 
to  the  word  of  the  Lord. 

Jeroboam's  Religious  Innovations  (l  Kings  xii.  25-32). 
Then  Jeroboam  built  Shechem  in  the  hill  country  of  Ephraim, 
and  dwelt  therein  ;  and  went  out  from  thence,  and  built  Penuel. 
And  Jeroboam  said  in  his  heart :  "  Now  shall  the  kingdom  re- 
turn to  the  house  of  David :  if  this  people  go  up  to  do  sacrifice 
1  the  tribute.  The  forced  labor. 


THE   PROPHECY   AGAINST   THE   ALTAR   OF   BETH-EL      331 

in  the  house  of  the  Lord  at  Jerusalem,  then  shall  the  heart  of 
this  people  turn  again  unto  their  lord,  even  unto  Kehoboam  king 
of  Judah,  and  they  shall  kill  me."  Whereupon  the  king  took 
counsel,  and  made  two  calves  of  gold,  ^  and  said  unto  the  people  : 
"  It  is  too  much  for  you  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem  :  behold  thy 
gods,  0  Israel,  which  brought  thee  up  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt." 
And  he  set  the  one  in  Beth-el,  and  the  other  put  he  in  Dan. 
And  this  thing  became  a  sin  :  for  the  people  went  to  worship 
before  each  of  them,  even  unto  Dan. 

And  he  made  houses  upon  high  places,  and  made  priests  from 
among  all  the  people,  which  were  not  of  the  sons  of  Levi.  And 
Jeroboam  ordained  a  feast  in  the  eighth  month,  on  the  fifteenth 
day  of  the  month,  like  unto  the  feast  ^  that  is  in  Judah,  and  he 
offered  upon  the  altar.  So  did  he  in  Beth-el,  sacrificing  unto  the 
calves  that  he  had  made  :  and  he  placed  in  Beth-el  the  priests 
of  the  high  places  which  he  had  made. 

The  Prophecy  against  the  Altar  of  Beth-el  (l  Kings  xii.  33  ; 
xiii.).  And  he  went  up  unto  the  altar  which  he  had  made  in 
Beth-el  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  eighth  month,  even  in  the 
month  which  he  had  devised  of  his  own  heart ;  and  ordained  a 
feast  unto  the  children  of  Israel :  and  he  offered  upon  the  altar, 
and  burnt  incense. 

And  behold,  there  came  a  man  of  God  out  of  Judah  by  the 
word  of  the  Lord  unto  Beth-el :  and  Jeroboam  stood  by  the  altar 
to  burn  incense.  And  he  cried  against  the  altar  in  the  word  of  the 
Lord,  and  said :  ''  0  altar,  altar,  thus  saith  the  Lord  ;  Behold,  a 
child  shall  be  born  unto  the  house  of  David,  Josiah  by  name ; 
and  upon  thee  shall  he  offer  the  priests  of  the  high  places  that 
burn  incense  upon  thee,  and  men's  bones  shall  be  burnt  upon 
thee."  And  he  gave  a  sign  the  same  day,  saying:  "  This  is  the 
sign  which  the  Lord  hath  spoken ;  Behold  the  altar  shall  be  rent, 
and  the  ashes  that  are  upon  it  shall  be  poured  out." 

1  calves  of  gold.  Probably  bull?,  here  called  "  calves  "  slightingly,  because  of 
their  small  size.  The  bull  had  been  an  emblem  of  divinity  among  Semitic  peo- 
ples from  early  times,  and  Jeroboam  seems  to  have  set  up  these  images  simply 
as  symbols  of  Jehovah,  not  as  substitutes  for  His  worship. 

"^  fen  St.  This  was  the  "Feast  of  Tabernacles"  or  "Feast  of  Booths,"  the 
popular  annual  festival  known  also  as  the  "Feast  of  Ingathering."  As  pre- 
scribed in  Lev.  xxiii.  40-43,  the  Israelites  celebrate  it  for  seven  days,  dwelling 
in  improvised  rustic  booths  as  a  reminder  of  their  ancestors'  tent-dwelling  in  the 
wilderness. 


332         NORTHERN   ISRAEL  TO   THE  FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  king  Jeroboam  heard  the  saying 
of  the  man  of  God,  which  had  cried  against  the  altar  in  Beth-el, 
that  he  put  forth  his  hands  from  the  altar,  saying,  "  Lay  hold 
on  him."  And  his  hand  which  he  put  forth  against  him,  dried 
up,  so  that  he  could  not  pull  it  in  again  to  him.  The  altar  also 
was  rent,  and  the  ashes  poured  out  from  the  altar,  according  to 
the  sign  which  the  man  of  God  had  given  by  the  word  of  the 
Lord.  And  the  king  answered  and  said  unto  the  man  of  God : 
"  Intreat  now  the  face  of  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  pray  for  me, 
that  my  hand  may  be  restored  me  again."  And  the  man  of  God 
besought  the  Lord,  and  the  king's  hand  was  restored  him  again, 
and  became  as  it  was  before.  And  the  king  said  unto  the  man 
of  God :  "  Come  home  with  me,  and  refresh  thyself,  and  I  will 
give  thee  a  reward."  And  the  man  of  God  said  unto  the  king : 
"  If  thou  wilt  give  me  half  thine  house,  I  will  not  go  in  with 
thee,  neither  will  I  eat  bread  nor  drink  water  in  this  place  :  for 
so  was  it  charged  me  by  the  word  of  the  Lord,  saying,  Eat  no 
bread,  nor  drink  water,  nor  turn  again  by  the  same  way  that 
thou  camest."  So  he  went  another  way,  and  returned  not  by 
the  way  that  he  came  to  Beth-el. 

Now  there  dwelt  an  old  prophet  in  Beth-el ;  and  his  sons 
came  and  told  him  all  the  works  that  the  man  of  God  had  done 
that  day  in  Beth-el  :  the  words  which  he  had  spoken  unto  the 
king,  them  they  told  also  to  their  father.  And  their  father  said 
unto  them,  "  What  way  went  he  ?  "  Then  his  sons  shewed  him 
what  way  the  man  of  God  went,  which  came  from  Judah.  And 
he  said  unto  his  sons,  "  Saddle  me  the  ass."  So  they  saddled 
him  the  ass :  and  he  rode  thereon,  and  went  after  the  man  of 
God,  and  found  him  sitting  under  an  oak  :  and  he  said  unto  him  : 
"  Art  thou  the  man  of  God  that  camest  from  Judah  ?  "  And 
he  said,  '^  I  am."  Then  he  said  unto  him  :  *'  Come  home  with 
me,  and  eat  bread."  And  he  said:  "  I  may  not  return  with  thee  : 
neither  will  I  eat  bread  nor  drink  water  in  this  place  :  for  it  was 
said  to  me  by  the  word  of  the  Lord,  Thou  shalt  eat  no  bread  nor 
drink  water  there,  nor  turn  again  to  go  by  the  way  that  thou 
camest."  He  said  unto  him:  "I  am  a  prophet  also  as  thou 
art ;  and  an  angel  spake  unto  me  by  the  word  of  the  Lord,  say- 
ing, Bring  him  back  with  thee  into  thine  house,  that  he  may 
eat  bread  and  drink  water."  But  he  lied  unto  him.  So  he 
went  back  with  him,  and  did  eat  bread  in  his  house,  and  drank 
water. 


THE    PEOPHECY    AGAINST    THE    ALTAR   OF    BETH-EL      333 

And  it  came  to  pass,  as  they  sat  at  the  table,  that  the  word 
of  the  Lord  came  unto  the  propliet  that  brought  him  back  :  and 
he  cried  unto  the  man  of  God  that  came  from  Judah,  saying : 
"  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Forasmuch  as  thou  hast  disobeyed  the 
mouth  of  the  Lord,  and  hast  not  kept  the  commandment  which 
the  Lord  thy  God  commanded  thee,  but  camest  back,  and  hast 
eaten  bread  and  drunk  water  in  the  place,  of  the  which  the 
Lord  did  say  to  thee.  Eat  no  bread  and  drink  no  water;  thy 
carcass  shall  not  come  unto  the  sepulchre  of  thy  fathers.''  And 
it  came  to  pass,  after  he  had  eaten  bread,  and  after  he  had 
drunk,  that  he  saddled  for  him  the  ass.  And  when  he  was  gone, 
a  lion  met  him  by  the  way,  and  slew  him :  and  his  carcass  was 
cast  in  the  way,  and  the  ass  stood  by  it,  the  lion  also  stood  by 
the  carcass.  And  behold,  men  passed  by,  and  saw  the  carcass 
cast  in  the  way,  and  the  lion  standing  by  the  carcass :  and  they 
came  and  told  it  in  the  city  where  the  old  prophet  dwelt. 

And  when  the  prophet  that  brought  him  back  from  the  way 
heard  thereof,  he  said :  ''  It  is  the  man  of  God,  who  was  dis- 
obedient unto  the  word  of  the  Lord :  therefore  the  Lord  hath 
delivered  him  unto  the  lion,  which  hath  torn  him,  and  slain  him, 
according  to  the  word  of  the  Lord,  which  he  spake  unto  him." 
And  he  spake  to  his  sons,  saying,  ''  Saddle  me  the  ass,"  And 
they  saddled  it.  And  he  went  and  found  his  carcass  cast  in  the 
Avay,  and  the  ass  and  the  lion  standing  by  the  carcass  :  the  lion 
had  not  eaten  the  carcass,  nor  torn  the  ass.  And  the  pro- 
phet took  up  the  carcass  of  the  man  of  God,  and  laid  it  upon 
the  ass,  and  brought  it  back  to  the  city,  to  mourn  and  to  bury 
him.  And  he  laid  his  carcass  in  his  own  grave ;  and  they  mourned 
over  him,  saying,  "Alas,  my  brother!"  And  it  came  to  pass, 
after  he  had  buried  him,  that  he  spake  to  his  sons,  saying  : 
*'  When  I  am  dead,  then  bury  me  in  the  sepulchre  wherein  the 
man  of  God  is  buried  ;  lay  my  bones  beside  his  bones :  for  the 
saying  which  he  cried  by  the  word  of  the  Lord  against  the  altar 
in  Beth-el,  and  against  all  the  houses  of  the  high  places  which 
are  in  the  cities  of  Samaria,  shall  surely  come  to  pass." 

After  this  thing  Jeroboam  returned  not  from  his  evil  way, 
but  made  again  from  among  all  the  people  priests  of  the  high 
places  :  whosoever  would,  he  consecrated  him,  and  he  became 
one  of  the  priests  of  the  high  places.  And  this  thing  became  sin 
unto  the  house  of  Jeroboam,  even  to  cut  it  off,  and  to  destroy 
it  from  off  the  face  of  the  earth. 


334         NORTHERN  ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

Ahijah's  Prophecy  (1  Kings  xiv.  1-12,  17-20).  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,  which  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.  But  Ahijah  could  not  see  ;  for  his  eyes  were 
set  by  reason  of  his  age.  And  the  Lord  had  said  unto  Ahijah : 
"  Behold,  the  wife  of  Jeroboam  cometh  to  ask  a  thing  of  thee 
for  her  son  ;  for  he  is  sick  :  thus  and  thus  shalt  thou  say  unto 
her."  And  when  she  came  in,  she  feigned  herself  to  be  another 
woman. 

And  it  was  so,  when  Ahijah  heard  the  sound  of  her  feet,  as 
she  came  in  at  the  door,  that  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  thou  hast  gone  and  made 
thee  other  gods,  and  molten  images,  to  provoke  me  to  anger, 
and  hast  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,  him  that  is  shut  up  and  him  that 
is  left  at  large  in  Israel,  and  will  take  away  the  remnant  of  the 
house  of  Jeroboam,  as  a  man  taketh  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  own  house  :  and  when  thy  feet  enter  into  the  city,  the 
child  shall  die."  And  Jeroboam's  wife  arose,  and  departed,  and 
came  to  Tirzah :  and  when  she  came  to  the  threshold  of  the 
door,  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  Avith  his 
fathers,  and  Nadab  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 
1  cracknels.  Small  brittle  cakes.  The  Greek  version  adds :  "  for  his  children." 


ELAH  335 

Nadab  (l  Kings  xv.  25-31).  And  Nadab  the  son  of  Jero- 
boam began  to  reign  over  Israel  in  the  second  year  of  Asa  king 
of  Judah,  and  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,  that  he  smote  all  the  house  of  Jeroboam  ;  he  left  not 
to  Jeroboam  any  that  breathed,  until  he  had  destroyed  him. 

Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Xadab,  and  all  that  he  did,  are 
they  not  written  in  the  book  of  the  chronicles  of  the  kings  of 
Israel ? 

Baasha  (l  Kings  xv.  32-xvi.  6).  In  the  third  year  of  Asa 
king  of  Judah  began  Baasha  the  son  of  Ahijah  to  reign  over 
all  Israel  in  Tirzah,  twenty  and  four  years.  And  there  was  war 
between  Asa  and  Baasha  king  of  Israel  all  their  days.  And  he 
did  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and  walked  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  take  away  the  posterity  of  Baasha,  and  the  pos- 
terity of  his  house ;  and  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  fields 
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?  So  Baasha 
slept  with  his  fathers,  and  was  buried  in  Tirzah:  and  Elah  his 
son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Elah  (l  Kings  xvi.  8-11,  14).  In  the  twenty  and  sixth  year 
of  Asa  king  of  Judah  began  Elah  the  son  of  Baasha  to  reign 
over  Israel  in  Tirzah,  two  years.  And  his  servant  Zimri,  captain 
of  half  his  chariots,  conspired  against  him.  Now  he  was  in  Tir- 


336         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

zah,  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  slew  all 
the  house  of  Baasha :  he  left  him  not  a  single  man  child,  nei- 
ther of  his  kinsfolks,  nor  of  his  friends.  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  ? 

Zimri  (l  Kings  xvi.  15-20).  In  the  twenty  and  seventh  year 
of  Asa  king  of  Judah  did  Zimri  reign  seven  days  in  Tirzah. 
And  the  people  were  encamped  against  Gibbethon,  which  be- 
longed to  the  Philistines.  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  that  day  in  the  camp.  And  Omri  went  up  from  Gib- 
bethon, 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  palace  of  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  wdiich  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  ? 

Omri  (l  Kings  xvi.  21-34).  Then  were  the  people  of  Israel 
divided :  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,  twelve  years :  six  years  reigned  he  in  Tirzah.  And 
he  bought  the  hill  Samaria  of  Shemer  for  two  talents  of  silver, 
and  built  on  the  hill,  and  called  the  name  of  the  city  which  he 
built,  after  the  name  of  Shemer,  owner  of  the  hill,  Samaria.^  But 

1  Excavations  carried  on  by  Harvard  Univorsity  at  Samaria  resulted  in  1909 
in  disclosing  the  massive  outlines  and  part  of  the  wall  of  a  Hebrew  structure, 
believed  to  be  the  palace  of  Omri  and  Ahab.  In  plan  it  is  a  series  of  courts  and 
chambers  after  the  Assyrian  manner  of  building. 


ELIJAH    AND   THE   DROUGHT  337 

Omri  wrought  evil  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  and  did  worse  than 
all  that  were  before  him.  For  he  walked  in  all  the  way  of  Jero- 
boam the  son  of  Nebat,  and  in  his  sin  wherewith  he  made  Israel 
to  sin,  to  provoke  the  Lord  God  of  Israel  to  anger  with  their 
vanities.  Xow  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. 

And  in  the  thirty  and  eighth  year  of  Asa  king  of  Judah  be- 
gan 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  Jero- 
boam the  son  of  Nebat,  that  he  took  to  wife  Jezebel  the  daugh- 
ter of  EthbaaP  king  of  the  Zidonians,  and  went  and  served 
Baal,  and  worshipped  him.  And  he  reared  up  an  altar  for  Baal 
in  the  house  of  Baal,  which  he  had  built  in  Samaria,  And  Ahab 
made  the  Asherah. 

In  his  days  did  Hiel  the  Beth-elite  build  Jericho :  he  laid 
the  foundation  thereof  in  Abiram  his  firstborn,  and  set  up  the 
gates  thereof  in  his  youngest  son  Segub,  according  to  the  word 
of  the  Lord,  which  he  spake  by  Joshua  the  son  of  Xun. 

Elijah  and  the  Drought  (l  Kings  xvii.).  And  Elijah  the 
Tishbite,  who  was  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  the  Lord  came  unto  him,  saying:  ''Get 
thee  hence,  and  turn  thee  eastward,  and  hide  thyself  by  the 
brook  Cherith,  that  is  before  Jordan.  And  it  shall  be,  that  thou 
shalt  drink  of  the  brook;   and  I  have  commanded  the  ravens  to 

1  The  importance  of  Omri's  reipjn  is  witnessed  to  by  Assyrian  inscriptions, 
which  refjularly  refer  to  Israel  as  the  "  land  of  Omri,"  even  long  after  his  death. 
The  Moabite  Stone  (see  p.  361)  mentions  that  Oniri  "  afflicted  Moab  many  days," 
and  that  he  "took  possession  of  the  land  of  Medeba."  Aficah  vi.  10  refers  to 
"  the  statutes  of  Omri  "  as  if  they  had  introduced  new  religious  departures. 

2  Ethbanl,  who  reigned  about  887-876  «.  C,  was  said  by  Men;in<ior  to  have 
been  the  great-grandfather  of  Dido,  the  founder  of  Carthage.  Ahab's  alliance 
involved  a  formal  recognition  of  Melkarth,  the  Baal  or  chief  deity  of  Tyre,  of 
w^hom  Ethbaal  had  at  one  time  been  high  priest. 


338         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

feed  thee  there."  So  he  went  and  did  according  unto  the  word 
of  the  Lord,  and  dwelt  by  the  brook  Cherith,  that  is  before 
Jordan.  And  the  ravens  brought  him  bread  and  flesh  in  the 
morning,  and  bread  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  the  Lord  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  sus- 
tain thee." 

So  he  arose  and  went  to  Zarephath.  And  when  he  came  to 
the  gate  of  the  city,  behold,  the  widow  woman  was  there  gather- 
ing of  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  :  "  Bring  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  hand- 
ful of  meal  in  a  barrel,  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  the  Lord  God  of  Israel, 
The  barrel  of  meal  shall  not  waste,  neither  shall  the  cruse  of  oil 
fail,  until  the  day  that  the  Lord  sendeth  rain  upon  the  earth." 
And  she  went  and  did  according  to  the  saying  of  Elijah :  and 
she,  and  he,  and  her  house,  did  eat  many  days.  And  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,  0  thou  man  of  God? 
art  thou  come  unto  me  to  call  my  sin  to  remembrance,  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  a  loft, 
where  he  abode,  and  laid  him  upon  his  own  bed.  And  he  cried 
unto  the  Lord,  and  said :  '*  0  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  the  Lord,  and  said  :   "0  Lord  my  God,  I  pray 


ELIJAH   AND   THE    PROPHETS   OF   BAAL  339 

thee,  let  this  child's  soul  come  into  him  again."  And  the  Lord 
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  de- 
livered him  unto  his  mother:  and  Elijah  said,  ''See,  thy  son 
liveth."  And  the  woman  said  to  Elijah:  ''Now  by  this  I  know 
that  thou  art  a  man  of  God,  and  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  in 
thy  mouth  is  truth." 

Elijah  and  the  Prophets  of  Baal  (l  Kings  xviii.).  And  it 
came  to  pass  after  many  days,  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  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,  which  was  the  governor  of 
his  house.  And  Ahab  said  unto  Obadiah :  "  Up !  let  us  go  through 
the  land,  unto  all  fountains  of  water,  and  unto  all  brooks  :  per- 
adventure  we  may  find  grass  to  save  the  horses  and  mules  alive, 
that  we  lose  not  all  the  beasts."  So  they  divided  the  land  be- 
tween them  to  pass  throughout  it :  Ahab  went  one  way  by  him- 
self, and  Obadiah  went  another  way  by  himself. 

And  as  Obadiah  was  in  the  way,  behold,  Elijah  met  him  :  and 
he  knew  him,  and  fell  on  his  face,  and  said,  "  Is  it  thou,  my 
lord  Elijah  ?  "  And  he  answered  him :  ''It  is  I :  go,  tell  thy 
lord.  Behold,  Elijah  is  here."  And  he  said:  "What  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  na- 
tion or  kingdom,  whither  my  lord  hath  not  sent  to  seek  thee  : 
and  when  they  said,  He  is  not  there;  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  the  Lord  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  fed  them  with  bread  and  water  ?  And  now  thou  say- 
est, 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 


340          NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

Obadiah  went  to  meet  Abab,  and  told  him :   and  Abab  went  to 
meet  Elijab. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Abab  saw  Elijah,  that  Abab  said 
unto  him,  "  Art  thou  he  that  troubleth  Israel  ?  "  And  he  an- 
swered :  ''  I  have  not  troubled  Israel ;  but  thou,  and  thy  father'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,  which  eat  at  Jezebel's  table." 

So  Abab  sent  unto  all  the  children  of  Israel,  and  gathered 
the  prophets  together  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  Baal's  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  wood,  and  put  no  fire  under :  and  I  will  dress  the  other 
bullock,  and  lay  it  on  wood,  and  put  no  fire  under :  and  call  ye 
on  the  name  of  your  gods,  and  I  will  call  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  gods,  but  put  no  fire  under."  And  they 
took  the  bullock  which  was  given  them,  and  they  dressed  it,  and 
called  on  the  name  of  Baal  from  morning  even  until  noon,  say- 
ing, "0  Baal,  bear  us."  But  there  was  no  voice,  nor  any  that 
answered.  And  they  leaped  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  talking,  or 
he  is  pursuing,  or  he  is  in  a  journey,  or  peradventure  he  sleep- 
eth,  and  must  be  awaked."  And  they  cried  aloud,  and  cut  them- 
selves after  their  manner  with  knives  and  lancets,  till  the  blood 
gushed  out  upon  them. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  midday  was  past,  and  they  prophe- 

1  mount  Carmel.  "  lambliclius,  in  the  last  days  of  heathenism,  still  speaks 
of  Mount  Carmel  as  *  sacred  above  all  mountains  and  forbidden  of  access  to  the 
vuljrar  ; '  and  here  Vespasian  worshipped  at  the  solitary  altar,  embowered  in 
inviolable  thickets,  to  which  ancient  tradition  forbade  the  adjuncts  of  temple 
and  image."  W.  R.  Smith  :  Religion  of  the  Semites,  p.  156. 


ELIJAH    AND    THE    PROPHETS    OF    BAAL  341 

sied  *  until  the  time  of  the  offering  of  the  evening  sacrifice,  that 
there  was  neither  voice,  nor  any  to  answer,  nor  any  that  re- 
garded. 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  broken  down,  and  he  made  a 
trench  about  the  altar,  as  great  as  would  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  said  :  "  Fill  four  barrels  with 
water,  and  pour  it  on  the  burnt  sacrifice,  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  offering  of  the  evening  sacrifice,  that  Elijah  the 
prophet  came  near,  and  said :  "  Lord  God  of  Abraham,  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,  0  Lord,  hear  me,  that  this  people 
may  know  that  thou  art  the  Lord  God,  and  that  thou  hast 
turned  their  heart  back  again."  Then  the  fire  of  the  Lord  fell, 
and  consumed  the  burnt  sacrifice,  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  the  God  ;  the  Lord,  he  is  the  God." 
And  Elijah  said  unto  them  :  "  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  Elijali  went  up  to  the  top  of  Carmel ;  and 
he  cast  himself  down  upon  the  earth,  and  put  his  face  between 
his  knees,  and  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  seven  times."  And  the  serv- 
ant went  again  seven  times.  And  it  came  to  pass  at  the  seventh 
time,  that  he  said  :  "  Behold,  there  ariseth  a  little  cloud  out  of 
tlie  sea,  like  a  man's  hand."  And  he  said  :  "Go  up,  say  unto 
Ahab,  Prepare  tliy  chariot,  and  get  thee  down,  that  the  rain 
stop  thee  not."  And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  mean  while,  that  the 
heaven  was  black  with  clouds  and  wind,  and  there  was  a  great 
1  prophesied.  '  Raved  '  or  '  uttered  ecstatic  cries.' 


342         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

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. 

Elijah  at  Horeb  (l  Kings  xix.  1-18).  And  Ahab  told  Jeze- 
bel 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  he  was  afraid,  and  arose,  and  went  for  his  life, 
and  came  to  Beer-sheba,  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,  0  Lord,  take  away  my  life  ;  for  I  am  not  better 
than  my  fathers."  And  as  he  lay  and  slept  under  a  juniper  tree, 
behold,  then  an  angel  touched  him,  and  said  unto  him,  ''Arise 
and  eat."  And  he  looked,  and  behold,  there  was  a  cake  baken 
on  the  coals,  and  a  cruse  of  water  at  his  head.  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  drink,  and  went  in  the  strength  of  that 
meat  forty  days  and  forty  nights  unto  Horeb  the  mount  of  God. 

And  he  came  thither  unto  a  cave,  and  lodged  there  ;  and  be- 
hold, 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  earth- 
quake ;  but  the  Lord  was  not  in  the  earthquake  :  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  :  "  I  have  been  very  jealous  for  the  Lord  God  of  hosts  :  be- 
cause the  children  of  Israel  have  forsaken  thy  covenant,  thrown 
down  thine  altars,  and  slain  thy  prophets  with  the  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 
wilderness  of  Damascus  :  and  when  thou  comest,  anoint  Hazael 
1  a  juniper  tree.  More  accurately:  '  a  broom  bush.' 


AHAB   AND   NABOTH  343 

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  tliy  room.  And 
it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  him  that  escapeth  the  sword  of  Hazael 
shall  Jehu  slay  :  and  him  that  escapeth  from  the  sword  of  Jehu 
shall  Elisha  slay.  Yet  I  have  left  me  seven  thousand  in  Israel, 
all  the  knees  which  have  not  bowed  unto  Baal,  and  every  mouth 
which  hath  not  kissed  him.'^ 

The  Call  of  Elisha  (1  Kings  xix.  19-21).  So  he  departed 
thence,  and  found  Elisha  the  son  of  Shaphat,  who  was  plowing 
with  twelve  yoke  of  oxen  before  him,  and  he  with  the  twelfth:^ 
and  Elijah  passed  by  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  :  for  what  have 
I  done  to  thee  ?  "  And  he  returned  back  from  him,  and  took  a 
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. 

Ahab  and  N"aboth  (l  Kings  xxi.).  And  it  came  to  pass  that 
iS"aboth  the  Jezreelite  had  a  vineyard  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,  be- 
cause 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  Xaboth  said  to  Ahab  :  "  The 
Lord  forbid  it  me,  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  inherit- 
ance of  my  fathers.  And  he  laid  him  down  upon  his  bed,  and 
turned  away  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  ISTaboth,  the  Jezreelite,  and 
said  unto  him.  Give  me  thy  vineyard  for  money ;  or  else,  if  it 
please   thee,   I   will   give   another  vineyard  for  it :  and   he  an- 

1  Elisha  himself  guided  the  twelfth  yoke  ;  his  servants,  the  other  eleven. 


344         NORTHERN  ISRAEL  TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

swered,  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  letters  in  Ahab's  name,  and  sealed  them  with 
his  seal,  and  sent  the  letters  unto  the  elders  and  to  the  nobles 
that  were  in  his  city,  dwelling  with  Naboth.  And  she  wrote  in 
the  letters,  saying:  "Proclaim  a  fast,  and  set  ISTaboth  on  high 
among  the  people :  and  set  two  men,  sons  of  Belial,  before  him, 
to  bear  witness  against  him,  saying,  Thou  didst  blaspheme  God 
and  the  king.  And  then  carry  him  out,  and  stone  him,  that  he 
may  die."  And  the  men  of  his  city,  even  the  elders  and  the 
nobles  who  were  the  inhabitants  of  his  city,  did  as  Jezebel  had 
sent  unto  them,  and  as  it  was  written  in  the  letters  which  she 
had  sent  unto  them.  They  proclaimed  a  fast,  and  set  Naboth  on 
high  among  the  people.  And  there  came  in  two  men,  children 
of  Belial,  and  sat  before  him :  and  the  men  of  Belial  witnessed 
against  him,  even  against  ISTaboth,  in  the  presence  of  the  people, 
saying,  "  Naboth  did  blaspheme  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  Na- 
both  is  not  alive,  but  dead."  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Ahab 
heard  that  Naboth  was  dead,  that  Ahab  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,  say- 
ing :  "  Arise,  go  down  to  meet  Ahab  king  of  Israel,  which  is  in 
Samaria :  behold,  he  is  in  the  vineyard  of  Naboth,  whither  he 
is  gone  down  to  possess  it.  And  thou  shalt  speak  unto  him,  say- 
ing. Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Hast  thou  killed,  and  also  taken  pos- 
session  ?  And  thou  shalt  speak  unto  him,  saying,  Thus  saith 
the  Lord,  In  the  place  where  dogs  licked  the  blood  of  Naboth 
shall  dogs  lick  thy  blood,  even  thine."  And  Ahab  said  to  Eli- 
jah, "Hast  thou  found  me,  0  mine  enemy?"  And  he  an- 
swered :  "I  have  found  thee.  Because  thou  hast  sold  thyself  to 
work  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  behold,  I  will  bring  evil 
upon  thee,  and  will  take  away  thy  posterity,  and  will  cut  off 
from  Ahab  every  man  child,  and  will  make  thine  house  like  the 


DELIVERANCE   OF   SAMARIA  345 

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  made  Israel  to  sin."  And  of 
Jezebel  also  spake  the  Lord,  saying  :  "  The  dogs  shall  eat  Jeze- 
bel by  the  wall  of  Jezreel." 

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  Elijah  the  Tishbite,  sa3'ing :  "Seest  thou  how 
Ahab  humbleth  himself  before  me?  Because  he  humbleth  him- 
self 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." 

Deliverance  of  Samaria  (l  Kings  xx.  1-25).  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 ;  thy  wives  also  and  thy  children,  even 
the  goodliest,  are  mine."  And  the  king  of  Israel  answered  and 
said :  '•'  My  lord,  0  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.  Although  I  have 
sent  unto  thee,  saying.  Thou  shalt  deliver  me  thy  silver,  and 
thy  gold,  and  thy  wives,  and  thy  children ;  yet  I  will  send  my 
servants  unto  thee  to-morrow  about  this  time,  and  they  shall 
search  thine  house,  and  the  houses  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  of  the  land,  and 
wsaid  :  "  Mark,  I  pray  you,  and  see  how  this  man  seeketh  mis- 
chief :  for  he  sent  unto  me  for  my  wives,  and  for  my  children, 
and  for  my  silver,  and  for  my  gold  ;  and  I  denied  him  not." 
And  all  the  elders  and  all  the  people  said  unto  him  :  "  Hearken 
not  unto  him,  nor  consent."  Wherefore  he  said  unto  the  mes- 
sengers 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.  And  Ben-hadad  sent  unto  him,  and 
1  Ben-hadad  II,  mentioned  as  Dad'idri  in  the  Assyrian  inscriptions. 


346  NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

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  harness  boast  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  pavilions,  that  he 
said  unto  his  servants,  "  Set  yourselves  in  array."  And  they 
set  themselves  in  array  against  the  city. 

And  behold,  there  came  a  prophet  unto  Ahab  king  of  Israel, 
saying:  ''Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Hast  thou  seen  all  this  great 
multitude  ?  behold,  I  will  deliver  it  into  thine  hand  this  day ; 
and  thou  shalt  know  that  I  am  the  Lord."  And  Ahab  said, 
"  By  whom  ?  "  And  he  said  :  ''  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Even  by 
the  young  men  of  the  princes  of  the  provinces."^  Then  he  said, 
"  Who  shall  order  the  battle  ? "  And  he  answered,  "  Thou." 
Then  he  numbered  the  young  men  of  the  princes  of  the  prov- 
inces, 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  they  went  out  at  noon.  But  Ben-hadad  was  drinking 
himself  drunk  in  the  pavilions,  he  and  the  kings,  the  thirty 
and  two  kings  that  helped  him.  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  of 
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."  So  these  young  men  of  the  princes  of  the  prov- 
inces came  out  of  the  city,  and  the  army  which  followed  them. 
And  they  slew  every  one  his  man :  and  the  Syrians  fled  ;  and 
Israel  pursued  them  :  and  Ben-hadad  the  king  of  Syria  escaped 
on  an  horse  with  the  horsemen.  And  the  king  of  Israel  went  out, 
and  took  the  horses  and  chariots,  and  slew  the  Syrians  with  a 
great  slaughter. 

And  the  prophet  came  out  to  the  king  of  Israel,  and  said 
unto  him :  "  Go,  strengthen  thyself,  and  mark,  and  see  what 
thou  doest :  for  at  the  return  of  the  year  the  king  of  Syria  will 
come  up  against  thee." 

And  the  servants  of  the  king  of  Syria  said  unto  him  :    ''Their 
gods  are  gods  of  the  hills  ;   therefore  they  were  stronger  than  we  ; 
but  let  us  fight  against  them  in  the  plain,  and  surely  we  shall 
1  young  men  .  .  .  provinces.  Servants  or  esquires  of  the  local  chiefs. 


DEFEAT  OF  THE   SYRIANS   AT   APHEK  347 

be  stronger  than  they.  And  do  this  thing,  Take  the  kings  away, 
every  man  out  of  his  place,  and  put  captains  in  their  rooms : 
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  surely  we  shall  be  stronger  than  they." 
And  he  hearkened  unto  their  voice,  and  did  so. 

Defeat  of  the  Syrians  at  Aphek  (l  Kings  xx.  26-43).  And 
it  came  to  pass  at  the  return  of  the  year,  that  Ben-hadad  num- 
bered 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  be- 
fore them  like  two  little  flocks  of  kids ;  but  the  Syrians  filled 
the  country. 

And  there  came  a  man  of  God,  and  spake  unto  the  king  of 
Israel,  and  said  :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Because  the  Syrians 
have  said.  The  Lord  is  God  of  the  hills,  but  he  is  not  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  they 
pitched  one  over  against  the  other  seven  days.  And  so  it  was, 
that  in  the  seventh  day  the  battle  was  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  there 
a  wall  fell  upon  twenty  and  seven  thousand  of  the  men  that 
were  left. 

And  Ben-hadad  fled,  and  came  into  the  city,  into  an  inner 
chamber.  And  his  servants  said  unto  him  :  **  Behold  now,  we 
have  heard  that  the  kings  of  the  house  of  Israel  are  merciful 
kings  :  let  us,  I  pray  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  and  caught  up  the  word  from  his  mouth: 
and  they  said,  "  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  make  streets  *  for  thee  in  Damascus,  as  my  father 

1  streets.  That  is,  certain  districts  for  the  bazaars  of  Israelite  traders.   It  is 


348  NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

made  in  Samaria."  Then  said  Ahab,  ''  I  will  send  thee  away  with 
this  covenant."  So  he  made  a  covenant  with  him,  and  sent  him 
away. 

And  a  certain  man  of  the  sons  of  the  prophets  ^  said  unto 
his  neighbor  by  the  word  of  the  Lord,  "  Smite  me,  I  pray 
thee."  But  the  man  refused  to  smite  him.  Then  said  he  unto  him : 
"  Because  thou  hast  not  obeyed  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  behold, 
as  soon  as  thou  art  departed  from  me,  a  lion  shall  slay  thee." 
And  as  soon  as  he  was  departed  from  him,  a  lion  found  him, 
and  slew  him.  Then  he  found  another  man,  and  said,  "  Smite 
me,  I  pray  thee."  And  the  man  smote  him,  so  that  in  smit- 
ing he  wounded  him.  So  the  prophet  departed,  and  waited  for 
the  king  by  the  way,  and  disguised  himself  with  a  bandage 
upon  his  eyes.  And  as  the  king  passed  by,  he  cried  unto  the 
king :  and  he  said  :  "  Thy  servant  went  out  into  the  midst  of 
the  battle ;  and  behold,  a  man  turned  aside,  and  brought  a  man 
unto  me,  and  said.  Keep  this  man :  if  by  any  means  he  be  miss- 
ing, then  shall  thy  life  be  for  his  life,  or  else  thou  shalt  pay  a 
talent  of  silver.  And  as  thy  servant  was  looking  here  and  there, 
he  was  gone."  And  the  king  of  Israel  said  unto  him:  ''So  shall 
thy  judgment  be :  thyself  hast  decided  it."  And  he  hasted,  and 
took  the  bandage  away  from  his  eyes  ;  and  the  king  of  Israel  dis- 
cerned him  that  he  was  of  the  prophets.  And  he  said  unto  him  : 
"  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Because  thou  hast  let  go  out  of  thy  hand 
a  man  whom  I  appointed  to  utter  destruction,  therefore  thy  life 
shall  go  for  his  life,  and  thy  people  for  his  people."  And  the 
king  of  Israel  went  to  his  house  heavy  and  displeased,  and  came 
to  Samaria. 

The  Death  of  Ahab  (l  Kings  xxii.  1-40).  And  they  con- 
tinued 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  in  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 
possible,  that  in  sparing  Ben-hadad  Ahab  was  influenced  by  the  fact  that  both 
Syria  and  Israel  were  at  the  time  threatened  by  the  Assyrians.  An  inscription  of 
Shalinaneser  IT  records  that  in  854  B.  o.  he  defeated  at  Karkar  a  coalition  of 
princes,  among  whom  are  named  Ben-hadad  of  Damascus  and  Ahab  of  Israel. 

1  sons  of  the  prophets.  Members  of  the  guilds  of  religious  zealots. 


THE   DEATH   OF   AHAB  349 

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  :  ''  Enquire,  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  Kamoth-gilead  to  battle,  or  shall  I  forbear  ?  "  And 
they  said  :  "  Go  up ;  for  the  Lord  shall  deliver  it  into  the  hand 
of  the  king."  And  Jehoshaphat  said  :  *'  Is  there  not  here  a 
prophet  of  the  Lord  besides,  that  we  might  enquire  of  him  ?  " 
And  the  king  of  Israel  said  unto  Jehoshaphat:  "There  is  yet 
one  man,  Micaiah  the  son  of  Imlah,  by  whom  we  may  enquire 
of  the  Lord :  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, 
'*  Hasten  hither  Micaiah  the  son  of  Imlah." 

And  the  king  of  Israel  and  Jehoshaphat  the  king  of  Judali 
sat  each  on  his  throne,  having  put  on  their  robes,  in  a  void 
place  in  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  he  said :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord, 
AYith  these  shalt  thou  push  the  Syrians,  until  thou  have  con- 
sumed them."  And  all  the  prophets  prophesied  so,  saying  :  "  Go 
np  to  Ramoth-gilead,  and  prosper :  for  the  Lord  shall  deliver  it 
into  the  king's  hand." 

And  the  messenger  that  was  gone  to  call  ]\Iicaiah  spake  unto 
him,  saying  :  "  Behold  now,  the  words  of  the  piophets  declare 
good  unto  the  king  with  one  mouth  :  let  thy  word,  I  pray  thee, 
be  like  the  word  of  one  of  tliem,  and  speak  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  :  "  INIi- 
caiah,  shall  we  go  against  Ramoth-gilead  to  battle,  or  sliall  we 
forbear  ?  "  And  he  answered  him  :  "  Go,  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 
tell  me  nothing  but  that  which  is  true  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  ?" 
Then  he  said  :  "  I  saw  all  Israel  scattered  upon  the  hills,  as 
sheep  that  have  no  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  unto  Jehoshaphat:  "Did  I  not  tell  thee 
that  he  would  prophesy  not  good  concerning  me,  but  evil  ?  " 


350         NORTHEEN  ISRAEL   TO   THE  FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

Again  he  said :  "  Hear  thou  therefore  the  word  of  the  Lord  :  I 
saw  the  Lord  sitting  on  his  throne,  and  all  the  host  of  heaven 
standing  on  his  right  hand  and  on  his  left.  And  the  Lord  said, 
Who  shall  persuade  Ahab,  that  he  may  go  up  and  fall  at  Ramoth- 
gilead  ?  And  one  said  on  this  manner,  and  another  said  on 
that  manner.  And  there  came  forth  a  spirit,  and  stood  before  the 
Lord,  and  said,  I  will  persuade  him.  And  the  Lord  said  unto 
him,  Wherewith  ?  And  he  said,  I  will  go  forth,  and  be  a  lying 
spirit  in  the  mouth  of  all  his  prophets.  And  he  said.  Thou  shalt 
persuade  him,  and  prevail  also  :  go  forth,  and  do  so.  Now  there- 
fore, behold,  the  Lord  hath  put  a  lying  spirit  in  the  mouth  of  all 
these  thy  prophets,  and  the  Lord  hath  spoken  evil  concerning  thee.'' 

But  Zedekiah  the  son  of  Chenaanah  went  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  in  that  day,  when  thou  shalt  go  into  an 
inner  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  ; 
but  put  thou  on  thy  robes."  So  the  king  of  Israel  disguised  him- 
self, and  they  went  to  the  battle.  But  the  king  of  Syria  com- 
manded 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  Je- 
hoshaphat cried  out.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  captains  of 
the  chariots  perceived  that  it  was  not  the  king  of  Israel,  that 
they  turned  back  from  pursuing  him.  And  a  certain  man  drew  a 
bow  at  a  venture,  and  smote  the  king  of  Israel  between  the 
joints  of  the  harness :  wherefore  he  said  unto  the  driver  of  his 
chariot :  "  Turn  thine  hand,  and  carry  me  out  of  the  battle ;  for 
I  am  wounded."  And  the  battle  increased  that  day  :  and  the  king 
was  stayed  up  in  his  chariot  against  the  Syrians  until  even  :  and 


AHAZIAH  351 

the  blood  ran  out  of  the  wound  into  the  midst  of  the  chariot. 
And  there  went  a  proclamation  throughout  the  host  about  the 
going  down  of  the  sun,  saying  :  "  Every  man  to  his  city,  and 
every  man  to  his  own  country,  for  the  king  is  dead.''  So  they 
came  to  Samaria ;  and  they  buried  the  king  in  Samaria.  And 
one  washed  the  chariot  in  the  pool  of  Samaria ;  and  the  dogs 
licked  up  his  blood  ;  and  they  washed  his  armor  ;  according  unto 
the  word  of  the  Lord  which  he  spake. 

Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Ahab,  and  all  that  he  did,  and 
the  ivory  house  which  he  made,  and  all  the  cities  that  he  built, 
are  they  not  written  in  the  book  of  chronicles  of  the  kings  of 
Israel  ?  So  Ahab  slept  with  his  fathers  j  and  Ahaziah  his  son 
reigned  in  his  stead. 

Ahaziah  (l  Kings  xxii.  51-53  ;  2  Kings  i.).  Ahaziah  the  son 
of  Ahab  began  to  reign  over  Israel  in  Samaria  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  Ahaziah  fell  down  through  a  lattice  in  his  upper  cham- 
ber that  was  in  Samaria,  and  was  sick  :  and  he  sent  messengers, 
and  said  unto  them :  "  Go,  enquire  of  Baal-zebub  the  god  of 
Ekron  whether  I  shall  recover  of  this  disease."  But  the  angel 
of  the  Lord  said  to  Elijah  theTishbite  :  "Arise,  go  up  to  meet 
the  messengers  of  the  king  of  Samaria,  and  say  unto  them.  Is  it 
because  there  is  not  a  God  in  Israel,  that  ye  go  to  enquire  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  turned  back  unto  him,  he  said 
unto  them,  "  Why  are  ye  now  turned  back  ?  "  And  they  said 
unto  him  :  "  There  came  a  man  up  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  enquire  of  Baal-zebub  the  god  of  Ekron  ? 
therefore  thou  shalt  not  come  down  from  that  bed  on  which  thou 

1  Baal-zebub,  'Lord  of  flies,'  that  is,  a  god  believed  to  send  or  to  avert  the 
plague  of  flies. 


art  gone  up,  but  shalt  surely  die."  And  he  said  unto  them : 
"  What  manner  of  man  was  he  which  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  he  said,   ''  It  is  Elijah  the  Tishbite." 

Then  the  king  sent  unto  him  a  captain  of  fifty  with  his  fifty. 
And  he  went  up  to  him :  and  behold,  he  sat  on  the  top  of  an 
hill.  And  he  spake  unto  him  :  "  Thou  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,  then  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.  Again 
also  he  sent  unto  him  another  captain  of  fifty  with  his  fifty. 
And  he  went  up  and  said  unto  him:  "  0  man  of  God,  thus  hath 
the  king  said,  Come  down  quickly."  And  Elijah  answered  and 
said  unto  them  :  "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 
he  sent  again  a  captain  of  the  third  fifty  with  his  fifty.  And 
the  third  captain  of  fifty  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  burned  up  the  two  captains  of  the  former 
fifties  with  their  fifties :  therefore  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  sent  messengers 
to  enquire  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  reigned  in  his  stead  in 
the  second  year  of  Joram  the  son  of  Jehoshaphat  king  of  Judah ; 
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? 

Jehoram  (2  Kings  iii.  1-3).  Now  Jehoram  the  son  of  Ahab 
began  to  reign  over  Israel  in  Samaria  in  the  eighteenth  year  of 


THE   TRANSLATION   OF  ELIJAH  353 

Jehoshaphat  king  of  JuJah,  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  pillar  of  Baal  that  his 
father  had  made.  Nevertheless  he  cleaved  unto  the  sins  of  Jero- 
boam the  son  of  Nebat,  which  made  Israel  to  sin;  he  departed 
not  therefrom. 

The  Translation  of  Elijah  (2  Kings  ii.  1-18).  And  it  came 
to  pass,  when  the  Lord  would  take  up  Elijah  into  heaven  by  a 
whirlwind,  that  Elijah  went  with  Elisha  from  Gilgal.  And 
Elijah  said  unto  Elisha  :  "Tarry  here,  I  pray  thee  ;  for  the  Lord 
hath  sent  me  to  Beth-el."  And  Elisha  said  unto  hira  :  ^' 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 
thy  head  to-day  ?  "  And  he  said :  "  Yea,  I  know  it ;  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  to  Elisha,  and  said  unto  him :  *'  Know- 
est thou  that  the  Lord  will  take  away  thy  master  from  thy  head 
to-day  ?  "  And  he  answered  :  "  Yea,  I  know  it ;  hold  ye  your 
peace."  And  Elijah  said  unto  him:  "Tarry,  I  pray  thee,  here; 
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  to  view  afar  off:  and  they  two  stood  by  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  Elisha :  "  Ask  what  I  shall  do  for  thee,  before  I  be 
taken  away  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 

1  Elisha  asks  for  the  share  of  a  first-born  son  —  twice  the  portion  of  any  other 
of  the  '  sons  '  of  the  prophet. 


354         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE  FALL   OF  SAMARIA 

talked,  that  behold,  there  appeared  a  chariot  of  fire,  and  horses 
of  fire,  and  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  chariot  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  also  had  smitten  the  waters,  they  parted  hither  and 
thither :  and  Elisha  went  over. 

And  when  the  sons  of  the  prophets  which  were  to  view  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  perad venture  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  tarried  at 
Jericho),  he  said  unto  them,  *'  Did  I  not  say  unto  you.  Go  not  ?  " 

The  Healing  of  the  Waters  of  Jericho  (2  Kings  ii.  19-22). 
And  the  men  of  the  city  said  unto  Elisha  :  "  Behold,  I  pray  thee, 
the  situation  of  this  city  is  pleasant,  as  my  lord  seeth  :  but  the 
water  is  naught,  and  the  ground  barren."  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 
the  salt  in  there,  and  said  :  "Thus  saith  the  Lord,  I  have  healed 
these  waters ;  there  shall  not  be  from  thence  any  more  death  or 
barren  land."  So  the  waters  were  healed  unto  this  day,  accord- 
ing to  the  saying  of  Elisha  which  he  spake. 

Elisha  and  the  Mocking  Children  (2  Kings  ii.  23-25).  And 

he  went  up  from  thence  unto  Beth-el :  and  as  he  was  going  up 
by  the  way,  there  came  forth  little  children  out  of  the  city,  and 
mocked  him,  and  said  unto  him :  "Go  up,  thou  bald  head  ;  go 
up,  thou  bald  head."  And  he  turned  back,  and  looked  on  them, 
and  cursed  them  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.    And  there  came  forth 


ELISHA   PROVIDES   FOOD   FOR   THE   PROPHETS  355 

two  she  bears  out  of  the  wood,  and  tare  forty  and  two  children 
of  them.  And  he  went  from  thence  to  mount  Carmel,  and  from 
thence  he  returned  to  Samaria. 

The  Widow's  Oil  (2  Kings  iv.  1-7).  Now  there  cried  a  cer- 
tain 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  tlie  Lord  :  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,  bor- 
row thee  vessels  abroad  of  all  thy  neighbors,  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  shalt  pour  out  into 
all  those  vessels,  and  thou  shalt  set  aside  that  which  is  full." 

So  she  went  from  him,  and  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  children  of  the  rest." 

Elisha  Provides  Food  for  the  Prophets  (2  Kings  iv.  38-44). 
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  pot- 
tage for  the  sons  of  the  prophets."  And  one  went  out  into  the 
field  to  gather  herbs,  and  found  a  wild  vine,  and  gathered  thereof 
■wild  gourds  his  lap  full,  and  came  and  shred  them  into  the  pot 
of  pottage  :  for  he  knew  them  not.  So  they  poured  out  for  the 
men  to  eat.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  they  were  eating  of  the  pot- 
tage, that  they  cried  out,  and  said :  "  0  thou  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-shalisha,  and  brought  the 
man  of  God  bread  of  the  firstfruits,  twenty  loaves  of  barley,  and 
full  ears  of  corn  in  the  husk  thereof.   And  he  said  :  ''  Give  unto 


356          NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE    FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

the  people,  that  they  may  eat."  And  his  servitor  said  :  ''  What, 
should  I  set  this  before  an  hundred  men  ?  "  He  said  again  : 
"  Give  the  people,  that  they  may  eat :  for  thus  saith  the  Lord, 
They  shall  eat,  and  shall  leave  thereof."  So  he  set  it  before 
them,  and  they  did  eat,  and  left  thereof,  according  to  the  word 
of  the  Lord. 

The  Lost  Axe-head  (2  Kings  vi.  1-7).  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  we  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.  Therefore  said  he,  "  Take  it  up  to  thee." 
And  he  put  out  his  hand,  and  took  it. 

The  Shunammite's  Son  (2  Kings  iv.  8-37).  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,  which  passeth  by  us  continually.  Let  us 
make  a  little  chamber,  I  pray  thee,  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  his  ser- 
vant, "  Call  this  Shunammite."  And  when  he  had  called  her, 
she  stood  before  him.  And  he  said  unto  him  :  "  Say  now  unto 
her.  Behold,  thou  hast  been  careful  for  us  with  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  OMm  people."  ^  And  he  said,  "  What 
1  I  dwell  .  .  .  jyeople.  *  I  have  protection  enough  from  my  own  clan.' 


THE   SHUNAMMITE's   SON  357 

then  is  to  be  done  for  her  ?  "  And  Geliazi  answered  :  "Verily 
she  hath  no  child,  and  her  husband  is  old."  And  he  said,  "  Call 
her."  And  when  he  had  called  her,  she  stood  in  the  door.  And 
he  said  :  "About  this  season,  when  the  time  cometh  round,  thou 
shalt  embrace  a  son."  And  she  said :  "  Nay,  my  lord,  thou  man 
of  God,  do  not  lie  unto  thine  handmaid."  And  the  woman  con- 
ceived, and  bear  a  son  at  that  season  that  Elisha  had  said  unto 
her,  when  the  time  came  round. 

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  young 
men,  and  one  of  the  asses,  that  I  may  run  to  the  man  of  God, 
and  come  again,"  And  he  said:  "Wherefore  wilt  thou  go  to 
him  to-day  ?  it  is  neither  new  moon  nor  sabbath."  And  she  said, 
"It  shall  be  w^ell."  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  servant :  "Behold,  yonder  is  that  Shunam- 
mite :  run  now,  I  pray  thee,  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 : 
but  Gehazi  came  near  to  thrust  her  away.  And  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,  sa- 
lute him  not ;  and  if  any  salute  thee,  answer  him  not  again  :  and 
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 


358         NOKTHERN   ISRAEL  TO   THE   FALL   OF  SAMARIA 

child  ;  but  there  was  neither  voice  nor  hearing.  Wherefore  lie 
went  again  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  the  child ;  and  the  flesh  of  the 
child  waxed  warm.  Then  he  returned,  and  walked  in  the  house 
to  and  fro  ;  and  went  up,  and  stretched  himself  upon  him  seven 
times,  and  the  child  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  took  up  her  son,  and 
went  out. 

The  Shunammite*s  Property  Restored  (2  Kings  viii.  1-6). 
Then  spake  Elisha  unto  the  woman  whose  son  he  had  restored 
to  life,  saying :  "  Arise,  and  go  thou  and  thine  household,  and 
sojourn  wheresoever  thou  canst  sojourn :  for  the  Lord  hath 
called  for  a  famine ;  and  it  shall  also  come  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 
after  the  seven  years'  end,  that  the  woman  returned  out  of  the 
land  of  the  Philistines  :  and  she  went  forth  to  cry  unto  the  king 
for  her  house  and  for  her  land. 

And  the  king  talked  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  a  dead  body  to  life,  that  behold,  the 
woman,  whose  son  he  had  restored  to  life,  cried  to  the  king  for 
her  house  and  for  her  land.  And  Gehazi  said  :  "  My  lord,  O 
king,  this  is  the  woman,  and  this  is  her  son,  whom  Elisha  re- 
stored 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." 


HEALING   OF   NAAMAN   THE  LEPER  359 

Healing  of  Naaman  the  Leper  (2  Kings  v.).  Now  Naaman, 
captain  of  the  host  of  the  king  of  Syria,  was  a  great  man  with 
his  master,  and  honorable,  because  by  him  the  Lord  "had  given 
deliverance  unto  Syria :  but  he  was  a  leper. 

And  the  Syrians  had  gone  out  by  companies,  and  had  brought 
away  captive  out  of  the  land  of  Israel  a  little  maid ;  and  she  waited 
on  Xaaman's  wife.  And  she  said  unto  her  mistress  :  "  Would  God 
my  lord  were  with  the  prophet  that  is  in  Samaria !  for  he  would  re- 
cover him  of  his  leprosy."  And  one  went  in,  and  told  his  lord,  say- 
ing :  '^  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  pieces  of  gold,  and  ten 
changes  of  raiment.  And  he  brought  the  letter  to  the  king  of 
Israel,  saying  :  "Now  when  this  letter  is  come  unto  thee,  behold, 
I  have  therewith  sent  Naaman  my  servant  to  thee,  that  thou 
may  est  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  quarrel  against 
me." 

And  it  was  so,  when  Elisha  the  man  of  God  had  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  chariot,  and  stood 
at  the  door  of  the  house  of  Elisha.  And  Elisha  sent  a  messen- 
ger 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  strike  his  hand  over  the  place, 
and  recover  the  leper.  Are  not  Abana  and  Pharpar,  rivers  of  Da- 
mascus, 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  unto  him,  and  said : 
"  My  father,  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  say- 


360  NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO    THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

ing  of  the  man  of  God  :  and  his  flesh  came  again  like  unto  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  blessing  of  thy  servant,"  But  he 
said :  "  As  the  Lord  liveth,  before  whom  I  stand,  I  will  receive 
none."  And  he  urged  him  to  take  it ;  but  he  refused.  And 
Naaman  said  :  "  Shall  there  not  then,  I  pray  thee,  be  given  to 
thy  servant  two  mules'  burden  of  earth  ?  ^  for  thy  servant  will 
henceforth  offer  neither  burnt  olFering  nor  sacrifice  unto  other 
gods,  but  unto  the  Lord.  In  this  thing  the  Lord  pardon  thy  ser- 
vant, that  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  I  bow  down  myself  in  the  house 
of  E/immon,  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  ISTaaman  this  Syrian,  in  not 
receiving  at  his  hands  that  which  he  brought :  but,  as  the  Lord 
liveth,  I  will  run  after  him,  and  take  somewhat  of  him."  So 
Gehazi  followed  after  ISTaaman.  And  when  Naaman  saw  him 
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  two  changes  of  garments."  And  Naaman  said  :  ''  Be  content, 
take  two  talents."  And  he  urged  him,  and  bound  two  talents  of 
silver  in  two  bags,  with  two  changes  of  garments,  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  unto  him  :  ''  Went  not 

1  The  God  of  Israel  could  be  appropriately  worshipped  only  on  Israelite  soil. 

2  Rimmon.  Ramman,  a  thunder-god  of  the  Assyrians,  identified  with  Hadad 
in  Syria.  Cf,  Ben-hadad,  '  Son  of  Hadad.' 


THE    WAR   WITH    MOAB  361 

mine  heart  with  thee,  when  the  raan  turned  again  from  his 
chariot  to  meet  thee  ?  Is  it  a  time  to  receive  money,  and  to  re- 
ceive garments,  and  oliveyards,  and  vineyards,  and  sheep,  and 
oxen,  and  menservants,  and  maidservants  ?  The  leprosy  there- 
fore of  iSTaaman  shall  cleave  unto  thee,  and  unto  thy  seed  for 
ever."  And  he  went  out  from  his  presence  a  leper  as  white  as 
snow. 

The  War  with  Moab  (2  Kings  iii.  4-27).  And  Mesha  king 
of  Moab  ^  was  a  sheepmaster,  and  rendered  unto  the  king  of  Is- 
rael an  hundred  thousand  lambs,  and  an  hundred  thousand  rams, 
with  the  wool.  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  the  same  time,  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,  and  my  horses 
as  thy  horses."  And  he  said,  "  Which  way  shall  we  go  up  ? '' 
And  he  answered,  "  The  way  through  the  wilderness  of  Edom." 

So  the  king  of  Israel  went,  and  the  king  of  Judah,  and  the 
king  of  Edom  :  and  they  fetched  a  compass  of  seven  days'  jour- 
ney :  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  enquire  of  the  Lord  by 
him  ?  "  And  one  of  the  king  of  Israel's  servants  answered  and 
said  :   "  Here  is  Elisha  the  son  of  Shaphat,  which  poured  water 

1  A  stone  monument,  reared  about  825  b.  c.  by  this  Mesha,  was  discovered 
at  Dibon  in  1868.  It  is  inscribed  with  the  king's  own  statement  that  whereas 
Omri  of  Israel  had  afflicted  Moab,  and  taken  possession  of  the  land  of  Medeba, 
Mesha  had,  by  the  help  of  Chemosh.  expelled  the  Israelites  from  one  after  an- 
other of  their  strongholds.  His  inscription  shows  interesting  similarities  to  the 
language  and  ideas  of  the  books  of  Judges  or  Kings.  "The  terms  in  which 
Chemosh  is  spoken  of  are  singularly  like  those  used  of  Jehovah  in  the  Old 
Testament.  Chemosh  is  '  angry  '  with  his  people,  just  as  Jehovah  sometimes  is 
with  Israel  ;  he  says  to  Mesha,  'Go,  take  Xebo,'  or  'Go  down,  fight  against 
Horonen  '  — just  as  we  read,  for  instance  (1  Sam.  xxiii.  4),  'Arise,  go  down  to 
Keilah,'  or  (2  Sam.  xxiv.  1),  'Go,  number  Israel  and  Judah  ;'  and  he  'drives 
out'  Mesha's  foes  before  him,  just  as  Jehovah  'drives  out'  the  foes  of  Israel 
(Josh.  xxiv.  18).  And  Mesha  'devotes'  the  inhabitants  of  a  captured  city  to  his 
god,  just  as  in  the  Book  of  Joshua  and  elsewhere  Ave  often  read  of  the  Israelites 
doing."  S.  R.  Driver:  Modern  Research  as  Illustrating  the  Bible. 


862         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

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  came  to  pass  that  whenever  the 
minstrel  played,  the  hand  of  the  Lord  came  upon  him.  And  he 
said :  ^'  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Make  this  valley  ^  full  of  ditches. 
Eor  thus  saith  the  Lord,  Ye  shall  not  see  wind,  neither  shall  ye 
see  rain ;  yet  that  valley  shall  be  filled  with  water,  that  ye  may 
drink,  both  ye,  and  your  host,  and  your  beasts.  And  this  is  but 
a  light  thing  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  :  He  will  deliver  the  Mo- 
abites  also  into  your  hand.  And  ye  shall  smite  every  fenced  city, 
and  shall  fell  every  good  tree,  and  stop  all  wells  of  water,  and 
mar  every  good  piece  of  land  with  stones."  And  it  came  to  pass 
in  the  morning,  when  the  meal  ofifering  was  offered,  that  be- 
hold, 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 
up  to  fight  against  them,  they  gathered  all  that  were  able  to 
put  on  armor,  and  upward,  and  stood  in  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  one  another:  now  there- 
fore, 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:  but  they  went  forward  into  the  land, 
smiting  the  Moabites.  And  they  beat  down  the  cities,  and  on 
every  good  piece  of  land  cast  every  man  his  stone,  and  filled  it  ; 
and  they  stopped  all  the  wells  of  water,  and  felled  all  the  good 

1  this  valley.  Probabh'  the  Wadi  el-Ahsa,  'Ravine  of  Sandy  Water-pits.' 
Since  a  bed  of  rock  underlies  the  surface  of  this  region  and  retains  the  water 
from  the  surrounding  hills,  it  is  nearly  always  possible  to  reach  water  simply 
by  digging  in  the  sand. 


ELISHA   ENTRAPS   THE   SYRIANS  363 

trees  :  until  in  Kir-haraseth  left  they  the  stones  thereof  ;  how- 
beit  the  slingers  went  about  it,  and  smote  it.  And  when  the 
king  of  Moab  saw  that  the  battle  was  too  sore  for  him,  he  took 
with  him  seven  hundred  men  that  drew  swords,  to  break 
through  even  unto  the  king  of  Edom :  but  they  could  not. 
Then  he  took  his  eldest  son  that  should  have  reigned  in  his 
stead,  and  offered  him  for  a  burnt  offering  upon  the  wall.  And 
there  came  great  wrath  upon  Israel:  and  they  departed  from 
him,  and  returned  to  their  own  land. 

Elisha  Entraps  the  Syrians  (2  Kings  vi.  8-23).  Then  the 
king  of  Syria  warred  against  Israel,  and  took  counsel  with  his 
servants,  saying,  "In  such  and  such  a  place  shall  we  lie  in 
ambush."  And  the  man  of  God  sent  unto  the  king  of  Israel, 
saying:  "Beware  that  thou  pass  not  such  a  place;  for  thither 
the  Syrians  are  come  down."  And  the  king  of  Israel  sent  to 
the  place  which  the  man  of  God  told  him  and  warned  him  of, 
and  saved  himself  there,  not  once  nor  twice.  Therefore  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  Israel  ?  "  And  one  of  his 
servants  said  :  "None,  my  lord,  0  king  :  but  Elisha,  the  prophet 
that  is  in  Israel,  telleth  the  king  of  Israel  the  words  that  thou 
speakest  in  thy  bedchamber."  And  he  said:  "Go  and  spy 
where  he  is,  that  I  may  send  and  fetch  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  when  the  man  of  God  was  risen  early  and  gone  forth, 
behold,  an  host  compassed  the  city  both  with  horses  and  chari- 
ots. 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  they  came  down  to  him,  Elisha  prayed  unto  the 
Lord,  and  said,  "  Smite  this  people,  I  pray  thee,  with  blind- 
ness." And  he  smote  them  with  blindness  according  to  the 
word  of  Elisha.   And  Elisha  said  unto  them :  "  This  is  not  the 


364         NORTHERN  ISRAEL  TO   THE   FALL   OF  SAMARIA 

way,  neither  is  this  the  city  :  follow  me,  and  I  will  bring  you 
to  the  man  whom  ye  seek."  But  he  led  them  to  Samaria.  And 
it  came  to  pass,  when  they  were  come  into  Samaria,  that  Elisha 
said:  '^  Lord,  open  the  eyes  of  these  men,  that  they  may  see." 
And  the  Lord  opened  their  eyes,  and  they  saw;  and  iDehold, 
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  not 
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  prepared  great  provision  for  them :  and  when 
they  had  eaten  and  drunk,  he  sent  them  away,  and  they  went 
to  their  master.  So  the  bands  of  Syria  came  no  more  into  the 
land  of  Israel. 

Samaria  Delivered  from  Siege  (2  Kings  vi.  24-vii.  17). 
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  pieces  of  silver, 
and  the  fourth  part  of  a  cab  *  of  dove's  dung  for  five  pieces  of 
silver.  And  as  the  king  of  Israel  was  passing  by  upon  the  wall, 
there  cried  a  woman  unto  him,  saying;  "Help,  my  lord,  0 
king."  And  he  said:  "If  the  Lord  do  not  help  thee,  whence 
shall  I  help  thee  ?  out  of  the  barn-floor,  or  out  of  the  wine- 
press ?  "  And  the  king  said  unto  her,  "  What  aileth  thee  ?  " 
And  she  answered :  "  This  woman  said  unto  me.  Give  thy  son, 
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;  and  he 
passed  by  upon  the  wall,  and  the  people  looked,  and  behold, 
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 

"^  fourth  part  of  a  cab.  Less  than  a  pint.  Professor  Cheyne  suggests  that  by 
"dove's  dung  "  is  meant  carob  pods,  a  substitute  for  bread. 


SAMAKIA  DELIVERED   FROM  SIEGE  365 

to  the  elders:  '*  See  ye  how  this  son  of  a  murderer  hath  sent 
to  take  away  mine  head?  look,  when  the  messenger  cometh, 
shut  the  door,  and  hold  him  fast  at  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 ;  what  should  I  wait  for  the  Lord  any  longer  ?  " 
Then  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  a  lord  on  whose  hand 
the  king  leaned  answered  the  man  of  God,  and  said:  "Behold, 
if  the  Lord  would  make  windows  in  heaven,  might  this  thing 
be  ?"  And  he  said:  "Behold,  thou  shalt  see  it  with  thine  eyes, 
but  shalt  not  eat  thereof.'' 

And  there  were  four  leprous  men  at  the  entering  in  of  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  uttermost  part  of  the 
camp  of  Syria,  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  Mugri,  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  uttermost  part  of  the 
camp,  they  went  into  one  tent,  and  did  eat  and  drink,  and  car- 
ried thence  silver,  and  gold,  and  raiment,  and  went  and  hid  it ; 
and  came  again,  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,  some  mischief  will 
come  upon  us  :  now  therefore  come,  that  we  may  go  and  tell  the 
1  measure.  The  Hebrew  seah  denotes  a  measure  of  about  1|  pecks. 


366         NORTHERN  ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF  SAMARIA 

king's  household."  So  they  came  and  called  unto  the  porters  of 
the  city  :  and  they  told  them,  saying :  "  We  came  to  the  camp 
of  the  Syrians,  and  behold,  there  was  no  man  there,  neither 
voice  of  man,  but  horses  tied,  and  asses  tied,  and  the  tents  as 
they  were."  And  the  porters  called,  and  they  told  it  to  the 
king's  house  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  five 
of  the  horses  that  still  remain  —  it  will  happen  to  them  as  has 
happened  to  all  the  multitude  that  are  already  dead  —  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  weapons,  which  the  Syrians  had 
cast  away  in  their  haste.  And  the  messengers  returned,  and  told 
the  king. 

And  the  people  went  out,  and  spoiled  the  tents  of  the  Syrians. 
So  a  measure  of  fine  flour  was  sold  for  a  shekel,  and  two  meas- 
ures of  barley  for  a  shekel,  according  to  the  word  of  the  Lord. 
And  the  king  appointed  the  lord  on  whose  hand  he  leaned  to 
have  the  charge  of  the  gate:  and  the  people  trode  upon  him  in 
the  gate,  and  he  died,  as  the  man  of  God  had  said,  who  spake 
when  the  king  came  down  to  him. 

Elisha  and  Hazael  (2  Kings  viii.  7-15).  And  Elisha  came 
to  Damascus ;  and  Ben-hadad  the  king  of  Syria  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  enquire  of  the  Lord  by  him,  say- 
ing, 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  mayest 
certainly  recover :  howbeit  the  Lord  hath  shewed  me  that  he 
shall  surely  die."  And  he  settled  his  countenance  stedfastly, 


JEHU'S   REVOLUTION  367 

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  cliildren  of  Israel : 
their  strong  holds  wilt  thou  set  on  fire,  and  their  young  men 
wilt  thou  slay  with  the  sword,  and  wilt  dash  their  children,  and 
rip  up  their  women  with  child."  And  Hazael  said  :  *'  But  what, 
is  thy  servant  a  dog,  that  he  should  do  this  great  thing  ?  "  And 
Elisha  answered  :  "  The  Lord  hath  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  Ha- 
zael ^  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Jehu's  Revolution  (2  Kings  ix.  ;  x.  1-27).  And  Elisha 
the  prophet  called  one  of  the  children  of  the  prophets,  and  said 
unto  him  :  "  Gird  up  thy  loins,  and  take  this  box  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  box  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,  even  the  young  man  the  propliet,  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,  0  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  thou  shalt 
smite  the  house  of  Ahab  thy  master,  that  I  may  avenge  tlie 
blood  of  my  servants  the  prophets,  and  the  blood  of  all  the  serv- 
ants of  the  Lord,  at  the  hand  of  Jezebel."  And  he  opened  the 
door,  and  fled. 

1  and  he  settled  .  .  ,   ashamed.  Elisha,  in  a  prophetic  trance,  gazed  fixedly 
at  Hazael  until  he  was  abashed. 

2  An  inscription  of  Shalmaneser  II  mentions  Hazael  as  king  of  Damascus  in 
842  and  839  b.  c. 


368  NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

Then  Jehu  came  forth  to  the  servants  of  his  lord :  and  one 
said  unto  him  :  ''  Is  all  well  ?  wherefore  came  this  mad  fellow 
to  thee?"  And  he  said  unto  them,  "Ye  know  the  man,  and 
his  communication."  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  with  trumpets,  saying, 
"  Jehu  is  king."  So  Jehu  the  son  of  Jehoshaphat  the  son  of 
Nimslii  conspired  against  Jehoram.  (Now  Jehoram  had  kept  ^ 
Ramoth-gilead,  he  and  all  Israel,  because  of  Hazael  king  of  Syria. 
But  king  Jehoram  was  returned  to  be  healed  in  Jezreel  of  the 
■wounds  which  the  Syrians  had  given  him,  when  he  fought  with 
Hazael  king  of  Syria.)  And  Jehu  said:  "If  it  be  your  minds, 
then  let  none  go  forth  nor  escape  out  of  the  city  to  go  to  tell  it 
in  Jezreel." 

So  Jehu  rode  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  horseman,  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  told,  say- 
ing: "The  messenger  came  to  them,  but  he  cometh  not  again." 
Then  he  sent  out  a  second  on  horseback,  which  came  to  them 
and  said  :  "  Thus  saith  the  king,  Is  it  peace  ?  "  And  Jehu  an- 
swered :  "  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  driv- 
ing of  Jehu  the  son  of  Nimshi ;  for  he  driveth  furiously." 

And  Jehoram  said,  "  Make  ready."  And  his  chariot  was 
made  ready.  And  Jehoram  king  of  Israel  and  Ahaziah  king  of 
Judah  went  out,  each  in  his  chariot,  and  they  went  out  against 
Jehu,  and  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  whoredoms  of  thy  mother  Jezebel  and  her  witchcrafts 
are  so  many  ?  "  And  Jehoram  turned  his  hands,  and  fled,  and 
1  had  kept.  Had  been  defending. 


JEHU'S   REVOLUTION  369 

said  to  Ahaziah,  ''  Treachery,  O  Ahaziah."  And  Jehu  drew  a 
bow  with  his  full  strength,  and  smote  Jehoram  between  his 
arras,  and  the  arrow  went  out  at  his  heart,  and  he  sunk  down  in 
his  chariot.  Then  said  Jehu  to  Bidkar  his  captain:  "Take  up, 
and  cast  him  in  the  portion  of  the  field  of  Naboth  the  Jezreelite  j 
for  remember  how  that,  when  I  and  thou  rode  together  after 
Ahab  his  father,  the  Lord  laid  this  burden  upon  him  ;  surely  I 
have  seen  yesterday  the  blood  of  Naboth,  and  the  blood  of  his 
sons,  saith  the  Lord  ;  and  I  will  requite  thee  in  this  plat,  saith 
the  Lord.  Now  therefore  take  and  cast  him  into  the  plat  of 
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  in  the  chariot."  And  they  smote  him  at 
the  going  up  to  Gur,  which  is  by  Ibleam.  And  he  fled  to  Me- 
giddo,  and  died  there.  And  his  servants  carried  him  in  a  chariot 
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  attired  her  head,  and  looked  out 
at  a  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  eunuchs. 
And  he  said,  "Throw  her  down."  So  they  threw  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  said:  "Go,  see  now  this  cursed 
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.  And  he  said :  "  This  is  the  word  of  the 
Lord,  which  he  spake  by  his  servant  Elijah  the  Tishbite,  say- 
ing. In  the  portion  of  Jezreel  shall  dogs  eat  the  flesh  of  Jezebel : 
and  the  carcass  of  Jezebel  shall  be  as  dung  upon  the  face  of  the 
field  in  the  portion  of  Jezreel ;  so  that  they  shall  not  say,  This 
is  Jezebel." 

And  Ahab  had  seventy  sons  in  Samaria.  And  Jehu  wrote 
letters,  and   sent  to   Samaria,  unto  the  rulers  of  the  city,  and 

1  Arab  women  still  paint  their  eyelashes  and  brows  with  a  mixture  of  sul- 
phide of  antimony  and  oil. 


370          NORTHEKN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

to  the  elders,  and  to  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,  a  fenced  city  also,  and  armor ;  look  even  out  the  best 
and  raeetest  of  your  master's  sons,  and  set  him  on  his  father's 
throne,  and  fight  for  your  master's  house."  But  they  were 
exceedingly  afraid,  and  said :  "  Behold,  two  kings  stood  not  be- 
fore him :  how  then  shall  we  stand  ?  "  And  he  that  was  over 
the  house,  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  king:  do  thou  that  which  is  good  in  thine  eyes." 
Then  he  wrote  a  letter  the  second  time  to  them,  saying  :  ''  If  ye 
be  mine,  and  if  ye  will  hearken  unto  my  voice,  take  ye  the  heads 
of  the  men  your  master's  sons,  and  come  to  me  to  Jezreel  by 
to-morrow  this  time." 

Now  the  king's  sons,  being  seventy  persons,  were  with  the 
great  men  of  the  city,  which  brought  them  up.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  the  letter  came  to  them,  that  they  took  the  king's 
sons,  and  slew  seventy  persons,  and  put  their  heads  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  enter- 
ing in  of  the  gate  until  the  morning."  And  it  came  to  pass  in 
the  morning,  that  he  went  out,  and  stood,  and  said  to  all  the 
people  :  "  Ye  be  righteous  :  behold  I  conspired  against  my  mas- 
ter, and  slew  him  :  but  who  slew  all  these  ?  Know  now  that 
there  shall  fall  unto  the  earth  nothing  of  the  word  of  the  Lord, 
which  the  Lord  spake  concerning  the  house  of  Ahab :  for  the 
Lord  hath  done  that  which  he  spake  by  his  servant  Elijah." 

So  Jehu  slew  all  that  remained  of  the  house  of  Ahab  in  Jez- 
reel, and  all  his  great  men,  and  his  kinsfolks,  and  his  priests, 
until  he  left  him  none  remaining.  And  he  arose  and  departed, 
and  came  to  Samaria.  And  as  he  was  at  the  shearing  house  in 
the  way,  Jehu  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."  And  he  said,  "Take 
them  alive."  And  they  took  them  alive,  and  slew  them  at  the 
pit  of  the  shearing  house,  even  two  and  forty  men  ;  neither 
left  he  any  of  them. 


JEHU'S   REVOLUTION  371 

And  when  he  was  departed  thence,  he  lighted  on  Jehonadab 
the  son  of  Rechab  ^  coming  to  meet  him :  and  he  saluted  him, 
and  said  to  him  :  ''  Is  thy  heart  with  my  heart,  as  my  heart  is 
with  thine?"  And  Jehonadab  answered,  "It  is."  "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  he  made  him  ride  in  his 
chariot.  And  when  he  came  to  Samaria,  he  slew  all  that  re- 
mained unto  Ahab  in  Samaria,  till  he  had  destroyed  him,  ac- 
cording to  the  saying  of  the  Lord,  which  he  spake  to  Elijah. 

And  Jehu  gathered  all  the  people  together,  and  said  unto 
them :  "  Ahab  served  Baal  a  little ;  but  Jehu  shall  serve  him 
much.  Now  therefore  call  unto  me  all  the  prophets  of  Baal,  all 
his  servants,  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  subtlety,  to  the  intent 
that  he  might  destroy  the  worshippers  of  Baal.  And  Jehu 
said,  "  Proclaim  a  solemn  assembly  for  Baal."  And  they  pro- 
claimed it.  And  Jehu  sent  through  all  Israel  :  and  all  the  wor- 
shippers 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  full  from  one  end  to  another.  And  he  said  unto 
him  that  was  over  the  vestry,  "  Bring  forth  vestments  for  all 
the  worshippers  of  Baal."  And  he  brought  them  forth  vest- 
ments. And  Jehu  went,  and  Jehonadab  the  son  of  Rechab, 
into  the  house  of  Baal,  and  said  unto  tlie  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 
when  he  went  in  to  offer  sacrifices  and  burnt  offerings,  Jehu  ap- 
pointed fourscore  men  without,  and  said :  "  If  any  of  the  men 
whom  I  have  brought  into  your  hands  escape,  he  that  letteth 
him  go,  his  life  shall  be  for  the  life  of  him."  And  it  came  to 
pass,  as  soon  as  he  had  made  an  end  of  offering  the  burnt  offer- 
ing, 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  sword ;  and  the  guard  and  the  captains  cast 
them  out,  and  went  to  the  sanctuary  of  the  house  of  Baal.   And 

1  Accordinc^  to  Jer.  xxxv.  this  Jehonadab  had  laid  upon  his  clan  a  solemn 
pledge  to  live  the  old  nomad  life,  in  order  to  keep  pure  thiir  ancestral  Jehovah- 
worship.  Conceiving  the  whole  civilization  to  be  corrupted  by  Baal-worship, 
they  abstained  from  wine,  from  agriculture,  and  from  settled  dwellings. 


372         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE  FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

they  brought  forth  the  asherah  out  of  the  house  of  Baal,  and 
burned  it.  And  tliey  brake  down  the  pillar  of  Baal,  and  brake 
down  the  house  of  Baal,  and  made  it  a  draught  house  unto  this  day. 

The  Reign  of  Jehu  (2  Kings  x.  28-36).  Thus  Jehu  destroyed 
Baal  out  of  Israel.  Howbeit  from  the  sins  of  Jeroboam  the  son 
of  Nebat,  who  made  Israel  to  sin,  Jehu  departed  not  from  after 
them,  to  wit,  the  golden  calves  that  were  in  Beth-el,  and  that 
were  in  Dan.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Jehu:  "Because  thou 
hast  done  well  in  executing  that  which  is  right  in  mine  eyes, 


Ambassadors  from  Jehu  to  Shalmaneser  II.    From  the  Black  Obelisk  sent  to  the  British 
Museum  by  Layard  in  1846 

and  hast  done  unto  the  house  of  Ahab  according  to  all  that  was 
in  mine  heart,  thy  children  of  the  fourth  generation  shall  sit  on 
the  throne  of  Israel."  But  Jehu  took  no  heed  to  walk  in  the 
law  of  the  Lord  God  of  Israel  with  all  his  heart :  for  he  departed 
not  from  the  sins  of  Jeroboam,  which  made  Israel  to  sin. 

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  Eeubenites,  and 
the  Manassites,  from  Aroer,  which  is  by  the  river  Arnon,  even 
Gilead  and  Bashan.  Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Jehu,^  and  all 
that  he  did,  and  all  his  might,  are  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 

1  An  inscription  of  Shalmaneser  II  records  that  in  842  b.  c.  Jehu  paid  him 
tribute. 


DEATH    OF   ELISHA  373 

son  reigned  in  his  stead.  And  the  time  that  Jehu  reigned  over 
Israel  in  Samaria  was  twenty  and  eight  years. 

Jehoahaz  (2  Kings  xiii.  1-9).  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, 
which  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,  all  their  days.  And  Jehoahaz 
besought  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  hearkened  unto  him :  for  he 
saw  the  oppression  of  Israel,  because  the  king  of  Syria  oppressed 
them.  And  the  Lord  gave  Israel  a  savior,^  so  that  they  went  out 
from  under  the  hand  of  the  Syrians  :  and  the  children  of  Israel 
dwelt  in  their  tents,  as  beforetime.  Nevertheless  they  departed 
not  from  the  sins  of  the  house  of  Jeroboam,  who  made  Israel 
to  sin,  but  walked  therein :  and  there  remained  the  asherah  also 
in  Samaria.  Neither. did  he  leave  of  the  people  to  Jehoahaz  but 
fifty  horsemen,  and  ten  chariots,  and  ten  thousand  footmen  ;  for 
the  king  of  Syria  had  destroyed  them,  and  had  made  them  like 
the  dust  by  threshing.  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 
Jehoash  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Jehoash  (2  Kings  xiii.  10,  11).  In  the  thirty  and  seventh 
year  of  Joash  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  sin  :  but  he  walked  therein. 

Death  of  Elisha  (2  Kings  xiii.  14-21).  Now  Elisha  was  fallen 
sick  of  his  sickness  whereof  he  died.   And  Jehoash  the  king  of 

1  a  savior.  A  recently  found  inscription  records  that  an  Aramean,  Zakar  king 
of  Hazrak,  defeated  a  coalition  headed  by  Damascus.  This  Zakar  rose  into 
power  at  some  time  between  800  and  772  b.  c,  and  was  probably  the  "savior" 
here  mentioned. 


374  NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

Israel  came  down  unto  him,  and  wept  over  his  face,  and  said : 
"  0  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  put  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 :  "  The  arrow  of 
the  Lord's  deliverance,  and  the  arrow  of  deliverance  from  Syria  : 
for  thou  shalt  smite  the  Syrians  in  Aphek,  till  thou  have  con- 
sumed them."  And  he  said,  "Take  the  arrows."  And  he  took 
them.  And  he  said  unto  the  king  of  Israel,  ''  Smite  upon  the 
ground."  And  he  smote  thrice,  and  stayed.  And  the  man  of  God 
was  wroth  with  him,  and  said  :  ''  Thou  should  est  have  smitten 
five  or  six  times  ;  then  hadst  thou  smitten  Syria  till  thou  hadst 
consumed  it:  whereas  now  thou  shalt  smite  Syria  but  thrice." 
And  Elisha  died,  and  they  buried  him.  And  the  bands  of  the 
Moabites  invaded  the  land  at  the  coming  in  of  the  year.  And 
it  came  to  pass,  as  they  were  burying  a  man,  that  behold,  they 
spied  a  band  of  men ;  and  they  cast  the  man  into  the  sepulchre 
of  Elisha,  and  went  away.  And  when  the  man  touched  the  bones 
of  Elisha,  he  revived,  and  stood  up  on  his  feet. 

Victories  of  Jehoash  (2  Kings  xiii.  22-25;  xiv.  8-16).  Now 
Hazael  king  of  Syria  had  oppressed  Israel  all  the  days  of  Jehoa- 
haz.  But  the  Lord  was  gracious  unto  them,  and  had  compassion 
on  them,  and  had  respect  unto  them,  because  of  his  covenant 
with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  and  would  not  destroy  them, 
neither  cast  he  them  from  his  presence  as  yet.  So  Hazael  king 
of  Syria  died :  and  Ben-hadad  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead.  And 
Jehoash  the  son  of  Jehoahaz  took  again  out  of  the  hand  of 
Ben-hadad  the  son  of  Hazael  the  cities  which  he  had  taken  out 
of  the  hand  of  Jehoahaz  his  father  by  war.  Three  times  did 
Jehoash  beat  him,  and  recovered  the  cities  of  Israel.^ 

Then  Amaziah  sent  messengers  to  Jehoash,  the  son  of  Jehoa- 
haz son  of  Jehu,  king  of  Israel,  saying:  '^  Come,  let  us  look  one 
another  in  the  face."   And  Jehoash  the  king  of  Israel  sent  to 

1  the  chariot  .  .  .  thereof.    Elisha  had  been  his  country's  best  defence. 

2  Ramman-nirari  III  of  Assyria  in  803  b.  c.  compelled  Damascus  to  pay  tribute; 
and,  though  his  inscription  mentions  tribute  from  "  the  land  of  Omri  "  (Israel) 
as  well,  his  invasion,  by  breaking  the  power  of  Syria,  helped  Israel  to  hold 
its  own  against  her. 


JEROBOAM   II  37o 

Amaziah  king  of  Jiidah,  saying  :  "  The  thistle  that  was  in  Leba- 
non 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  in- 
deed smitten  Edom,^  and  thine  heart  hatli  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  re- 
turned to  Samaria. 

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. 

Jeroboam  II  (2  Kings  xiv.  23-29  ;  Amos  vii.  10-17).  In  the 
fifteenth  year  of  Amaziah  the  son  of  Joash  king  of  Judah  Jero- 
boam the  son  of  Jehoash  king  of  Israel  began  to  reign  in  Sa- 
maria, 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  iS'ebat,  who  made  Israel  to  sin.  He 
■"'estored  the  coast  of  Israel  from  the  entering  of  Hamath  unto  the 
^ea  of  the  Arabah,^  according  to  the  word  of  the  Lord  God  of 
Israel,  which  he  spake  by  the  hand  of  his  servant  Jonah  the 
son  of  Amittai,  the  prophet,  which  was  of  Gath-hepher.  For  the 
Lord  saw  the  affliction  of  Israel,  that  it  was  very  bitter :  for 
there  was  not  any  shut  up,  nor  any  left,  nor  any  helper  for 
Israel.  And  the  Lord  said  not  that  he  would  blot  out  the  name 
of  Israel  from  under  heaven  :  but  he  saved  them  by  the  hand  of 
Jeroboam  the  son  of  Jehoash. 

1  See  p.  394.  2  tea  of  the  Arabah.     The  Dead  Sea. 


376         NORTHERN   ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

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,  Jeroboam  shall  die  by  the  sword,  and  Is- 
rael shall  surely  be  led  away  captive  out  of  their  own  land.'^ 
Also  Amaziah  said  unto  Amos  :  "  0  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 
chapel,  and  it  is  the  king's  court."  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  pincher  ^  of  sycomore  fruit  : 
and  the  Lord  took  me  as  I  followed  the  flock,  and  the  Lord  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 ;  Thy  wife  shall  be  an  harlot  in 
the  city,  and  thy  sons  and  thy  daughters  shall  fall  by  the  sword, 
and  thy  land  shall  be  divided  by  line ;  and  thou  shalt  die  in  a 
polluted  land :  and  Israel  shall  surely  go  into  captivity  forth  of 
his  land." 

Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Jeroboam,  and  all  that  he  did,  and 
his  might,  how  he  warred,  and  how  he  recovered  Damascus,  and 
Hamath  for  Israel,  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. 

Zechariah  (2  Kings  xv.  8-12).  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  Lord,  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 

1  pincher.  The  sycomore  fig  required  pinching  or  scraping  to  bring  it  into 
proper  condition  for  eating. 

2  Jeroboam's  long  reign  owed  its  prosperity  largely  to  the  crippling  of  Damas- 
cus by  Assyria.  The  moral  and  religious  corruption  of  his  time  called  into  ac- 
tivity not  only  Amos,  but  —  towards  the  end  of  his  reign — Hosea.  Amos 
preached  especially  against  the  moral  remissness  of  the  well-to-do,  urging  that 
they  could  not  please  Jehovah  with  their  lavish  worship  at  his  altars,  so  long 
as  they  practiced  oppression  and  vice.  Hosea  attacked  the  worship  itself,  as 
corrupted  b}'  sensual  and  superstitious  features  which  made  it  practically  wor- 
ship of  Baal. 


PEKAHIAH  377 

against  him,  and  smote  him  in  Ibleam,  and  slew  him,  and 
reigned  in  his  stead.  And  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Zechariah,  be- 
hold, they  are  written  in  the  hook  of  the  chronicles  of  the  kings 
of  Israel.  This  was  the  word  of  the  Lord  which  he  spake  unto 
Jehu,  saying  :  "  Thy  sons  shall  sit  on  the  throne  of  Israel  unto 
the  fourth  generation."  And  so  it  came  to  pass. 

Shallum  (2  Kings  xv.  13-15).  Shallum  the  son  of  Jabesh 
began  to  reign  in  the  nine  and  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.  And  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. 

Menahem  (2  Kings  xv.  16-22).  Then  Menahem  smote  Tap- 
puah,  and  all  that  were  therein,  and  the  coasts  thereof  from  Tir- 
zah :  because  they  opened  not  to  him,  therefore  he  smote  it;  and 
all  the  women  therein  that  were  with  child  he  ripped  up.  In  the 
nine  and  thirtieth  year  of  Azariah  king  of  Judah  began  Mena- 
hem 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  Pul  ^  the  king  of 
Assyria  came  against  the  land :  and  Menahem  gave  Pul  a  thou- 
sand talents  of  silver,  that  his  hand  might  be  with  him  to  con- 
firm 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. 
And  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. 

Pekahiah  (2  Kings  xv.  23-26).  In  the  fiftieth  year  of  Azariah 
king  of  Judah  Pekahiah  the  son  of  Menahem  began  to  reign 
over  Israel  in  Samaria,  and  reigned  two  years.  And  he  did  that 

1  Pul  Tiglath-pileser  III,  who  reigned  745-728  B.C.  He  has  left  it  recorded 
that  in  738  b.  c  he  received  tribute  from  '  Menahem  of  Samaria.' 


378  NORTHERN   ISRAEL    TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

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. 
But  Pekah  the  son  of  Kemaliah,  a  captain  of  his,  conspired 
against  him,  and  smote  him  in  Samaria,  in  the  palace  of  the 
king's  house,  and  with  him  fifty  men  of  the  Gileadites :  and  he 
killed  him,  and  reigned  in  his  room.  And  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. 

Pekah  (2  Kings  xv.  27-31).  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-maachah, 
and  Janoah,  and  Kedesh,  and  Hazor,  and  Gilead,  and  Galilee, 
all  the  land  of  Naphtali,  and  carried  them  captive  to  Assyria.^ 
And  Hoshea  the  son  of  Elah  made  a  conspiracy  against  Pekah 
the  son  of  Kemaliah,  and  smote  him,  and  slew  him,  and  reigned  in 
his  stead,  in  the  twentieth  year  of  Jotham  the  son  of  Uzziah. 
And  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Pekah,  and  all  that  he  did,  behold, 
they  are  written  in  the  book  of  the  chronicles  of  the  kings  of 
Israel. 

Hoshea  (2  Kings  xvii.  1-4).  In  the  twelfth  year  of  Ahaz  king 
of  Judah  began  Hoshea  the  son  of  Elah  to  reign  in  Samaria 
over  Israel  nine  years.  And  he  did  that  which  was  evil  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord,  but  not  as  the  kings  of  Israel  that  were  be- 
fore him.  Against  him  came  up  Shalmaneser  ^  king  of  Assyria; 
and  Hoshea  became  his  servant,  and  gave  him  presents.  And 
the  king  of  Assyria  found  conspiracy  in  Hoshea :  for  he  had 
sent  messengers  to  So  ^  king  of  Egypt,  and  brouglit  no  present 
to  the  king  of  Assyria,  as  he  had  done  year  by  year :  therefore 
the  king  of  Assyria  shut  him  up,  and  bound  him  in  prison. 

1  This  seizure  of  the  northern  district  of  the  kingdom  (in  734  b.  c.)  was  in 
requital  for  Pekah's  attempt,  with  Rezin  of  Damascus,  to  force  Judah  to  join 
them  in  a  coalition  against  Assyria.  See  p.  398.  The  practice  of  deporting  the 
inhabitants  of  conquered  districts  was  intended  to  break  down  national  lines 
between  the  subject  peojdos,  and  thus  make  such  coalitions  diflicult. 

2  Shalmaneser  IV  (727-722  B.  c). 

*  So  or  Scwe  was  probably  one  of  the  petty  dynasts  of  the  Nile  Delta. 


THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA  379 

The  Fall  of  Samaria  (2  Kings  xvii.  5-18).  Then  the  king  of 
Assyria  came  up  throughout  all  the  land,  and  went  up  to  Sa- 
maria, and  besieged  it  three  years.  In  the  ninth  year  of  Hoshea 
the  king  of  Assyria  ^  took  Samaria,  and  carried  Israel  away  into 
Assyria,  and  placed  them  in  Halah  and  in  Habor  by  the  river 
of  Gozan,  and  in  the  cities  of  the  Medes. 

For  so  it  was,  that  the  children  of  Israel  had  sinned  against 
the  Lord  their  God,  which  had  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  heathen, 
whom  the  Lord  cast  out  from  before  the  children  of  Israel,  and 
of  the  kings  of  Israel,  which  they  had  made.  And  the  children 
of  Israel  devised  those  things  that  were  not  right  against  the  Lord 
their  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  asherim  in  every  high  hill,  and  under 
every  green  tree  :  and  there  they  sacrificed  in  all  the  high  places, 
as  did  the  heathen  whom  the  Lord  carried  away  before  them ; 
and  wrought  wicked  things  to  provoke  the  Lord  to  anger:  for 
they  served  idols,  whereof  the  Lord  had  said  unto  them,  "Ye 
shall  not  do  this  thing."  Yet  the  Lord  testified  against  Is- 
rael, and  against  Judah,  by  all  the  prophets,  and  by  all  the  seers, 
saying:  ''Turn  ye  from  your  evil  ways,  and  keep  my  command- 
ments and  my  statutes,  according  to  all  the  law  which  I  com- 
manded your  fathers,  and  which  I  sent  to  you  by  my  servants 
the  prophets."  Notwithstanding  they  would  not  hear,  but  hard- 
ened their  necks,  like  to  the  neck  of  their  fathers,  that  did  not 
believe  in  the  Lord  their  God.  And  they  rejected  his  statutes, 
and  his  covenant  that  he  made  with  their  fathers,  and  his  testi- 
monies which  he  testified  against  them  ;  and  they  followed  vanity, 
and  became  vain,  and  went  after  the  heathen  that  were  round 
about  them,  concerning  whom  the  Lord  had  charged  them,  that 
they  should  not  do  like  them.  And  they  left  all  the  command- 
ments of  the  Lord  their  God,  and  made  them  molten  images, 
even  two  calves,  and  made  an  asherah,  and  worshipped  all  the 
host  of  heaven,  2  and  served  Baal.   And  they  caused  their  sons 

1  This  king  was  Sargon  (723-705  b.  c).  His  inscription  says:  "  Samaria  I  be- 
sieged and  took ;  .  .  .  27,290  of  its  people  I  carried  away;  fifty  chariots  I  col- 
lected from  them;  the  rest  I  allowed  to  keep  their  property-;  people  from  all 
lands,  my  captives,  I  settled  there ;  I  set  my  officers  as  governors  over  them, 
and  imposed  tribute." 

2  all  the  host  of  heaven.     See  note,  p.  407. 


380         NORTHERN  ISRAEL   TO   THE   FALL   OF   SAMARIA 

and  their  daughters  to  pass  through  the  fire,^  and  used  divina- 
tion and  enchantments,  and  sold  themselves  to  do  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. 

Origin  of  the  Samaritans  (2  Kings  xvii.  23-33,  41).  So  was 
Israel  carried  away  out  of  their  own  land  to  Assyria  unto  this 
day.  And  the  king  of  Assyria  brought  men  from  Babylon,  and 
from  Cuthah,  and  from  Avva,  and  from  Hamath,  and  from 
Sepharvaim,  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  so  it  was  at  the  beginning  of  their  dwelling  there,  that 
they  feared  not  the  Lord :  therefore  the  Lord  sent  lions  among 
them,  which  slew  some  of  them.  Wherefore  they  spake  to  the 
king  of  Assyria,  saying  :  "  The  nations  which  thou  hast  removed, 
and  placed  in  the  cities  of  Samaria,  know  not  the  manner  of  the 
God  of  the  land :  therefore  he  hath  sent  lions  among  them,  and 
behold,  they  slay  them,  because  they  know  not  the  manner  of 
the  God  of  the  land.''  Then  the  king  of  Assyria  commanded 
saying  :  "  Carry  thither  one  of  the  priests  whom  ye  brought  from 
thence ;  and  let  them  go  and  dwell  there,  and  let  him  teach 
them  the  manner  of  the  God  of  the  land."  Then  one  of  the 
priests  whom  they  had  carried  away  from  Samaria  came  and 
dwelt  in  Beth-el,  and  taught  them  how  they  should  fear  the 
Lord.  Howbeit  every  nation  made  gods  of  their  own,  and  put 
them  in  the  houses  of  the  high  places  which  the  Samaritans  had 
made,  every  nation  in  their  cities  wherein  they  dwelt.  And  the 
men  of  Babylon  made  Succoth-benoth,^  and  the  men  of  Cuth 
made  Nergal,  ^  and  the  men  of  Hamath  made  Ashima,  and  the 
Avites  made  Nibhaz  and  Tartak,  and  the  Sepharvites  burnt  their 

1  caused  their  sons  .  .  .  Jire.  Sacrificed  their  children  to  Molech,  a  practice 
that  in  the  seventh  century  became  common  in  Judah,  at  a  place  called  Topheth 
just  outside  Jerusalem.  Molech  (or  Moloch,  properly  Melech,  'King'),  though 
identified  on  p.  325  with  Milcom,  the  national  god  of  Amnion,  was  probably  not 
thought  of  as  other  than  Jehovah.  The  cult  seems  to  have  been  due  to  Phoeni- 
cian influence,  perhaps  also  to  a  popular  misconception  of  the  law  that  the  first- 
born should  be  dedicated  to  God. 

2  Succoth-benoth.  This  name  has  not  yet  been  explained. 

8  Nergnl.  A  Babylonian  god  of  war  and  of  the  nether  world,  worshipped  es- 
pecially at  Kutu.  The  other  deities  here  mentioned  are  obscure. 


ORIGIN   OF   THE   SAMARITANS  381 

children  in  fire  to  Adrammelech  and  Anammelech,  the  gods  of 
Sepharvaira. 

So  they  feared  the  Lord,  and  made  imto  themselves  of  the 
lowest  of  them  priests  of  the  high  places,  which  sacrificed  for 
them  in  the  houses  of  the  high  places.  They  feared  the  Lord, 
and  served  their  own  gods,  after  the  manner  of  the  nations  whom 
they  carried  away  from  thence.  So  these  nations  feared  the  Lord, 
and  served  their  graven  images,  both  their  children,  and  their 
children's  children :  as  did  their  fathers,  so  do  they  unto  this 
day.^ 

1  Samaria  was  evidently  colonized  by  successive  settlements  under  different 
kings  (see  p.  439).  As  a  sect,  the  Samaritans  acknowledge  the  Mosaic  rites 
and  ordinances.  Gerizim  is  their  holy  mountain,  on  which  was  built,  about 
432  B.  c,  the  Samaritan  temple  destroyed  some  three  hundred  years  after  by 
John  Hyrcanus.  The  enmity  between  Samaritans  and  Jews,  beginning  after 
the  return  from  captivity,  was  marked  in  New  Testament  times.  About  150 
of  them  still  persist  in  Nablus  (Shechem),  and  observe  the  Passover  annually 
on  Gerizim. 


XI 


JUDAH   TO    JEHOIACHIN  S   RELEASE 

Rehoboam  (l  Kings  xiv.  21-31;  2  Chron.  xi.  13-17;  xii. 
5-8).  And  Eehoboam  the  son  of  Solomon  reigned  in  Judah. 
Eehoboam  was  forty  and  one  years  old  when  he  began  to  reign, 
and  he  reigned  seventeen  years  in  Jerusalem,  the  city  which  the 
Lord  did  choose  out  of  all  the  tribes  of  Israel,  to  put  his  name 
there.   And  his  mother's  name  was  Naamah  an  Ammonitess. 

And  the  priests  and  the  Levites  that  were  in  all  Israel  re- 
sorted to  him  out  of  all  their  coasts.  For  the  Levites  left  their 
suburbs  and  their  possession,  and  came  to  Judah  and  Jerusalem  : 
for  Jeroboam  and  his  sons  had  cast  them  off  from  executing  the 
priest's  office  unto  the  Lord :  and  he  ordained  him  priests  for 
the  high  places,  and  for  the  he-goats,  and  for  the  calves  ^  which 
he  had  made.  And  after  them  out  of  all  the  tribes  of  Israel  such 
as  set  their  hearts  to  seek  the  Lord  God  of  Israel  came  to  Jeru- 
salem, to  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  God  of  their  fathers.  So  they 
strengthened  the  kingdom  of  Judah,  and  made  Rehoboam  the 
son  of  Solomon  strong,  three  years :  for  three  years  they  walked 
in  the  way  of  David  and  Solomon. 

And  Judah  did  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and  they  pro- 
voked him  to  jealousy  with  their  sins  which  they  had  com- 
mitted, above  all  that  their  fathers  had  done.  For  they  also 
built  them  high  places,  and  pillars,  and  Asherim,  on  every  high 
hill,  and  under  every  green  tree.  And  there  were  also  sodo- 
mites 2  in  the  land  :  and  they  did  according  to  all  the  abomina- 
tions of  the  nations  which  the  Lord  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.  Then  came 

1  The  he-goats  were  probably  satyrlike  demons  ;  the  calves  were  symbolic  of 
Jehovah. 

2  andomites.  'Temple  prostitutes  : '  persons  of  either  sex,  who  made  a  prac- 
tice of  the  unchaste  rites  connected  especially  with  the  cult  of  Ashtart. 

8  Shishak.  Sheshonk  I,  the  Lib_van  founder  of  the  22d  dynasty.  He  reigned 
about  945-924  b.  c.  His  inscription  on  a  wall  of  the  great  temple  at  Karnak 
gives  a  list  of  subjected  cities  both  in  Judah  and  Israel. 


REHOBOAM 


383 


Shemaiah  the  prophet  to  Kehoboam,  and  to  the  princes  of  Judah, 
that  were  gathered  together  to  Jerusalem  because  of  Shishak, 
and  said  unto  them:  ''Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Ye  have  forsaken 
me,  and  therefore  have  I  also  left  you  in  the  hand  of  Shishak.'' 
Whereupon  the  princes  of  Israel  and  the  king  humbled  them- 
selves; and  they  said,  *' The  Lord  is  righteous."  And  when  the 
Lord  saw  that  they  humbled  them- 
selves, the  word  of  the  Lord  came 
to  Shemaiah,  saying  :  "  They  have 
humbled  themselves ;  therefore  I 
will  not  destroy  them,  but  I  will 
grant  them  some  deliverance  ;  and 
my  wrath  shall  not  be  poured  out 
upon  Jerusalem  by  the  hand  of 
Shishak.  Nevertheless  they  shall 
be  his  servants;  that  they  may  know 
my  service,  and  the  service  of  the 
kingdoms  of  the  countries."  So 
Shishak  king  of  Egypt  came  up, 
and  he  took  away  the  treasures  of 
the  house  of  the  Lord,  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 
Kehoboam  made  in  their  stead 
brazen  shields,  and  committed 
them  unto  the  hands  of  the  chief 
of  the  guard,  which  kept  the  door 
of  the  king's  house.  And  it  was 
so  when  the  king  went  into  the 
house  of  the  Lord,  that  the  guard 
bare  them,  and  brought  them  back 
into  the  guard  chamber. 

Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Re- 
hoboam,  and  all  that  he  did,  are 
they  not  written  in  the  book  of 

the  chronicles  of  the  kings  of  Judah  ?   And  there  was  war  be- 
tween Rehoboam  and  Jeroboam  all  their  days.    And  Rehoboam 

1  The  Greek  version  makes  these  shields  those  which  David  had  taken  from 
the  Svrians  under  Hadadezer. 


The  God  Anion  bringing  captive  Cities  of 
Palestine  to  Shishak.  From  a  relief  at 
Karnak. 


384  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN  S   RELEASE 

slept  with  his  fathers,  and  was  buried  with  his  fathers  in  the 
city  of  David. 

Abijam  (l  Kings  xiv.  31-xv.  8).  And  Abijam  his  son  reigned 
in  his  stead.  Three  years  reigned  he  in  Jerusalem.  And  his 
mother's  name  was  Maachah,  the  daughter  of  Abishalom.^  And 
he  walked  in  all  the  sins  of  his  father,  which  he  had  done  be- 
fore 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  son  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.  Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Abijam,  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  Abijam  and  Jero- 
boam. And  Abijam  slept  with  his  fathers  ;  and  they  buried  him 
in  the  city  of  David :  and  Asa  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Asa  (1  Kings  XV.  9-22;  2  Chron.  xvi.  7-14).  In  the  twenti- 
eth 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  Maachah,^  the  daughter  of  Abishalom.  And 
Asa  did  that  which  was  right  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  as  did 
David  his  father.  And  he  took  away  the  sodomites  out  of  the 
land,  and  removed  all  the  idols  that  his  fathers  had  made.  And 
also  Maachah  his  mother,  even  her  he  removed  from  being 
queen,  because  she  had  made  an  abominable  image  for  an  ashe- 
rah  ;  and  Asa  destroyed  her  idol,  and  burnt  it  by  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  in  the  things  which  his  father  had  dedicated,  and  the 
things  which  himself  had  dedicated,  into  the  house  of  the  Lord, 
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  Eamah,  that  he  might  not  suffer  any  to  go  out  or  come 

1  Abishalom.  Absalom.  Josephus  makes  Maachah  the  daughter  of  Tamar, 
and  hence  the  granddaughter  of  Absalom. 

2  If  this  is  the  Maachah  of  the  preceding  paragraph,  she  must  have  been 
Asa's  grandmother. 


ASA  385 

in  to  Asa  king  of  Judah.  Then  Asa  took  all  the  silver  and  the 
gold  that  were  left  in  the  treasures  of  the  house  of  the  Lord, 
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,  as  there  was  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  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-maachah,  and 
all  Cinneroth,  with  all  the  land  of  Naphtali.  And  it  came  to 
pass,  when  Baasha  heard  thereof,  that  he  left  off  building  of 
Ramah,  and  returned  to  Tirzah.  Then  king  Asa  made  a  pro- 
clamation throughout  all  Judah ;  none  was  exempted :  and  they 
took  away  the  stones  of  Ramah,  and  the  timber  thereof,  where- 
with Baasha  had  builded;  and  king  Asa  built  with  them  Geba 
of  Benjamin,  and  Mizpah. 

And  at  that  time  Hanani  the  seer  came  to  Asa  king  of  Judah, 
and  said  unto  him  :  "  Because  thou  hast  relied  on  the  king  of 
Syria,  and  not  relied  on  the  Lord  thy  God,  therefore  is  the  host 
of  the  king  of  Syria  escaped  out  of  thine  hand.  For  the  eyes  of 
the  Lord  run  to  and  fro  throughout  the  whole  earth,  to  shew  him- 
self strong  in  the  behalf  of  them  whose  heart  is  perfect  toward 
him.  Herein  thou  hast  done  foolishly  :  therefore  from  hence- 
forth thou  shalt  have  wars.''  Then  Asa  was  wroth  with  the  seer, 
and  put  him  in  a  prison  house ;  for  he  was  in  a  rage  with  him 
because  of  this  thing.  And  Asa  oppressed  some  of  the  people 
the  same  time. 

And  behold,  the  acts  of  Asa,  first  and  last,  lo  they  are  writ- 
ten in  the  book  of  the  kings  of  Judah  and  Israel.  And  Asa  in 
the  thirty  and  ninth  year  of  his  reign  was  diseased  in  his  feet, 
until  his  disease  was  exceeding  great :  yet  in  his  disease  he 
sought  not  to  the  Lord,  but  to  the  physicians.  And  Asa  slept 
with  his  fathers,  and  died  in  the  one  and  fortieth  year  of  his 
reign.  And  they  buried  him  in  his  own  sepulchres,  which  he 
had  made  for  himself  in  the  city  of  David,  and  laid  him  in  the 
bed  which  was  filled  with  sweet  odors  and  divers  kinds  of  spices 
prepared  by  the  apothecaries'  art:  and  they  made  a  very  great 
burning  for  him. 


386  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

Jehoshaphat  (l  Kings  xxii.  41-44;  2  Chron.  xix.  4-11 ;  xviii. 
1-3,  28-32  ;  xix.  1-3 ;  1  Kings  xxii.  47-50).  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  it,  doing  that  which  w^as  right  in  the 
eyes  of  the  Lord  :  nevertheless  the  high  places  were  not  taken 
away  ;  for  the  people  offered  and  burnt  incense  yet  in  the  high 
places.   And  Jehoshaphat  made  peace  with  the  king  of  Israel. 

And  Jehoshaphat  dwelt  at  Jerusalem :  and  he  went  out 
again  through  the  people  from  Beer-sheba  to  the  hill  country  of 
Ephraim,  and  brought  them  back  unto  the  Lord  God  of  their 
fathers.  And  he  set  judges  in  the  land  throughout  all  the  fenced 
cities  of  Judah,  city  by  city,  and  said  to  the  judges  :  "Take  heed 
what  ye  do  :  for  ye  judge  not  for  man,  but  for  the  Lord,  who  is 
with  you  in  the  judgment.  Wherefore  now  let  the  fear  of  the 
Lord  be  upon  you ;  take  heed  and  do  it:  for  there  is  no  iniquity 
with  the  Lord  our  God,  nor  respect  of  persons,  nor  taking  of 
gifts." 

Moreover  in  Jerusalem  did  Jehoshaphat  set  of  the  Levites, 
and  the  priests,  and  of  the  chief  of  the  fathers  of  Israel,  for  the 
judgment  of  the  Lord,  and  for  controversies.  When  they  re- 
turned to  Jerusalem,  he  charged  them,  saying  :  "  Thus  shall  ye 
do  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  faithfully,  and  with  a  perfect  heart. 
And  what  cause  soever  shall  come  to  you  of  your  brethren  that 
dwell  in  their  cities,  between  blood  and  blood,  ^  between  law  and 
commandment,  statutes  and  judgments,  ye  shall  even  warn  them 
that  they  trespass  not  against  the  Lord,  and  so  wrath  come  upon 
you,  and  upon  your  brethren  :  this  do,  and  ye  shall  not  trespass. 
And  behold,  Amariah  the  chief  priest  is  over  you  in  all  matters 
of  the  Lord ;  and  Zebediah  the  son  of  Ishmael,  the  ruler  of  the 
house  of  Judah,  for  all  the  king's  matters:  also  the  Levites 
shall  be  officers  before  you.  Deal  courageously,  and  the  Lord 
shall  be  with  the  good." 

Now  Jehoshaphat  had  riches  and  honor  in  abundance,  and 
joined  affinity  with  Ahab.^  And   after   certain   years   he  went 

1  between  blood  and  blood.  The  measure  of  guilt  in  cases  of  murder  or  man- 
slaughter. 

2  See  also  pp.  348-350. 


JEHOSHAPHAT  387 

down  to  Ahab  to  Samaria.  And  Ahab  killed  sheep  and  oxen  for 
him  in  abundance,  and  for  the  people  that  he  had  with  him, 
and  persuaded  him  to  go  up  with  him  to  Kamoth-gilead.  And 
Ahab  king  of  Israel  said  unto  Jehoshaphat  king  of  Judah : 
"  Wilt  thou  go  with  nie  to  Kamoth-gilead  ?  "  And  he  answered 
him:  "I  am  as  thou  art,  and  my  people  as  thy  people;  and  we 
will  be  with  thee  in  the  war." 

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  will  go  to  the  battle  ; 
but  put  thou  on  thy  robes."  So  the  king  of  Israel  disguised 
himself  ;  and  they  went  to  the  battle.  Xow  the  king  of  Syria 
had  commanded  the  captains  of  the  chariots  that  were  with 
him,  saying  :  ''Fight  ye  not  with  small  or  great,  save  only  with 
the  king  of  Israel."  And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  captains  of 
the  chariots  saw  Jehoshaphat,  that  they  said,  "  It  is  the  king 
of  Israel."  Therefore  they  compassed  about  him  to  fight:  but 
Jehoshaphat  cried  out,  and  the  Lord  helped  him  ;  and  God 
moved  them  to  depart  from  him.  For  it  came  to  pass,  that, 
when  the  captains  of  the  chariots  perceived  that  it  was  not  the 
king  of  Israel,  they  turned  back  again  from  pursuing  him. 

And  Jehoshaphat  the  king  of  Judah  returned  to  his  house 
in  peace  to  Jerusalem.  And  Jehu  the  son  of  Hanani  the  seer 
went  out  to  meet  him,  and  said  to  king  Jehoshaphat :  ''  Shouldest 
thou  help  the  ungodly,  and  love  them  that  hate  the  Lord  ? 
therefore  is  wrath  upon  thee  from  before  the  Lord.  Neverthe- 
less there  are  good  things  found  in  thee,  in  that  thou  hast  taken 
away  the  asherim  out  of  the  land,  and  hast  prepared  thine 
heart  to  seek  God." 

There  was  then  no  king  in  Edom,^  but  the  deputy  of  king 
Jehoshaphat  made  Tarshish  ships  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  Jehoshaphat 
would  not.  Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Jehoshaphat,  and  his 
might  that  he  shewed,  and  how  he  warred,^  are  they  not  written 

1  Seep.  326.  It  is  not  known  when  Judah  had  again  subjected  Edom  ;  — perhaps 
after  the  invasion  just  recounted. 

2  2  Chron.  xx.  recounts  an  invasion  of  Judah  by  a  triple  alliance  —  Moabites, 
Ammonites,  and  Meunites  — in  the  latter  part  of  his  rei^n.  Jehoshaphat  and 
his  people  hold  a  great  assembly  for  prayer,  whereupon  Jehovah  works  a 
signal  deliverance. 


38S  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN's   RELEASE 

in  the  book  of  the  chronicles  of  the  kings  of  Judah  ?  And  the 
remnant  of  the  sodomites,  which  remained  in  the  days  of  his 
father  Asa,  he  took  out  of  the  land.  And  Jehoshaphat  slept 
with  his  fathers,  and  was  buried  with  his  fathers  in  the  city  of 
David  his  father :   and  Joram  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Joram  (2  Kings  viii.  16-22 ;  2  Chron.  xxi.  4,  11-20).  And 
in  the  fifth  year  of  Jehoram  the  son  of  Ahab  king  of  Israel, 
Joram  the  son  of  Jehoshaphat  king  of  Judah  began  to  reign. 
Thirty  and  two  years  old  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 :  for  the 
daughter  of  Ahab  was  his  wife :  and  he  did  evil  in  the  sight  of 
the  Lord.  Yet  the  Lord  would  not  destroy  Judah  for  David 
his  servant's  sake,  as  he  promised  him  to  give  him  a  lamp  be- 
fore him  alway.  In  his  days  Edom  revolted  from  under  the 
hand  of  Judah,  and  made  a  king  over  themselves.  So  Joram 
went  over  to  Zair,  and  all  the  chariots  with  him:  ^  and  he  rose 
by  night,  and  smote  the  Edomites  which  compassed  him  about ; 
and  the  captains  of  the  chariots  were  with  him,  but  the  people 
fled  into  their  tents.  So  Edom  revolted  from  under  the  hand 
of  Judah  unto  this  day.  Then  Libnah  revolted  at  the  same 
time. 

Now  when  Joram  was  risen  up  to  the  kingdom  of  his  father, 
he  strengthened  himself,  and  slew  all  his  brethren  with  the 
sword,  and  divers  also  of  the  princes  of  Israel.  Moreover  he 
made  high  places  in  the  mountains  of  Judah,  and  caused  the 
inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  to  commit  fornication,  and  compelled 
Judah  thereto. 

And  there  came  a  writing  to  him  from  Elijah  the  prophet, 
saying :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  David  thy  father.  Be- 
cause thou  hast  not  walked  in  the  ways  of  Jehoshaphat  thy 
father,  nor  in  the  ways  of  Asa  king  of  Judah,  but  hast  walked 
in  the  way  of  the  kings  of  Israel,  and  hast  made  Judah  and 
the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  to  go  a  whoring,  like  to  the  whore- 
doms of  the  house  of  Ahab,  and  also  hast  slain  thy  brethren  of 
thy  father's  house,  which  were  better  than  thyself:  behold, 
with  a  great  plague  will  the  Lord  smite  thy  people,  and  thy 
children,  and  thy  wives,  and  all  thy  goods :   and  thou  shalt  have 

1  Mention  of  an  ambush,  into  which  Joram  fell,  has  evidently  been  lost  from 
the  text. 


AHAZIAH  389 

great  sickness  by  disease  of  thy  bowels,  until  thy   bowels  fall 
out  by  reason  of  the  sickness  day  by  day." 

Moreover  the  Lord  stirred  up  against  Joram  the  spirit  of 
the  Philistines,  and  of  the  Arabians,  that  were  near  the  Ethio- 
pians :  and  they  came  up  into  Judah,  and  brake  into  it,  and 
carried  away  all  the  substance  that  was  found  in  the  king's 
house,  and  his  sons  also,  and  his  wives ;  so  that  there  was  never 
a  son  left  him,  save  Ahaziah,  the  youngest  of  his  sons.  And 
after  all  this  the  Lord  smote  him  in  his  bowels  with  an  incura- 
ble disease.  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  in  process  of  time,  after 
the  end  of  two  years,  his  bowels  fell  out  by  reason  of  his  sick- 
ness :  so  he  died  of  sore  diseases.  And  his  people  made  no  burn- 
ing for  him,  like  the  burning  of  his  fathers.  Thirty  and  two 
years  old  was  he  when  he  began  to  reign,  and  he  reigned  in 
Jerusalem  eight  years,  and  departed  without  being  desired. 
Howbeit  they  buried  him  in  the  city  of  David,  but  not  in  the 
sepulchres  of  the  kings. 

Ahaziah  (2  Chron.  xxii.  1-9).  And  the  inhabitants  of  Jeru- 
salem made  Ahaziah  his  youngest  son  king  in  his  stead  :  for  the 
band  of  men  that  came  with  the  Arabians  to  the  camp  had 
slain  all  the  eldest.  So  Ahaziah  the  son  of  Joram  king  of  Judah 
reigned.  Forty  and  two  years  old  was  Ahaziah  when  he  began 
to  reign,  and  he  reigned  one  year  in  Jerusalem.  His  mother's 
name  also  was  Athaliah  the  daughter  ^  of  Omri.  He  also  walked 
in  the  ways  of  the  house  of  Ahab :  for  his  mother  was  his  coun- 
sellor to  do  wickedly.  Wherefore  he  did  evil  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord  like  the  house  of  Ahab :  for  they  were  his  counsellors 
after  the  death  of  his  father  to  his  destruction.  He  walked  also 
after  their  counsel,  and  went  with  Jehoram  the  son  of  Ahab 
king  of  Israel  to  war  against  Hazael  king  of  Syria  at  Kamoth- 
gilead :  and  the  Syrians  smote  Jehoram.  And  he  returned  to 
be  healed  in  Jezreel  because  of  the  wounds  which  were  given 
him  at  Ramah,  when  he  fought  with  Hazael  king  of  Syria. 

And  Ahaziah  the  son  of  Joram  king  of  Judah  went  down 
to  see  Jehoram  the  son  of  Ahab  at  Jezreel,  because  he  was  sick. 
And  the  destruction  of  Ahaziah  was  of  God  by  coming  to  Jeho- 
ram :  for  when  he  w^as  come,  he  went  out  with  Jehoram  against 
Jehu  the  son  of  ISTimshi,  whom  the  Lord  had  anointed  to  cut 
off  the  house  of  Ahab.  And  it  came  to  pass  that,  when  Jehu 
1  Daurjhter.  That  is,  granddaughter. 


390  JUDAH  TO  jehoiachin's  release 

was  executing  judgment  upon  the  house  of  Ahab,  and  found  the 
princes  of  Judah,  and  the  sons  of  the  brethren  of  Ahaziah,  min- 
istering to  Ahaziah,  he  slew  them.  And  he  sought  Ahaziah : 
and  they  caught  him  (for  he  was  hid  in  Samaria),  and  brought 
him  to  Jehu  :  ^  and  when  they  had  slain  him,  they  buried  him  — 
**  Because,"  said  they,  ''  he  is  the  son  of  Jehoshaphat,  who 
sought  the  Lord  with  all  his  heart."  So  the  house  of  Ahaziah 
had  no  power  to  keep  still  the  kingdom. 

Athaliah's  Usurpation  (2  Kings  xi.).  And  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 
Joram,  sister  of  Ahaziah,  took  Joash  the  son  of  Ahaziah,  and 
stole  him  from  among  the  king's  sons  which  were  slain ;  and 
they  hid  him,  even  him  and  his  nurse,  in  the  bed-chamber  from 
Athaliah,  so  that  he  was  not  slain.  And  he  was  with  her  hid  in 
the  house  of  the  Lord  six  years.  And  Athaliah  did  reign  over 
the  land. 

And  the  seventh  year  Jehoiada  sent  and  fetched  the  captains 
over  hundreds,  over  the  Carites^  and  the  guard,  and  brought 
them  to  him  into  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  made  a  covenant 
with  them,  and  took  an  oath  of  them  in  the  house  of  the  Lord, 
and  shewed  them  the  king's  son.  And  he  commanded  them,  say- 
ing: "This  is  the  thing  that  ye  shall  do:  A  third  part  of  you 
that  enter  in  on  the  sabbath  shall  even  be  keepers  of  the  watch 
of  the  king's  house.  And  two  parts  of  all  you  that  go  forth  on 
the  sabbath,  even  they  shall  keep  the  watch  of  the  house  of  the 
Lord  about  the  king.  And  ye  shall  compass  the  king  round 
about,  every  man  with  his  weapons  in  his  hand :  and  he  that 
cometh  within  the  ranges  ^  let  him  be  slain  :  and  be  ye  with  the 
king  as  he  goeth  out  and  as  he  cometh  in."  ^ 

And  the  captains  over  the  hundreds  did  according  to  all 
things  that  Jehoiada  the  priest  commanded  :  and  they  took  every 
man  his  men  that  were  to  come  in  on  the  sabbath,  with  them 
that  should  go  out  on  the  sabbath,  and  came  to  Jehoiada  the 
priest.    And  to  the  captains  over  hundreds  did  the  priest  give 

1  See  also  p.  369. 

2  Carites.  Mercenaries,  probably  from  Caria  in  Asia  Minor,  serving:  as  a  royal 
bodyguard.  Herodotus  mentions  that  the}'  were  so  employed  by  Psammetichus 
of  Egypt. 

8  ranges.   Ranks. 

*  goeth  out  [from  the  temple]  and  as  he  cometh  in  [to  the  palace]. 


JOASH   REPAIRS    THE    TEMPLE  391 

king  David's  spears  and  shields,  that  were  in  the  temple  of  the 
Lord.  And  the  guard  stood,  every  man  with  his  weapons  in  his 
hand,  from  the  right  corner  of  the  temple  to  the  left  corner  of 
the  temple,  along  by  the  altar  and  the  temple.  And  he  brought 
forth  the  king's  son,  and  put  the  crown  upon  him,  and  gave  him 
the  testimony  ;  ^  and  they  made  him  king,  and  anointed  him  ; 
and  they  clapped  their  hands,  and  said,  *'  God  save  the  king ! " 

And  when  Athaliah  heard  the  noise  of  the  people,  she  came 
to  the  people  into  the  temple  of  the  Lord.  And  when  she 
looked,  behold,  the  king  stood  by  a  pillar,  as  the  manner  was, 
and  the  princes  and  the  trumpeters  by  the  king,  and  all  the 
people  of  the  land  rejoiced,  and  blew  w^(h  trumpets :  and  Atha- 
liah rent  her  clothes,  and  cried,  *' Treason,  Treason!"  But  Je- 
hoiada  the  priest  commanded  the  officers  of  the  host,  and  said 
unto  them  :  ^'  Have  her  forth  without  the  ranges :  and  him  that 
followeth  her  kill  with  the  sword."  For  the  priest  had  said  : 
*'  Let  her  not  be  slain  in  the  house  of  the  Lord."  And  they 
laid  hands  on  her ;  and  she  went  by  the  way  by  the  which  the 
horses  came  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 ; 
between  the  king  also  and  the  people.  And  all  the  people  of 
the  land  went  into  the  house  of  Baal,  and  brake  it  down  ;  his 
altars  and  his  images  brake  they  in  pieces  thoroughly,  and  slew 
Mattan  the  priest  of  Baal  before  the  altars. 

And  the  priest  appointed  guards  over  the  house  of  the  Lord. 
And  he  took  the  captains  over  hundreds,  and  the  Carites,  and 
the  guard,  and  all  the  people  of  the  land ;  and  they  brought 
down  the  king  from  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  came  by  the 
way  of  the  gate  of  the  guard  to  the  king's  house.  And  he  sat 
on  the  throne  of  the  kings.  And  all  the  people  of  the  land  re- 
joiced, and  the  city  was  in  quiet.  Thus  they  slew  Athaliah  with 
the  sword  beside  the  king's  house. 

Joash  Repairs  the  Temple  (2  Kings  xii.  1-16).  Seven  years 
old  was  Joash  when  he  began  to  reign.  In  the  seventh  year  of 
Jehu  Joash  began  to  reign;  and  forty  years  reigned  he  in  Je- 
rusalem. And  his  mother's  name  was  Zibiah  of  Beer-sheba.  And 

1  the  testimony.  The  book  of  the  Law.  The  word  should  probably  be  read 
'the  bracelets'  or  'the  ornaments'  which  were  part  of  the  emblems  of 
royalty. 


392  JUDAH  TO  jehoiachin's  eelease 

Joash  did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  all  his 
days  wherein  Jehoiada  the  priest  instructed  him.  But  the  high 
places  were  not  taken  away :  the  people  still  sacrificed  and  burnt 
incense  in  the  high  places. 

And  Joash  said  to  the  priests  :  ^'  All  the  money  of  the  dedicated 
things  that  is  brought  into  the  house  of  the  Lord,  even  the 
money  of  every  one  that  passeth  the  account,  the  money  that 
every  man  is  set  at,  and  all  the  money  that  cometh  into  any 
man's  heart  to  bring  into  the  house  of  the  Lord,^  let  the  priests 
take  it  to  them,  every  man  of  his  acquaintance :  and  let  them 
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  Joash  the  priests  had  not  repaired  the  breaches  of  the 
house.  Then  king  Joash  called  for  Jehoiada  the  priest,  and 
the  other  priests,  and  said  unto  them :  "Why  repair  ye  not  the 
breaches  of  the  house  ?  now  therefore  receive  no  more  money 
of  your  acquaintance,  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  set  it  beside  the  altar,  on  the  right  side  as  one  cometh 
into  the  house  of  the  Lord:  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  saw  that  there  was  much  money 
in  the  chest,  that  the  king's  scribe  and  the  priest  came  up,  and 
they  put  up  in  bags,  and  told  the  money  that  was  found  in  the 
house  of  the  Lord.  And  they  gave  the  money,  being  told,  into 
the  hands  of  them  that  did  the  work,  that  had  the  oversight  of 
the  house  of  the  Lord:  and  they  laid  it  out  to  the  carpenters 
and  builders,  that  wrought  upon  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  to 
masons,  and  hewers  of  stone,  and  to  buy  timber  and  hewed  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,  basins, 
trumpets,  any  vessels  of  gold,  or  vessels  of  silver,  of  the  money 
that  was  brought  into  the  house  of  the  Lord  :  but  they  gave  that 
to  the  workmen,  and  repaired  therewith  the  house  of  the  Lord. 

1  The  three  sources  of  revenue  appear  to  be:  (1)  the  poll  tax  for  the  temple 
service;  (2)  the  ransom-money  for  persons  consecrated  to  God  (Lev.  xxvii.); 
(3)  free-will  offerings.  According  to  the  Chronicler  the  chief  source  on  this 
occasion  was  the  half-shekel  tax  which  Moses  required  of  every  Israelite  for 
maintaining  the  Tent  of  the  Testimony  (Ex.  xxx.  11-16). 


THE   DECLINE   OF   JOASH  393 

Moreover  they  reckoned  not  with  the  men,  into  whose  hand 
they  delivered  the  money  to  be  bestowed  on  workmen :  for  they 
dealt  faithfully.  The  trespass  money  and  sin  money  was  not 
brought  into  the  house  of  the  Lord :  it  was  the  priests'. 

The  Decline  of  Joash  (2  Chron.  xxiv.  17-22;  2  Kings  xii.  17- 
21).  Now  after  the  death  of  Jehoiada  came  the  princes  of  Judah, 
and  made  obeisance  to  the  king.  Then  the  king  hearkened  unto 
them.  And  they  left  the  house  of  the  Lord  God  of  their  fathers, 
and  served  the  asherim  and  idols  :  and  wrath  came  upon  Judah 
and  Jerusalem  for  this  their  trespass.  Yet  he  sent  prophets  to 
them,  to  bring  them  again  unto  the  Lord ;  and  they  testified 
against  them  :  but  they  would  not  give  ear. 

And  the  Spirit  of  God  came  upon  Zechariah  the  son  of  Je- 
hoiada the  priest,  which  stood  above  the  people,  and  said  unto 
them :  "  Thus  saith  God,  Why  transgress  ye  the  commandments 
of  the  Lord,  that  ye  cannot  prosper  ?  because  ye  have  forsaken 
the  Lord,  he  hath  also  forsaken  you.''  And  they  conspired 
against  him,  and  stoned  him  with  stones  at  the  commandment 
of  the  king  in  the  court  of  the  house  of  the  Lord.  Thus  Joash 
the  king  remembered  not  the  kindness  which  Jehoiada  his  father 
had  done  to  him,  but  slew  his  son.  And  when  he  died,  he  said: 
"The  Lord  look  upon  it,  and  require  it." 

Then  Hazael  king  of  Syria  went  up,  and  fought  against  Gath, 
and  took  it :  and  Hazael  set  his  face  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem.  And 
Joash  king  of  Judah  took  all  the  hallowed  things  that  Jehosh- 
aphat,  and  Joram,  and  Ahaziah,  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 
in  the  king's  house,  and  sent  it  to  Hazael  king  of  Syria :  and  he 
went  away  from  Jerusalem.^ 

And  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Joash,  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 
slew  Joash  ^  in  the  house  of  Millo,  which  goeth  down  to  Silla. 
For  Jozachar  the  son  of  Shimeath,  and  Jehozabad  the  son  of 
Shomer,  his  servants,  smote  him,  and  he  died ;  and  they  buried 

1  The  Chronicler  represents  Hazael  as  inflicting  a  heavy  defeat  upon  Judah 
before  securing  this  spoil. 

-  The  Chronicler  makes  the  assassination  of  Joash  an  act  of  revenge  for 
Zechariah's  death. 


394  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN's   KELEASE 

him  with  his  fathers  in  the  city  of  David :  and  Amaziah  his  son 

reigned  in  his  stead. 

Amaziah  (2  Kings  xvi.  1-7,  17-20).  In  the  second  year  of 
Jehoash  son  of  Jehoahaz  king  of  Israel  reigned  Amaziah  the  son 
of  Joash  king  of  Judah.  He  was  twenty  and  five  years  old  when 
he  began  to  reign,  and  reigned  twenty  and  nine  years  in  Jeru- 
salem. And  his  mother's  name  was  Jehoaddin  of  Jerusalem. 
And  he  did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  yet 
not  like  David  his  father :  he  did  according  to  all  things  as  Joash 
his  father  did.  Howbeit  the  high  places  were  not  taken  away  : 
as  yet  the  people  did  sacrifice  and  burnt  incense  on  the  high 
places. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  as  soon  as  the  kingdom  was  confirmed 
in  his  hand,  that  he  slew  his  servants  which  had  slain  the  king 
his  father.  But  the  children  of  the  murderers  he  slew  not :  ac- 
cording unto  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  to 
death  for  his  own  sin." 

He  slew  of  Edom  in  the  Valley  of  Salt  ten  thousand,  and  took 
Sela  2  by  storm,  and  named  it  Joktheel  to  this  day. 

[For  Amaziah^ s  disastrous  war  with  Jehoash  king  of  Israely 
see  pp.  37 4,  S75.'] 

And  Amaziah  the  son  of  Joash  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  con- 
spiracy against  him  in  Jerusalem  :  and  he  fled  to  Lachish  ;  but  they 
sent  after  him  to  Lachish,  and  slew  him  there.  And  they  brought 
him  on  horses  ;  and  he  was  buried  at  Jerusalem  with  his  fathers 
in  the  city  of  David. 

Uzziah  (2  Chron.  xxvi.).  Then  all  the  people  of  Judah  took 
Uzziah,  who  was  sixteen  years  old,  and  made  him  king  in  the  room 
of  his  father  Amaziah.  He  built  Eloth,  and  restored  it  to  Judah, 
after  that  the  king  slept  with  his  fathers.   Sixteen  years  old  was 

1  DeMt.  xxiv.  16. 

2  Sela.  '  The  Rock.'  The  common  identification  of  it  with  the  rock-city  Petra, 
the  capital  of  Edom,  rests  on  doubtful  grounds. 


UZZIAH  395 

Uzziah  when  he  began  to  reign,  and  he  reigned  fifty  and  two  years 
in  Jerusalem.  His  mother's  name  also  was  Jecoliah  of  Jerusalem. 

And  he  did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  ac- 
cording to  all  that  his  father  Amaziah  did.  And  he  sought  God 
in  the  days  of  Zechariah,  who  had  understanding  in  the  visions 
of  God :  and  as  long  as  he  sought  the  Lord,  God  made  him  to 
prosper. 

And  he  went  forth  and  warred  against  the  Philistines,  and 
brake  down  the  wall  of  Gath,  and  the  wall  of  Jabneh,  and  the 
wall  of  Ashdod,  and  built  cities  about  Ashdod,  and  among  the 
Philistines.  And  God  helped  him  against  the  Philistines,  and 
against  the  Arabians  that  dwelt  in  Gur-baal,  and  the  Meunim. 
And  the  Ammonites  gave  gifts  to  Uzziah :  and  his  name  spread 
abroad  even  to  the  entering  in  of  Egypt ;  for  he  strengthened 
himself  exceedingly.  Moreover  Uzziah  built  towers  in  Jerusalem 
at  the  corner  gate,  and  at  the  valley  gate,  and  at  the  turning  of 
the  wall,  and  fortified  them.  Also  he  built  towers  in  the  desert, 
and  digged  many  wells :  for  he  had  much  cattle,  both  in  the 
low  country,  and  in  the  plains  :  husbandmen  also,  and  vine 
dressers  in  the  mountains,  and  in  Carmel :  for  he  loved  hus- 
bandry. Moreover  Uzziah  had  an  host  of  fighting  men,  that 
went  out  to  war  by  bands,  according  to  the  number  of  their  ac- 
count by  the  hand  of  Jeiel  the  scribe  and  Maaseiah  the  ruler, 
under  the  hand  of  Hananiah,  one  of  the  king's  captains.  The 
whole  number  of  the  chief  of  the  fathers  of  the  mighty  men  of 
valor  was  two  thousand  and  six  hundred.  And  under  their  hand 
was  an  army,  three  hundred  thousand  and  seven  thousand  and 
five  hundred,  that  made  war  with  mighty  power,  to  help  the 
king  against  the  enemy.  And  Uzziah  prepared  for  them  through- 
out all  the  host  shields,  and  spears,  and  helmets,  and  coats  of 
mail,  and  bows,  and  slings  to  cast  stones.  And  he  made  in  Je- 
rusalem engines,  invented  by  cunning  men,  to  be  on  the  towers 
and  upon  the  bulwarks,  to  shoot  arrows  and  great  stones  withal. 
And  his  name  spread  far  abroad ;  for  he  was  marvellously 
helped,  till  he  was  strong. 

But  when  he  was  strong,  his  heart  was  lifted  up  to  his  de- 
struction: for  he  transgressed  against  the  Lord  his  God,  and 
went  into  the  temple  of  the  Lord  to  burn  incense  upon  the  altar 
of  incense.  And  Azariah  the  priest  went  in  after  him,  and  with 
him  fourscore  priests  of  the  Lord,  that  were  valiant  men  :  and 
they  withstood  L^zziah  the  king,  and  said  unto  him  :    "It  apper- 


396  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

taineth  not  unto  thee,  Uzziah,  to  burn  incense  unto  the  Lord, 
but  to  the  priests  the  sons  of  Aaron,  that  are  consecrated  to  burn 
incense :  go  out  of  the  sanctuary  ;  for  thou  hast  trespassed ; 
neither  shall  it  be  for  thine  honor  from  the  Lord  God." 

Then  Uzziah  was  wroth,  and  had  a  censer  in  his  hand  to  burn 
incense  :  and  while  he  was  wroth  with  the  priests,  the  leprosy 
even  rose  up  in  his  forehead  before  the  priests  in  the  house  of 
the  Lord,  from  beside  the  incense  altar.  And  Azariah  the  chief 
priest,  and  all  the  priests,  looked  upon  him,  and  behold,  he  was 
leprous  in  his  forehead,  and  they  thrust  him  out  from  thence ; 
yea,  himself  hasted  also  to  go  out,  because  the  Lord  had  smitten 
him.  And  Uzziah  the  king  was  a  leper  unto  the  day  of  his  death, 
and  dwelt  in  a  several  ^  house,  being  a  leper ;  for  he  was  cut  off 
from  the  house  of  the  Lord  :  and  Jotham  his  son  was  over  the 
king's  house,  judging  the  people  of  the  land. 

Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Uzziah,  first  and  last,  did  Isaiah 
the  prophet,  the  son  of  Amoz,  write.  So  Uzziah  slept  with  his 
fathers,  and  they  buried  him  with  his  fathers  in  the  field  of  the 
burial  which  belonged  to  the  kings  ;  for  they  said,  ''  He  is  a 
leper  :  "   and  Jotham  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

The  Call  of  Isaiah  (Isaiah  vi.).  In  the  year  that  king  Uzziah 
died  I  saw  also  the  Lord  sitting  upon  a  throne,  high  and  lifted 
up,  and  his  train  ^  filled  the  temple.  Above  it  stood  the  sera- 
phim :  ^  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  one  cried  unto  another,  and  said  : 

"Holy,  holy,  holy,  is  the  Lord  of  hosts: 
The  whole  earth  is  full  of  his  glory.'* 

And  the  posts  of  the  door  moved  at  the  voice  of  him  that 
cried,  and  the  house  was  filled  with  smoke.  Then  said  I :  "  AVoe 
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  inine 
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  : 

1  several.  Separate. 

2  his  train.  The  skirts  of  His  royal  robes. 

3  seraphim.  In  the  popular  mythology,  these  beings  were  conceived  as  of 
serpent  form,  and  associated  with  the  lightning.  Here  they  are  attendant  fiery 
spirits. 


AHAZ  397 

and  he  laid  it  upon  my  mouth,  and  said  :  *^  Lo,  this  hath  touched 
thy  lips  ;  and  thine  iniquity  is  taken  away,  and  thy  sin  purged." 

Also  I  heard  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  saying :  "  Whom  shall  I 
send,  and  who  will  go  for  us?"  Then  said  I:  ''Here  am  I; 
send  me."  And  he  said:  "Go,  and  tell  this  people.  Hear  ye 
indeed,  but  understand  not ;  and  see  ye  indeed,  but  perceive  not. 
Make  the  heart  of  this  people  fat,  and  make  their  ears  heavy, 
and  shut  their  eyes  ;  lest  they  see  with  their  eyes,  and  hear  with 
their  ears,  and  understand  with  their  heart,  and  convert,  and  be 
healed." 

Then  said  I,  *'  Lord,  how  long  ?  "  And  he  answered  :  "  Until 
the  cities  be  wasted  without  inhabitant,  and  the  houses  without 
man,  and  the  land  be  utterly  desolate,  and  the  Lord  have  re- 
moved men  far  away,  and  there  be  a  great  forsaking  in  the  midst 
of  the  land.  And  if  there  be  yet  a  tenth  in  it,  it  shall  again  be 
eaten  :  as  a  teil  tree,  ^  and  as  an  oak,  whose  stock  remaineth, 
when  they  are  felled :  so  the  holy  seed  shall  be  the  stock 
thereof." 

Jotham  (l  Kings  xv.  32-38).  In  the  second  year  of  Pekah 
the  son  of  Remaliah  king  of  Israel  began  Jotham  the  son  of 
Uzziah  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  Avas  right  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord :  he  did  according  to  all  that  his  father  Uzziah  had  done. 
Howbeit  the  high  places  were  not  removed  :  the  people  sacri- 
ficed and  «burnt  incense  still  in  the  high  places.  He  built  the 
higher  gate  of  the  house  of  the  Lord.  Now  the  rest  of  the  acts 
of  Jotham,  and  all  that  he  did,  are  they  not  written  in  the  book 
of  the  chronicles  of  the  kings  of  Judah  ?  In  those  days  the  Lord 
began  to  send  against  Judah  Rezin  the  king  of  Syria,  and  Pekah 
the  son  of  Remaliah.  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. 

Ahaz   (l  Kings  xvi. ;  Isaiah  vii.  2-16).   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  reigned  sixteen  years  in  Jerusalem,  and  did 

1  ttil  tree.  Terebinth. 


398  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S    RELEASE 

not  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  his  God,  like 
David  his  father.  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  E-ezin  king  of  Syria  and  Pekah  son  of  Eemaliah  king 
of  Israel  came  up  to  Jerusalem  to  war  :  ^  and  they  besieged  Ahaz, 
but  could  not  overcome  him.  And  it  was  told  the  house  of 
David,  saying,  "Syria  is  confederate  with  Ephraim."  And  his 
heart  was  moved,  and  the  heart  of  his  people,  as  the  trees  of  the 
wood  are  moved  with  the  wind. 

Then  said  the  Lord  unto  Isaiah :  "  Go  forth  now  to  meet 
Ahaz,  thou  and  Shear-jashub  ^  thy  son,  at  the  end  of  the  con- 
duit of  the  upper  pool  in  the  highway  of  the  fuller's  field  ;  and 
say  unto  him.  Take  heed,  and  be  quiet ;  fear  not,  neither  be 
fainthearted  for  the  two  tails  of  these  smoking  firebrands,^  for 
the  fierce  anger  of  Kezin  with  Syria,  and  of  the  son  of  Eemaliah. 
Because  Syria,  Ephraim,  and  the  son  of  Eemaliah,  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  a 
king  in  the  midst  of  it,  even  the  son  of  Tabeal :  ^  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 
Eezin ;  and  the  head  of  Ephraim  is  Samaria,  and  the  head  of 
Samaria  is  Eemaliah's  son. — If  ye  will  not  believe,  surely  ye 
shall  not  be  established." 

Moreover  the  Lord  spake  again  unto  Ahaz,  saying :  "  Ask 
thee  a  sign  of  the  Lord  thy  God ;  ask  it  either  in  the  depth,  or 
in  the  height  above."  But  Ahaz  said:  "  I  will  not  ask,  neither 
will  I  tempt  the  Lord." 

And  he  said :  "  Hear  ye  now,  0  house  of  David  ;  Is  it  a  small 
thing  for  you  to  weary  men,  but  will  ye  weary  my  God  also  ? 

1  Rezin,  with  Menahem  of  Israel,  had  paid  tribute  to  Tiglath-pileser  in  738 
B.  c.  Pekah  and  he  now  aimed  to  force  Judah  to  join  them  in  a  coalition  against 
Assyria. 

2  Shear-jashub.  The  name,  'A  Remnant  Shall  Return,' is  a  symbol  of  Isaiah's 
characteristic  teaching  that  the  approaching  jiulgments  on  Judah  were  to  leave 
a  nucleus  of  the  faithful  who  should  begin  a  better  era. 

3  the  two  tails  .  .  .  firebrands.  '  These  two  smoking  fag-ends  of  firebrands.' 
*  Tabeal  is  a  Svrian  name. 


AHAZ  399 

Therefore  the  Lord  himself  shall  give  you  a  sign :  Behold,  a 
young  woman  is  with  child,  and  shall  bring  forth  a  son,  and 
shall  call  his  name  Immanuel.  For  before  the  child  shall  know 
to  refuse  the  evil,  and  choose  the  good,  the  land  whose  two  kings 
thou  abhorrest  shall  be  forsaken." 

At  that  time  the  king  of  Edom  recovered  Elath  to  Edom,  and 
drave  the  Jews  from  Elath :  and  the  Edomites  came  to  Elath,  and 
dwelt  there  unto  this  day. 

So  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,  which  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 : 
for  the  king  of  Assyria  went  up  against  Damascus,  and  took  it, 
and  carried  the  people  of  it  captive  to  Kir,  and  slew  Kezin. 

And  king  Ahaz  went  to  Damascus  to  meet  Tiglath-pileser  king 
of  Assyria,  and  saw  an  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  an  altar  according  to  all  that  king  Ahaz 
had  sent  from  Damascus :  so  Urijah  the  priest  made  it  against 
king  Ahaz  came  from  Damascus.  And  when  the  king  was  come 
from  Damascus,  the  king  saw  the  altar  :  and  the  king  approached 
to  the  altar,  and  went  up  unto  it.  And  he  burnt  his  burnt  offer- 
ing and  his  meal  offering,  and  poured  his  drink  offering,  and 
sprinkled  the  blood  of  his  peace  offerings,  upon  the  brazen  altar, 
M'hich  was  before  the  Lord,  and  drew  near  from  the  forefront  of 
the  house,  between  the  [new]  altar  and  the  house  of  the  Lord, 
and  put  it  [the  blood]  on  the  north  side  of  the  altar. ^  And  king 

1  The  Chronicler  states  that  at  this  time  Pekah  of  Israel  took  a  multitude  of 
captives  from  Judah;  but  that,  on  being  -warned  by  the  prophet  Oded  that  he 
was  thereby  incurring  guilt,  he  released  them,  "  and  with  the  spoil  clothed  all 
that  were  naked  among  them,  and  arrayed  them,  and  shod  them,  and  gave  them 
to  eat  and  to  drink,  and  anointed  them,  and  carried  all  the  feeble  of  them  upon 
asses,  and  brought  them  to  Jericho,  the  city  of  palm  trees,  to  their  brethren." 
He  records  further  of  Ahaz:  "In  the  time  of  his  distress  did  he  trespass  yet 
more  against  the  Lord,  this  is  that  I\ing  Ahaz:  for  he  sacrificed  unto  the  gods 
of  Oaniascus,  which  smote  him:  and  he  said:  'Because  the  gods  of  the  kings  of 
Syria  help  them,  therefore  will  I  sacrifice  to  them,  that  they  may  help  me.'  " 

2  By  sprinkling  the  blood  first  on  the  old  altar  and  then  on  the  new,  the  king 
symbolized  the  transference  of  efficacy  from  the  one  to  the  other. 


400  JUDAH    TO    JEHOIACHIN  S    RELEASE 

Ahaz  commanded  Urijah  the  priest,  saying  :  "  Upon  the  great 
altar  burn  the  morning  burnt  offering,  and  the  evening  meal 
offering,  and  the  king's  burnt  sacrifice,  and  his  meal  offering,  with 
the  burnt  offering  of  all  the  people  of  the  land,  and  their  meal 
offering,  and  their  drink  offerings  ;  and  sprinkle  upon  it  all  the 
blood  of  the  burnt  offering,  and  all  the  blood  of  the  sacrifice  :  and 
the  brazen  altar  shall  be  for  me  to  enquire  by."  ^  Thus  did  Uri- 
jah the  priest,  according  to  all  that  king  Ahaz  commanded. 

And  king  Ahaz  cut  off  the  borders  of  the  bases,  and  removed 
the  laver  from  off  them ;  and  took  down  the  sea  from  off  the 
brazen  oxen  that  were  under  it,  and  put  it  upon  a  pavement  of 
stones.  And  the  covert  for  the  sabbath  that  they  had  built  in 
the  house,  and  the  king's  entry  without,  turned  he  from  the 
house  of  the  Lord  for  the  king  of  Assyria. 

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  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Hezekiah's  Reforms  (2  Kings  xviii.  1-8 ;  2  Chron.  xxxii. 
30,  31).  Now  it  came  to  pass  in  the  third  year  of  Hoshea  son  of 
Elah  king  of  Israel,  that  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.  His  mother's  name  also  was  Abijah  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  removed 
the  high  places,  and  brake  the  pillars,  and  cut  down  the  asherah. 
And  he  brake  in  pieces  the  brazen  serpent  that  Moses  had  made  : 
for  unto  those  days  the  children  of  Israel  did  sacrifice  to  it.  And 
it  was  called  Nehushtan.^ 

And  Jehovah  was  with  him :  whithersoever  he  went  forth  he 
prospered.  He  rebelled  against  the  king  of  Assyria  and  served 
liim  not.  He  smote  the  Philistines,  even  unto  Gaza,  and  the 
borders  thereof,  from  the  tower  of  the  watchmen  to  the  fenced 
city.   This  same  Hezekiah  also  stopped  the  upper  spring  of  the 

1  to  enquire  by.  The  reference  is  probably  to  the  practice  of  divination  (com- 
mon in  Babylonia)  by  inspecting  the  entrails  of  sacrificial  victims. 

2  Nehuahtnn.  The  iirazen  One.  On  p.  41G  it  is  mentioned  that  the  proyibet  Mi- 
cah  preached  in  Hezekiah's  reign.  The  Chronicler  here  records  a  tradition  that 
Hezekiah  cleansed  the  temple,  instituted  special  sacrifices,  and  celebrated  a 
great  passover  feast. 


hezekiah's  sickness  401 

waters  of  Gihon,  and  brought  them  straight  down  to  the  west 
side  of  the  city  of  David.  ^  And  Hezekiah  prospered  in  all  his 
works.  Howbeit  in  the  business  of  the  ambassadors  of  the  princes 
of  Babylon,  who  sent  unto  him  to  enquire  of  the  wonder  that 
was  done  in  the  land,  God  left  him,  to  try  him,  that  he  might 
know  all  that  was  in  his  heart. 

Hezekiah's  Sickness  (2  Kings  xx.  1-11).  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  wall,  and  prayed  unto 
the  Lord,  saying :  ''  I  beseech  thee,  O  Lord,  remember  now 
how  I  have  walked  before  thee  in  truth  and  with  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  of  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  unto  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:  Let  them  take  a  lump  of  figs,  and  lay  it 
for  a  plaster  upon  the  boil,  and  he  shall  recover.  And  Hezekiah 
said  unto  Isaiah:  ''What  shall  be  the  sign  that  the  Lord  will 
heal  me,  and  that  I  shall  go  up  into  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  back- 
ward ten  degrees."  And  Isaiah  the  prophet  cried  unto  the  Lord: 
and  he  brought  tlie  shadow  ten  degrees  backward,  by  which  it 
had  gone  down  in  the  dial  of  Ahaz. 

1  waters  of  Gihon.  Now  called  the  Virgin  Spring.  Its  waters  were  brought  by 
a  rock-cut  tunnel  through  the  Temple  hill  to  the  Pool  of  Siloam  within  the  city 
•wall.  In  1880  an  inscription  was  discovered,  recording  the  completion  of  this 
tunnel. 


402 


JUDAH    TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 


/^'^^^^^^^r^^^^^i^^^ 


Embassy  of  Merodach-baladan  (2  Kings  xx.  12-19).  At 
that  time  Merodach-baladan,  the  son  of  Baladan  king  of  Baby- 
lon, sent  letters  and  a  present  unto  Hezekiah:  ^  for  he  had 
heard  that  Hezekiah  had  been  sick.  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  his  armor, 
and  all  that  was  found  in  his  treas- 
ures :  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  coun- 
try, even  from  Babylon."  And  he 
said:  "What  have  they  seen  in 
thine  house  ?  "  And  Hezekiah  an- 
swered :  "  All  the  things  that  are 
in  mine  house  have  they  seen  : 
there  is  nothing  among  my  treas- 
ures 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,  which  thou  shalt  beget,  shall  they  take  away  ;  and  they 
shall  be  eunuchs  in  the  palace  of  the  king  of  Babylon."  Then 
said  Hezekiah  unto  Isaiah  :  "  Good  is  the  word  of  the  Lord  which 
thou  hast  spoken."  And  he  said:  "Is  it  not  so,  if  peace  and 
truth  be  in  my  days  ?  " 

1  Merodach-hnladan  was  a  Chaldean  prince  who  had  made  himself  master 
of  Babylonia  721  B.  c.  In  710  he  was  expelled  by  Sarfj^on.  The  real  purpose  of 
his  embassy  to  Hezekiah  was  probably  to  form  an  alliance  against  the  Assyrians. 
He  recovered  his  throne  ap^ain  for  a  feAv  months  in  702  b.  c,  but  was  finally 
overthrown  by  Sennacherib,  just  before  the  latter's  great  western  campaign. 


Merodach-baladan.  From  a  sculptured 
boundary-stone  markinga  fief  conferred 
by  the  king. 


SENNACHERIB  S    INVASION    OF   JUDAH 


403 


Sennacherib's  Invasion  of  Judah  (2  Kings  xviii.  13-37 ; 
xix.  1-9,  35-37;  xx.  20,  21).  Now  in  the  fourteenth  year  of  king 
Hezekiah  did  Sennacherib  king  of  Assyria  come  up  against  all 
tlie  fenced  cities  of  Judah,  and  took  them.  And  Hezekiah  king 
of  Judah  sent  to  the  king  of  Assyria  to  Lachish,  saying:  "I 
have  offended  ;  return  from  me :  that  which  thou  puttest  on  me 
will  I  bear."  ^  And  the  king  of  Assyria  appointed  unto  Hezekiah 


'.  > 


Sennacherib  receiving  the  Spoil  of  Lachish.    From  a  relief,  now  in  the  British  Museum. 


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. 

1  Sennacherib's  record  of  this  invasion  is  inscribed  on  one  of  the  colossal 
bulls  which  stood  in  the  if^rand  entrance  to  the  palace  at  Kouyunjik.  We  here 
learn  that  Hezekiah's  revolt  was  part  of  a  concerted  movement  in  which  many 
Philistine  and  Phoenician  cities  also  took  part,  with  the  support  of  Egypt.  Sen- 
nacherib records  that  he  first  invaded  Phoenicia,  subduing  Sidon  and  other 
towns,  upon  which  Ashdod,  Ammon,  Moab,  and  Edom  submitted;  that  he  then 
invaded  the  Philistine  country,  reduced  the  rebellious  cities,  and  defeated  the 
Egyptian  army  which  had  come  to  their  relief.  He  then  turned  upon  Judah, 
and  took  forty-six  of  its  towns,  which  he  apportioned  among  the  Philistine 
kings  that  had  remained  loyal.  Hezekiah,  he  says,  '"like  a  bird  in  a  cage,  I 
shut  up  in  Jerusalem,  his  royal  city,"  until  he  submitted  to  pay  30  talents  of 
gold  and  800  of  silver,  and  to  send  his  daughters  and  concubines  as  hostages  to 
Nineveh. 


404  JUDAII    TO   JEHOIACHIN  S   RELEASE 

And  the  king  of  Assyria  sent  the  Tartan  and  the  Kabsaris 
and  the  Rab-shakeh  from  Lachish  ^  to  king  Hezekiah  with  a 
great  host  against  Jerusalem.  And  they  went  up,  and  when 
they  were  come  to  Jerusalem,  they  came  and  stood  by  the  con- 
duit of  the  upper  pool,  which  is  in  the  highway  of  the  fuller's 
field.  And  when  they  had  called  to  the  king,  there  came  out  to 
them  Eliakim  the  son  of  Hilkiah,  which  was  over  the  household, 
and  Shebna  the  scribe,  and  Joah  the  son  of  Asaph  the  recorder. 

And  the  Rab-shakeh  said  unto  them:  "  Speak  ye  now  to  Heze- 
kiah, Thus  saith  the  great  king,  the  king  of  Assyria,  What  con- 
fidence is  this  wherein  thou  trustest  ?  Thou  sayest  (but  they  are 
but  vain  words),  I  have  counsel  and  strength  for  the  war.  Now 
on  whom  dost  thou  trust,  that  thou  rebellest  against  me  ?  Lo, 
thou  trustest  upon  the  staff  of  this  bruised  reed,  even  upon 
Egypt,  on  which  if  a  man  lean,  it  will  go  into  his  hand,  and 
pierce  it :  so  is  Pharaoh  king  of  Egypt  unto  all  that  trust  on 
him.  But  if  ye  say  unto  me,  We  trust  in  the  Lord  our  God : 
is  not  that  he,  whose  high  places  and  whose  altars  Hezekiah 
hath  taken  away,  and  hath  said  to  Judah  and  Jerusalem,  Ye 
shall  worship  before  this  altar  in  Jerusalem  ?  Now  therefore, 
I  pray  thee,  make  a  wager  with  my  lord  the  king  of  Assyria, 
and  I  will  deliver  thee  two  thousand  horses,  if  thou  be  able  on 
thy  part  to  set  riders  upon  them.  How  then  wilt  thou  turn 
away  the  face  of  one  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  to  me.  Go  up  against  this  land,  and  destroy  it." 

Then  said  Eliakim  the  son  of  Hilkiah,  and  Shebna,  and  Joah, 
unto  the  Rab-shakeh  :  ''  Speak,  I  pray  thee,  to  thy  servants  in 
the  Syrian  language;  for  we  understand  it:  and  talk  not  with 
us  in  the  Jews'  language  in  the  ears  of  the  people  that  are  on 
the  wall."  But  the  Rab-shakeh  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  which  sit  on  the  wall,  that  they 
may  eat  tlieir  own  dung,  and  drink  their  own  water  with  you  ?  " 

Then  the  Rab-shakeli  stood  and  cried  with  a  loud  voice  in 
the  Jews'  language,  and  spake,  saying:  "Hear  the  word  of  the 
great  king,  the  king  of  Assyria  :  Thus  saith  the  king,  Let  not 

1  Sennacherib  was  then  besieging  Lachish  (2  Chron.  xxxii.  9),  The  Tartan 
was  the  commander-in-chief;  the  Rabsaris,  perhaps  the  chief  eunuch;  and  the 
Rab-shakeh,  the  chief  of  the  captains. 


SENNACHERIB  S    INVASION    OF   JUDAH 


405 


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  will  surely  deliver  us,  and  this  city 
shall  not  be  delivered  into  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Assyria. 
Hearken  not  to  Hezekiah:  for  thus  saith  the  king  of  Assyria, 
Make  an  agreement  with  me  by  a  present,  and  come  out  to  me, 
and  then  eat  ye  every  man  of  his  own  vine,  and  every  one  of  his 
fig  tree,  and  drink  ye  every  one  the  waters  of  his  cistern  :  until 
T  come  and  take  you  away  to  a  land  like  your  own  land,  a  land 
of  corn  and  wine,  a  land  of  bread  and  vineyards.  Beware  lest 
Hezekiah  persuade  you,  saying.  The  Lord  will  deliver  us.  Hath 
any  of  the  gods  of  the  nations  delivered  at  all  his  land  out  of 
the  hand  of  the 
king  of  Assyria?  ^^ 

Where  are  the 
godsof  Hamath, 
and  of  Arpad  ? 
where  are  the 
gods  of  Sephar- 
vaim,  Hena,and 
Ivah  ?  Where 
are  the  gods  of 
the  land  of  Sa- 
maria ?  have 
they  delivered 
Samaria  out  of 
mine  hand? 
Who  are  they 
among  all  the 
gods  of  the 
countries,     that 

have  delivered  their  country  out  of  mine  hand,  that  the  Lord 
should  deliver  Jerusalem  out  of  mine  hand  ?  "  But  the  people 
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,  which  was  over  the 
household,  and  Shebna  the  scribe,  and  Joah  the  son  of  Asaph 
the  recorder,  to  Hezekiah  with  their  clothes  rent,  and  told  him 
the  words  of  the  Rab-shakeh. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  wlien  king  Hezekiah  heard  it,  that  he 
rent  his  clothes,  and  covered  himself  with  sackcloth,  and  went 


Assyrian  Chariot  of  the  time  of  Sennacherib. 


406  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

into  the  house  of  the  Lord.  And  he  sent  Eliakim,  which  was 
over  the  household,  and  Shebna  the  scribe,  and  the  elders  of 
the  priests,  covered  with  sackcloth,  to  Isaiah  the  prophet  the 
son  of  Amoz.  And  they  said  unto  him  :  ''Thus  saith  Hezekiah, 
This  day  is  a  day  of  trouble,  and  of  rebuke,  and  contumely  : 
for  the  children  are  come  to  the  birth,  and  there  is  not  strength 
to  bring  forth.  It  may  be  the  Lord  thy  God  will  hear  all  the 
words  of  the  Rab-shakeh,  whom  the  king  of  Assyria  his  master 
hath  sent  to  reproach  the  living  God  ;  and  will  reprove  the 
words  which  the  Lord  thy  God  hath  heard  :  wherefore  lift  up 
thy  prayer  for  the  remnant  that  are  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  which  thou  hast  heard, 
with  Avhich  the  servants  of  the  king  of  Assyria  have  blasphemed 
me.  Behold,  I  will  send  a  blast  upon  him,  and  he  shall  hear  a 
rumor,  and  shall  return  to  his  own  land ;  and  I  will  cause  him 
to  fall  by  the  sword  in  his  own  land." 

So  the  Rab-shakeh  returned,  and  found  the  king  of  Assyria 
warring  against  Libnah  :  for  he  had  heard  that  he  was  departed 
from  Lachish. 

And  he  heard  say  of  Tirhakah^  king  of  Ethiopia:  ''Behold, 
he  is  come  out  to  fight  against  thee."  And  it  came  to  pass  that 
night,  that  the  angel  of  the  Lord  went  out,  and  smote  in  the 
camp  of  the  Assyrians  an  hundred  fourscore  and  five  thousand  : 
and  when  they  arose  early  in  the  morning,  behold,  they  were  all 
dead  corpses.^  So  Sennacherib  king  of  Assyria  departed,  and 
went  and  returned,  and  dwelt  at  Nineveh.  And  it  came  to  pass, 
as  he  was  worshipping  in  the  house  of  Nisroch  his  god,  that 
Adrammelech  and  Sherezer  his  sons  smote  him  \vith  tlie  sword  : 
and  they  escaped  into  the  land  of  Ararat.  And  Esarhaddon  his 
son  reigned  in  his  stead.  ^ 

1  Tirhakah.  Taharka,  nephew  of  the  Egyptian  king  Shabaka.  He  became 
king  of  Ethiopia  some  years  after  this  event. 

2  Sennacherib's  own  record  is  silent  regarding  this  calamity.  Herodotus, 
however,  mentions  that  while  the  Assyrian  army  lay  at  Pelusium  on  the 
borders  of  Egypt,  "there  came  in  the  night  a  multitude  of  field  mice,  which 
devoured  all  the  quivers  and  bf)w-strings  of  the  enemy,  and  ate  tlie  thongs  by 
which  they  managed  their  shields.  Next  morning  they  began  their  flight,  and 
multitudes  fell,  since  they  had  no  arms  with  which  to  defend  themselves." 
Since  mice  were  anciently  associated  with  pestilence  (see  p.  219),  the  Eg3'ptian 
and  the  Hebrew  traditions  may  have  a  common  origin. 

3  No  Assyrian  god  Nisroch  is  known.    Sennacherib's  death  took  place  in 


MANASSEH  407 

And  the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Hezekiah,  and  all  his  might,  and 
how  he  made  a  pool,  and  a  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. 

Manasseh  (2  Kings  xxi.  1-18;  2  Chron.  xxxiii.  11-17). 
Manasseh  was  twelve  years  old  when  he  began  to  reign,  and 
reigned  fifty  and  five  years  in  Jerusalem.  And  his  mother's  name 
was  Hephzibah.  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  built  up  again  the 
high  places  which  Hezekiah  his  father  had  destroyed;  and  he 
reared  up  altars  for  Baal,  and  made  an  asherah,  as  did  Ahab 
king  of  Israel ;  and  worshipped  all  the  host  of  heaven,  and 
served  them.^  And  he  built  altars  in  the  house  of  the  Lord,  of 
which  the  Lord  said :  "  In  Jerusalem  will  I  put  my  name." 
And  he  made  his  son  pass  through  the  fire,  and  observed 
times, ^  and  used  enchantments,  and  dealt  with  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 
the  asherah  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  tribes  of  Israel,  will 
I  put  my  name  for  ever:  neither  will  I  make  the  feet  of  Israel 
move  any  more  out  of  the  land  which  I  gave  their  fathers ; 
only  if  they  will  observe  to  do  according  to  all  that  I  have  com- 
manded them,  and  according  to  all  the  law  that  my  servant  Moses 
commanded  them."  But  they  hearkened  not :  and  Manasseh  se- 
duced 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  INIanasseh  king  of  Judah  hath  done  these  abomina- 
tions, and  hath  done  wickedly  above  all  that  the  Amorites  did, 
which  were  before  him,  and  hath  made  Judah  also  to  sin  with 
his  idols  :  therefore  thus  saith  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  Behold, 

681  B.  c,  twenty  years  after  the  events  just  recounted.    The  land  of  Ararat  is 
Armenia.  Esarhaddon  reigned  681-668  b.  c. 

1  "Worship  of  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars  had  its  center  in  Babylonia,  and  was 
brought  into  Judah  under  the  Assyrian  domination.  Manasseh  is  twice  men- 
tioned in  Assyrian  lists  of  tributary  princes. 

2  observed  times.  Practised  augury,  as  by  observing  the  clouds,  etc. 


408  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   KELEASE 

I  am  bringing  such  evil  upon  Jerusalem  and  Judah,  that  who- 
soever 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  Aliab :  and  I  will  wipe  Jerusalem  as  a  man  wipeth 
a  dish,  wiping  it,  and  turning  it  upside  down.  And  I  will  for- 
sake 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  was 
evil  in  my  sight,  and  have  provoked  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. 

Wherefore  the  Lord  brought  upon  them  the  captains  of  the 
host  of  the  king  of  Assyria,  which  took  Manasseh  in  chains, 
and  bound  him  with  fetters,  and  carried  him  to  Babylon.  And 
when  he  was  in  affliction,  he  besought  the  Lord  his  God,  and 
humbled  himself  greatly  before  the  God  of  his  fathers,  and  prayed 
unto  him :  ^  and  he  was  intreated  of  him,  and  heard  his  suppli- 
cation, and  brought  him  again  to  Jerusalem  into  his  kingdom. 
Then  Manasseh  knew  that  the  Lord  he  was  God. 

Now  after  this  he  built  a  wall  without  the  city  of  David,  on 
the  west  side  of  Gihon,  in  the  valley,  even  to  the  entering  in  at 
the  fish  gate,  and  compassed  about  Ophel,  and  raised  it  up  a  very 
great  height,  and  put  captains  of  war  in  all  the  fenced  cities  of 
Judah.  And  he  took  away  the  strange  gods,  and  the  idol  out 
of  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  all  the  altars  that  he  had  built 
in  the  mount  of  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  in  Jerusalem,  and 
cast  them  out  of  the  city.  And  he  repaired  the  altar  of  the  Lord, 
and  sacrificed  thereon  peace  off'erings  and  thank  off'erings,  and 
commanded  Judah  to  serve  the  Lord  God  of  Israel.  Neverthe- 
less the  people  did  sacrifice  still  in  the  high  places,  yet  unto  the 
Lord  their  God  only. 

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  the  garden  of  his  own 
house,  in  the  garden  of  Uzza :  and  Anion  his  son  reigned  in  his 
stead. 

1  The  Greek  version  of  the  Old  Testament  has  a  "Prayer  of  Manasses." 


JOSIAH   AND   THE   DISCOVERY   OF   THE   LAW-BOOK      409 

Amon  (2  Kings  xxi.  19-26).  Amon  was  twenty  and  two  years 
old  when  he  began  to  reign,  and  he  reigned  two  years  in  Jeru- 
salem. And  his  mother's  name  was  MeshuUemeth,  the  daughter 
of  Haruz  of  Jotbah.  And  he  did  that  which  was  evil  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord,  as  his  father  Manasseh  did.  And  he  walked 
in  all  the  way  that  his  father  walked  in,  and  served  the  idols 
that  his  father  served,  and  worshipped  them  :  and  he  forsook  the 
Lord  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.  And  the  people  of  the  land  slew  all  them 
that  had  conspired  against  king  Amon  ;  and  the  people  of  the  land 
made  Josiah  his  son  king  in  his  stead.  Now  the  rest  of  the  acts  of 
Amon  which  he  did,  are  they  not  written  in  the  book  of  the  chron- 
icles of  the  kings  of  Judah  ?  And  he  was  buried  in  his  sepulchre 
in  the  garden  of  Uzza :  and  Josiah  his  son  reigned  in  his  stead. 

Josiah  and  the  Discovery  of  the  Law-Book  (2Kingsxxii.). 
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  Adainh  of  Bozkath.  And  he  did  that 
which  was  right  in  the  sight  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, 
that  the  king  sent  Shaphan  the  son  of  Azaliah,  the  son  of  j\Ie- 
shullam,  the  scribe,  to  the  house  of  the  Lord,  saying  :  "  Go  up  to 
Hilkiah  the  high  priest,  that  he  may  sum  the  silver  which  is 
brought  into  the  house  of  the  Lord,  which  the  keepers  of  the 
door  have  gathered  of  the  people  :  and  let  them  deliver  it  into 
the  hand  of  the  doers  of  the  work,  that  have  the  oversight  of 
the  house  of  the  Lord :  and  let  them  give  it  to  the  doers  of  the 
work  which  is  in  the  house  of  the  Lord,  to  repair  the  breaches 
of  the  house,  unto  carpenters,  and  builders,  and  masons,  and  to 
buy  timber  and  hewn  stone  torepair  the  house."  Howbeit  there 
was  no  reckoning  made  with  them  of  the  money  that  was  de- 
livered into  their  hand,  because  they  dealt  faithfully. 

And  Hilkiah  the  high  priest  said  unto  Shaphan  the  scribe : 
"I  have  found  the  book  of  the  law  ^  in  the  house  of  the  Lord." 

1  the  hook' of  the  lair.  This  was  probably  the  middle  section  of  our  present 
book  of  Deuteronomy,  containing  at  least  chapters  xii.  to  xxvi.,  and  ending 
with  the  eloquent  blessings  and  curses  of  chapter  xxviii. 


410  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

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  gathered  the  money  that 
was  found  in  the  house,  and  have  delivered  it  into  the  hand  of 
them  that  do  the  work,  that  have  the  oversight  of  the  house  of 
the  Lord."  And  Shaphan  the  scribe  shewed  the  king,  saying: 
*'  Hilkiah  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  Michaiah,  and  Shaphan  the  scribe,  and 
Asahiah  a  servant  of  the  king's,  saying  :  '^  Go  ye,  enquire  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  me,  because  our  fathers  have 
not  hearkened  unto  the  words  of  this  book,  to  do  according  unto 
all  that  which  is  written  concerning  us." 

So  Hilkiah  the  priest,  and  Ahikam,  and  Achbor,  and  Sha- 
phan, and  Asahiah,  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  college)  ;  and  they 
communed  with  her.  And  she  said  unto  them  :  "  Thus  saitli  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 
nie,  and  have  burnt  incense  unto  other  gods,  that  they  might 
provoke  me  to  anger  with  all  the  works  of  their  hands ;  there- 
fore my  wrath  shall  be  kindled  against  this  place,  and  shall  not 
be  quenched.  But  to  the  king  of  Judah  which  sent  you  to  en- 
quire 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 
jDlace,  and  against  the  inhabitants  thereof,  that  they  should  be- 
come 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." 


THE    GREAT   REFORMATION  411 

The  Great  Reformation  (2  Kings  xxiii.  1-27).  And  they 
brought  the  king  word  again.  And  the  king  sent,  and  they  gath- 
ered unto  him  all  the  elders  of  Judah  and  of  Jerusalem.  And 
the  king  went  up  into  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  a  pillar,  and  made  a  covenant  before  the  Lord,  to 
walk  after  the  Lord,  and  to  keep  bis  commandments  and  his 
testimonies  and  his  statutes  with  all  his  heart  and  all  his  soul, 
to  perform  the  words  of  this  covenant  that  were  written  in  this 
book.   And  all  the  people  stood  to  the  covenant. 

And  the  king  commanded  Hilkiah  the  high  priest,  and  the 
second  priest,  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  the  asherah,  and  for  all  the  host  of  heaven  :  and  he 
burned  them  without  Jerusalem  in  the  fields  of  Kidron,  and 
carried  the  ashes  of  them  unto  Beth-el.  And  he  put  down  the 
idolatrous  priests,  whom  the  kings  of  Judah  had  ordained  to 
burn  incense  in  the  high  places  in  the  cities  of  Judah,  and  in 
the  places  round  about  Jerusalem  ;  them  also  that  burned  incense 
unto  Baal,  to  the  sun,  and  to  the  moon,  and  to  the  planets,^ 
and  to  all  the  host  of  heaven.  And  he  brought  out  the  asherah 
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  cast  the  powder  thereof  upon  the  graves 
of  the  common  people.  And  he  brake  down  the  houses  of  the 
sodomites,  that  were  by  the  house  of  the  Lord,  where  the  women 
w^ove  hangings  for  the  asherah.  And  he  brought  all  the  priests 
out  of  the  cities  of  Judah,  and  defiled  the  high  places  w^here  the 
priests  had  burned  incense,  from  Geba  to  Beer-sheba,  and  brake 
down  the  high  places  of  the  satyrs  ^  that  were  in  the  entering  in 
of  the  gate  of  Joshua  the  governor  of  the  city,  which  were  on  a 
man's  left  hand  as  he  enteretli  the  gate  of  the  city.  Neverthe- 
less the  priests  of  the  high  places  came  not  up  to  the  altar  of 
the  Lord  in  Jerusalem,  but  they  did  eat  of  the  unleavened  bread 

1  the  prophets.  Zeplianiah  was  active  at  this  time;  Jeremiah  was  beginning 
his  career,  and  Xahum  was  a  still  younger  contemporary, 

2  planets.  Probably  '  mansions,'  as  the  word  is  used  in  astrology. 

8  satyrs.  Goat-shaped  demons  that  were  popularly  worshipped.  Cf.  Lev.  xvii. 
7:  "They  shall  no  more  sacrifice  ,  .  .  unto  the  he-goats." 


412  JUDAH    TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

among  their  brethren.  And  he  defiled  Topheth,  which  is  in  the 
valley  of  the  children  of  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  given  to  the 
sun,  at  the  entering  in  of  the  house  of  the  Lord,  by  the  chamber 
of  Nathan-melech  the  chamberlain,  which  was  in  the  precincts, 
and  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  beat  down,  and  brake  them 
down  from  thence,  and  cast  the  dust  of  them  into  the  brook 
Kidron.  And  the  high  places  that  were  before  ^  Jerusalem, 
which  were  on  the  right  hand  of  the  mount  of  corruption,  which 
Solomon  the  king  of  Israel  had  builded  for  Ashtoreth  the  abom- 
ination of  the  Zidonians,  and  for  Chemosh  the  abomination  of 
the  Moabites,  and  for  Milcom  the  abomination  of  the  children 
of  Ammon,  did  the  king  defile.  And  he  brake  in  pieces  the  pil- 
lars, and  cut  down  the  Asherim,  and  filled  their  places  with  the 
bones  of  men. 

Moreover  the  altar  that  was  at  Beth-el,  and  the  high  place 
which  Jeroboam  the  son  of  Nebat,  who  made  Israel  to  sin,  had 
made,  both  that  altar  and  the  high  place  he  brake  down,  and 
brake  in  pieces  the  stones  thereof,  and  stamped  it  small  to  pow- 
der, and  burned  the  asherah.  And  as  Josiah  turned  himself,  he 
spied  the  sepulchres  that  were  there  in  the  mount,  and  sent,  and 
took  the  bones  out  of  the  sepulchres,  and  burned  them  upon  the 
altar,  and  polluted  it,  according  to  the  word  of  the  Lord  which 
the  man  of  God  proclaimed,  who  proclaimed  these  things. ^  Then 
he  said  :  "  What  monument  is  that  that  I  see  ?  "  And  the  men 
of  the  city  told  him  :  ''  It  is  the  sepulchre  of  the  man  of  God, 
which  came  from  Judah,  and  proclaimed  these  things  that  thou 
hast  done  against  the  altar  of  Beth-el."  And  he  said  :  "  Let  him 
alone  ;  let  no  man  move  his  bones."  So  they  let  his  bones  alone, 
with  the  bones  of  the  prophet  that  came  out  of  Samaria.  And 
all  the  houses  also  of  the  high  places  that  were  in  the  cities  of 
Samaria,  which  the  kings  of  Israel  had  made  to  provoke  the 
Lord  to  anger,  Josiah  took  away,  and  did  to  them  according  to 

1  This  cult  was  doubtless  derived  from  Babylonia,  where  the  sun-god  Sha- 
iTiasli,  like  the  Greek  Helios,  was  represented  as  ridinff  throufi'h  his  course  in  a 
horse-drawn  chariot.  Ezek.  viii.  16,  speaks  of  'men  with  their  backs  toward 
the  temple  of  Jehovah,  worshipping  the  sun  toward  the  east.' 

2  before.  East  of.  3  See  p.  331. 


JOSIAH'S    DEATH  413 

all  the  acts  that  he  had  done  in  Beth-el.  And  he  slew  all  the 
priests  of  the  high  places  that  were  there  upon  the  altars,  and 
burned  men's  bones  upon  them,  and  returned  to  Jerusalem. 

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  ;  but  in 
the  eighteenth  year  of  king  Josiah,  wherein  this  passover  was 
holden  to  the  Lord  in  Jerusalem. 

Moreover  them  that  had  familiar  spirits,  and  the  wizards,  and 
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  perform  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. 

Notwithstanding  the  Lord  turned  not  from  the  fierceness  of 
his  great  wrath,  wherewith  his  anger  was  kindled  against  Judah, 
because  of  all  the  provocations  that  Manasseh  had  provoked  him 
withal.  And  the  Lord  said:  "I  will  remove  Judah  also  out  of 
my  sight,  as  I  have  removed  Israel,  and  will  cast  off  this  city 
Jerusalem  which  I  have  chosen,  and  the  house  of  which  I  said, 
My  name  shall  be  there." 

Josiah's  Death  (2  Chron.  xxxv.  20-27).  After  all  this,  when 
Josiah  had  prepared  the  temple,  Necho  king  of  Egypt  came  up 
to  fight  at  Carchemish  by  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  me  to  make  haste  :  forbear  thee  from  meddling 
with  God,  who  is  with  me,  that  he  destroy  thee  not."  Never- 
theless Josiah  would  not  turn  his  face  from  him,  but  strengthened 
himself  that  he  might  fight  with  him,  and  hearkened  not  unto 

1  Necho  II  (609-594  b.  c.)  in  608  took  advantage  of  the  hard-pressed  condition 
of  Ass\'ria  to  assert  the  ancient  Egyptian  rule  over  the  Syrian  provinces.  After 
overthrowing  Josiah  he  pushed  northward,  finding  the  Assyrian  power  too  spent 
to  oppose  him,  and  returned  as  master  (for  the  time)  of  the  Asiatic  conquests  of 
the  Pharaohs. 


414  JUDAH    TO   JEHOIACHIX'S   RELEASE 

the  words  of  aSTecho  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  sing- 
ing men  and  the  singing  women  spake  of  Josiah  in  their  lamen- 
tations to  this  day,  and  made  them  an  ordinance  in  Israel  :  and 
behold,  they  are  written  in  the  Lamentations.^  Now  the  rest  of 
the  acts  of  Josiah,  and  his  goodness,  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. 

Jehoahaz  (2  Kings  xxiii.  31-35).  Then  the  people  of  the 
land  took  Jehoahaz  the  son  of  Josiah,  and  made  him  king  in 
his  father's  stead  in  Jerusalem.  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-Necho  put  him  in  bands  at  Riblah  in  the  land  of 
Hamath,  that  he  might  not  reign  in  Jerusalem  ;  and  put  the 
land  to  a  tribute  of  an  hundred  talents  of  silver,  and  a  talent  of 
gold.  And  Pharaoh-Necho  made  Eliakim  the  son  of  Josiah  king 
in  the  room  of  Josiah  his  father,  and  turned  his  name  to  Je- 
hoiakim,  and  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  land,  of  every  one  according  to  his 
taxation,  to  give  it  unto  Pharaoh-Necho. 

Jeremiah's  Preaching  and  Trial  (2  Kings  xxiii.  36,  37  ;  Jer. 
xxvi.).   Jehoiakim  was  twenty  and  five  years  old  when  he  began 

1  Lamentations.  Not  the  book  of  that  name,  but  probably  a  lost  collection  of 
elegies. 

2  The  fate  of  Jehoahaz  is  the  theme  of  Ezekiel's  elep^y  in  chapter  xix.  of  his 
book.  The  chanf^e  of  Eliakim's  name  was  a  mark  of  vassalage.  It  was  made 
simply  by  using  one  name  of  God  (Yahweh)  for  another  (El). 


JEREMIAH'S   PREACHING  AND   TRIAL  415 

to  reign  ;  and  he  reigned  eleven  years  in  Jerusalem.  And  his 
mother's  name  was  Zebudah,  the  daiigliter  of  Pedaiali  of  lluniah. 
And  he  did  that  which  was  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  accord- 
ing to  all  that  his  fathers  had  done. 

In  tlie  beginning  of  the  reign  of  Jehoiakim  the  son  of  Josiah 
king  of  Judah  came  this  word  from  the  Lord  [to  Jeremiah]  say- 
ing :  "Thus  saith  the  Lord;  Stand  in  the  court  of  the  Lord's 
house,  and  speak  unto  all  the  cities  of  Judah,  which  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,  that  I  may  re- 
pent 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 
law,  which  I  have  set  before  you,  to  hearken  to  the  words  of  my 
servants  the  prophets,  whom  I  sent  unto  you,  rising  up  early 
and  sending  them,  but  ye  have  not  hearkened  ;  then  will  I  make 
this  house  like  Shiloh,^  and  will  make  this  city  a  curse  to  all 
the  nations  of  the  earth.'  " 

So  the  priests  and  the  prophets  and  all  the  people  heard  Jer- 
emiah speaking  these  words  in  the  house  of  the  Lord.  Now  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  took  him, 
saying,  "  Thou  shalt  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  an  inhabitant  ?  "  And  all  the 
people  were  gathered  against  Jeremiah  in  the  house  of  the  Lord. 

When  the  princes  of  Judah  heard  these  things,  then  they 
came  up  from  the  king's  house  unto  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and 
sat  down  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  the  princes  and  to  all  the  people, 
saying  :  "  The  Lord  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,  and  obey  the  voice  of 
the  Lord  your  God ;  and  the  Lord  will  repent  him  of  the  evil 

1  The  destruction  of  Shiloh  probably  followed  upon  the  Philistine  victory  re- 
counted on  p.  217. 


416  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN  S   RELEASE 

that  he  hath  pronounced  against  you.  As  for  me,  behold,  I  am 
in  your  hand  :  do  with  me  as  seemeth  good  and  meet  unto 
you.  But  know  ye  for  certain,  that  if  ye  put  me  to  death,  ye 
shall  surely  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  :  ''  Micah  the  Morasthite 
prophesied  in  the  days  of  Hezekiah  king  of  Judah,  and  spake 
to  all  the  people  of  Judah,  saying.  Thus  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts  ; 
Zion  shall  be  plowed  like  a  field,  and  Jerusalem  shall  become 
heaps,  and  the  mountain  of  the  house  a  wooded  height.  Did 
Hezekiah  and  all  Judah  put  him  at  all  to  death  ?  did  he  not 
fear  the  Lord,  and  besought  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  repented 
him  of  the  evil  which  he  had  pronounced  against  them  ?  Thus 
might  we  procure  great  evil  against  our  souls." 

And  there  was  also  a  man  that  prophesied  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord,  Urijah  the  son  of  Shemaiah  of  Kirjathjearim,  who 
prophesied  against  this  city  and  against  this  land  according  to 
all  the  words  of  Jeremiah :  and  when  Jehoiakim  the  king  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, 
namely,  Elnathan  the  son  of  Achbor,  and  certain  men  with  him 
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.  Nevertheless  the  hand  of  Ahikam  ^  the  son  of  Shaphan 
was  with  Jeremiah,  that  tliey  should  not  give  him  into  the  hand 
of  the  people  to  put  him  to  death. 

The  Writing  of  Jeremiah*s  Prophecies  (Jer.  xxxvi.).  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  concerning  Jerusalem 

1  Ahikam  was  the  father  of  Gedaliah,  who  later  befriended  Jeremiah.  He  has 
been  mentioned  on  p.  410. 


THE   WRITING   OF   JEREMIAH'S   PROPHECIES  417 

and  Judah,  and  concerning  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  pur- 
pose 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  Xeriah  :  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  shut  up  ;  I  cannot 
go  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  the 
fasting  day  :  and  also  thou  shalt  read  them  in  the  ears  of  all 
Judah  that  come  out  of  their  cities.  It  may  be  they  will  present 
their  supplication  before  the  Lord,  and  will  return  every  one 
from  his  evil  way  :  for  great  is  the  anger  and  the  fury  that  the 
Lord  hath  pronounced  against  this  people." 

And  it  came  to  pass  in  the  fifth  year  of  Jehoiakim  the  son  of 
Josiah  king  of  Judah,  in  the  ninth  month,  that  they  proclaimed 
a  fast  before  the  Lord  to  all  the  people  in  Jerusalem,  and  to  all 
the  people  that  came  from  the  cities  of  Judah  unto  Jerusalem. 
Then  read  Baruch  in  the  book  the  words  of  Jeremiah  in  the 
house  of  the  Lord,  in  the  chamber  of  Gemariah  the  son  of  Sha- 
phan  the  scribe,  in  the  higher  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,  then  he 
went  down  into  the  king's  house,  into  the  scribe's  chamber  : 
and  lo,  all  the  princes  sat  there,  even  Elishama  the  scribe,  and 
Delaiah  the  son  of  Shemaiah,  and  Elnathan  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  Xeriah  took  the  roll  in  his  hand,  and  came  unto  them. 
And  they  said  unto  him  :  "  Sit  down  now,  and  read  it  in  our 
ears."  So  Baruch  read  it  in  their  ears.  Now  it  came  to  pass, 
when  they  had  heard  all  the  words,  they  were  afraid  both  one 


418  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

and  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  an- 
swered 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  ; 
and  let  no  man  know  where  ye  be."  And  they  went  in  to  the 
king  into  the  chamber,  but  they  laid  up  the  roll  in  the  chamber 
of  Elishama  the  scribe,  and  told  all  these  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  of  the  king,  and  in  the  ears  of  all  the  princes  which  stood 
beside  the  king.  Now  the  king  sat  in  the  winterhouse :  and 
there  was  a  fire  on  the  brazier  burning  before  him.  And  it  came 
to  pass,  that  when  Jehudi  had  read  three  or  four  leaves,  he  cut 
it  with  the  penknife,  and  cast  it  into  the  fire  that  was  on  the 
brazier,  until  all  the  roll  was  consumed  in  the  fire  that  was  on 
the  brazier.  Yet  they  were  not  afraid,  nor  rent  their  garments, 
neither  the  king,  nor  any  of  his  servants  that  heard  all  these 
words.  Nevertheless  Elnathan  and  Delaiah  and  Gemariah  had 
made  intercession  to  the  king  that  he  would  not  burn  the  roll : 
but  he  would  not  hear  them.  But  the  king  commanded  Jerah- 
meel  the  son  of  Hammelech,  and  Seraiah  the  son  of  Azriel,  and 
Shelemiah  the  son  of  Abdeel,  to  take  Baruch  the  scribe  and 
Jeremiah  the  prophet :   but  the  Lord  hid  them. 

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  Judali  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  bo  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  upoi^ 


JEHOIACHIN    AND    THE    FIRST    CAPTIVITY   OF   JUDAH     419 

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  hre  :  and  there  were  added  besides 
unto  them  many  like  words. 

The  Reign  of  Jehoiakim  (2  Kings  xxiv.  1-7).  In  his  days 
Nebuchadnezzar  ^  king  of  Babylon  came  up,  and  Jehoiakim 
became  his  servant  three  years:  then  he  turned  and  rebelled 
against  him.  And  the  Lord  sent  against  him  bands  of  the  Chal- 
dees,  and  bands  of  the  Syrians,  and  bands  of  the  Moabites,  and 
bands  of  the  children  of  Ammon,  and  sent  them  against  Judah 
to  destroy  it,  according  to  the  word  of  the  Lord,  which  he  spake 
by  his  servants  the  prophets.  Surely  at  the  commandment  of 
the  Lord  came  this  upon  Judah,  to  remove  them  out  of  his 
sight,  for  the  sins  of  Manasseh,  according  to  all  that  he  did ; 
and  also  for  the  innocent  blood  that  he  shed:  for  he  filled 
Jerusalem  with  innocent  blood ;  which  the  Lord  would  not 
pardon. 

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  river  of  Egypt  unto  the  river  Euphrates  all  that 
pertained  to  the  king  of  Egypt. 

Jehoiachin  and  the  First  Captivity  of  Judah  (2  Kings  xxiv. 
8—12,  15-17).  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  Jeru- 

1  Nebuchadnezzar.  More  exactly,  Nebuchadrezzar .  He  was  the  son  of  Xabo- 
polassar,  who  had  founded  the  new  Chaldean  dynast}'  in  Babylon,  and,  with 
his  allies  the  Medes,  had  in  607  overthrown  Nineveh,  the  Assyrian  capital. 
Nabopolassar's  share  of  the  Assyrian  empire  included  the  Syrian  provinces 
which  had  already  been  seized  by  Xecho  of  Ec^ypt.  Xebuchadrozzar  was  there- 
fore sent  to  expel  tlie  Ec^yptians.  He  defeated  Necho  in  fiOS,  in  the  decisive 
battle  of  Carchemish,  and  was  prevented  from  invadincr  Eirypt  only  by  the 
news  of  his  father's  death,  which  recalled  him  to  Babylon.  Jehoiakim  of  Judah 
immediately  transferred  his  allegiance  to  the  Babylonian  king. 


420  JUDAH   TO    JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

salem.   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  Baby- 
lon came  up  against  Jerusalem,  and  the  city  was  besieged.  And 
Nebuchadnezzar  king  of  Babylon  came  unto  the  city,  while  his 
servants  were  besieging  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  away  Jehoiachin  to  Babylon,  and  the  king's  mother,  and 
the  king's  wives,  and  his  officers,  and  the  chief  men  of  the  land, 
those  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  father's  brother  king  in  his 
stead,  and  changed  his  name  to  Zedekiah. 

Zedekiah's  Rebellion  (2  Kings  xxiv.  18-xxv.  2;  Jer.  xxxiv. 

1-7).  Zedekiah  was  twenty  and  one  years  old  when  he  began 
to  reign,  and  he  reigned  eleven  years  in  Jerusalem.  And  his 
mother's  name  was  Hamutal,  the  daughter  of  Jeremiah  of  Lib- 
nah.  And  he  did  that  which  was  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord, 
according  to  all  that  Jehoiakim  had  done.  For  through  the 
anger  of  the  Lord  it  came  to  pass  in  Jerusalem  and  Judah,  until 
he  had  cast  them  out  from  his  presence,  that  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  Nebuchad- 
nezzar king  of  Babylon  came,  he,  and  all  his  host,  against  Jeru- 
salem, and  pitched  against  it;  and  they  built  forts  against  it 
round  about.  And  the  city  was  besieged  unto  the  eleventh  year 
of  king  Zedekiah. 

The  word  which  came  unto  Jeremiah  from  the  Lord,  saying, 
Thus  saith  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel ;  Go  and  speak  to  Zede- 
kiah king  of  Judah,  and  tell  him.  Thus  saith  the  Lord;  Behold, 
I  will  give  this  city  into  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Babylon,  and 

1  irent  out.   Surrendered. 

2  eif/hth  year  of  his  [Nebuchadnezzar's]  reign.  597  b.  c.  The  Chronicler  has 
here:  "Nebuchadnezzar  also  carried  of  the  vessels  of  the  house  of  the  Lord  to 
Babj'lon,  and  put  them  in  his  temple  at  Babylon." 


THE  TREATMENT   OF   THE   HEBREW   SLAVES  421 

he  shall  burn  it  with  fire  :  and  thou  shalt  not  escape  out  of  his 
hand,  but  shalt  surely  be  taken,  and  delivered  into  his  hand; 
and  thine  eyes  shall  behold  the  eyes  of  the  king  of  Babylon,  and 
he  shall  speak  with  thee  mouth  to  mouth,  and  thou  shalt  go  to 
Babylon.  Yet  hear  the  word  of  the  Lord,  O  Zedekiah  king  of 
Judah ;  Thus  saith  the  Lord  of  thee,  Thou  shalt  not  die  by  the 
sword :  but  thou  shalt  die  in  peace :  and  as  at  the  burnings  of 
thy  fathers,  the  kings  which  were  before  thee,  so  shall  they  burn 
odors  for  thee  ;  and  they  will  lament  thee,  saying  :  ''  Ah  lord  !  '^ 
for  I  have  pronounced  the  word,  saith  the  Lord.  Then  Jeremiah 
the  prophet  spake  all  these  words  unto  Zedekiah  king  of  Judah 
in  Jerusalem,  when  the  king  of  Babylon's  army  fought  against 
Jerusalem,  and  against  all  the  cities  of  Judah  that  were  left, 
against  Lachish,  and  against  Azekah :  for  these  defenced  cities 
remained  of  the  cities  of  Judah. 

The  Treatment  of  the  Hebrew  Slaves  (Jer.  xxxiv.  8-22). 
This  is  the  word  that  came  unto  Jeremiah  from  the  Lord,  after 
that  the  king  Zedekiah  had  made  a  covenant  with  all  the  people 
which  were  at  Jerusalem,  to  proclaim  liberty  ;  that  every  man 
should  let  his  manservant,  and  every  man  his  maidservant,  being 
an  Hebrew  or  an  Hebrewess,  go  free  ;  that  none  should  serve 
himself  of  them,  to  wit,  of  a  Jew  his  brother.  Now  when  all 
the  princes,  and  all  the  people,  which  had  entered  into  the  cove- 
nant, heard  that  every  one  should  let  his  manservant,  and  every 
one  his  maidservant,  go  free,  that  none  should  serve  themselves 
of  them  any  more,  then  they  obeyed,  and  let  them  go.  But  after- 
ward they  turned,  and  caused  the  servants  and  the  handmaids, 
whom  they  had  let  go  free,  to  return,  and  brought  them  into 
subjection  for  servants  and  for  handmaids. 

Therefore  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  to  Jeremiah  from  the 
Lord,  saying,  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel ;  I  made  a 
covenant  with  your  fathers  in  the  day  that  I  brought  them  forth 
out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  out  of  the  house  of  bondmen,  saying, 
At  the  end  of  seven  years  let  ye  go  every  man  his  brother  an 
Hebrew,  which  hath  been  sold  unto  thee ;  and  when  he  hath 
served  thee  six  years,  thou  shalt  let  him  go  free  from  thee  :  but 
your  fathers  hearkened  not  unto  me,  neither  inclined  their  ear. 
And  ye  were  now  turned,  and  had  done  right  in  my  sight,  in 
proclaiming  liberty  every  man  to  his  neighbor  ;  and  ye  had  made 
a  covenant  before  me  in  the  house  which  is  called  by  my  name : 


422  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

but  ye  turned  and  polluted  my  name,  and  caused  every  man  his 
servant,  and  every  man  his  handmaid,  whom  he  had  set  at  lib- 
erty at  their  pleasure,  to  return,  and  brought  them  into  subjec- 
tion, to  be  unto  you  for  servants  and  for  handmaids.  Therefore 
thus  saith  the  Lord :  Ye  have  not  hearkened  unto  me,  in  pro- 
claiming liberty,  every  one  to  his  brother,  and  every  man  to  his 
neighbor :  behold,  I  proclaim  a  liberty  for  you,  saith  the  Lord, 
to  the  sword,  to  the  pestilence,  and  to  the  famine ;  and  I  will 
make  you  to  be  removed  into  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth.  And 
I  will  give  the  men  that  have  transgressed  my  covenant,  which 
have  not  performed  the  words  of  the  covenant  which  they  had 
made  before  me,  when  they  cut  the  calf  in  twain,  and  passed  be- 
tween the  parts  thereof  i  —  the  princes  of  Judah,  and  the  princes 
of  Jerusalem,  the  eunuchs,  and  the  priests,  and  all  the  people 
of  the  land,  which  passed  between  the  parts  of  the  calf  ~  I  will 
even  give  them  into  the  hand  of  their  enemies,  and  into  the 
hand  of  them  that  seek  their  life :  and  their  dead  bodies  shall 
be  for  meat  unto  the  fowls  of  the  heaven,  and  to  the  beasts  of 
the  earth.  And  Zedekiah  king  of  Judah  and  his  princes  will  I 
give  into  the  hand  of  their  enemies,  and  into  the  hand  of  them 
that  seek  their  life,  and  into  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Babylon's 
army,  which  are  gone  up  from  you.^  Behold,  I  will  command, 
saith  the  Lord,  and  cause  them  to  return  to  this  city  ;  and  they 
shall  fight  against  it,  and  take  it,  and  burn  it  with  fire  :  and  I 
will  make  the  cities  of  Judah  a  desolation  without  an  inhabitant. 

Jeremiah's  Imprisonment  (Jer.  xxxvii.  3-21;  xxxviii.). 
And  Zedekiah  the  king  sent  Jehucal  the  son  of  Shelemiah  and 
Zephaniah  the  son  of  Maaseiah  the  priest  to  the  prophet  Jere- 
miah, saying:  ^'Pray  now  unto  the  Lord  our  God  for  us/'  Now 
Jeremiah  came  in  and  went  out  among  the  people  :  for  they  had 
not  put  him  into  prison.  And  Pharaoh's  army  was  come  forth 
out  of  Egypt :  ^  and  when  the  Chaldeans  that  besieged  Jerusalem 
heard  tidings  of  them,  they  departed  from  Jerusalem. 

1  See  p.  23  and  note.  In  this  ceremony  the  two  parties  to  the  agreement 
passed  between  the  divided  pieces  of  the  victim,  invoking  a  like  fate  upon 
themselves,  if  they  proved  false  to  it. 

2  See  the  next  note. 

3  This  Pharaoh  was  Apries,  called  Hophra  by  the  Hebrews,  who  began  to 
reign  588  b.  c.  He  had  evidently  encouraged  the  revolt  of  Judah  and  its 
neighbors  against  Babylon,  in  thc^  hope  of  recovering  them  to  the  Egyptian 
rule.  After  operating  against  Tyre  and  Sidon,  he  moved  south  in  the  spring  of 


JEREMIAH'S   IMPRISONMENT  423 

Then  came  the  word  of  the  Lord  unto  the  prophet  Jeremiah, 
saying,  Tims  saith  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel:  Thus  shall  ye 
say  to  the  king  of  Judah,  that  sent  you  unto  me  to  enquire  of 
me:  Behold,  Pharaoh's  army,  which  is  come  forth  to  help  you, 
shall  return  to  Egypt  into  their  own  land.  And  the  Chaldeans 
shall  come  again,  and  fight  against  this  city,  and  take  it,  and 
burn  it  with  fire.  Thus  saith  the  Lord  ;  Deceive  not  yourselves, 
saying:  ^'  The  Chaldeans  shall  surely  depart  from  us  :  "  for  they 
shall  not  depart.  For  though  ye  had  smitten  the  whole  army  of 
the  Chaldeans  that  fight  against  you,  and  there  remained  but 
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  wdien  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  take  his  portion  ^  thence  in  the  midst  of  the  peo- 
ple. 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  took  Jeremiah  the  prophet,  say- 
ing :  "  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 :  so  Irijah  took  Jeremiah,  and  brought 
him  to  the  princes.  Wherefore  the  princes  were  wroth  with 
Jeremiah,  and  smote  him,  and  put  him  in  the  house  of  Jonathan 
the  scribe  :  for  they  had  made  that  the  prison. 

AVhen  Jeremiah  was  entered  into  the  dungeon,  and  into  the 
cabins,  and  Jeremiah  had  remained  there  many  days  ;  then  Zede- 
kiah  the  king  sent,  and  took  him  out :  and  the  king  asked  him 
secretly  in  his  house,  and  said :  "  Is  there  any  word  from  the 
Lord  ? "  And  Jeremiah  said :  "  There  is :  for,  said  he,  thou 
shalt  be  delivered  into  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Babylon."  More- 
over 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  are  now  your  prophets  which  pro- 
phesied unto  you,  saying,  The  king  of  Babylon  shall  not  come 
against  you,  nor  against  this  land  ?  Therefore  hear  now,  I  pray 
thee,  0  my  lord  the  king :  let  my  supplication,  I  pray  thee,  be 

586  B.  c,  and  interrupted  the  siege  of  Jerusalem.  His  troops,  however,  could 
not  cope  with  the  Babylonian  army,  so  that  he  retired  without  accomplishing 
anything. 

1  take  his  portion.   Receive  an  inheritance. 


424  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

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 
piece  of  bread  out  of  the  bakers'  street,  until  all  the  bread  in  the 
city  were  spent.  Thus  Jeremiah  remained  in  the  court  of  the 
guard. 

Then  Shephatiah  the  son  of  Mattan,  and  Gedaliah  the  son  of 
Pashur,  and  Jucal  the  son  of  Shelemiah,  and  Pashur  the  son  of 
Malchiah,  heard  the  words  that  Jeremiah  had  spoken  unto  all 
the  people,  saying :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  He  that  remaineth 
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; 
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  thus  he  weakeneth  the  hands  of  the  men  of 
war  that  remain  in  the  city,  and  the  hands  of  all  the  people, 
in  speaking  such  words  unto  them:  for  this  man  seeketh  not 
the  welfare  of  this  people,  but  the  hurt."  Then  Zedekiah  the 
king  said  :  "  Behold,  he  is  in  your  hand:"  for  the  king  was  not 
able  to  do  any  thing  against  them.  Then  took  they  Jeremiah, 
and  cast  him  into  the  dungeon  of  Malchiah  the  king's  son,  tliat 
was  in  the  court  of  the  prison  :  and  they  let  down  Jeremiah 
with  cords.  And  in  the  dungeon  there  was  no  water,  but  mire : 
so  Jeremiah  sunk  in  the  mire. 

Now  when  Ebed-melech  the  Ethiopian,  one  of  the  eunuchs 
which  was  in  the  king's  house,  heard  that  they  had  put  eJere- 
miah  in  the  dungeon  ;  the  king  then  sitting  in  the  gate  of  Ben- 
jamin ;  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, 
Avhom  they  have  cast  into  the  dungeon  ;  and  he  is  like  to  die 
for  hunger  in  the  place  where  he  is :  for  there  is  no  more  bread 
in  the  city."  Then  the  king  commanded  Ebed-melech  the  Ethi- 
opian, saying :  "  Take  from  hence  thirty  ^  men  with  thee,  and 
take  up  Jeremiah  the  prophet  out  of  the  dungeon,  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  torn 
1  thirty.  Probably  a  copyist's  error  for  three. 


JEREMIAH'S   IMPKISONMENT  425 

and  tattered  rags,  and  let  them  down  by  cords  into  the  dungeon 
to  Jeremiah.  And  Ebed-melech  the  Ethiopian  said  unto  Jere- 
miah :  "  Put  now  these  old  cast  clouts  and  rotten  rags  under 
thine  armholes  under  the  cords."  And  Jeremiah  did  so.  So 
they  drew  up  Jeremiah  with  cords,  and  took  him  up  out  of  the 
dungeon  :  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  made  us  this  soul,  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  as- 
suredly go  forth  unto  the  king  of  Babylon's  princes,  then  thy 
soul  shall  live,  and  this  city  shall  not  be  burned  \vith  fire  ;  and 
thou  shalt  live,  and  thine  house  :  but  if  thou  wilt  not  go  forth 
to  the  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  to  the  Chaldeans,  lest  they  deliver  me  into  their  hand, 
and  they  mock  me."  But  Jeremiah  said  :  "They  shall  not  de- 
liver 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 
the  Lord  hath  shewed  me  :  Behold,  all  the  women  that  are  left 
in  the  king  of  Judah's  house  were  brought  forth  to  the  king  of 
Babylon's  princes,  while  they  said, 

Thy  friends  have  set  thee  on,  and  have  prevailed  against 

thee  : 
Thy  feet  are  sunk  in  the  mire,  and  they  are  turned  away 

back. 

So  they  shall  bring  out  all  thy  wives  and  thy  children  to  the 
Chaldeans:  and  thou  shalt  not  escape  out  of  their  hand,  but 
shalt  be  taken  by  the  hand  of  the  king  of  Babylon  :  and  this 
city  shall  be  burned  with  fire." 


426  JUDAH  TO  jehoiachin's  release 

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  slialt  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  perceived.  So  Jeremiah  abode  in  the  court  of 
the  guard  until  the  day  that  Jerusalem  was  taken. 

The  Fall  of  Jerusalem  (2  Kings  xxv.  3-21 ;  Jer.  Hi.  28-30; 
xxxix.  11-14).  And  on  the  ninth  day  of  the  fourth  month  the 
famine  was  sore  in  the  city,  so  that  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  two  walls,  which  is  by  the  king's  garden  (now 
the  Chaldees  were  against  the  city  round  about)  ;  and  the  king 
went  the  way  toward  the  plain. ^  But  the  army  of  the  Chaldees 
pursued  after  the  king,  and  overtook  him  in  the  plains  of  Jeri- 
cho :  and  all  his  army  were  scattered  from  him.  So  they  took 
the  king,  and  brought  him  up  to  the  king  of  Babylon  to  Riblah, 
where  he  gave  judgment  upon  him.  And  they  slew  the  sons  of 
Zedekiah  before  his  eyes,  and  put  out  the  eyes  of  Zedekiah, 
and  bound  him  with  fetters  of  brass,  and  carried  him  to  Baby- 
lon. 

And  in  the  fifth  month,  on  the  seventh  day  of  the  month, 
which  is  the  nineteenth  year  ^  of  king  Nebuchadnezzar  king  of 
Babylon,  came  Nebuzar-adan,  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  Jerusa- 
lem, and  every  great  man's  house  burnt  he  with  fire. 

And  all  the  army  of  the  Chaldees,  that  were  with  the  captain 
of  the  guard,  brake  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,  with  the  residue 
of  the  artificers,  did  Nebuzar-adan  the  captain  of  the  guard  carry 

1  the  plain.  The  Arabah  or  Jordan  valley.        2  nineteenth  year.  586  b.  c. 


THE   FALL   OF   JERUSALEM  427 

away.  But  the  captain  of  tlie  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  brazen  sea  that  was  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord,  did  the  Chaldees  break  in  pieces,  and  carried  the  brass  of 
them  to  Babylon.  And  the  pots  and  the  shovels,  and  the  snuff- 
ers, and  the  spoons,  and  all  the  vessels  of  brass  wherewith  they 
ministered,  took  they  away.  And  the  firepans,  and  the  basins ; 
that  which  was  of  gold,  in  gold,  and  that  which  was  of  silver, 
in  silver,  the  captain  of  the  guard  took  away. 

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  were  in  the  king's  pres- 
ence, which  were  found  in  the  city,  and  the  principal  scribe  of 
the  host,  which  mustered  the  people  of  the  land,  and  threescore 
men  of  the  people  of  the  land  that  were  found  in  the  city.  So 
Nebuzar-adan  captain  of  the  guard  took  them,  and  brought  them 
to  the  king  of  Babylon  to  Kiblah :  and  the  king  of  Babylon 
smote  them,  and  slew  them  at  Riblah  in  the  land  of  Hamath. 
So  Judah  was  carried  away  out  of  their  land. 

This  is  the  people  whom  Nebuchadrezzar  carried  away  cap- 
tive :  in  the  seventeenth  year  three  thousand  Jews  and  three 
and  twenty  :  in  the  eighteenth  year  of  Nebuchadrezzar  he  car- 
ried away  captive  from  Jerusalem  eight  hundred  thirty  and  two 
persons  :  in  the  three  and  twentieth  year  of  Nebuchadrezzar 
Nebuzar-adan  the  captain  of  the  guard  carried  away  captive  of 
the  Jews  seven  hundred  forty  and  five  persons :  all  the  persons 
were  four  thousand  and  six  hundred. 

Now  Nebuchadrezzar  king  of  Babylon  gave  charge  concerning 
Jeremiah  to  Nebuzar-adan  the  captain  of  the  guard,  saying : 
"  Take  him,  and  look  well  to  him,  and  do  him  no  harm;  but  do 
unto  him  even  as  he  shall  say  unto  thee."  So  Nebuzar-adan  the 
captain  of  the  guard  sent,  and  Nebushasban,  Rab-saris,  and 
Nergal-sharezer,  Eabmag,  and  all  the  king  of  Babylon's  princes  ; 
even  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  carry  him  home  :  so  he  dwelt  among  the 
people.^ 

1  According  to  Jer.  xl.  1-5  the  captain  of  the  guard  rescues  Jeremiah  at 
Ramah  from  among  the  chained  captives,  and  respectfully  offers  him  the 
choice  between  going  to  Babylon  and  remaining  in  Judah. 


428  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

Judah  under  Gedaliah  (Jer.  xl.  7-xli.  18).  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  Baby- 
lon; 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  a  Maachathite,  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  stand  before  the  Chaldeans,  which  will  come  unto 
us :  but  ye,  gather  ye  wine,  and  summer  fruits,  and  oil,  and 
put  them  in  your  vessels,  and  dwell  in  your  cities  that  ye  have 
taken."  Likewise  when  all  the  Jews  that  were  in  Moab,  and 
among  the  Ammonites,  and  in  Edom,  and  that  W'ere  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  Ahi- 
kam the  son  of  Shaphan ;  even  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. 

Moreover  Johanan  the  son  of  Kareah,  and  all  the  captains 
of  the  forces  that  were  in  the  fields,  came  to  Gedaliah  to  Miz- 
pah, and  said  unto  him  :  "  Dost  thou  certainly  know  that  Baalis 
the  king  of  the  Ammonites  hath  sent  Ishmael  the  son  of  Neth- 
aniah  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  slay  thee,  that  all  the  Jews  which  are 
gathered  unto  thee  should  be  scattered,  and  the  remnant  in 
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 


JUDAH   UNDER   GEDALIAH  429 

Mizpah  ;  and  there  they  did  eat  bread  together  in  Mizpah.  Then 
arose  Ishmael  the  son  of  Xethaniah,  and  the  ten  men  that  ^ve^e 
with  him,  and  smote  Gedaliah  the  son  of  Ahikam  the  son  of 
Shaphan  with  the  sword,  and  slew  him,  whom  the  king  of 
Babylon  had  made  governor  over  the  land.  Ishmael  also  slew 
all  the  Jews  that  were  with  him  at  ^NHzpah,  and  the  Chaldeans 
that  were  found  there,  even  the  men  of  war. 

And  it  came  to  pass  the  second  day  after  he  had  slain  Geda- 
liah, 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  them- 
selves, with  offerings  and  incense  in  their  hand,  to  bring  them 
to  the  house  of  the  Lord.  And  Ishmael  the  son  of  ISTethaniah 
went  forth  from  Mizpah  to  meet  them,  weeping  all  along  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  Ishmael  the  son  of 
Nethaniah  slew  them,  and  cast  them  into  the  midst  of  the  pit, 
he,  and  the  men  that  were  with  him.  But  ten  men  were  found 
among  them  that  said  unto  Ishmael:  "Slay  us  not:  for  we 
have  treasures  in  the  field,  of  wheat,  and  of  barley,  and  of  oil, 
and  of  honey."  So  he  forbare,  and  slew  them  not  among  their 
brethren. 

Now  the  pit  wherein  Ishmael  had  cast  all  the  dead  bodies  of 
the  men  whom  he  had  slain,  was  it  which  Asa  the  king  had 
made  for  fear  of  Baasha  king  of  Israel :  ^  and  Ishmael  the  son 
of  Nethaniah  filled  it  with  them  that  were  slain.  Then  Ishmael 
carried  away  all  the  residue  of  the  people  that  were  in  Mizpah, 
even  the  king's  daughters,  and  all  the  people  that  remained  in 
Mizpah,  whom  Nebuzar-adan  the  captain  of  the  guard  had  com- 
mitted to  Gedaliah  the  son  of  Ahikam  :  and  Ishmael  the  son  of 
Nethaniah  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  Ish- 
mael 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 

1  Asa  had  made  the  cistern  to  ensure  a  water  supply  in  Mizpah,  which  he 
was  fortifying  against  Baasha.  See  pp.  384,  385. 


430  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   release 

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  Ish- 
mael 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  he  had  recovered  from  Ish- 
mael, even  men,  and  women,  and  children,  and  eunuchs,  whom 
he  had  brought  again  from  Gibeon :  and  they  departed,  and 
dwelt  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  Geda- 
liah  the  son  of  Ahikam,  whom  the  king  of  Babylon  made  gov- 
ernor in  the  land. 

The  Migration  to  Egypt  (Jer.  xlii.  1-17  ;  20-22  ;  xliii.  ;  xliv. 
7-10,  15-30).  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  suppli- 
cation be  accepted  before  thee,  and  pray  for  us  unto  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 
may  do."  Then  Jeremiah  the  prophet  said  unto  them  :  "  I  have 
heard  you ;  behold,  I  will  pray  unto  the  Lord  your  God  accord- 
ing 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  between  us,  if  we  do 
not  even  according  to  all  things  for  the  which  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,  to  whom  we  send 
thee  ;  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,  the  God  of  Israel,  unto  whom  ye 
sent  me  to  present  your  supplication  before  him ;  If  ye  will  still 


THE   MIGRATION   TO   EGYPT  431 

abide  in  this  land,  then  will  I  build  you,  and  not  pull  you  down, 
and  I  will  plant  you,  and  not  pluck  you  up :  for  I  repent  me  of 
the  evil  that  I  have  done  unto  you.  Be  not  afraid  of  the  king 
of  Babylon  :  for  I  am  with  you  to  save  you,  and  to  deliver  you 
from  his  hand.  And  I  will  shew  mercies  unto  you,  that  he  may 
have  mercy  upon  you,  and  suffer  you  to  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  the  word  of  the  Lord,  ye  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 
feared,  shall  overtake  you  there  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  the 
famine,  whereof  ye  were  afraid,  shall  follow  close  after  you 
there  in  Egypt ;  and  there  ye  shall  die.  So  shall  it  be  with  all 
the  men  that  set  their  faces  to  go  into  Egypt  to  sojourn  there  ; 
they  shall  die  by  the  sword,  by  the  famine,  and  by  the  pesti- 
lence :  and  none  of  them  shall  remain  or  escape  from  the  evil 
that  I  will  bring  upon  them. 

"  For  ye  dissembled  in  your  hearts,  when  ye  sent  me  unto  the 
Lord  your  God,  saying,  Pray  for  us  unto  the  Lord  our  God  ; 
and  according  unto  all  that  the  Lord  our  God  shall  say,  so  de- 
clare unto  us,  and  we  will  do  it.  And  now  I  have  this  day  de- 
clared it  to  you  ;  but  ye  have  not  obeyed  the  voice  of  the  Lord 
your  God  in  any  thing  for  the  which  he  hath  sent  me  unto  you. 
Kow  therefore  know  certainly  that  ye  shall  die  by  the  sword, 
by  the  famine,  and  by  the  pestilence,  in  the  place  whither  ye 
desire  to  go  and  to  sojourn." 

And  it  came  to  pass,  that  when  Jeremiah  had  made  an  end  of 
speaking  unto  the  people  all  the  words  of  the  Lord  their  God, 
for  which  the  Lord  their  God  had  sent  him  to  them,  even  all 
these  words,  then  spake  Azariah  the  son  of  Hoshaiah,  and  Jo- 
hanan  the  son  of  Kareah.  and  all  the  proud  men,  saying  unto 
Jeremiah  :  *'  Thou  speakest  falsely :  the  Lord  our  God  hath  not 
sent  thee  to  say,  Go  not  into  Egypt  to  sojourn  there  :  but  Baruch 
the  son  of  Xeriah  setteth  thee  on  against  us,  for  to  deliver  us 
into  the  hand  of  the  Chaldeans,  that  they  might  put  us  to  death, 
and  carry  us  away  captives  into  Babylon."  So  Johanan  the  son 
of  Kareah,  and  all  the  captains  of  the  forces,  and  all  the  people, 


432  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S    RELEASE 

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  remnant  of  Judah,  that  were  returned  from 
all  nations,  whither  they  had  been  driven,  to  dwell  in  the  land 
of  Judah ;  even  men,  and  women,  and  children,  and  the  king's 
daughters,  and  every  person  that  Nebuzar-adan  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.  So  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  Tah- 
panhes, saying.  Take  great  stones  in  thine  hand,  and  hide  them 
in  the  clay  in  the  brickwork,  which  is  at  the  entry  of  Pharaoh's 
house  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  Baby- 
lon, 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,  and  deliver 
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  kindle  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  break  also  the  pillars  of  Beth-shemesh,^  and  the  houses  of 
the  gods  of  the  Egyptians  shall  he  burn  with  fire. 

Therefore  now  thus  saith  the  Lord,  the  God  of  hostg,  the  God  of 
Israel ;  Wherefore  commit  ye  this  great  evil  against  your  souls, 
to  cut  off  from  you  man  and  woman,  child  and  suckling,  out  of 
Judah,  to  leave  you  none  to  remain  ;  in  that  ye  provoke  me 
unto  wrath  with  the  works  of  your  hands,  burning  incense  unto 
other  gods  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  whither  ye  be  gone  to  dwell, 
that  ye  might  cut  yourselves  off,  and  that  ye  might  be  a  curse 
and  a  reproach  among  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  ?  Have  ye 
forgotten  the  wickedness  of  your  fathers,  and  the  wickedness 

1  Tahpanhes.  The  classic  Daphnae,  a  fortified  town  on  the  eastern  frontier  of 
Lower  Eprypt.   Excavation  has  produced  evidences  of  its  Greek  p^arrison. 

'^  pillars  of  Bcfh-shemesk.  The  ol)elisks  of  the  famous  temple  of  the  sun  at  On 
(Heliopolis).  One  of  these  is  still  standing  in  situ.  See  also  note,  p.  64.  An  in- 
scription of  Nebuchadrezzar  records  that  in  568  b.  o.  he  invaded  Egypt,  defeated 
the  king  Amasis,  and  carried  away  or  killed  his  soldiers  and  horses. 


THE   MIGRATION   TO   EGYPT  433 

of  the  kings  of  Judah,  and  the  wickedness  of  their  princes,  and 
your  own  wickedness,  and  the  wickedness  of  your  wives,  which 
they  have  committed  in  the  land  of  Judali,  and  in  the  streets  of 
Jerusalem  ?  They  are  not  humbled  even  unto  this  day,  neither 
have  they  feared,  nor  walked  in  my  law,  nor  in  my  statutes, 
that  I  set  before  you  and  before  your  fathers. 

Then  all  the  men  which  knew  that  their  wives  had  burned 
incense  unto  other  gods,  and  all  the  women  that  stood  by,  a 
great  multitude,  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  perform  whatso- 
ever word  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  were  well,  and  saw  no 
evil.  But  since  we  left  off  to  burn  incense  to  the  queen  of 
heaven,  and  to  pour  out  drink  offerings  unto  her,  we  have 
wanted  all  things,  and  have  been  consumed  by  the  sword  and 
by  the  famine.  And  when  we  burned  incense  to  the  queen  of 
heaven,  and  poured  out  drink  offerings  unto  her,  did  we  make  her 
cakes  to  portray  her,^  and  pour  out  drink  offerings  unto  her, 
without  our  husbands  ?  " 

Then  Jeremiah  said  unto  all  the  people,  to  the  men,  and 
to  the  women,  and  to  all  the  people  which  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  that,  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  com- 
mitted: therefore  is  your  land  a  desolation,  and  an  astonishment, 
and  a  curse,  without  an  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  at  this  day." 

IMoreover  Jeremiah  said  unto  all  the  people,  and  to  all  the 
women.  Hear  the  word  of  the  Lord,  all  Judah  that  are  in  the 

1  queen  of  heaven.  Probably  the  Assyrian  Ishtar.  See  note,  p.  167. 

2  cakeB  to  portray  her.  Probably  cakes  stamped  with  the  image  of  the  goddess. 


434  JUDAH    TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   EELEASE 

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:  "  ye  will 
surely  accomplish  your  words,  and  surely  perform  your  vows. 
Therefore  hear  ye  the  word  of  tlie  Lord,  all  Judah  that  dwell 
in  the  land  of  Egypt ;  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  liveth."  Behold,  I  will  watch  over  them  for  evil, 
and  not  for  good  :  and  all  the  men  of  Judah  that  are  in  the  land 
of  Egypt  shall  be  consumed  by  the  sword  and  by  the  famine, 
until  there  be  an  end  of  them.  Yet  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  words  shall  stand, 
mine,  or  theirs.  And  this  shall  be  a  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.^ 

EzekiePs  Vision  of  the  Valley  of  Bones  (Ezek.  i.  1-3  ; 
XXXV ii.  1-14).  Now  it  came  to  pass  in  the  thirtieth  year,  in  the 
fourth  month,  in  the  fifth  day  of  the  month,  as  I  was  among 
the  captives  by  the  river  of  Chebar,  that  the  heavens  were 
opened,  and  I  saw  visions  of  God.  In  the  fifth  day  of  the  month, 
Avhich  was  the  fifth  year  of   king  Jehoiachin's  captivity,   the 

1  Hophra  was  deposed  b}--  a  military  revolution  in  571,  and  put  to  death. 

A  surprising  piece  of  information  regarding  the  Jewish  refugees  in  Egypt 
has  been  found  in  papyri  discovered  in  1907  on  Elephantine,  an  island  in  the 
Nile  near  Assuan.  One  of  these,  written  in  Aramaic  and  dating  from  408  b.  c, 
is  a  petition  from  the  Jewish  colony  at  Elephantine  to  the  Persian  governor  of 
Judah,  asking  him  to  obtain  permission  for  them  to  rebuild  their  "temple  of 
Yaliu  (Jehovah),"  which  the  commander  of  the  local  garrison  had  destroyed. 
They  mention  that  it  had  been  l)uilt  for  more  than  120  years;  that  it  was  a  sub- 
stantial building  with  stone  pillars  and  seven  stone  gates;  and  that  it  was  used, 
not  as  a  syTiagogne,  for  praver  only,  but  as  a  regular  temple,  for  sacrifice,  with 
an  altar  for  burnt-offerings  and  meal-offerings.  Another  papyrus  records  that 
their  petition  to  rebuild  it  was  granted. 


ezekiel's  vision  of  the  valley  of  r>ONES 


435 


word  of  the  Lord  came  expressly  unto  Ezekiel  the  priest,  the 
son  of  13uzi,  in  the  land  of  the  Chaldeans  by  the  river  Chebar. 
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  which  was  full  of  bones,  and  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 
upon  these  bones,  and  say 
unto  them,  0  ye  dry 
bones,  hear  the  word  of 
the  Lord.  Thus  saith  the 
Lord  God  unto  these 
bones ;  Behold,  I  will 
cause  breath  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  put 
breath  in  you,  and  ye 
shall  live ;  and  ye  shall 
know    that    I    am     the 

Lord."  So  I  prophesied  as  I  was  commanded :  and 
as  I  prophesied,  there  was  a  noise,  and  behold  a 
shaking,  and  the  bones  came  together,  bone  to  his 
bone.  And  when  I  beheld,  lo,  the  sinews  and  the 
flesh  came  up  upon  them,  and  the  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,  0  breath,  and 
breathe  upon  these  slain,  that  they  may  live."  So  I  prophesied 
as  he  commanded  me,  and  the  breath  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,  and  our 
hope  is  lost :  we  are  clean  cut  off.  Therefore  prophesy  and  say 
unto  them.  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God ;  Behold,  0  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 


Jewish  Captives 
at  Labor.  From 
a  palace  relief 
found  at  Nine- 
veh. 


436  JUDAH   TO   JEHOIACHIN'S   RELEASE 

know  that  I  am  the  Lord,  when  I  have  opened  your  graves, 
0  my  people,  and  brought  you  up  out  of  your  graves.  And 
shall  put  my  spirit  in  you,  and  ye  shall  live,  and  I  shall 
place  you  in  your  own  land  :  then  shall  ye  know  that  I  the 
Lord  have  spoken  it,  and  performed  it,  saith  the  Lord.'' 

Jehoiachin's  Release  (2  Kings  xxv.  27-30).  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  changed  his  prison  garments : 
and  he  did  eat  bread  continually  before  him  all  the  days  of  his 
life.  And  his  allowance  was  a  continual  allowance  given  him  of 
the  king,  a  daily  rate  for  every  day,  all  the  days  of  his  life. 

1  seven  and  thirtieth  yea?:  561  b.  c.  Evil-merodach  (Amel-Marduk)  was  the 
son  of  Nebuchadrezzar.  He  reigned  562-560  b.  c. 

The  prophetic  religion  was  continued  by  the  Jewish  exiles  in  Babylonia.  The 
earlier  captives  from  North  Israel  were  scattered  widely  through  the  Assyrian 
provinces,  and  though  they  have  often  been  imagined  as  maintaining  them- 
selves somewhere  as  the  "  lost  Ten  Tribes,"  they  were  doubtless  absorbed  into 
the  native  communities.  The  fugitives  to  Egypt  became  estranged  from  the 
prophetic  tradition.  But  in  Babylonia  the  Jews  advanced  their  national  faith. 
Their  loyalty  is  touchingly  expressed  in  the  137th  psalm:  — 

By  the  rivers  of  Babylon, 
There  we  sat  down,  yea,  we  wept, 
When  we  remembered  Zion. 
Upon  the  willows  in  the  midst  thereof 
We  hanged  up  our  harps. 

For  there  they  that  led  us  captive  required  of  us  songs; 
And  they  that  wasted  us  required  of  us  mirth,  saying, 
"  Sing  us  one  of  the  songs  of  Zion." 
How  shall  we  sing  the  Lord's  song 
In  a  strange  land? 
If  I  forget  thee,  O  Jerusalem, 
Let  my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning. 
Let  my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth, 
If  I  remember  not  thee! 


XII 


THE   RENEWAL    OF   THE    JEWISH    COMMUNITY    IN 
PALESTINE 

The  Decree  of  Cyrus  (Ezra  i.  1-8).  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  at  Jerusalem,  which  is  in  Judah.  Whosoever  there 
is  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,  which  is  in  Jerusalem.  And  whoso- 
ever remaineth,  in  any  place  where  he  sojourneth,  let  the  men 
of  his  place  help  him  with  silver,  and  with  gold,  and  with  goods, 
and  with  beasts,  beside  the  freewill  offering  for  the  house  of 
God  that  is  in  Jerusalem." 

Then  rose  up  the  chief  of  the  fathers  of  Judah  and  Benjamin, 
and  the  priests,  and  the  Levites,  even  all  them  whose  spirit  God 
had  raised,  to  go  up  to  build  the  house  of  the  Lord  which  is  in 

1  the  first  year  of  Cyrus.  That  is,  his  first  year  as  king  of  Babylon,  538  b.  C. 
Cyrus,  at  first  king  of  Anshan,  a  district  of  Elam,  became  master  of  Media  in 
549  B.  c.  After  consolidating  the  kingdom  of  the  Medesand  Persians,  he  turned 
its  army  against  Croesus  of  Lydia,  and  finally  against  Babylonia,  the  most 
powerful  and  wealthy  country  within  his  view.  The  Babylonian  king  Nabonidus 
had  given  his  subjects  offence  by  centralizing  the  worshio  of  the  provinces 
within  the  capital,  so  that  Cyrus  had  partisans  in  Babylon  itself,  who,  after  the 
defeat  of  their  army,  opened  the  city  gates  to  him.  A  recently  found  proclama- 
tion of  Cyrus  shows  that  he  was  conciliatory  towards  the  religious  prejudices  of 
his  new  subjects.  He  declares  that  Babylon  had  been  delivered  to  him  by  its 
own  god  Marduk,  and  he  invokes  the  favor  of  Bel  and  Nebo,  "  The  gods  of  the 
land  of  Sumerand  Akkad,"  he  says,  "  whom  Xabona'id  had  brought  to  Babylon, 
I  caused  to  resume  their  abode  in  their  own  shrines."  To  restore  to  the  Jews 
their  sacred  vessels,  and  permit  the  rebuilding  of  their  temple,  would  be  part 
of  the  same  policy, 

2  "  For  thus  saith  Jehovah,  After  seventy  years  are  accomplished  for  Babylon, 
I  will  visit  you,  and  perform  my  good  word  toward  you,  in  causing  you  to  re- 
turn to  this  place."  Jer.  xxix.  10. 


438     RENEWAL   OF   THE   JEWISH    COMMUNITY   IN    PALESTINE 

Jerusalem.  And  all  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  will- 
ingly offered.  Also  Cyrus  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  pi'ince  ^  of  Judah. 

The  Refounding  of  the  Temple  (Ezra  iii. ;  iv.  1-5,  24).  And 
when  the  seventh  month  was  come,  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  Joza- 
dak,  and  his  brethren  the  priests,  and  Zerubbabel  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  in  its 
place ;  for  fear  was  upon  them  because  of  the  people  of  those 
countries :  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  afterward  offered  the  continual  burnt 
offering,  and  the  offerings  of  the  new  moons,  and  of  all  the  set 
feasts  of  the  Lord  that  were  consecrated,  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  tlie  house  of 
God  at  Jerusalem,  in  the  second  montli,  began  Zerubliahel  the 
son  of  Shealtiel,  and  Jeshua  the  son  of  Jozadak,  and  the  rem- 
nant of  their  brethren  the  priests  and  the  Levites,  and  all  they 
that  were  come  out  of  the  captivity  unto  Jerusalem,  to  lay  the 
foundation  of  the  house  of  tlie  Lord.  And  they  appointed  the 
1    prince.  "  whom  he  had  made  governor."  Ezra  y.l^. 


THE   REFOUNDING   OF   THE   TEMPLE 


439 


Levites,  from  twenty  years  old  and  upward,  to  set  forward  the 
work  of  the  house  of  the  Lord.  Then  stood  Jeshua  with  his  sons 
and  liis  brethren,  Kadmiel  and  his  sons,  the  sons  of  Judah,  to- 
getlier,  to  set  forward  the  -workmen  in  the  house  of  God  :  the 
sons  of  Henadad,  with  their  sons  and  their  brethren  the  Levites. 

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  ;  because  he  is  good,  for 
his  mercy  endureth  for  ever  toward 
Israel.  And  all  the  people  shouted 
with  a  great  sh'out,  when  they  praised 
the  Lord,  because  the  foundation  of 
the  house  of  the  Lord  was  laid.  But 
many  of  the  priests  and  Levites  and 
chief  of  the  fathers,  who  were  ancient 
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  Ju- 
dah and  Benjamin  heard  that  the 
children  of  the  captivity  builded  the 
temple  unto  the  Lord  God  of  Israel ;  then  they  came  to  Zerubba- 
bel,  and  to  the  chief  of  the  fathers,  and  said  unto  them  :  "  Let  us 
build  with  you  :  for  we  seek  your  God,  as  ye  do;  and  we  do  sacri- 
fice unto  him  since  the  days  of  Esar-haddon  king  of  Assur,^  which 
brought  us  up  hither."  But  Zerubbabel,  and  Jeshua,  and  the  rest 
of  the  chief  of  the  fathers  of  Israel,  said  unto  them:  "Ye  have 
nothing  to  do  with  us  to  build  an  house  unto  our  God ;  but  we 

1  the  adversaries.  The  Samaritans,  here  called  'adversaries'  by  anticipation. 

2  Esar-haddon  was  king  of  Assyria  681-668  b.  c. 


Stele  of  Esar-haddon. 


440     RENEWAL   OF   THE   JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

ourselves  together  will  build  unto  the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  as  king 
Cyrus  the  king  of  Persia  hath  commanded  us."  Then  the  people 
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 
until  the  reign  of  Darius  king  of  Persia.  Then  ceased  the  work 
of  the  house  of  God  which  is  at  Jerusalem.  So  it  ceased  unto 
the  second  year  of  the  reign  of  Darius  king  of  Persia.^ 

The  Building  Recommenced  (Haggai  i.).  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  Josedech,  the  high  priest,  saying:  "Thus 
speaketh  the  Lord  of  hosts,  saying,  This  people  say.  The  time 
is  not  come,  the  time  that  the  Lord's  house  should  be  built." 

Then  came  the  word  of  the  Lord  by  Haggai  the  prophet,  say- 
ing :  ^'  Is  it  time  for  you,  0  ye,  to  dwell  in  your  ceiled  ^  houses, 
and  this  house  lie  waste  ?  Now  therefore  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  will  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,  and  ye  run  every 
man  unto  his  own  house.  Therefore  the  heaven  over  you  is 
stayed  from  dew,  and  the  earth  is  stayed  from  her  fruit.  And  I 
called  for  a  drought  upon  the  land,  and  upon  the  mountains,  and 
upon  the  corn,  and  upon  the  new  wine,  and  upon  the  oil,  and 
upon  that  which  the  ground  bringeth  forth,  and  upon  men,  and 
upon  cattle,  and  upon  all  the  labor  of  the  hands." 

Then  Zerubbabel  the  son  of  Shealtiel,  and  Joshua  the  son  of 

1  Darius  reigned  521-485  b.  c,  so  that  work  on  the  temple  was  interrupted 
for  about  sixteen  years. 

2  Haggai  was  seconded  in  his  work  of  exhortation  hy  Zechariah,  whose  ad- 
dresses aimed  to  maintain  and  guide  the  devotion  of  the  temple-builders. 

8  ceiled.   Panelled. 


COMPLETION   OF   THE    TEMPLE  441 

Josedech,  the  high  priest,  with  all  the  remnant  of  the  people, 
obeyed  the  voice  of  the  Lord  their  God,  and  the  words  of  Hag- 
gai  the  prophet,  as  the  Lord  their  God  had  sent  him,  and  the 
people  did  fear  before  the  Lord.  And  the  Lord  stirred  up  the 
spirit  of  Zerubbabel  the  son  of  Shealtiel,  governor  of  Judah, 
and  the  spirit  of  Joshua  the  son  of  Josedech,  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  sixth  month,  in  the  second 
year  of  Darius  the  king. 

Completion  of  the  Temple  (Ezra  v.  3-5,  17;  vi.  1-15).  At 
the  same  time  came  to  them  Tatnai,  governor  on  this  side  the 
Biver,  and  Shethar-boznai,  and  their  companions,  and  said  thus 
unto  them :  ''  Who  hath  commanded  you  to  build  this  house, 
and  to  make  up  this  wall  ?  What  are  the  names  of  the  men 
that  make  this  building  ?  "  But  the  eye  of  their  God  was  upon 
the  elders  of  the  Jews,  that  they  could  not  cause  them  to  cease, 
till  the  matter  came  to  Darius.  Then  they  returned  answer  by 
letter  concerning  this  matter  :  — 

*'  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  con- 
cerning 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  Achmetha,^  in  the  palace  that 
is  in  the  province  of  the  Medes,  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  of  God  at  Jerusalem,  Let  the  house 
be  builded,  the  place  where  they  offered  sacrifices,  and  let  the 
foundations  thereof  be  strongly  laid ;  the  height  thereof  three- 
score cubits,  and  the  breadth  thereof  threescore  cubits  ;  with  three 
rows  of  great  stones,  and  a  row  of  new  timber :  and  let  the  ex- 
penses 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 
1  Achmetha.  Ecbatana. 


442     RENEWAL   OF   THE   JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

which  is  at  Jerusalem,  every  one  to  its  place,  and  place  them 
in  the  house  of  God. 

"  Now  therefore,  Tatnai,  governor  beyond  the  River,  Shethar- 
boznai,  and  your  companions  the  Apharsachites,  which  are  be- 
yond 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  the  elders  of 
these  Jews  for  the  building  of  this  house  of  God  :  that  of  the 
king's  goods,  even  of  the  tribute  beyond  the  River,  forthwith 
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  the  burnt  offerings  of  the  God  of  heaven, 
wheat,  salt,  wine,  and  oil,  according  to  the  appointment  of  the 
priests  which  are  at  Jerusalem,  let  it  be  given  them  day  by  day 
without  fail :  that  they  may  offer  sacrifices  of  sweet  savors  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  timber  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 
destroy  all  kings  and  people,  that  shall  put  to  their  hand  to 
alter  and  to  destroy  this  house  of  God  which  is  at  Jerusalem. 
I  Darius  have  made  a  decree;  let  it  be  done  with  speed.'^ 

Then  Tatnai,  governor  on  this  side  the  River,  Shethar-boznai, 
and  their  companions,  according  to  that  which  Darius  the  king 
had  sent,  so  they  did  speedily.  And  the  elders  of  the  Jews 
builded,  and  they  prospered  through  the  prophesying  of  Hag- 
gai  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  commandment  of  Cyrus, 
and  Darius.  And  this  house  was  finished  on  the  third  day  of 
the  month  Adar,  which  was  in  the  sixth  year  ^  of  the  reign  of 
Darius  the  king. 

Nehemiah's  Patriotic  Resolve  (ISTeh.  i.  1-ii.  10).  The  words 
of  Nehemiah  the  son  of  Hachaliah. 

And  it  came  to  pass   in  the  month  Chisleu,^  as  I  was  in 


1  The  sixth  year.    516  B.  c. 

2  Chisleu  fell  in  November-December. 


NEHEMIATI'S    PATRIOTIC   RESOLVE  443 

Shushan  ^  the  palace,  that  Hanani,  one  of  my  brethren,  came,  he 
and  certain  men  of  Judah ;  and  I  asked  them  concerning  the 
Jews  that  had  escaped,  which  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  fasted,  and 
prayed  before  the  God  of  heaven,  and  said  :  "  I  beseech  thee,  0 
Lord  God  of  heaven,  the  great  and  terrible  God,  that  keepeth 
covenant  and  mercy  for  them  that  love  him  and  observe  his  com- 
mandments :  let  thine  ear  now  be  attentive,  and  thine  eyes  open, 
that  tliou  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 :  both  I  and  my  father's  house  have 
sinned.  We  have  dealt  very  corruptly  against  thee,  and  have  not 
kept  the  commandments,  nor  the  statutes,  nor  the  judgments, 
which  thou  commandedst  thy  servant  Moses.  Kemember,  I  be- 
seech thee,  the  word  that  thou  commandedst  thy  servant  Moses, 
saying.  If  ye  transgress,  I  will  scatter  you  abroad  among  the 
nations :  but  if  ye  turn  unto  me,  and  keep  my  commandments, 
and  do  them  ;  though  there  were  of  you  cast  out  unto  the  utter- 
most 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. 
0  Lord,  I  beseech  thee,  let  now  thine  ear  be  attentive  to  the 
prayer  of  thy  servant,  and  to  the  prayer  of  thy  servants,  who 
desire  to  fear  tliy  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  I^isan,  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.  Wherefore  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 

1  Shushan.  Susa,  in  Elam,  the  winter  residence  of  the  Persian  kings. 

2  Artaxerxes  I,  464-424  b.  c.  His  twentieth  vear  would  be  445  b.  c. 


444     RENEWAL   OF   THE    JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

sore  afraid,  and  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  re- 
quest ?  "  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 
favor  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.  More- 
over I  said  unto  the  king  :  ''  If  it  please  the  king,  let  letters  be 
given  me  to  the  governors  beyond  the  River,  that  they  may  con- 
vey me  over  till  I  come  into  Judah ;  and  a  letter  unto  Asaph 
the  keeper  of  the  king's  park,  that  he  may  give  me  timber  to 
make  beams  for  the  gates  of  the  castle  ^  which  appertaineth  to 
the  house,  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  Kiver,  and  gave 
them  the  king's  letters.  Now  the  king  had  sent  captains  of  the 
army  and  horsemen  with  me.  When  Sanballat  the  Horonite,  and 
Tobiah  the  servant,  the  Ammonite,  heard  of  it,  it  grieved  them 
exceedingly  that  there  was  come  a  man  to  seek  the  welfare  of 
the  children  of  Israel. 

The  Rebuilding  of  the  Wall  (Neh.  ii.  11-20;  iv.).  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  in  my  heart  to  do  for  Jerusalem  : 
neither  was  there  any  beast  with  me,  save  the  beast  that  I  rode 
upon.  And  I  went  out  by  night  by  the  Gate  of  the  Valley,  even 
towards  the  Dragon  Well,  and  to  the  Dung  Port,  and  viewed  the 
walls  of  Jerusalem,  which  were  broken  down,  and  the  gates 
thereof  were  consumed  with  fire.  Then  I  went  on  to  the  Gate 
of  the  Fountain,  and  to  the  King's  Pool :  but  there  was  no  place 
for  the  beast  that  was  under  me  to  pass.  Then  Avent  I  up  in  the 
night  by  the  brook  [Kidron],  and  viewed  the  wall,  and  turned 

1  castle.  This  stronj^hold,  adjoining  the  north  side  of  the  temple,  was  prob- 
ably built  for  it8  protection  when  the  temple  was  rebuilt. 


THE    REBUILDING   OF   THE    WALL  445 

back,  and  entered  by  the  Gate  of  the  Valley,  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  tire  :  come,  and  let  us  build  up  the  wall  of  Jerusalem,  that 
we  be  no  more  a  reproach."  Then  I  told  them  of  the  hand  of 
my  God  which  was  good  upon  me  ;  as  also  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." 

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 
commit  themselves  to  their  God  ?  will  they  sacrifice  ?  will  they 
make  an  end  in  a  day  ?  will  they  revive  the  stones  out  of  the 
heaps  of  the  rubbish  which  are  burned  ?  "  Now  Tobiah  the  Am- 
monite was  by  him,  and  he  said  :  "  Even  that  which  they  build, 
if  a  fox  go  up,  he  shall  even  break  down  their  stone  wall." 
Hear,  0  our  God ;  for  we  are  despised  :  and  turn  their  reproach 
upon  their  own  head,  and  give  them  for  a  prey  in  the  land  of 
captivity  :  and  cover  not  their  iniquity,  and  let  not  their  sin  be 
blotted  out  from  before  thee  :  for  they  have  provoked  thee  to 
anger  before  the  builders. 

So  built  we  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  Arabi- 
ans, and  the  Ammonites,  heard  that  the  repairing  of  the  walls  of 
Jerusalem  went  forward,  and  that  the  breaches  began  to  be 
stopped,  then  they  were  very  wroth,  and  conspired  all  of  them 
together  to  come  and  to  fight  against  Jerusalem,  and  to  hinder 

1  Aramaic  papyri  have  been  found  at  Elephantine,  showing  that  Jews  in 
Egypt  wrote  to  the  sons  of  '  Sanballat  governor  of  Samaria  '  in  408  b.  c. 


446     EENEWAL   OF   THE    JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

it.  Nevertheless  we  made  our  prayer  unto  our  God,  and  set  a 
watch  against  them  day  and  night,  because  of  them. 

And  Judah  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  have  said :  They  shall  not 
know,  neither  see,  till  we  come  in  the  midst  among  them,  and 
slay  them,  and  cause  the  work  to  cease."  And  it  came  to  pass, 
that  when  the  Jews  which  dwelt  by  them  came,  they  said  unto 
us  ten  times  over :  "  From  all  places  they  come  up  against  us." 
Therefore  set  I  in  the  lower  places  behind  the  wall,  in  the  open 
places,  I  even  set  the  people  after  their  families  with  their  swords, 
their  spears,  and  their  bows.  And  I  looked,  and  rose  up,  and 
said  unto  the  nobles,  and  to  the  rulers,  and  to  the  rest  of  the 
people:  "Be  not  ye  afraid  of  them  :  remember  the  Lord,  which 
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  coungel  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  the  half  of  my 
servants  wrought  in  the  work,  and  the  other  half  of  them  held 
the  spears,  the  shields,  and  the  bows,  and  the  habergeons ;  ^  and 
the  rulers  were  behind  all  the  house  of  Judah.  They  which 
builded  on  the  wall,  and  they  that  bare  burdens,  with  those  that 
laded,  every  one  with  one  of  his  hands  wrought  in  the  work,  and 
with  the  other  hand  held  a  weapon.  For  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  therefore  ye  hear  the  sound  of  the 
trumpet,  resort  ye  thither  unto  us:  our  God  shall  fight  for  us," 

So  we  labored  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  servant  lodge  within  Jerusalem,  that  in  the  night  they  may 
be  a  guard  to  us,  and  labor  on  the  day."  So  neither  I,  nor  my 
brethren,  nor  my  servants,  nor  the  men  of  the  guard  which  fol- 
lowed me,  none  of  us  put  off  our  clothes. 

1  haberijenns.  The  woH  is  hardly  correct  here,  for  the  defensive  armor  of 
Nehemiali':'  followers  could  hardly  have  been  coats  of  mail.  It  was  probably 
made  of  tough  leather. 


NEHEiMIAH's   SOCIAL   KEFORMS  447 

Nehemiah's  Social  Reforms  (Xeh.  v.).  And  there  was  a 
great  cry  of  the  people  and  of  their  wives  against  their  brethren 
the  Jews.  For  there  were  that  said  :  '•  We,  our  sons,  and  our 
daughters,  are  many  :  let  us  get  corn,  that  we  may  eat,  and 
live."  Some  also  there  were  that  said  :  "  AVe  have  mortgaged  our 
fields,  vineyards,  and  houses,  that  we  might  buy  corn,  because  of 
the  dearth."  There  were  also  that  said  :  "  We  have  borrowed 
money  for  the  king's  tribute.  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  unto  bondage  already  :  neither  is  it 
in  our  power  to  help  it ;  for  other  men  have  our  lands  and  vine- 
yards." 

And  I  was  very  angry  when  I  heard  their  cry  and  these 
words.  Then  I  consulted  with  myself,  and  I  rebuked  the  nobles, 
and  the  rulers,  and  said  unto  them  :  "  Ye  exact  usury,  every  one 
of  his  brother."  And  I  set  a  great  assembly  against  them.  And 
I  said  unto  them  :  "  We  after  our  ability  have  redeemed  our 
brethren  the  Jews,  which  were  sold  unto  the  heathen  ;  and  will 
ye  even  sell  your  brethren  ?  or  shall  they  be  sold  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  ?  I  likewise,  and  my  brethren,  $nd  my  servants,  do  lend 
them  money  and  corn  :  I  pray  you,  let  us  leave  off  this  usury. 
Kestore,  I  pray  you,  to  them,  even  this  day,  their  lands,  their 
vineyards,  their  oliveyards,  and  their  houses,  also  the  hundredth 
part  of  the  money,  and  of  the  corn,  the  wine,  and  the  oil,  that 
ye  exact  of  them." 

Then  said  they  :  "We  will  restore  them,  and  will  require  no- 
thing of  them  ;  so  will  we  do  as  thou  sayest."  Then  I  called  the 
priests,  and  took  an  oath  of  them,  that  they  should  do  according 
to  this  promise.  Also  I  shook  my  lap,  and  said  :  "  So  God  shake 
out  every  man  from  his  house,  and  from  his  labor,  that  perform- 
eth  not  this  promise,  even  thus  be  he  shaken  out,  and  emptied." 
And  all  the  congregation  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  gov- 
ernor in  the  land  of  Judah,  from  the  twentieth  year  even  unto 
the  two  and  thirtieth  year  ^  of  Artaxerxes  the  king,  that  is, 
1  two  and  thirtieth  year.  433  B.  c. 


448     RENEWAL   OF  THE   JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

twelve  years,  I  and  my  brethren  have  not  eaten  the  bread  of  the 
governor.  But  the  former  governors  that  had  been  before  me 
were  chargeable  unto  the  people,  and  had  taken  of  them  bread 
and  wine,  at  the  rate  of  forty  shekels  of  silver  daily  ;  yea,  even 
their  servants  lorded  it  over  the  people  :  but  so  did  not  I,  be- 
cause 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  there  were  at  my 
table  an  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  Jews  and  rulers,  beside  those 
that  came  unto  us  from  among  the  heathen  that  are  about  us. 
Now  that  which  was  prepared  for  me  daily  was  one  ox  and  six 
choice  sheep ;  also  fowls  were  prepared  for  me,  and  once  in  ten 
days  store  of  all  sorts  of  wine  :  yet  for  all  this  required  not  I  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. 

Unsuccessful  Plots  against  the  Work  (Neh.  vi. ;  vii.  1-5 ; 
xi.  1,  2  ;  Ezra  iv.  11-16).  Now  it  came  to  pass,  when  Sanballat, 
and  Tobiah,  and  Geshem  the  Arabian,  and  the  rest  of  our  ene- 
mies, 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  some  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  ?  "  Yet  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  heathen,  and  Gashmu 
saith  it,  that  thou  and  the  Jews  think  to  rebel :  for  which  cause 
thou  buildest  the  wall,  that  thou  mayest  be  their  king.  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  feign- 
est  them  out  of  thine  own  heart."  For  they  all  would  have  made 
us  afraid,  saying :   "  Their  hands  shall   be  weakened  from  the 


UNSUCCESSFUL    PLOTS   AGAINST   THE    WORK  449 

work,  that  it  be  not  done.''  Now  therefore,  0  God,  strengtlien 
my  hands. 

Afterward  I  came  unto  the  house  of  Shemaiah  the  son  of 
Delaiah  the  son  of  Mehetabeel,  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  who  is  there,  that, 
being  as  I  am,^  would  go  into  the  temple  to  save  his  life  ?  I 
will  not  go  in."  And  lo,  I  perceived  that  God  had  not  sent  him; 
but  that  he  pronounced  this  prophecy  against  me:  for  Tobiah 
and  Sanballat  had  hired  him.  Therefore  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.  My 
God,  think  thou  upon  Tobiah  and  Sanballat  according  to  these 
their  works,  and  on  the  prophetess  Xoadiah,  and  the  rest  of  the 
prophets,  that  would  have  put  me  in  fear. 

So  the  wall  was  finished  in  the  twenty  and  fifth  day  of  the 
month  Elul,2  in  fifty  and  two  days.  And  it  came  to  pass,  that 
when  all  our  enemies  heard  thereof,  and  all  the  heathen  that 
were  about  us  saw  these  things,  they  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  Shechaniah  the  son  of  Arah  ;  and  his  son  Johanan 
had  taken  the  daughter  of  Meshullam  the  son  of  Berechiah. 
Also  they  reported  his  good  deeds  before  me,  and  uttered  my 
words  to  him.   And  Tobiah  sent  letters  to  put  me  in  fear. 

This  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  that  they  sent  unto  Artaxerxes 
the  king :  — 

"Thy  servants  the  men  on  this  side  the  Eiver,  and  so  forth. 

"  Be  it  known  unto  the  king,  that  the  Jews  which  came  up 
from  thee  to  us  are  come  unto  Jerusalem,  building  the  rebel- 
lious and  the  bad  city,  and  have  set  up  the  walls  thereof,  and 
repaired  the  foundations.  Be  it  known  now  unto  the  king,  that, 
if  this  city  be  builded,  and  the  walls  set  up  again,  then  will 
they  not  pay  toll,  tribute,  and  custom,  and  it  will  endamage  the 

1  being  as  I  am.  That  is,  beinff  a  layman. 

2  Elul,  the  sixth  month,  fell  in  August-September. 


450     RENEWAL    OF   THE   JEWISH    COMMUNITY   IN    PALESTINE 

revenue  of  the  kings.  Now  because  we  have  maintenance  from 
the  king's  palace,  and  it  was  not  meet  for  us  to  see  the  king's 
dishonor,  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  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  again,  and  the  walls  thereof  set  up, 
by  this  means  thou  shalt  have  no  portion  on  this  side  the  Eiver." 

Now  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  wall  was  built,  and  I  had  set 
up  the  doors,  and  the  porters  were  appointed,  that  I  gave  my 
brother  Hanani,  and  Hananiah  the  ruler  of  the  palace,  charge 
over  Jerusalem :  for  he  was  a  faithful  man,  and  feared  God 
above  many.  And  I  said  unto  them:  "Let  not  the  gates  of 
Jerusalem  be  opened  until  the  sun  be  hot ;  and  while  they  stand 
by,  let  them  shut  the  doors,  and  bar  them :  and  appoint  watches 
of  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem,  every  one  in  his  watch,  and  every 
one  to  be  over  against  his  house." 

Now  the  city  was  large  and  great :  but  the  people  were  few 
therein,  and  the  houses  were  not  builded.  And  my  God  put  into 
mine  heart  to  gather  together  the  nobles,  and  the  rulers,  and  the 
people.  And  the  rulers  of  the  people  dwelt  at  Jerusalem:  the 
rest  of  the  people  also  cast  lots,  to  bring  one  of  ten  to  dwell  in 
Jerusalem  the  holy  city,  and  nine  parts  to  dwell  in  other  cities. 
And  the  people  blessed  all  the  men,  that  willingly  offered  them- 
selves to  dwell  at  Jerusalem. 

Dedication  of  the  Walls  (Neh.  xii.  27-32,  37-40,  42,  43). 
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  Levi,  the  singers,  gathered  themselves  together,  both 
out  of  the  plain  country  round  about  Jerusalem,  and  from  the 
villages  of  Netophathi;  also  from  the  house  of  Gilgal,  and  out 
of  the  fields  of  Gel)a  and  Azmaveth  :  for  the  singers  had  builded 
them  villages  round  about  Jerusalem.  And  the  priests  and  the 
Levites  purified  themselves,  and  purified  the  people,  and  the  gates, 
and  the  wall. 

Then  I  brought  up  the  princes  of  Judah  iipon  the  wall,  and 


nehemiah's  religious  refokms  451 

appointed  two  great  compauies  of  them  that  gave  thanks  and 
went  in  procession,  whereof  one  went  on  the  right  hand  upon 
the  wall  toward  the  Dung  Gate :  and  after  them  went  Hoshaiah, 
and  half  of  the  princes  of  Judah.  And  at  the  Fountain  Gate, 
which  was  over  against  them,  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, 
and  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  above  the  Old  Gate,  and  above  the  Fish  Gate, 
and  the  Tower  of  Hananeel,  and  the  Tower  of  Meah,  even  unto 
the  Sheep  Gate  :  and  they  stood  still  in  the  Gate  of  the  Guard. 
So  stood  the  two  companies  of  them  that  gave  thanks  in  the 
house  of  God,  and  I,  and  the  half  of  the  rulers  with  me.  And 
the  singers  sang  loud,  with  Jezrahiah  their  overseer.  Also  that 
day  they  offered  great  sacrifices,  and  rejoiced  :  for  God  had  made 
them  rejoice  with  great  joy  :  the  wives  also  and  the  children 
rejoiced:  so  that  the  joy  of  Jerusalem  was  heard  even  afar  off. 

Nehemiah's  Religious  Reforms  (IS^eh.  xiii.).  And  before 
this,^  Eliashib  the  priest,  having  the  oversight  of  the  chambers 
of  the  house  of  our  God,  was  allied  unto  Tobiah  :  and  he  had 
prepared  for  him  a  great  chamber,  where  aforetime  they  laid 
the  meal  offerings,  the  frankincense,  and  the  vessels,  and  the 
tithes  of  the  corn,  the  new  wine,  and  the  oil.  But  in  all  this 
time  was  not  I  at  Jerusalem  :  for  in  the  two  and  thirtieth  year 
of  Artaxerxes  king  of  Babylon  came  I  unto  the  king,  and  after 
certain  days  obtained  I  leave  of  the  king  :  and  I  came  to  Jerusa- 
lem, and  understood  of  the  evil  that  Eliashib  did  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  house- 
hold 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  offering  and  the 
frankincense. 

And  I  perceived  that  the  portions  of  the  Levites  had  not 
been  given  them  :  for  the  Levites  and  the  singers,  that  did  the 
work,  were  fled  every  one  to  his  field.   Then  contended  I  witli 

1  before  this.  That  is,  before  Nehemiah's  return  from  the  court,  as  mentioned 
in  what  follows. 


452     RENEWAL   OF   THE   JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

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  new  wine 
and  the  oil  unto  the  treasuries.  And  I  made  treasurers  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  ofhce  was  to  distribute  unto  their  brethren.  Remember 
me,  0  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;  as  also 
wine,  grapes,  and  figs,  and  all  manner  of  burdens,  which  they 
brought  unto  Jerusalem  on  the  sabbath  day  :  and  I  testified 
against  them  in  the  day  wherein  they  sold  victuals.  There  dwelt 
men  of  Tyre  also  therein,  which  brought  fish,  and  all  manner  of 
ware,  and  sold  on  the  sabbath  unto  the  children  of  Judah,  and 
in  Jerusalem.  Then  I  contended  with  the  nobles  of  Judah,  and 
said  unto  them  :  "  What  evil  thing  is  this  that  ye  do,  and  pro- 
fane 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  charged  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  kind  of  ware  lodged  without  Jeru- 
salem once  or  twice.  Then  I  testified  against  them,  and  said 
unto  them :  "  Why  lodge  ye  about  the  wall  ?  if  ye  do  so  again, 
I  will  lay  hands  on  you."  From  that  time  forth  came  they  no 
more  on  the  sabbath.  Remember  me,  0  my  God,  concerning  this 
also,  and  spare  me  according  to  the  greatness  of  thy  mercy. 

In  those  days  also  saw  I  Jews  that  had  married  wives  of 
Ashdod,  of  Ammon,  and  of  Moab :  and  their  children  spake 
half  in  the  speech  of  Ashdod,  and  could  not  speak  in  the  Jews' 
language.  And  I  contended  with  them,  and  cursed  them,  and 
smote  certain  of  them,  and  plucked  otf  their  hair,  and  made 
them  swear  by  God,  saying  :  "  Ye  shall  not  give  your  daughters 
unto  their  sons,  not  take   their  daughters  unto  your  sons,   or 


THE  MISSION    OF    EZRA  453 

for  yourselves.  Did  not  Soloiuoii  king  of  Israel  sin  by  these 
things  ?  yet  among  many  nations  was  there  no  king  like  him, 
who  was  beloved  of  his  God,  and  God  made  him  king  over  all 
Israel  :  nevertheless  even  him  did  strange  women  cause  to  sin. 
Shall  we  then  hearken  unto  you  to  do  all  this  great  evil,  to 
transgress  against  our  God  in  marrying  strange  wives  ?  " 

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.  Remember  them,  0  my  God,  because 
they  have  defiled  the  covenant  of  the  priesthood,  and  of  the 
Levites. 

On  that  day  they  read  in  the  book  of  Moses  in  the  audience 
of  the  people  :  and  therein  was  found  written,  that  the  Am- 
monite and  the  Moabite  should  not  come  into  the  congregation 
of  God  for  ever  ;  because  they  met  not  the  children  of  Israel 
with  bread  and  with  water,  but  hired  Balaam  against  them,  that 
he  should  curse  them  :  howbeit  our  God  turned  the  curse  into 
a  blessing.  jSTow  it  came  to  pass,  when  they  had  heard  the  law, 
that  they  separated  from  Israel  all  the  mixed  multitude. 

Thus  cleansed  I  them  from  all  strangers,  and  appointed  the 
wards  of  the  priests  and  the  Levites,  every  one  in  his  business  ; 
and  for  the  wood  offering,  at  times  appointed,  and  for  the  first- 
fruits.   Remember  me,  0  my  God,  for  good. 

The  Mission  of  Ezra  (Ezra  vii.  1,  28 ;  viii.  15-33).  Now 
after  these  things,  in  the  reign  of  Artaxerxes  king  of  Persia, 
Ezra  the  son  of  Seraiah,  went  up  from  Babylon. 

And  I  [Ezra]  gathered  together  out  of  Israel  chief  men  to 
go  up  with  me.  I  gathered  them  together  to  the  river  that  run- 
neth to  Ahava ;  and  there  abode  we  in  tents  three  days  :  and  I 
viewed  the  people,  and  the  priests,  and  found  there  none  of  the 
sons  of  Levi.  Then  sent  I  for  Eliezer,  for  Ariel,  for  Shemaiah, 
and  for  Elnathan,  and  for  Jarib,  and  for  Nathan,  and  for  Zech- 
ariah,  and  for  Meshullam,  chief  men  ;  also  for  Joiarib,  and  for 
Elnathan,  men  of  understanding.  And  I  sent  them  with  com- 
mandment unto  Iddo  the  chief  at  the  place  Casiphia,  and  I  told 
them  what  they  should  say  unto  Iddo,  and  to  his  brethren  at 
the  place  Casiphia,  that  they  should  bring  unto  us  ministers  for 
the  house  of  our  God.  And  by  the  good  hand  of  our  God  upon 
us  tliey  brought  us  a  man  of  understandinc^,  of  the  sons  of  Mahli, 
the  son  of  Levi,  the  son  of  Israel :   Sherebiah,  with  his  sons  and 


454     RENEWAL   OF   THE    JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN    PALESTINE 

his  brethren,  eighteen;  and  Hashabiah,  and  with  him  Jeshaiah 
of  the  sons  of  Merari,  his  brethren  and  their  sons,  twenty. 

Then  I  proclaimed  a  fast  there,  at  the  river  of  Ahava,  that 
we  might  afflict  ourselves  before  our  God,  to  seek  of  him  a  right 
way  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  for  good  that  seek  him  ;  but  his  power  and  his 
wrath  is  against  all  them  that  forsake  him."  So  we  fasted  and 
besought  our  God  for  this  :   and  he  was  intreated  of  us. 

Then  I  separated  twelve  of  the  chief  of  the  priests,  and  Shere- 
biah,  Hashabiah,  and  ten  of  their  brethren  with  them,  and 
weighed  unto  them  the  silver,  and  the  gold,  and  the  vessels, 
even  the  offering  of  the  house  of  our  God,  which  the  king,  and 
his  counsellors,  and  his  lords,  and  all  Israel  there  present,  had 
offered :  I  even  weighed  unto  their  hand  six  hundred  and  fifty 
talents  of  silver,  and  silver  vessels  an  hundred  talents,  and  of 
gold  an  hundred  talents;  also  twenty  basins  of  gold,  of  a  thou- 
sand drams;  and  two  vessels  of  fine  copper,  precious  as  gold. 
And  I  said  unto  them :  ''  Ye  are  holy  unto  the  Lord ;  the  ves- 
sels are  holy  also;  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  chief  of  the  priests 
and  the  Levites,  and  chief  of  the  fathers  of  Israel,  at  Jerusalem, 
in  the  chambers  of  the  house  of  the  Lord." 

So  took  the  priests  and  the  Levites  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  Jeru- 
salem :  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. 

Now  on  the  fourth  day  was  the  silver  and  the  gold  and  the 
vessels  weighed  in  the  house  of  our  God  by  the  hand  of  Mere- 
moth  the  son  of  Uriah  the  priest. 

The  Reading  of  the  Law  (Neh.  viii.).  And  all  the  people 
gatlicrod  tliomselves  together  as  one  man  into  the  street  that  was 
before  the  Water  Gate ;  and  tliey  spake  unto  Ezra  the  scribe  to 


THE    READING    OF   THE    LAW  455 

bring  the  book  of  the  law  of  ]\Ioses,  which  the  Lord  had  com- 
mandt'd  to  Israel.  And  Ezra  the  priest  brouglit  the  law  before 
the  congregation  both  of  men  and  women,  and  all  that  could 
hear  with  understanding,  upon  the  first  day  of  the  seventh 
month.  And  he  read  therein  before  the  street  that  was  before 
the  Water  Gate  from  the  morning  until  midday,  before  the  men 
and  the  women,  and  those  that  could  understand;  antl  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  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 
the  Levites  caused  the  people  to  understand  the  law  :  and  the 
people  stood  in  their  place.  So  they  read  in  the  book  in  the  law 
of  God  distinctly,  and  gave  the  sense,  and  caused  them  to  un- 
derstand the  reading. 

And  Nehemiah,  which  is  the  Tirshatha,^  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  them  for 
whom  nothing  is  prepared:  for  this  day  is  holy  unto  our  Lord: 
neither  be  ye  sorry ;  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  chief  of 
the  fathers  of  all  the  people,  the  priests,  and  the  Levites,  unto 
Ezra  the  scribe,  even  to  understand  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  pub- 
lish and  proclaim  in  all  their  cities,  and  in  Jerusalem,  saying: 
''Go  forth  unto  the  mount,  and  fetch  olive  branches,  and  pine 
1  Tirshatlia.  Governor. 


456     KENEWAL   OF   THE   JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN   PALESTINE 

branches,  and  myrtle  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  street  of  the 
Water  Gate,  and  in  the  street  of  the  Gate  of  Ephraim.  And  all 
the  congregation  of  them  that  were  come  again  out  of  the  cap- 
tivity made  booths,  and  sat  under  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,  he  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  manner. 

The  Suppression  of  Mixed  Marriages  (Ezra  ix.  1-6; 
X.  1-17;  Neh.  x.  28-31).  Now  when  these  things  were  done, 
the  princes  came  to  me,  saying :  "  The  people  of  Israel,  and  the 
priests,  and  the  Levites,  have  not  separated  themselves  from 
the  people  of  the  lands,  doing  according  to  their  abominations, 
even  of  the  Canaanites,  the  Hittites,  the  Perizzites,  the  Jebu- 
sites,  the  Ammonites,  the  Moabites,  the  Egyptians,  and  the 
Amorites.  For  they  have  taken  of  their  daughters  for  them- 
selves, and  for  their  sons :  so  that  the  holy  seed  have  mingled 
themselves  with  the  people  of  those  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. 
Then  were  assembled  unto  me  every  one  that  trembled  at  the 
words  of  the  God  of  Israel,  because  of  the  transgression  of  those 
that  had  been  carried  away ;  and  I  sat  astonied  until  the  even- 
ing 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,  and  said  :  "  0 
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 
trespass  is  grown  up  unto  the  heavens." 

Now  when  Ezra  had  prayed,  and  when  he  had  confessed, 
weeping  and  casting  himself  down  before  the  house  of  God, 
there  assembled  unto  him  out  of  Israel  a  very  great  congrega- 


THE   SUPPRESSION   OF   MIXED   MARRIAGES  457 

tion  of  men  and  women  and  children :  for  the  people  wept  very 
sore.  And  Shechaniah  the  son  of  Jehiel,one  of  the  sons  of  Elam, 
answered  and  said  unto  Ezra:  "  We  have  trespassed  against  our 
God,  and  have  taken  strange  wives  of  the  people  of  the  land  : 
yet  now  there  is  hope  in  Israel  concerning  this  thing.  Xow 
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 
our  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 
chief  priests,  the  Levites,  and  all  Israel,  to  swear  that  they  should 
do  according  to  this  word.    And  they  sware. 

Then  Ezra  rose  up  from  before  the  house  of  God,  and  went 
into  the  chamber  of  Johanan  the  son  of  Eliashib:  and  he  lodged 
there,  and  did  eat  no  bread,  nor  drink  water :  for  he  mourned 
because  of  the  transgression  of  them  that  had  been  carried  away. 
And  they  made  proclamation  throughout  Judah  and  Jerusa- 
lem unto  all  the  children  of  the  captivity,  that  they  should 
gather  themselves  together  unto  Jerusalem  ;  and  that  whosoever 
would  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  them- 
selves together  unto  Jerusalem  within  three  days.  It  was  the 
ninth  month,^  on  the  twentieth  day  of  the  month  ;  and  all  the 
people  sat  in  the  street  of  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  taken 
strange  wives,  to  increase  the  trespass  of  Israel.  Kow  therefore 
make  confession  unto  the  Lord  God  of  your  fathers,  and  do  his 
pleasure :  and  separate  yourselves  from  the  people  of  the  land, 
and  from  the  strange  wives."  Then  all  the  congregation  an- 
swered and  said  with  a  loud  voice  :  *'  As  thou  hast  said,  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  the  work 
of  one  day  or  two :  for  we  are  many  that  have  transgressed  in  this 
thing.  Let  now  our  rulers  stand  for  all  the  congregation,  and 
let  all  them  which  have  taken  strange  wives  in  our  cities  come 
1  The  ninth  month  fell  in  November-December. 


458     RENEWAL   OF  THE   JEWISH   COMMUNITY   IN  PALESTINE 

at  appointed  times,  and  with  them  the  elders  of  every  city,  and  the 
judges  thereof,  until  the  fierce  wrath  of  our  God  for  this  matter 
be  turned  from  us." 

Only  Jonathan  the  son  of  Asahel  and  Jahaziah  the  son  of 
Tikvah  stood  up  against  this  matter ;  and  Meshullam  and  Shab- 
bethai  the  Levite  helped  them. 

And  the  children  of  the  captivity  did  so.  And  Ezra  the  priest, 
with  certain  chief  of  the  fathers,  after  the  house  of  their  fathers, 
and  all  of  them  by  their  names,  were  separated,  and  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  taken  strange  wives 
by  the  first  day  of  the  first  month. ^ 

Now  in  the  twenty  and  fourth  day  of  this  month  tlie  children 
of  Israel  were  assembled  with  fasting,  and  with  sackclothes,  and 
earth  upon  them.  And  the  seed  of  Israel  separated  themselves 
from  all  strangers.  And  all  they  that  had  separated  themselves 
from  the  people  of  the  lands  unto  the  law  of  God,  their  wives, 
their  sons,  and  their  daughters,  every  one  having  knowledge, 
and  having  understanding;  they  clave  to  their  brethren,  their 
nobles,  and  entered  into  a  curse,  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  judgments  and  his  statutes ;  and  that  we  would  not  give 
our  daughters  unto  the  people  of  the  land,  nor  take  their  daugh- 
ters for  our  sons  :  and  if  the  people  of  the  land  bring  ware  or 
any  victuals  on  the  sabbath  day  to  sell,  that  we  would  not  buy 
it  of  them  on  the  sabbath,  or  on  the  holy  day  :  and  that  we 
would  leave  the  seventh  year,  and  the  exaction  of  every  debt 
1  The Jirst  month  fell  in  March-April. 


XIII 

THE    STORIES    OF    JONAH,    DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 
1.    JOXAH 

Now  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  unto  Jonah  the  son  of 
Amittai,  saying:  ''Arise,  go  to  Nineveh,  that  great  city,  and  cry 
against  it ;  for  their  wickedness  is  come  up  before  me."  But 
Jonah  rose  up  to  flee  unto  Tarshish  ^  from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord,  and  went  down  to  Joppa  ;  and  he  found  a  ship  going  to 
Tarshish :  so  he  paid  the  fare  thereof,  and  went  down  into  it, 
to  go  with  them  unto  Tarshish  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord. 

But  the  Lord  sent  out  a  great  wind  into  the  sea,  and  there 
was  a  mighty  tempest  in  the  sea,  so  that  the  ship  was  likely  to 
be  broken.  Then  the  mariners  were  afraid,  and  cj:ied  every  man 
unto  his  god,  and  cast  forth  the  wares  that  were  in  the  ship  into 
the  sea,  to  lighten  it  of  them.  But  Jonah  was  gone  down  into 
the  sides  of  the  ship ;  and  he  lay,  and  was  fast  asleep.  So  the 
shipmaster  came  to  him,  and  said  unto  him  :  ''  What  meanest 
thou,  0  sleeper  ?  arise,  call  upon  thy  God,  if  so  be  that  God  will 
think  upon  us,  that  we  perish  not." 

And  they  said  every  one  to  his  fellow  :  '*  Come,  and  let  us 
cast  lots,  that  we  may  know  for  whose  cause  this  evil  is  upon 
us."  So  they  cast  lots,  and  the  lot  fell  upon  Jonah.  Then  said 
they  unto  him :  *'  Tell  us,  we  pray  thee,  what  is  thine  occupa- 
tion ?  and  whence  comest  thou  ?  what  is  thy  country  ?  and  of 
what  people  art  thou  ?  "  And  he  said  unto  them:  "  I  am  an 
Hebrew ;  and  I  fear  the  Lord,  the  God  of  heaven,  which  hath 
made  the  sea  and  the  dry  land."  Then  were  the  men  exceed- 
ingly afraid,  and  said  unto  him,  ''Why  hast  thou  done  this?" 
For  the  men  knew  that  he  fled  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord. 
Then  said  they  unto  him  :  "  What  shall  we  do  unto  thee,  that 
the  sea  may  be  calm  unto  us  ?  "  for  the  piea  wrought,  and  was 
tempestuous.  And  he  said  unto  them :  "  Take  me  up,  and  cast 
me  forth  into  the  sea ;  so  shall  the  sea  be  calm  unto  you  :  for  I 
know  that  for  my  sake  this  great  tempest  is  upon  you."  Never- 
theless the  men  rowed  hard  to  get  them  back  to  the  land  ; 
1  Tarshish.  Tarte?sus  in  Spain,  probably  an  old  Phoenician  colony. 


460        THE    STORIES    OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND   ESTHER 

but  they  could  not :  for  the  sea  wrought,  and  was  tempestuous 
against  them.  Wherefore  they  cried  unto  the  Lord,  and  said  : 
*'We  beseech  thee,  0  Lord,  we  beseech  thee,  let  us  not  perish 
for  this  man's  life,  and  lay  not  upon  us  innocent  blood :  for 
thou,  0  Lord,  hast  done  as  it  pleased  thee.''  So  they  took  up 
Jonah,  and  cast  him  forth  into  the  sea  :  and  the  sea  ceased  from 
her  raging.  Then  the  men  feared  the  Lord  exceedingly,  and 
offered  a  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord,  and  made  vows. 

Now  the  Lord  had  prepared  a  great  fish  to  swallow  up  Jonah. 
And  Jonah  was  in  the  belly  of  the  fish  three  days  and  three 
nights.  Then  Jonah  prayed  unto  the  Lord  his  God  out  of  the 
fish's  belly.  And  the  Lord  spake  unto  the  fish,  and  it  vomited 
out  Jonah  upon  the  dry  land.  And  the  word  of  the  Lord  came 
unto  Jonah  the  second  time,  saying  :  "  Arise,  go  unto  Nineveh, 
that  great  city,  and  preach  unto  it  the  preaching  that  I  bid  thee." 
So  Jonah  arose,  and  went  unto  Nineveh,  according  to  the  word 
of  the  Lord.  Now  Nineveh  was  an  exceeding  great  city  of  three 
days'  journey.^  And  Jonah  began  to  enter  into  the  city  a  day's 
journey,  and  he  cried,  and  said:  ^' Yet  forty  days,  and  Nineveh 
shall  be  overthrown." 

So  the  people  of  Nineveh  believed  God,  and  proclaimed  a  fast, 
and  put  on  sackcloth,  from  the  greatest  of  them  even  to  the  least 
of  them.  For  word  came  unto  the  king  of  Nineveh,  and  he  arose 
from  his  throne,  and  he  laid  his  robe  from  him,  and  covered  him 
with  sackcloth,  and  sat  in  ashes.  And  he  caused  it  to  be  pro- 
claimed 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  if  God 
will  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,  that  he  had  said  that  he 
would  do  unto  them ;  and  he  did  it  not.  But  it  displeased 
Jonah  exceedingly,  and  he  was  very  angry.  And  he  prayed  unto 
the  Lord,  and  said  :   "  I  pray  thee,  0  Lord,  was  not  this  my 

1  The  writer,  living  long  after  the  destruction  of  Nineveh  (COS  B.  c),  evi- 
dently understood  the  tradition  regarding  its  size  to  make  it  pixty  miles  in 
diameter,  instead  of  in  circuit. 


Daniel's  abstinence  461 

saying,  when  I  was  yet  in  my  country  ?  Therefore  I  fled  before 
unto  Tarshish :  for  I  knew  that  thou  art  a  gracious  God,  and 
merciful,  slow  to  anger,  and  of  great  kindness,  and  repentest 
thee  of  the  evil.  Therefore  now,  0  Lord,  take,  I  beseech  thee, 
my  life  from  me  ;  for  it  is  better  for  me  to  die  than  to  live." 

Then  said  the  Lord,  "  Doest  thou  well  to  be  angry  ? "  So 
Jonah  went  out  of  the  city,  and  sat  on  the  east  side  of  the  city, 
and  there  made  him  a  booth,  ^  and  sat  under  it  in  a  shadow,  till 
he  might  see  what  would  become  of  the  city.  And  the  Lord  God 
prepared  a  gourd,^  and  made  it  to  come  up  over  Jonah,  that  it 
might  be  a  shadow  over  his  head.  So  Jonah  was  exceeding  glad 
of  the  gourd.  But  God  prepared  a  worm  when  the  morning  rose 
the  next  day,  and  it  smote  the  gourd  that  it  withered.  And  it 
came  to  pass,  when  the  sun  did  arise,  that  God  prepared  a  vehe- 
ment east  wind ;  and  the  sun  beat  upon  the  head  of  Jonah,  that 
he  fainted,  and  wished  in  himself  to  die,  and  said,  "  It  is  better 
for  me  to  die  than  to  live." 

And  God  said  to  Jonah :  "  Doest  thou  well  to  be  angry  for 
the  gourd?"  And  he  said,  ''I  do  well  to  be  angry,  even  unto 
death."  Then  said  the  Lord:  "Thou  hast  had  pity  on  the 
gourd,  for  the  which  thou  hast  not  labored,  neither  madest  it 
grow ;  which  came  up  in  a  night,  and  perished  in  a  night :  and 
should  not  I  spare  Nineveh,  that  great  city,  wherein  are  more 
than  sixscore  thousand  persons  that  cannot  discern  between  their 
right  hand  and  their  left  hand  ;  and  also  much  cattle?  " 

2.  Daniel 

Daniel's  Abstinence  (Dan.  i.).  In  the  third  year  of  the  reign 
of  Jehoiakim  king  of  Judah  came  Nebuchadnezzar '  king  of 
Babylon  unto  Jerusalem,  and  besieged  it.  And  the  Lord  gave 
Jehoiakim  king  of  Judah  into  his  hand,  with  part  of  the  vessels 
of  the  house  of  God  :  which  he  carried  into  the  land  of  Shinar;^ 
and  he  brought  the  vessels  into  the  treasure  house  of  his  god.^ 

And  the  king  spake  unto  Ashpenaz  the  master  of  his  eunuchs, 
that  he  should  bring  certain  of  the  children  of  Israel,  and  of  the 
king's  seed,  and  of  the  princes  ;  children  in  whom  was  no  blem- 

1  booth.  A  loose  arbor  of  boughs. 

2  gourd.  The  Ricinus,  a  broad-leaved  shrub  that  grows  quickly  in  sandy  soil. 
It  is  common  in  Palestine. 

8  Nebuchadnezzar.  See  note,  p.  419.  4  Skinar.  See  note,  p.  14. 

6  His  god  was  Marduk,  the  patron-god  of  Babylon. 


462        THE    STORIES    OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,   AND   ESTHER 

ish,  but  well  favored,  and  skilful  in  all  wisdom,  and  cunning  in 
knowledge,  and  understanding  science,  and  such  as  had  ability 
in  them  to  stand  in  the  king's  palace,  and  whom  they  might 
teach  the  learning  and  the  tongue  of  the  Chaldeans.^  And  the 
king  appointed  them  a  daily  provision  of  the  king's  meat,  and 
of  the  wine  which  he  drank  :  so  nourishing  them  three  years, 
that  at  the  end  thereof  they  might  stand  before  the  king.  Kow 
among  these  were  of  the  children  of  Judah,  Daniel,  Hananiah, 
Mishael,  and  Azariah  :  unto  whom  the  prince  of  the  eunuchs 
gave  names  :  for  he  gave  unto  Daniel  the  name  of  Belteshazzar  ; 
and  to  Hananiah,  of  Shadrach  ;  and  to  Mishael,  of  Meshach  ; 
and  to  Azariah,  of  Abed-nego. 

But  Daniel  purposed  in  his  heart  that  he  would  not  defile 
himself  with  the  portion  of  the  king's  meat,  nor  with  the  wine 
which  he  drank  :  therefore  he  requested  of  the  prince  of  the 
eunuchs  that  he  might  not  defile  himself.  Now  God  had  brought 
Daniel  into  favor  and  tender  love  with  the  prince  of  the  eunuchs. 
And  the  prince  of  the  eunuchs  said  unto  Daniel  :  "1  fear  my 
lord  the  king,  who  hath  appointed  your  meat  and  your  drink: 
for  why  should  he  see  your  faces  worse  liking  than  the  children 
which  are  of  your  sort  ?  Then  shall  ye  make  me  endanger  my 
head  to  the  king."  Then  said  Daniel  to  the  steward,  whom  the 
prince  of  the  eunuchs  had  set  over  Daniel,  Hananiah,  Mishael, 
and  Azariah  :  "  Prove  thy  servants,  I  beseech  thee,  ten  days  ; 
and  let  them  give  us  pulse  ^  to  eat,  and  water  to  drink.  Then  let 
our  countenances  be  looked  upon  before  thee,  and  the  counte- 
nance of  the  children  that  eat  of  the  portion  of  the  king's  meat : 
and  as  thou  seest,  deal  with  thy  servants."  So  he  consented  to 
them  in  this  matter,  and  proved  them  ten  days.  And  at  the  end 
of  ten  days  their  countenances  appeared  fairer  and  fatter  in  flesh 
than  all  the  children  which  did  eat  the  portion  of  the  king's 
meat.  Thus  the  steward  took  away  the  portion  of  their  meat, 
and  the  wine  that  they  should  drink ;  and  gave  them  pulse. 

As  for  these  four  children,  God  gave  them  knowledge  and 
skill  in  all  learning  and  wisdom  :  and  Daniel  had  understanding 
in  all  visions  and  dreams.  Now  at  the  end  of  the  days  that  the 
king  had  said  he  should  bring  them  in,  then  tlie  prince  of  the 
eunuchs  brought  them  in  before  Nebuchadnezzar.    And  the  king 

1  '  Chaldeans*  here  means  not  the  people,  but  the  priestly  class  who  studied 
and  practiced  astrolof^y,  divination,  and  magic. 

2  pulse.  The  Hebrew  word  means  vegetable  food  in  general. 


NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S    JjKEAM  463 

communed  with  them;  and  among  them  all  was  found  none  like 
Daniel,  Hananiah,  Mishael,  and  Azariah  :  therefore  stood  tliey 
before  the  king.  And  in  all  matters  of  wisdom  and  understand- 
ing, that  the  king  enquired  of  them,  he  found  them  ten  times 
better  than  all  the  magicians  and  astrologers  that  were  in  all  his 
realm.  And  Daniel  continued  even  unto  the  first  year  of  king 
Cyrus. 

Nebuchadnezzar's  Dream  (Dan.  ii.).  And  in  the  second  year 
of  the  reign  of  Nebuchadnezzar  Nebuchadnezzar  dreamed  dreams, 
wherewith  his  spirit  was  troubled,  and  his  sleep  brake  from  him. 
Then  the  king  commanded  to  call  the  magicians,  and  the  astro- 
logers, and  the  sorcerers,  and  the  Chaldeans,  for  to  shew  the 
king  his  dreams.  So  they  came  and  stood  before  the  king.  And 
the  king  said  unto  them  :  "  I  have  dreamed  a  dream,  and  my 
spirit  is  troubled  to  know  the  dream." 

Then  spake  the  Chaldeans  to  the  king  :  "  0  king,  live  for 
ever  :  tell  thy  servants  the  dream,  and  we  will  shew  the  inter- 
pretation." The  king  answered  and  said  to  the  Chaldeans  :  ''  The 
word  is  gone  forth :  if  ye  will  not  make  known  unto  me  the 
dream,  with  the  interpretation  thereof,  ye  shall  be  cut  in  pieces, 
and  your  houses  shall  be  made  a  dunghill.  But  if  ye  shew  the 
dream,  and  the  interpretation  thereof,  ye  shall  receive  of  me 
gifts  and  rewards  and  great  honor:  therefore  shew  me  the  dream, 
and  the  interpretation  thereof."  They  answered  again  and  said: 
^*  Let  the  king  tell  his  servants  the  dream,  and  we  w^ill  shew  the 
interpretation  of  it."  The  king  answered  and  said  :  "  I  know  of 
certainty  that  ye  would  gain  the  time,  because  ye  see  the  word 
is  gone  forth.  But  if  ye  will  not  make  known  unto  me  the  dream, 
there  is  but  one  decree  for  you  :  for  ye  have  prepared  lying  and 
corrupt  words  to  speak  before  me,  till  the  time  be  changed  :  ^ 
therefore  tell  me  the  dream,  and  I  shall  know  that  ye  can  shew 
me  the  interpretation  thereof." 

The  Chaldeans  answered  before  the  king,  and  said  :  "  There 
is  not  a  man  upon  the  earth  that  can  shew  the  king's  matter : 
therefore  there  is  no  king,  lord,  nor  ruler,  that  asked  such 
things  at  any  magician,  or  astrologer,  or  Chaldean.  And  it  is  a 
rare  thing  that  the  king  requireth,  and  there  is  none  other  that 
can  shew  it  before  the  king,  except  the  gods,  whose  dwelling  is 
not  with  flesh."  For  this  cause  the  king  was  angry  and  very 
1  till  the  time  be  changed.  Till  matters  take  a  better  turn. 


464        THE    STORIES    OF   JONAH,    DANIEL,   AND   ESTHER 

furious,  and  commanded  to  destroy  all  the  wise  men  of  Babylon. 
And  the  decree  went  forth  that  the  wise  men  should  be  slain; 
and  they  sought  Daniel  and  his  fellows  to  be  slain.  Then  Dan- 
iel answered  with  counsel  and  wisdom  to  Arioch  the  captain  of 
the  king's  guard,  which  was  gone  forth  to  slay  the  wise  men  of 
Babylon  :  he  answered  and  said  to  Arioch  the  king's  captain : 
"  Why  is  the  decree  so  hasty  from  the  king  ? "  Then  Arioch 
made  the  thing  known  to  Daniel.  Then  Daniel  went  in,  and 
desired  of  the  king  that  he  would  give  him  time,  and  that  he 
would  shew  the  king  the  interpretation. 

Then  Daniel  went  to  his  house,  and  made  the  thing  known 
to  Hananiah,  Mishael,  and  Azariah,  his  companions  :  that  they 
woidd  desire  mercies  of  the  God  of  heaven  concerning  this  secret ; 
tliat  Daniel  and  his  fellows  should  not  perish  with  the  rest  of 
the  wise  men  of  Babylon.  Then  was  the  secret  revealed  unto 
Daniel  in  a  night  vision. 

Then  Daniel  blessed  the  God  of  heaven.  Daniel  answered  and 
said  : 

^'  Blessed  be  the  name  of  God  for  ever  and  ever ; 

For  wisdom  and  might  are  his  : 

And  he  changeth  the  times  and  the  seasons  ; 

He  removeth  kings,  and  setteth  up  kings : 

He  giveth  wisdom  unto  the  wise. 

And  knowledge  to  them  that  know  understanding : 

He  revealeth  the  deep  and  secret  things  : 

He  knoweth  what  is  in  the  darkness, 

And  the  light  dwelleth  with  him. 

I  thank  thee,  and  praise  tliee,  0  thou  God  of  my  fathers, 

Who  hast  given  me  wisdom  and  might. 

And  hast  made  known  unto  me  now  what  we  desired  of 
thee  : 

For  thou  hast  now  made   known   unto   us   the  king's 
matter." 

Tlierefore  Daniel  went  in  unto  Arioch,  whom  the  king  had 
ordained  to  destroy  the  wise  men  of  Babylon  :  lie  went  and  said 
thus  unto  him  :  "  Destroy  not  tlie  wise  men  of  l>abylon  :  bring 
me  in  before  the  king,  and  I  will  shew  unto  the  king  tlie  inter- 
pretation." 

Then  Arioch  brought  in  Daniel  before  tlie  king  in  haste,  and 
said  thus  unto  him  :    ''  I  have  found  a  man  of  the  captives  of 


NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S    DREAM  465 

Judah,  that  will  make  known  unto  the  king  the  interpretation." 
The  king  answered  and  said  to  Daniel,  whose  name  was  Belte- 
shazzar :  ''Art  thou  able  to  make  known  unto  me  the  dream 
which  I  have  seen,  and  the  interpretation  thereof  ?  " 

Daniel  answered  in  the  presence  of  the  king,  and  said  :  "  The 
secret  which  the  king  hath  demanded  cannot  the  wise  men,  the 
astrologers,  the  magicians,  the  soothsayers,  shew  unto  the  king ; 
but  there  is  a  God  in  heaven  that  revealeth  secrets,  and  maketh 
known  to  the  king  lN"ebuchadnezzar  what  shall  be  in  the  latter 
days.  Thy  dream,  and  the  visions  of  thy  head  upon  thy  bed,  are 
these  ;  As  for  thee,  0  king,  thy  thoughts  came  into  thy  mind 
upon  thy  bed,  what  should  come  to  pass  hereafter :  and  he  that 
revealeth  secrets  maketh  known  to  thee  what  shall  come  to  pass. 
But  as  for  me,  this  secret  is  not  revealed  to  me  for  any  wisdom 
that  I  have  more  than  any  living,  but  to  the  intent  that  the  in- 
terpretation may  be  made  known  to  the  king,  and  that  thou 
mayest  know  the  thoughts  of  thy  heart. 

"Thou,  0  king,  sawest,  and  behold  a  great  image.  This  great 
image,  whose  brightness  was  excellent,  stood  before  thee;  and 
the  form  thereof  was  terrible.  This  image's  head  was  of  fine 
gold,  his  breast  and  his  arms  of  silver,  his  belly  and  his  thighs 
of  brass,  his  legs  of  iron,  his  feet  part  of  iron  and  part  of  clay. 
Thou  sawest  till  that  a  stone  was  cut  out  without  hands,  which 
smote  the  image  upon  his  feet  that  were  of  iron  and  clay,  and 
brake  them  to  pieces.  Then  was  the  iron,  the  clay,  the  brass,  the 
silver,  and  the  gold,  broken  to  pieces  together,  and  became  like 
the  chaff  of  the  summer  threshingfloors ;  and  the  wind  carried 
them  away,  that  no  place  was  found  for  them  :  and  the  stone 
that  smote  the  image  became  a  great  mountain,  and  filled  the 
whole  earth. 

"  This  is  the  dream ;  and  we  will  tell  the  interpretation 
thereof  before  the  king.  Thou,  0  king,  art  a  king  of  kings :  for 
the  God  of  heaven  hath  given  thee  a  kingdom,  power,  and 
strength,  and  glory.  And  wheresoever  the  children  of  men  dwell, 
the  beasts  of  the  field  and  the  fowls  of  the  heaven  hath  he  given 
into  thine  liand,  and  hath  made  thee  ruler  over  them  all.  Thou 
art  this  head  of  gold.  And  after  thee  shall  arise  another  king- 
dom inferior  to  thee,  and  another  third  kingdom  of  brass,  which 
shall  bear  rule  over  all  the  earth.  And  the  fourth  kingdom  shall 
be  strong  as  iron  :  forasmuch  as  iron  breaketh  in  pieces  and 
subdueth  all  things  :  and  as  iron  that  breaketh  all  these,  shall  it 


406        THE   STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

break  in  pieces  and  bruise.  And  whereas  thou  sawest  the  feet 
and  toes,  part  of  potters'  clay,  and  part  of  iron,  the  kingdom 
shall  be  divided ;  ^  but  there  shall  be  in  it  of  the  strength  of  the 
iron,  forasmuch  as  thou  sawest  the  iron  mixed  with  miry  clay. 
And  as  the  toes  of  the  feet  were  part  of  iron,  and  part  of  clay, 
so  the  kingdom  shall  be  partly  strong,  and  partly  broken.  And 
whereas  thou  sawest  iron  mixed  with  miry  clay,  they  shall  min- 
gle themselves  with  the  seed  of  men  :  ^  but  they  shall  not  cleave 
one  to  another,  even  as  iron  is  not  mixed  with  clay.  And  in  the 
days  of  these  kings  shall  the  God  of  heaven  set  up  a  kingdom, 
which  shall  never  be  destroyed :  nor  shall  the  sovereignty  thereof 
be  left  to  another  people,  but  it  shall  break  in  pieces  and  con- 
sume all  these  kingdoms,  and  it  shall  stand  for  ever.  Forasmuch 
as  tliou  sawest  that  the  stone  w'as  cut  out  of  the  mountain  with- 
out hands,  and  that  it  brake  in  pieces  the  iron,  the  brass,  the 
clay,  the  silver,  and  the  gold ;  the  great  God  hath  made  known 
to  the  king  what  shall  come  to  pass  hereafter :  and  the  dream  is 
certain,  and  the  interpretation  thereof  sure." 

Then  the  king  Nebuchadnezzar  fell  upon  his  face,  and  wor- 
shipped Daniel,  and  commanded  that  they  should  offer  an  obla- 
tion and  sweet  odors  unto  him.  The  king  answered  unto  Daniel, 
and  said  :  "  Of  a  truth  it  is,  that  your  God  is  a  God  of  gods,  and 
a  Lord  of  kings,  and  a  revealer  of  secrets,  seeing  thou  couldest 
reveal  this  secret."  Then  the  king  made  Daniel  a  great  man, 
and  gave  him  many  great  gifts,  and  made  him  ruler  over  the 
whole  province  of  Babylon,  and  chief  of  the  governors  over  all 
the  wise  men  of  Babylon.  Then  Daniel  requested  of  the  king, 
and  he  set  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  over  the  affairs 
of  the  province  of  Babylon :  but  Daniel  sat  in  the  gate  of  the 
king. 

The  Image  of  Gold  and  the  Fiery  Furnace  (Dan.  iii.). 

Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  made  an  image  of  gold,  whose  height 
was  threescore  cubits,^  and  the  breadth  thereof  six  cubits  :  he  set 

1  The  second  kingdom,  represented  by  the  silver,  was  the  Median  rule  of 
Darius,  which  the  author  of  Daniel  supposed  to  have  followed  the  Babylonian 
empire.  See  note,  p.  474.  The  third  kingdom  was  the  Persian  ;  the  fourth,  the 
Greek,  founded  by  Alexander  the  Great,  which  at  his  death  (332  B.  c.)  was  di- 
vided between  his  fccncTals.  Tlie  iron  and  the  clay  doubtless  represent  respec- 
tively the  two  resulting  kingdoms  of  the  SeleucidnR  and  the  Ptolemies, 

2  mingle  themselves  .  .  .  men.  Make  alliances  by  marriage. 
*  threescore  cubits.  About  90  ft. 


THE    IMAGE    OK   GOLD    AND    THE    FIERY   FURNACE       467 

it  up  in  the  plain  of  Dura,  in  the  province  of  Babylon.  Then 
Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  sent  to  gather  together  the  princes,  the 
governors,  and  the  captains,  the  judges,  the  treasurers,  the  coun- 
sellors, the  sheriffs,  and  all  the  rulers  of  the  provinces,  to  come 
to  the  dedication  of  the  image  which  Nebuchadnezzar  the  king 
had  set  up.  Then  the  princes,  the  governors,  and  captains,  the 
judges,  the  treasurers,  the  counsellors,  the  sheriffs,  and  all  the 
rulers  of  the  provinces,  were  gathered  together  unto  the  dedica- 
tion of  the  image  that  Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  had  set  up  ;  and 
they  stood  before  the  image  that  Nebuchadnezzar  had  set  up. 

Then  an  herald  cried  aloud:  "To  you  it  is  commanded,  O 
peoples,  nations,  and  languages,  that  at  what  time  ye  hear  the 
sound  of  the  cornet,  flute,  harp,  sackbut,  psaltery,  dulcimer,^  and 
all  kinds  of  music,  ye  fall  down  and  worship  the  golden  image 
that  Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  hath  set  up :  and  whoso  falleth 
not  down  and  worshippeth  shall  the  same  hour  be  cast  into  the 
midst  of  a  burning  fiery  furnace."  Therefore  at  that  time,  when 
all  the  people  heard  the  sound  of  the  cornet,  flute,  harp,  sack- 
but,  psaltery,  and  all  kinds  of  music,  all  the  people,  the  nations, 
and  the  languages,  fell  down  and  worshipped  the  golden  image 
that  Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  had  set  up. 

Wherefore  at  that  time  certain  Chaldeans  came  near,  and  ac- 
cused the  Jews.  They  spake  and  said  to  the  king  Nebuchadnez- 
zar :  "  0  king,  live  for  ever.  Thou,  0  king,  hast  made  a  decree, 
that  every  man  that  shall  hear  the  sound  of  the  cornet,  flute, 
harp,  sackbut,  psaltery,  and  dulcimer,  and  all  kinds  of  music, 
shall  fall  down  and  worship  the  golden  image  :  and  whoso  fall- 
eth not  down  and  worshippeth,  that  he  should  be  cast  into  the 
midst  of  a  burning  fiery  furnace.  There  are  certain  Jews  whom 
thou  hast  set  over  the  affairs  of  the  province  of  Babylon,  Sha- 
drach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego  ;  these  men,  0  king,  have  not 
regarded  thee :  they  serve  not  thy  gods,  nor  worship  the  golden 
image  which  thou  hast  set  up." 

Then  Nebuchadnezzar  in  his  rage  and  fury  commanded  to 
bring  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego.  Then  they  brouglit 
these  men  before  the  king.  Nebuchadnezzar  spake  and  said  unto 
them :  "  Is  it  true,  O  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  do 
not  ye  serve  my  gods,  nor  worship  the  golden  image  which  I 

1  '  Cornet^  here  denotes  a  horn  \Jlute,  a  pipe  ;  harp,  a  lyre  ;  saclbut  ('properly 
ti-igon),  a  triangular  harp-like  instrument  of  four  strings  ;  psaltery,  also  a  tri- 
angular stringed-instrument  ;  dulcimer,  a  bagpipe. 


4G8        THE    STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

have  set  up?  Kow  if  ye  be  ready  tliat  at  what  time  ye  hear 
the  sound  of  the  cornet,  flute,  harp,  sackbut,  psaltery,  and  dul- 
cimer, and  all  kinds  of  music,  ye  fall  down  and  worship  the 
image  which  I  have  made;  well:  but  if  ye  worship  not,  ye 
shall  be  cast  the  same  hour  into  the  midst  of  a  burning  fiery 
furnace ;  and  who  is  that  God  that  shall  deliver  you  out  of  my 
hands  ?  " 

Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  answered  and  said  to 
the  king :  '^  0  Nebuchadnezzar,  we  are  not  careful  to  answer 
thee  in  this  matter.  If  it  be  so,  our  God  whom  we  serve  is  able 
to  deliver  us  from  the  burning  fiery  furnace,  and  he  will  deliver 
us  out  of  thine  hand,  O  king.  But  if  not,  be  it  known  unto 
thee,  0  king,  that  w^e  will  not  serve  thy  gods,  nor  worship  the 
golden  image  which  thou  hast  set  up." 

Then  was  Nebuchadnezzar  full  of  fury,  and  the  form  of  his 
visage  was  changed  against  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego : 
therefore  he  spake,  and  commanded  that  they  should  heat  the 
furnace  one  seven  times  more  than  it  was  wont  to  be  heated. 
And  he  commanded  certain  mighty  men  that  were  in  his  army 
to  bind  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  and  to  cast  them 
into  the  burning  fiery  furnace.  Then  these  men  were  bound  in 
their  coats,  their  hosen,  and  their  hats,  and  their  other  garments, 
and  were  cast  into  the  midst  of  the  burning  fiery  furnace.  There- 
fore because  the  king's  commandment  was  urgent,  and  the  fur- 
nace exceeding  hot,  the  flame  of  the  fire  slew  those  men  that 
took  up  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego.  And  these  three 
men,  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  fell  down  bound  into 
the  midst  of  the  burning  fiery  furnace. 

Then  Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  was  astonied,  and  rose  up  in 
haste,  and  spake,  and  said  unto  his  counsellors :  "  Did  not  we 
cast  three  men  bound  into  the  midst  of  the  fire?-^'  They  an- 
swered and  said  unto  the  king,  "True,  0  king."  He  answered 
and  said  :  "  Lo,  I  see  four  men  loose,  walking  in  the  midst  of 
the  fire,  and  they  have  no  hurt ;  and  the  form  of  the  fourth  is 
like  a  son  of  the  gods." 

Then  Nebuchadnezzar  came  near  to  the  mouth  of  the  burning 
fiery  furnace,  and  spake,  and  said:  "Shadrach,  Meshach,  and 
Abed-nego,  ye  servants  of  the  most  high  God,  come  forth,  and 
come  hither."  Then  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  came 
forth  of  the  midst  of  the  fire.  And  the  princes,  governors,  and 
captains,  and   the  king's  counsellors,   being  gathered  together, 


NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S    MADNESS  469 

saw  these  men,  u])oii  whose  bodies  tlie  fire  had  no  power,  nor 
was  an  hair  of  their  head  singed,  neither  were  their  coats 
changed,  nor  the  smell  of  fire  had  passed  on  them.  Then  Neb- 
uchadnezzar spake,  and  said  :  "  Blessed  be  the  God  of  Shadrach, 
Meshach,  and  Abed-nego,  who  hath  sent  his  ajigel,  and  delivered 
his  servants  that  trusted  in  him,  and  have  changed  the  king's 
word,  and  yielded  their  bodies,  that  they  might  not  serve  nor 
worship  any  god,  except  their  own  God.  Therefore  I  make  a 
decree,  That  every  people,  nation,  and  language,  which  speak 
any  thing  amiss  against  the  God  of  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and 
Abed-nego,  shall  be  cut  in  pieces,  and  their  houses  shall  be 
made  a  dunghill:  because  there  is  no  other  God  that  can  deliver 
after  this  sort."  Then  the  king  promoted  Shadrach,  Meshach, 
and  Abed-nego,  in  the  province  of  Babylon. 

Nebuchadnezzar's  Madness  (Dan.  iv.).  Nebuchadnezzar  the 
king,  unto  all  peoples,  nations,  and  languages,  that  dwell  in  all 
the  earth;  Peace  be  multiplied  unto  you.  I  thought  it  good  to 
shew  the  signs  and  wonders  that  the  high  God  hath  wrought 
toward  me.  How  great  are  his  signs!  and  how  mighty  are  his 
wonders !  His  kingdom  is  an  everlasting  kingdom,  and  his  do- 
minion is  from  generation  to  generation. 

I  Nebuchadnezzar  was  at  rest  in  mine  house,  and  flourishing 
in  my  palace  :  I  saw  a  dream  which  made  me  afraid,  and  the 
thoughts  upon  my  bed  and  the  visions  of  my  head  troubled  me. 
Therefore  made  I  a  decree  to  bring  in  all  the  wise  men  of  Baby- 
lon before  me,  that  they  might  make  known  unto  me  the  inter- 
pretation of  the  dream.  Then  came  in  the  magicians,  the  astro- 
logers, the  Chaldeans,  and  the  soothsayers  :  and  I  told  the  dream 
before  them;  but  they  did  not  make  known  unto  me  the  inter- 
pretation thereof.  But  at  the  last  Daniel  came  in  before  me, 
whose  name  was  Belteshazzar,  according  to  the  name  of  my  god, 
and  in  whom  is  the  spirit  of  the  holy  gods :  and  before  him  I 
told  the  dream,  saying  :  "  0  Belteshazzar,  master  of  the  magi- 
cians, because  I  know  that  the  spirit  of  the  holy  gods  is  in  thee, 
and  no  secret  troubleth  thee,  tell  me  the  visions  of  my  dream 
that  I  have  seen,  and  the  interpretation  thereof. 

"  Thus  were  tlie  visions  of  mine  head  in  my  bed ;  I  saxv,  and 
behold  a  tree  in  tlie  midst  of  the  earth,  and  the  height  tliereof 
was  great.  The  tree  grew,  and  was  strong,  and  the  height  thereof 
reached  unto  heaven,  and  the  sight  thereof  to  the  end  of  all  the 


470        THE    STORIES    OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,   AND    ESTHER 

earth :  the  leaves  thereof  were  fair,  and  the  fruit  thereof  much, 
and  in  it  was  meat  for  all :  the  beasts  of  the  field  had  shadow 
under  it,  and  the  fowls  of  the  heaven  dwelt  in  the  boughs  thereof, 
and  all  flesh  was  fed  of  it.  I  saw  in  the  visions  of  my  head 
upon  my  bed,  and  behold,  a  watcher  and  an  holy  one  came 
down  from  heaven.  He  cried  aloud,  and  said  thus  :  *Hew  down 
the  tree,  and  cut  off  its  branches,  shake  otf  its  leaves,  and  scatter 
its  fruit :  let  the  beasts  get  away  from  under  it,  and  the  fowls 
from  its  branches :  nevertheless  leave  the  stump  of  its  roots  in 
the  earth,  even  with  a  band  of  iron  and  brass,  in  the  tender 
grass  of  the  field;  and  let  it  be  wet  with  the  dew  of  heaven, 
and  let  its  portion  be  with  the  beasts  in  the  grass  of  the  earth  : 
let  his  heart  be  changed  from  man's,  and  let  a  beast's  heart  be 
given  unto  him ;  and  let  seven  times  ^  pass  over  him.  This 
matter  is  by  the  decree  of  the  watchers,  and  the  demand  by  the 
word  of  the  holy  ones  :  to  the  intent  that  the  living  may  know 
that  the  Most  High  ruleth  in  the  kingdom  of  men,  and  giveth 
it  to  whomsoever  he  will,  and  setteth  up  over  it  the  basest  of 
men.'  This  dream  I  king  Nebuchadnezzar  have  seen.  Now 
thou,  0  Belteshazzar,  declare  the  interpretation  thereof,  foras- 
much as  all  the  wise  men  of  my  kingdom  are  not  able  to  make 
known  unto  me  the  interpretation :  but  thou  art  able ;  for  the 
spirit  of  the  holy  gods  is  in  thee." 

Then  Daniel,  whose  name  was  Belteshazzar,  was  astonied 
for  one  hour,  and  his  thoughts  troubled  him.  The  king  spake, 
and  said :  "  Belteshazzar,  let  not  the  dream,  or  the  interpreta- 
tion thereof,  trouble  thee." 

Belteshazzar  answered  and  said:  "My  lord,  the  dream  be  to 
them  that  hate  thee,  and  the  interpretation  thereof  to  thine  ene- 
mies. The  tree  that  thou  sawest,  which  grew,  and  was  strong, 
whose  height  reached  unto  the  heaven,  and  the  sight  thereof  to 
all  the  earth ;  whose  leaves  were  fair,  and  the  fruit  thereof 
much,  and  in  it  was  food  for  all;  under  which  the  beasts  of  the 
field  dwelt,  and  upon  whose  branches  the  fowls  of  the  heaven 
had  their  habitation:  it  is  thou,  0  king,  that  art  grown  and 
become  strong :  for  thy  greatness  is  grown,  and  reachetli  unto 
heaven,  and  thy  dominion  to  the  end  of  the  earth.  And  wliereas 
the  king  saw  a  watcher  and  an  holy  one  coming  down  from 
heaven,  and  saying:  *  Hew  the  tree  down,  and  destroy  it;  yet 
leave  the  stump  of  the  roots  thereof  in  the  earth,  even  with  a 
1  times.  Years. 


NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S   MADNESS  471 

band  of  iron  and  brass,  in  the  tender  grass  of  the  field  ;  and  let 
it  be  wet  with  the  dew  of  heaven,  and  let  its  portion  be  with 
the  beasts  of  the  field,  till  seven  times  pass  over  him;'  —  this 
is  the  interpretation,  0  king,  and  this  is  the  decree  of  the  Must 
High,  which  is  come  upon  my  lord  the  king :  that  they  shall 
drive  thee  from  men,  and  thy  dwelling  shall  be  with  the  beasts 
of  the  field,  and  they  shall  make  thee  to  eat  grass  as  oxen,  and 
they  shall  wet  thee  with  the  dew  of  heaven,  and  seven  times 
shall  pass  over  thee,  till  thou  know  that  the  i\Iost  High  ruleth 
in  the  kingdom  of  men,  and  giveth  it  to  whomsoever  he  will. 
And  whereas  they  commanded  to  leave  the  stump  of  the  tree 
roots;  thy  kingdom  shall  be  sure  unto  thee,  after  that  thou  shalt 
have  known  that  the  heavens  do  rule.  Wherefore,  0  king,  let 
my  counsel  be  acceptable  unto  thee,  and  break  off  thy  sins  by 
righteousness,  and  thine  iniquities  by  shewing  mercy  to  the 
poor ;  if  it  may  be  a  lengthening  of  thy  tranquillity." 

All  this  came  upon  the  king  Xebuchadnezzar.  At  the  end  of 
twelve  months  he  was  walking  upon  the  palace  of  the  kingdom 
of  Babylon.  The  king  spake,  and  said  :  ''Is  not  this  great  Baby- 
lon, that  I  have  built  for  the  house  of  the  kingdom  by  the  might 
of  my  power,  and  for  the  honor  of  my  majesty  ?  "  While  the 
word  was  in  the  king's  mouth,  there  fell  a  voice  from  heaven, 
saying:  ''0  king  Nebuchadnezzar,  to  thee  it  is  spoken;  The 
kingdom  is  departed  from  thee.  And  they  shall  drive  thee  from 
men,  and  thy  dwelling  shall  be  with  the  beasts  of  the  field  : 
they  shall  make  thee  to  eat  grass  as  oxen,  and  seven  times  shall 
pass  over  thee,  until  thou  know  that  the  INIost  High  ruleth  in 
the  kingdom  of  men,  and  giveth  it  to  whomsoever  he  will." 
The  same  hour  was  the  thing  fulfilled  upon  ISTebuchadnezzar : 
and  he  was  driven  from  men,  and  did  eat  grass  as  oxen,  and  his 
body  was  wet  with  the  deAv  of  heaven,  till  his  hairs  were  grown 
like  eagles'  feathers,  and  his  nails  like  birds'  claws. 

And  at  the  end  of  the  days  I  Nebuchadnezzar  lifted  up  mine 
eyes  unto  heaven,  and  mine  understanding  returned  unto  me, 
and  I  blessed  the  Most  High,  and  I  praised  and  honored  him 
that  liveth  for  ever,  whose  dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion, 
and  his  kingdom  is  from  generation  to  generation  :  and  all  the 
inhabitants  of  the  earth  are  reputed  as  nothing :  and  he  doeth 
according  to  his  will  in  the  army  of  heaven,  and  among  the  in- 
habitants of  the  earth  :  and  none  can  stay  his  hand,  or  say  unto 
him,  What  doest  thou  ?  At  the  same  time  my  reason  returned 


472        THE   STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

unto  me;  and  for  the  glory  of  my  kingdom,  mine  honor  and 
brightness  returned  unto  me ;  and  my  counsellors  and  my  lords 
sought  unto  me ;  and  I  was  established  in  my  kingdom,  and 
excellent  majesty  was  added  unto  me.  Now  I  Kebuchadnezzar 
praise  and  extol  and  honor  the  King  of  heaven,  all  whose  works 
are  truth,  and  his  ways  judgment :  and  those  that  walk  in  pride 
he  is  able  to  abase. 

Belshazzar's  Feast  (Dan.  v.).  Belshazzar  the  king  made  a 
great  feast  to  a  thousand  of  his  lords,  and  drank  wine  before 
the  thousand.  Belshazzar,  whiles  he  tasted  the  wine,  commanded 
to  bring  the  golden  and  silver  vessels  which  his  father  Nebu- 
chadnezzar had  taken  out  of  the  temple  which  was  in  Jerusa- 
lem; that  the  king,  and  his  princes,  his  wives,  and  his  concu- 
bines, might  drink  therein.  Then  they  brought  the  golden  vessels 
that  were  taken  out  of  the  temple  of  the  house  of  God  which 
was  at  Jerusalem  ;  and  the  king,  and  his  princes,  his  wives,  and 
his  concubines,  drank  in  them.  They  drank  wine,  and  praised 
the  gods  of  gold,  and  of  silver,  of  brass,  of  iron,  of  wood,  and 
of  stone. 

In  the  same  hour  came  forth  fingers  of  a  man's  hand,  and 
wrote  over  against  the  candlestick  upon  the  plaster  of  the  wall 
of  the  king's  palace :  and  the  king  saw  the  palm  of  the  hand 
that  wrote.  Then  the  king's  countenance  was  changed,  and  his 
thoughts  troubled  him,  so  that  the  joints  of  his  loins  were  loosed, 
and  his  knees  smote  one  against  another.  The  king  cried  aloud 
to  bring  in  the  astrologers,  the  Chaldeans,  and  the  soothsayers. 
And  the  king  spake,  and  said  to  the  wise  men  of  Babylon : 
"Whosoever  shall  read  this  writing,  and  shew  me  the  interpre- 
tation thereof,  shall  be  clothed  with  purple,  and  have  a  chain 
of  gold  about  his  neck,  and  shall  be  the  third  ruler  in  the  king- 
dom." Then  came  in  all  the  king's  wise  men  :  but  they  could 
not  read  the  Meriting,  nor  make  known  to  the  king  the  inter- 
pretation thereof.  Then  was  king  Belshazzar  greatly  troubled, 
and  his  countenance  was  changed  in  him,  and  his  lords  were 
astonied. 

Now  the  queen*  by  reason  of  the  words  of  the  king  and  his 

lords  came  into  the  banquet  house :   and  the   queen  spake  and 

said:  "  0  king,  live  for  ever:  let  not  thy  thoughts  trouble  thee, 

nor  let  thy  countenance  be  changed  :  there  is  a  man  in  thy  king- 

1  the  queen.  The  queen  mother. 


BELSHAZZAR'S   FEAST  473 

dom,  in  whom  is  the  spirit  of  the  holy  gods  ;  and  in  the  days 
of  thy  father  hght  and  understanding  and  wisdom,  hke  the  wis- 
dom of  the  gods,  was  found  in  him  ;  whom  the  king  Xebuchad- 
nezzar  thy  father,  the  king,  I  say,  thy  father,  made  master  of 
the  magicians,  astrologers,  Chaldeans,  and  soothsayers;  foras- 
much as  an  excellent  spirit,  and  knowledge,  and  understanding, 
interpreting  of  dreams,  and  shewing  of  hard  sentences,  and  dis- 
solving of  doubts,  were  found  in  the  same  Daniel,  whom  the 
king  named  Belteshazzar :  now  let  Daniel  be  called,  and  he  will 
shew  the  interpretation." 

Then  was  Daniel  brought  in  before  the  king.  And  the  king 
spake  and  said  unto  Daniel  :  "  Art  thou  Daniel,  which  art  of 
the  children  of  the  captivity  of  Judah,  whom  the  king  my  father 
brought  out  of  Jewry  ?  I  have  even  heard  of  thee,  that  the 
spirit  of  the  gods  is  in  thee,  and  that  light  and  understanding 
and  excellent  wisdom  is  found  in  thee.  And  now  the  wise  men, 
the  astrologers,  have  been  brought  in  before  me,  that  they  should 
read  this  writing,  and  make  known  unto  me  the  interpretation 
thereof:  but  they  could  not  shew  the  interpretation  of  the 
thing :  and  I  have  heard  of  thee,  that  thou  canst  make  inter- 
pretations, and  dissolve  doubts :  now  if  thou  canst  read  the 
writing,  and  make  known  to  me  the  interpretation  thereof,  thou 
shalt  be  clothed  with  purple,  and  have  a  chain  of  gold  about 
thy  neck,  and  shalt  be  the  third  ruler  in  the  kingdom." 

Then  Daniel  answered  and  said  before  the  king  :  "  Let  thy 
gifts  be  to  thyself,  and  give  thy  rewards  to  another ;  yet  I  will 
read  the  writing  unto  the  king,  and  make  known  to  him  the 
interpretation.  0  thou  king,  the  Most  High  God  gave  Nebu- 
chadnezzar thy  father  a  kingdom,  and  majesty,  and  glory,  and 
honor:  and  for  the  majesty  that  he  gave  him,  all  people,  na- 
tions, and  languages,  trembled  and  feared  before  him  :  whom  he 
w'ould  he  slew ;  and  whom  he  would  he  kept  alive  ;  and  whom 
he  would  he  set  up ;  and  whom  he  would  he  put  dow^n.  But 
when  his  heart  was  lifted  up,  and  his  mind  hardened  in  pride, 
he  was  deposed  from  his  kingly  throne,  and  they  took  his  glory 
from  him :  and  he  was  driven  from  the  sons  of  men  ;  and  his 
heart  was  made  like  the  beasts,  and  his  dwelling  was  with  the 
wild  asses  :  they  fed  him  with  grass  like  oxen,  and  his  body  was 
wet  with  the  dew  of  heaven  ;  till  he  knew  that  the  Most  High 
God  ruled  in  the  kingdom  of  men,  and  that  he  appointeth 
over  it  whomsoever   he  will.   And  thou  his  son,  0  Belshazzar, 


474        THE   STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,   AND   ESTHER 

hast  not  humbled  thine  heart,  though  thou  knewest  all  this  ; 
but  hast  lifted  up  thyself  against  the  Lord  of  heaven ;  and  they 
have  brought  the  vessels  of  his  house  before  thee,  and  thou, 
and  thy  lords,  thy  wives,  and  thy  concubines,  have  drunk  wine 
in  them  ;  and  thou  hast  praised  the  gods  of  silver,  and  gold,  of 
brass,  iron,  wood,  and  stone,  which  see  not,  nor  hear,  nor  know  : 
and  the  God  in  whose  hand  thy  breath  is,  and  whose  are  all  thy 
ways,  hast  thou  not  glorified." 

Then  was  the  palm  of  the  hand  sent  from  before  him ;  and 
this  writing  was  written:  mexe,  mexe,  tekel,  uphaksin.^ 
This  is  the  interpretation  of  the  thing  : 

mene  :  God  hath  numbered  thy  kingdom,  and   finished  it. 

TEKEL  :  Thou  art  weighed  in  the  balances,  and  art  found 
wanting. 

PERES :  Thy  kingdom  is  divided,  and  given  to  the  Medes 
and  Persians. 

Then  commanded  Belshazzar,  and  they  clothed  Daniel  with 
purple,  and  put  a  chain  of  gold  about  his  neck,  and  made  a 
proclamation  concerning  him,  that  he  should  be  the  third  ruler 
in  the  kingdom.  In  that  night  was  Belshazzar  the  king  of  the 
Chaldeans  slain.  And  Darius  the  Median  took  the  kingdom, 
being  about  threescore  and  two  years  old.^ 

Daniel  in  the  Lions*  Den  (Dan.  vi.).  It  pleased  Darius  to 
set  over  the  kingdom  an  hundred  and  twenty  princes,^  which 
should  be  over  the  whole  kingdom ;  and  over  these  three  presi- 

1  The  words  are  the  names  of  three  weights :  mHe  is  Aramaic  for  Heb.  mdneh, 
the  m'nn;  tekel  is  Aramaic  for  shekel;  in  upharsin  u-  is  *  and,'  and  p(h)arsin  is 
the  plural  of  peres,  a  half-shekel.  Mene  also  means  'numbered  ';  tSkel  suggests 
tektl,  'weighed';  and  the  plural  of  peres  suggests  the  double  parallel,  pSris, 
'divided,'  and  paras,  'Persians.' 

2  Two  inscriptions  of  Nabona'id  (Nabonidus)  translated  about  1854,  two  of 
Cyrus  translated  about  1880,  and  numerous  contract  tablets  discovered  since 
then,  have  set  aside  the  older  ideas  about  the  history  of  this  time.  Belshazzar 
was  the  son,  not  of  Nebuchadnezzar  but  of  Nabona'id,  and  was  never  king  of 
Babylon.  He  is  called  the  "king's  son  "  down  to  the  day  when  he  was  killed 
by  (iubaru,  Cyrus's  general.  The  kingdom  passed  from  Nabona'id  to  Cyrus 
without  any  siege  of  Babylon,  (iubaru  entered  Babylon  without  resistance, 
and  took  Nabona'id  prisoner,  and  shortly  after  Cyrus  took  possession  of  the 
citv.  No  "Darius  the  Mede,"  therefore,  was  king  of  Babylon  before  Cyrus. 
Within  the  same  month  the  dates  of  contract  tablets  pass  from  the  "17th  year 
of  Nabona'id  "  to  the  "1st  year  of  Cyrus." 

8  princes.  Satraps.  A  division  of  the  Persian  empire  into  twenty  satrapies 
was  actually  made  by  Darius  Hystaspis  (521  485  b.  c). 


DANIEL   IX    THK   LIONS'    DEN  475 

dents  ;  of  whom  Daniel  was  one  :  that  the  princes  might  give  ac- 
count unto  them,  and  the  king  should  have  no  damage.  Then 
tliis  Daniel  was  preferred  above  the  presidents  and  princes,  be- 
cause an  excellent  spirit  was  in  him  ;  and  the  king  thought  to 
set  him  over  the  whole  realm.  Then  the  presidents  and  princes 
sought  to  find  occasion  against  Daniel  concerning  the  kingdom  ; 
but  they  could  find  none  occasion  nor  fault ;  forasmuch  as  he 
was  faithful,  neither  was  there  any  error  or  fault  found  in  him. 
Then  said  these  men  :  "  We  shall  not  find  any  occasion  against 
this  Daniel,  except  we  find  it  against  him  concerning  the  law  of 
his  God." 

Then  these  presidents  and  princes  assembled  together  to  the 
king,  and  said  thus  unto  him  :  "  King  Darius,  live  for  ever.  All 
the  presidents  of  the  kingdom,  the  governors,  and  the  princes, 
the  counsellers,  and  the  captains,  have  consulted  together  to 
establish  a  royal  statute,  and  to  make  a  firm  decree,  that  who- 
soever shall  ask  a  petition  of  any  god  or  man  for  thirty  days, 
save  of  thee,  0  king,  he  shall  be  east  into  the  den  of  lions. 
Now,  0  king,  establish  the  decree,  and  sign  the  writing,  that  it 
be  not  changed,  according  to  the  law  of  the  Medes  and  Persians, 
whicli  altereth  not."  Wherefore  king  Darius  signed  the  writing 
and  the  decree. 

Now  when  Daniel  knew  that  the  writing  was  signed,  he  went 
into  his  house ;  and  his  windows  being  open  in  his  chamber  ^ 
toward  Jerusalem,  he  kneeled  upon  his  knees  three  times  a  day, 
and  prayed,  and  gave  thanks  before  his  God,  as  he  did  afore- 
time. Then  these  men  assembled,  and  found  Daniel  praying  and 
making  supplication  before  his  God. 

Then  they  came  near,  and  spake  before  the  king  concerning 
the  king's  decree :  "  Hast  thou  not  signed  a  decree,  that  every 
man  that  shall  ask  a  petition  of  any  God  or  man  within  thirty 
daj's,  save  of  thee,  0  king,  shall  be  cast  into  the  den  of  lions  ?  " 
The  king  answered  and  said:  "The  thing  is  true,  according  to 
the  law  of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  which  altereth  not."  Then 
answered  they  and  said  before  the  king  :  "That  Daniel,  which 
is  of  the  children  of  the  captivity  of  Judah,  regardeth  not  thee, 
0  king,  nor  the  decree  that  thou  hast  signed,  but  maketh  his 
petition  three  times  a  day." 

Then  the  king,   when  he  heard  these  words,  was  sore  dis- 

1  chamber.  The  word  denotes  a  roof-chamber,  raised   above  the  flat  roof  at 
one  corner  of  the  house. 


476        THE    STORIES    OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,   AND   ESTHER 

pleased,  and  set  his  heart  on  Daniel  to  deliver  him  :  and  he 
labored  till  the  going  down  of  the  sun  to  deliver  him.  Then 
these  men  assembled  unto  the  king,  and  said  unto  the  king : 
"  Know,  0  king,  that  the  law  of  the  Medes  and  Persians  is, 
That  no  decree  nor  statute  which  the  king  establisheth  may  be 
changed." 

Then  the  king  commanded,  and  they  brought  Daniel,  and 
cast  him  into  the  den  of  lions.  Now  the  king  spake  and  said 
unto  Daniel  :  ''  Thy  God  whom  thou  servest  continually,  he  will 
deliver  thee."  And  a  stone  was  brought,  and  laid  upon  the  mouth 
of  the  den  ;  and  the  king  sealed  it  with  his  own  signet,  and 
with  the  signet  of  his  lords  ;  that  the  purpose  might  not  be 
changed  concerning  Daniel. 

Then  the  king  went  to  his  palace,  and  passed  the  night  fast- 
ing :  neither  were  instruments  of  music  brought  before  him : 
and  his  sleep  went  from  him.  Then  the  king  arose  very  early 
in  the  morning,  and  went  in  haste  unto  the  den  of  lions.  And 
when  he  came  to  the  den,  he  cried  with  a  lamentable  voice  unto 
Daniel :  and  the  king  spake  and  said  to  Daniel :  "  0  Daniel, 
servant  of  the  living  God,  is  thy  God,  whom  thou  servest  con- 
tinually, able  to  deliver  thee  from  the  lions  ?  "  Then  said  Daniel 
unto  the  king :  "  0  king,  live  for  ever.  My  God  hath  sent  his 
angel,  and  hath  shut  the  lions'  mouths,  that  they  have  not  hurt 
me  :  forasmuch  as  before  him  innocency  was  found  in  me  ;  and 
also  before  thee,  0  king,  have  I  done  no  hurt." 

Then  was  the  king  exceeding  glad  for  him,  and  commanded 
that  they  should  take  Daniel  up  out  of  the  den.  So  Daniel  was 
taken  up  out  of  the  den,  and  no  manner  of  hurt  was  found  upon 
him,  because  he  believed  in  his  God.  And  the  king  commanded, 
and  they  brought  those  men  which  had  accused  Daniel,  and 
they  cast  them  into  the  den  of  lions,  them,  their  children,  and 
their  wives  ;  and  the  lions  had  the  mastery  of  them,  and  brake 
all  their  bones  in  pieces  or  ever  they  came  at  the  bottom  of  the 
den. 

Then  king  Darius  wrote  unto  all  people,  nations,  and  lan- 
guages, that  dwell  in  all  the  earth  :  "  Peace  be  multiplied  unto 
you.  I  make  a  decree,  That  in  every  dominion  of  my  kingdom 
men  tremble  and  fear  before  the  God  of  Daniel :  for  he  is  the 
living  God,  and  stedfast  for  ever,  and  his  kingdom  that  which 
shall  not  be  destroyed,  and  his  dominion  shall  be  even  unto 
the  end.   He  delivereth  and  rescueth,  and  he  worketh  signs  and 


ESTHER  477 

wonders  in  heaven  and  in  earth,  who  hath  delivered  Daniel  from 
the  power  of  the  lions,"  So  tiiis  Daniel  prospered  in  the  reign 
of  Darius,  and  in  the  reign  of  Cyrus  the  Persian. 

3.   EsTHPni 

Xow  it  came  to  pass  in  the  days  of  Ahasuerus  ^  (this  is  Ahas- 
uerus  which  reigned,  from  India  even  unto  Ethiopia,  over  an 
hundred  and  seven  and  twenty  provinces),  that  in  those  days, 
when  the  king  Ahasuerus  sat  on  the  throne  of  his  kingdom, 
which  was  in  Shushan  the  palace, ^  in  the  third  year  of  his  reign, 
he  made  a  feast  unto  all  his  princes  and  his  servants.  And  the 
commanders  of  the  power  of  Persia  and  Media,  the  nobles  and 
princes  of  the  provinces,  were  before  him  :  when  he  shewed  the 
riches  of  his  glorious  kingdom  and  the  honor  of  his  excellent 
majesty  many  days,  even  an  hundred  and  fourscore  days.  And 
when  these  days  were  expired,  the  king  made  a  feast  unto  all 
the  people  that  were  present  in  Shushan  the  palace,  both  unto 
great  and  small,  seven  days,  in  the  court  of  the  garden  of  the 
king's  palace ;  where  were  hangings  of  cotton,  white  and  blue, 
fastened  with  cords  of  fine  linen  and  purple  to  silver  rings  and 
pillars  of  marble  :  the  beds  were  of  gold  and  silver,  upon  a  pave- 
ment of  red,  and  blue,  and  white,  and  black,  marble.  And  they 
gave  them  drink  in  vessels  of  gold  (the  vessels  being  diverse 
one  from  another),  and  royal  wine  in  abundance,  according  to 
the  state  of  the  king.  And  the  drinking  was  according  to  the 
law  ;  none  did  compel :  •''  for  so  the  king  had  appointed  to  all 
the  officers  of  his  house,  that  they  should  do  according  to  every 
man's  pleasure.  Also  Vashti  the  queen  made  a  feast  for  the 
women  in  the  royal  house  which  belonged  to  king  Ahasuerus. 

On  the  seventh  day,  when  the  heart  of  the  king  was  merry 
with  wine,  he  commanded  Mehuman,  Biztha,  Harbona,  Bigtha, 
and  Abagtha,  Zethar,  and  Carcas,  the  seven  chamberlains  that 
served  in  the  presence  of  Ahasuerus  the  king,  to  bring  Vashti 
the  queen  before  the  king  with  the  crown  royal,  to  shew  the 

1  Ahasuerus  ^Persian  Khuhnj/arshn)  is  the  famous  Xerxes  (485-465  B.  c), 
whose  rrreat  armaments  were  beaten  by  the  Greeks  at  Salamis  and  Plataea. 

2  Shiiahnn  the  pnlnre.  Susa  the  citadel,  as  distins^nished  from  the  surrounding 
city  of  Susa.  The  plan  of  this  citadel,  and  considerable  remains  of  its  buildings, 
were  brought  to  light  bv  excavations  in  ]884-8t'). 

3  according  to  the  law  :  none  did  compel.  Paton  {International  Critical  Com- 
mentary) read?^:  "•  accordinf]  to  the  law  nf  no  compeller ;  '*  i.  e.,  it  was  uncon- 
strained. Ordinarily  the  guests  had  to  drink  at  the  word  of  a  court  toast-master. 


478        THE   STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

peoples  and  the  princes  her  beauty  :  for  she  was  fair  to  look  on. 
But  the  queen  Yashti  refused  to  come  at  the  king's  command- 
ment by  his  chamberlains :  therefore  was  the  king  very  wroth, 
and  his  anger  burned  in  him. 

Then  the  king  said  to  the  wise  men,  which  knew  the  times 
(for  so  was  the  king's  manner  toward  all  that  knew  law  and 
judgment :  and  the  next  unto  him  was  Carshena,  Shethar,  Ad- 
matha,  Tarshish,  Meres,  Marsena,  and  Memucan,  the  seven 
princes  of  Persia  and  Media,  which  saw  the  king's  face,  and  which 
sat  the  first  in  the  kingdom)  :  "  What  shall  we  do  unto  the 
queen  Vashti  according  to  law,  because  she  hath  not  done  the 
bidding  of  the  king  Ahasuerus  by  the  chamberlains  ?  '^ 

And  Memucan  answered  before  the  king  and  the  princes  : 
^'  Vashti  the  queen  hath  not  done  wrong  to  the  king  only,  but 
also  to  all  the  princes,  and  to  all  the  peoples  that  are  in  all  the 
provinces  of  the  king  Ahasuerus.  For  this  deed  of  the  queen 
shall  come  abroad  unto  all  women,  to  make  their  husbands  con- 
temptible in  their  eyes,  when  it  shall  be  reported.  The  king 
Ahasuerus  commanded  Vashti  the  queen  to  be  brought  in  before 
him,  but  she  came  not.  Likewise  shall  the  ladies  of  Persia  and 
Media  say  this  day  unto  all  the  king's  princes,  which  have 
heard  of  the  deed  of  the  queen.  Thus  shall  there  arise  much 
contempt  and  wrath.  If  it  please  the  king,  let  there  go  a  royal 
commandment  from  him,  and  let  it  be  written  among  the  laws 
of  the  Persians  and  the  Medes,  that  it  be  not  altered,  That 
Vashti  come  no  more  before  king  Ahasuerus ;  and  let  the  king 
give  her  royal  estate  unto  another  that  is  better  than  she.  And 
when  the  king's  decree  which  he  shall  make  shall  be  published 
throughout  all  his  empire  (for  it  is  great),  all  the  wives  shall 
give  to  their  husbands  honor,  both  to  great  and  small." 

And  the  saying  pleased  the  king  and  the  princes ;  and  the 
king  did  according  to  the  word  of  Memucan  :  for  he  sent  letters 
into  all  the  king's  provinces,  into  every  province  according  to 
the  writing  thereof,  and  to  every  people  after  their  language, 
that  every  man  should  bear  rule  in  his  own  house,  and  should 
speak  whatsoever  seemed  good  to  him. 

After  these  things,  when  the  wrath  of  king  Ahasuerus  was 
appeased,  he  remembered  Vashti,  and  what  she  had  done,  and 
what  was  decreed  against  her.  Then  said  the  king's  servants 
that  ministered  unto  him :  "  Let  there  be  fair  young  virgins 
sought  for  the  king :   and  let  the  king  appoint  officers  in  all  the 


ESTHER  479 

provinces  of  his  kingdom,  that  they  may  gather  together  all  the 
fair  young  virgins  unto  Shushan  the  palace,  to  the  house  of  tlie 
women,  unto  the  custody  of  Hegai  the  king's  chamberlain, 
keeper  of  the  women ;  and  let  their  things  for  purification  be 
given  them  :  and  let  the  maiden  which  pleaseth  the  king  be 
queen  instead  of  Vashti."  And  the  thing  pleased  the  king;  and 
he  did  so. 

Now  in  Shushan  the  palace  there  was  a  certain  Jew,  whose 
name  was  Mordecai,'  the  son  of  Jair,  the  son  of  Shimei,  the  son 
of  Kish,  a  Benjamite;  who  had  been  carried  away  from  Jerusa- 
lem with  the  captivity  which  had  been  carried  away  with  Jeco- 
niah  king  of  Judah,  whom  Nebuchadnezzar  the  king  of  Baby- 
lon had  carried  away.  And  he  brought  up  Hadassah,  that  is, 
Esther,  his  uncle's  daughter:  for  she  had  neither  father  nor 
mother,  and  the  maid  was  fair  and  beautiful ;  whom  ^Mordecai, 
when  her  father  and  mother  were  dead,  took  for  his  own 
daughter. 

So  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  king's  commandment  and  his 
decree  was  heard,  and  when  many  maidens  were  gathered  to- 
gether unto  Shushan  the  palace,  to  the  custody  of  Hegai,  that 
Esther  was  brought  also  unto  the  king's  house,  to  the  custody 
of  Hegai,  keeper  of  the  women.  And  the  maiden  pleased  him, 
and  she  obtained  kindness  of  him;  and  he  speedily  gave  her 
her  things  for  purification,  with  her  portions,  and  the  seven 
maidens,  which  were  meet  to  be  given  her,  out  of  the  king's 
house:  and  he  preferred^  her  and  her  maids  unto  the  best  place 
of  the  house  of  the  women.  Esther  had  not  shewed  her  people 
nor  her  kindred :  for  Mordecai  had  charged  her  that  she  should 
not  shew  it.  And  Mordecai  walked  every  day  before  the  court 
of  the  women's  house,  to  know  how  Esther  did,  and  what 
should  become  of  her. 

Now  when  every  maid's  turn  was  come  to  go  in  to  king 
Ahasuerus,  after  that  she  had  been  twelve  months,  according  to 
the  manner  of  the  women  (for  so  were  the  days  of  their  purifi- 
cation accomplished,  to  wit,  six  months  with  oil  of  myrrh,  and 
six  months  with  sweet  odors,  and  with  other  things  for  the  puri- 
fying of  the  women),  then  thus  came  every  maiden  unto  the 

1  The  names  of  the  chief  persons  in  this  story  are  derived  from  the  names  of 
Babylonian  and  Elamite  gods.  Mordecni  \s  from  ^fnr'luk ;  Esther,  from  Ish- 
tar  ;  Uaman,  from  Humman  ;  and  Vashti,  possibly  from  Maahti. 

^  3)ref erred.  Advanced;  promoted. 


480        THE    STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHEK 

king ;  whatsoever  she  desired  was  given  her  to  go  with  her  out 
of  the  house  of  the  women  unto  the  king's  house.  In  the  even- 
ing she  went,  and  on  the  morrow  she  returned  into  the  second 
house  of  the  women,  to  the  custody  of  Shaashgaz,  the  king's 
chamberlain,  which  kept  the  concubines :  she  came  in  unto  the 
king  no  more,  except  the  king  delighted  in  her,  and  that  she 
were  called  by  name. 

Now  when  the  turn  of  Esther,  the  daughter  of  Abihail  the 
uncle  of  Mordecai,  who  had  taken  her  for  his  daughter,  was 
come  to  go  in  unto  the  king,  she  required  nothing  but  what 
Hegai  the  king's  chamberlain,  the  keeper  of  the  women,  ap- 
pointed. And  Esther  obtained  favor  in  the  sight  of  all  them 
that  looked  upon  her.  So  Esther  was  taken  unto  king  Ahasuerus 
into  his  house  royal  in  the  tenth  month,  which  is  the  month 
Tebeth,  in  the  seventh  year  of  his  reign.  And  the  king  loved 
Esther  above  all  the  women,  and  she  obtained  grace  and  favor 
in  his  sight  more  than  all  the  virgins ;  so  that  he  set  the  royal 
crown  upon  her  head,  and  made  her  queen  instead  of  Vashti. 
Then  the  king  made  a  great  feast  unto  all  his  princes  and  his 
servants,  even  Esther's  feast ;  and  he  made  a  release  ^  to  the 
provinces,  and  gave  gifts,  according  to  the  state  of  the  king. 
And  Mordecai  sat  in  the  king's  gate.  Esther  had  not  yet  shewed 
her  kindred  nor  her  people  ;  as  Mordecai  had  charged  her :  for 
Esther  did  the  commandment  of  Mordecai,  like  as  %vhen  she 
was  brought  up  with  him. 

In  those  days,  while  Mordecai  sat  in  the  king's  gate,  two  of 
the  king's  chamberlains,  Bigthan  and  Teresh,  of  those  which 
kept  the  door,  were  wroth,  and  sought  to  lay  hand  on  the  king 
Ahasuerus.  And  the  thing  was  known  to  Mordecai,  who  told  it 
unto  Esther  the  queen;  and  Estlier  certified  the  king  thereof 
in  Mordecai's  name.  And  when  inquisition  was  made  of  the 
matter,  it  was  found  out;  therefore  they  were  both  hanged  on 
a  tree :  and  it  was  written  in  the  book  of  the  chronicles  before 
the  king. 

After  these  things  did  king  Ahasuerus  promote  Haman  the 
son  of  Hammedatha  the  Agagite,  and  advanced  him,  and  set  his 
seat  above  all  the  princes  that  were  with  him.  And  all  the  king's 
servants,  that  were  in  the  king's  gate,  bowed,  and  reverenced 
Haman  :  for  the  king  had  so  commanded  concerning  him.  But 
Mordecai  bowed  not,  nor  did  him  reverence.  Then  the  king's 
1  release.  Exemption,  for  the  time,  from  taxation  or  military  service. 


ESTHER  481 

servants,  which  were  in  the  king's  gate,  said  unto  JNIoidecai : 
"  Why  transgrefssest  thou  the  king's  commandment  1  "  Kow  it 
came  to  pass,  when  they  spake  daily  unto  him,  and  he  hearkened 
not  unto  them,  that  they  told  Haman,  to  see  whether  Mordecai's 
matters  would  stand  :  for  he  had  told  them  that  he  was  a  Jew. 
And  when  Haman  saw  that  ]\Iordecai  bowed  not,  nor  did  him 
reverence,  then  was  Haman  full  of  wrath.  And  he  thought  scorn 
to  lay  hands  on  Mordecai  alone  ;  for  they  had  shewed  him  the 
people  of  Mordecai :  wherefore  Haman  sought  to  destroy  all  the 
Jews  that  were  throughout  the  whole  kingdom  of  Ahasuerus,  even 
the  people  of  Mordecai. 

In  the  first  month,  that  is,  the  month  Kisan,  in  the  twelfth 
year  of  king  Ahasuerus,  they  csist  pur  ^  (that  is,  the  lot)  before 
Haman  from  day  to  day,  and  from  month  to  month,  and  the  lot 
fell  upon  the  thirteenth  day  of  the  twelfth  month,  that  is,  the 
month  Adar.^  And  Haman  said  unto  king  Ahasuerus:  ''There 
is  a  certain  people  scattered  abroad  and  separated  among  the 
peoples  in  all  the  provinces  of  thy  kingdom  ;  and  their  laws  are 
diverse  from  all  people;  neither  keep  they  the  king's  laws: 
therefore  it  is  not  for  the  king's  profit  to  suffer  them.  If  it 
please  the  king,  let  it  be  written  that  they  may  be  destroyed: 
and  I  will  pay  ten  thousand  talents  of  silver  to  the  hands  of 
those  that  have  the  charge  of  the  king's  business,  to  bring  it  into 
the  king's  treasuries."  And  the  king  took  his  ring  from  his 
hand,  and  gave  it  unto  Haman  the  son  of  Hammedatha  the  Aga- 
gite,  the  Jews'  enemy.  And  the  king  said  unto  Haman  :  ''The 
silver  is  given  to  thee,  the  people  also,  to  do  with  them  as  it 
seemeth  good  to  thee." 

Then  were  the  king's  scribes  called  on  the  thirteenth  day  of 
the  first  month,  and  there  was  written  according  to  all  that 
Haman  had  commanded  unto  the  king's  lieutenants,  and  to  the 
governors  that  were  over  every  province,  and  to  the  rulers  of 
every  people  of  every  province  according  to  the  writing  thereof, 
and  to  every  people  after  their  language  ;  in  the  name  of  king 
Ahasuerus  was  it  written,  and  sealed  with  the  king's  ring.  And 
the  letters  were  sent  by  posts  into  all  the  king's  provinces,  to 
destroy,  to  kill,  and  to  cause  to  perish,  all  Jews,  both  young  and 
old,  little  children  and  women,  in  one  day,  even  upon  the  thir- 

1  pur.  Soe  noto,  p.  4R0.  Tlifi  lot  was  to  determine  the  lucky  day  for  destroy- 
ing the  Jews.   Nixrin  fell  in  March-April. 

2  Adar  fell  in  February-March. 


482        THE    STORIES    OF    JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

teenth  day  of  the  twelfth  month,  which  is  the  month  Adar,  and 
to  take  the  spoil  of  them  for  a  prey.  The  copy  of  the  writing 
for  a  commandment  to  be  given  in  every  province  was  published 
unto  all  people,  that  they  should  be  ready  against  that  day. 
The  posts  went  out,  being  hastened  by  the  king's  command- 
ment, and  the  decree  was  given  in  Shushan  the  palace.  And  the 
king  and  Haman  sat  down  to  drink ;  but  the  city  Shushan  was 
perplexed. 

When  Mordecai  perceived  all  that  was  done,  Mordecai  rent 
his  clothes,  and  put  on  sackcloth  with  ashes,  and  went  out  into 
the  midst  of  the  city,  and  cried  with  a  loud  and  a  bitter  cry  ; 
and  came  even  before  the  king's  gate  :  for  none  might  enter 
into  the  king's  gate  clothed  with  sackcloth.  And  in  every  prov- 
ince, whithersoever  the  king's  commandment  and  his  decree 
came,  there  was  great  mourning  among  the  Jews,  and  fasting, 
and  weeping,  and  wailing  ;  and  many  lay  in  sackcloth  and  ashes. 
And  Esther's  maids  and  her  chamberlains  came  and  told  it  her. 
Then  was  the  queen  exceedingly  grieved ;  and  she  sent  raiment 
to  clothe  Mordecai,  and  to  take  away  his  sackcloth  from  him : 
but  he  received  it  not.  Then  called  Esther  for  Hatach,  one  of 
the  king's  chamberlains,  whom  he  had  appointed  to  attend  upon 
her,  and  gave  him  a  commandment  to  Mordecai,  to  know  what 
it  was,  and  why  it  was.  So  Hatach  went  forth  to  Mordecai  unto 
the  street  of  the  city,  which  was  before  the  king's  gate.  And 
Mordecai  told  him  of  all  that  had  happened  unto  him,  and  of 
the  sum  of  the  money  that  Haman  had  promised  to  pay  to  the 
king's  treasuries  for  the  Jews,  to  destroy  them.  Also  he  gave 
him  the  copy  of  the  writing  of  the  decree  that  was  given  at  Shu- 
shan to  destroy  them,  to  shew  it  unto  Esther,  and  to  declare  it 
unto  her,  and  to  charge  her  that  she  should  go  in  unto  the  king, 
to  make  supplication  unto  him,  and  to  make  request  before  him 
for  her  people.  And  Hatach  came  and  told  Esther  the  words  of 
Mordecai. 

Again  Esther  spake  unto  Hatach,  and  gave  him  command- 
ment unto  Mordecai :  ''AH  the  king's  servants,  and  the  people 
of  the  king's  provinces,  do  know,  that  whosoever,  whether  man 
or  woman,  shall  come  unto  the  king  into  the  inner  court,  who  is 
not  called,  there  is  one  law  for  him  to  put  him  to  death,  except 
such  to  whom  the  king  shall  hold  out  tlie  golden  sceptre,  that 
he  may  live  :  but  I  have  not  been  called  to  come  in  unto  the  king 
these  thirty  days."   And  they  told  to  Mordecai  Esther's  words. 


ESTHER  483 

Then  Mordecai  commanded  to  answer  Esther :  ''  Think  not 
with  thyself  that  thou  shalt  escape  in  the  king's  house,  more 
than  all  the  Jews.  For  if  thou  altogether  holdest  thy  peace  at 
this  time,  then  shall  there  enlargement  ^  and  deliverance  arise  to 
the  Jews  from  another  place ;  but  thou  and  thy  father's  house 
shall  be  destroyed:  and  who  knoweth  whether  thou  art  not 
come  to  the  kingdom  for  such  a  time  as  this  ?  " 

Then  Esther  bade  them  return  jMordecai  this  answer :  "  Go, 
gather  together  all  the  Jews  that  are  present  in  Shushan,  and 
fast  ye  for  me,  and  neither  eat  nor  drink  three  days,  night  or 
day  :  I  also  and  my  maidens  will  fast  likewise  ;  and  so  will  I  go 
in  unto  the  king,  which  is  not  according  to  the  law  :  and  if  I 
perish,  I  perish."  So  JMordecai  went  his  way,  and  did  according 
to  all  that  Esther  had  commanded  him. 

Now  it  came  to  pass  on  the  third  day,  that  Esther  put  on  her 
royal  apparel,  and  stood  in  the  inner  court  of  the  king's  house, 
over  against  the  king's  house  :  and  the  king  sat  upon  his  royal 
throne  in  the  royal  house,  over  against  the  gate  of  the  house. 
And  it  was  so,  when  the  king  saw  Esther  the  queen  standing 
in  the  court,  that  she  obtained  favor  in  his  sight :  and  the  king 
held  out  to  Esther  the  golden  sceptre  that  was  in  his  hand.  So 
Esther  drew  near,  and  touched  the  top  of  the  sceptre.  Then  said 
the  king  unto  her  :  "  What  wilt  thou,  queen  Esther  ?  and  what 
is  thy  request  ?  it  shall  be  even  given  thee  to  the  half  of  the 
kingdom."  And  Esther  answered  :  "  If  it  seem  good  unto  the 
king,  let  the  king  and  Haman  come  this  day  unto  the  banquet 
that  I  have  prepared  for  him."  Then  the  king  said:  ''Cause 
Haman  to  make  haste,  that  he  may  do  as  Esther  hath  said." 
So  the  king  and  Haman  came  to  the  banquet  that  Esther  had 
prepared. 

And  the  king  said  unto  Esther  at  the  banquet  of  wine: 
"  What  is  thy  petition  ?  and  it  shall  be  granted  thee  :  and  what 
is  thy  request  ?  even  to  the  half  of  the  kingdom  it  shall  be  per- 
formed." Then  answered  Esther,  and  said  :  "  My  petition  and 
my  request  is:  if  I  have  found  favor  in  the  sight  of  the  king, 
and  if  it  please  the  king  to  grant  my  petition,  and  to  perform 
my  request,  let  the  king  and  Haman  come  to  the  banquet  that 
I  shall  prepare  for  them,  and  I  will  do  to-morrow  as  the  king 
hath  said." 

Then  went  Haman  forth  that  day  joyful  and  with  a  glad 
1  enlargement.  Cf.  '  To  be  at  large.' 


484        THE   STOKIES    OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

heart:  but  when  Haman  saw  Mordecai  in  the  king's  gate,  that 
he  stood  not  up,  nor  trembled  before  him,  he  was  full  of  indig- 
nation against  Mordecai.  Nevertheless  Haman  refrained  himself: 
and  when  he  came  home,  he  sent  and  called  for  his  friends,  and 
Zeresh  his  wife.  And  Haman  told  them  of  the  glory  of  his 
riches,  and  the  multitude  of  his  children,  and  all  the  things 
wherein  the  king  had  promoted  him,  and  how  he  had  advanced 
him  above  the  princes  and  servants  of  the  king.  Haman  said 
moreover  :  "  Yea,  Esther  the  queen  did  let  no  man  come  in  with 
the  king  unto  the  banquet  that  she  had  prepared  but  myself ; 
and  to-morrow  am  I  invited  unto  her  also  with  the  king.  Yet 
all  this  availeth  me  nothing,  so  long  as  I  see  Mordecai  the  Jew 
sitting  at  the  king's  gate."  Then  saith  Zeresh  his  wife  and  all 
his  friends  unto  him:  "Let  a  gallows  be  made  fifty  cubits^ 
high,  and  to-morrow  speak  thou  unto  the  king  that  Mordecai 
may  be  hanged  thereon :  then  go  thou  in  merrily  with  the  king 
unto  the  banquet."  And  the  thing  pleased  Haman ;  and  he 
caused  the  gallows  to  be  made. 

On  that  night  could  not  the  king  sleep,  and  he  commanded 
to  bring  the  book  of  records  of  the  chronicles:  and  they  were 
read  before  the  king.  And  it  was  found  written,  that  Mordecai 
had  told  of  Bigthana  and  Teresh,  two  of  the  king's  chamber- 
lains, the  keepers  of  the  door,  who  sought  to  lay  hand  on  the 
king  Ahasuerus.  And  the  king  said:  "What  honor  and  dignity 
hath  been  done  to  Mordecai  for  this  ?  "  Then  said  the  king's 
servants  that  ministered  unto  him  :  "  There  is  nothing  done  for 
him."  And  the  king  said :  "  Who  is  in  the  court  ?  "  Now  Haman 
was  come  into  the  outward  court  of  the  king's  house,  to  speak 
unto  the  king  to  hang  Mordecai  on  the  gallows  that  he  had  pre- 
pared for  him.  And  the  king's  servants  said  unto  him  :  "  Behold, 
Haman  standeth  in  the  court."  And  the  king  said,  "  Let  him  come 
in."  So  Haman  came  in.  And  the  king  said  unto  him  :  "  W^hat 
shall  be  done  unto  the  man  whom  the  king  delighteth  to  honor  ?  " 
Now  Haman  thought  in  his  heart :  "To  whom  would  the  king 
delight  to  do  honor  more  than  to  myself  ?  "  And  Haman  an- 
swered the  king:  "For  the  man  whom  the  king  delighteth  to 
honor,  let  royal  apparel  be  brought  which  the  king  useth  to  wear, 
and  the  horse  that  the  king  rideth  upon,  and  upon  the  head  of 
which  a  crown  royal  is  set :  and  let  this  apparel  and  horse  be 
delivered  to  the  hand  of  one  of  the  king's  most  noble  princes, 
1  ffty  cubits.  Over  83  ft. 


ESTHER  485 

that  they  may  array  the  man  withal  whom  the  king  delighteth 
to  honor,  and  bring  him  on  horseback  through  the  street  of  the 
city,  and  proclaim  before  him,  Thus  shall  it  be  done  to  the  man 
whom  the  king  delighteth  to  honor." 

Then  the  king  said  to  Haman  :  ''Make  haste,  and  take  the 
apparel  and  the  horse,  as  thou  hast  said,  and  do  even  so  to 
Mordecai  the  Jew,  that  sitteth  at  the  king's  gate  :  let  nothing 
fail  of  all  that  thou  hast  spoken."  Then  took  Haman  the  ap- 
parel and  tlie  horse,  and  arrayed  Mordecai,  and  brought  him  on 
horseback  through  the  street  of  the  city,  and  proclaimed  before 
him  :  "  Thus  shall  it  be  done  unto  the  man  whom  the  king  de- 
lighteth to  honor." 

And  Mordecai  came  again  to  the  king's  gate.  But  Haman 
hasted  to  his  house  mourning,  and  having  his  head  covered. 
And  Haman  told  Zeresh  his  wife  and  all  his  friends  every  thing 
that  had  befallen  him.  Then  said  his  wise  men  and  Zeresh  his 
wife  unto  him :  ''If  Mordecai  be  of  the  seed  of  the  Jews,  before 
whom  thou  hast  begun  to  fall,  thou  shalt  not  prevail  against 
him,  but  shalt  surely  fall  before  him."  And  while  they  were 
yet  talking  with  him,  came  the  king's  chamberlains,  and  hasted 
to  bring  Haman  unto  the  banquet  that  Esther  had  prepared. 

So  the  king  and  Haman  came  to  banquet  with  Esther  the 
queen.  And  the  king  said  again  unto  Esther  on  the  second  day 
at  the  banquet  of  wine  :  "  What  is  thy  petition,  queen  Esther  ? 
and  it  shall  be  granted  thee  :  and  what  is  thy  request  ?  and  it 
shall  be  performed,  even  to  the  half  of  the  kingdom."  Tlien 
Esther  the  queen  answered  and  said :  "  If  I  have  found  favor 
in  thy  sight,  0  king,  and  if  it  please  the  king,  let  my  life  be 
given  me  at  my  petition,  and  my  people  at  my  request:  for  we 
are  sold,  I  and  my  people,  to  be  destroyed,  to  be  slain,  and  to 
perish.  But  if  we  had  been  sold  for  bondmen  and  bondwomen, 
I  had  held  my  tongue,  although  the  adversary  could  not  have 
compensated  for  the  king's  damage." 

Then  the  king  Ahasuerus  answered  and  said  unto  Esther  the 
queen:  '*  Who  is  he,  and  where  is  he,  that  durst  presume  in 
his  heart  to  do  so?"  And  Esther  said:  "The  adversary  and 
enemy  is  this  wicked  Haman."  Then  Haman  was  afraid  before 
the  king  and  the  queen.  And  the  king  arising  from  the  banquet 
of  wine  in  his  wrath  went  into  the  palace  garden  :  and  Haman 
stood  up  to  make  request  for  his  life  to  Esther  the  queen ;  for 
he  saw  that  there  was  evil  determined  against  him  by  the  king. 


486        THE    STORIES   OF    JONAH,   DANIEL,    AND    ESTHER 

Then  the  king  returned  out  of  the  palace  garden  into  the  place 
of  the  banquet  of  wine  ;  and  Haman  was  fallen  upon  the  bed 
whereon  Esther  was.  Then  said  the  king :  "  Will  he  force  the 
queen  also  before  me  in  the  house  ?  "  As  the  word  went  out  of 
the  king's  mouth,  they  covered  Haman's  face.  And  Harbonah, 
one  of  the  chamberlains  before  the  king,  said:  "Behold  also, 
the  gallows  fifty  cubits  high,  which  Haman  had  made  for  Morde- 
cai,  who  had  spoken  good  for  the  king,  standeth  in  tlie  house  of 
Haman."  Then  the  king  said,  "Hang  him  thereon."  So  they 
hanged  Haman  on  the  gallows  that  he  had  prepared  for  Morde- 
cai.   Then  was  the  king's  wrath  pacified. 

On  that  day  did  the  king  Ahasuerus  give  the  house  of  Ha- 
man the  Jews'  enemy  nnto  Esther  the  queen.  And  Mordecai 
came  before  the  king ;  for  Esther  had  told  what  he  was  unto 
her.  And  the  king  took  off  his  ring,  which  he  had  taken  from 
Haman,  and  gave  it  unto  Mordecai.  And  Esther  set  Mordecai 
over  the  house  of  Haman.  And  Esther  spake  yet  again  before 
the  king,  and  fell  down  at  his  feet,  and  besought  him  with 
tears  to  put  away  the  mischief  of  Haman  the  Agagite,  and  his 
device  that  he  had  devised  against  the  Jews.  Then  the  king 
held  out  the  golden  sceptre  toward  Esther.  So  Esther  arose, 
and  stood  before  the  king,  and  said:  "H  it  please  the  king, 
and  if  I  have  found  favor  in  his  sight,  and  the  thing  seem  right 
before  the  king,  and  I  be  pleasing  in  his  eyes,  let  it  be  written 
to  reverse  the  letters  devised  by  Haman  the  son  of  Hammedatha 
the  Agagite,  which  he  wrote  to  destroy  the  Jews  which  are  in 
all  the  king's  provinces:  for  how  can  I  endure  to  see  the  evil 
that  shall  come  unto  my  people  ?  or  how  can  I  endure  to  see 
the  destruction  of  my  kindred  ?  " 

Then  the  king  Aliasuerus  said  unto  Esther  the  queen  and  to 
Mordecai  the  Jew  :  "  Behold,  I  have  given  Esther  the  house  of 
Haman,  and  him  they  have  hanged  upon  the  gallows,  because 
he  laid  his  hand  upon  the  Jews.  Write  ye  also  for  the  Jews, 
as  it  liketh  you,  in  the  king's  name,  and  seal  it  with  the  king's 
ring:  for  the  writing  which  is  written  in  the  king's  name,  and 
sealed  with  the  king's  ring,  may  no  man  reverse." 

Then  were  the  king's  scribes  called  at  that  time  in  the  third 

month,  that  is,  the  month   Sivan,^  on  the  tliree  and  twentieth 

day  thereof;  and  it  was  written  according  to  all  that  Mordecai 

commanded  unto  the  Jews,  and  to  the  lieutenants,  and  the  depu- 

1  Sivan  fell  within  May-June. 


ESTHER  487 

ties  and  rulers  of  the  provinces  which  are  from  India  unto  Etliio- 
pia,  an  hundred  twenty  and  seven  provinces,  unto  every  province 
according  to  the  writing  thereof,  and  unto  every  people  after  their 
language,  and  to  the  Jews  according  to  their  writing,  and  according 
to  their  language.  And  he  wrote  in  the  king  Ahasuerus'  name,  and 
sealed  it  with  the  king's  ring,  and  sent  letters  by  posts  on  horse- 
back, and  riders  on  mules,  camels,  and  young  dromedaries :  wherein 
the  king  granted  the  Jews  which  were  in  every  city  to  gather  them- 
selves together,  and  to  stand  for  their  life,  to  destroy,  to  slay, 
and  to  cause  to  perish,  all  the  power  of  the  people  and  province 
that  would  assault  them,  both  little  ones  and  women,  and  to 
take  the  spoil  of  them  for  a  prey,  upon  one  day  in  all  the  prov- 
inces of  king  Ahasuerus,  namely,  upon  the  thirteenth  day  of 
the  twelfth  month,  which  is  the  month  Adar.  The  copy  of  the 
writing  for  a  commandment  to  be  given  in  every  province  was 
published  unto  all  people,  and  that  the  Jews  should  be  ready 
against  that  day  to  avenge  themselves  on  their  enemies.  So  the 
posts  that  rode  upon  mules  and  camels  went  out,  being  hastened 
and  pressed  on  by  the  king's  commandment.  And  the  decree 
was  given  at  Shushan  the  palace. 

And  Mordecai  went  out  from  the  presence  of  the  king  in 
royal  apparel  of  blue  and  white,  and  with  a  great  crown  of  gold, 
and  with  a  garment  of  fine  linen  and  purple  :  and  the  city  of 
Shushan  rejoiced  and  was  glad.  The  Jews  had  light,  and  glad- 
ness, and  joy,  and  honor.  And  in  every  province,  and  in  every 
city,  whithersoever  the  king's  commandment  and  his  decree 
came,  the  Jews  had  joy  and  gladness,  a  feast  and  a  good  day. 
And  many  of  the  people  of  the  land  became  Jews ;  for  the  fear 
of  the  Jews  fell  upon  them. 

Now  in  the  twelfth  month,  that  is,  the  month  Adar,  on  the 
thirteenth  day  of  the  same,  when  the  king's  commandment  and 
his  decree  drew  near  to  be  put  in  execution,  in  the  day  that  the 
enemies  of  the  Jews  hoped  to  have  power  over  them  (though  it 
was  turned  to  the  contrary,  that  the  Jews  had  rule  over  them 
that  hated  them),  the  Jews  gathered  themselves  together  in 
their  cities  throughout  all  the  provinces  of  the  king  Ahasuerus, 
to  lay  hand  on  such  as  sought  their  hurt :  and  no  man  could 
withstand  them  ;  for  the  fear  of  them  fell  upon  all  people.  And 
all  the  rulers  of  the  provinces,  and  the  lieutenants,  and  the  dep- 
uties, and  officers  of  the  king,  helped  the  Jews  ;  because  the 
fear  of  Mordecai  fell  upon  them.   For  Mordecai  was  great  in  the 


488        THE    STORIES   OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,   AND    ESTHER 

king's  house,  and  his  fame  went  out  throughout  all  the  prov- 
inces: for  this  man  Mordecai  waxed  greater  and  greater.  Thus 
the  Jews  smote  all  their  enemies  with  the  stroke  of  the  sword, 
and  slaughter,  and  destruction,  and  did  what  they  would  unto 
those  that  hated  them.  And  in  Shushan  the  palace  the  Jews 
slew  and  destroyed  five  hundred  men.  And  Parshandatha,  and 
Dalphon,  and  Aspatha,  and  Poratha,  and  Adalia,  and  Aridatha, 
and  Parmashta,  and  Arisai,  and  Aridai,  and  Vajezatha,  the  ten 
sons  of  Haman  the  son  of  Hamraedatha,  the  enemy  of  the  Jews, 
slew  they ;  but  on  the  spoil  laid  they  not  their  hand.  On  that 
day  the  number  of  those  that  were  slain  in  Shushan  the  palace 
was  brought  before  the  king. 

And  the  king  said  unto  Esther  the  queen :  ''  The  Jews  have 
slain  and  destroyed  five  hundred  men  in  Shushan  the  palace,  and 
the  ten  sons  of  Haman ;  what  then  have  they  done  in  the  rest 
of  the  king's  provinces !  now  what  is  thy  petition  ?  and  it  shall 
be  granted  thee  :  or  what  is  thy  request  further  ?  and  it  shall  be 
done."  Then  said  Esther  :  "  If  it  please  the  king,  let  it  be  granted 
to  the  Jews  which  are  in  Shushan  to  do  to-morrow  also  accord- 
ing unto  this  day's  decree,  and  let  Haman's  ten  sons  be  hanged 
upon  the  gallows."  And  the  king  commanded  it  so  to  be  done  : 
and  the  decree  was  given  at  Shushan ;  and  they  hanged  Ha- 
man's ten  sons.  For  the  Jews  that  were  in  Shushan  gathered 
themselves  together  on  the  fourteenth  day  also  of  the  month 
Adar,  and  slew  three  hundred  men  at  Shushan  ;  but  on  the  prey 
they  laid  not  their  hand.  But  the  other  Jews  that  were  in  the 
king's  provinces  gathered  themselves  together,  and  stood  for  their 
lives,  and  had  rest  from  their  enemies,  and  slew  of  tlieir  foes 
seventy  and  five  thousand,  but  they  laid  not  their  hands  on  the 
prey,  on  the  thirteenth  day  of  the  month  Adar  ;  and  on  the  four- 
teenth day  of  the  same  rested  they,  and  made  it  a  day  of  feasting 
and  gladness.  But  the  Jews  that  were  at  Shushan  assemliled 
together  on  the  thirteenth  day  thereof,  and  on  the  fourteenth 
thereof;  and  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  same  they  rested,  and 
made  it  a  day  of  feasting  and  gladness.  Therefore  the  Jews  of 
the  villages,  that  dwelt  in  the  unwalled  towns,  made  the  four- 
teenth day  of  the  month  Adar  a  day  of  gladness  and  feasting,  and 
a  good  day,  and  of  sending  portions  one  to  another ;  but  those 
who  dwell  in  the  chief  cities  keep  the  fifteenth  day  of  Adar  as  a 
day  of  glad  feasting,  and  of  sending  portions  likewise  to  their 
neighbors. 


ESTHER  489 

And  Mordecai  wrote  these  things,  and  sent  letters  unto  all  the 
Jews  that  were  in  all  the  provinces  of  the  king  Ahasuerus,  both 
nigh  and  far,  to  stablish  this  among  them,  that  they  should  keep 
the  fourteenth  day  of  the  month  Adar,  and  the  fifteenth  day  of 
the  same,  yearly,  as  the  days  wherein  the  Jews  rested  from  their 
enemies,  and  the  month  which  was  turned  unto  them  from 
sorrow  to  joy,  and  from  mourning  into  a  good  day:  that  they 
should  make  them  days  of  feasting  and  joy,  and  of  sending  por- 
tions one  to  another,  and  gifts  to  the  poor. 

And  the  Jews  undertook  to  do  as  they  had  begun,  and  as 
Mordecai  had  written  unto  them;  because  Haman  the  son  of 
Hamraedatha,  the  Agagite,  the  enemy  of  all  the  Jews,  had  de- 
vised against  the  Jews  to  destroy  them,  and  had  cast  'pui\  that 
is,  the  lot,  to  consume  them,  and  to  destroy  them  ;  but  wlien 
Esther  came  before  the  king,  he  commanded  by  letters  that  his 
wicked  device,  which  he  devised  against  the  Jews,  should  return 
upon  his  own  head,  and  that  he  and  his  sons  should  be  hanged 
on  the  gallows.  Wherefore  they  called  these  days  Purim  after 
the  name  of  inir}  Therefore  for  all  the  words  of  this  letter,  and 
of  that  which  they  had  seen  concerning  this  matter,  and  which 
had  come  unto  them,  the  Jews  ordained,  and  took  upon  them, 
and  upon  their  seed,  and  upon  all  such  as  joined  themselves 
unto  them,  so  as  it  should  not  fail,  that  they  would  keep  these 
two  days  according  to  their  writing,  and  according  to  their  ap- 
pointed time  every  year  ;  and  that  these  days  should  be  remem- 
bered and  kept  throughout  every  generation,  every  family,  every 
province,  and  every  city  ;  and  that  these  days  of  Purim  should 
not  fail  from  among  the  Jews,  nor  the  memorial  of  them  perish 
from  their  seed. 

Then  Esther  the  queen,  the  daughter  of  Abihail,  and  INIordecai 
the  Jew,  wrote  with  all  authority,  to  confirm  this  second  letter 
of  Purim.  And  he  sent  the  letters  unto  all  the  Jews,  to  the  hun- 
dred twenty  and  seven  provinces  of  the  kingdom  of  Ahasuerus, 
with  words  of  peace  and  truth,  to  confirm  these  days  of  Purim 
in  their  times  appointed,  according  as  ^Mordecai  the  Jew  and 
Esther  the  queen  had  enjoined  them,  and  as  they  had  decreed 

1  It  is  hard  to  identify /jur  with  any  Persian  word,  and  the  real  origin  of  the 
Purim  feast  is  very  much  in  dispute.  Amonc:  the  theories  offered  to  account  for 
it  may  be  mentioned  those  deriving  it:  (1)  from  a  Persian  sprinj^  festival  — 
taking  pur  as  from  behdr,  '  spring; '  (2)  from  the  Persian  Fnrvardir/dn,  a  feast 
in  memory  of  the  dead;  (3)  from  the  Babylonian  New  Year  feast. 


490        THE   STORIES    OF   JONAH,   DANIEL,   AND   ESTHER 

for  themselves  and  for  their  seed,  the  matters  of  the  fastings  and 
their  cry.  And  the  decree  of  Esther  confirmed  these  matters  of 
Purim;   and  it  was  written  in  the  book. 

And  the  king  Ahasuerus  laid  a  tribute  upon  the  land,  and 
upon  the  isles  of  the  sea.  And  all  the  acts  of  his  power  and 
of  his  might,  and  the  declaration  of  the  greatness  of  Mordecai, 
whereunto  the  king  advanced  him,  are  they  not  written  in  the 
book  of  the  chronicles  of  the  kings  of  Media  and  Persia  ?  For 
Mordecai  the  Jew  was  next  unto  king  Ahasuerus,  and  great 
among  the  Jews,  and  accepted  of  the  multitude  of  his  brethren, 
seeking  the  wealth  of  his  people,  and  speaking  peace  to  all  his 
seed. 


XIV 

THE    WAR    FOR    RELIGIOUS    FREEDOM 

The  Maccabees 

The  Beginnings  of  Greek  Rule  (l  Mac.  i.  1-19).  And  it 
happened,  after  that  Alexander  son  of  Philip,  the  Macedonian, 
■who  came  out  of  the  land  of  Chittim,^  had  smitten  Darius  king 
of  the  Persians  and  Medes,  that  he  reigned  in  his  stead,  in  for- 
mer time  over  Greece,  and  made  many  wars,  and  won  many- 
strong  holds,  and  slew  the  kings  of  the  earth,  and  went  through 
to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  took  spoils  of  many  nations,  inso- 
much that  the  earth  was  quiet  before  him ; 
whereupon  he  was  exalted,  and  his  heart 
was  lifted  up.  And  he  gathered  a  mighty 
strong  host,  and  ruled  over  countries,  and 
nations,  and  kings,  who  became  tributa- 
ries unto  him. 

And  after  these  things  he  fell  sick,  and 
perceived  that  he  should  die.   Wherefore 
he  called  his  servants,  such  as  were  hon- 
orable,  and  had  been  brought  up  with  him    ZSoITSil'XTEp'i^ 
from  his  youth,  and  parted  his  kingdom 

among  them,  while  he  was  yet  alive. ^  So  Alexander  reigned 
twelve  years,  and  then  died.  And  his  servants  bare  rule  every 
one  in  his  place.  And  after  his  death  they  all  put  crowns  upon 
themselves;  so  did  their  sons  after  them  many  years:  and  evils 
were  multiplied  in  the  earth.  And  there  came  out  of  them  a 
wicked  root,  Antiochus  surnamed  Epiphanes,  son  of  Antiochus 
the  king,  who  had  been  an  hostage  at  Rome,  and  he  reigned  in 
the  hundred  and  thirty  and  seventh  year  of  the  kingdom  of  the 
Greeks.^ 

1  Chittim.  Originally,  the  island  of  Cyprus,  but  later  a  general  designation 
of  the  eastern  Mediterranean  coast  lands. 

2  There  was  a  widespread  legend  to  this  effect.  The  more  probable  account  is 
that,  when  at  the  point  of  death,  Alexander  handed  his  signet-ring  to  Perdiccas, 
the  captain  of  his  body-guard,  to  betoken  his  wish  that  he  should  reign. 

8  Antiochus  Epiphanes  ('the  Illustrious')  reigned  175-164  B.C.  After  his 
father's  defeat  by  the  Romans  at  Magnesia  (190  b.  c),  he  had  lived  as  a  hostage 


492  THE   WAR   FOR   RELIGIOUS   FREEDOM 

In  those  days  went  there  out  of  Israel  transgressors  of  the 
law,  who  persuaded  many,  saying  :  "  Let  us  go  and  make  a  cove- 
nant with  the  heathen  that  are  round  about  us :  for  since  we 
departed  from  them  we  have  had  much  sorrow."  So  this  device 
pleased  them  well.  Then  certain  of  the  people  were  so  forward 
herein,  that  they  went  to  the  king,  who  gave  them  licence  to  do 
after  the  ordinances  of  the  heathen :  whereupon  they  built  a 
place  of  exercise  at  Jerusalem  according  to  the  customs  of  the 
heathen  :  ^  and  made  themselves  uncircumcised,  and  forsook  the 
holy  covenant,  and  joined  themselves  to  the  heathen,  and  were 
sold  to  do  mischief. 

Now  when  the  kingdom  was  established  before  Antiochus,  he 
thought  to  reign  over  Egypt,  that  he  might  have  the  dominion 
of  two  realms.  Wherefore  he  entered  into  Egypt  with  a  great 
multitude,  with  chariots,  and  elephants,  and  horsemen,  and  a 
great  navy,  and  made  war  against  Ptolemy  king  of  Egypt :  but 
Ptolemy  was  afraid  of  him,  and  fled ;  and  many  were  wounded 
to  death.  Thus  they  got  the  strong  cities  in  the  land  of  Egypt, 
and  he  took  the  spoils  thereof. 

Persecution  by  Antiochus  IV  (l  Mac.  i.  20-64).  And  after 
that  Antiochus  had  smitten  Egypt,  he  returned  again  in  the 
hundred  forty  and  third  year,^  and  went  up  against  Israel  and 
Jerusalem  with  a  great  multitude,  and  entered  proudly  into  the 
sanctuary,  and  took  away  the  golden  altar,  and  the  candlestick  of 
light,  and  all  the  vessels  thereof,  and  the  table  of  the  shewbread, 
and  the  pouring  vessels,  and  the  vials,  and  the  censers  of  gold, 
and  the  veil,  and  the  crowns,  and  the  golden  ornaments  that 
were  before  the  temple,  all  which  he  pulled  off.  He  took  also 
the  silver  and  the  gold,  and  the  precious  vessels :  also  he  took 
the  hidden  treasures  which  he  found.  And  when  he  had  taken 
all  away,   he  went   into  his  own   land,   having  made   a  great 

at  Rome  during  the  reign  of  his  brother,  Seleucus  VI  (187-176).  The  kingdom 
of  the  Greeks  is  the  rule  of  the  Syrian  Greeks,  beginning  with  Seleucus  I, 
312  B.  c. 

1  These  Ilellenizers  were  led  by  one  Joshua  (younger  brother  of  the  high 
priest  Onias  III),  who  had  given  his  name  the  Greek  form,  Jason.  The  "li- 
cence "  was  to  protect  them  from  the  Mosaic  law  (Deut.  xiii.  6-10)  against  those 
who  should  entice  Israelites  from  the  worship  of  Jehovah.  The  "  place  of  ex- 
ercise "  was  doubtless  a  regular  Greek  gvmnasium,  with  baths,  porticoes,  etc. 

2  hundred  forty  and  third  year.  n.  c.  170-169.  Antiochus  was  finally  ordered 
by  the  Roman  ambassador  to  retire  from  before  Alexandria,  so  that  his  suc- 
cesses ill  Egypt  were  barren  of  results. 


PERSECUTION   BY   ANTIOCHUS   IV 


493 


massacre,  and  spoken  very  proudly.  Therefore  there  was  great 
mourning  in  Israel,  in  every  place  where  tliey  were. 

So  tliat  the  princes  and  elders  mourned, 
The  virgins  and  young  men  were  made  feeble, 
And  the  beauty   of   women  was  changed. 
Every  bridegroom  took  up  lamentation, 
And  she  that  sat  in  the  marriage  chamber  was  in  heavi- 
ness. 
The  land  also  was  moved  for  the  inhabitants  thereof. 
And  all  the  house  of  Jacob  was  covered  with  confusion. 

And,  after  two  years  fully  expired,  the  king  sent  his  chief 
collector  of  tribute^  unto  the  cities  of  Judah,  who  came  unto 
Jerusalem  with  a  great  multitude, 
and  spake  peaceable  words  unto 
them,  but  all  was  deceit :  for  when 
they  had  given  him  credence,  he 
fell  suddenly  upon  the  city,  and 
smote  it  very  sore,  and  destroyed 
much  people  of  Israel.  And  when 
he  had  taken  the  spoils  of  the  city, 
he  set  it  on  fire,  and  pulled  down 
the  houses  and  walls  thereof  on 
every  side.  But  the  women  and 
children  took  they  captive,  and 
possessed  the  cattle. 

Then  builded  they  the  city  of 
David  ^  with  a  great  and  strong 
wall,  and  with  mighty  towers,  and 
made  it  a  strong  hold  for  them. 
And  they  put  therein  a  sinful  nation 
themselves  therein 


Candlestick  from  the  Temple  at  Jeru- 
salem, as  shown  on  the  Arch  of  TitUB 
at  Kome. 


wicked  men,  and  fortified 
They  stored  it  also  with  armor  and  victuals, 
and  when  they  had  gathered  together  the  spoils  of  Jerusalem, 
they  laid  them  up  there,  and  so  they  became  a  sore  snare  :  for 
it  was  a  place  to  lie  in  wait  in  against  the  sanctuary,  and  an  evil 
adversary  to  Israel.  Thus  they  shed  innocent  blood  on  every 
side  of  the  sanctuary,  and  defiled  it :   insomuch  that  the  inhab- 

1  chief  collector  of  tribute.  Probably  Apollonius.  See  p.  500. 

2  city  of  David.  Not  Jerusalem,  but  the  '  Acra '  or  citadel  on  the  temple  hill, 
overlooking  the  temple. 

8  nation.  In  the  old  sense  of  a  community  of  such  as  have  a  profession  or  in- 
terest in  common. 


494  THE  WAR  FOR  RELIGIOUS  FREEDOM 

itants  of  Jerusalem  fled  because  of  them :  whereupon  the  city 
was  made  an  habitation  of  strangers,  and  became  strange  to 
those  that  were  born  in  her ;  and  her  own  children  left  her. 

Her  sanctuary  was  laid  waste  like  a  wilderness ; 

Her  feasts  were  turned  into  mourning, 

Her  sabbaths  into  reproach, 

Her  honor  into  contempt. 

As  had  been  her  glory,  so  was  her  dishonor  increased, 

And  her  excellency  was  turned  into  mourning. 

Moreover  king  Antiochus  wrote  to  his  whole  kingdom,  that 
all  should  be  one  people,  and  every  one  should  leave  his  laws : 
so  all  the  heathen  agreed  according  to  the  commandment  of  the 
king.  Yea,  many  also  of  the  Israelites  consented  to  his  religion, 
and  sacrificed  unto  idols,  and  profaned  the  sabbath.  For  the  king 
had  sent  letters  by  messengers  unto  Jerusalem  and  the  cities  of 
Judah,  that  they  should  follow  the  strange  laws  of  the  land,  and 
forbid  burnt  offerings,  and  sacrifice,  and  drink  ofi'erings,  in  the 
temple ;  and  that  they  should  profane  the  sabbaths  and  festival 
days :  and  pollute  the  sanctuary  and  holy  people  :  set  up  altars, 
and  temples,^  and  chapels  of  idols,  and  sacrifice  swine's  flesh, 
and  unclean  beasts  ;  that  they  should  also  leave  their  children 
uncircumcised,  and  make  their  souls  abominable  with  all  man- 
ner of  uncleanness  and  profanation  :  to  the  end  they  might  for- 
get the  law,  and  change  all  the  ordinances.  And  whosoever 
would  not  do  according  to  the  commandment  of  the  king,  he 
said,  he  should  die.  In  the  selfsame  manner  wrote  he  to  his 
whole  kingdom,  and  appointed  overseers  over  all  the  people, 
commanding  the  cities  of  Judah  to  sacrifice,  city  by  city.  Then 
many  of  the  people  were  gathered  unto  them,  to  wit,  every  one 
that  forsook  the  law  ;  and  so  they  committed  evils  in  the  land ; 
and  drove  the  Israelites  into  secret  places,  even  wheresoever 
they  could  flee  for  succor. 

Now  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  month  Chislev,  in  the  hundred 
forty  and  fifth  year,^  they  set  up  the  abomination  of  desolation 
upon  the  altar,  and  builded  idol  altars  throughout  the  cities  of 
Judah  on  every  side ;   and  burnt  incense  at  the  doors  of  their 

1  temples.  Sacred  enclosures. 

2  December,  168b.  c.  The  phrase  'abomination  of  desolation'  is  probably 
borrowed  from  the  book  of  Daniel.  It  refers  to  an  altar  to  Zeus,  which  was 
built  upon  the  stone  platform  that  constituted  the  old  altar  of  burnt  offering. 


THE    UPKISING   OF   MATTATHIAS  495 

houses,  and  in  the  streets.  And  when  tliey  had  rent  in  pieces 
the  books  of  the  law  which  they  found,  they  burnt  them  with 
fire.  And  wheresoever  was  found  witli  any  the  book  of  the 
testament,  or  if  any  consented  to  the  law,  the  king's  command- 
ment was,  that  they  should  put  him  to  death.  Thus  did  they 
by  their  authority  unto  the  Israelites  every  month,  to  as  many 
as  were  found  in  the  cities. 

Now  the  five  and  twentieth  day  of  the  month  they  did  sac- 
rifice upon  the  idol  altar,  which  was  upon  the  altar  of  God.  At 
which  time  according  to  the  commandment  they  put  to  death 
certain  women,  that  had  caused  their  children  to  be  circumcised. 
And  they  hanged  the  infants  about  their  necks,  and  rifled  their 
houses,  and  slew  them  that  had  circumcised  them.  Howbeit 
many  in  Israel  were  fully  resolved  and  confirmed  in  themselves 
not  to  eat  any  unclean  thing.  Wherefore  they  chose  rather  to 
die,  that  they  might  not  be  defiled  with  meats,  and  that  they 
might  not  profane  the  holy  covenant :  so  then  they  died.  And 
there  was  very  great  wrath  upon  Israel. 

The  Uprising  of  Mattathias  (l  Mac.  ii.  1-28).  In  those 
days  arose  Mattathias  the  son  of  John,  the  son  of  Simeon,  a 
priest  of  the  sons  of  Joarib,  from  Jerusalem,  and  dwelt  in  Modin. 
And  he  had  five  sons,  John,  who  was  surnamed  Gaddis :  Si- 
mon, called  Thassi :  Judas,  who  was  called  Maccabseus :  ^  Ele- 
azar,  called  Avaran  :  and  Jonathan,  whose  surname  was  Apphus. 
And  when  he  saw  the  blasphemies  that  were  committed  in  Ju- 
dah  and  Jerusalem,  he  said :  ''  Woe  is  me !  wherefore  was  I 
born  to  see  this  misery  of  my  people,  and  of  the  holy  city,  and 
to  dwell  there,  when  it  was  delivered  into  the  hand  of  the 
enemy,  and  the  sanctuary  into  the  hand  of  strangers  ? 

'  Her  temple  is  become  as  a  man  without  glory. 
Her  glorious  vessels  are  carried  away  into  captivity  ; 
Her  infants  are  slain  in  the  streets. 
Her  young  men  with  the  sword  of  the  enemy. 

1  The  derivation  of  Mnccnbaeus  is  uncertain.  It  is  commonly  taken  as  from 
maqqabdh,  'hammer.'  Cf.  "  Charles  MrrWe/,"  and  the  inscription  on  the  tomb 
of  Edward  I  in  Westminster  Abbey:  "Eduardus  primus  Scotorum  malleus  hie 
est."  From  the  name  of  Cliasmon,  preat-prandfather  of  Mattathias,  he  and  his 
descendants  are  in  Jewish  literature  more  commonly  called  "  Hasmonaeans  " 
than  "Maccabees."  None  of  the  secondary  names  of  the  brothers  have  been 
explained  with  any  certainty. 


496  THE   WAR   FOR   RELIGIOUS  FREEDOM 

What  nation  hath  not  had  a  part  in  her  kingdom, 

And  gotten  of  her  spoils  ? 

All  her  ornaments  are  taken  away ; 

Of  a  free  woman  she  is  become  a  bondslave. 

And  behold,  our  sanctuary,  even  our  beauty  and  our 

glory,  is  laid  waste, 
And  the  Gentiles  have  profaned  it. 
To  what  end  therefore  shall  we  live  any  longer  ?  '  ^' 

Then  Mattathias  and  his  sons  rent  their  clothes,  and  put  on 
sackcloth,  and  mourned  very  sore. 

In  the  mean  while  the  king's  officers,  such  as  compelled  the 
people  to  revolt,  came  into  the  city  Modin,  to  make  them  sacri- 
fice. And  when  many  of  Israel  came  unto  them,  Mattathias  also 
and  his  sons  came  together.  Then  answered  the  king's  officers, 
and  said  to  Mattathias  on  this  wise  :  "  Thou  art  a  ruler,  and 
an  honorable  and  great  man  in  this  city,  and  strengthened  with 
sons  and  brethren:  now  therefore  come  thou  first,  and  fulfil  the 
king's  commandment,  like  as  all  the  heathen  have  done,  yea, 
and  the  men  of  Judah  also,  and  such  as  remain  at  Jerusalem  : 
so  shalt  thou  and  thy  house  be  in  the  number  of  the  king's 
friends,  and  thou  and  thy  children  shall  be  honored  with  silver 
and  gold,  and  many  rewards."  Then  Mattathias  answered  and 
spake  with  a  loud  voice :  ^'  Though  all  the  nations  that  are 
under  the  king's  dominion  obey  him,  and  fall  away  every  one 
from  the  religion  of  their  fathers,  and  give  consent  to  his  com- 
mandments :  yet  will  I  and  my  sons  and  my  brethren  walk  in 
the  covenant  of  our  fathers.  God  forbid  that  we  should  forsake 
the  law  and  the  ordinances.  We  will  not  hearken  to  the  king's 
w^ords,  to  go  from  our  religion,  either  on  the  right  hand  or  the 
left." 

Now  when  he  had  left  speaking  these  words,  there  came  one 
of  the  Jews  in  the  sight  of  all  to  sacrifice  on  the  altar  which 
was  at  Modin,  according  to  the  king's  commandment.  Which 
thing  when  Mattathias  saw,  he  was  inflamed  with  zeal,  and  his 
reins  ^  trembled,  neither  could  he  forbear  to  shew  his  anger 
according  to  judgment :  wherefore  he  ran,  and  slew  him  upon 
the  altar.  Also  the  king's  commissioner,  Avho  compelled  men  to 
sacrifice,  he  killed  at  that  time,  and  the  altar  he  pulled  down. 
Thus  dealt  he  zealously  for  the  law  of  God,  like  as  Phinehas 

1  The  Hebrews  conceived  the  '  reins '  (kidne3's)  to  be  the  seat  of  the  emotions. 


THE   FORTUNES   OF   THE   FUGITIVE    JEWS  497 

did  unto  Zimri  the  son  of  Salu.^  And  Mattatliias  cried  through- 
out the  city  with  a  loud  voice,  saying:  "  Whosoever  is  zealous 
of  the  law,  and  maintaineth  the  covenant,  let  him  follow  me." 
So  he  and  his  sons  fled  into  the  mountains,  and  left  all  that 
ever  they  had  in  the  city. 

The  Fortunes  of  the  Fugitive  Jews  (l  Mac.  ii.  29-70). 
Then  many  that  sought  after  justice  and  judgment  went  down 
into  the  wilderness,  to  dwell  there :  both  they,  and  their  chil- 
dren, and  their  wives,  and  their  cattle  ;  because  afflictions  in- 
creased sore  upon  them.  Xow  when  it  was  told  the  king's  serv- 
ants, and  the  host  that  was  at  Jerusalem,  in  the  city  of  David, 
that  certain  men,  who  had  broken  the  king's  commandment, 
were  gone  down  into  the  secret  places  in  the  wilderness,  they 
pursued  after  them  a  great  number,  and  having  overtaken  them, 
they  camped  against  them,  and  made  war  against  them  on  the 
sabbath  day.  And  they  said  unto  them:  "Let  that  which  ye 
have  done  hitherto  suffice ;  come  forth,  and  do  according  to  the 
commandment  of  the  king,  and  ye  shall  live."  But  they  said: 
"We  will  not  come  forth,  neither  will  we  do  the  king's  com- 
mandment, to  profane  the  sabbath  day."  So  then  they  gave 
them  the  battle  with  all  speed.  Howbeit  they  answered  them 
not,  neither  cast  tliey  a  stone  at  them,  nor  stopped  the  places 
where  they  lay  hid ;  but  said  :  ''  Let  us  die  all  in  our  innocency : 
heaven  and  earth  shall  testify  for  us,  that  ye  put  us  to  death 
wrongfully."  So  they  rose  up  against  them  in  battle  on  the 
sabbath,  and  they  slew  them,  with  their  wives  and  children, 
and  their  cattle,  to  the  number  of  a  thousand  people. 

Now  when  Mattathias  and  his  friends  understood  hereof, 
they  mourned  for  them  right  sore.  And  one  of  them  said  to  an- 
other: "If  we  all  do  as  our  brethren  have  done,  and  fight  not 
for  our  lives  and  laws  against  the  heathen,  they  will  now  quickly 
root  us  out  of  the  earth."  At  that  time  therefore  they  decreed, 
saying:  "Whosoever  shall  come  to  make  battle  with  us  on  the 
sabbath  day,  we  will  fight  against  him;  neither  will  we  die  all, 
as  our  brethren  that  were  murdered  in  the  secret  places." 

Then  came  there  unto  him  a  company  of  Hasideans,-  who 

1  See  p.  140. 

2  Hasideans.  Heb.  Chasidim,  'the  pious.'  This  was  a  party  of  devotees  that 
had  begun  to  resist  the  paganizing  movement  before  the  Maccabean  revolt. 
Their  aim  was  to  practice  strict  observance  of  the  law,  and  beyond  the  freedom 


498  THE  WAR  FOR  RELIGIOUS   FREEDOM 

were  mighty  men  of  Israel,  even  all  such  as  were  voluntarily 
devoted  unto  the  law.  Also  all  they  that  fled  for  persecution 
joined  themselves  unto  them,  and  were  a  stay  unto  them. 

So  they  joined  their  forces. 

And  smote  sinful  men  in  their  anger, 

And  wicked  men  in  their  wrath. 

But  the  rest  fled  to  the  heathen  for  succor. 

Then  Mattathias  and  his  friends  went  round  about,  and  pulled 
down  the  altars :  and  what  children  soever  they  found  within 
the  coast  of  Israel  uncircumcised,  those  they  circumcised  val- 
iantly.^ They  pursued  also  after  the  proud  men,  and  the  work 
prospered  in  their  hand.  So  they  recovered  the  law  out  of  the 
hand  of  the  Gentiles,  and  out  of  the  hand  of  kings,  neither  suf- 
fered they  the  sinner  to  triumph. 

Now  when  the  time  drew  near  that  Mattathias  should  die,  he 
said  unto  his  sons  :  ^'  Now  hath  pride  and  rebuke  gotten  strength, 
and  the  time  of  destruction,  and  the  wrath  of  indignation :  now 
therefore,  my  sons,  be  ye  zealous  for  the  law,  and  give  your  lives 
for  the  covenant  of  your  fathers.  Call  to  remembrance  what  acts 
our  fathers  did  in  their  time  ;  so  shall  ye  receive  great  honor  and 
an  everlasting  name. 

"  Was  not  Abraham  found  faithful  in  temptation, 
And  it  was  imputed  unto  him  for  righteousness  ? 
Joseph  in  the  time  of  his  distress  kept  the  commandment, 
And  was  made  lord  of  Egypt. 
Phinehas  our  father  in  being  zealous  and  fervent 
Obtained  the  covenant  of  an  everlasting  priesthood. 
Joshua  for  fulfilling  the  word 
Was  made  a  judge  in  Israel. 
Caleb  for  bearing  witness  before  the  congregation 
Received  the  heritage  of  the  land. 
David  for  being  merciful 

Possessed  the  throne  of  an  everlasting  kingdom. 
Elijah  for  being  zealous  and  fervent  for  the  law 
Was  taken  up  into  heaven. 

to  do  this,  they  had  no  political  ambition.    They  would  leave  it  to  God  to  es- 
tablish His  kin£^dom  in  due  time.    As  soon  as  the  regular  temple  worship  was 
restored,  they  declined  to  continue  with  the  Maccabean  party  in  their  fight  for 
independence.  The  Chasidm  later  became  known  as  the  Pharisees. 
*  valiantly.   Forcibly. 


JUDAS'S    DEFEAT    OF    APOLLONIUS    AND    SERON  499 

Hananiah,  Azariah,  and  Mishael,  by  believing 

Were  saved  out  of  the  flame. 

Daniel  for  his  innocency 

Was  delivered  from  the  mouth  of  lions. 

And  thus  consider  ye  throughout  all  ages, 

That  none  that  put  their  trust  in  him  shall  be  overcome. 

Fear  not  then  the  words  of  a  sinful  man : 

For  his  glory  shall  be  dung  and  worms. 

To-day  he  shall  be  lifted  up,  and  to-morrow  he  shall  not 

be  found, 
Because  he  is  returned  into  his  dust,  and  his  thought  is 

come  to  nothing. 
Wherefore,  ye  my  sons,  be  valiant,  and  shew  yourselves 

men  in  behalf  of  the  law  ; 
For  by  it  shall  ye  obtain  glory. 

"And  behold,  I  know  that  your  brother  Simon  is  a  man  of 
counsel,  give  ear  unto  him  alway :  he  shall  be  a  father  unto  you. 
As  for  Judas  Maccabseus,  he  hath  been  mighty  and  strong,  even 
from  his  youth  up :  let  him  be  your  captain,  and  fight  the  battle 
of  the  people.  Take  also  unto  you  all  those  that  observe  the 
law,  and  avenge  ye  the  wrong  of  your  people.  Eecompense  fully 
the  heathen,  and  take  heed  to  the  commandments  of  the  law." 

So  he  blessed  them,  and  was  gathered  to  his  fathers.  And  he 
died  in  the  hundred  forty  and  sixth  year,  and  his  sons  buried 
him  in  the  sepulchres  of  his  fathers  at  Modin,  and  all  Israel  made 
great  lamentation  for  him. 

Judas's  Defeat  of  Apollonius  and  Seron  (l  Mac.  iii.  1-26). 
Then  his  son  Judas,  called  Maccabseus,  rose  up  in  his  stead.  And 
all  his  brethren  helped  him,  and  so  did  all  they  that  held  M^ith 
his  father,  and  they  fought  with  cheerfulness  the  battle  of  Israel. 

So  he  gat  his  people  great  honor. 

And  put  on  a  breastplate  as  a  giant. 

And  girt  his  warlike  harness  about  him, 

And  he  made  battles,  protecting  the  host  with  his  sword. 

In  his  acts  he  was  like  a  lion, 

And  like  a  lion's  whelp  roaring  for  his  prey. 

For  he  pursued  the  wicked,  and  sought  them  out. 

And  burnt  up  those  that  vexed  his  people. 

Wherefore  the  wicked  shrunk  for  fear  of  him, 


500  THE    WAR   FOR   RELIGIOUS   FREEDOM 

And  all  the  workers  of  iniquity  were  troubled, 
Because  salvation  prospered  in  his  hand. 
He  grieved  also  many  kings, 
And  made  Jacob  glad  with  his  acts, 
And  his  memorial  is  blessed  for  ever. 
Moreover  he  went  through  the  cities  of  Judah, 
Destroying  the  ungodly  out  of  them, 
And  turning  away  wrath  from  Israel : 
So  that  he  was  renowned  unto  the  uttermost  part  of  the 
earth. 

Then  Apollonius  ^  gathered  the  Gentiles  together,  and  a  great 
host  out  of  Samaria,  to  fight  against  Israel.  Which  thing  when 
Judas  perceived,  he  went  forth  to  meet  him,  and  so  he  smote 
him,  and  slew  him :  many  also  fell  down  slain,  but  the  rest  fled. 
Wherefore  Judas  took  their  spoils,  and  Apollonius'  sword  also, 
and  therewith  he  fought  all  his  life  long. 

Now  when  Seron,  the  commander  of  the  army  of  Syria,  heard 
say  that  Judas  had  gathered  unto  him  a  multitude  and  a  com- 
pany of  the  faithful  to  go  out  with  him  to  war ;  he  said :  '^  I 
will  get  me  a  name  and  honor  in  the  kingdom ;  for  I  will  go 
fight  with  Judas  and  them  that  are  with  him,  who  despise  the 
king's  commandment."  So  he  made  him  ready  to  go  up,  and 
there  went  with  him  a  mighty  host  of  the  ungodly  to  help  him, 
and  to  be  avenged  of  the  children  of  Israel. 

And  when  he  came  near  to  the  going  up  of  Bethhoron,  Judas 
went  forth  to  meet  him  with  a  small  company  :  who,  wlien  they 
saw  the  host  coming  to  meet  them,  said  unto  Judas  :  ''  How  shall 
we  be  able,  being  so  few,  to  fight  against  so  great  a  multitude 
and  so  strong,  seeing  we  are  ready  to  faint  with  fasting  all  this 
day  ?  "  Unto  whom  Judas  answered  :  "  It  is  no  hard  matter  for 
many  to  be  shut  up  in  the  hands  of  a  few  ;  and  with  the  God  of 
heaven  it  is  all  one,  to  deliver  with  a  great  multitude,  or  a  small 
company :  for  the  victory  of  battle  standeth  not  in  the  multitude 
of  an  host ;  but  strength  cometh  from  heaven.  They  come  against 
us  in  much  pride  and  iniquity  to  destroy  us,  and  our  wives  and 
children,  and  to  spoil  U3  :  but  we  fight  for  our  lives  and  our  laws. 
Wherefore  the  Lord  himself  will  overthrow  them  before  our 
face :  and  as  for  you,  be  ye  not  afraid  of  them." 

1  Apollonius.  According  to  Josephus,  he  was  military  governor  of  Samaria. 
He  was  probably  the  "  chief  collector  of  tribute"  mentioned  on  p.  493. 


DEFEAT    OF   THE   SYRIAN    GENERALS  501 

Now  as  soon  as  he  had  left  off  speaking,  he  leapt  suddenly 
upon  them,  and  so  Seron  and  his  host  was  overthrown  before 
him.  And  they  pursued  them  from  the  going  down  of  IJethhoron 
unto  the  plain,  where  were  slain  about  eight  hundred  men  of 
them ;  and  the  residue  tied  into  the  land  of  the  Philistines. 
Then  began  the  fear  of  Judas  and  his  brethren,  and  an  exceed- 
ing great  dread,  to  fall  upon  the  nations  round  about  them  : 
insomuch  as  his  fame  came  unto  the  king,  and  all  nations  talked 
of  the  battles  of  Judas. 

Defeat  of  the  Syrian  Generals  (l  Mac.  iii.  27-iv.  27).  Now 
wlien  king  Antiochus  heard  these  things,  he  was  full  of  indig- 
nation :  wherefore  he  sent  and  gathered  together  all  the  forces 
of  his  realm,  even  a  very  strong  army.  He  opened  also  his 
treasure,  and  gave  his  soldiers  pay  for  a  year,  commanding  them 
to  be  ready  whensoever  he  should  need  them.  Nevertheless, 
when  he  saw  that  the  money  of  his  treasures  failed,  and  that  the 
tributes  in  the  country  were  small,  because  of  the  dissension 
and  plague,  which  he  had  brought  upon  the  land  in  taking  away 
the  laws  which  had  been  of  old  time,  he  feared  that  he  should 
not  be  able  to  bear  the  charges  any  longer,  nor  to  have  such 
gifts  to  give  so  liberally  as  he  did  before :  for  he  had  abounded 
above  the  kings  that  were  before  him.  Wherefore,  being  greatly 
perplexed  in  his  mind,  he  determined  to  go  into  Persia,  there  to 
take  the  tributes  of  the  countries,  and  to  gather  much  money. 

So  he  left  Lysias,  a  nobleman,  and  one  of  the  blood  royal,  to 
oversee  the  affairs  of  the  king  from  the  river  Euphrates  unto  the 
borders  of  Egypt :  and  to  bring  up  his  son  Antiochus,  until  he 
came  again.  j\[oreover  he  delivered  unto  him  the  half  of  his 
forces,  and  the  elephants,  and  gave  him  charge  of  all  things  that 
he  Avould  have  done,  as  also  concerning  them  that  dwelt  in  Ju- 
dah  and  Jerusalem  :  to  wit,  that  he  should  send  an  army  against 
them,  to  destroy  and  root  out  the  strength  of  Israel,  and  the 
remnant  of  Jerusalem,  and  to  take  away  their  memorial  from 
that  place ;  and  that  he  should  place  strangers  in  all  their  quar- 
ters, and  divide  their  land  by  lot.  So  the  king  took  the  half  of 
the  forces  that  remained,  and  departed  from  Antioch,  his  royal 
city,  the  hundred  forty  and  seventh  year  ;  ^  and  having  passed 
the  river  Euphrates,  he  went  through  the  high  countries.^ 

1  165  B.  c. 

2  high  countries.  Perhaps  Armenia,  Assyria,  and  Media. 


602  THE   WAR  FOR   RELIGIOUS   FREEDOM 

Then  Lysias  chose  Ptolemy  the  son  of  Dorymenes,  and  Ki- 
canor,  and  Gorgias,  mighty  men  of  the  king's  friends  :  and  with 
them  he  sent  forty  thousand  footmen,  and  seven  thousand  horse- 
men, to  go  into  the  land  of  Judah,  and  to  destroy  it,  as  the  king 
commanded.  So  they  went  forth  with  all  their  power,  and  came 
and  pitched  by  Emmaus  in  the  plain  country.  And  the  mer- 
chants of  the  country,  hearing  the  fame  of  them,  took  silver  and 
gold  very  much,  with  fetters,  and  came  into  the  camp  to  buy  the 
children  of  Israel  for  slaves  :  ^  the  forces  also  of  Syria  and  of 
the  land  of  the  Philistines  joined  themselves  unto  them. 

Now  when  Judas  and  his  brethren  saw  that  miseries  were 
multiplied,  and  that  the  forces  did  encamp  themselves  in  their 
borders ;  for  they  knew  how  the  king  had  given  commandment 
to  destroy  the  people,  and  utterly  abolish  them,  they  said  one  to 
another :  "  Let  us  restore  the  decayed  estate  of  our  people,  and 
let  us  fight  for  our  people  and  the  sanctuary."  Then  was  the 
congregation  gathered  together,  that  they  might  be  ready  for 
battle,  and  that  they  might  pray,  and  ask  mercy  and  compassion. 

Now  Jerusalem  lay  void  as  a  wilderness. 

There  was  none  of  her  children  that  went  in  or  out: 

The  sanctuary  also  was  trodden  down, 

And  aliens  kept  the  strong  hold ; 

The  heathen  had  their  habitation  in  that  place ; 

And  joy  was  taken  from  Jacob, 

And  the  pipe  with  the  harp  ceased. 

Wherefore  the  Israelites  assembled  themselves  together,  and 
came  to  Mizpeh,  over  against  Jerusalem  ;  for  in  Mizpeh  was 
the  place  where  they  prayed  aforetime  in  Israel. ^  Then  they 
fasted  that  day,  and  put  on  sackcloth,  and  cast  ashes  upon  their 
heads,  and  rent  their  clothes,  and  laid  open  the  book  of  the  law, 
wherein  the  heathen  had  sought  to  paint  the  likeness  of  their 
images.^  They  brought  also  the  priests'  garments,  and  the  first- 
fruits,  and  the  tithes :  and  the  Nazarites  they  stirred  up,  who 
had  accomplished  their  days."*    Then  cried  they  with  a  loud  voice 

1  According  to  2  Maccabees  viii.  10,  Nicanor  had  advertised  that  they  would 
sell  Jewish  captives  at  the  rate  of  ninety  for  a  talent,  and  use  the  proceeds  for 
paying  the  tribute  to  Rome. 

2  Mizpeh  was  associated  with  the  great  assembly  under  Samuel.  See  p.  229. 
8  Their  enemies  had  evidently  desecrated  copies  of  the  law  by  drawing  pic- 
tures of  pagan  deities  in  them. 

4  The  Nazarites  could  have  release  from  their  vows  only  by  sacrificing  in  the 


DEFEAT   OF   THE   SYRIAN   GENERALS  603 

toward  heaven,  saying:  "What  shall  we  do  with  these,  and 
whither  shall  we  carry  them  away  ?  For  thy  sanctuary  is  trod- 
den down  and  profaned,  and  thy  priests  are  in  heaviness,  and 
broiiglit  low.  And  lo,  the  heathen  are  assembled  together  against 
us  to  destroy  us :  what  things  they  imagine  against  us,  thou 
knowest.  How  shall  we  be  able  to  stand  against  them,  except  thou, 
O  God,  be  our  help  ?  "  Then  sounded  they  with  trumpets,  and 
cried  with  a  loud  voice. 

And  after  this  Judas  ordained  captains  over  the  people,  even 
captains  over  thousands,  and  over  hundreds,  and  over  fifties,  and 
over  tens.  But  as  for  such  as  were  building  houses,  or  had  be- 
trothed wives,  or  were  planting  vineyards,  or  were  fearful,  those 
he  commanded  that  they  should  return,  every  man  to  his  own 
house,  according  to  the  law.  So  the  camp  removed,  and  pitched 
upon  the  south  side  of  Emmaus.  And  Judas  said:  "  Arm  your- 
selves, and  be  valiant  men,  and  see  that  ye  be  in  readiness 
against  the  morning,  that  ye  may  fight  with  these  nations,  that 
are  assembled  together  against  us  to  destroy  us  and  our  sanctu- 
ary :  for  it  is  better  for  us  to  die  in  battle,  than  to  behold  the  ca- 
lamities of  our  people  and  our  sanctuary.  Nevertheless,  as  the 
will  of  God  is  in  heaven,  so  let  him  do." 

Then  took  Gorgias  five  thousand  footmen,  and  a  thousand  of 
the  best  horsemen,  and  removed  out  of  the  camp  by  night ;  to 
the  end  he  might  rush  in  upon  the  camp  of  the  Jews,  and  smite 
them  suddenly.  And  the  men  of  the  fortress  were  his  guides. 
Now  w^hen  Judas  heard  thereof,  he  himself  removed,  and  the 
valiant  men  with  him,  that  he  might  smite  the  king's  army 
which  was  at  Emmaus,  while  as  yet  the  forces  were  dispersed 
from  the  camp.  And  Gorgias  came  by  night  into  the  camp  of 
Judas:  and  when  he  found  no  man  there,  he  sought  them  in 
the  mountains  :   for  said  he  :   "  These  fellows  flee  from  us." 

But  as  soon  as  it  was  day,  Judas  shewed  himself  in  the  plain 
with  three  thousand  men,  who  nevertheless  had  neither  armor 
nor  swords  to  their  minds.  ^  And  they  saw  the  camp  of  the 
heathen,  that  it  was  strong  and  well  harnessed,  and  compassed 
round  about  with  horsemen;  and  these  were  expert  of  war. 
Then  said  Judas  to  the  men  that  were  with  him :  "  Fear  ye 
not  their  multitude,  neither  be  ye  afraid  of  their  assault.  Re- 
altar  fire  at  the  temple  the  hair  which  they  had  left  unshorn  during  their  "sepa- 
ration unto  the  Lord." 

1  to  their  minds.  Such  as  they  would  wish. 


504  THE   WAR  FOR   RELIGIOUS   FREEDOM 

member  how  our  fathers  were  delivered  in  the  Ked  Sea,  when 
Pharaoh  pursued  them  with  an  array.  Now  therefore  let  us  cry 
unto  heaven,  if  peradventure  the  Lord  will  have  mercy  upon  us, 
and  remember  the  covenant  of  our  fathers,  and  destroy  this  host 
before  our  face  this  day  :  that  so  all  the  heathen  may  know 
that  there  is  one  who  delivereth  and  saveth  Israel." 

Then  the  strangers  lifted  up  their  eyes,  and  saw  them  com- 
ing over  against  them.  Wherefore  they  went  out  of  the  camp 
to  battle;  but  they  that  were  with  Judas  sounded  their  trum- 
pets. So  they  joined  battle,  and  the  heathen  being  discomfited 
fled  into  the  plain.  Howbeit  all  the  hindmost  of  them  were 
slain  with  the  sword :  for  they  pursued  them  unto  Gazara,^  and 
unto  the  plains  of  Idumsea,  and  Azotus,  and  Jamnia,  so  that 
there  were  slain  of  them  upon  a  three  thousand  men. 

This  done,  Judas  returned  again  with  his  host  from  pursuing 
them,  and  said  to  the  people  :  "  Be  not  greedy  of  the  spoils,  in- 
asmuch as  there  is  a  battle  before  us,  and  Gorgias  and  his  host 
are  here  by  us  in  the  mountain :  but  stand  ye  now  against  our 
enemies,  and  overcome  them,  and  after  this  ye  may  boldly  take 
the  spoils." 

As  Judas  was  yet  speaking  these  words,  there  appeared  a  part 
of  them  looking  out  of  the  mountain  :  who  when  they  perceived 
that  the  Jews  had  put  their  host  to  flight,  and  were  burning  the 
tents  —  for  the  smoke  that  was  seen  declared  what  was  done  — 
when  therefore  they  perceived  these  things,  they  were  sore  afraid, 
and  seeing  also  the  host  of  Judas  in  the  plain  ready  to  fight, 
they  fled  every  one  into  the  land  of  strangers.  Then  Judas  re- 
turned to  spoil  the  tents,  where  they  got  much  gold,  and  silver, 
and  blue  silk,  and  purple  of  the  sea,^  and  great  riches.  After 
this  they  went  home,  and  sung  a  song  of  thanksgiving,  and 
praised  the  Lord  in  heaven  :  "  Because  he  is  good,  because  his 
mercy  endureth  for  ever."  Thus  Israel  had  a  great  deliverance 
that  day. 

But  all  the  strangers  that  had  escaped  came  and  told  Lysias 
what  had  happened :  who,  when  he  heard  thereof,  was  con- 
founded and  discouraged,  because  neither  such  things  as  he 
would  were  done  unto  Israel,  nor  such  things  as  the  king  com- 
manded him  were  come  to  pass. 

1  Gazara.  Gezer.  See  p.  322.    Azotus  was  the  ancient  Ashdod. 

2  purple  of  the  sea.  The  famous  Tyrian  purple  made  from  the  shell-fish,  murex 
trunculns. 


THE   RESTORATION  OF  THE   TEMPLE   SERVICE  505 

The  Great  Victory  over  Lysias  (l  Mac.  iv.  2S-35).  Xow  in 
the  next  year  Lysias  gathered  together  threescore  tliousand 
choice  men  of  foot,  and  five  thousand  horsemen,  that  lie  might 
sulnhie  them.  So  they  came  into  Idiimaea,  and  pitclied  their  tents 
at  Bethsura,  and  Judas  met  them  "with  ten  thousand  men. 

And  when  he  saw  that  mighty  army,  he  prayed  and  said: 
'■'  Blessed  art  thou,  0  Savior  of  Israel,  who  didst  quell  the  vio- 
lence of  the  mighty  man  by  the  hand  of  thy  servant  David,  and 
gavest  the  host  of  strangers  into  the  hands  of  Jonathan  the  son 
of  Saul,  and  his  armor-bearer;  shut  up  this  army  in  the  hand 
of  thy  people  Israel,  and  let  them  be  confounded  in  their  power 
•  and  horsemen :  make  them  to  be  of  no  courage,  and  cause  the 
boldness  of  their  strength  to  fall  away,  and  let  them  quake  at 
their  destruction :  cast  them  down  with  the  sword  of  them  that 
love  thee,  and  let  all  those  that  know  thy  name  praise  thee  with 
thanksgiving.'^  So  they  joined  battle  ;  and  there  were  slain  of 
the  host  of  Lysias  about  five  thousand  men,  even  before  them 
were  they  slain. 

Now  when  Lysias  saw  his  army  put  to  flight,  and  the  manli- 
ness of  Judas's  soldiers,  and  how  they  were  ready  either  to  live 
or  die  valiantly,  he  went  into  Antioch,  and  gathered  together 
hired  soldiers,  and  having  made  his  army  greater  than  it  was, 
he  purposed  to  come  again  into  Judaea. 

The  Restoration  of  the  Temple  Service  (l  Mac.  iv.  36-60). 
Then  said  Judas  and  his  brethren :  "  Behold,  our  enemies  are 
discomfited  :  let  us  go  up  to  cleanse  and  dedicate  the  sanctuary.'' 
Upon  this  all  the  host  assembled  themselves  together,  and  went 
up  into  mount  Sion.  And  when  they  saw  the  sanctuary  deso- 
late, and  the  altar  profaned,  and  the  gates  burned  up,  and  shrubs 
growing  in  the  courts  as  in  a  forest,  or  in  one  of  the  mountains, 
yea,  and  the  priests'  chambers  pulled  down,  they  rent  their 
clothes,  and  made  great  lamentation,  and  cast  ashes  upon  their 
heads,  and  fell  down  flat  to  the  ground  upon  their  faces,  and 
blew  an  alarm  with  the  trumpets,  and  cried  toward  heaven. 

Then  Judas  appointed  certain  men  to  fight  against  those  that 
were  in  the  fortress,^  until  he  had  cleansed  the  sanctuary.  So 
he  chose  priests  of  blameless  conversation,  such  as  had  pleasure 
in  the  law :  who  cleansed  the  sanctuary,  and  bare  out  the  de- 
filed stones  into  an  unclean  place.   And  whenas  they  consulted 

1  the  fortress.  The  Acra  (see  note,  p.  493)  was  still  held  by  a  Syrian  garrison. 


506  THE   WAR  FOR   RELIGIOUS   FREEDOM 

what  to  do  with  the  altar  of  burnt  offerings,  which  was  profaned, 
they  thought  it  best  to  pull  it  down,  lest  it  should  be  a  reproach 
to  them,  because  the  heathen  had  defiled  it :  wherefore  they 
pulled  it  down,  and  laid  up  the  stones  in  the  mountain  of  the 
temple  in  a  convenient  place,  until  there  should  come  a  prophet 
to  shew  what  should  be  done  with  them.  Then  they  took  whole 
stones  ^  according  to  the  law,  and  built  a  new  altar  according  to 
the  former ;  and  made  up  the  sanctuary,  and  the  things  that  were 
within  the  temple,  and  hallowed  the  courts.  They  made  also  new 
holy  vessels,  and  into  the  temple  they  brought  the  candlestick, 
and  the  altar  of  burnt  offerings,  and  of  incense,  and  the  table. 
And  upon  the  altar  they  burned  incense,  and  the  lamps  that  were 
upon  the  candlestick  they  lighted,  that  they  might  give  light  in 
the  temple.  Furthermore  they  set  the  loaves  upon  the  table,  and 
spread  out  the  veils,  and  finished  all  the  works  which  they  had 
begun  to  make. 

Now  on  the  five  and  twentieth  day  of  the  ninth  month, 
which  is  called  the  month  Chislev,  in  the  hundred  forty  and 
eighth  year,  2  they  rose  up  betimes  in  the  morning,  and  offered 
sacrifice  according  to  the  law  upon  the  new  altar  of  burnt  offer- 
ings, which  they  had  made.  Look,  at  what  time  and  what  day 
the  heathen  had  profaned  it,^  even  in  that  was  it  dedicated  with 
songs,  and  harps,  and  lutes,  and  cymbals.  Then  all  the  people 
fell  upon  their  faces,  worshipping  and  praising  the  God  of  heaven, 
who  had  given  them  good  success.  And  so  they  kept  the  dedi- 
cation of  the  altar  eight  days,  and  offered  burnt  offerings  with 
gladness,  and  sacrificed  the  sacrifice  of  deliverance  and  praise. 
They  decked  also  the  forefront  of  the  temple  with  crowns  of 
gold,  and  with  shields ;  and  the  gates  and  the  chambers  they 
renewed,  and  hanged  doors  upon  them.  Thus  was  there  very 
great  gladness  among  the  people,  for  that  the  reproach  of  the 
heathen  was  put  away.  Moreover  Judas  and  his  brethren  with 
the  whole  congregation  of  Israel  ordained,  that  the  days  of  the 

1  irhole  stones.  Stones  unhewn  by  any  iron  tool,  as  was  prescribed  iu  £x. 
XX.  25. 

2  December,  165  b.  c. 

3  The  altar  was  thus  rededicated  exactly  three  years  after  its  desecration.  The 
Feast  of  the  Dedication  was  duly  observed  down  to  the  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem by  the  Romans,  and  has  continued  to  the  present,  chiefly  as  a  festival  of 
lights.  According  to  the  original  arrangement  of  John's  gospel,  it  was  dur- 
ing this  feast  that  Jesus  presented  himself  as  the  Light  of  the  world  (John 
viii.  12). 


THE   RESTORATION   OF  THE   TEMPLE   SERVICE  507 

dedication  of  the  altar  should  be  kept  in  their  season  from  year 
to  year  by  the  space  of  eight  days,  from  the  five  and  twentieth 
day  of  the  month  Chislev,  -with  mirth  and  gladness.  At  that 
time  also  they  builded  up  the  mount  Sion  with  high  walls  and 
strong  towers  round  about,  lest  the  Gentiles  should  come  and 
tread  it  down,  as  they  had  done  before. 


Comfort  ye,  comfort  te  my  people,  saith  your  God. 
Speak  ye  comfortably  to  Jerusalem,  and  cry  unto  her, 
that  her  warfare  is  accomplished,  that  her  iniquity 
IS  pardoned:  for  she  hath  received  of  the  Lord's  hand 

DOUBLE    for   all   HER   SINS. 

The  VOICE  of  him  that  crieth  in  the  wilderness:  "  Pre- 
pare YE  THE  WAY  OF  THE  LORD,  MAKE  STRAIGHT  IN  THE 
desert  a  HIGHWAY  FOR  OUR  GoD."  EVERY  VALLEY  SHALL 
BE  EXALTED,  AND  EVERY  MOUNTAIN  AND  HILL  SHALL  BE  MADE 
low:  AND  THE  CROOKED  SHALL  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. 


INDEX  TO  SPECIAL  NOTES 


Adar,  481. 
Ahasuerus,  477. 
Almug,  323. 
Amalek,  120. 
Amarna  letters,  122. 
Amos,  376. 
Amraphel,  20. 
Angel  of  the  Lord,  83. 
Antiochus  IV,  491,  492. 
Apollonius,  493,  500. 
Arabah,  426. 
Artaxerxes  I,  443. 
Asherah,  109,  169. 
Ashtart,  167. 

Baal,  167. 

Bdellium,  4. 

Beer-sheba,  18. 

Belial,  203. 

Belshazzar,  474. 

Birthright,  38. 

Blessing,  13. 

Blood-eating,  235. 

Book  of  Jasher,  159. 

Book  of  the  Law,  409. 

Book  of  the  "Wars  of  the  Lord, 

131. 
-bosheth,  265. 
Brazen  serpent,  130. 
Bui,  319. 

Calves  of  gold,  331. 
Canaan,  122. 
Carites,  390. 
Carmel,  340. 
Castanet,  273. 
Chaldeans,  462. 
Chemosh,  132. 
Cherethites,  191,  276. 
Cherubim,  7. 
Chisleu,  442,  457. 
Chittim.  49L 
Circumcision,  86. 
City  of  David,  272,  493. 
Consecration  for  war,  247. 
Covenant,  23. 
Creation  Epic,  3. 
Cubit,  9. 
Cyrus,  437,  474. 

Dagon,  198. 

Darius,  440,  466,  474. 


Deportation,  378. 
Devoted,  151. 

Eden,  4. 

Elephantine,  434,  445. 

Elul,  449. 

Emerods,  219. 

Enoch,  8. 

En-rogel,  306. 

Entering  in  of  Hamath,  169. 

Ephah,  177. 

Ephod,  214. 

Esar-haddon,  407,  439. 

Ethbaal,  337. 

Feast  of  Booths,  331, 
Feast  of  the  Dedication,  506. 
Firmament,  1. 
Flood,  12. 

Gezer,  322. 
Giant,  the,  271. 
Gihon,  307,  401. 
Goshen,  74. 

Hammurabi,  20,  23. 
Harp,  273. 
Hasideans,  497. 
Hasmonicans,  495. 
He-goats,  382. 
High  place,  223. 
Homer,  118. 
Hophra,  422. 
Horeb,  102. 
Hormah,  165. 
Hosea,  376. 
Hydromancy,  70. 

I  AM,  84. 

Jehonadab, 371. 
Jehovah,  84. 
Jericho,  145. 
Jerusalem,  22. 
Judges,  108. 

Levite,  199. 
Lign-aloe,  138. 

INfaccabfeus,  495, 
Magician,  62. 
Mandrakes,  46. 


510 


INDEX   TO   SPECIAL  NOTES 


Mazzebab,  183,  223,  319. 
Measure,  365. 
Merneptah,  87. 
Merodach-baladan,  402. 
Milcom,  283. 
Millo,  272. 
Moabite  stone,  361. 
Molech,  380. 

Nabonidus.  437,  474. 
Nazarite,  191,  502. 
Nebuchadrezzar,  419. 
Necho  II,  413. 
Nergal,  380. 
New  Moon,  244.. 
Nisan,  481. 

Omens  from  trees,  271. 
Omer,  116. 
Omri,  337. 
On,  64,  432. 

Pelethites,  276. 
Pharaoh,  59,  64,  80,  87. 
Philistines,  191. 
Pillar,  43,  183,  223,  319. 
Pillar  of  salt,  29. 
Prophets,  227. 
Psaltery,  273. 
Pul,  377. 
Purim,  489. 

Queen  of  Heaven,  433. 

Rabsaris,  404. 
Rabshakeh,  404. 
Ramman-nirari  III,  374. 
Ramses  II,  80. 
Recorder,  276. 
Reins,  496. 
Resident,  230. 
Rimmon,  360. 


Sadika  marriage,  193. 

Salem,  22. 

Salt  sea,  20. 

Samaria,  336. 

Samaritans,  381. 

Sargon,  379. 

Satyrs,  411. 

Sennacherib,  403,  404,  406. 

Seraphim,  396. 

Shalmaneser  II,  348,  367,  372. 

Shalmaneser  IV,  378. 

Shekel,  281,  291. 

Shew  bread,  247. 

Shinar,  14. 

Shishak,  382. 

Shushan,  443,  477. 

Sinai,  102. 

Siyan,  486. 

So,  378. 

Sodomites,  382. 

Sons  of  the  prophets,  348. 

Sun-worship,  407,  412. 

Tabret,  273. 
Tarshish,  459. 
Tartan,  404. 
Teraphim,  49. 
Tiglath-pileser  III,  377. 
Timbrel,  273. 
Tirhakah,  406. 
Treasure  cities,  80. 

Urim  and  Thummim,  141. 

Vale  of  Siddim,  20. 

Wild  ox,  137. 
Winepress,  176. 

Zakar,  373. 
Zion,  272. 
Ziv.  319. 


CAMBRIDGE  .  MASSACHUSETTS 
U    .    S    .    A 


Date  Due 

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