This little work is not a Bible History. It is what its name imports-An Outline of Bible History. For a more complete exhibit of the most wondrous of all histories, the reader is referred to the many larger works which enrich our libraries; and above all, to the Bible itself.
Yet this work aims to be more than a bare analysis. Minor events are omitted, that important ones may stand out in bold relief. Lesser characters are silent, that great characters may speak. The aim has been so to select and coordinate the events as to make the story real and vivid, as well as clear and connected. It is not meant to displace the Bible. On the contrary, it is so written that the text of Scripture needs to be continually consulted, while frequent reference will need to be made to the maps in the appendix.
The work was originally prepared as notes of lectures to advanced Preparatory students in Hiram College. In rewriting for publication, the original purpose has not been lost sight of, while the larger world of busy Bible students in the Sunday-school and the home has been held continually in view. It is believed that the work may also prove of service to Sunday-school Normal Classes, and to Y. M. C. A. and Y. W. C. A. workers.
iii
iv AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
In an elementary work, questions of criticism would be clearly out of place. Familiarity with the Bible facts must precede critical consideration.
That to many earnest students Of the Word this little volume may serve as an incentive and a stepping stone to larger study of the world's one great Book, is my sincere prayer and hope. B. S. DEAN. HIRAM COLLEGE, OHIO, October, 1912.
INTRODUCTION.
Why study Bible History? Object of Bible History-Ages of Bible History-Periods of Old Testament History.1
CHAPTER I.-ANTEDILUVIAN PERIOD.
The Book of Genesis-Genesis of the Universe-Genesis of Order-Genesis of Sin-Echoes of Creation and the Fall-Genesis of Sacrifice-Line of Cain-Line of Seth-The Apostasy and Deluge 7
CHAPTER II.-POSTDILUVIAN PERIOD.
The Second Beginning-Genesis of the Nations-Tower of Babel and Confusion of Tongues-Generations of Shem and Genesis of the Hebrews 17
CHAPTER III.-PATRIARCHAL PERIOD.
Introductory: Mission of the Hebrews. I. Life of Abraham.-I. The Wanderings: Early Home at Ur-The Call and Covenant-Migration to Haran-Death of Terah-Migrat'on to Canaan-Wanderings in Canaan-Separation from Lot. 2. Settled Life at Hebron: Chaldean Invasion-Marriage with Hagar and Birth of Ishmael-Circumcision-Destruction of Sodom-Rescue of Lot and Origin of Moab and Ammon-Birth and Offer-
vi AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
ing of Isaac-Death of Sarah. II. Life and Character of Isaac.-Characteristics-Overshadowed by Abraham and Jacob-Marries Rebekah-Twin Sons, Esau and Jacob. III. History of Jacob.-i. Jacob the Supplanter: The Extorted Birthright-The Stolen Blessing-Flight to Haran, and Vision and Vow at Bethel-Marries Leah and Rachel-Return to Canaan-Approach of Esau-Jacob's Night at Peniel. 2. Israel the Prince: Peaceful Meeting with Esau-Pilgrimage to Bethel-Birth of Benjamin and Death of Rachel-Return to Hebron-Family Troubles-Joseph Sold-Last Days in Egypt. IV. History of Joseph.-I. His Youth in Canaan: His Father's Favoritism-His Brothers' Hatred-Sold into Egypt. 2. His Manhood in Egypt: Slave Life-Prison Life-Courtier Life-The Famine-Visit of His Brothers-Joseph's Forgiveness-Integrity of Character-Compared with Abraham. V. The Book of Job.-Patriarchal Drapery-Prose Prologue and Epilogue-Body of Book, Poetic-Problem of Book-Purpose of Book. Note: Characteristics of Patriarchal Age.-I. Nomadic. 2. Patriarchal. 3. Conceptions of God. 4. Forms of Worship. 5. Civilization. 6. Creative Power of the Covenant 19
CHAPTER IV.-THE PERIOD OF BONDAGE.
I. Egypt at the Period of Bondage.-I. The Old Empire: The Pyramids. 2. The Middle Empire: The Hyksos-The Hebrews Enter Egypt. 3. The New Empire: Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties. II. The Oppression.-The "New King"-Edicts of Rameses II. III. Birth and Mission of Moses.-I. Forty Years in Egypt: Birth-Education-Choice. 2. Forty Years in Midian: Marriage-The Burning Bush-Commission. IV. The Great Contest.-I. Nature of the Contest: Ten Plagues-Aimed at Idolatry. 2. Need of the Con-test: Power and Culture Against Truth. 3. End of the Contest: Death of First Born-Passage of Red Sea. V. Effects of the Sojourn in Egypt.-Made Israel a Nation-Civilized Them-Confirmed National Faith 33
CONTENTS vii
CHAPTER V. PERIOD OF WANDERINGS.
I. From the Red Sea to Sinai.-I. Song of Deliverance. 2. March to Rephidim: Marah-Manna. 3. The Encampment at Rephidim: The Smitten Rock-Attack of Amalek-Jethro's Visit. II. The Year at Sinai.-I. The National Covenant: Proposed by God, Accepted by the Nation-The Decalogue. 2. The National Priest-hood. 3. The National Festivals: Passover-Feast of Weeks-Feast of Tabernacles. 4. The National Sanctuary: Tabernacle-Divisions-Furniture. 5. The National Sacrifices: Burnt, Peace, Sin Offerings. The National Apostasy: The Golden Calf-Tables of Stone Broken and Renewed. III. From Sinai to Kadesh.-I. The Census. 2. The March to Kadesh: Taberah-Sedition of Aaron and Miriam. 3. The Break-down of Faith: Mission of the Spies-Thirty-eight Years' Wanderings-Rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. IV. From Kadesh to the Jordan.-Second Time at Kadesh-Second Smiting of the Rock-Death of Miriam-Detour Around Edom-Death of Aaron-The Brazen Serpent-Defeat of Sihon and Og-Settlement of Country East of Jordan-Balaam-Farewell and Death of Moses 41
CHAPTER VI. PERIOD OF CONQUEST.
I. Passage of the Jordan.-I. The New Leader: Joshua. 2. Jordan Divided. 3. Encampment at Gilgal: Circumcision Renewed-Passover Kept-Manna Ceases. II. Capture of Jericho.-Mission of Spies-Rahab-Commission of Joshua-Fall of Jericho. III. Conquest of Central Canaan.-I. Capture of Ai: Defeat-Achan-Victory. 2. The Assembly at Shechem: Historical Associations-Ebal and Gerizim. IV. Confederacy and Conquest of the South.-I. League with Gibeonites: Their Deception. 2. Battle of Beth-horon: League of Southern Cities-Gibeon Attacked-The "Long Day." V. Confederacy and Conquest of the North.-Jabin's League-Defeated at Merom-Incompleteness of the Conquest-Consequences. VI. Division of the Land and Death of Joshua.-I. Division of the Land: Method
viii AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
of Allotment-Portion of Levi-Cities of Refuge. 2. Death of Joshua: Assembly at Shechem-Covenant Renewed-Joshua's Farewell-Death 49
CHAPTER VII PERIOD OF JUDGES.
I. Religious State.-I. Series of Relapses into Idolatry: Causes-Idolatrous Ancestry-Egyptian Bondage-Contamination of Canaanites. 2. Series of Subsequent Oppressions. 3. Series of Deliverers Called Judges. II. Political State.-Little Unity, Yet Held Together by a Common Ancestry, Common Language, Common Religion. III. Six Principal Invasions.-I. Mesopotamian: Caleb. 2. Moabite: Eglon-Ehud. 3. Canaanite: Jabin-Barak-Deborah-Jael and Sisera. 4. Midianite: Gideon. 5. Ammonite: Jephthah. 6. Philistines: Sam-son. IV. The Story of Ruth.-The Famine-The Migration to Moab-Three Widows-R e t u r n-Ruth's Choice-Boaz. V. Samuel the Prophet-Judge.-Hannah-Eli-Eli's Sons-Call of Samuel-Battle of Aphek. Samuel's Work: Reforms-Victories-Schools of Prophets-Introduces Monarchy 54
CHAPTER VIII.-THE UNITED KINGDOM.
I. The Theocracy.-I. Original Form. 2. Transition to Monarchy: People's Petition-Reasons. II. Reign of Saul.-I. Saul's Election: Private Anointing-Public Election-Defeat of Ammonites-Coronation at Gilgal. 2. Saul's Reign till His Rejection: War of Independence-Other Wars-Crusade Against Amalek-Rejection. 3. Decline of Saul and Rise of David.-Insane Jealousy-Pursuit of David-Battle of Gilboa. 4. Characteristics. III. Life and Reign of David.-Place in History. t. Epoch I.-Shepherd Life: Birth-place and Family-Occupation-Private Anointing-Minstrel to Saul-Battle with Goliath. 2. Epoch II.-Life at Saul's Court: Saul's Jealousy-Jonathan's Friendship. 3. Epoch III.-Outlaw Life: In Wilderness of Judah-Among Philistines-A Dilemma-Gilboa. 4. Epoch IV.-King Over Judah: Civil War-Magnanimity-Capital, Hebron-Ishbosheth-Abner-Joab. 5. Epoch V. King Over All Israel: a.
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Period of Increasing Prosperity and Power-Capital, Jerusalem-Conquests-Alliances-Extent of Empire. b. Period of Decline-Bathsheba-Domestic Troubles Absalom-Joab-Adonijah-Coronation of Solomon. 6. Characteristics of His Reign: Military-Internal Improvement-Literature-Religion-R o y a 1 Model. IV. Reign and Character of Solomon.-I. Accession and Dominions: Treason and Death of Adonijah and Joab. 2. His Wise Choice: Wisdom-Illustrations of-Proverbs-Songs-Queen of Sheba. 3. Solomon's Temple: David's Preparations-Alliance with Hiram-Its Supreme Distinction. 4. Other Buildings: Palaces-Cities-Augustan Age. 5. Solomon's Commerce: Tarshish-Egypt-Judah. 6. Solomon's Apostasy: Violations of Law of the King, and of Law of Theocracy-Elements of National Weakness. V. Rise of the Prophets.-Gap Between Moses and Samuel-Prophet the Counter-part of the King-Prophets of the Period: Samuel-David-Gad-Nathan-Abijah. VI. Literature of the Period.-Earlier Literature-Snatches of Poetry-Historical Books-Lost Books-Writings of David and Solomon 62
CHAPTER IX.-THE NORTHERN KINGDOM.
I. Introductory-The Two Kingdoms.-Origin of the Schism: Its Roots-Ephraim-Accession and Policy of Rehoboam-Jeroboam and the Revolt. 2. The Two Kingdoms Compared: Territory and Population-Religion-Elements of Stability. II. The Four Periods.-I. Idolatry Taking Root: Jeroboam-Calf-worship-New Priesthood and Feasts-Nadab-Baasha, Elah. Zimri-Period of Hostility Toward Judah. 2. Idolatry Triumphant: Omri and the New Capital-Ahab, Jezebel, Baal Worship-Era of Elijah-Intermarriage with Judah-Ahaziah-Jehoram. 3. Idolatry Checked: Elisha-Jehu-Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam Il-Indian Summer of Israel-Zachariah-Jonah and Hosea. 4. Idolatry Ending in Ruin: Shallum-Pekahiah-Pekah-Hoshea-Assyrian Supremacy-Capture of Samaria-End of Northern Kingdom-Origin of Samaritans 78
x AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
CHAPTER X.-THE SOUTHERN KINGDOM.
Introductory: National Hopes Center in Line of David and Kingdom of Judah. I. First Decline and Revival.-I. Decline Under Rehoboam and Ahijah: Religion-Hostile Relations to Israel-Invasion of Shishak. 2. Revival Under Asa and Jehoshaphat: Religious Reforms-Invasion of Zerah-Marriage Alliance with House of Ahab. II. Second Decline and Revival.-I. The Decline: Jehoram and Athaliah-Joash and Reaction-Amaziah-Uzziah-Jotham-Ahaz and Apostasy. 2. Revival Under Hezekiah: Isaiah and Reform-Invasion of Sennacherib. III. Third Decline and Revival.-I. De-cline Under Manasseh and Amon: Worst Idolatries-Martyrdom of Isaiah. 2. Revival Under Josiah: Temple Repairs-Law Found-Influence of Jeremiah and Huldah-Battle of Megiddo and Death of Josiah. IV. Final Decline and Captivity.-I. Moral Decay: Select Circle-Testimony of Isaiah. 2. Succession of Captivities: First Captivity, Daniel and Others-Second Captivity, Jehoiachin, Ezekiel, Ten Thousand-Third Captivity, Zedekiah-Destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar 85
CHAPTER XI.-PERIOD OF EXILE.
Review and Summary: Prophecies of Captivity. I. Jeremiah and the Egyptian Exiles: Remnant in Judea-Gedaliah Murdered-Johanan Leads Remnant to Egypt-Jeremiah's Last Prophecies. 2. Daniel and the First Babylonian Captivity: Stand Against Luxury-Nebuchadnezzar's Dream-The Three Men in the Fire-Daniel's Visions-Daniel in the Den of Lions. 3. Ezekiel and the Second Babylonian Captivity: Ezekiel's Visions at Chebar-Jeremiah's Letter 94
CHAPTER XII.-POST-EXILE PERIOD.
Introductory: Prophecies of Return. I. Return Under Zerubbabel: Daniel's Prayer-Cyrus' Decree-Fifty Thou-sand Pilgrims-Temple Rebuilt-Trouble with Samaritans. 2. Story of Queen Esther: Ahasuerus and Vashti
CONTENTS xi
-Mordecai and Esther-Plot of Haman-Petition of Esther. 3. Return and Reforms Under Ezra: Leads Seven Thousand Back-Reforms-Canon of Scripture-Synagogues. 4. The Return Under Nehemiah: Rebuilds Walls-Reforms Abuses. 5. Last Prophet, and Close of O. T. Canon. 6. The Pause in Sacred History 98
CHAPTER XIII. INTERVAL BETWEEN THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS.
I. Historical Chasm.-Sources of Information: Greece-Rome-Silence of Prophets-The Apocrypha-Writings of Josephus. II. Political Period.-I. Persian Period: Mild Rule-Troubles with Samaritans-Temple on Gerizim. 2. Macedonian Period: Alexander-Jewish Colony at Alexandria. 3. Egyptian Period: Under the Ptolemies-The Septuagint. 4. Syrian Period: Antiochus Epiphanes-Rise of Maccabees-Patriots-Martyrs. 5. Maccabean Period: War of Independence-Asmonean Kingdom. 6. Roman Period: Civil Strife-Appeals to Rome-Pompey the Great Conquers Palestine-The Herodian Family-Rebuilding of the Temple. III. Changes in Life and Customs.-I. Occupation: Trade. 2. Language: Hebrew Dead Language. 3. Religion: Idolatry Disappears-Rise of Synagogue-Rise of Jewish Sects 102
INTRODUCTION.
I. The Land and the People: Changes in Names-New Cur-rents of Life-New Language. 2. The Five Divisions of Palestine: Galilee-Judea-Samaria-Baashan District-Perea. 3. Rulers of Palestine: a. Roman Emperors: Augustus, Tiberius, Claudius, Nero, Vespasian. b. Local Rulers: Herod the Great-Tetrarchs: Archelaus, Antipas, Philip, Lysanias-Pilate-Herod Agrippa I.-Herod Agrippa II 110
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GOSPEL HISTORY; OR, THE PERSONAL MISSION OF JESUS CHRIST.
Introduction.-I. Christ the Central Figure in Bible History: Converging Lines-Old Testament Prophecy-New Testament Ordinances. 2. Christ the Key to the World's History: Providential Preparations-Continuance and Fall of Rome. 3. Sources of History: The Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John 114
CHAPTER I.-THE BIRTH AND INFANCY.
I. The Series of Visions: Vision of Zacharias-of Mary--of Joseph. 2. The Manger-cradle at Bethlehem. 3. The Angel Song. 4. The Group in the Temple: Simeon-Anna. 5. Visit of the Wise Men. 6. The Edict of Herod, and Flight to Egypt: Herod's Jealousy-Edict-Death-Archelaus-Joseph Returns to Nazareth 117
CHAPTER II.-PERIOD OF PREPARATION.
I. The Silent Years at Nazareth.-I. Self-restraint of the Gospels. 2. Educational Influences: Occupation-Languages-Synagogue. 3. Visit to Jerusalem: Twelfth Year-First Recorded Words. 3. Lessons of the Silent Years. II. The Ministry of the Baptist.-I. Revival of Prophecy: John's Preparation. 2. Power of His Ministry: Short-No Miracle-Reality. 3. The Kingdom at Hand. 4. The Baptism of Jesus: Significance to John-to Jesus. 5. The Temptation: Through Plans for Do-minion 121
CHAPTER III.-THE PERIOD OF OBSCURITY.
I. The Early Galilean Ministry.-I. The First Disciples: John's Testimony-Andrew-John-Peter-Philip-Nathanael. 2. The First Miracle: The Marriage at Cana. 3. Conclusion of the Galilean Ministry: Visit to Capernaum-Return to Jerusalem. II. The Early Judean Ministry.-I. Characteristics: More Public-at Capital. 2. Cleansing of Temple. 3. Conversation with Nicodemus. 4. The Country Ministry: Driven from Capital
CONTENTS xiii
-Fruitful-Jealousy of John's Disciples-John's Last Tribute. 5. Close of Early Judean Ministry. 6. The Woman of Samaria 127
CHAPTER IV.-THE GREAT GALILEAN MINISTRY.
Introductory: Time and Place. Characteristics: (I) Activity. (2) Popularity. (3) Growing Hostility of Pharisees. (4) Loss of Popularity. I. First, or Preparatory, Stage.-Rejection at Nazareth-Capernaum Chosen-Miraculous Draught of Fishes and Second Call of Disciples. II. Second Stage.-To Appointment of Apostles and Sermon on the Mount: A Memorable Sabbath at Capernaum-A Great Tour in Galilee-Healing of a Paralytic-Beginning of Opposition-Call and Feast of Levi-Jairus' Daughter-The Parenthetical Miracle-The Second Passover-Further Sabbath Criticism-The Twelve and the Sermon on the Mount. III. Third Stage.-To the Adoption of Parable Teaching: i. Continued Labors: Centurion's Servant-Widow's Son. 2. Jesus' Testimony to John. 3. Adoption of Parable Teaching: Key, Hostility of Scribes. IV. Fourth Stage.-To the Sermon on the Bread of Life: I. Tempest Stilled, and the Gadarene Demoniac. 2. First Mission of the Twelve: Preparatory-Limited. 3. Death of the Baptist: Herod Antipas and Herodias-Imprisonment-Death. 4. Feeding of the Five Thousand: Movement to Make Him King-Walking on the Sea-Sermon at Capernaum on Bread of Life-Loss of Disciples. V. Fifth Stage.-To Final Departure from Galilee at Feast of Tabernacles: i. Length: Six Months. 2. New Aspects: Wandering-Seclusion-Private Instruction of Twelve. 3. Visit to Phoenicia: Syro-Phcenician Woman. 4. Visit to Caesarea Philippi: The Great Confession. 5. The Transfiguration: Significance-to Jesus-to Disciples. 6. Close of the Galilean Ministry...132
CHAPTER V. CLOSING MINISTRY IN ALL PARTS OF PALESTINE-FROM FEAST OF TABERNACLES TO ARRIVAL AT BETHANY.
I. At Jerusalem-Feast of Tabernacles: Private Entrance-Man Born Blind-The Good Shepherd. 2. In Country
xiv AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
Districts: Repeated Lessons-Good Samaritan-Mission of Seventy. 3. In Jerusalem-Feast of Dedication: At-tempts to Kill Him-Retirement to Perea. At Bethany-Raising of Lazarus: Death of Lazarus-Jesus Goes to Jerusalem-The Miracle-Decree of Council-Second Retirement to Perea. 5. The Perean Ministry: New Field-Scene of John's Ministry-New Popularity-No Miracles-Second Group of Parables-Last Journey to Jerusalem-Jericho-Zacchaeus 145
CHAPTER VI.-THE LAST WEEK OF JESUS' MINISTRY.
I. The Anointing at Bethany. 2. Sunday: The Triumphal Entry. 3. Monday: The Barren Fig Tree-The Second Cleaning of the Temple. 4. Tuesday-The Day of Questions: Question of Authority-of Tribute-of the Resurrection-The Great Commandment-The Christ-The Great Denunciation-Christ's Second Coming-Judgment Scene-Judas' Bargain. 5. Wednesday: The Calm Be-fore the Storm. Thursday: The Last Supper-Conversations-Prayer for Disciples. 7. Gethsemane 149
CHAPTER VII.-THE LAST DAY.
Introductory: Fullness of the Records. 1. The Betrayal. 2. The Trials: a. The Jewish, or Ecclesiastical, Trial: (I) Before Annas; (2) Before Caiphas; (3) Before the Sanhedrin-Peter's Denials-Judas' Suicide. b. The Roman, or Civil Trial: (I) Before Pilate; (2) Before Herod; (3) Before Pilate-Sentence-The Crown of Thorns. 3. The Crucifixion: Hour and Place-On the Way-At the Cross-The Seven Sayings-End of the Old Covenant. 4. The Burial: Joseph-Nicodemus-The Seal and Guard 156
CHAPTER VIII.-THE FORTY DAYS.
I. The Resurrection: Predicted by Prophets-By Jesus-Not Expected by Disciples-Three Essential Miracles-The Empty Sepulchre. 2. The Appearance of Jesus: To Mary-To Other Women-To Peter-To Two Disciples-To Apostles Except Thomas-To All the Apostles-To Seven Disciples-To Five Hundred-To James-To Apostles at Olivet. 3. The Last Commission: Previous
CONTENTS xv
Missions Preparatory and Restricted-Restrictions Re-moved. 4. The Ascension: New Light-Waiting for the Spirit 164
APOSTOLIC HISTORY; OR, THE FOUNDING AND EXTENSION OF THE CHURCH.
Introduction.-I. Sources of Apostolic History: a. The Book of Acts. b. Historical Allusions in the Epistles. c. The Book of Revelation. 2. Relations to the Gospel History. 3. Periods of Apostolic History: (I) Founding and Growth of the Church in Jerusalem. (2) Extension of Church Throughout Judea and Samaria, and Transition to the Gentiles. (3) Paul's Missionary Tours Among the Gentiles. (4) Paul's Four Years' Imprisonment 168
CHAPTER I.-THE FOUNDING AND GROWTH OF THE CHURCH IN JERUSALEM.
I. Founding of the Church.-I. The Nucleus of the Church; The Eight Days of Waiting: The One Hundred and Twenty-Election of Matthias. 2. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit: Time and Accompaniments-Effects on Disciples-Evidential Value-Effects on the Multitude. 3. Peter's Sermon; Results: The Argument-The Question and Answer-Birthday of the Church. II. Growth of the Church in Jerusalem.-I. First Jewish Persecution: Lame Man Healed-Peter's Sermon-Imprisonment of Peter and John. 2. Dangers from Within: Ananias and Sapphira. 3. Second Jewish Persecution: All the Apostles Imprisoned-Opposition of Sadducees-Counsel of Gamaliel. 4. First Division of Labor: "Hellenists" and "Hebrews"-The Seven. 5. The First Christian Martyr: Stephen-Pharisees Became Hostile-Stephen's Defense and Death 170
CHAPTER II. EXTENSION OF CHURCH THROUGH- OUT JUDEA AND SAMARIA, AND TRANSITION TO GENTILES.
1. Extension to Samaria: Diverging Lines-Effect of Persecution-Philip in Samaria-Sorcerer-Simon. 2. Con-
xvi AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
version of the Eunuch. 3. Conversion and Early Labors of Saul: Saul Leader of Third Persecution-Goes to Damascus-Jesus Appears-Baptized by Ananias-Preaches at Damascus-Goes to Arabia-Return to Damascus-Persecuted-Goes to Jerusalem-Introduced by Barnabas-Persecuted-Goes to Tarsus. 4. Transition to Gentiles: a. Through Peter: Conversion of Cornelius-Gulf to be Bridged-Preparation of Cornelius-Preparation of Peter-The Case Defended. b. Through the Hellenists-Antioch-New Center-New Leader-New Name. 5. Fourth Jewish Persecution: Herod Agrippa I.-Beheads James-Imprisons Peter-Peter's Escape-Herod's Death 175
CHAPTER III.-PAUL'S MISSIONARY TOUR AMONG THE GENTILES.
I. The First Tour.-I. The Missionary Impulse: At Antioch-From the Holy Spirit-Barnabas and Saul. 2. The Visit to Cyprus: Salamis-John Mark-Paphos-Bar-Jesus-Sergius Paulus. 3. Tour in Asia Minor: Mark's Return-Antioch-Paul's Sermon-Iconium-Lystra-Paul Stoned-Derbe-Return to Antioch. II. The Second Tour.-I. The Internal; The Council at Jerusalem: Question of Gentile Circumcision. 2. Quarrel Between Paul and Barnabas. 3. Second Visit to Asia Minor: Paul Joined by Timothy-Larger Plans of Paul and for Paul-Vision at Troas. 4. The Gospel Planted in Europe: Philippi-Lydia-The Jailer. 5. From Philippi to Athens: Thessalonica-Berea. 6. Paul at Athens: Splendid Idolatries-Philosophers-Paul's Sermon on Mars' Hill-Contrast with One at Antioch-Dionysius and Damaris. 7. Paul's Long Sojourn at Corinth: Poverty and Depression-Aquila and Priscilla-Arrival of Timothy-Fruitful Ministry-Epistles to the Thessalonians. 8. Return to Antioch: Touches at Ephesus. III. The Third Tour.-I. Paul's Three Years at Ephesus: Through Galatia to Ephesus-Apollos-Twelve Disciples of John-School of Tyrannus-Mob of Silversmiths-First Epistle to Corinthians. 2. Second Tour in Macedonia and Achaia: Second Epistle to Corinthians-
CONTENTS xvii
Three Months at Corinth-Epistles to Romans and Galatians. 3. The Collection. 4. The Return Voyage: Through Macedonia-Old Friends and New-A Lord's Day at Troas-The Interview at Miletus-Tyre-Ptolemais-Caesarea. 5. Paul's Reception at Jerusalem: Prejudice-Advice of James-Mobbed in the Temple....181
CHAPTER IV. PAUL'S FOUR YEARS' IMPRISONMENT.
I. His Imprisonment at Jerusalem.-I. Address to the Mob. 2. Address Before the Sanhedrin: Pharisees vs. Sadducees. II. His Imprisonment at Caesarea.-I. His Defense Before Felix: Tertullus. 2. Sermons Be-fore Felix: Drusilla. 3. His Defense Before Festus: Appeal to Cesar. 4. Address Before Agrippa: A Courtly Audience. III. The Voyage to Rome.-I. The Ship and the Company: Luke-Aristarchus-Julius. 2. The Run to Myra: Sidon-Myra-Change of Ships. 3. The Great Storm: Cnidus-Crete-Fair Havens-The Wreck. 4. The Winter at Melita. 5. Completion of the Voyage: Syracuse-Rhegium-Friends from Rome. IV. The Two Years' Imprisonment at Rome.-Paul's Interview with the Jews. 2. Paul's Epistles from Rome: a. Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon. b. Philippians. c. Epistle to the Hebrews. 3. Paul's Evangelistic Labors at Rome: The Praetorian Guard-Co-workers 191
CHAPTER V.-LATER APOSTOLIC HISTORY.
I. Paul's Later History.-I, His Release; Subsequent History: Visits Ephesus, Crete, Macedonia, Greece-First Epistle to Timothy-Epistle to Titus. 2. His Last Imprisonment and Martyrdom: Severity of Imprisonment-Desertion of Friends-Second Epistle to Timothy. II. Later History of Other Apostles.-I. Last Glimpse of Peter: Last Reference in Acts-In Epistles-His Two Epistles-Martyrdom at Rome. 2. Later Life of John: Last Notice in Acts-His Gospel-Epistles-Revelation in Patmos-Last Years at Ephesus. 3. The Other Apostles; Conclusion: Epistles of James and Jude-Contrast Between Gospel History and Apostolic History 198
PAGE
Distribution of the Descendants of Noah 17
Canaan in Patriarchal Times 19
Ancient Egypt 29
Sinai and Route of the Israelites 37
Canaan as Divided among the Twelve Tribes 45
Kingdoms of David and Solomon 65
Lands of the Jewish Captivities 75
Palestine in the Time of Christ 105
Journeys of St. Paul 135
Modern Palestine 154
Environs of Jerusalem 179
Modern Jerusalem 181
I. WHY STUDY BIBLE HISTORY?
The question is a proper One. The minister is expected to study the Bible. It is his business to know it himself, and to teach it to others. All Christian people are supposed to read their Bibles as a means of private and personal edification. But why make a systematic course in Bible history part of a college curriculum?
1. Because the Bible is so Widely Known.-Its stories are read or repeated in every home in Christendom. It holds the supreme place in the church, and an honored place in the lodge, the legislative hall, and in courts of justice. It is interwoven with our greatest modern literatures, and translated into three hundred languages and dialects. Directly and indirectly it creates tenfold more books than any other book in the world. Such a book, so widely known, and so creative, ought to be included in any scheme of liberal culture.
2. Because It is so Little Known.-Men read about the Bible more than they read the Bible itself. They read it more than they study it. Their knowledge of it is superficial and scrappy. They have no clear connected view of it. The student learns to outline the history of Egypt and Persia, of Greece and Rome. How many college graduates could give an intelligent account of
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2 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
Abraham or Moses or David, or even state a dozen facts in order in the life of Jesus or Paul?
3. Because the Plan of the Bible is Historical.-It is not logical nor scientific. Redemption is historically unfolded in its pages; it should be historically studied. One may doubtless get good out of a verse, a fact, a character of the Bible, severed from its historical setting; how much more when restored to its connections! Imagine a masterpiece of art cut into fragments and submitted piecemeal for our admiration; here a shrub, there a rock, and in another fragment a patch of blue sky or a placid pool that mirrors it back! Each, no doubt, has a merit of its own, yet not so do men study the sublime creations of art; not so should they study the sublimer revelations of the Spirit. In themselves, Magna Charta, Luther's Theses, or the character of Abraham Lincoln, are doubtless worthy of diligent study; seen in the perspective of history, they are of surpassing interest. If you would know Abraham or Moses or David or Paul, if you would comprehend the Abrahamic covenant, the scenes on Sinai and on Calvary, or the sermon on Pentecost, you must know them as parts of a sublime whole. The Bible should be historically studied.
4. To Realize Its Unity.-The Bible is not one book; it is many books. Its forty authors were separated by vast stretches of distance and many centuries of time. They were of every grade of culture, from herdsmen and fishermen to royal poets and disciplined scholars. The range in kind of composition is equally great; history, law, poetry, epic and lyric, proverb, prophecy, parable, oration, epistle, sermon, all find place in these wonderful pages. Moreover, these forty authors wrought largely unconscious of one another's work. And yet it
INTRODUCTION 3
is one book. With real, though unconscious, unity of spirit and purpose the forty authors wrought. The unbroken thread of divine purpose, the scarlet thread of human redemption by divine sacrifice, runs through the sixty-six booklets, binding them into one. Little by little, age after age, that purpose unfolds; "first the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear." Christ is the point of view in the picture. On his head fall the converging lines, whether running forward from the Paradise lost, or backward from Paradise regained. Christ is the key; without him all is chaos; with him all is kosmos, beauty, order, unity.
5. As a Book of Human History.-No one can lay claim to broad culture who is ignorant of the history of his own kind. The sublimest lessons of personal hero-ism or folly, the rich literatures of all times, lie imbedded in history. The Bible traces with remarkable fullness the origin and fortunes of one of earth's most remark-able races, the Hebrews. The thread of their history is interwoven with the fortunes of every great nation of antiquity. Thus Chaldea, Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, Macedonia and Rome all are touched in turn.
6. To Preserve One's Faith in the Bible.-We out-grow a thousand childish conceptions. After years of absence we return to the home of our childhood. How everything has changed! The old house and barn, the fields in which we played or toiled, the hill down which we coasted, the brook where we bathed or fished or skated, all have dwindled in dimensions. Our life, within and without, has become enlarged. Along with other ideas of childhood, there is danger that we cast away our faith in our father's Bible. Our danger lies in our real ignorance of it; the remedy, in a better, more comprehensive knowledge.
4 AN OUTLIVE OF BIBLE HISTORY
II. THE OBJECT OF BIBLE HISTORY.
The primary Object is religious. Religion is important in all history. It is interwoven with art, poetry, laws, customs, home life, Often with great wars. Still, as a rule, it is treated as incidental, secondary. Political and intellectual life, the building Of great empires or splendid monuments of architecture, the creation of masterpieces of art or law Or literature,-these hold the first place.
In Bible history, on the contrary, the religious purpose predominates. True, from first to last of their wonderful story, God's chosen people came in contact with every great nation of old. We learn something of the steps in their rise to power, and the causes of their decline. Still, in the Bible general history is incidental. The primary purpose is to trace the origin and historic development of true religion in its three great stages--Patriarchal, Jewish and Christian. Even if a man disbelieve a great historic religion, he can not afford to be without an intelligent conception Of it.
III. AGES OF BIBLE HISTORY.
Three capital events mark Off Bible history into three great ages Or dispensations. They are: (1) The giving of the law of Moses on Mt. Sinai; (2) The descent Of the Spirit on the day Of Pentecost; (3) The death Of the last apostle. The ages may be thus defined:
1. The Patriarchal Age,* B. C. 4004-1491. From creation to the giving of the law.
*NOTE.-The early Bible chronology is very uncertain. For want of any accepted system, that of Ussher, as noted in the margins of our Bibles, is here given. The Exodus probably belongs one hundred to one hundred and fifty years later.
INTRODUCTION 5
2. The Jewish Age, B. C. 1491-A. D. 30. From the giving of the law to the descent of the Holy Spirit.
3. The Christian Age, A. D. 30-100. From the descent of the Spirit to the death of the Apostle John.
The characteristic of the first is the family-family revelation, family religion, family government; Of the second, the nation-national religion, a national covenant; of the third, the race-a world-wide religion and message. God spoke in the first age to families through the Patriarchs; in the second, to the nation through Moses; in the third, he speaks to all the world through his Son.
IV. PERIODS OF OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY.
To hold the events of history in the proper perspective, One must fix firmly a few of the hinges of history and their dates. One hour spent in mastering the following periods, with the habit of always referring every event to its proper period, will prove of lifelong service:
1. Antediluvian Period, 4004-2348. From creation to the deluge.
2. Post-diluvian, 2348-1921. From the deluge to the call of Abraham.
3. Patriarchal, 1921-1706. From the call of Abraham to the migration to Egypt.
4. Bondage, 1706-1491. From the migration to Egypt to the Exodus.
5. Wanderings, 1491-1451. From the Exodus to the crossing of the Jordan.
6. Conquest, 1451-1400. From the crossing of the Jordan to the death of Joshua.
7. Judges, 1400-1095. From the death of Joshua to the anointing of Saul.
6 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
8. The United Kingdom, 1095-975. From the anointing of Saul to the accession of Rehoboam.
9. The Double Kingdom, 975-722. From the accession of Rehoboam to the fall of Samaria.
10. Judah Alone, 722-586. From the fall of Samaria to the fall of Jerusalem.
11. The Exile, 586-536. From the fall Of Jerusalem to the return under Zerubbabel.
12. The Post-exile, 536-400. From the. return to the close of the Old Testament Canon.
OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY
CHAPTER I.
ANTEDILUVIAN PERIOD, B. C. 4004-2348, FROM CREATION TO THE DELUGE, GEN. 11:1-8:13.
Introductory: The Book of Genesis.-Genesis (generation, beginning) is a "book of origins." Gen. 1:1 gives the genesis of all things. The phrase "generations of . . ." Occurs ten times, as follows: "Generations of the heavens and the earth," Gen. 2:4; "of Adam," 5:1; "of Noah," 6:9; "of the sons of Noah," 10:1; "of Shem," 11:10; "of Terah," 11:27; "of Ishmael," 25:12; "of Isaac," 25:19; "of Esau," 36:1; "of Jacob," 37:2. This frequent use of the formula is not an accident. The author is consciously dealing with the beginnings of history. This characteristic of the first book of the Bible early attracted attention, and it was appropriately called "Genesis."
1. Genesis of the Universe (Gen. 1:1).-a. The Problem Illustrated.-Given a bar of steel, and we can make hammers, shears, needles, watch springs, etc. That is not creation; it is transformation. Whence the steel? Who made it? Here is a universe; sun, stars, seas, myriad-sided life. The bottom question is not one of transformation, but of Origin.
b. The Problem Solved.-For ages reason wrought
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8 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
at the problem. "Eternal"; "self-made"; "chance"; such were some of the solutions offered. Other solutions were disfigured with gross polytheism. In the midst Of this Babel of Opinions, our author clearly sees that there is no chance; that nothing is self-made; that every effect must have an adequate cause. One word from his inspired pen solves the problem; "in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." God is the solution. Given God, and all else follows. "He spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast" (Ps. 33:9)
c. The Time.-"In the beginning." Science talks learnedly Of millions of years. Very well; carry the origin of things back a million millenniums and Gen. 1:1 meets the demand.
2. Genesis of Order (Gen. 1:2-2:3).-The creation record points to (a) a primeval chaos, "waste and void"; (b) an organizing energy; "the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters"; (c) six successive days* or periods in the genesis of order. (1) Genesis of light. Laplace was the author of the nebular hypothesis. It was advanced, not to bolster tip Genesis, but to account for the universe. According to that theory, the condensation of gaseous matter was accompanied by intense heat-emitting light. Men call Moses a fool for placing light before the sun, and Laplace a scientist for doing the same thing. (2) Genesis of the firmament or expanse. The earth's crust cooled; the thick envelope of vapors condensed and fell as rain or rose as clouds,
*Some hold to a day of twenty-four hours. It is possible, but not probable. The sun measures our day; but it could not have measured the first three days. In the creative record itself (Gen. 2:4) there is a use of "day" in a more extended sense. For other examples see Ps. 95:8; John 8:56; Heb. 3:8.
ANTEDILUVIAN PERIOD 9
and the expanse of the sky became visible like an illimitable tent of blue overhead. (3) Genesis of continents, sea. and vegetation. There seems to have been a period of universal sea, with no continents, islands, shoreline. God speaks; continents rise from the ocean beds; islands stud the seas, naked and barren at first, but in course of time robed with varied vegetation. (4) Genesis of sun, moon and stars. The creation record may be conceived as "phenomenal" Or "panoramis," i.e., describing events as they would appear to a beholder from the earth. The heavenly bodies doubtless existed before the fourth period, but then first became visible to the earth. (5) The genesis of marine life and fowls. The life line is crossed. Hitherto no beast roamed the earth, no bird cleaved the air, no fish swam the sea. Once more the divine edict goes forth, and air and seas swarm with life. It is the age of mollusks and reptiles, of fowls and fishes. (6) Genesis Of land-life and man. The characteristic of the sixth period is man; the characteristic of man is that he is in God's image (Gen. 1:27). "Create" is used three times in this chapter: in 1:1, of the universe; in 1:21, of the origin Of animal life; in 1:27, of the genesis of man. The first crosses the line between non-being and being, the second between the non-living and the living, the third between the brute and man. On his lower side man is in the image of the earth to which he returns, of the plant life which roots in its soil, and Of the beast that roams over its surface. But he faces upward as they do not. He is in God's image in (i.) power of intelligent comprehension. Be-fore man there were order and beauty; but no being on earth to appreciate order or beauty, or to connect cause and effect. Only God could create; only man, in God's image, can perceive the plan and beauty in God's
10 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
creation. (ii.) In sensibility, intelligent, appropriate feeling. (iii.) In power of intelligent choice. (iv.) In moral nature, the sense of right and wrong. (v.) In dominion. This phrase, "Let him have dominion," is his "colonist's charter." It gives him his title to the earth and all its products. It also clothes material creation with its moral meaning: its end is man, whose supreme end is God.
One Or two features of the creative record are worthy of special remark. (I) Its remarkable harmony with the established results of science; in that there was a genesis; that chaos preceded order; that creation was not simultaneous, but successive; that it proceeded by progressive development; that the progression was from the lower to the higher; and finally, in general agreement as to the order of successive creations. Is the first chapter of Genesis guesswork? Would Darwin, Or Tyndall, or Huxley, in an unscientific age, have guessed so well? (2) It is not strictly history. History makes use of human sources of information; oral tradition, written laws documents, ancient monuments. No tradition can reach:. back of man's appearance on earth. It must have been an apocalypse, a supernatural revelation. So the Bible opens, so it closes. The unknown past and the unknown future stand revealed in the visions that open and close the Bible.
3. The Genesis of Sin (Gen. 2:4-3:24).-Gen. 1:1-2:3, gives a general account of creation. This section recapitulates with a more particular account of man. In the first section nature, including man, is the theme. All nature is traced up to God as its infinite, intelligent source. In the second section man is the great theme. He is here set forth in his true relation as the crown and lord of creation, because in the image of his Creator.
ANTEDILUVIAN PERIOD 11
a. Primeval State.-We enter here upon history proper. Revelation may employ human sources of knowledge. Our knowledge of the primeval state ex-tends to (1) man's abode. This was Eden. Two well known rivers, the Euphrates and the Hiddekel (Tigris) point to southwestern Asia. Widespread tradition, con-firmed by modern scientific research, points to the high-lands south of Caucasus as the cradle of the race. (2) Society. Man was not made for solitude, nor to find any real companionship with even the higher forms of brute life. Only with his own kind and in family life are the high ends Of his being to be attained. The creation of Eve teaches the essential unity and equality of the race. (3) Occupation. Man was never meant for idleness. In idleness powers rust, morals decay. Hence he was put in the garden to dress it and to keep it. (4) Moral state. The historian pictures a state of full fellowship with God, the blessedness of perfect innocence and trust; of large liberty; "o all the trees of the garden thou may'st freely eat"; with a single restriction: "of the tree Of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat." Liberty must have limits. Man must respect law, and subject selfish desire to higher good. Sovereign on earth, he must be subject to God.
b. The Transgression.-Already, sin and a sinner are in the universe. Both find their way to Eden. The serpent appears, either as the symbol or agent of Satan (cf. John 8:44; Rev. 12:9; 20:2). Note the course of the temptation and the sin. There is an insinuating question: "Yea, bath God said ye shall not eat?" then a slanderous lie: "Ye shall not surely die." Then follow, in swift succession, distrust of God, wrong desire, wrong choice, open disobedience. The return to God reverses all this; belief of the truth, trust in God, right
12 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
desire, right choice, open surrender to the will Of God.
c. The Penalty.-There follows, as the natural, necessary result, a sense of guilt and alienation; Adam and Eve "hid themselves." There fell also the judicial penalty: upon the woman, multiplied sorrows; upon the man, increased toil; yet to both a sublime hope, the promised seed to bruise the serpent's head. In Gen. 3:15, at the very gate of the lost Eden, we catch the first dim prophecy of Christ's redemptive work.
4. Echoes of Creation and the Fall.-Ancient literatures contain interesting traces of the great facts here recorded.* But they are marred with heathen conceptions, and fall far below the sublime record of inspiration. "The story of the Fall, like that of Creation, has wandered over the world. Heathen nations have trans-planted it and mixed it up with their geography, their history, their mythology, although it has never so completely changed form and color and spirit that you can not recognize it. Here, however, in the law, it preserves the character of a universal human, worldwide fact, and the groans of Creation, the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, and the heart of every man conspire in their testimony to the most literal truth Of the narrative."**
5. The Genesis of Sacrifice (Gen. 4:1-15).-Children came to this first human home bringing both sun-shine and shadow. The brothers differed in Occupations and in the sacrifices they brought. There was a deeper difference in the men themselves. Cain was a tiller of the soil, Abel a keeper of sheep. One brought the first-fruits of the field, i.e., a thank-offering. The Other brought the firstlings of the flock as a sin-offering.
*See Geikie's "Hours with the Bible," Vol. I., Chap. 8.
**Delitzsch, quoted in Smith's O. T. Hist., p. 29.
ANTEDILUVIAN PERIOD 13
Cain's offering was only such as Adam and Eve in the innocence of Eden might have offered. It expressed no sense of sin, no prayer for pardon. Moreover, Cain lacked the faith of his brother Abel (Heb. 11:4). His spirit, as contrasted with Abel's, was one of unbelief, self-righteousness, self-will. It was a case of Pharisee and Publican at the gate of Eden. Cain's jealous hate drove him to murder; Abel's fidelity made him a martyr: the one, first in a long line of blood-stained men; the other, first in the mighty roll of God's heroes.
6. The Line of Cain (Gen. 4:16-26).-Cain had a son, Enoch, and built a city, Enoch. Like father, like son. The line of Cain were an enterprising, ungodly race. Cain, Enoch, Irad, Mehujael, Methusael, Lamech, constitute the line. Doubtless there were side lines. This is given because at the end of it stands Lamech, in whose family the characteristics of the line culminate. Lamech had two wives, who bore him three sons: Jubal, a musician; Jabal, a herdsman; and Tubal-Cain, a metal-worker. The violence of Cain repeats itself in Lamech, as shown in his "sword song":
"Adah and Zillah, hear my voice;
Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech;
For I have slain a man for wounding me,
And a young man for bruising me" (Gen. 4:23).
Two lessons may be gleaned from the brief record: (I) Material civilization is not a divine gift, but a purely human development. (2) Civilization is not religion, nor a substitute for it. The line of Cain gives us the following first things: murder, city, polygamy, musician, metal-worker, poetry; but not one example of men who "walked with God."
7. The Line of Seth (Gen. 5). Adam doubtless had other sons after Seth, from whom other lines descended.
14 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
This seems to have been preserved because it leads to Noah, who represents its better traits, and through whom the race was perpetuated and the promised seed was to come. The line comprises ten names, as follows: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methusaleh, Lamech, Noah. At first sight it looks like a bare family register of births, ages, and deaths, and singularly resembles the names in the line of Cain. But the little told contrasts sharply with that line. In the days of Seth and Enosh, "men began to call upon the name of the Lord"; "Enoch walked with God, and was not, for God took him"; a saying significant both of divine fellowship and a blessed immortality. Noah was "a righteous man" and "walked with God." So meager the records, yet so contrasted the portraits of these two lines of Cain and Seth.
8. The Apostasy and the Deluge (Gen. 6:1-8: W.-a. Traditions of the Deluge.-There can be no doubt that these chapters describe a great historic event. Echoes of Eden and the Fall, as we have seen, are found in many ancient literatures. But no other event of early Bible history is so fully corroborated as the Deluge. It left a deep, enduring impression. Traditions of it are found among the four great races, Turanian, Hamitic, Semitic, and Aryan. They vary greatly: some are grossly distorted by polytheism; but those nearest to the spot where the ark rested are most minute and accurate. The Chinese, Hindus, Chaldeans, Egyptians, Greeks, Celts, Laps, Esquimaux, Mexicans, and Central and South Americans, all have preserved the tradition. That of the Chaldeans is most famous, and nearest the Bible account. It exists in two forms: (I) That of Berosus, a priest of Babylon who wrote in Greek, B. C. 26o. This has been known for many centuries. (2) That of
ANTEDILUVIAN PERIOD 15
the cuneiform tablets dug up from the ruins of Nineveh in 1872, after a sleep Of twenty-five centuries.*
b. Moral Causes of the Deluge.-The Deluge was not a mere physical catastrophe. It was a sublime moral event. Read Gen. 6:5. Society was morally rotten, hopelessly so. The causes of the apostasy are not far to seek. Read Gen. 6:1-5. Remember what has been said of the two lines Of Cain and Seth. It is probable that the gross degeneracy was the result of the inter-marriage of the line of Seth ("sons of God") with the line of Cain ("daughters Of men"). As in all compromises with evil, the advantages were all on the wrong side. The outcome Of the apostasy was the destruction of the race. Extreme crime calls for extreme penalty. The hardened criminal we imprison for life, or hang by the neck till he is dead. The antediluvians were not the last people swept from the earth for their crimes. The waters of the flood, the rain Of fire that blasted Sodom forever, the breath of pestilence, the tempest of war, have been the divine messengers of judgment.
c. Means of the Deluge.-He who created the earth controls abundant means for its destruction. Again and again, before the era of man, must the earth have been deluged with rains, and submerged beneath the seas. The fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows Of heaven were opened (Gen. 7:11). What occurred so often before man's appearance may easily have occurred again under God's providence, for a great moral purpose. Portions Of Western Asia are still be-low the level of the sea, and the subsidence of other portions would inundate them and sweep thousands from the earth.
*See Geikie's "Hours with the Bible," Vol. I., Chap. 13.
16 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
d. Duration and Extent of the Deluge.-It rained for forty days. The waters continued to rise for one hundred and fifty days, and to subside for two hundred and twenty-five days. It was either universal, or what is more probable, occurred early in the history of the race, before they had spread widely. Either view would ac-count for the universal tradition.
e. Noah and the Deluge.-Some names are forever associated with great epochs. Lincoln with Emancipation, Cromwell with the Commonwealth, Moses with the Exodus; so Noah with the Deluge. Read Gen. 6:9; 7:1; Ezek. 14:14. Noah was God's man, a heroic figure in an apostate age. Altar after altar had crumbled, but the fires on Noh's altar did not go out till quenched by the flood. It calls for courage to stand alone. But Noah dared to lead where few dared to follow. The absolute obedience and safety of Noah, the hopeless corruption and ruin of the race-such are the impressive lessons. For one hundred and twenty years Noah faith-fully preached and heroically lived. Only seven converts rewarded his labors: his wife, and his sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, with their wives. Yet Noah was successful: he did his duty, and he outrode the flood.
THE POST-DILUVIAN PERIOD, B. C. 2348-1921. FROM THE DELUGE TO THE CALL OF ABRAHAM, GEN. 8:10-11:26.
1. The Second Beginning (Gen. 8:15-9:29): The ark became the second cradle of the race. From it Noah and his family went forth to a new probation.
a. The Altar and the Covenant.-Noah had preserved seven of each kind of clean animals. His first act after leaving the ark was to build an altar and make an offering unto God of every clean beast and fowl. In acceptance of his worship, God makes a covenant with Noah, and seals it with his beautiful bow of promise. The main points of the covenant were: (I) no more flood; (2) man to multiply and replenish the earth; (3) animal food confirmed; (4) the death penalty for murder en-forced the sanctity of human life.
b. Destiny of Noah's Sons.-The closing incidents of Noah's history are his being overcome with wine, Ham's shameless disrespect, and Shem's and Japheth's more modest conduct. The natural contrasts became the occasion of Noah's prophetic portrayal of their diverse destinies: (I) the curse of Canaan (Ham's race), (2) the blessing of Shem, (3) the enlargement of Japheth.
2. Genesis of the Nations (Gen. lo).-The tenth chapter of Genesis is the oldest authority on ethnology. It gives the descendants of Noah's sons and their distribution. (I) Ham had four sons, who settled the lower Euphrates and Nile valleys. The earliest civilizations were Hamitic. (2) Shem's five sons settled south-
17
18 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
western Asia. They were ancestors of the Chaldeans who conquered the earlier Hamitic race on the Euphrates; the Assyrians, Syrians, Arabians and Hebrews. These founded the next great group of empires. (3) Japheth had seven sons, from whom sprang the Medes, Greeks, Romans, and all the modern races of Europe. They scattered widely, were in Obscurity for thousands Of years, but for twenty-four hundred years have been the ruling races of the world.
3. The Tower of Babel and the Confusion of Tongues (Gen. 2:1-9) .-Centuries pass. Population be-gins to concentrate at Shinar, upon the lower Euphrates. They begin a great tower with the double purpose of making a great name and preventing dispersion. God's plan, expressed in his covenant with Noah, was for them to distribute and people the earth. Their sin was not in their tower, but in their hearts. God defeated their purpose by confounding their speech, which dispersed them; whence Babel, confusion.
4. The Generations of Shem (Gen. 11:10-26).-These verses contain the counterpart and culmination of the fifth chapter. That gives the line of Seth from Adam to Noah inclusive. This follows the line of Shem from Shem to Abraham inclusive. Each line contains ten names. These genealogical tables are much more than family registers. They connect closely with the primary purpose of Bible history. That purpose is to trace the rise and development of true religion. That development follows the line of promise which is also the line of men Of faith. The promised Messiah is the star of hope at the dim and distant end Of the line; while Enoch and Noah and Abraham are the heroic figures that rise above the dull level Of these early centuries.
PATRIARCHAL PERIOD, B. C. 1921-1706. FROM THE CALL OF ABRAHAM TO THE MIGRATION TO EGYPT, GEN. 11:27-50.
Introductory-Mission of the Hebrews.-We have seen (Gen. 3:15) the first dim promise Of a Redeemer, a ray of hope for the race. Hope almost died out amid the corruptions that preceded and caused the Deluge. Even after the Deluge the sky soon became Once more overcast. The early seats of civilization and empire on the Nile and Euphrates became centers of debasing idolatries. Somewhere, by some one, a stand must be made for the one true God, or the race is hopelessly lost. This was the sublime mission Of the Hebrews. For the time being, God passes by the races of Ham and Japheth. He passes by the great Semitic race, save a single family Of the Chaldean branch of that race. To keep alive the knowledge of God, and finally, through the promised "seed," to bring back all races to the fellowship of God-such is the divine purpose. Hitherto the interest has centered in events rather than men, a few only of those being touched upon. The sacred historian has passed with gigantic strides that span the centuries, from peak to peak Of momentous events. From this point, the interest centers in men; the main stream of the history narrows to a single race, the Hebrews, and grows continually fuller. The story of this period follows the lives Of the four great patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, those Pilgrim Fathers of the Hebrews.
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20 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
I. THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM.
(GEN. 11:27-25:10.)
Abraham, as the "father of the faithful," and founder of the Hebrew race, is One of the great characters of all times. His life falls naturally into two main divisions, viz.: (I) The wanderings, (2) The settled life at Hebron.
1. The Wanderings.-a. The Early Home.-Abraham was a native of Ur, on the lower Euphrates, the seat of the earliest Asiatic civilization. Either Hamitic or Turanian at first, it became Semitic by conquest. It was clearly idolatrous (cf. Gen. 16:26, 31; Josh. 24:2) .
b. The Call and Covenant (Gen. 12:1-3).-Here he heard the call of God to leave home, kin, native land, and to seek a country yet to be made known. Religiously, this call and its result was the most important event since the Fall. God coupled with this call his covenant. It embraced four promises: (1) A great Nation; fulfilled in the Hebrew or Jewish people. (2) A great Name. The Nimrods and Pharaohs and Caesars filled a larger place in the world's estimation while they lived, but not one of them has left so broad a mark in history, or so impressed himself and his ideas on the Race. Three great religions look back to Abraham as the Father of the faithful: Jewish, Christian, Mohammedan. (3) A Land; fulfilled in the possession of Canaan by the Hebrews...(4) A blessing to all nations; fulfilled two thousand years after in Christ and the world-wide proclamation of the gospel. In ever-widening circles, it is still in process of fulfillment.
c. The Migration.-Every distinct national life roots in a migration; but few migrations are so distinctly religious, or lie in so clear historic light as that of the Hebrews. At the age of seventy-five, to sever ties of
PATRIARCHAL PERIOD 21
kin and country, to go out with no knowledge of whither he was to go, called for heroic faith. "By faith he obeyed, and went out, not knowing whither he went" (Heb. 11:8). Such a man was fitted to found an en-during race, and make room for a sublime truth-the unity of God.
With his father, Terah, his orphan nephew, Lot, and his wife, Sarah, he moved up the Euphrates to Haran. There Terah died, and Abraham, still obedient to the divine call, leaves the basin of the Euphrates for the land of Canaan. He is now in a strange land, and among an alien race. At Shechem, God appears to him and renews the covenant, "Unto thy seed will I give this land." This, then, is the land. The migration is accomplished.
For some years Abraham wanders from place to place. He sojourned in (1) Bethel, (2) the South, (3) Egypt, (4) the South, (5) Bethel. Here Lot and Abraham separate; Lot pitches toward Sodom in the Jordan Valley, and ends by settling in Sodom. (6) Abraham removes to Hebron in the South. This becomes the center of a more settled life. But to the last he lived in tents. Everywhere he had built his altar. The tent and the altar are characteristic of his Canaan life.
2. The Settled Life at Hebron.-The main incidents of this period are:
a. The Chaldean Invasion.-An Elamite dynasty was ruling Chaldea.- This ambitious line had pushed their conquests far westward into the Jordan Valley. The petty kings of Jordan bore the yoke twelve years and then revolted. Chedorlaomer, the Elamite ruler of Chaldea, crushed the revolt and carried off the people of Sodom, including Lot. Abraham, with three hundred and eighteen trained servants, pursued and rescued the captives. It was on his return that he was met and
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blessed by Melchizedek, the mysterious priest-king to whom Abraham paid tithes.
b. The Marriage with Hagar.-Years had passed without the birth of the promised son. Abraham and Sarah were growing aged. At Sarah's suggestion, Abraham took their servant, Hagar, as a secondary wife. She became the mother of Ishmael, and ancestress of the Arabians.
c. Institution of Circumcision.-Abraham was now ninety-nine years Old. Sarah was ten years younger. The covenant promise was still unfulfilled: for the promise was through Sarah, and she had no son. Once more God appeared and renewed the covenant, sealing it with two signs: (I) Their names, originally Abram (high father), and Sarai (contentious), were changed to Abraham (father of a great multitude), and Sarah (princess); (2) the rite of circumcision was given as a perpetual Ordinance to the covenant people.
d. The Destruction of Sodom.-The cities of the plain Of Jordan had sunk to depths of profligacy, which made their continuance a menace to the surrounding nations. God decreed their destruction and revealed their fate to Abraham, whose intercession, though it could not save the cities, was not wholly lost. Lot was snatched as a brand from the burning, though his wife's longing and lingering involved her in the tempest of fire and brimstone, that overwhelmed Sodom. Lot escaped to Zoar, and through his own daughters became the father of Moab and Ammon, whose descendants were long rivals of the Hebrews.
e. The Birth and Offering of Isaac.-Abraham is now one hundred years old and Sarah ninety. After twenty-five years of wandering and waiting the light Of fulfillment breaks upon the promise. Sarah bears a son who
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is named Isaac. But a still sorer trial awaits them. Abraham's faith had triumphed over love of kin and country. Will it triumph over love for his own off-spring? The mysterious message falls upon his ears, "Take now thy son, thine Only son Isaac whom thou lovest, and offer him up for a burnt Offering." Such a command would shock our moral sense. It would seem a conflict of duties. Not so with Abraham. Human sacrifice was common; the age was full of it, and Abraham no doubt familiar with it. Not there lay the struggle. It lay rather between the call of God on one hand, and his love for Isaac and his hope in the covenant promise on the other. To that promise he had grappled his soul as with hooks of steel. Once more faith triumphed (Heb. 11:17-19). Here we reach the climax in Abraham's faith and experience. His son is saved; for God did not really require his sacrifice. The Patriarch lives to see him married, with sons growing up around him. He buries Sarah in the cave of Machpelah at Hebron, the Only spot he ever owned in the land of promise. There he, too, was buried by Isaac and Ishmael, after a century Of pilgrimage in Canaan.
The world has had few Abrahams. It has many Lots, grasping worldly advantage at eternal risks. Lot and his race passed away like the morning mists; Abraham and his seed have shaped the world's destiny forever.
II. LIFE AND CHARACTER OF ISAAC.
(GEN. 24:1-28:9.)
1. Characteristics of Isaac's Life.-The story of Isaac's life is soon told. It is interwoven with that of his father on one hand, and Of his son Jacob on the other. Isaac's life Overlaps Abraham's seventy-five years, and Jacob's one hundred and twenty. Every important inci-
24 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
dent of his life belongs more properly to theirs. As a historic character, he is overshadowed by them. Passive and peace-loving, he yields himself to his father to be offered, is apparently under the influence of his mother while she lives, and of his wife afterward, and yields well after well to the Philistines rather than fight for them. His long life of one hundred and eighty years was passed at or near Hebron in the South country. His was not the granite mould of Abraham nor the stormy experience of Jacob. Still, as a son of promise and an heir of the covenant promises, his is an honored place among the four Patriarchs of the period. He walks in the sublime faith of Abraham, and God appears to him again and again to renew the Abrahamic covenant.
2. His Marriage and Family.-Abraham's brother, Nahor, had either accompanied or followed the family migration from Ur, up the Euphrates as far as Haran. There he had remained. Fearful of any family alliance with the idolatrous Canaanites, Abraham sent his most trusted servant to the family at Nahor at Haran. Thence he brought Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel, who be-came Isaac's wife and mother of his twin sons, Esau and Jacob.
III. THE HISTORY OF JACOB.
(GEN. 27:1-49:33.)
There are two chapters in Jacob's life, corresponding to his two names, and the two distinct phases of his character. In the first, he is Jacob (Supplanter); in the second, he becomes Israel (Prince of God). The dividing line is Peniel, where he wrestled with the angel, and was both vanquished and victor. No other Patriarch's life exhibits anything so analogous to Christian conversion. From first to last, the others led a life of
PATRIARCHAL PERIOD 25
faith. But Israel the Prince was a radically different man from Jacob the Supplanter.
1. Jacob the Supplanter (Gen. 27:1-32:32) .-a. His Name.-From an incident of his birth he was named Jacob: heel-catcher, one who trips another, supplanter. Although he was the younger, the chosen line and covenant were to be through Jacob; hence, at his birth, it was foretold, "The elder shall serve the younger."
b. The Extorted Birthright.-Esau was a hunter; Jacob was a "quiet" man and a gardener. Esau comes faint from the chase, ready to bargain his birthright for a share of Jacob's pottage, thus flinging away the covenant blessing for a momentary gratification. Such a character is little fitted to found an enduring nation or a sublime spiritual religion. The "quiet" Jacob prizes the birthright and covenant promise, but meanly wrings them from his famished brother.
c. The Stolen Blessing.-Years pass. The time comes for the aged Isaac to bestow the Patriarchal blessing. Contrary to the divine purpose expressed at the birth of the boys, he determines to bestow it on Esau. But Rebekah is not asleep. She proposes a fraud, and Jacob, true to his name, lends himself to her scheme. The ruse succeeds. The dim-eyed Isaac and the absent Esau are outwitted, and the hands of the Patriarch rest in primal blessing on Jacob's head.
d. The Flight to Haran.-The first effect of Jacob's sin was to drive him from the father he had deceived, the brother he had defrauded, and Rebekah, the fond partner of his guilt. Esau seeks his life. At Rebekah's suggestion, Isaac sends Jacob to seek a wife among her kin at Haran. It is a sad flight;-behind, memories of childhood, shades of his own meanness, the specter of Esau's vengeance; before, God only knows what. Night
26 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
comes on. He lies down to sleep beneath the stars. The dreams of the night take shape from the thoughts of the day. He has not utterly forsaken God; nor is he forsaken of God. In the vision of the ladder God reveals himself as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the covenant God, and renews even to the poor, false, fleeing Jacob its far-reaching provisions. Awed and humbled, Jacob rises in the morning, sets up his stone pillow for a pillar, christens it Beth-el, House of God, and vows, though with a Jacob-like provision, that Jehovah shall be his God.
e. The Life at Haran.-At Haran Jacob meets his match in his Uncle Laban, who traps him into marrying his elder (laughter, Leah, first, knowing that Jacob would take Rachel also, with whom he had fallen in love at their first meeting at the well. Twenty years pass in exile. At last, with large possessions and a numerous family, he turns his face toward the old home. As he draws near the eastern borders of Canaan, he learns that Esau is marching with four hundred men to meet him. Once more the specter of his own sins and his brother's vengeance rises before him. His soul is wrung with the sense of unworthiness and weakness. Present after present is sent to appease Esau. The family follow over the river Jabbok. Jacob is left alone at Peniel. Then he wrestles all night with the mysterious messenger of Jehovah. At last the darkness vanishes; day dawns; the self-willed Jacob yields; then he wins the coveted blessing, and Jacob the supplanter is transformed into Israel.
2. Israel the Prince.-Hence forth Jacob is a new man. The brothers meet and part in peace. Long after, they join in the burial of their father. At the call of God, Israel goes on a pilgrimage to Bethel. His beloved
PATRIARCHAL PERIOD 27
Rachel dies at Benjamin's birth near Bethlehem. His sons vex his soul by their violence. Joseph, the beloved son of the beloved Rachael, is lost to him for twenty years. Benjamin is demanded by the strange ruler of Egypt. But through all this darkness Israel does not let go of Jehovah's hand. Everywhere, during this period, he builds his altar and calls on the covenant God of Abraham and Isaac. Exile and adversity and the covenant hope do their work on his character. Jacob has be-come Israel, and Israel ripens into mellow, beautiful age. The clouds break at last. Joseph and Benjamin are given back to him. Life's sun sets in peace in Egypt, and his bones rest with those of his father in the ancestral tomb at Hebron.
IV. THE HISTORY OF JOSEPH.
(GEN. 37:1-50:26.)
Introductory.-Joseph's relation to the Hebrew people differs from that of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They are ancestors of the whole covenant people; he only one of the twelve sons of Israel into which the embryo nation has expanded. The future nation may call itself Israel, but not Joseph. Joseph is not head of the covenant people, and God does not appear to him as to the elder Patriarchs to renew the covenant. Still he and his brethren belong to the Patriarchal period, and are classed with the Patriarchs (Acts 7:8, 9). Joseph's story is the most touching, and his character the best rounded Of any in Old Testament history. He unites some of the best traits Of the older Patriarchs: the strength and decision of Abraham, the patience and gentleness of Isaac, the tender affection of Jacob, the faith of them all. His life may be divided into two chapters: (1) His youth in Canaan; (2) his manhood in Egypt.
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1. His Youth in Canaan.-The incidents of this period are shaped by two facts, viz.:
a. His Father's Favoritism.-He was a son of his old age, the first born of Rachel, his first love, whom he regarded as his true wife. A further cause was, no doubt, the lovable character of Joseph himself. Jacob's fondness showed itself in various ways; notably in a tunic of many colors (or long sleeves) such as princes wore-a sign, perhaps, that he meant to transfer the birthright to him. The effect soon appeared in the jealousy of the older brothers. That it did not spoil Joseph himself is proof of peculiar strength Of nature, for over-indulgence ruins more characters than privation. It is doubtful if even Joseph would have developed the robust manhood he afterward displayed in the enervating atmosphere of his father's tent.
b. His Brothers' Hatred.-T his was intensified by two dreams of Joseph. In one their sheaves bow down to his; in the second the sun, moon, and eleven stars do him obeisance-further evidence to them that he is looking forward to the birthright. Envy breeds hate; hate is murder in germ. Their opportunity comes when Jacob sends Joseph from the tribal home at Hebron to his shepherd brothers, who are with their flocks in the vicinity of Shechem. `Behold this dreamer cometh; let us slay him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams." Reuben, to gain time and restore him to his father, proposes to put him into a pit. In Reuben's absence, at Judah's suggestion, Joseph is sold to a caravan en route to Egypt. The hated tunic, drabbled in kid's blood, beguiles the fond father into the conviction that Joseph has fallen a prey to wild beasts. The curtain falls on a scene of family crime and grief.
2. His Manhood in Egypt.-a. His Slave Life.-As
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the slave of Potiphar, captain of Pharaoh's guard, his ability and faithfulness soon bring him to the head of his master's household. His very virtue threatens his ruin. Falsely accused by Potiphar's wife, he is thrown into prison.
b. His Prison Life.-Joseph is not the man to sit down in despair. Brave and helpful even behind prison bars, he rises again to a place of trust. From interpreting the dreams of two fellow prisoners he is called to interpret the dreams of Pharaoh. That proves the stepping-stone to almost regal power in the proudest kingdom on earth.
c. His Courtier Life.-As viceroy of Egypt, for seven years Of plenty Joseph stores up corn against the seven years of famine foreshadowed by Pharaoh's dreams. The years of plenty go; the years of famine come, and with them come Joseph's brethren for corn. Now is his opportunity. He seizes them as spies. Detaining Simeon as a hostage, he releases the rest, but refuses to see them again except they bring Benjamin. The Old Patriarch refuses at first to part with Benjamin; but hunger is a hard master, and he consents at last, on Judah's offer to be surety for the lad. At their second visit, Joseph puts his cup into Benjamin's sack, and charges the brothers with the theft. Then, when con-science is aroused, when they are ready to connect their calamities with their crime, when, at last, Judah nobly offers himself as a bondsman in Benjamin's stead, Joseph makes himself known, and freely forgives their crime. Jacob is brought down, and the period closes with the covenant people in Egypt. But, though Joseph dies and is buried in Egypt, his dying charge (Gen. 50:24, 25) shows how firm is his faith in the covenant promises and in the future of his people.
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Joseph's character is one of singular integrity. He was put to every conceivable test: the favoritism of his father, the envy and gross injury of brothers, the solicitations of an impure woman, virtue bearing the penalty of vice, the sudden elevation to honor and power, the opportunity to avenge every wrong-these were the crucial experiences of his life. No man was ever more tried; no other ever so triumphant. He is the most splendid example in history of human forgiveness; while Abraham himself was not so uniformly triumphant in his faith. Why, then, is Abraham, rather than Joseph, honored as the "father of the faithful"? Clearly because he was the "Columbus of the voyage of faith." Abraham steered into unknown seas, to an unknown land. Joseph made his voyage in the light of all that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were and did.
V. THE BOOK OF JOB.
To this age belongs the Book of Job. Not that it was written so early by many centuries; but the events, the scenes, the drapery, the whole tone, are Patriarchal. Job is a powerful eastern chief whom God suffers Satan to strip of possessions and children, and afflict with loath-some disease. Three friends came to console him. The body of the book consists of a great poetic debate between Job, his three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar, a bystander named Elihu, and Jehovah. Job maintains his integrity, and is restored to double his former prosperity. The book is probably a bit of Patriarchal history idealized. It has a historic basis, with poetic elaboration and embellishments. The dramatic succession and relation of events, too elaborate and poetic for extemporaneous speech, point to this view. The subject of debate is the problem Of evil-the relation of calamity
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to character; the purpose, to lead men to trust where they can not see.
NOTE.
SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PATRIARCHAL AGE.
1. IT WAS NOMADIC.-Abraham. Isaac and Jacob were founders, not of cities, as were Menes, Nimrod and Asshur, but of a race and a faith. They lived in tents. They moved from place to place. Yet they were not aimless or lawless wanderers; they were Pilgrims, migrating at the call of God, inspired by a sublime, far-reaching purpose.
2. IT WAS PATRIARCHAL.-The father was (a) The ruler of the family. He had the power of life and death. (See Gen. 22:10; 28:24.) (b) Military chieftain. Abraham headed an expedition against the Mesopotamians. (c) The family priest. He builds the altar and offers the sacrifice for the family. (d) The family prophet. To him and through him God makes known his will and his purposes.
3. CONCEPTIONS OF Gm-The Patriarchs held firmly to (a) The unity of God. There is no trace of the prevailing poly-theism. (b) The personality of God. There is no touch of pantheism, no nature worship which so abounded in Egypt. (c) The universality of God. He is the God of the whole earth (Gen. 18:25); the God of Pharaoh as well as of Abraham and Israel; he rules on the Nile and Euphrates as well as on the Jordan. (d) The holiness of God. He is never disfigured by the vices of heathen deities. The Judge of all the earth shall do right (Gen. 18:25).
4. FORMS OF WORSHIP.-There were no temples or stated feasts; no certain trace of the Sabbath, though the later law of Moses rests back on God's resting from creation on the seventh day, and there are traces of the weekly division of time (Gen. 8:10-12). There were rude altars, animal sacrifice, consecrated memorials, vows, pilgrimages, prayers, tithes, and the rite of circumcision.
5. DEGREE OF CIVILIZATION.-Although the Patriarchs were nomads, they were not barbarians. They came in contact with the highest civilization of the age in Chaldea and Egypt. They were shepherds, yet practice agriculture. They had money and jewelry; Judah had a signet-ring, and Joseph a princely gar-
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ment; and it is not unlikely that they were acquainted with the al t of writing which flourished both in the Nile and Euphrates Valleys.
6. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE COVENANT.-The Abrahamic covenant is the key to the Patriarchal Period and the whole Hebrew history. No doubt the story is intensely human. All natural motives play their part in the migrations and the family and national life. But the creative fact and force is the covenant. It was that which made the Hebrews distinctive in the world. It led them to look continually forward to a land, a nation, and a "seed" which should bless all nations. Originally made to Abraham in Chaldea, it was confirmed to him in Canaan five or six times, renewed expressly to Isaac and repeatedly to Jacob. Joseph based his dying charge upon it; while centuries later it was renewed to Moses at the burning bush, and expanded at Sinai into the national covenant. There is no measuring the creative power of such a faith and hope on the character of a man or a people.
PERIOD OF BONDAGE, B. C. 1706-1491. FROM THE MIGRATION TO EGYPT TO THE EXODUS, EX. 1-14.
I. EGYPT AT THE PERIOD OF HEBREW BONDAGE.
The history of ancient Egypt is sometimes divided into three periods:
1. The Old Empire. From unknown antiquity to B. C. 2100.
2. The Middle or Hyksos Empire, B. C. 2100-1650.
3. The New Empire, B. C. 1650-525. From the expulsion of the Hyksos to the absorption of Egypt by the Persian Empire.
In the first period, Menes consolidated the tribes of lower Egypt, and founded the oldest capital, Memphis, and the first of the thirty-one dynasties that ruled over Egypt. Centuries later the Fourth Dynasty built the great pyramids. Still later in this period the Twelfth Dynasty transferred the seat of power to Thebes in upper Egypt, where they inaugurated the most splendid era of the first period.
The Hyksos or Shepherd Kings of the Middle Empire were Semitic intruders from Asia. Rude barbarians at first, though able Organizers, under their rule Egyptian civilization suffered an eclipse.
The New Empire was ushered in by Amosis, who expelled the Hyksos and founded the famous Eighteenth Dynasty, which included Thothmes HI., the Alexander of the Egyptians. This, with the Nineteenth Dynasty,
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constituted the most splendid epoch in Egyptian history. It is probable that the Hebrew migration from Chaldea occurred in the early part, and their migration to Egypt in the latter part Of the middle period. This would ac-count for the consideration with which the Pharaoh's treated Abraham, Joseph and Jacob. Semites themselves, they would not share the Egyptian hatred for foreigners.
II. THE OPPRESSION.
Genesis closes with the Hebrews high in favor with the Egyptians. Exodus Opens on a race of slaves. The land of Egypt has become "the house of bondage." So far as sacred history goes, these are silent centuries that intervene.* Dynasties may rise and fall, distant wars may be waged, splendid temples, whose ruins still awe the world, may be builded, but mere worldly glory has no place in the divine record. Not till the hour has struck for a new advance in the evolution of the promised redemption is the story resumed.
At last "there arose a new king over Egypt which knew not Joseph" (Ex. 1:8). The greatest benefits are soon forgotten. Within fourteen years of Salamis, Themistocles was banished; within seventeen years of Water-loo, the Duke of Wellington was attacked by a London mob. We can hardly wonder that centuries of time had effaced the sense Of the great service rendered by the Hebrew Joseph. The "new king" probably points to the revolution which drove the Semitic Hyksos from Egypt,
*The length of the sojourn in Egypt is one of the unsolved problems. The Hebrew Bible seems to make it four hundred (more exactly, four hundred and thirty) years. cf. Gen. 5:13; Ex. 12:40, 44; Acts 7:6. The Septuagint of Ex. 12:40, 41, which Paul follows in Gal. 3:17, includes the wanderings of the Patriarchs in Canaan in the four hundred and thirty years.
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and restored the native rulers. The Pharaohs of the bondage and the Exodus are supposed to have been Seti I., Rameses II. and Menephthah, all kings of the Nineteenth Dynasty. Seti, alarmed at the rapid increase of the Hebrews, and recalling the invasion and long usurpation of the Hyksos, resolved to break the spirit of the Hebrews. He reduced them to wasting toil in the brick-yards; still they multiplied. At last he Ordered every male child to be thrown into the Nile. Then came the deliverer.
III. BIRTH AND MISSION OF MOSES.
All in all, as patriot, poet, liberator, lawgiver, historian, man, Moses is the greatest human character in history. The Pharaohs of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties left their mighty deeds graven in granite. Yet their names are shadowy as the photographs of their recently resurrected mummies. Moses wrote his record On a race and in a religion. His name is greater after the lapse of thirty-three centuries than in the night when he wrung from the proud Pharaoh his consent to let God's people go. His life falls naturally into three equal divisions: the forty years in Egypt; the forty years of exile in Midian; the forty years as deliverer, leader and organizer Of Israel. His history during the last forty years is the history of his people, and falls principally in the next period.
1. The Forty Years in Egypt.-a. His Birth and Education.-Moses was born Of godly parents, Amram and Jochebed, of the tribe of Levi. Their older children, Miriam and Aaron, seem to have been born before the murderous edict of Seti. Not so their third child. His birth was kept a secret from the authorities for three months. When secrecy was no longer possible, the
36 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
beautiful child was committed to the Nile in a basket of reeds. Pharaoh's daughter discovers and adopts him, naming him Moses. Miriam, who had followed the frail craft and its precious cargo, offers to call a nurse, and brings her own mother. Thus, in the providence of God, the future friend, emancipator and organizer of the nation is reared in the highest intellectual culture then possible in the world (Acts 7:22), and, by his Hebrew mother, in the sublimest spiritual faith then in the world.
b. Moses' Choice.-Moses comes to manhood. The secret of his Hebrew origin is his. Seeing an Egyptian taskmaster beat a Hebrew, he killed the Egyptian, and hid the body in the sand. No doubt Moses had hot blood that could beat hard in his veins at injustice. But the deed was no rash impulse of the moment. From Heb. 11:24-26 and Acts 7:23-25 two things are clear: (I) He had deliberately and voluntarily renounced all that royalty in Egypt could offer, to make common cause with his enslaved brethren; (2) he hoped to arouse Israel to make a bold push for liberty. But the time was not yet ripe, and neither he nor his people were yet ready. The chains must become heavier, and Moses himself must become disciplined for his great work. Egypt was a good school of the arts and sciences; at his mother's knee he had imbibed the primary lessons of religion: but he must be much alone with God before he is equipped for his sublime mission. In the desert of Midian and the solitude of Sinai, with God as his teacher, he finds his university, and receives his diploma.
2. The Forty Years in Midian.-Moses flees to Midian, east Of the Red Sea. As he sat one evening on the curbstone of a well, seven daughters of Jethro, priest Of Midian, came to water their flocks. Some rude Bedouin herdmen drove their flocks away. Moses' spirit,
PERIOD OF BONDAGE 37
so chivalrous in behalf of his oppressed brethren, was not less chivalrous in behalf of the oppressed maidens. The timely aid of this fugitive "Egyptian" proved to be a favorable introduction. He marries Zipporah, Jethro's daughter. For forty years he follows the quiet vocation of a shepherd in Midian. There he becomes familiar with the rugged country through which he is to lead his people to the promised land. At last God appears to him in the burning bush. He reveals himself as the "God Of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob," renews the covenant which played so vital a part throughout the Patriarchal period, and commissions Moses to deliver Israel. Moses, grown timid now and slow of speech, shrinks from a mission which must take him into courts and before kings. But, armed with supernatural signs as his credentials from God, and with a commission to Aaron as his spokesman, Moses returns to Egypt.
IV. THE GREAT CONTEST.
Now follows the most remarkable contest in history. Moses meets Aaron as he leaves the land of Midian. Together they go before the elders of their own people, make known their mission, and confirm it with the appointed signs. The oppressed people accept their mission, and bow reverently before the covenant God of their fathers. They were not so successful with Pharaoh. In the name of Jehovah they ask that Israel may go three days' journey into the wilderness to sacrifice for Jehovah. Well for Pharaoh, well for his people, had he granted so moderate a request. The first effect was only to rivet the chains and increase the burden. Met with stubborn refusal from Pharaoh, and bitter reproaches from his toiling brethren, Moses is at his wit's end. The ten plagues or "strokes" follow, blow upon blow: water
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turned to blood, frogs, lice, flies, murrain, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, death of the first born.
1. Nature of the Contest.-It was not merely a struggle between an enslaved race and their oppressors; a contest between Moses and Pharaoh. It was a controversy between Jehovah and the gods Of Egypt. Nearly every plague was a natural pest of Egypt; yet their miraculous character is seen from several circumstances: their intensity, their multiplication in so swift succession; they come and go at Moses' word; Israel is exempt save in the case Of the first three; and finally, nearly every one was a blow at some form of Egyptian idol worship.
2. Need of the Contest.-Remember that in all the earth one lone race held to the unity and spirituality Of God; and they were slaves in danger of losing at Once both their faith and their national identity. Numbers, wealth, culture, power, a hundred to One, were against them. A lesson was needed such as should never be lost;-and it was not lost. Egypt's idols have moldered to (lust or adorn the museums Of antiquarians; Israel's God is worshiped by the civilized world. The signs and wonders in Egypt came to fill a large place in Hebrew literature. They became so ingrained into the national consciousness that they formed One of the most effective forces that held Israel to the ancestral faith amidst the seductions of an all-embracing polytheism.
3. End of the Contest.-The last stroke falls. The death angel knocks at every door in Egypt, from palace to hovel, and the first born lie dead. But the humble homes of the Hebrews are safe. Obedient to God, they have instituted the Passover. The lamb is slain; its blood is sprinkled on the door-posts as a sign of Hebrew faith. The mysterious messenger passes harmlessly over those homes in which the paschal feast is being kept. A
PERIOD OF BONDAGE 39
great cry arises from Egypt. The fetters fall, and Israel is driven forth to freedom. One last time Pharaoh's heart is hardened. He pursues; Israel is trapped in a defile of the mountains, with the Red Sea in front of them; the sea divides; Israel passes through and is saved; the Egyptians pursue, and are overwhelmed in the sea.*
V. EFFECT OF THE SOJOURN IN EGYPT.
Bitter as was the Egyptian bondage, it accomplished important results.
1. It Made Israel a Nation.-They entered Egypt a group of twelve nomadic families. Jacob and his direct descendants numbered seventy. Including servants, the entire tribe may have numbered two or three thousand. Had they remained in Canaan, they would almost certainly have broken up into a dozen petty wandering tribes. Residence in a densely peopled land, under the heavy hand of oppression, compacted them into a nation.
2. It Civilized Them.-They left Canaan nomads. What measure of civilization they had already had we have seen above. But they could not long have continued mere shepherds in Egypt. Egypt is, and always must have been, an agricultural country. Moreover, it had been, for a thousand years, the leader in the world's intellectual life and material civilization. The Hebrews were too gifted a people not to profit by the long sojourn in such a school...Moses, especially, "was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians" (Acts 7:22); but that he had skillful lieutenants under him is evident from the account of the construction of the tabernacle (Ex. 25-40).
*For an excellent discussion of the crossing-place, see McGarvey's "Lands of the Bible," pp. 438-443.
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3. Its Closing Events Confirmed Them in the National Faith.-Had they continued permanently in Egypt, they must finally have lost both national faith and national identity. But Egypt became the blackboard on which Jehovah wrought lessons which Israel never for-got. In spite of repeated relapses into idolatry, in the long run they were true to the national faith. And now they are to return to Canaan to conquer and possess the land in which, for two hundred years, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had sojourned as pilgrims. But not at once. A few days' journey would have brought them to Canaan. But the work of organization and forty years of discipline intervene before they are fitted to possess the land of promise.
PERIOD F WANDERINGS, B. C. 1491-1451. FROM THE EXODUS TO THE CROSSING F THE JORDAN, EX. 15-40., LEV., NUM., DEUT.
I. FROM THE RED SEA TO SINAI.
(EX. 15-18.)
1. The Song of Deliverance (Ex. 15).-The emotions of Israel on the eastern shore of the Red Sea are not easily described or even realized. A humble though triumphant gratitude must have been the feeling upper-most. There was no room for pride. Their peril had been so extreme, their deliverance so complete and so completely of Jehovah that no praise but his is heard in the magnificent ode which has come down to us as one of the monuments of deliverance.*
2. The March to Rephidim.-Israel could not linger at the scene Of triumph. The national organization is to be completed at Sinai. The route thither for some distance skirts the eastern shore of the sea; the "wilderness of Shur," as the district is called to the north, and the "wilderness Of Sin" to the south. The sweetening of the waters of Marah and the encampment by Elim's twelve springs and seventy palm trees were early incidents of the march. A month has passed since the exodus. They
*On the contrast between the song of Moses and the poem of Pentaur, consult Gibson's "Mosaic Era," p. 62.
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enter the terrible Desert of Sin.* The food brought from Egypt begins to fail, and to the pangs of thirst are added the forebodings of hunger. Forgetful of past deliverances and of the sure promises of God, the people heap bitter reproaches on Moses for bringing them into the desert to die. And now began that miracle of mercy, the manna, which followed them daily through the forty years of wandering, and which Jesus uses as the beautiful symbol of himself as the bread Of heaven.
3. The Encampment at Rephidim.-Israel now left the flinty plain in the wilderness Of Sin and encamped in the valley of Rephidim. They were entering the defiles of the mountainous district known as Horeb. Here again they suffered for water. Moses smote the rock. and water flowed in abundance. Here the Amalekites made a fierce unprovoked attack. The attack was repelled by picked men under Joshua, while Aaron and Hur held up Moses' hands in prayer. Here also Moses was joined by his family, who had remained with Jethro during the great contest and exodus. Jethro aided Moses by valuable advice concerning the administration of justice.
II. THE YEAR AT SINAI.
From Rephidim, Moses led Israel to Mt. Sinai. The approach through deep defiles was well calculated to fill them with awe. They encamped at last on a level plain, in front of which the Holy Mount, like a vast granite altar, rose abruptly to a height of one thousand five hundred feet.**
1. The National Covenant (Ex. 19, 20).-The
*For a description of travel in these deserts, see Geikie's "Hours with the Bible," Vol. II., pp. 200, 201, 210, 211.
**See "Hours with the Bible," Vol. II., pp. 251-253, 261-264.
PERIOD OF WANDERINGS 43
Abrahamic covenant, so often renewed in patriarchal times, so recently renewed to Moses at the burning bush, was here solemnly renewed and expanded into a National Covenant. He who had called Abraham and cared for the patriarchs; who had heard his peoples' sighs in Egypt and redeemed them from bondage; who had led them and fed them and defended them On their journey hither, now proposes to take them into peculiar covenant relations with himself. The covenant, proffered by God through Moses, was accepted by the people, written in a book, and solemnly ratified with sacrifices and the sprinkling of blood. This covenant was expanded into the Ten Commandments, originally spoken from the summit of Sinai amid thunders and lightnings and an earth-quake. They were afterwards written by God on tab-lets of stone. They are as follows:
(1) Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
(2) Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.
(3) Thou shalt not take the name Of the Lord thy God in vain.
(4) Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
(5) Honor thy father and thy mother.
(6) Thou shalt not kill.
(7) Thou shalt not commit adultery.
(8) Thou shalt not steal.
(9) Thou shalt not bear false witness.
(10) Thou shalt not covet.
Such was the sublime code delivered at Sinai one thousand years before the Twelve Tables of Rome, and five hundred years before the laws of Lycurgus. The decalogue was still further expanded into a full body of civil and ceremonial law.
2. The National Priesthood.-In Patriarchal times the head of the family acted as priest. After the exodus,
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while the entire nation was regarded as holy, the first born were especially so (Ex. 13:2, 11-15). Later the tribe of Levi was set apart as a priestly tribe in lieu of the first born (Num. 3:5-13). The family of Aaron were consecrated as priests proper, while Aaron himself, and after him his eldest sons in perpetual succession, held the highest office in the Jewish nation, that of High Priest.
3. The National Festivals.-There were three annual festivals. They all were memorials of important events in their national history, while they were so timed as to celebrate successive phases of the harvest season.
a. The Passover, or the Feast of the Unleavened Bread, was instituted the night of the exodus, and commemorated their deliverance from bondage; while, falling on Abib 14-21 (our early April), it also celebrated the beginning of harvest. The main features were the paschal lamb, eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, and the waving of a sheaf of ripened grain in token of gratitude to the God of the harvest.
b. The Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost.-This occurred fifty clays after the Passover, and celebrated the conclusion of the grain harvest. The later Jews also regarded it as a memorial of the giving of the law, which occurred about fifty days after the first Passover. The chief religious ceremony was the offering of the first fruits in the form Of a baked loaf.
c. Feast of Tabernacles, or Ingathering.-This was kept from the fifteenth to the twenty-second of the seventh month. It was a sort of Harvest Home-a celebration of the ingathering of the fruits. It was the Jewish Thanksgiving. As a memorial of the forty years of tent life in the wilderness, they lived for a week in booths of branches.
PERIOD OF WANDERINGS 45
4. The National Sanctuary.-During the year at Sinai the tabernacle was built. It was a small portable temple, fifteen by forty-five feet. The "holy place," fifteen by thirty feet, contained the altar of incense, table of shew bread, and the seven branched lamp, all Of gold. The "Holy Of Holies" was a cube of fifteen feet, and contained no furniture save the sacred ark in which were placed the tables of the law, the pot of manna, and Aaron's rod that budded. Into the Holy of Holies no one entered save the High Priest, and he Only on the great day of atonement, when he made the annual offering for the sins Of the people. In the open court around the tabernacle were placed the altar of burnt offering and the laver. The tabernacle was carried with them during the wilderness wanderings, and afterwards set up at Shiloh, which continued to be the seat of national worship for over four hundred years, till the building Of Solomon's temple.
5. The National Sacrifices.-The central features of Hebrew worship were the sacrifices. These might be either animals or fruits of the land. Of animal sacrifices there were three main classes:
a. Burnt Offerings.-These were offered daily, morning and evening; were wholly consumed, and were symbolical Of entire dedication to God.
b. Peace Offerings.-The characteristic Of these was the reservation of a portion of the sacrifice for a feast to which the Offerer might invite his friends. They were expressive Of fellowship, communion with God, and were sometimes offered in vast numbers.
c. Sin Offerings.-These might be individual or national. In any case, the sacrifice consisted of a single victim. A portion was consumed on the altar; a portion might be eaten by the priest, but the vessel in which it
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was cooked must be afterwards scoured, if metal, or broken, if earthen. The entrails, etc., were burned with-out the camp. The ritual of the sin offering was intended to impress the lesson of the defilement of sin.
6. The National Apostasy.-At the foot of Sinai occurred the first violation Of the national covenant. In Moses' absence on the Mount the people clamored for gods to go before them. Aaron yielded. In imitation of Egyptian calf worship he cast a golden calf, and Israel engaged in an idolatrous feast. It was a direct violation of the second commandment. Moses returned with the stone tablets in his hand. As they had broken the covenant, he broke the tables on which it was written. Through his intercession the people were restored, though not till three thousand of them had fallen victims to the penalty of their crime; the covenant was renewed and new tables were prepared.
III. FROM SINAI TO KADESH.
1. The Census.-Before breaking camp at Sinai a census of the tribes was taken. Thirty-eight years later, at the close of the wanderings, a second census was taken. It is this double census which gives its name to the Book of Numbers.
2. The March to Kadesh.-From Sinai, one year after the exodus, Israel marched to Kadesh on the southern edge Of Canaan. The route lay over a wearisome desert. At Taberah the people broke out into bitter murmurs, and were consumed with fire. Before resuming the march, instigated by the mixed multitude who accompanied them, Israel loathed the manna, and longed for the food of Egypt. Quails were sent in vast numbers; but with them came a plague of which multitudes perished, and the camp Taberah (burning) became
PERIOD OF WANDERINGS 47
known as Kibroth-hattaavah (graves of lust). Another painful incident of the march was the sedition of Aaron and Miriam. Miriam was smitten with leprosy, but re-stored at the intercession of Moses.
3. The Break-down of Faith.-From Kadesh twelve spies were sent to explore the land. They returned unanimous in praise Of the land, and bearing luscious fruits as proofs of its fertility. But all save Caleb and Joshua reported the task of conquest as hopeless. The nation's faith utterly broke down. They proposed to elect an-other leader, and return to Egypt. Caleb and Joshua, who sought to encourage them, narrowly escaped stoning. Often before had their faith weakened and wavered; never before had they deliberately turned their backs on the land of promise, and their faces toward the house of bondage. It was the climax of unbelief (Heb. 3:19). For thirty-eight years longer was the unbelieving generation sentenced to wander, till one by one their bones lay bleaching in the wilderness. Caleb and Joshua alone survived to enter Canaan. These thirty-eight years are almost a blank. The punishment Of a Sabbath breaker, the rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, and the confirmation of Aaron's authority as High Priest by the budding of his rod, are incidents of this period. At its close Israel gather again at Kadesh for the final advance to Canaan.
IV. FROM KADESH TO THE JORDAN.
At the second sojourn at Kadesh, Moses and Aaron sin at the second smiting of the rock, and are not permitted to enter the promised land. Here Miriam dies. The Edomites, descendants of Esau, refuse a passage through their territory, and Israel makes a long detour to the south, touching the eastern fork of the Red Sea.
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On the way Aaron dies, and is buried at Mt. Hor. A pest of serpents is sent as the penalty for a new Out-break of unbelief. Moses lifts up the brazen serpent, a means of healing, and a typo Of Christ On the cross. Israel conquers Og and Sihon, powerful Amorite chiefs east Of the Jordan. The tribes of Reuben, Gad and half of Manasseh settle in their territory. The king of Moab, alarmed at the victorious progress of Israel, bribes a renowned seer named Balaam to curse them. His curses are turned every time to blessings On his lips. But he accomplishes indirectly what he could not do directly. He involves Israel in sin with Moab and Midian, and thousands of God's people fall in the plague which is sent as the penalty. But at last, despite all the perils of barren deserts, fierce foes and their Own unbelief, Israel encamps beside the Jordan On the eastern side. Moses delivers his farewell address, comprising the greater part of Deuteronomy. From the summit Of Pisgah, east of the Dead Sea, he is given a vision of the promised land. There he dies, and is buried in an unknown sepulcher. His work was done. He had redeemed his people, trans-formed a race of slaves into an organized nation, and led them to the gates of the promised land. Together he lays down his mission and his life.
PERIOD OF CONQUEST, B. C. 1451-1400. FROM THE CROSSING OF THE JORDAN TO THE DEATH OF JOSHUA, JOSH. 1-24.
I. PASSAGE OF THE JORDAN.
1. The New Leader.-Moses left Israel encamped east of the Jordan. The victories over Sihon and Og had secured the table land east of the river. Canaan proper lay west Of the Jordan; a mountainous country crowded with a warlike people in walled cities. It was no light task that lay before them. Great epochs call for great men. Israel never had a second Moses. But new Occasions call for new men. God who gave Moses for the work Of deliverance and Organization, now gives Joshua for the work of conquest and settlement.
2. The Jordan Divided.-Israel had come to the Red Sea with a powerful foe pressing them in the rear. They came to the Jordan with powerful foes confronting them. Here, as at the sea, a signal miracle served to inspire them with faith, both in God and their leader. It was the time of harvest. The melting snows Of Mt. Lebanon flooded the lowlands of the Jordan. There were neither boats nor bridges. But as the priests, bearing the sacred ark, stepped into the river's edge, the waters parted and Israel marched through the empty bed. Two stone memorials were erected, One in the river bed, the other at Gilgal, where they camped that night.
3. The Encampment at Gilgal.-Here the rite of
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circumcision, omitted during the wanderings, was renewed, and the reproach of their unbelief and its penalty was rolled away; hence the name Gilgal. Here also, the Passover was once more celebrated, as it had been the night of the exodus. Then the Egyptians were awed by the presence Of the death angel as he passed through the land; now the Canaanites are cowering in fear behind the walls of Jericho. Here also the manna ceased; and either here, Or at another Gilgal near Bethel, Israel remained encamped until Canaan was so far conquered as to be divided among the tribes.
II. THE CAPTURE OF JERICHO.
Before crossing the Jordan Joshua had sent spies to reconnoiter the enemy's strongholds. A woman of Jericho named Rahab, with a firm faith in the future of God's people, had concealed the spies and been assured of safety for her house on the capture of the city. During the encampment of Gilgal Joshua received his commission, as Moses had received his. God appeared, however, not in the burning bush, but with a drawn sword, significant of the work of conquest. But that the work was to be God's rather than man's was manifest from the outset in the means chosen for the capture of Jericho. Jericho stood near the point of crossing. It was the gateway of Canaan. It must not be left behind. Israel had no engines with which to batter down its walls. At God's command they marched around it six days in succession, bearing the sacred ark, and seven times the seventh day, when, with a blast on their trumpets and a mighty shout, the walls fell and Jericho was theirs. It was JEHOVAH who broke the yoke of Egypt, opened a way through the sea, fed them and led them in the wilderness, gave them his law and parted for them
PERIOD OF CONQUEST 51
the river Jordan. And it was JEHOVAH who dispossessed the corrupt Canaanites and fulfilled his covenant to his covenant people by giving them the land of promise.
III. THE CONQUEST OF CENTRAL CANAAN.
1. Capture of Ai.-Ai was the key to Central Canaan. Israel was beaten at the first attack. The cause was found in the sin of Achan, who had appropriated a wedge of gold, some silver money and a Babylonish mantle out Of the spoils of Jericho. It was no time for selfish greed; and Achan atoned for his sin with his life. A second attack gave Ai and all Central Canaan to Israel.
2. The Assembly of Shechem.-Israel are now in the heart Of the land. The footprints of the patriarchs are all around them. At Shechem, Abraham first pitched his tent and reared his altar. At Bethel, hard by, the fugitive Jacob had had his vision and erected his memorial. At Shechem he had sojourned after his return from exile, and had buried the relics of idolatry brought by his family from Mesopotamia. And now that by divine power the divine covenant has been fulfilled, it is fitting that there shall be a solemn renewal and memorial of the covenant. Hence, in accordance with the previous directions of Moses (Deut. 27). a solemn assembly is held at Shechem. Shechem lies in a narrow valley between Mt. Ebal on the north and Mt. Gerizim on the south. In the valley between stood the Levites. As they pronounced the blessings upon obedience six of the tribes on Gerizim responded "Amen"; as they uttered the curses upon disobedience the other six tribes shouted their "Amen" from Ebal. Then a memorial inscribed with the law was erected, and a sacrificial feast was celebrated.
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IV. CONFEDERACY AND CONQUEST OF THE SOUTH.
1. Their League with the Gibeonites.-During the years of conquest the main camp of Israel seems to have been at a Gilgal, situated in Central Canaan. Soon after the fall Of Ai, messengers from Gibeon, a city just south of Ai, came to Joshua claiming to be from a distant country, and proposing a league providing for their own preservation. Joshua consented. On learning of the deception, he sacredly kept the covenant not to destroy them, but made them "hewers of wood and drawers of water" to the Israelites.
2. The Battle of Beth-horon.-The league with Gibeon led the cities of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmouth, Lachish and Eglon, lying to the south, to form an alliance both defensive and offensive. They attacked Gibeon, which appealed to Joshua. He made a night march, attacked the confederates, and defeated them in the great battle of Beth-horon. This was the famous "long day" on which, according to an ancient poem (Josh. 10:12, 13), the sun and moon stood still at the command of Joshua.
V. CONFEDERACY AND CONQUEST OF THE NORTH.
One more combined effort was made by the Canaanites. Jabin, a powerful chief of Hazor in the north, headed a confederacy which Joshua defeated at the waters Of Merom. This ended combined resistance. The struggle died down into petty local contests as the several tribes completed the conquest in detail. This work was not done with the thoroughness which God enjoined, and which was so essential to the purpose of their national life. Their peril lay in leagues of amity and intermarriages. Their only safety and that of pure religion was
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in their complete isolation. The failure to expel the Canaanites is the key to the condition in the next period.
VI. DIVISION OF THE LAND AND DEATH OF JOSHUA.
1. Division of the Land.-Having rendered united resistance impossible, Joshua proceeded to divide the land by lot among the twelve tribes. In the allotment of land the Levites were not counted a tribe, but they received forty-eight cities distributed throughout Canaan. Among these were the six cities Of Refuge, viz., Golan, Ramoth-gilead and Bezer east, and Kedesh, Shechem and Hebron west Of the Jordan. Jacob had adopted Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, as his own, thus making twelve tribes without Levi. They are Reuben, Simeon, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Ephraim, Manasseh and Benjamin.
2. Farewell and Death of Joshua.-Joshua long out-lived the generation that witnessed the wonders in Egypt and at the Red Sea. With the exception of Caleb and Joshua they fell in the wilderness, while he lived to the age of one hundred and ten years. Loyal to the last to Jehovah and the covenant, he Once more calls a solemn assembly Of the tribes at historic Shechem. There he reviews their history, and warns them Of the dangers of apostasy. "Choose ye this day whom ye will serve: but as for me and my house we will serve Jehovah"; such the noble words with which he seeks to commit them and his own house anew to the service of God. Then erecting a stone memorial of this renewal Of the national covenant he dismisses the assembly and is soon after gathered to his fathers.
PERIOD OF JUDGES, B. C. 1400-1095. FROM THE DEATH OF JOSHUA TO THE ANOINTING OF SAUL, JUDGES, RUTH, 11 SAM. 1-10.
I. RELIGIOUS STATE.
The religious condition of Israel may be thus summarized:
1. A Series of Relapses into Idolatry.-The causes are to be found in
a. Their Idolatrous Ancestry (cf. Gen. 31:19; 35:2; Josh. 24:2-14).-Abraham had abandoned idolatry, but by Jacob's marriage it had re-entered the family life; and, although Jacob buried the idols, some traces of it probably continued.
b. Their Egyptian Bondage (cf. Ex. 32:21-34; Josh. 24:14): Israel must have been deeply tinged with idolatry to have fallen so soon and so low at the very foot of Mt. Sinai; and Joshua's address is conclusive evidence that the discipline of the wilderness did not wholly eradicate it.
c. The Contamination of Canaanite Tribes.-Canaan was the center of the most debasing religion of the times. Carthage, Greece and Rome drew thence the licentious features of their religions. Hence the divine edict to either expel or exterminate the Canaanites. It was Israel's only safety. The iniquity of the Amorites was full. The failure to obey the edict, and the intermarriages
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which followed, were a perpetual menace to pure religion.
2. A Series of Consequent Oppressions.-These oppressions by neighboring tribes were a natural result. The morally weak became politically weak. They were also disciplinary judgments. Again and again, scourged into contrition by Moabites, Or Midianites, or Philistines, Israel turned from the idolatry of their oppressors to the worship of Jehovah. In the long run the purer faith won.
3. A Series of Deliverers called Judges.-These were not ideal men. They fall far below the heroes of Christian faith. Often superstitious, passionate, morally weak, they yet believed in God. In such times that was much. They rose above the level of their age, as Paul or Luther did above theirs, and so deserve a place in the roll of heroes of faith. Furthermore, they were patriots. In an age of intense tribal and local jealousy, they rose to larger patriotism. They were the Tells, Wallaces and Washingtons of their time.
II. POLITICAL CONDITION.
Politically there was no national organization, national capital, or national head. Moses gave a religious system, but no well-defined political polity. They were twelve tribes, sometimes uniting for the common defense, some-times wrangling almost to the point of mutual extermination. Their condition has been compared to that of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy before the union under Egbert. Three ties, however, held them from breaking up into a dozen petty nations, viz.:
a. A Common Ancestry and History.-Abraham was the founder of the race; they shared equally in their reverence for Isaac and Jacob; while the luster of such
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names as those of Joseph, and Moses, and Joshua, and the glories of the Red Sea, the Jordan, and the Conquest were a national heritage.
b. A Common Language, the Hebrew.-There are traces of different dialects, but the differences could hardly have been so great as existed in England, in Alfred's time.
c. A Common Religion.-The tabernacle had been set up at Shiloh. There was the one altar. There dwelt the High Priest of the nation. There the national sacrifices were Offered up daily. Thither went the representatives Of the tribes to the three great annual feasts. Such were the centripetal forces at work. The Greeks had similar ties; but geographical conditions early developed so intense an individualism, that they never coalesced to form a nation. These ties held the Hebrews till they found in the prophet Samuel and in King David the sub-lime faith and the genius for political organization to weld them into a nation.
III. THE SIX PRINCIPAL INVASIONS.
During this wild but formative period of national life, there were six principal invasions from without. As we have already seen they came as a natural result of, and a divine judgment for, national apostasies. "The children of Israel (lid evil in the sight of the Lord"; "The children of Israel cried unto the Lord"-such are the alternate sentences, ten times repeated in the Book of Judges, which clothe the history with its moral significance. It is all as intensely human as a chapter in the history of the Crusades, or of the Norman Conquest; but its supreme significance lies in the discipline through which Israel came at last to be a nation whose God was Jehovah.
PERIOD OF JUDGES 57
1. The Mesopotamian Invasion from the East.-In Abraham's time we have seen the lords of the Euphrates extending their empire to the Jordan and carrying off Lot. Five hundred years have passed. Another lord of the great valley heads another western invasion. Eight years Israel groans under the yoke when Othniel, Caleb's nephew, rouses them to resistance and drives the invaders back to the Euphrates.
2. The Moabite Invasion from the Southeast.-The Moabites, descendants Of Lot, dwelt east of the Dead Sea. Under Eglon they subdued the southeastern tribes, and even crossed the Jordan and held Jericho eighteen years. Ehud, a Benjamite, went to carry the tribute of the tribes to Eglon at Jericho. In a secret interview he stabbed the king, escaped to the western mountains, raised an army, seized the fords Of the Jordan, and in a pitched battle slew ten thousand Moabites. This gave peace, to that part of the land at least, for eighty years.
3. Canaanite Invasion from the North.-Joshua had defeated a northern confederacy, headed by Jabin, at Lake Merom. Under a later Jabin these northern Canaanites rallied and oppressed the northern tribes for twenty years. At last Deborah, a prophetess of rare faith and courage, stirred up Barak, of the tribe of Naphtali. Collecting an army of ten thousand men, he won a great victory in the plain of Esdraelon. Sisera, the Canaanite captain, fled on foot, and sought refuge in the tent of Jael, wife Of Heber the Kenite, a descendant of Jethro, Moses' father-in-law. Jael proved the Charlotte Corday of her time, and drove a tent pin through the temple of the sleeping Sisera. The victory was celebrated by Deborah in an eloquent battle song (Judg. 5).
4. Invasion of the Midianites from the East.-The
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Midianites were Arabs, descendants of Abraham by his wife Keturah. They did not settle down in the land, but swept over it at harvest time, loaded themselves with booty, and were away. So terrible were their raids that Israel took to the hills, to walled cities, and even to caves. God raised up a deliverer in Gideon, of the tribe of Manasseh. He began at home by destroying Baal worship in his father's house and village. He then collected an army of thirty-two thousand men, reduced it to ten thousand by permitting the faint-hearted to go home; still farther reduced it to three hundred by choosing those that warily took water in their hands and lapped. With this little band he made a night attack and routed the Midianites with great slaughter, pursuing them to the edge of the eastern desert. Both victories, that of Barak and that of Gideon, were won by northern tribes. The powerful central tribe of Ephraim was chagrined at its small share in these glories; and Gideon allayed their jealousy only by a clever stroke of flattery (Judg. 8:1-3). Gideon became the hero of the hour. He was offered but declined the crown. His more ambitious but less worthy son, Abimelech, slew all his brothers but one, and won a short-lived local kingship at Shechem. He lost both crown and life while quelling a revolt.
5. Invasion of the Ammonites from the East.-The Ammonites, like the Moabites, descended from Lot. At the conquest of the country east of the Jordan they had been crowded into the eastern desert. They soon began to press back upon the eastern tribes. Jephthah became the instrument of deliverance. He was a low-born, disinherited outlaw, but was recalled, reinstated, and placed at the head of the forces raised to expel the Ammonites. Before going forth to battle, he vowed, if successful, to offer up to Jehovah whatever should first meet him on
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his return to his home. He won the battle, was met by his only daughter, and, on her, fulfilled his vow.
6. Invasion of the Philistines from the Southwest.-The Philistines were an aggressive commercial people on the Mediterranean. They were rivals of the Phoenicians, and at one time captured Sidon, which thenceforth sank to a place in Phoenicia second to Tyre. The Philistines were the most inveterate foes of Israel, harassing them all through the period of the Judges, and even into the period of the monarchy until effectually broken by David. The southern tribes, Simeon, Dan and Judah were especially exposed to their attacks. The last, and in some respects, the most remarkable of these military heroes, was Samson, of the tribe of Dan. He was a born Nazarite, i.e., pledged by his mother to eat nothing unclean, use no fruit of the vine, and never to shave his head. He was the Hebrew Hercules, delighting in deeds of superhuman strength, often fantastic, but always patriotic. From his home among the southwestern hills, he made frequent forays against the Philistines, always single-handed and alone. Two successive marriages with Philistine women afforded the opportunity, both for his successes and his final fall; for Samson was a giant weakling. Yielding to the entreaties of Delilah, he discloses the secret of his strength, and, in violation of his Nazarite vow, allows his hair to be cut. It was a humiliating spectacle, that of Samson, at whose name all Philistia trembled, with his head in Delilah's lap. He went forth from her presence, disowned of God, a prey to his foes. Blinded, imprisoned, doomed to a woman's servile work at the mill, he has an opportunity to renew his vow and regain his strength. Brought out at a feast of the Philistines to their god Dagon to amuse the populace, like the Swiss Winkleried he devotes his life to his country's
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liberation. Pulling down the central pillars of the temple, he buries himself in the living tomb of thousands of his foes. The power of Philistia was not broken; but his exploits went far to rekindle Israel's courage and make possible the more permanent work of Samuel and David.
IV. THE STORY OF RUTH.
Sometime during the period of Judges occur the incidents narrated in the Book of Ruth. It is the one sweet restful story of the time. The book needs to be read entire. Elimelech and Naomi lived at Bethlehem. Famine, caused, perhaps, by one of the many invasions, led them to migrate to the land Of Moab. There their sons married. Ten years pass, and the three women are childless widows. Naomi turns her face homeward. Both the younger women set out with her. Naomi, feeling how lone a life these daughters Of an alien race must lead in a strange land, strives to dissuade them. Orpah falters, then turns back. Ruth replies in language which has become classic (Ruth 11:16, 17). Such faith and devotion did not go unrewarded. On reaching Bethlehem, Ruth gleans in the fields of Boaz, her husband's kin. Instructed by Naomi, she claims the kinswoman's right of marriage to perpetuate her husband's name and inheritance; and so she becomes the honored ancestress of David, and Mary, and JESUS.
V. SAMUEL, THE PROPHET-JUDGE.
(I SAM. 1-10.)
Samuel is the most important character between Moses and David. He was both the Luther and the John the Baptist of his time. His entire career, from his birth to his death, lifts us above the low levels Of the period. The childless Hannah, with a Hebrew mother's
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longing for children, asked him of God, and gave him back to God. Thus he was reared in the tabernacle at Shiloh.
The high priest, Eli, was also the "judge" at this time. He was the first to unite the two offices in one person. The aged Eli, though personally pure, suffered the gross sins of his sons to pass unrestrained. Through the child Samuel, God revealed the doom of Eli's house. It came to pass at the famous battle of Aphek, where the Philistines slew Eli's sons and captured the ark. Eli himself fell dead at the news. The years of darkness that follow are relieved with the increasing hope that Samuel is called to be a prophet of God. Samuel's great work may be summed up thus:
(1) He brought about a great national reform, renewing the covenant and bringing the people back to the worship of Jehovah.
(2) Attacked by the Philistines, he won such a victory at Ebenezer that they never renewed the attack in his judgeship.
(3) He Organized the schools of the prophets.
(4) He "judged" Israel throughout his life.
(5) He prepared the way for and introduced the monarchy, anointing Saul, and after his rejection, anointing David. Thus Samuel belongs to the transition period from the Judges to the Monarchy. He is the last and the greatest of the Judges, and the first of the great line of Hebrew Prophets after Moses.
THE UNITED KINGDOM, B. C. 1095-975. FROM THE ANOINTING OF SAUL TO THE ACCESSION OF REHOBOAM, 1 SAM. 11-31; 2 SAM., 11 KINGS 1-II.
I. INTRODUCTORY-THE THEOCRACY.
1. The Original Form.-Israel were really a kingdom from the organization of the nation at Sinai. They were a Theocracy, a kingdom of God. Though God was to be their real King, Moses was at first, and in some sense the High Priests of the Judges was afterward were, God's representatives to the nation. Yet an earthly king seems to have been contemplated from the first. Kings were to be among Abraham's seed (Gen 17:16). Moses laid down the law for the king (Dent. 17:14-20).
Moreover, the earthly king supplied the most splendid type of the promised "seed" of Abraham, who was to bless all nations; hence, in later prophecy, the Messiah is to be of David's line, and sit on David's throne.
2. The Transition to Monarchy.-Late in Samuel's life the people petition for a king. (See 11 Sam. 8). They urge two reasons: the unfitness of Samuel's sons to succeed him as Judges, and their desire for a king to lead them in war like the nations around them. Doubtless other reasons were the growing anarchy under the Judges and the increasing aggressiveness of the nations about them.
The petition cut Samuel to the heart; partly because
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of its apparent ingratitude to him, but chiefly because of its manifest disloyalty to Jehovah as their real sovereign. Their sin, however, lay in the motive rather than in the act; and he is instructed by God to yield, and with a sub-lime fidelity to Jehovah, he takes the step which sets him-self aside and ushers in the monarchy.
II. THE REIGN OF SAUL.
(B. C. 1095-1055. I SAM. 11-31.)
1. Saul's Election.-a. His Private Anointing.-Saul was the son of Kish Of the little tribe of Benjamin. Going one day in search Of his father's asses, he calls on the Prophet Samuel. The result of the interview is that Samuel by divine direction anoints Saul to be king.
b. His Public Election.-Soon after Samuel summons a national assembly at Mizpah. They proceed to an election by the sacred lot. The lot falls on Saul, who modestly hides in the baggage. When brought forth his magnificent stature awakens great enthusiasm. Some, however, sneer at him as a "nobody." Saul passes the slight by in silence, and wisely waits an opportunity to win recognition by some kingly deed.
c. The Defeat of the Ammonites.-His opportunity quickly came. The Ammonites besieged Jabesh-gilead. In dire straits its people appealed to Saul. Hewing a yoke of oxen into twelve pieces he sent a piece to each tribe, and ordered an instant muster Of fighting men on pain of like treatment of their oxen. Israel responded to the number of three hundred thousand men, and Saul, falling suddenly on the foe, scattered them like chaff.
d. The Coronation at Gilgal.-Saul's victory silenced opposition, and, at another assembly of the tribes held at Gilgal, he was triumphantly crowned king of Israel.
2. Saul's Reign till His Rejection.-a. The War of
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Independence.-Under Samuel Israel had won a victory over the Philistines at Ebenezer, but had never wholly thrown off their dependence; and recently, by disarming the Israelites, the Philistines had sought to rivet the fetters more tightly than ever. As soon as he felt himself secure on his throne, Saul resolved to end this humiliating dependence. The most memorable event of the war was the victory at Michmash. Saul's son, Jonathan, with his armor bearer, climbed up some cliffs, made a sudden assault on the Philistines and threw them into confusion. Saul followed up the advantage and drove them in a panic down to the maritime plain.
b. Saul's Other Wars.-Numerous nations were pressing Israel on every side, and Saul waged successful wars against Moab, Ammon, Edom and Zobah, a Syrian kingdom in the northeast.
c. Saul's Rejection.-Saul, like many a man since, degenerated iii office. He forgot that he was only the earthly representative of Israel's real King. He became disloyal to Jehovah, self-willed, disobedient. Sent to destroy Amalek, he saved King Agag as a trophy, and the best of the sheep and cattle for a splendid sacrifice to Jehovah. From that day of disobedience he was disowned of God and abandoned by Samuel.
3. The Decline of Saul and Rise of David.-The remainder of Saul's reign falls properly within the history of David. David is privately anointed to be king by Samuel; summoned as minstrel to Saul's court to soothe the king's melancholy; in a later war with the Philistines kills the giant Goliath; awakens the admiration of the people and the insane jealousy Of Saul. Twice Saul tries to kill David with his own hand; seeks to ensnare him by offering his daughter in marriage, and finally drives him into an outlaw life and for several years hunts him
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from one hiding place to another. In a new war with the Philistines, Saul, abandoned of God, resorts to the witch of Endor to learn his fortunes in an impending battle. The next day at the battle of Gilboa, Israel is beaten, Saul's sons slain and Saul himself, like Brutus and Cassius at Philippi, dies by his own sword. So sets in gloom on Gilboa the sun which rose in splendor at Jabesh-gilead.
4. Characteristics of Saul's Reign.-Saul was not a builder of cities, a political organizer, a patron of literature, or a promoter of true religion. He was a military genius, and did much, at a time when the nation was in danger of overthrow, to give it military standing among its neighbors. As such, he was a man after the people's heart. But he grew too self-willed, too disloyal to Jehovah to fulfill God's purpose in the Theocracy, and was removed to make way for one who would be true to the national ideal, the man after God's own heart.
III. LIFE AND REIGN OF DAVID.
(B. C. 1055-1015. 1 SAM. 6-31; 2 SAM.; 1 KINGS 1-11:11; 1 CHRON. 11-29.)
David's Place in History.-Abraham, Moses, David-these are the three great names in Old Testament history. Abraham was the Founder, Moses the Law-giver; while David was preeminently the King. His reign marks the climax in national power and prosperity. But David was more than king; he was the Poet of his people. Next to Moses, David's life and writings occupy the largest place in Hebrew literature. Indeed, of his personal history we know far more than of any other Old Testament character. The events of his life and reign may be grouped under five epochs, viz.:
1. Epoch I.-Shepherd Life at Bethlehem. a.
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Birthplace and Family.-David was the son of Jesse and great-grandson of Boaz and Ruth. The tribe of Judah, to which he belonged, though designated in Jacob's Patriarchal blessing (Gen. 49:8-12) as the royal tribe, had as yet done little to distinguish itself. David was born at Bethlehem, a village insignificant in itself, yet forever sacred, not only as his own early home, but far more as the birthplace of his greater Son.
b. His occupation.-David was a shepherd, a humble yet honorable calling, and one which called for courage and watchfulness. Among the recorded exploits of his youth was the slaying of a lion and a bear in defense of his flock. Many of his Psalms bear the traces of his outdoor shepherd life.
c. His Private Anointing.-After Saul's rejection, Samuel was sent to anoint a son of Jesse to succeed him. He was impressed with the appearance of the eldest, Eliab. Even Samuel seems to have forgotten for the moment that not majesty of appearance, but integrity of heart fits men for high trusts. Saul had been a man after the people's heart, imposing in appearance, a military hero, and little more. One by one Jesse's sons pass in review only to be rejected, till David is reached. He is the man "after God's own heart," who will be loyal to Jehovah as Israel's real king. The anointing was private, and probably not fully understood even in the family.
d. Minstrel to Saul.-The Spirit of the "Lord came upon David from that clay forward." "The spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him" (1 Sam. 16:13, 14). Such is the expressive record which follows the account of David's anointing. According to a custom, common in ancient times, Saul's courtiers sought to quiet his troubled and darkened spirit with music. The young David, already
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famous as a musician, was summoned as minstrel to the king's court. His presence at court, however, seems to have been only temporary, or, perhaps, occasional, as we soon meet him again with his father's flocks.
e. David's Battle with Goliath.-Saul was soon engaged in another Philistine war. For forty days a huge giant named Goliath had offered to stake the issues of war on single combat, but Israel had no champion who dared pick up the gage of battle. The youthful David, sent on some errand to his brothers in the army, accepted the challenge, and with no weapon but his sling and no armor but faith in Jehovah, vanquished the braggart Philistine. A general engagement, with victory for Israel, followed. David's daring deed had two results: it knit the soul of Jonathan, Saul's son, to David in tender, enduring friendship, and led to David's becoming a member of Saul's military household.
2. Epoch II.-David's Life at Saul's Court. a. Saul's Jealousy.-On the return of the army from the war the women went out in triumphal procession singing, "Saul bath slain his thousands and David his ten thousands." Saul knew himself to be a rejected king, and doubtless began to suspect that David was the coming man. "And Saul eyed David from that day for-ward."
David bore himself modestly, but his growing popularity fanned the flame of Saul's jealousy. Saul made repeated attempts to kill David; twice with his own hands, once urging his courtiers to kill him; seeking to ensnare him by giving him his daughter, Michal, in marriage and requiring the slaughter of one hundred Philistines as a dowry. Throughout this trying period, Jonathan steadfastly befriended David, but finally be-came convinced that his father had formed a settled
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purpose to kill him, and generously aided him to escape.
3. Epoch III.-David's Outlaw Life.-For several years David was an Outlaw hunted by Saul, betrayed by people whom he had befriended, safe nowhere. Like Joseph, like Alfred the Great, like Robert Bruce, he was trained for the throne in the school Of adversity. After fleeing from Saul's court, David visited Nob, where the Tabernacle seems to have been located, and was fed by the priests with the shew bread and armed with Goliath's sword. He continued his flight to Gath, a Philistine city, the former home Of his old antagonist, Goliath. Even there he is not safe, for the Philistines soon discover his identity, and he hides himself in the cave of Adullam in western Judah. Soon a company of bold spirits gathered around, and he became the leader of an outlaw band. Taking his aged parents across the Jordan to the land of Moab for safety, he returns to the wild hill country skirting the western edge of the Dead Sea. Saul hunts him from one stronghold to another. Twice Saul is in David's power; but David magnanimously spares his life. He will not lift up his hand against the Lord's anointed. Though king himself by right Of divine election and anointing, he will bide God's time. Sometime during this period occurred the last touching interview between David and Jonathan. Circumstances made them natural rivals; but no rivalry could endanger the friendship Of two souls so heroic. Once more David resorts to the Philistines. Achish, their king, receives him kindly, but he is distrusted by the Philistine lords: and, in their last war with Saul, their jealousy of David relieves him from a painful dilemma, as Achish wished him to take part against his own countrymen. Finally, Saul's defeat and death at Gilboa opened the way for David to the throne.
4. Epoch IV.-King Over Judah; Civil War.-
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What kind of a king will this freebooter make? One of the vulgar sort, taking vengeance on personal foes, enriching himself by wholesale confiscations? Not such was the "man after God's own heart." The magnanimity and self-control which marked him as Outlaw and exile still characterized him as king. He dealt generously with his late rival, executing a lying Amalekite who hoped to win a reward by claiming to have slain Saul On the battlefield. He also composed a tender elegy On Saul and Jonathan. During his outlaw life David had so borne himself as to win the confidence of the leaders of his Own tribe of Judah, and they now promptly recognized him as king. Hebron was an Old ancestral city of the Patriarchal times. There Abraham had lived; there Isaac was born, and there, in the cave Of Machpelah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Leah lay buried. It was also at the time of the Conquest one of the royal cities Of the Canaanites. Here David fixed his capital; here he was publicly anointed by the men of Judah, and here for over seven years he reigned over the one tribe. The other tribes adhered to Saul's son, Ishbosheth. He was a weakling, a mere figure-head. His general, Abner, was the master-spirit of his cause. Mahanaim, east of the Jordan, was chosen as their capital, and for seven years with eleven tribes at their back they maintained a rival kingdom. After seven years of civil war Ishbosheth quarreled with his general, Abner, who at once made overtures to David to bring all the tribes under his rule. Before it was brought about Abner was foully assassinated by David's general, Joab, who seems to have been jealous of Abner. With Abner's death the rival kingdom collapsed, and David was triumphantly crowned king of all Israel.
5. Epoch V.-King Over all Israel.-David was a
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second time publicly anointed at Hebron. His reign of thirty-three years over all the tribes falls naturally into two divisions or periods.
a. Period of Increasing Prosperity and Power.-This was also a period of marked fidelity to God. David's first step was to select a more central capital. Jebus or Jerusalem was an old Canaanite capital. Twice since the Conquest-once in the days of Joshua, and once in the period of the Judges-the city had been captured; but the Jebusites continued to hold the citadel, and therefore to control the city. David at once reduced it to subjection, transferred thither the ark, thus making it the religious as well as the political capital. From David's day it has been the city of all cities to the Hebrews. But he did not stop with the subjugation of this fragment of a Canaanite tribe. Great as Saul was in war, David was far greater. He pushed his conquests in every direction over the Philistines and Edomites and Moabites and Ammonites and Syrians, till every nation from Egypt to the Euphrates owned his authority. Phoenicia retained its independence, and with its king, Hiram, made a friendly alliance. Thus the covenant promise to Abraham was fulfilled in its largest geographical extent in the empire of David.
b. Period of Decline.-Great as David was, he was not above temptation. Forming a guilty attachment for Bathsheba, wife of Uriah, an army officer, he had him exposed to death in battle, and married Bathsheba. The Prophet Nathan confronted the king with his crime, and by the parable of the ewe lamb made him realize its enormity. The fifty-first Psalm is the ripened expression of David's repentance. But no repentance could avert the consequences of his crime. From that day David's sky was clouded with domestic misfortunes. One son
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murders another for a wrong to his sister. His darling Absalom perishes in a revolt which nearly cost the king his throne and his life. His trusted general, Joab, is concerned in the conspiracy of the oldest son, Adonijah; and to secure the succession of Solomon, David has him crowned. His own death soon followed, after a reign of forty years.
6. Characteristics of David's Reign.-David's reign was the most glorious in Hebrew history. Solomon's surpassed it in outward splendor, but in vigor and the best elements of prosperity, David's reign marks the climax.
a. It was a Military Reign.-Egypt and Assyria had declined at this period, leaving the lesser nations of western Asia to themselves. The only safety lay in supremacy. The brilliant successes of Saul's earlier years were eclipsed by David's victorious campaigns, and from Egypt to the Euphrates, David's empire rose to overshadowing greatness.
b. It was an Age of Internal Improvement.-David was a born ruler of men, a natural organizer. He organized the political administration and industrial forces of the kingdom; introduced useful and ornamental arts; built storehouses and castles; above all, he enlarged and fortified Jerusalem, built there a royal palace, and made the "city of David" the pride of the nation.
c. It was a Literary Reign.-The finest poems in the Bible are the Psalms, and the best of the Psalms are David's. But David was not the only author, nor poetry the only form of literature, as we shall see further along. Above all
d. It was a Religious Reign.-Despite his one dark crime, David was at heart a deeply religious man. The current of his life was right. Faith in God, loyalty to
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God, gratitude to God-these are the traits which most distinguished him from every other king, and which he powerfully impressed upon the nation. He transferred the sacred ark from Kirjath-jearim, where it had remained since its capture and return by the Philistines, to Jerusalem. He organized and quickened the religious life Of the nation, bringing it up to the highest level it ever attained. He made preparations for the temple which he was restrained from building Only by the prohibition of God. In enthusiastic devotion to the worship Of the one true God, David furnished the model for all later kings. "He walked in the ways of David"; "He walked not in the ways of David"; such is the formula with which the historian eulogizes Or condemns David's successors. He also furnished the highest type of the Messiah who was to reign in righteousness over all the earth.
IV. REIGN AND CHARACTER OF SOLOMON.
(1 KINGS 2-11; 2 CHRON. 1-9.)
1. Solomon's Accession and Dominions.-Solomon was the first Hebrew king "born in the purple." The question Of the succession has been one of the trouble-some Ones in all history. David had a score Or more of sons by his different wives. Amnon and Absalom, as we have seen, had died violent deaths. Passing by other Older sons, David selected Solomon to succeed him. His choice was, perhaps, due in part to his partiality to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon, but probably more to Solomon's superior qualifications. Through David's promptness in having Solomon crowned at the time Of Adonijah's rebellion, he succeeded peaceably to the throne at David's death. But signs of another conspiracy in favor of Adonijah appearing, Solomon
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promptly ordered both Joab and Adonijah to be executed. He was thus left undisputed sovereign over his father's vast dominion. During a reign of forty years, no serious troubles within or wars without interfered with his plans for internal improvement.
2. Solomon's Wise Choice.-Soon after his accession Solomon celebrated a splendid religious festival at Gibeon, seven miles north of Jerusalem, where the old Tabernacle still stood. Evidently the burden Of empire lay on his young heart, for in a dream that night God appeared to him and offered to grant whatever he should ask; a dangerous liberty, we almost feel. Passing by the lower objects of common minds, Solomon asked for wisdom to rule his people. "He showed his wisdom by asking for wisdom"; and wisdom far above all contemporaries was given him. Illustrations of his wisdom are given in practical judgment (I Kings 3:16-28), and in scientific knowledge and literary skill (I Kings 4:29-34). Of his three thousand proverbs, less than one thousand have come down to us; and only one out of one thousand and five of his "songs" have been pre-served, unless we include Ps. 72 and 128, both ascribed to him. Such literary activity in the midst of his many administrative duties and great building enterprises show intellectual genius Of high order: and the record is readily understood that "There came Of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth," as well as the saying of the Queen Of Sheba, "The half was not told me."
3. Solomon's Temple.-One of the first cares of the young king was the erection of the temple. David had already adopted plans and made extensive preparations. An alliance with Hiram of Tyre secured cedar from Mt. Lebanon and skilled workmen. Seven years were spent
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in its erection. The main building was only thirty by ninety feet (double the Tabernacle), a diminutive structure beside the great heathen temples and Christian cathedrals of the world; but in richness it was unrivalled. It was lined with gold at an estimated cost Of six hundred million dollars. But its supreme distinction consisted in the entire absence of any visible image of the invisible God. In an age of gross, sensuous idolatry it stood for a sublime spirituality. "Behold the heaven of heavens can not contain thee; how much less this house which I have builded." "Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place." Such are the lofty conceptions expressed by Solomon in his dedicatory prayer. The completion of the temple was the realization of David's ideal of a national capital. The nation's mission was not military, but spiritual, dominion; not material, but moral, splendor. The legitimate limit of material forces was at that point where they ceased to minister to spiritual ends, and to aid in the realization of the national ideal. The first temple stood over four hundred years, until its destruction by Nebuchadnezzar.
4. Solomon's Other Buildings.-Solomon's reign was the Augustan age in Hebrew architecture. "He made silver to be as stones and cedar as sycamore trees." He built a magnificent palace for himself, and one for Pharaoh's daughter, who seems to have been regarded as his true queen, and numerous fortresses and cities in various parts of his empire, the most famous of which was Tadmor, the Palmyra of Roman days.
5. Solomon's Commerce.-The Hebrews were originally a pastoral people, caring for flocks and herds. In Egypt, and after the Conquest, they were an agricultural people, raising fruits and grains, as well as stock. Now, for the first time, they became a commercial people.
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Through the Tyrian Alliance they carried on trade along the Mediterranean as far as Tarshish in Spain; while through ports on the Red Sea they had an extensive trade with India. They also exchanged products with their nearer neighbors, the Phoenicians, Egyptians and Arabians.
6. Solomon's Apostasy.-Few biographies are so disappointing as that of Solomon. He never sank to the low levels of the common herds of kings; but the fulfillment Of his later years falls painfully below the splendid promise of his youth.
a. Violation of the Law of the King.-Moses (Deut. 17:14-20) had laid down the law of the king. In three ways Solomon violated it: (I) By multiplying horses (1 Kings 10:26), the sign and symbol Of militarism; (2) by multiplying wives until his harem contained one thou-sand of them; (3) by greatly multiplying silver and gold, which could only be done by the impoverishment of his people. He added to these
b. Serious Violations of the Fundamental Law of the Theocracy.-"Thou shalt have no other gods before me"; such was the very first commandment. Israel was pledged to its sacred observance. To displace the universal poly-theism with a pure spiritual worship was the mission of the nation; it had no other sufficient reason for national existence. "When Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods."
c. Elements of National Weakness and Decay.-These violations of the law of the king and the law of the kingdom proved to be elements of weakness, and brought upon his house the judgment of God. The doom Of impending division was revealed to him, and his later life showed signs of discontent at home and restlessness among the tributary nations abroad. No serious out-
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break occurred, however, and Solomon closed his long reign in comparative peace.
V. THE RISE OF THE PROPHETS.
In his own age, and for centuries after, Moses stands out in solitary grandeur. Not a prophet is even named between Joshua and Samuel. But with Samuel and the monarchy the era of great prophets begins. The prophet was the necessary counterpart of the king; and from the days Of Samuel and Saul his picturesque figure and impressive message are rarely wanting till the volume of Old Testament history closes. Samuel is altogether a more important personage than Saul. David, himself One of the greatest of the prophets, is constantly advised and warned and rebuked by the prophets. Prophets played an unimportant part in the reign of Solomon, though one appears near the close. The prophets of the period are Samuel, Gad (I Sam. 22:5; 2 Sam. 24:11), Nathan (2 Sam. 7:2-17; 12:1-12; 11 Kings 1:8-24), Iddo (2 Chron. 9:29; 12:15; 13:22), and Ahijah (1 Kings 11:29-39; 2 Chron. 9:29). None of their teachings have come down to us save here and there a fragment, like Nathan's parable, imbedded in the history.
VI. LITERATURE OF THE PERIOD.
It is impossible to give the (late of the earliest He-brew literature. It is not improbable that the Pentateuch rests partly On documents earlier than Moses. Lamech's "Sword Song" (Gen. 4:23, 24) and the snatches Of poetry in Num. 21:12-17, 27-30, point to very ancient poetical compilations. The Book Of Joshua, probably composed in the time of Samuel, quotes from a "Book of Jashar," now lost. From the days of David a rich historical literature sprang up, far surpassing any-
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thing that the older empires Of Egypt or Chaldea or Assyria have bequeathed to us. The Books of Judges and Ruth probably date from his reign. Other historical works of the period were the "History of Samuel," the "History of Nathan," the "History of Gad" (1 Chron. 29:29), and the `"Book of the Acts of Solomon" (I Kings 11:41), works now lost, but doubtless the basis of our present books of Samuel and Kings. But the age of David and Solomon is especially distinguished for its splendid outburst of poetic and "wisdom" literature. Seventy-two of the Psalms are ascribed to David, and two (the seventy-second and one hundred and twenty-eighth) to Solomon. The literature of Solomon loses much of the spiritual fervor of David's writings, but gains in speculative power and artistic finish. The chief works are Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and The Song of Solomon.*
*Ecclesiastes may belong to a later period.
THE NORTHERN KINGDOM, B. C. 975-722. FROM THE ACCESSION F REHOBOAM TO THE FALL OF SAMARIA, 11 KINGS 12-22, 2 KINGS 1-17.
I. INTRODUCTORY.
From this point the widening current of Hebrew history parts into two streams. The story in its details becomes more complex. Hitherto our chapters have corresponded to chronological periods. The same plan would give "The Double Kingdom" and "Judah Alone" as the caption of this chapter and the next; but it seems better for the sake of historical unity and simplicity to treat separately each Of the two kingdoms into which the nation divided.
1. Origin of the Schism. a. Its Roots.-"The disruption of the kingdom was not the work of a day but the growth of centuries." Throughout the long period from Joshua to David the two tribes of Joseph (Ephraim, Mannasseh), and that of Benjamin, rather than the tribe of Judah, held the preeminence. To Ephraim had be-longed Joshua, Deborah and Samuel; to Mannasseh, Gideon and Abimelech; to Benjamin, Saul and Jonathan.
The tribe of Ephraim, especially, had repeatedly shown a proud sense of superiority and independence;* and events proved that her leaders were only biding their time to break away from the rule Of Judah.
b. Accession and Policy of Rehoboam.-"Solomon
*See Josh. 17:14-18; Judg. 8:1-3; 12:1-6.
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had a thousand wives and only one son, and he was a fool." At Rehoboam's accession the people petitioned him to lighten the taxes which, under Solomon, had grown so oppressive. Rehoboam forsook the counsel of his older counsellors and followed that of the young men, answering that his little finger should be thicker than his father's loins.
c. Jeroboam and the Revolt.-Solomon had had an able officer named Jeroboam. It is significant that he was an Ephraimite. Owing to Solomon's idolatry, which violated the fundamental law Of the Theocracy, the Prophet Ahijah had foretold the rending of the kingdom and elevation Of Jeroboam over ten tribes. Jeroboam fell under Solomon's suspicion and fled to Egypt, but returned at Solomon's death. Upon Rehoboam's harsh refusal to lighten the taxes, Jeroboam headed a revolt of ten tribes. The result was two rival kingdoms:
(1) A Southern Kingdom Of the two tribes Of Judah and Benjamin, known as JUDAH.
(2) A Northern Kingdom of the ten tribes called ISRAEL.
2. The Two Kingdoms Compared.-a. Territory and Populations.-In an important sense, the Northern Kingdom was more national than the Southern; it embraced ten out of twelve tribes, hence it retained the national name, Israel. Its territory was not only far larger, but vastly-richer, both in natural resources and in historical associations. While Judah held Jerusalem and Hebron, Israel owned Shechem with its wealth Of memories; Shiloh, the early home Of the tabernacle; Bethel, Ramah and Gilgal, where Samuel had founded schools of the prophets: and Dan, which had long been a seat of worship (Judg. 14-31). Moreover, the dependencies and allies of the Davidic Empire, so far as
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they were retained at all, belonged mostly to Israel. As time went on, however, Israel lost by the migration of the Levites and other more spiritual elements to Judah (2 Chron. 15:9, 10).
b. Their Religion.-The kings of Israel, from first to last, were idolatrous, and the people grew to be more and more so. Yet it is interesting to note that nearly all the great early prophets either belong to Israel or are sent on missions to Israel. Abijah, Shemaiah, Elijah, Elisha, Micaiah, Jonah, Hosea, Amos, Zechariah, Jehu, are all, either by birth or mission, Northern prophets. Judah, though often idolatrous, was far more loyal to Jehovah.
c. Elements of Stability.-The greater stability of Judah is seen in the following facts: (I) Judah had a single capital throughout, JERUSALEM, the city of David and Solomon, and of the temple. Israel had several capitals in succession: Shechem, Tirzah and Samaria. (2) Israel continued Only two hundred and fifty years; yet in that time nine dynasties with nineteen kings sat on the throne. Every new dynasty began in a bloody revolution, only to be itself blotted out in blood. Judah endured for nearly four hundred years with only twenty sovereigns, all, save the usurper, Athaliah, belonging to the line of David.
II. THE FOUR PERIODS.
The history of the Northern Kingdom may be divided religiously into four unequal periods:
1. Idolatry Taking Root; Fifty Years, Three Dynasties, Five Reigns.-The leading character was Jeroboam, founder of the kingdom. Fearing the political effect of a single center of worship at his rival's capital, he selected Dan in the far north and Bethel in the ex-
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treme south Of his dominions. Both were already popularly regarded as sacred places. There he set up the form Of idolatry known as the calf worship. It will be remembered that it was a form of Egyptian idolatry into which Israel fell at Sinai, and that Jeroboam himself had been a recent exile in Egypt. It was probably not meant as an abandonment Of Jehovah, but as the use of a visible image of the invisible God. If so, it was a violation of the second commandment rather than the first. Solomon's idolatries seem to us worse, yet the sacred historian can not refer to Jeroboam without a shudder. "Jeroboam the son of Nebat who did sin and who made Israel to sin," is the form of words on which he has been gibbeted forever. Jeroboam stood at the parting of the ways. By divine appointment he was to found a dynasty and a kingdom. That dynasty and kingdom might have had a glorious destiny; but so much depends on the founder, whether he be an Abraham or a Jeroboam; and Jeroboam by his policy, half worldly, half religious, blasted Israel's prospects forever. He also created a new priesthood and a new system of religious feasts. The policy seemed politically wise at the time, but proved ruinous in the end. Israel's political safety lay in its religious purity. The remaining kings of the period were Nadab, Baasha, Elah and Zimri, the last, like Baasha, being a usurper, and perishing after an inglorious reign of seven days. Throughout this period Israel and Judah were in a state of chronic hostility, breaking Out at times into Open war.
2. Idolatry Triumphant; Fifty Years, One Dynasty, Four Reigns.-a. Omri and the New Capital.-The founder of the dynasty was an army officer named Omri. Quickly beating down the usurper, Zimri, and waging a successful civil war with an adventurer named Tibni,
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he became securely seated on the throne. Zimri had burned the palace at Tirzah over his Own head. Omri abandoned Tirzah, and bought and built Samaria, which continued to be the capital till the fall of the kingdom, and gave its name to a district and a people afterward.
b. Ahab; Jezebel; the Baal Worship.-Omri's son Ahab married Jezebel, daughter of Ethbaal, the priest-king of Sidon. The heathen blood and religion ran like poison through several generations of Hebrew sovereigns in both kingdoms. She was a woman of imperious will and fanatical zeal, whose name for nearly three thousand years has been a synonym Of all that is hateful in woman-kind. She introduced the licentious Baal worship, and began so fierce a persecution that the worship of Jehovah, which had lingered on among the people, was well nigh rooted out.
c. Era of Elijah.-The one sublime character of the period is the Prophet Elijah. He boldly confronted Ahab with his sins; prophesied a three years' famine as a penalty for national apostasy; was fed by ravens at the brook Cherith, and later by a widow of Zarephath in Jezebel's own land; finally faced Ahab again and summoned a national assembly on Mt. Carmel, and there pro-posed to the hundreds of priest-prophets of Baal and Ashtarte a test: the God who answered by fire should be the nation's God. The awed multitude, won for the moment from their idolatries by the divine response which consumed Elijah's sacrifice, destroyed the false prophets. In further response to Elijah's prayer, the long drouth was broken by a copious rain, and Elijah ran in triumph before Ahab's chariot to Jezreel. But the brazen Jezebel sent a threatening message to Elijah, who fled to Horeb. There God meets the dejected prophet, tells him that there is a remnant of seven thousand who have never
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bowed to Baal, an "Israel within Israel," and sends him back to finish his work. Elijah returns, anoints Elisha to be prophet in his stead, pronounces the doom of Ahab's house, and was soon after carried to heaven in a chariot of fire, while the dynasty Of Omri and Ahab was extinguished in blood by the ruthless Jehu. After Moses, no other prophet in all their history left so vivid an impress On the Hebrew mind. Legend and proverb gathered about his name, and his return was fondly anticipated by the last prophet of the Old Testament, and the people of the New. And yet he wrote and spoke almost nothing that has come down to us. Like his great anti-type, John the Baptist, it is what he did rather than what he said that has given him his high place in the roll of Hebrew prophets.
d. Political Relations.-The remaining kings of the house Of Ahab were Ahaziah and Jehoram. The hostility toward Judah continued until toward the latter half of Ahab's reign, when an alliance was formed against Syria and cemented by an intermarriage between the two royal families. Wars with Syria were frequent, and Moab threw off its dependency, which had continued from David's time. An interesting side-light is thrown on this period by the Moabite Stone.* Distant Assyria, Once so powerful in the region of the Mediterranean, emerges again from an obscurity of One hundred and fifty years to an activity soon to swallow up so many petty kingdoms of the west. From this time the Assyrian inscriptions shed frequent light on our story.
3. Idolatry Checked; One Hundred Years, One Dynasty, Five Reigns.-This is the period Of the little
*See Edersheim, "Hist. of Israel and Judah," Vol. VI., pp. 112-117.
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kingdom's greatest prosperity; but it was the last flicker of the flame, the "Indian summer" of Israel. Elisha took up the work of reform with better success than Elijah. Jehu, the founder of the dynasty, exterminated the house of Ahab in a whirlwind of revolution, and with it the Baal worship; but he resumed the calf worship of Jeroboam. Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam H., and Zachariah succeeded him. Jeroboam H. reigned forty-one years, and raised the kingdom to its greatest power. He was aided by the Prophet Jonah, who was sent on his mission to Nineveh, now rapidly rising to supremacy in western Asia. The Prophet Hosea also raised his eloquent voice against the idolatries of Israel.
4. Idolatry Ending in Ruin; Fifty Years, Four Dynasties, Five Reigns.-The kings, some of whom are mere puppets of Assyria, are Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah, Pekah and Hoshea. The Assyrians begin the work of deportation in the reign of Menahem. Pekah, a sovereign of some vigor, forms an alliance with Syria against Assyria and little Judah, which had become tributary to Assyria. Tiglath-pileser II., of Assyria, puts an end to the kingdom of Syria, and puts Israel to heavy tribute. The end comes when Hosea revolts from the Assyrian yoke. Shalmanezer IV. invades the land and besieges Samaria. The city holds out for three years, during which time Sargon succeeds Shalmanezer on the Assyrian throne, completes the siege and capture of Samaria, and carries away the Ten Tribes into captivity, from which they never return. Untrue to Jehovah and their national mission, they lose their national identity forever. Assyrians, imported into the land, mingled with the remnants Of the Ten Tribes. This mixed race, with a mongrel religion, continued for centuries, and constituted the Samaritans of the time of Christ.
THE SOUTHERN KINGDOM, B. C. 975-586. FROM THE ACCESSION F REHOBOAM TO THE FALL OF JERUSALEM, 11 KINGS 12-22; 2 KINGS 1-25; 2 CHRON. 1O-36.*
Introductory.-The fall of Samaria put an end to the kingdom of Israel, and closed the period of the double kingdom. Judah lasted nearly one hundred and fifty years longer; and as the capture of Samaria was a far less important event to Judah than to Israel, we may preserve unity by treating the four hundred years of Judah's history as one period.
The history of Judah illustrates the enduring influence of a great name. David's reign had furnished the ideal king and kingdom. The prophetic hopes and instincts of the nation gathered about him and his line. After the moral shock of Solomon's idolatries, they gathered for a time about Jeroboam and the Northern Kingdom. Rehoboam was not suffered to quell the revolt. Jeroboam and Jehu were both prophetically designated as founders of dynasties; but both utterly disappointed the prophetic hopes. Finally, after Samaria and Israel went
*In any detailed and complete study of Hebrew history the prophetical writings must be studied. They throw a flood of light on the material, moral, social and political state of the nation. It is noteworthy that Chronicles, probably written by Ezra after the exile, is a history of David and his line. The reign of Saul and the history of the Northern Kingdom are almost entirely omitted.
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down before Assyria, the little kingdom of Judah "gathered into itself the whole national spirit" in its best sense.
We must not forget the main purpose Of Bible History, viz., to trace the origin and progress Of true religion. Hebrew history must be studied in the light of that object. Thus viewed, the four hundred years of the Southern Kingdom may be divided into four periods of decline and revival, each closely connected with the character of the kings reigning at the time. It will be remembered that Judah, unlike Israel, had a single dynasty throughout, that of David.
I. FIRST DECLINE AND REVIVAL.
FOUR REIGNS, NINETY YEARS.
1. Decline Under Rehoboam and Abijam. a. Religion.-The pagan tendencies begun under Solomon continued and increased for the next twenty years. Despite the protests Of prophets, the worship of God fell off, heathen altars sprang up all over the land, and gross immoralities spread among the people.
b. Relations to Israel.-At the secession of the Ten Tribes under Jeroboam, Rehoboam raised an army to quell the revolt; but, yielding to the advice Of the Prophet Shemaiah, he gave up the attempt. The two kingdoms continued hostile, however; and, during Abijam's reign of three years, he inflicted a crushing defeat on Israel at the battle of Zemaraim.
c. Invasion of Shishak.-Solomon had married an Egyptian prince s: but a new dynasty arose on the Nile which sided with Jeroboam. Shishak, a king of this dynasty, invaded Palestine, captured Jerusalem, and stripped the temple of its golden splendors. Shishak himself has left a striking confirmation of the Bible ac-
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count, carved on the wall Of the great temple at Karnak.*
2. Revival Under Asa and Jehoshaphat.-a. Reforms.-Asa's reign of forty-one years was a marked contrast with the two preceding ones both in purity and vigor. For several years he enjoyed profound peace, which he improved by removing the heathen altars and images and reorganizing the worship of Jehovah. Jehoshaphat reigned righteously for twenty-five years. He continued and carried still further his father's reforms, provided for regular religious instruction, and reorganized and improved the judicial system.
b. Invasion of Zerah the Ethiopian.-Asa's peace was broken by an invasion of One million Ethiopians under Zerah. Asa went into battle with an earnest prayer to God, and won so decisive a victory that Judah did not suffer another invasion from that quarter for three hundred years. Asa celebrated the victory by a great assembly, at which the national covenant was renewed and the work of reform still further promoted.
c. Matrimonial Alliance.-In the latter part Of his life Asa made an alliance with Syria against Israel. Jehoshaphat reversed his father's policy by forming an alliance with Israel, giving his son to Ahab's daughter in marriage, and aiding Ahab against the Syrians.
II. SECOND DECLINE AND REVIVAL.
NINE REIGNS, TWO HUNDRED YEARS.
1. The Decline.-a. Jehoram and Athaliah.-Jehoram, Jehoshaphat's son, succeeded to the throne. He had married Athaliah, the daughter Of Ahab. She carried into Judah the fierce spirit and gross Baal worship
*See Edersheim, "Hist. of Israel and Judah," Vol. V., pp. 129, 130.
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of her mother Jezebel. The work of Asa and Jehoshaphat seemed in a fair way to be undone. After eight years Jehoram was succeeded by his son Ahaziah; but within a year he perished in the pitiless doom which Jehu Of Israel visited on the house Of Ahab. Athaliah escaped, seized the reigns Of government, massacred all the royal family but the infant Jehoash, and, for six years, was more than the Jezebel of Judah. The line of David was now reduced to a single babe, while a heathen queen sat on his throne; so near was the Davidic line to extinction; so bitter the fruits of Jehoshaphat's mistaken marriage policy.
b. Joash and the Reaction.-Athaliah was finally slain in an uprising under the aged High Priest, Jehoiada, who placed the young Joash on the throne. For a few years it seemed as though the kingdom was to be carried back to the purer days; but after Jehoiada's death, down-ward tendencies prevailed again, and the Prophet Zachariah suffered martyrdom under Joash.
c. Uzziah.-Of the three reigns which follow, Amaziah, Uzziah and Jotham, that of Uzziah is most note-worthy. It was a vigorous, and, in the main, prosperous reign of fifty-two years. His successes were his ruin. Presuming to offer incense, which was a priestly, not a royal, duty, he was smitten with leprosy, from which he never recovered.
d. Ahaz and Apostasy.-Idolatrous influences deepened until, in the reign of Ahaz, they ripened into open and general apostasy. Not content with images and altars Of Baal everywhere, "he made his children pass through the fire"; i.e., sacrificed them to the god Moloch. Moral decay was followed by political decline. Harassed by Edomites, Philistines, Syrians, and even by Israel, which was now near its downfall, Ahaz, by the payment
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of a heavy tribute, made a defensive alliance with Assyria, now at the summit Of its power.
2. The Revival Under Hezekiah.-a. Isaiah and the Reform.-We have reached the period of the earliest prophets Of Judah whose writings have come down to us: Joel, Amos, Micah, Nahum and Isaiah. Isaiah, whose prophetic writings have well been called the "fifth gospel," preached and counseled and prophesied through parts Of four regions. He is the most prominent character in the reign Of Hezekiah. Indeed, he is the first prophet of Judah who overshadows both priest and king. In Israel both Elijah and Elisha dwarfed the kings in comparison with their heroic personalities. Isaiah is the first to fill a like place in Judah. He is statesman as well as prophet, and appears much at royal court. Al-though his burning words seem lost in the reign of Ahaz, they bore fruit at last. While the Northern Kingdom was in its death struggle with Assyria, Hezekiah, inspired by Isaiah's counsel, was giving new lease Of life to Judah by promoting religious reform. Not since the days of David had a prince sat On the throne so pure in purpose and constant in its pursuit. The foul Baal worship and the horrible Moloch rites gave way to the worship Of Jehovah. He destroyed the brazen serpent made by Moses, which had become an Object Of idolatrous worship, and restored the Passover festival at Jerusalem, inviting the remnants of Israel to join in its celebration.
b. The Invasion of Sennacherib.-To this reign be-longs the celebrated invasion of Sennacherib, of Assyria. Ahaz had become tributary to Assyria; but Hezekiah, against the advice of Isaiah, exchanged the Assyrian for an Egyptian alliance, and refused the tribute. Sennacherib invaded Judea, captured many cities, carried off
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two hundred thousand captives, and besieged Jerusalem. He was drawn away by a threatened Egyptian invasion, and, by some mysterious calamity, lost one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in a single night. Byron has celebrated the event in the poem beginning:
"The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold." Sennacherib's inscriptions at Nineveh recount his successes, but not this calamity, though Herodotus refers to it.
III. THIRD DECLINE AND REVIVAL.
THREE REIGNS, NINETY YEARS.
1. Decline Under Manasseh and Amon.-The re-forms of Hezekiah and Isaiah proved only temporary. No doubt there had been an idolatrous court party all along. At Hezekiah's death they got the upper hand again, and, under his son Manasseh, who reigned fifty-five years, the nation plunged more rapidly than ever the downward road. All known idolatries seem to have been adopted; Baal worship, Moloch worship, Chaldean star worship, witchcraft, fierce persecution which filled Jerusalem with blood-such were the crimes Of this long reign. If Jewish tradition may be trusted, Isaiah suffered martyrdom at this time. A temporary captivity of Manasseh at Babylon sobered him and slightly checked idolatry; but his son, Amon, imitated his father's worst practices,- and perished in a revolt.
2. The Revival Under Josiah. a. Jeremiah and the Reforms.-The death Of Amon brought Josiah, a child of eight years, to the throne. His reign of thirty-one years was the last gleam of sunshine for the little kingdom. He ranks with Hezekiah as a royal reformer; and Jeremiah was to him in some measure what Isaiah had been to Hezekiah, although the earlier reforms seem
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rather to have been inspired by the Prophetess Huldah, while Jeremiah's greatest activity was in the darkening years that followed Josiah's death. At sixteen, Josiah seems to have taken affairs into his own hands, and to have turned personally to God; at twenty, he began to purge Jerusalem of idolatry; at twenty-six, he undertook the repair of the temple. In the course Of the repairs, a copy of the law was found, which, during the long, dark reign of Manasseh, seems to have been lost. Still further inspired by its teachings and solemn warnings, he kept the most famous Passover since the days of Samuel. Assyria was now declining, and Josiah extended his power over the old territory Of the Ten Tribes; at least, he abolished the calf worship at Bethel and other cities of Samaria, and made a tour Of the kingdom to personally superintend the work of reform.
b. The Battle of Megiddo.-Josiah's prosperous reign had a disastrous ending. The great Assyrian and Egyptian empires were again at war. Pharaoh-necho was on his way to seize Charchemish, on the upper Euphrates. Josiah unwisely interfered, and at the battle of Megiddo lost his life. The death of Josiah proved the doom Of Judah. He was the last king who "walked in the ways of David," and was loyal to the national covenant. Great was the grief of Jeremiah, which found expression in an elegy on the good king.
IV. FINAL DECLINE AND CAPTIVITY.
1. Moral Decay.--Josiah's reforms had evidently not been rooted in the convictions of the nation at large. They were rather enforced by royal authority, and fell so soon as that authority was withdrawn. There was a small select circle, of which Jeremiah was the soul, and to which the youth Daniel and his companions belonged,
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who constituted the true Israel. the germ of a future national life; but the mass of the nation were hopelessly corrupt. Even Isaiah, more than one hundred years earlier, had written, "Ah, sinful nation, a seed of evil doers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, . . . the whole head is sick, the whole heart is faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head there is no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrifying sores" (Isa. 1:4-6). And Jeremiah's writings show a deepening darkness through this closing period. Idolatry, drunkenness, greed, lust and brutal violence are characteristic vices. This moral decay was the fore-runner of political dissolution.
2. A Succession of Captivities.-Four kings followed Josiah: Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. The third was a grandson, the others sons, of the good Josiah. All were puppets, either of Egypt or Of Babylon; for in the early part of this period Nineveh, the proud capital of Assyria, which for so many centuries had lorded it Over Western Asia, sank before the combined assaults of Media and Babylon. Henceforward Babylon and Egypt were the upper and nether millstones between which Judah was ground to dust. Pharaoh-necho carries off Jehoahaz and puts his brother Jehoiakim on the throne. But Babylon will not tolerate Egypt as a rival in Asia. A succession Of invasions and captivities of Judea by Nebuchadnezzar, the powerful king of Babylon, closes the drama.
a. First Captivity.-He captured Jerusalem (n. c. 6o6), but spared King Jehoiakim, contenting himself with carrying into captivity certain of the people, among whom were Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. As they were princes of royal blood and loyal to the national religion, the king was doubtless glad to be rid of
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them. He himself came to a violent death after a reign of eleven years.
b. The Second Captivity.-In 597 Nebuchadnezzar made a second invasion. He carried away King Jehoiachin, who was kept a captive for thirty-five years. The Prophet Ezekiel, with ten thousand of the upper classes, went into captivity at the same time. Zedekiah was placed on the throne, and for eleven years reigned as the creature of the great monarch of the Euphrates.
c. The Third Captivity.-All this time there was an Egyptian party at Jerusalem which chafed under the Babylonian yoke, and favored an alliance with Egypt. Jeremiah announced the judgment of God upon the nation to be a seventy years' captivity in Babylon, and counseled submission to that power. For this he was imprisoned in a loathsome dungeon. At last some new rebellion brought the armies of Nebuchadnezzar once more against Judah. In 586, after a distressing siege, he captured Jerusalem, slew Zedekiah's sons before his face, put out his eyes, and carried him in chains to Babylon. The walls of the city were broken down, the temple and palaces burned, and the upper classes carried away into captivity. Jerusalem, the City of David, the city of precious memories, was no more, save in the hearts of a few faithful ones who, through seventy years of exile, longed for the Holy City, and looked fondly for-ward to the promised return.
PERIOD OF EXILE, B. C. 586-536. FROM THE FALL OF JERUSALEM TO THE RETURN UNDER ZERUBBABEL.
Introductory-Review and Summary.-We have now traced the history of man, of sin, and of the earlier stages of redemption. We have followed the fortunes of the Chosen People for fifteen hundred years, from the call of Abraham through successive periods: Patriarchal, Bondage, Wanderings, Conquest, Judges, United Kingdom, Double Kingdom, and Judah Alone. We have seen, in the days of David and Solomon, a glorious outburst of national life, succeeded by division and decline.
The Northern Kingdom has gone down in political darkness and spiritual night. Judah, after one hundred and forty years more of fitful life, is broken up, Jerusalem in ruins, and king and people borne to Babylon, seven hundred miles distant, into helpless captivity. Everywhere brutality, gross superstition and idolatry are triumphant. TO all human appearance, the experiment of human redemption is a failure; the knowledge of God is forever lost. But it is no experiment. Out of the darkest night there arose the brightest star of hope. It was after the fall of the Northern Kingdom, and during the decline and exile of Judah, that such prophets as Micah and Isaiah and Jeremiah and Daniel and Zechariah wrote their sublime prophecies of the coming Christ and his world-wide spiritual It begins, to be dimly felt that the Hebrew Theocracy is only the thorny stalk of which a purely spiritual kingdom is to be the con-
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summate flower and fruit. Till the flower blooms, the thorny stalk must stand. Hence, though exiled and scattered, there must be, for Judah, a return and a renewal of national life.
The Captivity had been repeatedly foretold by such prophets as Isaiah, Micah, Huldah and Jeremiah.* These prophecies were unconsciously fulfilled by Nebuchadnezzar in his successive captures of Jerusalem and deportations Of the Jewish population.
1. Jeremiah and the Egyptian Exiles (2 Kings 25:22-26; Jer. 4o-44).-After the destruction Of Jerusalem, a scanty remnant was left as husbandmen and vine dressers. Jeremiah declined a safe conduct to Babylon, preferring to linger amid the desolations Of the land he loved. But the remnant quarreled among themselves. Their governor, Gedaliah, was murdered by a gang of Jewish conspirators under Ishmael. The rest, fearing the vengeance of Nebuchadnezzar, fled to Egypt, under the lead of Johanan. Jeremiah entered an earnest pro-test against the migration to Egypt, but was compelled to leave the dear Old land, and accompany the exiles to Egypt. There, at the frontier town of Tahpanhes, the great prophet wrote his last prophecy. According to an early Christian tradition, he suffered martyrdom at the hands of his fellow exiles; according to Jewish tradition, he escaped from Egypt and made his way to Babylon. But in this, as in so many Other cases, as with Isaiah and Ezekiel and Daniel and Peter and Paul and John, the Scriptures, so enriched by his writings, are silent as to the closing scenes Of his life. There is no account of any return Of the Egyptian exiles.
*See 2 Kings 20:17; 21:10-5; 22:14-17; Jer. 25:9-11; 34:2, 3; Mic. 3:8-12.
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2. Daniel and the First Babylonian Captivity (2 Kings 24:1; 2 Chron. 36:5-8; Dan. I-12).-We have seen that Nebuchadnezzar made three invasions of Judea. At the first (B. C. 6o6) he carried away four young men of the royal line: Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. They were honorably educated at the king's court, but early distinguished themselves by their noble stand against Babylonian luxury and Babylonian idolatry.
a. Nebuchadnezzar's Dream.-Daniel first came into notice by interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a great image with head of gold, breast of silver, thighs of brass and legs of iron. As interpreted by Daniel, the head represented Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian empire; the other parts, the great empires which were to succeed his.
b. The Three Men in the Fire.-After his dream, Nebuchadnezzar became puffed up with pride. He set up a great image, and Ordered every man to fall down and worship it. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego had the courage Of their convictions, and refused. As a penalty, they were thrown into a fiery furnace, but were miraculously preserved.
c. Daniel's Visions.-Daniel himself had various visions of successive world-empires: Babylonian, Persian, Macedonian, Roman, and of a kingdom which God should set up which should fill the whole earth and stand for-ever.
d. Daniel in the Den of Lions.-Daniel lived to see Babylon go down before the rising power of Persia. His commanding abilities moved the envy of the Persian courtiers, and for his fidelity in daily prayer they had him thrown to the lions, but he was providentially pre-served.
3. Ezekiel and the Second Babylonian Captivity (2
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Kings 24:8-16; 2 Chron. 36:9, 10; Ezek. 1:1, 2).-At his second invasion (about B. C. 597), Nebuchadnezzar carried away ten thousand captives, among whom was the prophet Ezekiel. They were settled at the river Chebar, which empties into the Euphrates three hundred miles above Babylon. False prophets arose among them, promising a speedy return. Jeremiah wrote them a letter from Jerusalem, telling that the captivity should last seventy years (counting from the first deportation, B. C. 6o6), and counselling them to build houses and plant gardens (Jer. 29). It was at the river Chebar that Ezekiel wrote the visions that make up the body of his book; and it is at this period that the 137th Psalm, beginning "By the rivers of Babylon," was written.
POST-EXILE PERIOD, B. C. 536-400. FROM THE RETURN UNDER ZERUBBABEL TO THE CLOSE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT CANON.
The return from the Babylonian captivity was as distinctly foretold as was the captivity itself; and the return was usually connected with the fall of Babylon (cf. Isa. 13, 14; Jer. 25:12; 50, 51, etc.; Dan. 9:1, 2). It will be noticed that Jeremiah prophesies the length of the captivity as seventy years. This return of a captive nation is a unique fact; there is nothing like it in history. There were three distinct periods of return.
1. The Return Under Zerubbabel (B. C. 536. Dan. 9; Ezra 1-6).-Daniel knew from the prophecies that the seventy years Of captivity were expired, and made earnest prayer to God in behalf of his people. Cyrus the Great, conqueror of Babylon and founder Of the Persian empire, influenced perhaps by Daniel, issued a decree permitting the Jews to return to Palestine. Zerubbabel, a prince of the royal line, headed the first company Of about fifty thousand. They carried back the temple vessels which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away. They immediately erected an altar on the site of the old one, and soon after laid the foundations Of the second temple, amid the acclamations of the young, and the tears Of the old who had seen the splendors of the first temple. The Samaritans asked permission to join in the work. Zerubbabel, fearing the effect Of an alliance with a mongrel race and their mongrel religion, refused. The Samari-
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tans then used their influence at the Persian court to stop the work. For sixteen years it was at a standstill. Finally, under the inspiration of the Prophets Haggai and Zechariah, the work was completed, though not without continued annoyance from the Samaritans. From this time till the time of Christ there continued to be a bitter feud between the Jews and Samaritans.
2. The Story of Queen Esther (Esth. 1-10).-Sometime between the first and second returns occurred the incidents narrated in the book of Esther. Ahasuerus, the Xerxes of Greek and Persian history, is displeased with the Queen Vashti, and divorces her. He marries Esther, a beautiful Jewish maiden, without knowing her nationality. Haman, a Persian courtier, puffed up with some new promotion, is vexed at Mordecai the Jew, Esther's uncle, because he will not bow to him, and plans the ex-termination of the Jews throughout the empire. Ahasuerus unwittingly consents to the decree. Esther, at the risk of her life, heroically ventures unbidden into the king's presence, to intercede for her people. Her petition is granted, and Haman is hung on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.
3. Return and Reforms Under Ezra (B. C. 458. Ezra 7-10).-About eighty years after the return under Zerubbabel, Ezra, a Jewish priest, led a small company of about seven thousand back to Jerusalem. Most of Zerubbabel's co-workers must have been dead. Ezra was distressed to find that the Jews were intermarrying with the Samaritans and neglecting the law of Moses. He reformed abuses, and edited the Old Testament writings. It was probably about this time that the synagogue services were instituted for better instruction in the Scriptures.
4. The Return of Nehemiah (B. C. 445. Neh 1-13).
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-The story of Esther shows that the bulk of the Jews did not return, but, in large numbers, remained scattered throughout the empire. Among these Jews of the dispersion was Nehemiah. He held the honorable post Of cup-bearer to King Artaxerxes Longimanus. Through a company of Jews recently arrived at Shushan (Susa), he learned of the desolate and defenseless state of Jerusalem. He asked permission of the king to go to Jerusalem and build its walls. Armed with the king's commission as governor of the province, he went to Judea. In the face of threats and incessant annoyance from the Samaritans. he pushed the work with such courage and vigor that in fifty-two days the walls were completed, though men had to work with one hand and hold their weapons in the other. For twelve years Nehemiah remained as governor of the Jews, generously maintaining his official household at his own expense to lighten the burdens of the impoverished people. He then re-turned to Persia, but made a later visit to Jerusalem, correcting mixed marriages, Sabbath violations, and other abuses which had crept in.
5. The Last Prophet and Close of the Old Testament.-In Nehemiah's time, or soon after, the last note of Hebrew prophecy was uttered by Malachi. He reproves the priests for violating the marriage covenant, and the people for formality in religion, and appropriately closes the Old Testament Canon with a prophecy of "Elijah the prophet," the forerunner of the Messiah, the John the Baptist of the New Testament.
6. The Pause in Sacred History.-So closes the volume of Old Testament History. For four hundred years the voice of prophecy is silent. The chosen people dwell again in the promised land, but only as a fragment of vast empires. They have ceased to be an
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independent nation. They linger on for five hundred years more of troubled political life, successively subject to Persian, Macedonian and Roman, with One brief gleam of nationality under the Maccabees. But the eclipse of political independence only served to intensify their national exclusiveness. Whatever faults the Jews developed through the four centuries before Christ, idolatry was not one of them. The discipline Of captivity, the noble example of Daniel and his companions, and the work of Ezra and Nehemiah cured that forever, Amid the imposing idolatries of mighty nations there was one little despised people who held fast to the unity and spirituality of God; One oasis in the universal desert Of polytheism. The thorny stalk of Judaism was divinely protected till:t burst into bloom in the promised Son of David and Son of God, and his religion of universal love; then it was swept away forever in the storm of war waged by Titus and his Roman legions.
INTERVAL BETWEEN THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS.
I. INTRODUCTORY-HISTORICAL CHASM-SOURCES OF INFORMATION.
Between the Old Testament and the New there stretches a historical chasm of four hundred years; a period equal in length and importance to that which lies between the accession Of the English Tudors and the present. During those centuries Greece produced her masterpieces Of literature and art; Alexander carried the power of Greek arms and the more beneficent power of Greek arts all over Western Asia; while Rome, from a frontier town on the Tiber, had grown into the vast "Monarchy of the Mediterranean," unconsciously with her wide extension of Roman roads, Roman laws, Roman CIVILIZATION, preparing the way for a still wider extension of God's kingdom of righteousness. During these centuries the voice Of the Hebrew prophet and the pen of the inspired historian were alike silent. We depend for Our knowledge Of Jewish affairs upon three main sources, viz.:
1. The Old Testament Apocrypha.-These are Jewish writings of this period, a sort of uninspired appendix to the Old Testament. They throw considerable light on the history of the time, but fall far below the canonical books. While the monuments of Egypt, the inscribed bricks of Babylon, the clay tablets of Nineveh, and a multitude of other discoveries are more and more con-
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firming the historical accuracy of the Scripture records, the apocryphal writings are proved to abound in anachronisms, and other historical and geographical errors. The first Book of Maccabees is the most valuable of the collection, historically.
2. The Writings of Josephus.-Josephus was a Jewish historian, born A. D. 37. He survived the siege and destruction of Jerusalem by Titus, and wrote two important works: "The Antiquities of the Jews," a complete history from creation, and "The Jewish Wars," which gives an account of his Own people from B. C. 170 to his own time.
3. Greek and Roman Writers.
II. POLITICAL PERIODS.
The political history comprises six periods, viz.: (I) The Persians; (2) the Macedonian; (3) the Egyptian; (4) the Syrian; (5) the Maccabean, or Independent; (6) the Roman.
1. The Persian Period (B. C. 538-332) .---This period begins with the capture of Babylon by Cyrus the Great, and the consequent transfer of Jewish allegiance to the Persian power. The larger portion Of the period, there-fore, is covered by the Post-exile period Of Old Testament History. Under the Persians the Jews were usually governed by their own High Priest, subject to the Syrian Satrap, or Governor. In the main, the Persian rule was mild. Troubles continued with the Samaritans. These, it will be remembered, were remnants of the Ten Tribes, amalgamated with imported Assyrians. They were frequently reinforced by renegade Jews, One of whom, a priest named Manasseh, built a temple on Mt. Gerizim about B. C. 400 (cf. John 4:20). The Samaritans possessed the Pentateuch, believed in God, offered sacrifices,
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and looked for a Messiah. Their religion may be de-scribed as a degenerated Judaism.
2. Macedonian Period (B. C. 332-323).-In the spring of 334, Alexander crossed into Asia on his unequalled series of conquests. Defeating Darius at Granicus and Issus, and capturing Tyre after an Obstinate resistance of seven months, he swept clown through Palestine on his way to Egypt. Josephus tells an interesting story how Jaddua, the High Priest, at the head of a procession, met Alexander outside the city of Jerusalem; how Alexander was moved to unwonted reverence at the sight: how he spared the city from the usual plunder; how he entered the temple, and Offered worship to the God of the Jews: and how he accounted to his officers for his unusual conduct by a dream in Macedonia, in which he had seen the High Priest, who there told him he should conquer the Persians.* At any rate, Alexander and his successors seem to have been impressed with the worth of Jews as colonists; for they extended such privileges to Jewish settlers on the Nile, that Alexandria became the center Of a large Jewish population, and a celebrated seat of Jewish learning.
3. Egyptian Period (B. C. 323-2o4).-Alexander died at Babylon B. C. 323. After twenty years of con-fused struggle among his generals over the partition of his empire, some measure of order emerged. Seleucus Obtained the larger part of the Asiatic provinces. Passing by the ancient capitals of the east, such as Susa, Babylon and Damascus, he founded on the Orontes, near the Mediterranean, the splendid city of Antioch. Thence, for two and a half centuries the Seleucidae (descendants of Seleucus) ruled the rich Syrian kingdom, and there
*Josephus, "Antiquities," Book XI., chap. viii.
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for centuries longer centered the wealth and culture of Asia.
Ptolemy won Egypt, with its new capital, Alexandria, which rapidly became the commercial and literary metropolis of all the east. These two kingdoms and capitals were long rivals. Ptolemy early wrested Palestine from Seleucus. The century under the Ptolemies was, in the main, a period of prosperity for the Jews. The most noteworthy event was the translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek, by the order of Ptolemy Philadelphus, for the great Alexandrian library. The work is known as the Septuagint, from the traditional number of translators.
4. The Syrian Period (B. C. 2o4-167).-Palestine again became a bone Of contention between the rival powers. The Seleucidae finally recovered the land from the Ptolemies. The period of Syrian rule was the darkest yet most glorious in the whole four hundred years. The Seleucidae were dissolute tyrants. Antiochus Epiphanes (B. C. 175-164) was the most notorious of them all. Returning On one occasion from defeat in Egypt, he vented his vengeance on Jerusalem. He massacred forty thousand of its population, stripped the temple Of its treasures, and Outraged the religious sense Of the Jews by sacrificing a sow on the altar, and sprinkling the interior of the temple with the liquor in which a portion of the unclean beast had been boiled. He sought by every means to stamp Out the Hebrew religion and spirit, and transform the nation into Greeks. He shut up the temple, and, on pain Of death, prohibited the Jewish religion. Multitudes heroically sacrificed their lives rather than their faith. The leaders in this heroic resistance were a family of priest-patriots known as the Maccabees.
5. The Maccabean Period (B. C. 167-63).-A war
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of independence was begun by an aged priest named Mattathias, and carried on for thirty years by his sons. Judas, the Jewish Wallace, won five battles in a year against ten times his own number, and the title of "Maccabee" (Hammer), which has adhered to the family. Judas was so far successful that he reopened, cleansed and rededicated the temple, in honor of which the Feast of Dedication continued to be kept (John 10:22). Judas finally fell in battle; but a troubled independence was at last won by his brother Simon, and recognized by the Syrians. John Hyrcanus, Simon's son, succeeded him with the title of king. Thus was founded the Asmonean kingdom, so named from Asmoneus, an ancestor of the Maccabees.
6. The Roman Period (B. C. 63-A. D. 70, from the capture of Jerusalem by Pompey to its destruction by Titus) .-The closing years Of the Maccabean period were years Of wretched civil strife. Different members Of the Asmonean family were rivals for the throne; and plots and counterplots, mutual murders and appeals to the rising power of Rome stained the annals. In B. C. 63, Pompey the Great, at the conclusion Of the third Mithridatic war, led his victorious legions into Syria, put an end to the kingdom of the Seleucidae, and, by the capture of Jerusalem, extinguished the last sparks of independent political life for the Jews. For a time the Asmoneans were continued as local rulers, subject, under the Roman Governor of Syria, to the despotic power that issued from the Tiber.
The Herodian Family.-But now a new personal force comes upon the scene. For a century the Herodian family played the leading part in Jewish history; a momentous century, which witnessed the birth and work of Jesus Christ, and the founding of the Church. Herod
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the Great (B. C. 37-4) was of Idumean (Edomite) de-scent. In B. C. 47 his father, Antipater, was made Governor Of Judea. At the same time, Herod was made Governor of Galilee. B. C. 40 he was appointed king of Judea by the Roman Senate, but had to conquer his kingdom, which he accomplished B. C. 37. He married Mariamne, granddaughter Of the Jewish priest-king, Hyrcanus, thus uniting his own claims to the throne with those of the Asmonean line. Herod possessed a genius for government rarely equalled; but his vices were even greater. He was unscrupulous as to means, grossly licentious, and insanely suspicious; and victim after victim fell before his fatal jealousy; his mother-in-law, brother-in-law, two sons and his Own beautiful Mariamne. He incurred the hatred of the Jews by introducing races and other Greek customs into Jerusalem. To atone for this in their eyes, he rebuilt the temple, making it far larger than Solomon's, and vastly richer than Zerubbabel's. He also rebuilt the old city of Samaria, naming it Sebaste, and founded the new city of Caesarea, making it the political capital of Palestine. De-spite the fact that "his throne was bathed in the blood of his relations," he gave to the kingdom the greatest external splendor it ever knew, save in the reigns of David and Solomon. Yet all this material splendor could not blind the Jews, proud of their lineage and their glorious past, to the fact that they were a subject race. Their chains might be gilded; they were chains still. Herod himself was of alien race, and he ruled as the representative Of another alien race. The tabernacle of David was, indeed, fallen, and the elect spirits of the nation, the "Israel within Israel," looked and longed for him who should raise it up again and build it as in days of old (Amos 9:12).
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III. CHANGES IN LIFE AND CUSTOMS.
1. Occupation.-The Hebrews were originally farmers and herdsmen. In the clays of Solomon, and under some Of the later kings, they engaged to some extent in foreign commerce. But the wide dispersion from the captivity Onward made them a nation Of traders, a characteristic they have never lost.
2. Language.-Great changes came over the language, also, from the time Of the captivity. Chaldean, Syrian and Persian forms crept in, and, in the course of centuries, the result was similar to that which took place in Italy after the invasion of the barbarians. Modern Italian is not classic Latin, though rooted in it. Similarly, the classic Hebrew became a dead language, and Aramaic became the common speech in Palestine at the opening of the Christian era.
3. Religion.-Changes in religion may be thus summarized:
a. Idolatry Forever Disappears.-Previous to the captivity we have noticed the constant tendency to imitate the heathen worship about them. This gave way at last to an intense abhorrence Of everything that savored of heathenism.
b. Rise of the Synagogue.-There is no trace of the synagogue in the Old Testament. It is possible it arose during the captivity in the absence of temple services. Ten men were enough to constitute a synagogue. There were hundreds of them in Jerusalem, and many in the great cities Of the empire. The services consisted of daily prayers at the hours of daily sacrifice, Sabbath readings, and expositions Of the Scriptures, closing with a benediction.
c. Rise of Jewish Sects.-These were (1) Pharisees
INTERVAL 109
who held to an oral law of Moses, handed down by tradition, equal in authority to the written law. They held tenaciously to the doctrine Of the resurrection and a future life. They were rigid separatists, opposed to the introduction of Gentile customs. They really constituted the better portion of the nation, which preserved the national identity amid the disintegrating forces at work. (2) The Sadducees. These opposed the Pharisees On all the above points, denying the authority of an oral law, denying the resurrection and a future life, and favoring a free intercourse with the nations about them, with their customs and ideas. They were the politicians who advocated keeping in favor with the Romans. The High Priest was usually of the Sadducean party. (3) The Essenes were a small sect of ascetics who retired from society, did not marry, and spent their time in contemplation. They were Jewish hermits.
Such, in brief, was the land, such the state of the nation, on the eve Of the world's greatest era. The carnal side of the Abrahamic covenant has reached and long passed its largest development. The spiritual side, overshadowed so long, but more and more emphasized by the great prophets as the centuries go by, is now to find an ample fulfillment. The thorny stalk of Judaism is ripe and ready to bloom into the world-wide spiritual religion of Jesus the Christ.
INTRODUCTION
1. The Land and the People.-The story we are now to trace will keep us for a time on ground grown familiar and sacred through fifteen centuries Of association with the Patriarchs, Kings and Prophets of the Old Covenant. The natural scenery is the same as when Abraham first pitched his tent at Shechem; all else is changed. Ancient peoples and cities have disappeared or fallen into the background; new peoples and cities have come to the front. Canaan has become Palestine, a name derived from the Philistines. The names of the chosen people have varied with the varying phases of their national life. The earliest name, Hebrew, has clung to them to the present. The term Israel, used from Jacob's time on-ward, was appropriated to the Northern Kingdom after the division under Rehoboam; while the term Jew, from Judah, was the common national name throughout the later Old Testament and the New Testament period. The nation is no longer isolated as in early days. Life has grown wonderfully complex. Many new currents have flowed into it. A Roman governor holds his court at the new capital at Caesarea, or in the Old sacred city of Jerusalem. Roman soldiers and Roman tax collectors are omnipresent. The ancient Hebrew is the sacred
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language of the schools, and must be learned as a modern Italian boy learns Latin. Aramaic is the common language of the natives; while Greek is the language Of literature, and Latin of official circles.
2. The Five Divisions of Palestine.-Palestine in New Testament times was divided into five districts, three west and two east of the Jordan. Those on the west were,
a. Galilee, on the north, with a population provincial, uncultured, mainly Jewish, yet with a large Gentile element. Capernaum was the chief city, though the region around the Sea of Galilee abounded in cities and villages.
b. Judea, on the south, more purely Jewish, cultured and aristocratic. It contained Bethlehem, unimportant save as the birthplace of David and of Jesus; Caesarea, the Roman capital, built by Herod the Great, and JERUSALEM, the national and religious heart and hearthstone of the widely scattered race.
c. Samaria, in the center, with a mongrel race and religion, intensely hated by, and hating, their Jewish neighbors. Sychar, the ancient Shechem, the site of the ancient Samaritan temple, was the place of greatest interest.
The districts on the east Of Jordan were,
d. Perea, on the south, with a country population mainly Jewish.
e. The northern district east of the Jordan had no proper name. It- is sometimes called Decapolis (the district of the ten cities); but Decapolis included only the southern portion. It corresponds nearly to the ancient kingdom of Bashan, and may therefore be called the Bashan District. It constituted the Tetrarchy of Philip. The population was largely Gentile in race, and heathen in religion. Jesus' ministry extended into all five districts, but interest centers chiefly in Judea and Galilee.
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3. Rulers of Palestine.-a. Roman Emperors.-Palestine was governed by local rulers subject to the emperors of Rome. The emperors, during the time of Christ, were Octavius (Augustus) Caesar (B. C. 31-A. D. 14) and Tiberius (A. D. 14-37). The later emperors of importance in New Testament History were Claudius (A. D. 41-54), Nero (A. D. 54-68) and Vespasian (A. D. 69-79)-
b. Local Rulers.-The local politics may be thus summed up: (1) Kingdom Of Herod the Great. Herod the Great ruled as a hereditary, though subject, king Over all the five districts named above until his death, B. C. 4.* (2) The Tetrarchy (Government of Four), B. C. 4-A. D. 41. Herod's kingdom was parcelled out among three of his sons. Archelaus (Matt. 2:22) received Judea and Samaria. In A. D. 6 he incurred the disfavor of the emperor, and his kingdom was placed under a series of imperial governors, of whom Pontius Pilate was the sixth. Antipas (Herod the Tetrarch, Matt. 14:3) inherited Galilee and Perea. Philip (Luke 3:1) be-came Tetrarch Of the Bashan district. A fourth Tetrarchy is mentioned in Luke 3:1. Lysanias was not one of the Herodian family, and Abilene lay outside Herod the Great's dominions. (3) Kingdom of Herod Agrippa I., A. D. 41-44. Herod Agrippa (Acts 12:1-23) was a grandson of Herod the Great. Through the favor of the Emperor Caligula, all of Palestine was united under his rule, with Abilene beside; so that he ruled a larger terri-
*Our method of reckoning time from the birth of Christ came into use in the fourth century. The monk, Dionysius Exiguus, who calculated the date, made a mistake of four years. The death of Herod probably occurred within a year of the birth of Christ. Our present year should probably be 96 instead of 1912.
INTRODUCTION 113
tory than any other Jewish king after Solomon. (4) King Agrippa II., A. D. 44-66. At the death of Herod Agrippa, a new division was made. His son, Herod Agrippa H. (Acts 26:2), was given the two Old Tetrarchies of Philip and Lysanias. He ruled over them till the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish state, A. D. 70. It was only by courtesy that he is called "King Agrippa." The other provinces of Palestine were placed under governors, as in the time of Pontius Pilate. Those named in the New Testament are Felix, A. D. 53-60 (Acts 23, 24), and Festus, A. D. 60-62 (Acts 24-26).
THE GOSPEL HISTORY; OR, THE PERSONAL MISSION AND WORK OF JESUS CHRIST, B. C.5--A. D. 30.
INTRODUCTION.
1. Christ the Central Figure in Bible History.-All Bible lines converge toward Christ. He was the promised "seed of the woman" who was to bruise the serpent's head (Gen. 3:15); the covenant "seed" of Abraham who was to bless all nations of the earth (Gen. 12:1-3). No doubt the long centuries of Patriarchal and Jewish sacrifices, like the corresponding heathen services, had a profound significance in themselves. It was the universal sense of sin voicing itself in sacrifice of life, the piteous cry of human hearts for peace and pardon. But the chief significance of the Hebrew priesthood and sacrifices lay in their typical import. Down the weary path-way of the centuries they point increasingly to the self-sacrifice of divinity for the redemption of humanity: to Him who is "the Lamb of GOD that taketh away the sin of the world." Thus innumerable lines of types and prophecies converge on the head of Christ. In a similar way the lines of the New Covenant run back to Christ. We preach Christ, believe in Christ, confess Christ, are baptized into Christ, keep the Supper in memory of the
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death of Christ upon the day that commemorates the resurrection of Christ. Redemption through Christ is the scarlet thread that binds all Books of the Bible into one.
2. Christ the Key to the World's History.-Jesus' birth is a pivotal event. The providential preparations for his coming were the choice and preservation of the Hebrew race; the conquests of Alexander and the spread of the Greek language; the rise of the Roman empire, with its system of laws, and roads and civilization; the wide dispersion Of the Jews with their sacred Scriptures; the leavening influence of Greek philosophy; the decay of faith in the heathen gods, and the widespread expectation of a great ruler to arise out of the east. And it surely was no accident that the Roman empire continued until she had received Christianity so fully into her veins that she transmitted it to the barbarians who deluged her lands with ruin, but who had in their loins the mighty nations who were to shape the world's destiny.
3. Sources of History.-These are the four little memoirs, commonly called gospels, of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
a. Matthew (Levi) left his office of publican, or tax collector, to become Jesus' disciple (Matt. 9:9; Mark 2:14). He was later chosen one of the twelve apostles (Matt. 10:3). He wrote especially for Jews. (I) He quotes Old Testament prophecy sixty-five times. See, in a single chapter, Matt. 2:5, 6, 15, 17, 23. (2) His favorite name for Jerusalem is the "Holy City" (4:5; 24:15; 27:53). Eight times he calls Jesus the "son of David' (1:20; 9:27; 12:23), etc.
b. Mark was not a personal disciple of Jesus, but a convert of Peter (1 Pet. 5:13), and a companion of Paul (Acts 13:5; cf. Acts 12:25; 2 Tim. 4:11). He evidently wrote for non-Jewish readers, as he makes few
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quotations from the Old Testament, and explains his few allusions to Jewish customs (2:18; 13:3; 14:12).
c. Luke was not a personal disciple of Jesus (1:1-4). He was a physician (Col. 4:14), and first appears as a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10 and other "we" passages in Acts).
d. John was one of the first five disciples (1:35-51) He became an apostle (Matt. 10:2), and is referred to as the disciple "whom Jesus loved" (13:23; 19:26; 20:2). He was originally a fisherman (Luke 5:1-11).
Matthew and Luke give an account of Jesus' birth and infancy. Mark begins with the ministry Of the Baptist, and the baptism of Jesus. John, writing long after the others were dead, omitted most of what they gave, and added many of Jesus' conversations. He omits the birth, baptism, temptation, sermon on the mount, all the parables, transfiguration, institution of the Lord's Sup-per, and the agony in Gethsemane. Because of the similarity Of their accounts, the first three are called the Synoptics.
THE BIRTH AND INFANCY, MATT. 1, 2; LUKE 1, 2.
1. The Series of Visions.-The gospel history opens with a series of visions, four in number.
a. The Vision of Zacharias.-Zacharias was an aged priest of blameless life. While engaged in his duties in the temple, the angel Gabriel, who had revealed to Daniel (Dan. 9:21-23) the advent Of the Messiah, appeared to him, and announced that their prayers should be answered in the birth of a son to his wife Elisabeth. As a sign and seal of the promise, he was to be dumb until its fulfillment.
b. Vision of Mary.-Elisabeth had a cousin, Mary, of the lineage Of David. She was unmarried, though betrothed to a man named Joseph. To her the same angel was sent with the glad message that she, too, should bear a son: that, as the progeny Of the Holy Spirit, he should be called the Son Of God, and be the Savior of men. Overwhelmed with joy, she journeyed from her home at Nazareth, in Galilee, to the hill country of Judea to visit her cousin.
c. Vision of Joseph.-On her return to Nazareth, Mary's joy was overcast with sorrow. Among the Jews, betrothal was as sacred as marriage; and Mary's apparent violation of the bond exposed her to a disgraceful death. But a third vision enlightened Joseph as to the sublime import Of events, and added to the promised son the prophetic name Emmanuel-God with us (cf. Matt. 1:23; Isa. 7:14).
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2. The Manger Cradle at Bethlehem.-In due time both promises were fulfilled. According to divine direction the son Of Zacharias and Elisabeth was named John. A few months later Mary brought forth her first born, and in harmony with the vision called him JESUS-Saviour. Here, as in so many other ways, human plans unconsciously interlaced with the divine purpose. The Messiah was to be born at Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2). Mary's home was at distant Nazareth. An enrollment decree of Augustus Caesar sent Joseph and Mary to their native village of Bethlehem. As with the mother of Martin Luther, the mysteries of travail overtook Mary away from home. The inn was crowded, and the lowly pair found such shelter as they could in the stable. There, while Augustus was busy with the plans of vast empire, and Herod was plotting new villainies, and the great world were pursuing each one his own way, all unconscious of the momentous event, the Divine Man was born.
3. The Vision of the Shepherds.-Earth was unconscious of the advent of her King; but heaven could not keep silent. Angels brought the glad tidings, and sang their song of "Peace on earth"; not to kings and courts, not to proud priest, or pompous Pharisee, but to lowly shepherds who made their way to his lowly cradle, and were the first of earth to do homage to the world's Redeemer. They were the forerunners and representatives of the common people who "heard him gladly," and who constituted the bulk of his disciples."
4. The Group in the Temple.-The circumcision and naming occurred, according to Jewish custom, on the eighth day. At the end of forty days. Mary appeared at Jerusalem, six miles distant, to make the Offerings required in such cases (Lev. 12). "The Lord Of the
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temple appeared in the temple of the Lord." Their evident poverty (cf. Luke 2:24; Lev. 12:8) was such that they would attract slight notice from scribe and priest in that splendid court. But even there, as at Bethlehem's hills, were devout souls that were open to the divine in-tuitions and thrilled with joyous recognition of the long-expected Messiah. Two such, the aged Simeon and Anna, are named. They are representative of the prophetic spirit which had ennobled the Hebrew nation, and were the first to publicly proclaim Jesus as the Messiah.
5. Visit of the Wise Men.-But peasants and prophetic spirits of Israel are not the only ones who gather around the cradle of the Babe of Bethlehem. Gifted souls at a greater distance thrilled with the revelation. The heathen world was represented in the circle that paid homage to the Christ. "There came wise men from the east to Jerusalem saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east and are come to worship him." Traditions as to their name and nationality, speculations as to the nature of the star and the measure Of their knowledge are use-less. But they stand as the representatives of the vague longings and hope of a vast Outlying heathendom, and a prophecy of the time when all heathendom shall join in loving adoration of our King.
6. The Edict of Herod and Flight to Egypt.-Herod was fast sinking with excruciating disease. He had every reason for unrest, for his throne rested On the victims Of his jealous hate. Veiled treason had spread throughout his kingdom. At such a time, to such a man, the inquiry of the wise men was like a dagger thrust. But veiling both terror and murderous purpose, he Ordered the wise men to bring him word when they had
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found the Child. Obeying the divine intimation, they went another way home. Herod turned savagely upon the innocents of Bethlehem and vicinity. But nothing could avail against that Life till He was ready to surrender it in voluntary sacrifice for sin. "He thrust his sword into the nest but the bird was flown." Joseph, ever watchful of the divine leadings, had escaped to Egypt beyond Herod's jurisdiction, but still within the circle Of a large Jewish population. Herod died soon after, but fearing Archelaus, who had succeeded both to the throne and the policy Of his father in Judea, Joseph returned to his home in distant Nazareth.
PERIOD OF PREPARATION, MATT. 3-4:11; MARK 11:1-13; LUKE 2:40-4:13; JOHN 1:19-28.
I. THE SILENT YEARS AT NAZARETH.
For thirty years Jesus' home was at Nazareth. The little country village was despised by the more cultured Jews of Judea and Jerusalem; and when Jesus emerged from obscurity, both he and his disciples were contemptuously called Nazarenes.
1. Self-restraint of the Gospels.-In marked contrast with the wealth of incident gathering round his cradle, his ministry and his cross, is the silence Of these thirty years. Not so do uninspired men write biography. They love to dwell upon the incidents of boyhood, the signs and promise of budding genius. In this spirit did the authors of apocryphal gospels write of Jesus' early years. They crowd their pages with portents and precocious miracles, meant to honor, but really dishonoring him. The self-restraint Of our gospels is proof, both of the reality of their story and the inspiration of the authors.
2. Educational Influences.-Jesus did not grow up either in idleness or ignorance. He was a carpenter, and the reputed son of a carpenter (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3). Every Jewish lad learned a trade. The peasantry were able to read and write. The reference to his illiteracy (John 7:15) means only that he was not educated in the rabbinical schools; he was not college-bred, as we would say. It is not unlikely he was familiar with three
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languages: Aramaic, his mother tongue; Hebrew, the original language of the Scriptures, and Greek, the language of literature. Though he was too poor to own a complete copy of the Scriptures, the village synagogue would give him access to them; and choice fragments of them may have been owned even in the carpenter's home.
3. His Visit to Jerusalem.-One important means of education is mentioned (Luke 2:46-51). His parents went yearly to the Passover at Jerusalem. The journey would take them for eighty miles through a country rich in historical associations. Jerusalem itself was loved as no other capital ever was by its people. Pilgrims from scores Of lands, speaking as many tongues, thronged its streets and swarmed in its temple. To a bright, earnest boy, such an annual trip must have been an education in itself. Once only during the thirty years is the veil of obscurity lifted. The age of twelve was a turning point for a Jewish lad. At twelve he began to learn a trade; was called "grown up"; could no longer be sold by his father; began to wear phylacteries, and was called a "son of the law." At this critical age Jesus seems to have made his first journey to Jerusalem. The company had made a clay's journey homeward when he was missed. Returning, his parents searched anxiously a whole day in Jerusalem. They found him at last, not with the boys of the street; not seeing the sights, but in the temple, among the doctors of the law, hearing them and asking them questions. "How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?" Such are his first recorded words, and they are the keynote of his whole life. Though he returned with them to Nazareth, and continued subject to them, yet, doubtless, the periodical visits to Jerusalem had an important influence
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in the formation of his character and the maturing of his plans.
We can not help asking, When and how did Jesus became conscious of his divine nature and personality? Did it flash on him suddenly, or dawn gradually like conscious personality in the common child? Did it arise from quiet home talks about the wonders of his birth, or spring up within him? Such questions carry us beyond our depth and beyond what is revealed. It seems clear, however, that at twelve he was fully conscious of his divine parentage.
4. Lessons of the Silent Years.-In a public way Jesus was about his Father's business only three years; Yet he was as truly doing God's work in the silent years as when teaching the multitudes or dying for our sins. What Jesus did was measured by what he was; and he became what he was through thirty years of growth "in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men." The world's sorest need is character; and no years of preparation are wasted that produce such manhood as came forth from the obscurity of Nazareth.
II. THE MINISTRY OF THE BAPTIST.
1. Revival of Prophecy.-Four centuries have passed since the last voice of public prophecy. The last Hebrew prophet (Mal. 4:5, 6), as well as Isaiah (40:3), had foretold a forerunner of the Messiah. At the annunciation, and again at his birth, John had been pointed out as that forerunner. After the detailed account of his birth and circumcision, a single verse (Luke 1:80) contains all that is recorded of him for thirty years. He was to be a Nazarite from birth (Luke 1:15; cf. Num. 6:1-5); and when he emerged from the desert it was in the coarse garb of the old Hebrew prophets. His long
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seclusion was doubtless spent in self-discipline and profound meditation upon the sins of the time, and the prophetic visions of the Messiah and his kingdom. He did not seek the cities, but preached in the wild, thinly settled region along the Jordan.
2. Power of His Ministry.-His ministry of two years accomplished more than most ministries of fifty. He `"did no miracle" (John 10:41), but soon had the nation at his feet. Not rude rural peoples alone, but cultured scribes and Pharisees from the capital thronged to hear this second Elijah. Men felt that here, as last, was a man with a message to their souls. He did not, like the teachers of the day, busy himself with questions of mint, anise and cumin, the width of phylacteries or the length Of a Sabbath clay's journey. It was part Of his mission to call the nation back from hollowness to reality. He rebuked the violence of soldiers, the extortion of publicans, the hypocrisy of Pharisees the selfishness of all (Luke 3:10-14).
3. The Kingdom at Hand.-John's ministry did not terminate in itself. It was preparatory. The burden of it was, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." He disclaimed being the Christ, but owned himself the preparatory Voice (John 1:19-23). To emphasize his message he baptized with the baptism "of repentance" and "for remission"; at the same time calling men to believe on "him who was to come," and who was to baptize with the Holy Spirit (Mark 1:7, 8; cf. Acts 19:4). To arouse the slumbering nation, quicken its conscience, kindle into flame the Messianic expectation, first center it upon himself, and then transfer it to Jesus-such was the aim and result Of his brief ministry.
4. The Baptism of Jesus.-The climax came with the baptism of Jesus. Along with the sinful throng there
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came one day the sinless Son of Mary. We do not know that they had ever met. Certain it is that John did not yet know him as the Messiah (John 1:31-34). But the lion-like prophet who could face Pharisee and king, bowed with deep humility before the matchless manhood of Jesus; "I have need to be baptized Of thee, and comest thou to me?" Jesus' baptism was, indeed, unlike Ours; it was neither a baptism "of repentance" nor "for re-mission." Yet it was clothed with profound significance, both to John and Jesus. To John the parted heavens, the descending Spirit, the divine voice, "This is my Son," left no doubt that this was the Messiah before whom he should decrease. To Jesus, as to us, baptism marked a crisis in life; the Spirit was bestowed; his divine sonship was owned. "Holy and pure before sinking under the waters, he must have arisen from them with the light of a higher glory in his countenance. His past life was closed; a new era had opened. It was the true moment of his entrance on a new life. Past years had been buried in the waters of the Jordan. He entered them as Jesus, the Son of man; he rose from them the Christ of God."*
4. The Temptation.-Jesus is now on the threshold of his great ministry. Through thirty years his human nature has matured into a fit instrument of the divine. His plans were equally matured. Will he have the courage to pursue them steadily to the end? That was the question which the temptation was to answer. The key to it is to be found in the Jewish expectation of a wonder-working, political Messiah. Did the tempter come in outward form; or did he attack Jesus, as he so Often and so successfully attacks us, by inward and
*Geikie's "Life of Christ," Vol. I., p. 413.
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sinful suggestion? We may never know. We know the temptation came in three forms:
a. Through Bodily Appetite.-"Command these stones that they be made bread"; a temptation to (I) distrust his Father's care, (2) use his miracle-working power for self. But he who came "not to be ministered unto but to minister," would not begin by prostituting his super-natural gifts to selfish ends.
b. Through His Trust in God.-"Cast thyself down" from some temple tower. But he who would not distrust God's care would not presume on that care to astonish the multitude.
c. Through His Plans for Dominion.-Jesus is the Messiah. He is to reign over the whole earth. "Fall clown and worship me." Do not wait the slow conquest by spiritual means. Employ carnal weapons. Ally your-self with the earthly hopes of your people. What thrones can you not win? It was the temptation to which Mahomet yielded when he drew the sword, and to which the church has yielded whenever she has resorted to force.
Jesus triumphed, and the tempter "departed from him for a season," only to return in the persons of jealous scribes, the plots of Judas and the Sanhedrin, and in the hate that raged round the cross. But no assaults could avail against the steadfast soul Of him who was "tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin" (Heb. 4:15).
THE PERIOD OF OBSCURITY. FROM THE RETURN TO JORDAN TO THE RETURN TO GALILEE, JOHN 11:29-4:54.
Characteristics of the Period.-This period covers nine or ten months-from late winter to early winter. The records of it are few and fragmentary. For this reason, and from the further fact that Jesus came slowly into public notice, it is called the Period of Obscurity. It was passed mostly in Judea, and we are indebted to John for the little we know of it. It was a year of teaching rather than of much miracle working, and of private and personal teaching rather than public discourse. John's ministry continued, though it began to wane before the growing power of Jesus' work (John 4:1-3). The early days were passed in Galilee; the larger portion of the period in Judea.
I. THE EARLY GALILEAN MINISTRY.
1. The First Disciples.-After the temptation Jesus returned to the Jordan to enter upon his epoch-making ministry. He was there pointed out by the Baptist as the Lamb of God. Five young men, disciples of John, partly by John's testimony, more powerfully, no doubt, by Jesus' own teaching and personality, were drawn into his discipleship. John's disciples did not go over in a body to Jesus; yet throughout this period Jesus continued to increase and John to decrease; and the great-souled forerunner would have it so (John 3:25-30)
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The names of these first five disciples should not be forgotten. They are John, Andrew, Peter, Philip and Nathanael.
2. The First Miracle.-Jesus immediately left the lower Jordan with his newly found disciples for a short tour in his own province of Galilee. The occasion was a wedding at Cana near Nazareth. Here he met his mother, and performed the first of those wonderful works we call miracles. A lavish hospitality is a cardinal oriental virtue; and Jesus averted an impending shadow from the festivities by turning water to wine.
"The conscious water saw its Lord and blushed."
A miracle is a miracle. It is useless to philosophize about it. We understand its nature as little as we do the ordinary processes of nature. Jesus was himself the greatest of all miracles-the moral miracle of the ages. Our supernatural was his natural. As God is the key to creation, so Jesus himself is the key to his works.
3. Conclusion of the Galilean Ministry.-In company with his mother and disciples, Jesus paid a visit to Capernaum, which he afterward made the center of his Galilean ministry. From there he went to the national capital, Jerusalem. So closed the early Galilean ministry. Brief as the record is, it furnishes two interesting contrasts with the ministry of John: (I) Jesus was to be a worker Of miracles; (2) he mingled with the common life of the common people. John was a recluse, shunning the abodes of men, preaching in the desert. He who came to redeem humanity mingled freely with all classes, sharing the hospitality of the rich, entering the homes of the poor, discoursing in synagogue and in private house, in lonely desert and by the busy seashore in
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country village, bustling market town, and in the proud capital itself.
II. THE EARLY JUDEAN MINISTRY.
1. Introductory.-The ministry Of Jesus in Galilee had apparently been of a private character, and was meant mainly to confirm the faith of his disciples (John 2:11). He now enters upon the more public phase of his ministry in the national capital itself. Thus Judea and Jerusalem and the rulers of the nation' were given the first opportunity to accept him as the Messiah. Not till they had rejected him did he turn to the evangelization of Galilee.
2. The Cleansing of the Temple. Zeal for a spiritual worship and for purity of life had characterized the older prophets. The young Prophet begins his work at Jerusalem in the same spirit. Thousands of animals for offerings had turned the temple court into a cattle pen; while brokers bargained with their customers in the corridors of the temple itself. With that authority, which always clothes intense moral convictions, Jesus drove the herds and traders from the temple.* His brave act awoke no thrill Of sympathy from the sordid rulers. It roused their hostility, rather. Rejected in the capital, he retired to the country districts of Judea.
3. The Conversation with Nicodemus.-During his stay in the city Jesus had attested his Messiahship by working some miracles (John 2:23; 3:2; 4:45). One, at least, of the rulers, a Pharisee named Nicodemus, did not share the hostility of his class. To his night inter-
*This cleansing of the temple at the first Passover of Jesus' ministry is not to be confounded with a later one at the last Passover (cf. Matt. 21:12).
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view with the young Teacher we owe one of the profoundest discourses on the spiritual nature of his kingdom that ever fell from Jesus' lips.**
4. The Country Ministry: John's Last Testimony.-Driven from the city Jesus retired, as we have seen, to the country (John 3:22). No incidents are preserved; but we may infer from John 4:35 that Jesus remained in Judea eight months. That it was a fruitful and growing ministry is shown from the jealousy of John's disciples (John 3:26). Battles without number have been lost through the jealousies of generals. John was cast in a different mold; and the natural jealousy of his disciples furnishes the occasion, both of a refreshing contrast on his part and of his last noble tribute to the Mesisah, before whom he himself must decrease.
5. Close of the Early Judean Ministry.-John had been rejected by the Pharisees (Luke 7:30). They were even more hostile to the larger success and higher spirituality of Jesus. This hostility of the Pharisees, possibly also the jealousy of John's disciples, above all, the imprisonment of John, led Jesus to shift the scene of his labors from Judea to Galilee (cf. John 4:1-3; Matt. 4:1-12).
6. The Woman of Samaria.-Samaria, with its despised race, lay between Judea and Galilee. The Jews generally avoided it by passing to the east of the Jordan. But Jesus was already far to the north in Judea; more-over, national prejudice could have no place in his bosom. John has preserved the conversation with the Samaritan
**It is common to say that Nicodemus came by night for fear of the Jews. It is possible but not probable. The little we know of him is more favorable (cf. John 7:50; 19:39). It is more likely that he came by night to secure an uninterrupted interview.
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woman. The wondrous light of his life and words and works have already carried conviction to John and An-drew and Peter and multitudes more; but it is beautifully significant that the earliest distinct avowal of his Messiahship recorded was to a nameless woman of an alien race.
THE GREAT GALILEAN MINISTRY. FROM THE RETURN TO GALILEE TO THE FEAST F TABERNACLES.
Introductory. a. Time and Place.-This period embraces about one year and nine months-more than One-half of Jesus' ministry. In the early months he made a single visit to Jerusalem. The last six months were marked by a series of withdrawals into provinces to the north and east of Galilee. With these exceptions, Galilee was the scene, and Capernaum the center, of this important portion of Christ's ministry.
b. Characteristics.-It was a period of (I) Intense activity. It was crowded with journeys, miracles of love and power, public discourses and private teaching, with frequent retirements late at night, Or early in the morning for prayer. (2) Popularity with the masses. Crowds from all parts and classes hung on his words, witnessed, or experienced in their own persons, his divine power, and so blocked his way in cities that he Often resorted to the open country. (3) Increasing hostility Of the scribes and Pharisees, and, at last, of Herod Antipas. (4) In the closing months, loss of popularity with the masses, and consequent withdrawals from Galilee.
I. FIRST OR PREPARATORY STAGE-TO THE SECOND CALL OF DISCIPLES.
1. The Rejection at Nazareth (Luke 4:14-30).-There was one village in Galilee where, One would think, the boy Jesus must have been well known and loved. It
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was a full year, or more, since Jesus had gone forth from Nazareth to his baptism. He now returns to offer him-self to the faith of men there, as he had (lone at Jerusalem. On the way he wrought a second miracle at Cana in the healing of the nobleman's son (John 4:46-54), and probably taught as he journeyed to his boyhood home. The result at Nazareth was much the same as at Jerusalem. This young carpenter,-what right had he to teach them? It is a sad commentary on the blindness of men that the very people among whom JESUS had lived for thirty years were the first to seek his life.
2. Capernaum Chosen (Matt. 4:12-16).-Leaving Nazareth, Jesus came to Capernaum. A busy center of population and trade on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, it was well chosen as the center of the great Galilean ministry. For nearly two years Jesus seems never to have been absent many weeks at a time. From Capernaum he set forth On his tours; to it he returned. Here was his home, if he may be said to have a home, throughout this period.
3. Miraculous Draught of Fishes and Second Call of Disciples (Matt. 4:18-22; Luke 5:1- 11 I) .-Shortly after the selection Of Capernaum, Jesus made a second and more significant call of disciples. It occurred in connection with a miraculous draught Of fishes that profoundly impressed them all. Peter and Andrew, James and John were fishermen. Three of them were among the first five disciples (John 1:35-42). This later call differed from the earlier in two respects: it attached them more permanently to Jesus, and it was a distinct call to the ministry. This gathering around him of a more permanent body of disciples, the germs of the future apostolate, marks the close of the Preparatory Stage.
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II. SECOND STAGE-TO THE APPOINTMENT OF THE APOSTLES, AND THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT.
1. A Memorable Sabbath at Capernaum (Mark 1:21-34).-Jesus returned with his four disciples to Capernaum, and at once entered upon an intensely active public ministry. Going into the synagogue he taught with such power that "they were astonished." But what caused greater astonishment was the healing of one of those unfortunates called demoniacs. It was Jesus' first miracle in Capernaum, and the first recorded cure of a demoniac. None of his miracles ever seemed to awe people more than these victories over the mysterious powers of darkness (cf. Luke 4:36, 37; 10:17). He followed it up with the cure of Peter's mother-in-law in her own home, and the cure of multitudes variously afflicted brought by helpful hands after the sun was set and the Sabbath closed.
2. A Great Tour of Galilee (Mark 1:35-45).-Slipping away very early the next morning for private prayer, Jesus was followed by his disciples. Pressing on to avoid the crowd, he made an extensive tour of Galilee, preaching everywhere the good news of the kingdom, and everywhere healing a variety of diseases. The whole country was in a fever Of excitement; people flocked to him from every province of Palestine (Matt. 4:24, 25). The only miracle given in detail was the curing of a leper.
3. Healing of a Paralytic-Beginnings of Opposition (Mark 2:1-12).-For a full year or more Jesus' popularity with the masses continued. But mutterings of hostility soon were heard from the scribes and Pharisees, those custodians of custom. Their criticism arose in connection with the healing of a paralytic. From this
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time on, spies from the authorities at Jerusalem and elsewhere continued to dog his steps.
4. Call and Feast of Matthew (Matt. 9:9-13; Luke 5:27-32):Another cause of offense to the upper ranks was the class of people who gathered around Jesus. The publicans, as a class, were greedy and extortionate; and, as tools of the Roman government, they were despised by the Jews. One of these, Matthew, or Levi, became a disciple of Jesus, and made a great feast for his Master, at which many publicans and sinners were invited guests. To the criticism of the Pharisees we owe the beautiful saying, "I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."
5. Jairus' Daughter-The Parenthetical Miracle (Mark 5:22-43): Jesus had shown his power over disease, nature and demons. It remained to demonstrate his power over death. During the discourse at, or following, Matthew's feast, the ruler of the synagogue at Capernaum came to intercede in behalf of his daughter, who lay at the point of death. To such a call Jesus never turned a deaf ear. On the way occurred the healing of the woman with an issue of blood, which has been aptly termed the parenthetical miracle. Arriving at Jairus' house they find the little girl sleeping the sleep of death; but He who came to redeem from sin and the grave gave back the maiden to the arms of her parents alive and well.
6. The Second Passover (John 5:1-47).-The Synoptists mention only one Passover, that at which Jesus was crucified. If the "feast" of John 5:1 is a Passover, then John mentions four in all. At any rate, at this point in his ministry Jesus visits Jerusalem. The only incident recorded is the healing of a helpless man at the pool of Bethesda. It was the Sabbath, and the criticism
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of the Jews called out the extended discourse given in the fifth chapter of John.
7. Further Sabbath Criticism (Matt. 12:1-14).-On the way back to Galilee, Jesus' disciples were criticized for plucking a few wheat Or barley heads on the Sabbath, and rubbing the grain out to eat. Either at Capernaum, or at some village on the way, Jesus was criticized for healing a withered hand On the Sabbath. In this last case his enemies went so far as to lay plans to kill him, a striking illustration Of the formalism and worthlessness of their religion.
8. The Twelve and the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7).-Powerful as Jesus' personal ministry was, it was to be very brief. If its influence was to be abiding, provision must be made for trained and qualified witnesses of its sublime facts. For this purpose, out of the body Of his disciples Jesus chose twelve for special training and instruction.*
*There are four lists of the apostles. They are as follows:
| MATT. 10:2-4. | MARK 3:16 19. | LUKE 6:14-16. | ACTS 1:3. |
| 1. Simon Peter | Simon Peter | Simon Peter | Simon Peter |
| 2. Andrew | James | Andrew | James |
| 3. James | John | James | John |
| 4. John | Andrew | John | Andrew |
| 5. Philip | Philip | Philip | Philip |
| 6. Bartholomew | Bartholomew | Bartholomew | Thomas |
| 7. Thomas | Matthew | Matthew | Bartholomew |
| 8. Matthew | Thomas | Thomas | Matthew |
| 9. James the son of Alpheus | James the son of Alpheus | James the son of Alpheus | James the son of Alpheus |
| 10. Lebbeus, Thaddeus | Thaddeus | Simon the Zealot | Simon the Zealot |
| 11. Simon the Cananaean | Simon the Cananaean | Judas the brother of James | Judas the brother of James |
| 12. Judas Iscariot | Judas Iscariot | Judas Iscariot | .............. |
NOTICE: (1) There are three groups. (2) Peter heads each list in the first, Philip in the second, and James the son of Alphaeus in the third. (3) "Zealot" is the Greek for the Aramaic word "Cananaean." (4) Judas Iscariot is last in all the lists. (4) Thaddaeus is probably the same as Judas the brother of James.
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Then follows what will be for evermore known as The Sermon On the Mount. It is the largest single public discourse of Jesus which has come down to us. It is a sublime summary of the principles of his kingdom, and embodies both the fundamental truths of, and striking contrasts to, the law delivered on Sinai. It was delivered to the Twelve and the wider circle of disciples, but in the presence of a vast promiscuous throng gathered from near and far. The choice of the Twelve and the Sermon on the Mount marked a turning point in the ministry of Jesus. The legal teachers of the nation had rejected him; but this day's transactions on the mount, the reiterated "I say unto you," was public notice that a new order of things was at hand.
III. THIRD STAGE-TO THE ADOPTION OF PARABLE TEACHING
1. Continued Labors.-Jesus continued his great missionary work in and around Capernaum. The healing of a Roman centurion's servant (Matt. 8:5-13) afforded him an illustration of great faith in a Gentile, and a prophetic glimpse of the universality Of his kingdom. A second time he raised the dead, restoring the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17). One of the most touching incidents of Jesus' whole ministry belongs to this period. At a Pharisee's table a penitent woman washed Jesus' feet with her tears, and anointed them with costly ointment (Luke 7:36-50). The criticism of
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the host called forth from his guest the beautiful lesson of the two debtors.
2. Jesus' Testimony to John (Luke 7:18-35).-The imprisonment of John had been one cause of Jesus' leaving Judea. For a year John's eagle spirit had been caged at "Black Castle," on the east shore of the Dead Sea. He had seen the parted heavens, and heard the divine voice at Jesus' baptism, and had pointed him out as the Messiah. But Jesus was not doing the work that John expected. Herods and Pilates and Caiaphases were still in power. Why did he not sift the nation, burn the chaff, and reign in righteousness? Perhaps it was with some such thoughts that John sent two of his disciples to Jesus to ask, "Art thou he that should come, or look we for another?" Jesus sends them back with word of the beneficent work he is doing, and then pronounces his high eulogy upon John.
3. The Adoption of Parable Teaching (Matt. 8; Mark 4:1-34).-We have reached the first great group of Jesus' parables. Two other great groups occur, one in the Perean ministry, and the other on the last day of our Lord's public work. The introduction of the parabolic form was a surprise to the disciples (Matt. 13:10). The key to it is found in the deepening hostility and hopeless hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees. Miracle after miracle of beneficence had been performed; yet they ascribed his power to the Prince of Devils (Matt. 12:22-37), and then had the effrontery to demand a sign of him (Matt. 12:38-45). Jesus expresses his sense of the enormity of their sin by calling it the sin against the Holy Ghost, which has no forgiveness. It was to avoid precipitating a conflict with the rulers that he began to veil his teaching in parables, which he explained in private to his disciples (Matt. 13:10-16). Another reason
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was, doubtless, to add beauty and force to his lessons. But the adoption of the parabolic form marks a turning point closely connected with the growing hostility of the scribes and Pharisees.
IV. FOURTH STAGE-TO THE SERMON IN THE SYNAGOGUE AT CAPERNAUM.
1. The Tempest Stilled and the Gadarene Demoniacs (Matt. 8:18-34).-The day of parables had been a great clay with Jesus. He had wrestled with demons, foes had plotted, friends had sought him, and he had closed the day with his immortal parables. Worn with his toils he gave Orders to cross the little lake, his first recorded passage, though not the last. The sudden tempest, the intense alarm, the peaceful slumber of the Master, his rebuke Of the sea, "Peace, be still," and the instant calm of both wind and waves are told with exquisite simplicity. It may not be true that one miracle is greater than another; but it is true that certain miracles awed the beholders as others did not. "What manner of man is this that even the winds and the sea obey him?" On the eastern shore Jesus wrought another of those works that filled men with wonder. Two demoniacs met him, one of whom was afflicted with a legion of demons. The Gadarenes were amazed at the sight Of the fierce demoniacs clothed and sane, but angered at the loss of their swine; and Jesus, yielding to their entreaties, recrossed the sea to the western shore.
2. The First Mission of the Twelve (Matt. 9:35-11:1).--After returning to Galilee Jesus made a second and last visit to his boyhood home; but the Nazarenes once more rejected him. Still the work must go on. It is too great for one, and it is time that the Twelve should serve an apprenticeship in the art of preaching. He accord-
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ingly commissioned them to make a tour of Galilee, two and two, preaching and working miracles. In the mean-time Jesus continued his own labors. It should be noted that the mission of the Twelve, like the personal mission of Jesus and that of John, was preparatory. It was limited to the lost sheep of the house Of Israel, and its burden was, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
3. Death of John the Baptist (Matt. 14:1-12).-In this connection, the death of John, which had occurred some time before, is narrated. Herod Antipas had married Herodias, wife of his living brother Philip. John did not hesitate to rebuke the sins of a governor. The unscrupulous Herodias knew no rest, and gave Herod none, till she had secured, first, John's imprisonment, and then his martyrdom. When the fame of Jesus' mighty deeds reached Herod's ears, he said: "It is John the Baptist risen from the dead."
4. The Feeding of Five Thousand and the Sermon on the Bread of Life (John 6).-The Twelve returned from their tour of Galilee, and Jesus retired with them for rest and private instruction to the sparsely peopled district east of the lake. But still the multitude thronged to hear him, and still he taught them. Night was drawing on; the people were far from their homes, with nothing to eat. With a compassion that felt for every want of man, he multiplied the few loaves and fishes till all were satisfied. It was the climax of his popularity. The multitude were bent on making him king. It was a return to the third temptation. But Jesus would not be their sort of a Messiah. Dismissing the multitude, and sending the Twelve across the sea, he slipped away to the solitude of the mountain. Later in the night he came walking to them on the sea through the storm. The
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feeding of the five thousand is the only miracle recorded by all the gospels. John, alone, has preserved the sermon in the synagogue at Capernaum, which grew out of it. He there dwells upon himself as the Bread of Life. The enthusiastic multitude begin to see that he is not their kind of a Messiah. Had he yielded to their low ideals, and been content to be an earthly king, he could have mounted at once into supreme power. Not for that had he come. The way of human redemption was, for him, the way of the cross.
This great sermon in the synagogue at Capernaum marks another of the turning points in the life of Jesus. "Upon this many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him" (John 6:66) . Scribes and Pharisees have long hated him; the Gadarenes and the men of Nazareth have rejected him; Herod Antipas is beginning to take a dangerous interest in him; and now his very disciples are turning, disappointed, away.
V. FIFTH STAGE-TO THE FINAL DEPARTURE FROM GALILEE AT THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES.
1. Length.-Jesus did not attend the third Passover of his ministry. It occurred about the time Of the feeding of the five thousand (John 6:4). This final stage of the Galilean ministry, therefore, lasted about six months, from April to October.
2. New Aspects.-This period presents new and striking aspects. It was a period of,
a. Wandering.-Jesus visited in succession Phoenicia, the Bashan District, and Decapolis. He did not, how-ever, wholly cease his labors in Galilee.
b. Seclusion.-He steadfastly avoided crowds, and sought to be alone with the Twelve.
c. Private Instruction.-Few miracles are recorded,
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and little public teaching. He is training the Twelve in the fundamentals of his kingdom, and preparing them for his approaching death (cf. Matt. 16:21-23; 17:9; Mark 9:30-32).
3. Visit to Phoenicia (Matt. 15:21-28).-He whose mission is to save men from all lands went but once beyond his own. Only one incident of this visit is recorded-the healing Of the Syrophcenician woman's daughter. Her faith, so humble, so unconquerable, must have brought refreshment after the hypocrisy of Pharisees and the fickleness of Galileans. Passing on through Tyre and Sidon, Jesus made a long detour to Decapolis. Here multitudes throng around him once more, and Once more he miraculously feeds them, to the number Of four thousand. Crossing the lake, he returned again to Galilee. It is worthy of note that throughout this last stage of the Galilean ministry, while Jesus makes extensive tours outside the territory of Herod Antipas, he still makes Galilee the center whence he sets forth and to which he returns.
4. Visit to Caesarea Philippi; the Great Confession (Matt. 16).-On Jesus' return to Galilee, the Pharisees, now reinforced by the Sadducees, renewed their attacks (Matt. 16:1-4); and, as Jesus set forth on this tour in the territory of Herod Philip, he solemnly warned his disciples of the "leaven" of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
The end Of his ministry is now approaching. He had never formally claimed to be the Messiah. He had preferred to let the truth dawn gradually on men's minds through the works he wrought, the truths he spoke, the life he lived. But the time has come to test the results, and to turn their silent conviction into open confession. After a season of solitary prayer, Jesus put two questions to the Twelve:
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"Who do men say that the Son of man is?"
The various answers show how utterly the public had failed to comprehend him and his mission.
"Who say ye that I am?"
"THOU ART THE CHRIST, THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD."
It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of this confession. Suppose they, too, had missed the truth.
It was Peter who spoke; not for himself alone, but for the Twelve. Then Jesus' work was not a failure. He sees in the little circle around him the germs of his future church, and in Peter's confession the truth on which it was to be builded, the true "Apostles' Creed." But for the present it must not be proclaimed. Having committed them to his Messiahship, Jesus proceeds to reveal what his Messiahship involves-rejection, death, resurrection. Peter, still in the swaddling bands of carnal conceptions, protests. "Get thee behind me, Satan," is the Master's swift reproof; and he follows it up with the lesson, sorely needed still, that discipleship, also, means self-denial; cross-bearing before crown-wearing.
5. The Transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-13).-Throughout this period Jesus walked amidst darkening shadows: behind him, his rejection by the Galileans; before, the cross; yet around him, the band of still faithful disciples; above him, the unalterable love of the Father. Before returning to face again his foes in Galilee, and more hostile foes in Judea, one splendid token of the divine presence and approval was vouchsafed to him. The transfiguration scene was intended partly for the disciples, but chiefly for their Master. It was witnessed by the chosen three-Peter, James and John. As he was absorbed in fervent prayer, the divine, breaking through the human veil, clothed face and raiment with heavenly
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radiance. Moses the mediator, and Elijah the great re-former, of the Old Covenant, appeared, talking with him of his coming decease at Jerusalem; while out of the heavens, as at the Jordan, there came the voice, "This is my Son in whom I am well pleased," significantly adding, "Hear ye him." It was indeed a significant scene. The memory of it long lingered with an apostle (2 Pet. 1:16-18). Prophets and apostles, the Old Covenant and the New, heaven and earth there met. To Jesus it was the seal of the Father's approval on an almost fruitless ministry, and the assurance that he would be with him to the end. To the disciples it meant that their confession had not been a mistake nor their confidence misplaced; that henceforth they were to hear and preach, not Moses, but Christ. But again the seal of temporary silence was put on their lips. The full import of the vision could be seen only in the light of the resurrection and ascension. Descending from the mount of vision, Jesus heals an epileptic demoniac, and returns to Capernaum, still striving to prepare the disciples for the impending catastrophe at Jerusalem.
6. Close of the Galilean Ministry.-Jesus did not tarry long in Galilee. His great work there was done. Avoiding crowds, working few if any miracles, he con-fined himself to still further impressing upon his disciples the spirituality Of his kingdom, and the need of child-like humility if they would even enter into it (Matt. 18:1-14). The great Feast of Tabernacles was now at hand, and the little company, passing through Samaria, went once more to Jerusalem.
CLOSING MINISTRY IN ALL PARTS OF PALESTINE. FROM THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES TO THE ARRIVAL AT BETHANY.
This period of Jesus' ministry lasted six months, from October to April, exclusive of the six days before the Passover. As during the previous six months, Jesus was a fugitive. We shall find him successively at Jerusalem; in the country of Judea; at Jerusalem again; in Perea; at Bethany near Jerusalem; in Perea; back at Bethany again; in Perea once more, with a possible journey through Samaria and Galilee, and a final return to the neighborhood of Jerusalem.
1. At Jerusalem; the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:10; 10:20).-Here, as usual for visits to Jerusalem, our authority is John. Before he left Galilee, Jesus' relatives had urged him to join the caravan en route to the feast, and there, at the nation's capital, proclaim his Messiah-ship. But Jesus had his Own plans. He would not en-danger them by yielding to the carnal hopes of his friends, nor by prematurely precipitating a conflict with his enemies. It is still six months to the Passover; then he will voluntarily Offer himself as the world's true Pass-over. SO his relatives went with the throng to the feast, not knowing whether he would follow. At Jerusalem one question was buzzing from lip to lip: "Where is HE?" Finally, in the middle of the festival, Jesus came privately to Jerusalem, and going straight to the temple, began to teach. The Rabbis were scandalized that he
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did not speak the language Of the rabbinical schools; but he kept fearlessly on. One incident is narrated-that of the woman taken in adultery.* One miracle occurred-the healing of the man born blind, which gave great Offense because it was done on the Sabbath. The Jews went so far as to seek to stone him. Under the beautiful figure of the Good Shepherd, Jesus intimates that he is to voluntarily die for his flock, and to rise again.
2. In the Country Districts of Judea.-Retiring be-fore the plots of the Jews of Jerusalem, Jesus spends a few weeks near the city. Only one miracle is recorded-another Sabbath healing; but he pours forth a wondrous wealth of instruction. Portions of it, as the model prayer, and the parables Of the mustard seed, and the leaven, seem to be repetitions of earlier Galilean lessons. Two beautiful parables-the Rich Fool and the Good Samaritan-are new, and are peculiar to Luke, to whom we are indebted for the history of these two months.
But Jesus was not content with such evangelization as he could do personally. The time was short, and much remained to be done. As in Galilee he had sent out the Twelve, so now in Judea he sends forth the seventy. They are charged with the old message: "Repent, the kingdom is at hand."
It is also in this period that we get Our first glimpse of the Bethany sisters (Luke 10:38-42):Mary at the Master's feet, Martha "cumbered with much serving."
3. In Jerusalem; Feast of Dedication (John 10:22-42).-In our December, two months later than the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus returned to Jerusalem to the Feast
*This incident is wanting in the oldest manuscripts, but is probably historical, even if not part of John's Gospel.
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of Dedication. The Jews encountered him in Solomon's porch, demanding an explicit statement whether Or not he was the Messiah. Jesus declined a direct answer, well knowing that his naked assertion would weigh little with men self-blinded to the evidence Of his Own life and ministry. Once more they took up stones to kill him. Once more Jerusalem and Judea, like Capernaum and Galilee, were closed to him. One province was yet open to him, the half-heathen province Of Perea beyond the Jordan; and thither Jesus turned his face.
4. At Bethany; The Raising of Lazarus (John 11:1-54).-Jesus' ministry in Perea was interrupted by the death Of Lazarus. We would gladly know more of the little circle at Bethany. Jesus' great heart took in the world; yet with peculiar tenderness he "loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus." He must have paid many unrecorded visits to that home. It was not indifference which kept him in Perea, so far from his dying friend and the sorrowing sisters. How much would they and we have missed had he returned to heal him as he had healed so many hundreds! He came at last, to weep with them, to draw forth from broken hearts the confession Of their faith, to speak those words on which sorrowing souls without number have leaned: "I am the resurrection and the life," and to demonstrate his words by his deeds. The world could ill afford to miss the chapter which relates the recall of Jesus from Perea and of Lazarus from the dead.
A miracle so stupendous so near to Jerusalem could not fail to make a stir. Many believed On him; but no power in heaven or on earth could compel hypocritical Pharisee or wily Sadducee to believe. At swords' points on so many questions, in this dangerous miracle they found a common rallying ground. Acting on the counsel
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of the High Priest, Caiaphas, the council decreed his death. The living Lazarus was an unanswerable argument, and they even talked of involving him in the same sentence. Jesus therefore retired to Ephraim, thence once more to Perea, possibly making a tour through Samaria and Southern Galilee.
5. The Perean Ministry (Luke 13:22-17:10; Matt. 19-20:28).-In Perea Jesus entered upon a comparatively new field. It was the scene of John's earliest ministry (John 10:40; cf. 1:28); and Jesus doubtless reaped where John had sown, for his work was here attended with something of the earlier success in Galilee (John 10:41, 42). It is doubtful whether a single miracle can be assigned to Perea; but a body Of teaching has come down to us marked with peculiar and tender earnestness. Here were spoken the second great group of parables, recorded by Luke alone: the Great Supper, the Lost Sheep, Lost Coin, Prodigal Son, Unjust Steward, Rich Man and Lazarus, Importunate Widow, and Pharisee and Publican. Matthew adds the Laborers in the Vineyard. All the synoptists give the incidents Of Christ blessing little children, and the Rich Young Ruler. It was near the close, as they were nearing the Jordan and Jerusalem, that James and John came to Jesus with their ambitious petition for places at his right hand and his left. They were dreaming of crowns; he was looking forward to the cross.- Leaving Perea behind, Jesus crossed the Jordan at the usual ford near Jericho. As he passed the old city, blind Bartimaeus received his sight and Zaccheus the publican the deeper healing which it is the supreme mission of Christ to bring. Climbing the steep ascent, Jesus reached the little suburban village of Bethany six days before the Passover. The long journeys are over; the end is at hand.
THE LAST WEEK F JESUS' MINISTRY.
1. The Anointing at Bethany (Matt. 26:6-13; Mark 14:1-II; John 12:1-8).-Jesus had arrived at Bethany on Friday night. He must have been the center Of interest to the throng of pilgrims on their way to the Pass-over. While they passed on to lodge with friends in the city, or tent on the slopes Of Olivet and in the vale of Kedron, he sought the well-known Bethany home. Al-ways a welcome guest, he would now be thrice welcome. The Sabbath would be passed in rest; but that night a supper was given in his honor at the house of Simon, the leper. Mary, Martha and Lazarus were all present, rejoicing in the restored life Of One, the renewed fellow-ship of each Other, and in the presence of Him to whom they owed so much. But there was one whose gratitude could not be expressed in coarse or common ways. Gazing into the Lord's face, listening to his gracious words till she could forbear no longer, she arose, and, bringing a vase of costly ointment, poured it first on his head, then on his feet as he reclined at table. There were coarse souls then, as now, who criticized the "waste"; but to Jesus the love which prompted it was Of priceless value. "Let her alone; she hath (lone what she could; she bath anointed my body aforehand for the burying."*
*This anointing is not to be confounded with that in Luke 7. That was early; this, late in Jesus' ministry; that, at the
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2. Sunday: The Triumphal Entry (Matt. 21:1-17).-During the Passover week Jerusalem was crowded with strangers from all parts of Palestine and of the empire, many of whom had heard Jesus, more of whom had heard of him. The effect of the Perean ministry and the raising of Lazarus had been to kindle anew the blaze of popularity on one hand, and the fires Of hate On the other. The end is at hand; Jesus therefore no longer shuns the inevitable conflict, but yields to a public Messianic demonstration. But he intimates the nature of his reign by choosing an ass colt, the symbol Of peace, in-stead Of a horse, the symbol of war. As he reached the summit of Olivet, multitudes from the city met the multitudes coming up with him from Bethany; and, with shouts and hosannas and triumphal demonstrations, he is conducted into Jerusalem. The whole city was stirred, though with conflicting emotions. It was a purely provincial demonstration; Jerusalem, Over which he had wept as it burst in view from Olivet, held coldly aloof or openly criticized. One can not help asking, What if she, too, had accepted her Lord? We can not answer. We only know the rejection was final. The enthusiastic disciples were doubtless disappointed; Jesus did not follow up the Messianic demonstration as they had hoped; simply surveying everything in the temple, he returned for the night to Bethany.
3. Monday: The Barren Fig Tree; the Second Cleansing of the Temple (Matt. 21:12, 13, 18, 19; Mark 12-18).-On the way to the city in the morning Jesus performed the miracle that was both miracle
house of Simon the Pharisee; this, at the house of Simon the leper; that, by a reclaimed woman; this, by the spiritual-souled Mary; in that, Simon found fault because of the character of the woman; in this, Judas finds fault because of the waste.
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and parable in one. The barren fig tree, by its unusual foliage, boasted of unusual fruitfulness. With a word from Jesus it perished: fit emblem of the false city and nation, or of the false life, whose doom is destruction. Passing on, Jesus entered the temple. As a sequel of Sunday's survey, he cleansed it again as he had done at his first Passover. An interesting incident is preserved by John (12:20-33) concerning some representatives of the gifted Greek nation whom Philip and Andrew brought to Jesus. He foresaw the time when, by his lifting up on the cross, men of all races should be drawn unto himself. His soul shrank from the sacrifice; but "except a grain of wheat fall unto the earth and die it abideth alone." Thus, to the last, Jesus seized every occasion to set forth the nature of his kingdom. Had he chosen, he could, in a day, have wrought a political revolution and founded an earthly empire; but that question was long since settled. Man's crown and his own as well must come by way of the cross.
4. Tuesday: The Day of Questions (Matt. 21:23-25:46).--We come now to the last and greatest day in Jesus' public ministry. It opens in the temple with a series of questions designed to discredit him with the people: (1) By a committee from the Sanhedrin touching his authority; (2) by the Pharisees about the tribute; (3) by the Sadducees concerning the resurrection; (4) by the Pharisees, again, concerning the great commandment; (5) by Jesus himself concerning the Christ. Jesus wove into his matchless answers three of the third great group of parables, viz.: the Two Sons, the Wicked Husband-men, and the Marriage of the King's Son. Then, turning upon his foes, he poured upon them the "pent-up criticism of a life time." Thick and hot fell the thunder-bolts of his seven-fold "woe unto you scribes and Phari-
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sees, HYPOCRITES." It was deserved; but Jesus must have known it was fatal. Henceforth he could expect no mercy. The last event, as Jesus left the temple for-ever, was his commendation of the widow's two mites. This beautiful incident, following close upon the Great Denunciation, seems like a spring violet in the bosom of a glacier.
Passing out with the Twelve, he sat down on the slope of Olivet, facing the city temple. There, in response to a remark of the disciples on the huge temple stones, and a question concerning his second coming, he delivered the discourse on the destruction of Jerusalem and his second advent. The lessons of it all were, "Watch; be ready; redeem your opportunities." These he enforced by the parables of the Ten Virgins and Talents. Then follows the tenderly solemn picture of the judgment scene recorded in the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew.
So closed the last and greatest day of Jesus' public ministry, the fullest and most varied, both in incident and in teaching. A few minutes' walk with his disciples, and Jesus rested once more in the quiet precincts of Bethany.
But his enemies; not so closed the day with them. In secret conclave they decided, first, that he must die, and, secondly, that his murder must not be during the feast; for, cowardly as they were hypocritical, they durst not lay hands on him in the presence of the friendly multitudes.
And now we meet one of the enigmas of history. Just in the nick of time, in comes Judas, a disciple, one of the Twelve, who will know his haunts and his lodging places, and offers to betray his Master-for money. The narratives point clearly to avarice as the motive (Matt.
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26:14, 15; Mark 14:10, I 11; Luke 22:3-5; c f. John 12:4-6). He who carped at an offering of love sold his Master for thirty pieces of silver, one-third the price of Mary's grateful sacrifice.
5. Wednesday: The Calm Before the Storm.-There seems to be no record of Wednesday's events. We are left to imagine its scenes-the whole city watching, wondering why he did not return to the temple; the people hungering to hear, the authorities thirsting for his blood. But his work was done. He may have spoken to his disciples privately at Bethany; more likely he passed the day in restful, prayerful preparation for the final scenes. We do not know. The veil of secrecy rests on the day. "On that night he lay clown for the last time on earth. On Thursday morning he woke never to sleep again."
6. Thursday: The Last Supper (Matt. 26:17-35; John 13:1-17).-Sometime Thursday Jesus sent two of his disciples into the city to prepare for the Paschal meal. That night he sat down once more at the table with the Twelve; for Judas was still present-in appearance, a disciple; at heart, a traitor and a spy. A cloud was cast over the little company as they were taking their seat by a dispute as to the place of precedence. In that beautiful way, so worthy, yet so difficult of imitation, Jesus rebuked their ambition. Rising from the table he proceeded, as a common servant, to wash their feet; then turning to the abashed disciples, he impressed the lesson of humility and service. Still darker fell the clouds as Jesus went on to say, "One of you shall betray me." Judas soon withdrew-on some friendly service, as the disciples supposed; to execute his dark design, as Jesus knew. Jesus then reveals his desertion by all, his denial by self-confident Peter. Then the cloud lifts, and Jesus
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institutes the beautiful memorial supper and begins the matchless discourse recorded in John 14-16. He concludes the conversation with the real Lord's Prayer (John 17); a prayer which embraces in its widening circle his immediate disciples, all who should believe on him 'through their word, and the world. So, in tender discourse and in world-embracing prayer, the day wore away till near the hour of midnight. Passing out of the room into the moonlight, Jesus left the city behind and walked with his disciples in the direction of Bethany.
7. Gethsemane (Matt. 26:36-46).-On the eastern edge of the ravine called Kedron, at the foot of Mt. Olivet, lay a well-known garden or orchard called Gethsemane (oil press). It was a favorite resort of Jesus. Entering the shadows of the olive trees, he left all but the chosen Three, and went further into the garden for prayer. Leaving the Three just at hand, he penetrated still deeper into the shadows, and fell prone on his face in unutterable agony. He was "greatly amazed"; "sore troubled"; "exceeding sorrowful, even unto death"; "his sweat became as it were great drops Of blood." Thrice from his lips went up the subdued cry, "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt." Thrice he returned to the Three to find them sleeping. What does it all mean? Was it fear of physical death that forced the bloody sweat from his face, and the cry of agony from his lips? Then he had less heroism than many a Spartan warrior, less physical courage than many a brutal criminal on the scaffold. Has the glorious manhood we have followed so long shrunk to this pitiful measure at last? Has it not all a far sublimer meaning? Was it not a mightier sorrow that was crushing him to earth-the infinite burden of a world's sins and sorrows? The scene is too tenderly
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sacred for cold speculation. We only know that out of this, as out Of all previous assaults upon his purpose, he came victorious: "He was heard in that he feared" (Heb. 5:7); "An angel appeared from heaven strengthening him"' (Luke 22:43)
THE LAST DAY. MATT. 26:45-27:66 AND PARALLEL PASSAGES.
Introductory.-It is sometimes felt that we magnify the death of Christ at the expense of his life. That is possible. It is possible to dwell upon it in a hard mechanical way, which fails to make the cross the natural culmination of the Father's love and of Jesus' life. Yet it is a suggestive fact that no other day's doings in the Bible are narrated with equal fullness. Were Jesus' whole life as fully related, it would fill four hundred volumes as large as the entire New Testament.
1. The Betrayal.-The three disciples had slept while Jesus prayed. Not so Judas. He had been busy perfecting his plans. As Jesus arose from his supplications and returned to the disciples, Judas entered the garden with a band of soldiers armed with weapons and torches. These poor tools would not know Jesus; but, that there might be no mistake, Judas had given a signal; and going straight to Jesus he said: "Hail, Master," and kissed him. An awe fell on the hirelings at sight of the famous Prophet of Galilee, and they fell back at first; but, plucking up courage at last, they seized Jesus, and bound him and led him away. It was all more than Peter could endure, and an ill-directed blow from his sword cut off the ear of the High Priest's servant. But swords, whether Of friend or foe, were alike needless and useless. His foes could not have availed against powers at his command had he willed to use them; and friends could
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not avail in his behalf against his own settled purpose and Jewish hate. Divine love and diabolical hate, the sublime purposes of God, and the mean purposes of men, meet and mingle around the cross.
2. The Trials.-The Romans left the Jews, as they left all conquered peoples, a large measure of liberty. So long as they kept the peace and paid the taxes, they could manage local affairs pretty much in their own way. But while their national council might adjudge a prisoner worthy Of death, the death sentence was reserved to the Roman court. Thus there were two distinct trials of Jesus: a Jewish or ecclesiastical, and a Roman or civil trial. In each trial there were three stages.
a. The Jewish or Ecclesiastical Trial.-(1) The first phase was a preliminary examination before Annas. Annas had been the High Priest many years before, and was still regarded by the Jews as High Priest de fare. He was a man of advanced age and great influence. After a few questions, Annas sent Jesus to Caiaphas; but not until the first cruel blow had fallen on his person. (2) The second phase was before Caiaphas, and was much more important. Caiaphas was the son-in-law of Annas, and was the High Priest de facto, and, as such, president of the Sanhedrin Or council. Any meeting of the Sanhedrin before sunrise would be illegal; but the leaders were evidently on hand to practically secure the condemnation of Jesus before the people should be astir. It was difficult to frame a plausible charge. Several absurd accusations were brought forward, but the witnesses disagreed, and Jesus maintained a dignified silence. The prosecution was in danger of breaking down, when Caiaphas determined to make him criminate himself. "Art thou the Christ, the Son Of the blessed?" Jesus had been silent before. To that question he could not be silent,
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and answered, "I am." "Blasphemy," shouted Caiaphas. "He is worthy of death," echoed the hostile judges. It must have been soon after midnight when Jesus was arrested. It still lacked some time of sunrise, and the interval before the full meeting Of the Sanhedrin was spent in brutal mockery of the unresisting prisoner. (3) The third stage before the full council was merely a formal ratification Of the decision already reached.
Sometime during the earlier stages occurred the fall of Peter. Together with John, he had crept back to be near his Master, and watch the proceedings. It was perilous ground; and Peter, yielding to terror as one and another pointed scornfully at him as a Galilean, thrice denied his Lord, even adding oaths to denials. Poor Peter! But he was not hopelessly lost. The crowing of the cock, the remembrance of Jesus' prediction and of his own proud boastfulness, together with a sad, silent look from Jesus as he crossed the court to Caiaphas' palace, recalled him to his better self; "And he went out and wept bitterly."
There was another side scene far sadder and far more terrible. Judas, too, had kept an eye on the proceedings. It may be he had hoped that Jesus would break away from his bonds and manifest his glory. No harm would befall the Master, while he himself would be thirty shekels the richer. But the three stages of the Jewish trial came to a close. Jesus is condemned to die. Pilate's sentence Only is needed. Remorse seizes on Judas. Those thirty pieces of silver are burning into his very soul. Rushing before the council he flings them down, saying: "I have betrayed innocent blood." "That is your business, not ours," is the heartless answer. The traitor is always despised as a tool by those who use him. And going out he hung himself (cf. Matt. 27:5; Acts 1:18,
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19). Why did he not go, even then, and throw himself at Jesus' feet, and receive the benediction of his forgiveness? Remorse is not repentance. Judas stands for one; Peter for the other.
b. The Roman or Civil Trial.-Here, also, there were three stages. (I) Before Pilate. Pilate's first question was: "What accusation?" The Jewish charge of blasphemy, on which they had condemned him, would not avail before a Roman court. They first sought to secure Pilate's sentence on vague charges of evil doing; but, with a Roman's sense of justice, Pilate insists on explicit charges. "He forbids to give tribute to Caesar: he claims to be Christ a king." The first was a lie; and Pilate soon satisfied himself that Jesus did not claim royalty in any dangerous political sense, and declared him innocent. They were not to be put off so, and made a fourth charge that he stirred up sedition all the way from Galilee to Jerusalem. Pilate was in a dilemma. He was unwilling to condemn an innocent man; he feared to offend the Jews. But he caught at the word Galilee. That was Herod's province; Herod was in the city; the two governors were at enmity; here was a rare chance to show Herod a courtesy and heal the feud, and at the same time get rid Of a disagreeable and dangerous case. So Pilate sent Jesus to Herod. (2) Before Herod. Herod had been anxious to meet Jesus, hoping to witness some miracle. But Jesus, acting on his own precept not to cast pearls before swine, to all Herod's questioning returned not one word. Then occurred the second derision. Utterly foiled, Herod and his brutal soldiery arrayed Jesus in on old royal robe and sent him back to Pilate. (3) Before Pilate again. About this time the populace began to clamor for the release of a prisoner, an annual favor at the Passover. Pilate instantly proposed Jesus. But
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the priests have been busy with the people. Jesus, riding into the city at the head of a triumphal procession, and Jesus, condemned by the Sanhedrin, awaiting Pilate's sentence, are two persons. "Not this man, but Barabbas; now Barabbas was a robber." Awhile longer Pilate struggled with the mob and his own conscience, then yielded and gave the order to crucify Jesus. In the interval Pilate's soldiers added their mockery, arraying him in a scarlet robe, thrusting a reed into his hand, and pressing a rough wreath of thorns upon his head.
So ends the sixfold trial, in which treachery and hypocrisy and cowardice and selfish policy and savage brutality stand in everlasting antithesis with the supreme manhood of Jesus. Even there and then, arrayed in mock royalty, facing the jeers and insults of the mob, he was a thousand times more a king than any who ever sat on the throne of a Herod, or wore the diadem of a Caesar.
3. The Crucifixion.-a. Hour and Place.-It was about nine in the morning when the order to crucify was given. Jesus suffered without the city (Heb. 13:12) at a spot called, in Hebrew, Golgotha; in Greek, Cranion; in Latin Calverium (Calvary)-all meaning skull. It was probably a skull-shaped knoll to the northwest of the city.
b. On the Way.-Jesus went forth bearing his own cross; but before reaching Golgotha, the guards seized a young Cyrenian and laid the cross on him; perhaps because the weight was too great for Jesus' strength, exhausted by the night's vigils and the morning's sufferings. Some, even in that dark hour, were found to bewail his fate. The lips, so long silent under insult, now broke forth in pity; not for himself, but for those
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so soon to be overwhelmed in the ruin impending over Jerusalem.
c. At the Cross.-Two highwaymen were crucified with him. Crucifixion was the Roman mode of execution for the lowest criminals. The women of Jerusalem, out of pity, were accustomed to prepare a stupefying drink for such occasions. Such a draught was now offered; but Jesus refused to cloud his faculties even to ease his pain.
d. The Seven Sayings from the Cross.-There are seven sayings Of Jesus from the cross recorded: (I) The first of these was probably spoken at this moment. The bodies were first nailed to the cross, and then the cross roughly set in its socket. "Father, forgive them; they know not what they do"; referring to the rude soldiers who shortly after sat down to gamble over the raiment of Jesus. Pilate had prepared the several accusations to be placed above the victims. That of Jesus, in Hebrew, Greek and Latin, was meant by Pilate, and felt by the Jews, as a fling at them: "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." They protested, but to no purpose. (2) Jesus' mother and two Other Marys stood with John near the cross. To his mother and John he addressed his second saying: "Behold thy son; behold thy mother"; mindful still of others rather than of self. (3) And now begins the sickening spectacle of power venting its pent-up spite on weakness. The chief priests and scribes and rulers, the heads of the nation joined in the jeers of the rabble such a scene always calls together. "He saved others, himself he cannot save"; a deeper truth than they dreamed: for how could he save himself if he would save others? Even the thieves on the cross, poor wretches, joined in the raillery; both at first, till one, touched to pity and repentance by innocent suffering, turned to the
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central cross with the prayer, "Remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom." True to his name and mission to the last, Jesus utters the third saying from the cross, "This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise." (4) Then, from twelve to three, ensued three hours of darkness and Of silence. It is the hour of the evening sacrifice, when, out Of the darkness and from the cross, goes up to Heaven the first and the last complaint from those patient lips, the mysterious words, "My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?" Swiftly there follow the remaining utterances: (5) "I thirst," the first and last expression of bodily pain. Awe had rendered hard hearts tender, and Jesus received a cup of cooling vinegar. Once more he speaks: (6) "It is finished"; finished, not merely ended, the noblest life ever lived on earth; finished, the work of human redemption; finished, fulfilled, in a far sublimer sense than Patriarchs and prophets ever dreamed, the types and symbols and prophecies Of the Old Covenant. (7) Then, bowing his head, with the seventh and last saying of the cross he yielded up his spirit: "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit."
e. End of the Old Covenant.-At the moment Of his expiring cry the land felt the thrill of an earthquake shock. The temple veil was rent from top to bottom; for Jesus' cross marked the termination of the Old Covenant with its types and shadows (Col. 2:14). Men were filled with awe. Even the Roman centurion was con-strained to say, "Surely this was the Son of God."
4. The Burial.-The day following the crucifixion was a high Sabbath. The Jews could commit murder; but they could not ceremonially defile the Sabbath; the bodies must not remain on the crosses after sunset. To hasten death the legs were broken; but Jesus was already
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dead, as shown by the coagulum which followed the soldier's spear thrust. Two prophecies were thus unconsciously fulfilled (Ps. 34:20; 22:16, 17). Jesus' body was delivered to two of his disciples, Joseph of Arimathaea and Nicodemus; loving hands prepared it for burial in Joseph's new tomb; and at the request of the yet fearful Jews, the Roman seal and a Roman guard makes the sepulchre secure.
THE FORTY DAYS. MATT. 28; MARK 16; LUKE 24; JOHN 20, 21; ACTS 11:1-12.
1. The Resurrection.-The resurrection of the Messiah had been distinctly predicted by prophets (Ps. 16:10; Isa. 55:3; cf. Acts 2:25-31; 13:34-37), and repeatedly foretold by Jesus himself (Matt. 16:21; 17:9; 20:19; 26:31, 32). But the minds of the disciples were so preoccupied with notions of a political kingdom that they could not Or would not think of the Christ as actually dying. His death, therefore, left them dazed, benumbed. To all human appearance never was a cause more helplessly lost than the cause Of Jesus when he expired On the cross. The hopes of the disciples were buried with the body Of Jesus in the tomb of Joseph. Had not Jesus risen their hopes would never have revived. Had not Jesus risen the world would never have heard of him. The Birth, the Person, the Resurrection-these are the three essential and creative miracles. They are the sole and sufficient key to Christianity. The Sabbath passed-a sorrowful Sabbath to the stricken disciples. With the dim dawn came the devoted women, "last at the cross, first at the sepulchre"-the two Marys and Others. They had seen the place of burial. but knew nothing of the seal or the guard. They brought spices to complete what there had not been time to do the night of the crucifixion. But the tomb was empty! Peter and John were near at hand, and soon at the sepulchre. The first thought Of
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all was that the body had been stolen; but a vision of angels revealed the resurrection.
2. The Ten Appearances of Jesus.-(I) To Mary Magdalene. The disciples went away more bewildered than ever. But Mary lingered at the sepulchre. To her raptured sight first of all Jesus appeared, and met her with a message to the disciples. (2) To the Other women a little later. Jesus appeared to the other women as they went in search of the disciples, and sent them also with a message to his brethren. (3) To Simon Peter: mentioned incidentally in Luke 24:33, 34; also by Paul (1 Cor. 15:5). (4) To two disciples on the way to Emmaus. The same day Cleopas, with another disciple, went On some errand to the neighboring village of Emmaus. They had heard of the empty tomb and the vision Of angels. As they walked and talked of all that had happened Jesus himself joined them, drew from them the cause of their sadness, opened to them the prophecies concerning himself, and finally made himself known to them in the breaking Of bread. Returning that evening to Jerusalem, they found the apostles and Others eagerly talking Of Jesus' appearance to Simon. Their own ac-count must have added fuel to the flame already kindled. Still they were incredulous. (5) To the apostles and others in the absence of Thomas. In the very midst of the excitement Jesus himself suddenly appeared in their midst, and greeted them with the salutation, "Peace unto you," and chided them for their unbelief. To assure them of the reality of his resurrection, and of his appearance to them, he showed them his pierced hands and feet, and ate in their presence. All the above appearances Occurred on the day that Jesus rose. (6) To the apostles, including Thomas. Thomas had been absent from the Sunday night meeting, and would not believe
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the testimony of the others. One week later they were all together, and Jesus appeared to them again. Thomas yielded to the testimony of his own senses, and became the last apostolic convert (save Paul) to the fact of the resurrection. (7) To seven disciples at the sea of Galilee. The disciples had returned to their old occupation of fishing. After a night of fruitless toil, they were directed by a stranger on the shore to cast their net on the right. The results revealed at once to John that it was the Master; but Peter was first to swim ashore to greet him. It was on this occasion that Jesus drew from Peter his threefold avowal of his love, as a revocation, no doubt, of his threefold denial. (8) To five hundred disciples. This probably occurred in Galilee (c f. Matt. 28:16, 19; I Cor. 15:6), where the body of his disciples lived. We have no certain details of this meeting. (9) To James (1 Cor. 15:7). (10) To the apostles on Olivet at the time of the ascension. It is probable that, during the forty days from the resurrection to the ascension, Jesus was with his disciples many more times than has been recorded, and gave them much more instruction than appears in the fragmentary history. (See Acts 1:3.)
3. The Last Commission.-Either at his last inter-view or during the several interviews after his resurrection, Jesus gave the apostles their final commission. The mission of John, the personal mission of Jesus, the first mission of the Twelve, and that of the Seventy, had all been preparatory. Their message had been "The kingdom at hand" (cf. Matt. 3:2; 4:17; 10:7; Luke 10:9). It had been restricted to Israel (Matt. 10:5; 15:24). The apostles had not even been permitted to preach that Jesus is the Christ (Matt. 16:20; 17:9). Christ came to live and suffer and rise that there might
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be a gospel to be preached. Now, all restrictions but one are removed. They are to preach a full and final gospel-that is, "Christ and him crucified" (I Cor. 15:1-4; 2:1); to "the whole creation"; to "make disciples of all the nations" through faith in Christ, repentance of sin, and baptism "into the name of Father, Son and Holy Spirit." But they were not yet fully qualified; therefore, "Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until ye be clothed with power from On high"; for "ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence." Such, in substance, is the last commission under which, for eighteen Christian centuries, the work of world-wide evangelization has gone On.
4. The Ascension.-"It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart I will send him unto you" (John 16:7). And so Jesus led his disciples out to the Mount of Olives, and "he lifted up his hands and blessed them. And it came to pass while he blessed them, he was parted from them and carried up into heaven." The ascension shed new light on the mission of the Messiah. Their old carnal dreams began to disappear. God has stooped to man that he might lift man up to God. And so the eleven return with joy to Jerusalem, and the gospel history closes with the disciples waiting for the promised Spirit.
APOSTOLIC HISTORY; OR, THE FOUNDING AND EXTENSION OF THE CHURCH, A. D. 30-100.
INTRODUCTION.
1. Sources of Apostolic History.-These are,
a. The Book of Acts.-The author had written the third gospel (cf. 1:1; Luke 1:1-4). He was a traveling companion of Paul. See Acts 16:10; 20:6 and other "we" passages. We know from Paul's Epistles (Col. 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:11; Philem. 23, 24) that Luke was one of his co-workers, and uniform tradition has ascribed the Book to Luke. The title, The Acts of the Apostles, which is no part of the Original book, is misleading. It relates only a few of the acts of some of the apostles. One of the oldest manuscripts gives the better title, Acts of Apostles.
b. Historical Allusions in the Epistles.-The Epistles are twenty-one in number, thirteen of which are from the pen of Paul.
c. The Book of Revelation.-This gives scenes in the life of the Apostle John long after the other apostles were dead.
2. Relation to Gospel History.-(1) Throughout the gospels, John, Jesus, the Twelve, the Seventy, preach a kingdom at hand. In Acts we see Christ reigning, and men and women entering his church or kingdom.
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(2) Throughout the Gospels the message and the field were restricted. The apostles were not authorized to preach the death, resurrection or Messiahship of Jesus, or forgiveness in his name, nor to go beyond Palestine. In Acts we see them in all lands, preaching Christ in the fullness of his redemptive work, and offering remission of sins in his name.
(3) In the Gospels Christ promises the Holy Spirit as the result of his ascension and glorification. In Acts we see the Spirit come in illuminating and sanctifying power, and thousands smitten with the sword of the Spirit. The Book of Acts has appropriately been termed the "Gospel of the Holy Spirit."
3. Periods of Apostolic History.-Confining our-selves for the present to the Book of Acts, we divide the history into the following Periods:
(1) The Founding and Growth of the Church in Jerusalem (A. D. 30-35).
(2) The Extension of the Church Throughout Judea and Samaria, and Transition to the Gentiles (A. D. 35-45).
(3) Paul's Missionary Tours Among the Gentiles (A. D. 45-58).
(4) Paul's Four Years' Imprisonment (A. D. 58-63).
THE FOUNDING AND GROWTH OF THE CHURCH 1N JERUSALEM, A. D. 30-35. ACTS 1-7.
I. FOUNDING OF THE CHURCH.
(ACTS I, 2.)
1. Nucleus of the Church; The Ten Days of Waiting.-The number of disciples residing or remaining in Jerusalem after the ascension was one hundred and twenty. Including those in Galilee there were over five hundred, at least (I Cor. 15:6) . The One hundred and twenty continued in prayer while waiting in daily expectation of the promised Spirit. During the days of waiting, upon the suggestion of Peter, the vacancy in the apostolate, caused by the suicide of Judas, was filled by the election of Matthias; an essential qualification of an apostle being the personal knowledge which should en-able him to testify to the resurrection of Christ (Acts 11:21, 22; I Cor. 9:1).
2. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit.-a. Time and Accompaniments.-Christ had suffered at the Passover: the Spirit came fifty days later at Pentecost, the second of the great feasts. It came with accompaniments appealing to eye and ear-a sound like a mighty wind, though not wind; flame-like tongues, though not flame.
b. Its Effects on the Disciples.-Its effects on the Twelve were instant, powerful, transforming; "They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance."
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But supernatural insight and power were not the only effects. They were morally transformed. Henceforth there are no carnal conceptions of the kingdom, no unseemly strifes over the chief places in it.
c. Its Evidential Valise.-Jesus had connected the coming Of the Comforter with his return to the Father (John 15:26, 27; 16:7; cf. 7:39; Acts 2:33). Pentecost was heaven's answer to earth's rejection of her Lord; a public notification that the crown of thorns had been exchanged for a crown of glory; the crowning proof Of the nation's sin and Jesus' Messiahship.
d. Effects on the Multitude.-To the wondering thou-sands who instantly gathered around the apostles, the baptism of the Spirit came with convicting, converting power; indirectly, indeed, yet effectively, through the gospel as it fell from Peter's lips.
3. Peter's Sermon; Results.-Peter is the spokes-man; his hearers, Jews, born in a score of different lands. After an introduction fitted to allay prejudice, he goes on to prove that Jesus is the Christ (I) by his well-known works; (2) by his death, which was a plan of God unconsciously executed by wicked men; (3) by his resurrection, foretold by prophets and attested by the apostles; (4) by his exaltation at the right hand of the Father, predicted by prophets and confirmed by the Pentecostal miracle.
The results were (I) a pungent conviction; "they were pricked in their heart"; (2) a pointed question; "What shall we do?" (3) a plain answer: "Repent-and be baptized-every one of you-in the name of Jesus Christ-for the remission of sins-and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit"; (4) an instant Obedience; "Then they that gladly received the word were baptized, and the same day there were added unto them about three
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thousand souls"; (5) steadfast continuance "in the apostle's teaching, and fellowship, in breaking of bread and in the prayers."
Well may Pentecost be called "the birthday of the church."
II. THE GROWTH OF THE CHURCH IN JERUSALEM.
(ACTS 3-7.)
1. The First Jewish Persecution.-Soon after Pentecost, Peter and John healed a lame man at the gate of the temple. The vast crowd that gathered gave Peter an opportunity to follow up the work of Pentecost. His discourse was interrupted by the Sadducees, to whom the preaching of the resurrection was especially obnoxious; the two apostles were imprisoned. The effect of Peter's discourse, however, was to increase the number of the disciples to five thousand. The next day Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin, which was largely composed of Sadducees, and questioned as to the power by which they had done the miracle. They boldly owned that it was by the power of Jesus, and as boldly declared to their judges that there was salvation in no other name. The authorities could not deny the miracle, and, contenting themselves with threats, let the apostles go.
2. Dangers from Within; Ananias and Sapphira.-The Jerusalem church furnishes an example Of Christian communism (2:44, 45; 4:34-37). It was not compulsory (5:3, 4), but wholly spontaneous. It was neither universal nor permanent; in form it belonged to the Jerusalem church alone, though in spirit it characterized the entire apostolic church. Ananias and Sapphira took advantage of this community of goods to turn part of their possessions over to the apostles and live at public
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expense; a cheap way Of gaining both a livelihood and a reputation for generosity. Their prompt exposure by Peter, and their instantaneous death at his feet, filled the whole church with awe. It stands at the very threshold of the new community as a monument against unreality in religion. It is a noteworthy fact that the first death among the Twelve was that Of a traitor and suicide, and the first deaths in the apostolic church were those Of hypocrites and liars.
3. The Second Jewish Persecution.-The effect of the judgment On Ananias and Sapphira, as of all righteous discipline, was to increase the power of the gospel. The Sanhedrin, alarmed and indignant, threw all the apostles into prison. God had further work for them; and his angel opened the prison door and sent them back to the temple to preach the gospel. Perplexed by their mysterious escape, the rulers brought them before the council. The apostles declared their purpose to obey God rather than men; and the Sanhedrin were restrained from violent measures only by the counsel of Gamaliel: "If this counsel be Of men it will come to naught; if it he of God ye cannot overthrow it." Gamaliel was a Pharisee, the teacher of Paul (Acts 22:3). The Pharisees seem to have taken no active part in these earlier persecutions.
4. First Division of Labor.-The church quickly be-came cosmopolitan. Peter's varied audience on Pentecost (2:8-11) soon came to have its counterpart in the church. Those people Of Jewish blood, born in lands outside Palestine, were called Hellenists, or "Grecian Jews." They often appear in Acts in contrast with "Hebrews," or Palestinian Jews. A jealousy between the two classes became the occasion of the first division of labor. The organization of the church was an evolution.
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The apostles, at first, filled all offices. To allay the jealousy growing out of the daily distribution of food, upon the recommendation of the apostles, the congregation chose seven men, all with Grecian names, to at-tend to the business. In this way the office of deacon arose. The apostles were thus able to give themselves wholly to prayer and the ministry of the Word. The good effect was seen in still larger victories for the gospel, many priests becoming Obedient to the faith.
5. The First Christian Martyr (6:8-7:60).-The church had chosen better than it knew. Stephen, one of the seven deacons, began by feeding Hellenistic widows; it was not long before he was breaking in Hellenistic synagogues the bread of life.
Up to this point the disciples would be regarded, even by Jews themselves, as a peculiar sect of Jews. No clear thought of widening the work to include the Gen-tiles had been entertained. But Stephen evidently began to look toward the abrogation of Judaism. This touched all Jews at a tender point. The Hellenists, beaten in argument, resorted to persecution. And now the Pharisees became active. In the second persecution, Gamaliel, the Pharisee, appears as the protector of Peter; in the third, his pupil, Paul, as the persecutor Of Stephen. And so it came to pass that Stephen, the most progressive spirit in the Jerusalem church, fell the first Christian martyr. In the spirit of his Master he dies with the prayer, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." The church lost Stephen, but soon gained Paul; and we may say with St. Augustine,
"Si Stephanus non orasset,
Ecclesia Paulum non haberet."
"If Stephen had not prayed,
The church would not have had Paul."
THE EXTENSION OF THE. CHURCH THROUGHOUT JUDEA AND SAMARIA AND TRANSITION TO THE GENTILES, A. D. 35-45. (ACTS 8-12.)
1. Extension to Samaria (8:1-25).-The "beginning at Jerusalem" (Luke 24:47) is fulfilled. It is time to follow the diverging geographical lines indicated in the last commission (Acts 1:8). But no move is made till compelled by the rage of men; one more example Of the intertwining of human plans with the divine. Stephen's death did not slake the thirst of his murderers. It was only the taste of blood to the tiger. The previous persecutions had been tame. Now Pharisee and Sadducee, priest and people turned upon the infant church. The effect was not to quench the fires of the gospel, but to kindle them in new centers. The apostles, only, remained in Jerusalem. The scattered disciples became so many evangelists, preaching throughout Judea and Samaria. The labors of one, only, are related. Philip, one of the seven deacons, carried the gospel to Samaria. For six hundred years the Samaritans had been preserved as a distinct people. There was a providence in it. They were neither Jew nor Gentile, but a half-way house from One to the other. Miraculous demonstrations of an almost Pentecostal character attended Philip's work; and in the region where a nameless woman and many of her townsmen had believed Jesus, multitudes now joyfully accepted the completed gospel proclaimed
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by a disciple of Jesus. Simon, a notorious sorcerer, was among the converts. Philip could preach the gospel and work miracles, but he could not bestow on others the supernatural endowments of the Spirit. That power be-longed only to apostles. The new departure of preaching to Samaritans was Of sufficient importance to require a visit from the apostles. Peter and John went down, seemed satisfied with the work, and laid hands On the converts that they might receive the Spirit. Sorcerer Simon's old passion for power came back and he offered Peter money for the power to bestow the Holy Spirit, and received the sharp rebuke of the apostle for his sins. To this day the purchase of ecclesiastical offices continues to be called after Simon, simony.
2. Conversion of the Eunuch (8:26-40).-The treasurer of Queen Candace, Of Ethiopia, is On his way home from a religious pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Philip is sent of God in the direction of Gaza. Their paths meet. The officer is reading from Isaiah the prophet, and invites Philip to ride with him and explain the prophecy. Philip preaches Jesus to him. As the result the eunuch demands baptism. The chariot halts, both go down into a wayside pool, and Philip baptizes the convert, who goes On rejoicing in his new-found faith. It is possible he was a Gentile. If so, this was a private transition to the Gentile world, and attracted no attention at Jerusalem because it Occurred in an uninhabited region, involved no social relations, and may not even have been known at the time at Jerusalem. More probably he was a Grecian Jew, many of whom, like Nehemiah, held high office in Gentile lands. Philip passed on to Caesarea, where we shall meet him again after many years.
3. Conversion and Early Labors of Saul (9:1-30).-The conversion of Saul was the most vital event in
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the history Of Christianity after Pentecost. Three times is the story told us: by Luke (Acts 9); by Paul himself to the Jewish mob (Acts 22), and by Paul again before Agrippa (Acts 26). Far more than any other apostle, Paul left his impress on the early church. Including Luke's Gospel and the Acts, both probably composed under the inspiration and direction Of Paul, more than one-half of the New Testament was of Pauline origin.
We left Saul at Jerusalem at the outbreak of the third persecution. He was the soul of it. Whatever he did he did with his might. God let him work so long as his work was serving to send the gospel to other centers; but the moment he sought to carry his fierce intolerance to distant Damascus, God laid hands on him. Jesus appeared in person to make of him a minister and a witness (26:16), 1. e., an apostle; sent him on, blinded, to Damascus, where, after three days of fasting and prayer, he was further instructed and baptized by a disciple named Ananaias. Combining the account in the first chapter of Galatians with that in the ninth of Acts, we learn that he immediately began preaching at Damascus; went for three years to Arabia; returned to Damascus only to face such a storm of persecution as he himself had formerly raised; escaped to Jerusalem, where he was introduced to the distrustful disciples by Barnabas; preached boldly in Jerusalem till a plot Of the Jews and a vision from God_ (22:17-21) sent him to his native Tarsus. Wherever he was Paul must have been a worker; but for some years a veil Of obscurity rests on his labors.
4. Transition to the Gentiles.-A. THROUGH PETER; CONVERSION F CORNELIUS (10).-We come now to a new turning point in our story. The church is to burst the Jewish swaddling hands Of its infancy. The gulf between Jew and Gentile was wider and deeper than that
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between Jew and Samaritan. But it was bridged. God usually prepares for great epochs by silently preparing hearts for each other and for the event. It was so here.
a. Preparation of Cornelius.-At Caesarea, the political capital of Palestine, there was stationed a Roman centurion named Cornelius. Though an uncircumcised Gentile, he was a believer in God; devout, upright, benevolent. A vision of God directed him to send down the sea coast to Joppa for Simon Peter, who should instruct him in the way of salvation.
b. Preparation of Peter.-We left Peter returning from Samaria to Jerusalem. We find him later at Lydda, where he heals Aeneas. Thence, on the death of Dorcas, he was called to Joppa. Here he brought Dorcas to life; and here Cornelius' messengers found him. But Peter, too, must be prepared for the event. A vision from heaven taught him not to call any man common or unclean, and the Spirit bade him go to Cornelius. Cornelius had gathered his household and friends. Peter preached to them, and received them, through baptism, into the church.
c. The Case Defended.-To strict Jewish Christians at Jerusalem it was a startling event. To enter into religious and social relations with an entire household of uncircumcised Gentiles was to violate every canon of propriety, and, on his return to Jerusalem, Peter was called to account for it. But God had supplied him with an answer. Contrary to the usual order, the Spirit, in its supernatural endowments, had fallen on the household of Cornelius prior to baptism, as the divine warrant for receiving them. It was the "Gentile Pentecost"; God's seal on the new departure, and, as such, joyfully recognized by the church.
B. THROUGH THE HELLENISTS (11:19-30).-While
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these events were occurring, God was preparing his church for a far wider incursion into the Gentile world. The fugitives from Paul's persecution carried the gospel into Phoenicia, the island of Cyprus, and the city of Antioch. At first they preached to Jews only. But soon word came to Jerusalem that the Hellenists were breaking through all barriers of race, and preaching to Gen-tiles. Immediately they sent Barnabas, himself a Hellenist, to Antioch.
a. A New Leader and a New Center.-Barnabas not only gave the work his sanction, but set out to Tarsus for Saul. It will be remembered that it was Barnabas who introduced Saul to the disciples at Jerusalem; he may be called the "original discoverer of Paul." At last the place is found for the man and the man for the place. Antioch was the greatest center of population and culture in Asia; Paul, the broadest, most forceful man in the church. From the moment Of Paul's arrival in Antioch, Peter and Jerusalem fall into the background; Paul and Antioch come to the front. A new center and a new leader have been developed, both better fitted for the work of world-wide evangelization than Jerusalem and the leaders there.
b. The New Name.-It is significantly stated that "the disciples were called Christians first at Antioch." The name could hardly have Originated at Jerusalem. There the disciples were all Jews, scarcely distinguish-able by Gentiles from other Jews. In Antioch the body of disciples was drawn from the heathen population. They differed radically from both Jew and heathen. The name was both necessary and appropriate.
5. Fourth Jewish Persecution.-Before following the thread of Paul's missionary tour, Luke gives us one more glimpse of affairs at Jerusalem. Herod Agrippa I.,
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grandson of that Herod who murdered the babes of Bethlehem, and nephew of that Herod who beheaded John the Baptist, true to the Herodian traditions, began a bloody persecution. The Apostle James found in martyrdom his baptism of suffering (Matt. 20:22). Peter was waiting in prison a like fate when, through the prayers Of the church and the ministration of God's angel, he was released and saved for many more years of labor. Herod died (A. D. 44) of a loathsome disease; "but the Word of God grew and multiplied."
PAUL'S MISSIONARY TOURS AMONG THE GENTILES, A. D. 45-58. ACTS 13-21:26.
I. THE FIRST TOUR.
(ACTS 13, 14.)
1. The Missionary Impulse.-For a year Barnabas and Saul had worked together at Antioch. The church had grown greatly in numbers, and, what is far more important, in spirituality. Its liberality had been shown by sending Barnabas and Saul to Jerusalem with a contribution for their needy Jewish brethren (11:27-30). It was rich in teachers (13:1), of whom Barnabas is named first and Saul last. The work of a wider evangelization seems to have been on their hearts; for "as they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them." Jerusalem became a missionary center by the exterior force of persecution; Antioch by the interior impulse of the Holy Spirit.
2. The Visit to Cyprus.-The first field chosen was Cyprus, in sight from the main land, and the native land of Barnabas. John Mark, who had returned with them from Jerusalem (12:25), accompanied the missionaries. Preaching in Salamis, the old Greek capital, at the east end Of the island, they passed on to Paphos, the Roman capital, at the west end. Here the Roman Governor, Sergius Paulus, became a believer. His conversion was withstood by a Jewish sorcerer named Bar-Jesus. In this crisis Saul takes the lead. Conscious of divine inspira-
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tion and apostolic power, he turned upon the impostor with a withering rebuke, and announced an instant blindness as the divine judgment upon his hypocrisy. From this hour Saul is called Paul, and becomes the acknowledged leader.
3. The Tour in Asia Minor.-The missionaries next turned their faces in the direction of Asia Minor. For several years Paul had been in his native province of Cilicia. The provinces now visited lay to the north and west of Cilicia. At the port of Perga, John Mark abandoned the work, and returned to Jerusalem. Paul and Barnabas pressed on through the rugged mountain districts, beset by "perils of rivers and perils of robbers, perils from their own countrymen and perils from the heathen" (2 Cor. 11:2 6) . They visited successively Antioch in Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, and returned by the reverse route. At Antioch, Paul preached in the synagogue his first detailed sermon. Rejected by the body of the Jews, he turned to the Gentiles. "To the Jew first and also to the Greek" (Rom. 1:16),-such was everywhere the order. Everywhere their work was rich in conversions and in sufferings. At Lystra, where Paul healed a lame man, they were first worshiped as gods by the superstitious heathen, and then, under the instigation of Jews from Iconium, Paul was stoned and left for dead. Returning to Antioch elated with joy, like discoverers at the finding of a new world, they re-ported to the church which had sent them forth.
II. THE SECOND TOUR.
(ACTS 16-18:22.)
1. The Interval; The Council at Jerusalem.-New conditions give rise to new questions. The church is rapidly outgrowing its Jewish stage. But Jewish Chris-
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tians were slow to rise to the sublime universality of the gospel. The question Of receiving Gentiles to baptism and the church had been settled by the case Of Cornelius. But ought they not to be circumcised and become Jews? Was not Christianity simply a new and revised edition of Judaism? So some contended who came to Antioch from Jerusalem. The question was a grave one; it threatened the peace of the church at Antioch, and vitally concerned the future labors of the missionaries. Paul and Barnabas were therefore sent to Jerusalem with the question. At a council, presided over by James, and participated in by Peter and Paul and Barnabas, the question was decided in favor of liberty. Had it been decided otherwise, Christianity might have perished in its cradle.
2. The Quarrel Between Paul and Barnabas.-Shortly after the council, Paul proposed to Barnabas that they revisit the churches they had planted. Barnabas wished to take his nephew, Mark (Col. 4:10), again; but Paul distrusted him because of his previous desertion. The contention was so sharp that Paul and Barnabas separated. It is pleasant to know that Mark was after-ward restored to Paul's confidence (2 Tim. 4:11).
3. Second Visit to Asia Minor.-On the return of Paul and Barnabas from the council, Silas had accompanied them. Paul chose him as his traveling companion, and going overland through Syria and Cilicia, made his proposed visit to the churches. At Lystra he found a young disciple named Timothy. His father was a Greek; but he had been religiously reared by his Jewish mother, Eunice, and his grandmother, Lois (2 Tim. 1:5). He was doubtless a convert of Paul's on his first tour, and a witness of his sufferings at Lystra. One of the most beautiful traits in Paul's character was the power of
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attaching young men strongly to his own life of self-denying toil; and Timothy became from this time one of Paul's most intimate co-workers.
But Paul had larger plans than the revisiting of churches already planted; and so he pushed on to new conquests in Phrygia and Galatia. And God had still larger plans for him than his own; for, hedging him in, right and left, he led him on to Troas. There he had a vision, a man of Macedonia saying, "Come over and help us." That was a pregnant hour when Paul stood at Troas. Behind him lay Asia, with its mighty Past; be-fore him Europe; along its southern edge Rome, the embodiment of an all-powerful Present; while stretching away to the north and west swarmed the barbarians who had in their loins the yet mightier Future. "Turn your guns on Europe. Conquer the Future."
4. The Gospel Planted in Europe; The Beginning at Philippi.-At Troas, Paul was joined by Luke, as shown by the telltale "we." Sailing to Neapolis, the missionaries pushed On to Philippi, the chief city of the district. Philippi was a military, not a mercantile, city, and therefore contained few Jews and no synagogue. But there was a Saturday prayer-meeting Of women by the river-side, which Paul attended. In that river-side prayer-meeting Christianity began its regenerating work in Europe, and a merchant woman named Lydia was its first fruits. The missiOnaries soon had an unwelcome advertisement in the street cries of a demoniac slave girl. For casting the demon out Of the girl, and destroying her masters' gain, Paul and Silas were scourged and imprisoned on the charge of introducing unlawful customs. Their songs in the night, and an earthquake which swung wide the prison doors, brought the heathen jailer to his knees before them; and before the morning light he and
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all his household were baptized believers rejoicing in God.
5. From Philippi to Athens.-Leaving Luke and, perhaps, Timothy, to care for the infant church, they journeyed westward over the Via Egnatia, the great military road that connected the Black Sea and the Adriatic. Passing Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, the metropolis of Macedonia. Here Paul, "as his manner was," preached Christ in the synagogue for several Sabbaths. A few Jews and a multitude Of Greeks believed; but the unbelieving Jews, as their manner was, raised a storm of persecution before which the missionaries fled to Berea. More noble than the Thessalonians, the Berean Jews searched the Scriptures daily. Numerous converts, both Jews and Greeks, were the result. With a persistence worthy of a better cause, the Thessalonian Jews followed Paul to Berea. Gong down to the sea, Paul sailed for Athens.
6. Paul at Athens.-Athens never played so conspicuous a part in Christian as in classical history. Yet it was a deeply interesting moment when the glories of ancient Athens were first confronted with the more spiritual glories Of the cross. Paul had sent back word to Silas and Timothy to join him at Athens. Meanwhile his soul was stirred Over the splendid idolatries around him, and he set forth the new faith in the Jewish synagogue and in the Agora, or public meeting place of the city. The curiosity of certain philosophers was excited, and they conducted Paul to the Areopagus, where sat the most venerable and learned court of Athens. On that spot, so rich in historical associations, Paul delivered one of his masterly addresses, the second that has come down to us. There are striking contrasts between the first (13:16-41), preached in the synagogue of Antioch
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to an audience of Jews proud of their national history and sublime prophecies, and this second, delivered on the Areopagus of Athens to polished Greeks in the presence of the most wondrous art of all time. But though the argument and line of approach differ, the end is the same-to preach Christ and him crucified, Christ and the resurrection. But the cultured Athenians were as wedded to their philosophies as the Jews to their traditions. A few, however, were won to Christ, among whom were Dionysius, one of the judges of the Areopagus, and a woman named Damaris. From a comparison of Acts 17:15, 16 and I Thess. 3:1, it is clear that Timothy rejoined Paul at Athens, and was sent back by him to Thessalonica. Athens was one of the few cities in which Paul did not suffer persecution; but it was an unfruitful field, and he soon left it for Corinth.
7. Paul's Long Sojourn at Corinth.-In Paul's time Athens was the Boston, Corinth the New York, of Greece. Into this great commercial metropolis Paul entered with fear and trembling (I Cor. 2:3). He was weighed clown with his comparative failure in Athens. He was penniless and alone. He was obliged to resort to his trade of tent-making to supply his daily bread. But Paul was never long in finding or making friends. He soon discovered congenial spirits in his fellow trades-men, Aquila and Priscilla, who soon became disciples, if they were not already such. Working with them through the week, he preached on Sabbaths in the synagogue. On the arrival of Silas and Timothy, with contributions from Philippi, his hands were freed, and for a year and a half he gave himself wholly with great power to the work (cf. 18:5, 9, 10; Phil. 4:15). Soon after the arrival of Timothy he wrote his first Epistle to the Thessalonians (I Theses. 3:6), and some time later the second
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Epistle. These are the earliest of Paul's Epistles that have come down to us.
8. The Return to Antioch.-Crossing the Isthmus of Corinth to Cenchrea with Aquila and Priscilla, Paul sailed to Ephesus. Here his preaching in the synagogue so captivated his hearers that they desired him to re-main; but, with a promise to return, he hastened on to Caesarea, and thence to Antioch. SO ends Paul's second and wider tour. The interest is shifting to Europe, and will center at last in ROME.
III. THE THIRD TOUR.
(ACTS 18:23-21:26.)
1. Paul's Three Years at Ephesus.-After some time spent in Antioch, Paul bade a final farewell to the great missionary church. His next point of attack was Ephesus. This was the center Of interest on the third tour. It was well chosen; for what Antioch was to Syria, Corinth to Greece, and Rome to Italy and the west, that Ephesus was to the busy life Of western Asia Minor. On his way to Ephesus, Paul made a rapid tour over his former track through Galatia and Phrygia. It will be remembered that on his return voyage from Corinth to Antioch he had touched at Ephesus long enough to feel the public pulse, and had left Aquila and Priscilla there. In his absence the work Of preparation was going on. An eloquent Jew from Alexandria named Apollos had arrived at Ephesus, preaching with great power the baptism of John. Aquila and Priscilla instructed him more perfectly in the gospel. Apollos then crossed over to Corinth, and carried forward the work which Paul had so successfully begun there (cf. Acts 18:27; 11 Cor. 3:4.-7). For three months after his arrival at Ephesus Paul preached in the synagogue. He was compelled at
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last to break with the Jews, and to form the Christians into a separate community. For two years he preached daily in the school of Tyrannus, reaching multitudes of Jews and Greeks from all parts of the province Of Asia. SO great was the effect Of Paul's preaching that the trade in silver shrines Of the goddess Diana fell off. A mob of silversmiths put Paul in peril of his life. During Paul's long sojourn at Ephesus he probably visited Corinth (2 Cor. 12:14; 13:1). He also wrote the first Epistle to the Corinthians (cf. I Cor. 16:5-9; Acts 19:20, 21; 20:1). They had also written him a letter (I Cor. 7:1), and he had written one to them (I Cor. 5:9), neither of which has come down to us.
2. The Second Tour in Macedonia and Achaia.-Crossing the Aegean once more, Paul made a second European tour, of which we have few details. From a comparison Of 2 Cor. 1:8-10 and 2:12, 13 with Acts 20:2, it is clear that the second Epistle to the Corinthians was written at some point on this journey through Macedonia. Reaching Corinth he remained there three months. During that time he wrote the Epistle to the Romans (cf. Rom. 15:25, 26; Acts 20:3, 4; 24:17), probably sending it by Phoebe of Cenchrea (16:1) . At some point On this third tour he also wrote the Epistle to the Galatians; probably either at Corinth or earlier at Ephesus.
3. The Collection.-Paul longed to see the middle wall of partition between Jew and Gentile broken down. It was an end that lay near his heart. To it he gave his great life. One means he employed was a collection, which he took On this tour among the Gentiles, for the poor Jewish brethren at Jerusalem. Besides several shorter passages, the entire eighth and ninth chapters of second Corinthians relate to it. It was taken in
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Galatia, Macedonia and Achaia (cf. 1 Cor. 16:1-3; Gal. 2:10; Rom. 15:25, 26; Acts 24:17); on the first day of the week (I Cor. 16:1); and in addition to his appeals in person or by letter, he employed Titus and others to collect and forward the fund (2 Cor. 8:6, 18, 23; I Cor. 16:3).
4. The Return Voyage.-Paul purposed to sail from Corinth directly to Syria; but some unexplained plot of the Jews led him to take a roundabout route through Macedonia. A goodly company of friends, old and new, joined him in Macedonia (Acts 20:4-6), among whom were Timothy and Luke. The latter had probably remained at Philippi since the first visit there (compare the use of "they" and "we" in Acts 16:10, 13, 40; 20:6). The company spent a week at Troas, and met with the disciples who came together on the first clay of the week to break bread (Acts 20:7). This passage is important as showing (I) the day the disciples kept; (2) the manner of keeping it. It was here that Paul restored Eutychus, who fell from the window while Paul was speaking. Hastening on to reach Jerusalem by Pentecost, Paul did not stop at Ephesus, but met the elders of the Ephesian church at Miletus, where he delivered to them one of the most beautiful of all his addresses. It is an interesting illustration of the rapid spread of the gospel, that wherever they touched they found disciples: Troas, Miletus, Tyre, Ptolemais, where the sea voyage ended, and at Caesarea. Here we meet Our old friend Philip (cf. Acts 8:40), who had four daughters who were inspired teachers. Both at Tyre and Caesarea, Paul was warned of the dangers awaiting him at Jerusalem: but nothing could swerve him from his purpose to carry to Jerusalem the peace Offering from Gentiles to Jews, that for four years he had been collecting.
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5. Paul's Reception at Jerusalem.-It is now a score of years since Paul's conversion. For a dozen years he has been busy planting the gospel in the great Gentile centers. Twice or thrice he has paid hasty visits to Jerusalem. A dozen years more and Titus will be battering down her walls. Once more Paul comes; this time with a double offer-the alms Of Gentile Christians and the gospel of God's grace, which has inspired the gift. How will they receive him? The leaders of the Jerusalem church, under James, gave him a cordial welcome. But he has been slandered there as everywhere. To allay prejudice he yields to the advice Of James, and observes certain ceremonies connected with a vow. Luke does not tell us how it succeeded with the church. It failed with the unbelieving Jews, and Paul is soon seized in the temple by such a mob as he himself had headed against Stephen.
PAUL'S FOUR YEARS' 1MPRISONMENT, A. D. 58-63. ACTS 21:27-28:31.
I. HIS IMPRISONMENT AT JERUSALEM.
(ACTS 21:27-23:30.)
The events Of the next two years at Jerusalem and Caesarea may best be grouped under Paul's series of ad-dresses.
1. His Address to the Mob.-The mob would have made quick work with Paul; but, as they were dragging him out of the temple, the chief captain, with several companies of soldiers, rescued him. Obtaining permission to speak to the mob, Paul addressed them in their own tongue. This speech on the stairs is the second de-tailed account of Paul's conversion (cf. Acts 9:1-18). As was natural in speaking to Jews, he emphasized his Hebrew blood and education, his former zeal against Christians, the means by which he had become a disciple and an apostle of Jesus. They listened till he referred to his mission to the Gentiles, when the officer had to take him into the tower. Here Paul saved himself from scourging by an-appeal to his Roman citizenship.
2. His Address Before the Sanhedrin.-The next day, to learn the charges against Paul, the officer brought him before the Jewish council. Paul undertook to ad-dress the council; but an order from the High Priest to smite him quickly convinced him that he could have little hope of a fair hearing. Planting himself On the great Pharisaic doctrine of a resurrection, so hateful to
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the Sadducees, he won some measure of favor from his own sect, the Pharisees. Instantly the council fell into a fierce dispute. To save Paul from being pulled in pieces, the captain shut him up in the castle again. The next day a desperate plot to kill him was revealed by Paul's nephew, and the officer sent Paul off by night under a military escort to Caesarea.
II. HIS IMPRISONMENT AT CAESAREA.
(ACTS 23:31-25:32.)
1. His Defense Before Felix.-Paul's foes were not to be balked. Five days later the High Priest went down to Caesarea with a celebrated orator named Tertullus, to secure Paul's sentence from the governor. Tertullus opened the prosecution with flattery Of Felix and abuse of Paul. With manly dignity Paul repelled the charge of sedition, but owned himself a believer in the resurrection. Felix, evidently convinced of Paul's innocence, but unwilling to offend the Jews, postponed the case.
2. His Sermons Before Felix.-Felix had married Drusilla, wife of Azizus, king of Emesa. She was a daughter of Herod Agrippa I., and a genuine Herod. To gratify her curiosity, Felix summoned Paul to preach before them. Although his own life was at stake, Paul turned his batteries upon Felix's conscience, and so reasoned before the guilty pair of temperance and righteousness and judgment to come, that Felix trembled before his prisoner. But he put him off, and sent for him often; not to hear the gospel, but to win a bribe for Paul's release.
3. His Defense Before Festus.-After two years Felix was summoned to Rome to answer for his misdeeds, and left Paul a prisoner. Festus succeeded him. The Jews renewed the prosecution of Paul, and clamored
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for his removal to Jerusalem. Paul denied their charges; and to Festus' proposition to go to Jerusalem, which he well knew would be venturing into the lion's jaw, he replied, "I APPEAL UNTO CAESAR."
Festus answered, "To Caesar thou shalt go."
Two years before, while at Corinth, Paul had formed the purpose of a still wider evangelization. His plan was to go to Rome and thence into Spain (Rom. 15:23, 24). Once more the wickedness of men is cooperating with the purposes Of God. Though not as he had expected, Paul is to go to Rome.
4. His Address Before Agrippa.-Paul's case perplexed Festus. He was to be sent to Caesar, and yet the governor had no definite charge to prefer against his prisoner. The complaints of the Jews related to Jewish customs with which he was not familiar. Just at this time Herod Agrippa H. came to Caesarea to congratulate the new governor. Agrippa was living with his own sister, Bernice, who was as beautiful and brilliant and profligate as her sister Drusilla. Agrippa, as a Jew, felt and expressed an interest in the case, and Paul was called to speak before him. It was such an audience as he had never before addressed: a Roman governor; two of the viperous Herods, Agrippa and his sister-wife, Bernice; together with the principal army and civil officers of the Roman capital. Once more Paul rehearses the story of his persecution- of Christians, and the facts connected with his conversion. He is aiming at the Jew, Agrippa. His central purpose is to show that the gospel is from God, and fulfills the Jewish scriptures. The heathen, Festus, bluntly interrupts Paul with the intimation that his earnestness is a touch Of insanity. The polished Agrippa makes an ironical remark about becoming a Christian. The courteous Paul concludes with a beauti-
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ful wish; crowns and robes and pomp were little to him; would that Agrippa, would that all present, were such as he; then, looking at his manacled hands, he added, "except these bonds." These cold men of the world could resist the power Of the gospel, but they could not but respect the evident manliness and innocence of Paul. Their decision was, "This man might have been set at liberty if he had not appealed unto Cesar."
III. THE VOYAGE TO ROME.
(ACTS 27:1-28:15.)
1. The Ship and the Company.-Paul sailed from Caesarea late in the summer of A. D. 6o, in a coasting vessel of Adramyttium. Two tried friends accompanied him. Luke seems to have remained with or near him ever since he left Philippi, two years before. It is probable that he wrote his gospel during Paul's imprisonment at Cesarea. Aristarchus was also with Paul as a fellow prisoner (c f. Acts 19:29; 20:4; 27:2; Col. 4:10), though on what charge is not stated. Other prisoners were also in the company, all in charge of the centurion, Julius.
2. The Run to Myra.-Running along the Phoenician coast the ship touched at Sidon, where the centurion courteously allowed Paul to go ashore to refresh himself with friends. From Sidon a direct course to Adramyttium would have left Cyprus to the right; but owing to unfavorable winds they ran between Cyprus and the main land. At Myra, on the southwest coast of Asia Minor, they fell in with an Alexandrian grain vessel bound for Rome, and reshipped for the Imperial City.
3. The Great Storm.-Continuing along the coast slowly in the face of head winds as far as Cnidus, they turned abruptly to the south to gain the shelter of the
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long island of Crete. About midway on the southern coast they ran into the harbor of Fair Havens. Owing to the lateness of the season Paul advised a postponement of the volage; but following the judgment of the ship-master, they sailed On, only to be caught by a fierce northeaster, which drove them helplessly before it for four-teen days. All lost hope but Paul. A night vision from God assured him Of the wreck and the rescue of the entire company. And so it came to pass at the island of Melita (Malta). Driven upon a shelving beach, the two hundred and seventy-six souls either swam to the shore or reached it on fragments of the wreck.
4. The Winter at Melita.-The natives showed unusual kindness, building a fire for the chilled mariners. Paul, whose influence on shipboard became something remarkable for a prisoner, made himself useful on land. He was not above gathering fuel for the fire; and he healed the father of Publius, the governor, and many more who were brought to him. Such were his services that, on the departure of Paul's company in the spring, the islanders loaded them with benefits.
5. Completion of the Voyage.-Embarking in an-other Alexandrian grain ship, which had wintered in the island, they touched at the city of Syracuse and at Rhegium, and finally cast anchor at Puteoli, in the Bay of Naples. Puteoli was One of the western terminal points for the Alexandrian merchant ships, the other being Ostia, at the mouth of the Tiber. Here Paul found disciples, and from here he went over the "Queen of Roads," the Appian Way to Rome. The brethren at Rome quickly heard of his coming, and came out to The Market of Appius and The Three Taverns to meet him. Prisoner though he was, Paul entered Rome in a triumphal procession.
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IV. THE TWO YEARS' IMPRISONMENT AT ROME.
(ACTS 28:16-31.)
1. Paul's Interview with the Jews.-Paul was called to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Yet his first message was invariably to his Jewish brethren. He therefore sent at once for the leading Jews, of whom there must have been thousands in the city. At a second meeting, from morning till night, he set forth the things of the kingdom of God. The result was, as elsewhere, that some believed, while the majority rejected Christ; and, as else-where, Paul turned to the Gentiles.
2. Paul's Epistles from Rome.-During this first Roman imprisonment, Paul wrote at least four Epistles, viz.:
a. Ephesians, Colossians and Philemon.-The evidence for this is (I) Ephesians and Colossians were carried by Tychicus (Eph. 6:21, 22; Col. 4:7, 8). (2) Philemon was carried by Onesimus (Philem. 10-12). (3) The two traveled together (Col. 4:7-9). (4) Paul was a prisoner (Eph. 3:1). (5) His only long imprisonments were at Caesarea and Rome. Then he was going to Rome; now he hopes to be released and to visit Philemon (Philem. 22).
b. Philippians.-His allusion to the Praetorian Guard shows that he wrote from Rome (1:T3).
c. The Epistle to the Hebrews.-The authorship of Hebrews is in doubt. If it is by Paul, it was probably written at this period.
3. Paul's Evangelistic Labors at Rome.-Paul was not kept in close confinement at Rome. He dwelt in his own hired house, and received all who came to him. Yet, clay and night, he was chained to a soldier. But chains did not quench his Christ-like solicitude for souls.
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The Epistles Of this period abound in allusions to fruitful labors. His bonds fell out for the furtherance of the gospel (Phil. 1:12); converts were won in Caesar's household (Phil. 4:22), and even among the soldiers of the famous Praetorian Guard (Phil. 1:13), large numbers of whom must, in turn, have been chained to the prisoner. We also catch glimpses of a devoted band of congenial workers who gathered around him, and through whom he multiplies himself many fold. Among them are Timothy and Luke and Aristarchus and Epaphras, and even Mark, who in earlier days "went not to the work." And here Luke's story suddenly breaks off, leaving Paul planting the gospel on broader and firmer foundations in the world's great capital, whence it may radiate to the remotest parts of the Empire.
LATER APOSTOLIC HISTORY.
I. PAUL'S LATER HISTORY.
1. His Release; Subsequent History.-That Paul was released from his first Roman imprisonment is implied in his confident expectation of it (Phil. 1:25, 26; 2:24; Philem. 22), and confirmed by allusions to incidents and journeys that do not fit into his earlier history, and by universal tradition.
We gather from I Timothy and Titus that he visited Ephesus again, made a tour in Crete, and another visit to Macedonia and Greece. During this time he wrote the first Epistle to Timothy and the Epistle to Titus.
2. His Last Imprisonment and Martyrdom.-Paul had been released in A. D. 63. The great fire at Rome occurred the next year. To divert suspicion from him-self, the Emperor Nero accused the Christians, and began the first imperial persecution. Paul, at a distance from Rome, continued his labors for a time; but, at last, he was arrested and brought back to Rome. It is very likely that he was charged with instigating the incendiarism. His second imprisonment was far severer than the first. From his prison, in expectation of early martyrdom, he penned his last Epistle-the second to Timothy. That which most tried his great heart was the absence, in some cases the desertion, of old friends. Luke remained with him to the last. The latest light that falls on the aged apostle from the Scriptures is from the closing chapter of second Timothy; but, according to
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credible tradition, he was condemned and suffered martyrdom about A. D. 68. Paul's Roman citizenship would exempt him from the lingering death so often inflicted on Christians. He was probably beheaded outside the walls of Rome. So fell the great apostle to the Gentiles, whose life and writings are the richest legacy ever bequeathed by man to posterity.
II. LATER HISTORY OF OTHER APOSTLES.
1. Last Glimpse of Peter.-The latest reference in Acts to Peter is at the apostolic council (Acts 15:7-11). Paul, in his Epistle to the Galatians, written half a dozen years later, refers to Peter's dissimulation at Antioch (Gal. 2:9-14). The incident probably occurred soon after the council, and before Paul's second missionary tour. This is the last historical allusion to Peter in the New Testament. But two of his Epistles have come down to us. The first is written from Babylon, probably a figurative term for Rome, and is addressed to the Christians of Asia Minor (1 Pet. 1:1; 5:13). From references to Silas and Mark, it is probable that it was written between Paul's first and second Roman imprisonments. The second Epistle shows an acquaintance with Paul's Epistle (2 Pet. 3:15, 16) and Peter's expectation of martyrdom (2 Pet. 1:13-15; cf. John 21:18, 19). According to early Christian writers, this expectation was realized at Rome-soon after the death of Paul. Peter did not enjoy the rights of Roman citizenship, and suffered, therefore, like his Master, on a cross. If tradition may be trusted, he begged, as one unworthy to suffer as his Master, to be crucified head downward.
2. Later Life of John.-John very early drops out of the history of Acts. He is last mentioned in connection with Philip's work in Samaria (Acts 8:14, 25). He is
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not named in Acts in connection with the council (Acts 15); but Paul (Gal. 2:9) refers to him in that connection. Although John does not figure prominently in the work of evangelization, his writings, next to Paul's, are the most important of any Of the apostles'. The last Gospel, three Epistles and the Book of Revelation are from his pen. His later years were probably passed in Asia Minor, with Ephesus as the center of operations. He 'v banished for a year to the island of Patmos (Rev. 1:9), where he wrote the Book of Revelation. He lived till the reign of Trajan (A. D. 98-117), dying about the close of the century, the only apostle, perhaps, who did not seal his faith with his blood.
3. The Other Apostles-Conclusion.--As we have already seen (Acts 12:1, 2) James, the brother of John, early fell a martyr. It is not certain that the New Testament relates anything further of the other apostles. Two Epistles remain, James and Jude. The identity Of their authors is One of the unsettled questions, though opinion more and more favors the brothers of Jesus Tradition connects the different apostles with the evangelization Of different lands, and relates the martyrdom of all but St. John.
The obscurity resting on the last labors of all, even the greatest, of the apostles, is deeply significant. In Apostolic History the personal element is subordinate. A measure of interest gathers around men; but the supreme interest centers in the work in its ever-widening circles In the Gospel History, on the contrary, the personal element predominates. The interest centers in a person. Christ himself is always greater than any word Or work of his. NO obscurity is suffered to rest upon his exit from earth. He is the keystone to the arch-not of the Gospels alone, nor of the New Testament only, but of
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the entire Bible story. Without HIM the whole fabric would fall into hopeless ruin; with HIM it stands in matchless and enduring beauty.
SYNCHRONISTIC TABLES OF THE HEBREW KINGDOMS
The dates given are mainly those of Ussher. Recent historical criticism tends to lower the dates between Rehoboam and the fall of Samaria from forty to twenty years. From the fall of Samaria the dates of Ussher synchronize closely with the Assyrian tablets. The names of rulers are in small capitals; those of prophets in italics.
TABLE I.-THE DOUBLE KINGDOM
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TABLE I.-THE DOUBLE KINGDOM, CONTINUED
204 APPENDIX
TABLE 1.-THE DOUBLE KINGDOM, CONTINUED
TABLE II. -JUDAH ALONE
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TABLE II.-JUDAH ALONE, CONTINUED
TABLE III.--POST-EXILE PERIOD
QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW
Introduction.-I. Why study Bible History? 2. How does Bible History differ from General History? 3. Name and define the three ages. 4. Name and define the twelve periods of O. T. History.
Antediluvian Period.-I. Define "Genesis," and give examples of its use. 2. What the real problem in the genesis of the universe? Illustrate it. 3. Give different solutions and the Bible solution. 4. What was created on each of the six clays? 5. Of what three things is "create" used? 6. What is the characteristic of man? 7. In what respects is man in God's image? 8. In what respects does the creation record agree with science? 9. What is the theme in Gen. I-2:3; in Gen. 2:4-3:24? to. \\'hat fixes man's first abode? What lesson in the creation of Eve? II. What was man's moral state? 12. Trace the course of sin, and of return to God. 13. What the natural result of sin? what the judicial penalty? 14. What the first promise of Christ? 15. Name the differences in Cain and Abel. 16. Give the characteristics of the line of Cain and of Seth. 17. What corroborations of the deluge? 18. What the moral causes? to. What the means of the deluge?
Postdiluvian Period.-I. What was Noah's first act after leaving the ark? 2. State the main points in the covenant with Noah, and the sign of the covenant. 3. What prophecy did Noah make? 4. In what order did Noah's sons develop into great empires? 5. What nations descended from each. 6. How was the tower of Babel opposed to God's plan? 7. Why is the line of Shem given?
Patriarchal Period.-I. What was the mission of the He-brews? 2. Who were the "Pilgrim Fathers" of the Hebrews? 3. What two main divisions of Abraham's life? 4. Name and locate Abraham's birthplace. 5. State the four promises of the Abrahamic covenant: how was each fulfilled? 6. Who went
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with Abraham from Ur? 7. Trace his movements from Ur to Hebron. 8. Give an account of the Chaldean invasion. 9. Who was Abraham's second wife, and who their son? 10. What two signs sealed the covenant? 11. Who was saved from Sodom, and who were his descendants? 12. Give an account of Abraham's greatest trial. 13. Name the wife and sons of Isaac. 14. What do Jacob's two names mean? What incidents illustrate his first name? 15. What occurred in his flight to Haran? 16. What were the events at Haran? 17. How and why was his name changed? 18. How does Joseph's relation to his people differ from that of the earlier patriarchs? 9. What the two chapters of his life? 20. What the causes and effects of his father's favoritism? 21. What the events of his slave life? 22. What the cause and the incidents of his courtier life? 23. What the historic facts of the book of Job? 24. What the body of the book; what its purpose?
Period of Bondage.-I. Give the three periods of Egyptian history. 2. In which period did the Hebrews enter Egypt? 3. In which period was the exodus? 4. Who is the chief character of the bondage and exodus? 5. Into what three chapters is his life divided? 6. Give an account of the first two. 7. What was the nature of the contest with Pharaoh? 8. What the need? 9. What the results? 10. What three effects of the sojourn in Egypt?
Period of Wanderings.-I. What were the events on the march from the sea to Sinai? 2. How long was Israel at Sinai? 3. What covenant was here made, and how ratified? 4. Give the ten commandments. 5. Who had been priest in patriarchal times? 6. What tribe was chosen now? 7. Who became High Priest? 8. Name and describe the three annual feasts. 9. Give size, divisions, and furniture of the tabernacle. 10. What three classes of animal offerings, and the meaning of each? 11. De-scribe the national apostasy at Sinai. 12. What gave its name to the book of Numbers? 13. What incidents from Sinai to Kadesh? 14. What occurred at Kadesh? 15. What at the second sojourn at Kadesh? 16. Where did Aaron die? 17. What kings east of Jordan were conquered; what tribes settled in their territory? 18. What king and seer sought to curse Israel? 9. What make up Deuteronomy? 2o. Where did Moses die?
Period of Conquest.-I. Who was the new leader? How
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did his work differ from Moses' work? 2. What river between Israel and Canaan, and how crossed? 3. What the first camping place, and what occurred there? 4. What the gateway to Jericho, and how taken? 5. What the key to central Canaan? 6. De-scribe Shechem, and what was done there. 7. Describe the league with the Gibeonites; what was the battle of the long day, and who victorious? 8. Who headed the northern confederacy, and where defeated? 9. How was the land divided? Io. Where was Joshua's farewell?
Period of Judges.-I. Summarize Israel's condition. 2. Give causes and consequences of their idolatry. 3. Describe the Judges. 4. Describe the political condition. 5. What three ties held Israel together? 6. Name the six invasions, with the leader against each. 7. Which were Israel's worst foes? 8. Tell the story of Ruth. 9. Who was the most important character from Moses to David? lo. Give a summary of his work.
The United Kingdom.-I. What was the original government of Israel? 2. What led to the monarchy? 3. Who was the first king? 4. Describe his private anointing and public election. 5. Describe the victory that led to his coronation. 6. Describe the battle of Michmash. 7. What led to Saul's rejection? 8. Who was anointed in his stead? Describe the battle of Gilboa. 9. What were the characteristics of Saul's reign? 10. State David's place in history. 11. What are the five epochs of his life? 12. To what village, family, and tribe, did he belong? 13. Give an account of his private anointing? 14. Why was he first called to Saul's court? 5. What led to his remaining there? 16. Give an account of the second epoch. 17. What were the chief events of his outlaw life? 18. What opened the way to the throne? 9. What city did he make his capital? 20. How long did he reign over Judah alone? 21. Who ruled over the rest of the nation? 22. What led to the submission of all the tribes. 23. What city was now made the capital? 24. How extensive was David's empire? 25. What troubles in the latter part of his reign; what their cause? 26. What were the characteristics of his reign? 27. Who succeeded David? 28. What troubles at first? 29. Explain his wise choice and give illustrations of it. 30. Give size and description of Solomon's temple. 31. With what countries did he trade? 32. In what three ways did Solomon violate the law of the king? 33. How did he violate the fundamental law of theocracy? 34. When does the
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era of prophets begin? 35. What literature belongs to the era of David and Solomon?
The Northern Kingdom.-Give the earlier and the immediate causes of schism. Compare the two kingdoms in (I) territory, (2) population, (3) religion, (4) stability. What are the four periods? Give account of Jeroboam. Who founded Samaria? How was Baal worship introduced? Give a history of Elijah. What was Jehu's work? Who was the greatest king of the Northern Kingdom? Who were the leading prophets? What became of the Northern Kingdom? How long had it stood?
The Southern Kingdom.-How many dynasties and centuries in the history of the Southern Kingdom? Give the four periods. Name the kings in the first. What calamity under the first? Who were the reforming kings? What foreign invasion in Asa's reign? What matrimonial alliance in the next reign? Give an account of Athaliah. Who was the worst king in the second period? Who the reforming king? What celebrated invasion in his reign? What great prophet at this time? Give an account of Manasseh's reign. How old was Josiah at his ac-cession? Describe his work and death. What great prophet in his reign? How many kings followed Josiah? What powers were they vassals of? What had become of Nineveh? What becomes of the Southern Kingdom? How many successive captivities? Give an account of each.
Period of Exile.-What became of Jeremiah and the remnant with him? Where did Daniel and his three friends go? Give events in Daniel's history. Give the incident of his three friends. Where was Ezekiel taken? Flow many others? Who wrote them a letter, and why?
Post-exile Period.-What prophets foretold the return? How long was the exile to last? How many periods of return? Who headed the first? What work did he accomplish? What enemies did he encounter? What prophets aided him? Who led the second return? How long after the first? What reforms did he promote? Who was the last to return? Give an ac-count of his work. At what point in the history does the story of Esther come in? Give it. Who was the last Old Testament prophet? What his closing prophecy? How long till the next prophet?
Interval Between Old and New Testaments.-What two
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important movements in these four hundred years? What the sources of our knowledge? Give the six periods, with dates. Give origin of Samaritans, and character of their religion. How did Alexander deal with the Jews? What was the most note-worthy event in the third period? Give an account of the fourth period. Who were the Maccabees? What did they accomplish? What Roman general made Palestine a Roman province? Give a sketch of Herod the Great. What changes took place during these centuries in (I) occupation, (2) language, (3) religion? What sects arose, and what their peculiarities?
PART SECOND-N. T. HISTORY.
Introduction.-What changes in the names of the land and people? Name and describe the five divisions of Palestine; give chief cities in each. Name the Roman Emperors at (I) the birth of Christ, (2) during his ministry, (3) during later N. T. History. Who was the local ruler at Jesus' birth? What provinces did he rule? Who were the four Tetrarchs? what each one's Tetrarchy? What became of Archelaus? what change was made in his province? who ruled it at Jesus' death? What was the kingdom of Herod Agrippa I.? What the territory of Herod Agrippa II.?
GOSPEL HISTORY.
Introduction.-What O. T. lines point forward to Christ? What N. T. lines point back to Christ? What facts show Christ to be the central figure in history? What are the four sources of gospel history? Which of the biographers of Jesus were apostles? Which were fishermen? Which was a physician? Which a tax collector? Which wrote for Jews? what the evidence? Which wrote last? What important thing did he omit? Explain the term Synoptics.
The Birth and Infancy.-Explain the three visions. How did it occur that Jesus was born at Bethlehem? Who were first to worship Jesus? Who were the group around him in the temple? Who came from the Gentile world? What was the cause, what the result, of Herod's edict?
Period of Preparation.-Where was Jesus brought up? How does our gospel differ from Apochryphal gospels? What educational influences would Jesus enjoy? What is the lesson of the silent years? What ministry preceded that of Jesus? What prophets had foretold it? What proof of John's power?
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Was his preaching preparatory or final? What shows it to be so? \\ hat ordinance did he practice? How did Jesus' baptism differ from ours? How did it resemble ours? Where did Jesus go after his baptism? What is the key to his temptation? State the three temptations, and explain each.
Period of Obscurity.-How long is this period? why so called? In what provinces was it passed? Who has preserved the record of it? Who were the first disciples? What and where the first miracle? What other city in Galilee did Jesus visit? What two differences from John's ministry are noted? In what city did Jesus begin his Judean ministry? How did he begin it? Did he work any miracles there? Did the rulers accept him as the Messiah? What ruler was an exception? Where the closing months of the Judean ministry spent? What evidence that it was fruitful? Why did Jesus leave Judea? To what province did he go? What conversation on the way?
The Great Galilean Ministry.-How long is this period? What city the center? What its four characteristics? Into what five stages is it divided? What village did he visit first? what the result? To what city did he go next? In connection with what miracles were the four fishermen called? How did this call differ from the earlier one? What were the events of the first Sabbath in Capernaum? What great tour followed? What the general effect? Who first began to criticize, and why? What disciple made a feast for Jesus? Why was it criticized? Who was the first person raised from the dead by Christ? What parenthetical miracle occurred? What distant city did Jesus visit at this point, and why? What three Sabbath criticisms were made? For what purpose did Jesus choose the apostles? Name them. What great sermon followed? To whom, and before whom, was it given? Who was the second person raised from the dead? What message, and why, did John send to Jesus? What was Jesus' testimony concerning John? What change did Jesus make in the form of his teaching, and why? Relate the events of the night after the great day of parables. What famous miracle east of the sea? What use did Jesus make of the twelve? Give the circumstances of the Baptist's death? What miracle is recorded in all four gospels? What sermon followed? why was it a turning point? Did Jesus attend the third Passover of his ministry? What new aspects of Jesus' Galilean ministry in its fifth stage? What provinces were vis-
212 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
ited? What incident in Phoenicia? \\ hat important questions at Caesarea Philippi? What the answers? What coming event does Jesus dwell much on at this time? Give an account of the transfiguration. What did it mean to Jesus? what to the disciples?
Closing Ministry.-What events begin and close the period? How long is it? What difference between Jesus' plans and those of his relatives? What the events at the Feast of Tabernacles? Where did Jesus spend the two months till the Feast of Dedication? What teachings and what new mission? Where did Jesus go after the Feast of Dedication? What interrupted his ministry there? What was the effect at Jerusalem, of the miracle at Bethany? Give an account of the character and results of the Perean ministry. What miracle and what conversion on the final journey to Bethany? Near what city did they occur?
The Last Week.-Give an account of the anointing at Beth-any. How did it differ from the earlier anointing? On what day did the triumphal entry occur? What were the causes? Why did Jesus allow it? How did he intimate the nature of his reign? What were the events of Monday? What was the last day of Jesus' public ministry? What was the greatest day? What series of questions? What group of parables? What the character of Jesus' last address in the temple? What the last incident in the temple? Where did he deliver the discourse on his second advent? What parable and scene closed the discourse? Where did Jesus spend the night? What was Judas doing? What do we know of Wednesday? Give an account of the last supper, and events connected with it. Give an account of Gethsemane.
The Forty Days.-I. What reasons had the disciples to expect Jesus' resurrection? 2. Why did they not expect it? 3. What are the three essential miracles? 4. Who were first at the sepulchre? 5. Give the ten recorded appearances of Jesus in order. 6. To whom did Jesus give his final commission? 7. What previous missions in the Gospels? 8. How did this differ? 9. Where were they to tarry, and for what? to. From what place did Jesus ascend to heaven?
BOOK II.-APOSTOLIC HISTORY.
Introduction.-I. What are the sources of apostolic history? z. What is the better title for Acts, and why? 3. How many
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Epistles, and how many from Paul? 4. What three points of contrast between Gospel History and Acts? 5. Give the Four Periods covered by Acts, with dates.
Founding and Growth of Church in Jerusalem.-I. Who formed the nucleus of the church? 2. Who was elected to fill Judas' place? 3. What was an essential qualification of an Apostle? 4. When did the Baptism of the Spirit occur? 5. What were the accompaniments? 6. What the effects on the disciples? 7. What is evidential value? 8. What the effects on the multitude? 9. What truth does Peter's sermon establish? so. What are his four proofs? u. What five results? 12. What was the cause of the first Jewish persecution? 13. What disciples were the first to die? Give the circumstances. 14. What was the effect of their death? 5. How many disciples were involved in the second Jewish persecution? 6. What part did Gamaliel take? 17. What was the distinction between "Hellenists" and "Hebrews"? 18. What difficulty arose? 19. How was it settled? 20. Who was the first Christian martyr? 21. What sect had been the first persecutors? 22. What sect and what man now became active?
Extension of Church Throughout Judea and Samaria, and Transition to the Gentiles.-I. What people became the half-way house to the Gentiles? 2. Who preached to them? 3. Who went from Jerusalem, and for what purpose? 4. Give the origin and meaning of "Simony." 5. Give an account of the conversion of the eunuch. 6. What was the most vital event after Pentecost? 7. How often told? 8. Trace Paul's conversion and early labors. 9. Through what apostle was the transition made to the Gentiles? so. How were the two men prepared for the event? 11. How was the case viewed at Jerusalem? 12. How did Peter defend his course? 13. What other class began to preach to Gentiles? 14. What new center and leader? 15. What new name and where first used? 6. Who began the fourth Jewish persecution? 17. Who was beheaded, and who imprisoned?
Paul's Missionary Tours.-I. What teachers at Antioch? 2. How had Jerusalem become a missionary center? how did Antioch become one? 3. Name the missionaries of the first tour, and the places visited. 4. Where did they convert a governor and meet a sorcerer? 5. Where did Paul preach his first detailed sermon? 6. Where was Paul stoned? 7. What question arose between the first and second tours? how settled? 8. What
214 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
trouble between Paul and Barnabas, and how settled? 9. \\ hat region did Paul first visit, and what new companion did he find there? Io. What led him to Europe? Ii. What the beginning place in Europe, and what converts there? 12. Whom did Paul leave at Philippi? 13. What places did Paul visit between Philippi and Athens? which were the more noble? 14. Where did Paul preach at Athens? 15. Was his work fruitful there? 16. What city did Paul next visit, and how long did he remain? 17. What difficulties at first? 18. What new friends? 9. Who joined him there? 20. What Epistles did he write? 21. What city did he visit on his return trip to Antioch? 22. What city was the center of interest on the third tour? 23. What famous preacher visited it in Paul's absence? 24. Who instructed him more perfectly? 25. What Epistle did Paul write at Ephesus? 26. After leaving Ephesus what provinces did Paul visit? 27. How long did he remain at Corinth? 28. What letters did he write at this second sojourn there? 29. Who joined Paul on the return voyage? 30. What occurred at Troas? at Miletus? 31. What old friend do we meet at Caesarea? 32. What double gift does Paul bring to Jerusalem? how was Paul received at Jerusalem?
Paul's Four Years' Imprisonment.-I. What two addresses did Paul make at Jerusalem? 2. What addresses at Caesarea? 3. What led to his being sent to Rome? 4. Who were Paul's companions on the voyage? 5. Who had charge of him? 6. Where was the ship from, and how far did they sail in her? 7. What course did they take from Myra? 8. Give an account of the storm. 9. Where did they winter? 10. Where did the voyage end? 11. By what road did they reach Rome? 12. Who came out to meet Paul? 13. To what people did Paul always first preach? 14. How long was Paul imprisoned at Rome? 15. What Epistles did he write during that time? 16. Among whom did he make converts? 17. Who were his co-workers?
Later Apostolic History.-I. What places did Paul visit after his release? 2. What Epistle did he write? 3. How did his second imprisonment compare with his first? 4. What Epistle did he write? 5. Who remained with him to the last? 6. How did he probably die? 7. In what year, and under what Emperor? 8. What is the last New Testament allusion to Peter? 9. What parts of the New Testament did he write? Io. What tradition about his death? Ir. What the last notice of John in
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Acts? 12. What books did he write? 13. Where did he spend his last years? 14. How did his death differ from that of the other apostles? 5. How much is known of the other apostles? 16. What two other books of the New Testament, and who their authors? 17. What difference between Gospel History and Apostolic History?
The Bible is the most creative book in the world. No one library, however extensive, contains all that has been written to elucidate Bible history, geography and customs. No attempt is here made to make an exhaustive list of books. Those selected include both older and newer works, such as may be found in public libraries, and, many of them, in private libraries. The viewpoint varies and the student should always read with discrimination.
Andrews: "Life of Christ."
Barclay: "City of the Great King."
Boardman: "The Creative Week."
Breasted: "History of Egypt."
Blaikie: "Manual of Bible History."
Briggs: "Messianic Prophecy."
Burton and Stevens: "Harmony of Gospels."
Broadus: "Harmony of Gospels."
Broadus: "Jesus of Nazareth."
Bruce: "The Parabolic Teaching of Christ."
Bruce: "The Training of the Twelve."
Bartlett: "The Apostolic Age."
Baedeker: "Syria and Pales-tine."
Bible: The American Version of 901, Nelson.
Caldecott: "The Second Temple in Jerusalem."
Cornill: "History of the People of Israel."
Cook: "The Authorized Bible and Its Influence."
Conder: "Judas Maccabaeus."
Coneybeare and Howson: "The Life and Epistles of St. Paul."
Driver: "Introduction to the Old Testament."
Dods: "The Bible: Its Origin and Nature."
Day: "The Social Life of the Hebrews."
Edersheim: "Bible History" (six volumes).
Edersheim: "Life of Christ."
Edersheim: "Jewish Social Life in the Time of Christ."
Errett: "Evenings with the Bible" (Volumes I. and II.).
Ewald: "History of Israel."
Farrar: "Life of Christ."
Farrar: "Early Days of Christianity."
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BIBLIOGRAPHY 217
Farrar: "Life of St. Paul."
Farrar: "Seekers After God."
Farrar: "Darkness and Dawn."
Friedlander: "Roman Life and Manners Under the Early Empire" (three volumes).
Fulleylove and Kelman: "The holy Land" (beautifully illustrated).
Fairbairn: "Studies in the Life of Christ."
Fisher: "Beginnings of Christianity."
Green: "Introduction to the Old Testament."
Geikie: `"Hours with the Bible" (six volumes).
Geikie: "Life of Christ."
Graetz: "History of the Jews" (six volumes).
Gibson: "Ages Before Moses."
Gibson: "The Mosaic Era."
Guthrie: "Representative Characters of the Old Testament."
Gladden: "Who Wrote the Bible
Hastings: "Bible Dictionary."
Hurlbut: "Manual of Bible history and Geography."
Hilprecht: "Explorations in Bible Lands During the Nineteenth Century."
Houghton: "Hebrew Life and Thought."
Ingraham: "The Pillar of Fire."
Ingraham: "The Throne of David "
Ingraham: "Prince of the house of David."
Josephus' Works.
Krummacher: "David, the King of Israel."
King: "The Ethics of Jesus."
Kent: "Origin and Permanent Value of the Old Testament."
Lord: "Beacon Lights of History" (the volume on "He-roes and Prophets of the Old Testament").
McGarvey: "L ands of the Bible."
McGiffert: "History of Christianity in the Apostolic Age."
McCurdy: "History: Prophecy and Monuments" (three volumes).
MacCoun: "The Holy Land in Geography and History."
Mathews Shailer: "History of New Testament Times in Palestine."
Merrill: "Ancient Jerusalem."
Masterman: "Studies in Galilee."
Moulton: "The Bible as Literature."
Mackie: "Bible Manners and Customs."
Matheson: "Representative Men of the Bible."
Matheson: "Representative Women of the Bible."
Matheson: "Representative Men of the New Testament."
Men of the Bible Series: "Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; Moses, Joshua, Gideon and the Judges; Samuel and Saul; Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, the Kings of Israel, the Minor Prophets."
Men of the Bible Series: "Jesus, the Christ; St. Paul."
218 AN OUTLINE OF BIBLE HISTORY
Otley: "A Short History of the Hebrews."
Peake: "Introduction to the New Testament."
Purves: "Christianity in the Apostolic Age."
Peabody: "The Social Teachings of Christ."
Peabody: "Jesus Christ and the Christian Character."
Price: "The Monuments and the Old Testament."
Price: "Ancestry of Our English Bible."
Palestine Exploration Fund; Survey of Western Pales-tine.
Palestine Exploration Fund; Survey of Eastern Palestine.
Palestine Exploration Fund; Memoirs.
Paton: "Jerusalem in Bible Times."
Robinson: "Physical Geography of the Holy Land."
Robinson: "Harmony of the Gospels."
Riggs: "A History of the Jewish People."
Renan: "Life of Jesus."
Renan: "Life of St. Paul."
Ramsay: "St. Paul, the Traveler and Roman Citizen."
Rhees: "Life of Christ."
Stanley: "Sinai and Palestine."
Stanley: "The Jewish Church."
Smith, George Adam: "Historical Geography of the Holy Land."
Smith, George Adam: "Jerusalem from the Earliest Times to A. D. 70" (two volumes).
Standard Bible Dictionary (Funk and Wagnalls).
Stalker: "Life of Christ."
Schurer: "Jewish People in the Time of Christ."
"Story of the Nations" series, the following volumes: "Chaldea," "Assyria," "Persia," "Egypt," "Phoenicia," "The Jews."
Stout: "Trial and Crucifixion of Christ."
Sanday: "Outlines of the Life of Christ."
Trumbull: "Kadesh-barrca."
Taylor: Five volumes of Old Testament biography as follows: "Moses, the Law-giver"; "Joseph, the Prime Minister"; "David, the King"; "Elijah, the Prophet"; "Daniel, the Be-loved."
Tucker: "The Life of the Roman World of Nero and St. Paul."
Taylor: "Peter, the Apostle."
Taylor: "Paul, the Missionary."
Taylor: "The Parables of the Saviour."
Trench: "Parables of Our Lord."
Thompson: "The Land and the Book" (two volumes).
Vernon: "The Religious Value of the Old Testament."
Willett and Campbell: "The Teachings of the Books."
Zahn: "Introduction to the New Testament" (three volumes).